Trying new things

It is a new year and I'm trying to do some new things - not like exercising more, or eating healthy or not spending money- I've already shown that I'm not good at those things. I'm looking at other pursuits that are new to me. One of the things I've tried is adding a blog list to my blog that updates -- do you see it there on the right? You can click on them and you'll be whisked away to their blog.

Figuring this out stumped me for quite a while. Honestly, Blogger hides things in the strangest places. I'll be adding more blogs as I go along. The more I play on the web the more I wish I knew. I've even entertained taking classes in Informatics which is a new area of study that deals with human-computer interaction and information science and technology. But then the technology part kinda made my head hurt, so I don't think I'm going to do it. It is a master program at a local college but I really only want to know for my own curiosity, I don't have any interest in getting a job with it.

So I turned to other creative endeavors and tried my hand at finishing some of my own cross stitch. Not the big framing - I'm leaving that to Bev at Joanns, but finishing a small cushion type pincushion. Ta-dah!!!




Isn't he cute?? This is one of those little cards that Prairie Schooler use to give away to advertise their new releases. I purchased all 3 of the packs that are available now with a variety of different little pieces and this one spoke to me the loudest. These are the other packs - B and C. I stuffed him with bits of fiberfill in the corners and crushed walnut shells. (Does anyone ever get to the end of a bag of crushed walnut shells? I've had this bag for a year and every time I go to use some it doesn't seem any lighter.) I beaded the outside edge with Mill Hill seed beads. (Stasi - you'll love this) This pack of beads has been well aged. The sticker on the back says "Twisted Threads"(my favorite cross stitch shop ever) and the date 5/93. Which means the beads are 19 years old, proving you never know when something crafty is going to come in handy - LOL!

Ok - this might make you squeamish so, you can skip this next paragraph if you want.

And yesterday I got the opportunity to try my hand at rodent control. I went to fill my bird feeders and the containers of seed are on my screen porch. One container had a very tight fitting lid, the other one has a bit of a gap at the hinge. Well, I opened the one with the gap and auuuugggghhhhhhh!!! there was not one but two very well fed but very stiff dead mice in the container. So I stood there and contemplated my options - I could wait for someone of the male variety in my family to come home and rectify the situation, or I could take care of it myself --- and I did. The slotted scoop I use for Big Dude's litter box was perfect for removing the little rotters from the seed and I not so gingerly deposited them in the compost pile down over my backyard hill. Now I can add vermin removal to my every growing resume.

Okay - if you skipped to this paragraph just know that I am multi-talented woman - LOL! So other new ideas I want to play with involve cupcake papers and jewelry make with shrink plastic and UTEE(ultra thick embossing enamel.

While I was at Micheals I picked up this notebook - another mantra I can live by.




And in trying new things I've learned that from now on, I'll stick with the crafty pursuits and leave rodent control to the professionals.

Happy stitching-
carol fun

A sunny Design Wall for a gray and snowy day

This is the first Design Wall Monday of 2012 and I am ready! Today I have finished my Carol's Star blocks (or as they are more wordily known as - the 16 patch checkerboard sawtooth stars).



To say this is a bright quilt is a bit of an understatement. It is very very yellow and the large scale florals are bold and bright too. I love how it all came together.



Now it isn't as "purchase free" a quilt as when I started since I had to add some larger sized cuts of yellow to my stash to make the setting triangles, but I'm okay with that. I'm happy with all my yellow purchases and the majority of them were at least 40%, so they were a bargain. And I know they will come in handy in whatever other yellow projects I come up with this year- and I will come up with some. I already have one percolating in my brain because I bought 4 yards of this beauty.(I know only 4 yards, the restraint is killing me - LOL!)



This is from the Half Moon Modern collection. I got mine from Fabric Shack. I haven't bought any other pieces from this collection yet, because I'm mulling over what I want to make with this line. I love all the colors but the gray. I know it is the "in" color but I'm just not feeling it. I need to look through my books and find the perfect quilt for this collection. Since the scale of so many of the prints are large I'm thinking something using a layer cake might be a good choice.

