Dani picks a winner

I was out for lunch today with Dani - the Dani that started me on this journey - at our favorite restaurant - The Lone Star Bar and Grill and so I had her pull the winning name from the Ziplock of Destiny LOL

Dani

and the winner is

BERIT!

Congratulations Berit. I have sent you off an email.


P.S. I have had a couple of packages sent to me that were redirected back to their owners. I moved last fall and have a new  Canadian address. If you would like my new address for your files please contact me at drewsgrands@hotmail.com and I will be happy to provide it. 

Blogaversary #4

 Four years ago today Dani talked me into starting up a blog. I had just finished Celtic Banner and she convinced me to share it and go from there.
It has been a wonderful four years! I have met many new stitchers. They are as varied as the grains of wheat. They have laughed with me, cried with me and more importantly stitched and frogged with me.
Thank you one and all for sharing these past four years.

In honor of the blogaversary, I will having a giveway. It will be a gift certificate to Knowledge and Needles.
You know the drill - comment on this post.. You do not have to be a follower - but that would be nice. You don't have to post to your blog or add a button. If I have enabled you in some way, I would love it if you would share but it's not necessary. I will draw a name on the May 23rd.

Good luck everyone.

4 cans of paint

That's right - 4 cans of oil-based, heavy-spatter paint!!!! The worst paint I have ever used! All that to cover the ceiling and walls in a garage that was used as a smoking room for 20 years. But - it has done the trick. The brown walls and ceiling are gone and the smell has dissipated completely. I hope I never have to do that again.

What does that have to do with stitching? Well, nothing really but it's the reason I'm overdue posting to my blog.

 I did receive the most wonderful package in the mail this week. Margaret sent me some gifts. .Margaret's husband is an avid nutcracker collector and his collection makes mine look small. I sent him a Canadian Mountie nutcracker a while back. You can see him on Margaret's blog.
He and Margaret sent me a Sinterklaas (Dutch Santa) nutcracker and matching ornament. Included was a lovely Cricket Collection pattern called "Spring" and a skein of the ever elusive DMC 931. It was a wonderful treat and greatly appreciated. Thank you so much to Margaret and her DH.

It has been another week of stitching whatever called to me. I think everything did.

I stitched on Fairies in the Garden - a couple of mushrooms and a fairy.

I stitched some more of the wings on that darn angel - not much worth a photo but a couple more strands.

I stitched and restitched on Snowflake Serenade. LET IT SNOW was stitched twice.  I was out by a row. I think I have stitched every section of this piece twice.

I pulled out Mirabilia's Valentine Fairy. She has not seen daylight in a while. I added her wings both left and right side.

Then it was Sampler de Bouquet's turn. I finished the pot of flowers. I am very happy with my progress on this piece. 

I am off to visit with Dani this weekend. She is hosting a stitching weekend and Beatrice and I are going to join our friends for some quality stitching time. I am looking forward to catching up with everyone.

I am behind on my blog reading but will try to catch up now that I don't have to spend every minute at the end of a paint brush and roller. 

My blogaversary is coming soon!

Until next time - may all your stitches be in the right place the first time!

TUSAL and Indecision Central

Hello my fellow stitchers.

I have stitched on every thing I could find and got a lot of nothing done. Do you ever get a week like that? I just couldn't seem to settle on one piece and work with it.

For all that stitching my TUSAL dish is not very full!

Maybe it is because I left my precious martini glass in Arizona and my threads are not drunken orts this time.

I completed the back stitching on my Fairies in the Garden - at least until I ran out of Kreinik. I then stitched a bit on bottom right of the next page and ran out of 270, 271, 272 for the leaves. Hmmm - not good. I will pick these up when I go to Knowledge and Needles this week.

I stitched some more of the wings on the Angel that I volunteered to do for someone else. This opalescent thread is horrible to stitch with. I do not like working on pre-stamped fabric. The chart is impossible to understand.  I am not enjoying this one at all. Ok, have I grumbled enough. I wish I had kept my mouth shut lol.

I picked my Snowflake Serenade and put it back down - not a stitch.

I took out my Etui, ironed the fabric, pulled the threads and got ready to grid. Then I discovered I was missing CC Joshua Tree. A call went out to my dear friend Margaret who will send me off a skein. It is so nice of her to do that for me. To buy one skein would cost me three times as much for shipping and she has offered to pick up threads for me when that happens. She is the best.

I picked my my Sampler des Bouquets. I LOVE this one. It just flows along so smoothly. It is such a joy to stitch. It calls to me often. 

Do you notice a pattern of missing threads here? Me too! Maybe there are just too many things on the go and my threads are everywhere but in the project that I want to work on now. I must take the time to go through my threads and refresh my supply.

I have been very remiss in reading your blogs. DH and I also had to go out of town for a few days for a funeral and I did not take my computer with me. I promise to get to those blogs very soon. I miss seeing what you are all up to. You keep me inspired and ohhhh so very busy.

And a little note - my Blogaversary is coming up soon - so stay tuned!!!

Until next time, my stitching friends, I hope the only frogs you see are on someone's dinner plate.

Fellsmere, Florida - Frog Leg Festival - January 19-22, 2012

Frog's legs anyone!