Now I need to get a back made for this quilt and there has to be something in my stash I can use. Which is good since that will make room on the shelves for more new fabric. Its a vicious cycle, isn't it? LOL

So what to sew next? I have a little snowman wall quilt I want to make to sit on the mantle behind my army of snowmen. And I want to do the Full House Schnibble that is the choice for this months Another Year of Schnibbles. All I know is I resolve to work on whatever catches my fancy at the moment and there needs to be no guilt. (I have a family that is more than happy to supply all the guilty feelings I can handle - LOL!)

Happy stitching-
carol fun

Happy New Year on this Sampler Sunday!

Another year begins and I have a little piece to show that sums up a philosophy I truly believe in.....



Sewing mends the soul! At least it mends mine! I am so grateful that as a young girl I was taught how to sew and crochet which lead to making quilts, clothes, cross stitch, knitting and lots of other crafty things. When I'm involved in a creative project it makes me feel good inside and out.

This is the Blackbird Design, Ann's Sewing Tray, from their book A Schoolgirl's Work. I used the recommended overdyed flosses and a piece of linen from my stash. There are several small pieces in this book that I want to stitch. I already have a couple kitted up and waiting to be started.



I like this frame for this piece. It has a bit of a patina to it that complements the stitching - IMHO.

As a young child I was told that the way you spend New Year's Day is how you'll spend the rest of the year, so today I ate lunch at a restaurant and I'm having carryout for dinner. I've knitted, I've cross stitched, I sewed up a quilt block and I took a little nap. Notice I didn't cook or clean. I would like this day to repeat itself on many many many occasions throughout 2012.

Thank you to all who read this crazy little blog. I appreciate you stopping by and love reading your comments. I hope that 2012 brings the best of everything to all our lives!

Happy stitching-
carol fun

What have I done this week?

Have you wondered? Oh I hope so. Well, I haven't been on a tropical holiday. No, instead I have been waiting (not patiently) at home for my local cable provider to come and fix my internet connection. It began with a call to them the day after Christmas asking to again fix a problem they assured me was taken care of a month ago. And yes, they had fixed it then, but it had reverted to the same situation and only they could rectify the problem, which they did for approximately 12 hours and after that I had no internet at all. Great. So you call and within the first 10 seconds you want to bang your head against a wall. First, they suggest you contact them on line - um, yeah, I have a problem with that. Then they tell you that the call may be monitored - WHY??? It takes forever to get to talk to a real live human being! After spending 40 minutes or more (mostly more) on the perpetual phone roulette wheel, if you do get to talk to a person even the most even-keeled customer is going to be cranky and annoyed. (I am not the most even-keeled person, just so you know.)

However the upside of no internet access was that I got to work on several projects. First, I finished another pair of plain stockinette socks.



The yarn is Opal and I like how the green bits kinda looks like trees or a waterfall. (Or maybe lack of internet access has cause me to hallucinate- LOL!)


And I got more blocks sewn up for the 16 patch sawtooth star blocks - or as I call them Carol's Stars. (another delusional moment)



This quilt top should be done in time for Design Wall Monday. Check back.

Additionally there was much cross stitching. The Boughs of Holly is complete and has been whisked off to the framers. And I am having a lot of fun with this LizzieKate Winter Alphabet.



I'm using a lovely 32 count Belfast linen called Ice Blue and DMC floss. There is such a nice feeling of satisfaction when I finish a letter and I love all the different frames around the letters. I will be doing the other seasons of this design.

I also worked on my hand made Christmas presents for my friends, and yes I am aware it is after Christmas, but we all agreed to postpone till after the family festivities were over. So when I found out the deadline had been moved back I do what I always do - I put them aside and ignored them. Fortunately I felt some motivation to work on them yesterday. I will post pictures after they have been gifted.

Tomorrow is New Years Eve - do you make resolutions? Click here - this sums up my philosophy on resolutions.

Happy stitching-
carol fun

Merry Christmas

Wishing all of you wonderful people who read my blog the Merriest of Christmases and the Happiest New Year! I wish I could send all of you a card but since I can't I'll send you a picture of the ones I made this year. He reminds me of the decorations of the 50's - my childhood!



Hope this season gives you plenty of wonderful memories!



carol fun

The stockings are hung...

...and the tree has been trimmed...



... and I am pooped! Every year it seems to take me longer to get these jobs done. Don't get me wrong I love Christmas I just get stressed out trying to do it all, when in fact I'm doing less and less. It does look pretty when you get it up, doesn't it?

Now I showed close ups of the stockings last year (you can look at the Sunday entries for December 2010). They are from my needlepoint period and boy was I ambitious back then. I will say my boys, who are now young men, still love their stockings so I did okay. The tree is a kitchen sink tree - we put lots of different stuff on it. There are lots of colored lights, bubble lights (I remember these from my childhood and my kids love them too). There is a nice helping of Hallmark ornaments including a bunch of light and motion ones that make the tree kinda hum when you plug it in.There are vintage ornaments from my childhood and little sequiny ones my Mom made. And there is a sprinkling of cross stitched pieces too. I want to do more of them in the coming years.






Here is a close up of our tree topper - an angel with two little lambs - all pink and girly and pretty and yes she is crooked at the top of the tree. I need someone taller to come home and straighten her out.



I think I'm done buying gifts. I have some grocery shopping to do tomorrow and then I'll "wrap" gifts on Friday. I don't actually "wrap" them, instead I put the items into fabric bags that I've sewn up from Christmas fabric. We've been doing this for several years and the whole family enjoys it. I've made bags of all sizes and we tie them shut with sparkly pipe cleaners so everything is reusable year after year. I've seen this suggested as a "green" Christmas idea but I do it because it is pretty and it is easy - I like easy.

So now I'm going to sit in my chair and admire my handiwork and do a little stitching. Life is good!

Merry Christmas!
carol fun

Santas and other Seasonal Stuff for Sunday

I have another 2 Santas to show this Sunday - Viking Santa and Old Man Santa - I know they aren't clever names but its the best I can do at the moment.


I was going for an Eric the Red vibe with this one - bushy red beard and I used bits of a metallic leather to "lace" up his boots. I think the little tree and red bird are a nice touch.



Old Man Santa got a full helping of decorative stitches - long stitch in mohair for the beard, sheared stitch for the fur trim, scotch stitch in 3 different fibers for his robe.



On Friday night I was quite optimistic with my sewing plans and some of them came to fruition. I got the binding on my Flurry quilt and I got the Mary Engelbreit Schnibble quilted but I didn't get any pictures of them yet. And I even got a table runner made for the table in my front foyer. It was a simple disappearing nine patch done with a Christmas line of Basic Grey from a couple of years ago.



I should have taken the picture before I put it on the table but you can see it beneath my Nativity set which is another needlepoint project from years ago.



I stitched this Nativity set when my oldest son was about 1 year old. I wanted a set that wouldn't break if he "played" with it and I loved the look of these figures. They were designed by Polly Carbonari- she did a lot of cross stitch designs too. They have a very simple folk art appearance that looks like a child might have drawn them.



I stitched these up using wool, perle cotton and metallic threads with everything outlined in a black perle cotton. Joseph has a dimensional beard. Mary and the baby Jesus are done very simply.



Here are the shepherds and the camel that the three wise men brought.



And these are the three wise men with the donkey that Mary rode.

Now there is one thing about this set that makes me shake my head every year when I put it out -how come the camel is pointing in the opposite direction of the wise men? I always want to put the camel near the wise men but somehow it never looks right. Oh well, I just chalk it up to the charm of the set.

Friday night I was quite productive, followed by Saturday where I got nothing done! Is that cosmic payback? I didn't feel well all day and just vegged. Today I did get a few things done - grocery shopping and I worked on my Christmas cards. I can't believe how fast Christmas is approaching. December really should have more days in it.

Here's hoping we all have a very productive week ahead!
Happy stitching-
carol fun