Stitched with Love Exchange

I recently participated in my first Stitched with Love exchange.  The theme was Fall into Autumn. I sent a package to one partner and received from another, lots of fun. 

For my partner,Cherise, I stitched a pattern from Helga Mandel called Autumn Pinkeep.  It was in one of my old The Gift of Stitching e-magazines.   It is no longer available on her website.  I finished it into an ornament that Cherise can hang in her kitchen or in a window.  The back is covered with burnt orange fabric and I used jute to cover the edges.  The exchange required some additional stitching items be sent as well.  I added some floss, patterns, beads, fabric and a packet of Bohin needles which are my absolute favorite needle for cross stitch.

Autumn Pinkeep
Helga Mandel Designs
28ct Tea Dyed Monaco
Variegated DMC Floss #69

Package of goodies sent to Cherise

In return, I received a very generous package from Becky.  Lovely fabric, patterns, floss, aida, evenweave, tissue, note pads, patterns, and a beautiful fall stitched piece of trees.  Loved every bit of it.  Thanks so much, Becky!!

Lovely packet goodies received from Becky

Enjoy!!

CJ

Two Finishes and the Red Headed Stranger

It has been forever since I have posted and I have really missed it.  I have rarely been on blogger since school started because I am always at the school volunteering so much that I can't see straight.  I am ready for a volunteer break!!

I have two project finishes to share with you that I stitched up for the Quilts for Older Children and Adults Yahoo Group.  I love this group and I find myself stitching a lot for them.  I also finished a floss tag for an exchange on Stitch-n-Swap 2 Yahoo Group Summer Exchange.

Rose Heart
14ct White Aida
DMC Floss
Finished Aug 2012

Butterfly
14ct White Aida
DMC Floss
Finished Sep 2012

 

 

Floss Tag
Design The Needles Content
18ct Hand Dyed Aida from Enchanted Fabrics
DMC Floss
Finished Aug 2012

 

Finally, I would like to finish with a picture of The Red Headed Stranger that my daughter took while attending her very first concert with her Dad on the 9th of October.  This may be the last time we get to see Willie, he is 79, surely he will retire on day--I would at that age.

 

 

Wille Nelson
Oct 9 2012
Wichita Falls, TX

 

 

Enjoy!!

 

 

CJ 



 



 

Stitching Exchange

Yesterday, I received my Stitch-n-Swap2 exchange package from Dee in Tennessee.  I was really pleased with my new treasure.  Dee made a needle book for me with a Ladybug on the front and my last name initial on the back.  She also sent me 2 skeins of Dinky Dyes Silks. It is adorable and ladybugs have a very special meaning for me and my kiddos.  Thanks so much, Dee.

Enjoy!!

CJ

Another Friday Update!!

Hello April!!! I will be soooo glad when school is out for summer, only 8 weeks to go. I have been busy with PTA, School Health Activities, subbing, sickness, etc. I am glad that April is here, now I can think about putting out some flowers to pretty up my yard. Leaning towards making a small butterfly garden in the back for the kids to enjoy. We seem to have lots of butterflies in North Texas so I might as well invite them to visit us.


Stitching Update
I have been stitching allot. So much that I feel I am losing control of my projects. I managed to finish my PS Snowman exchange after having to re-stitch the entire piece. Really like the way the second ended up and I think my exchange partner liked it as well. It is the second PS winter themed piece that I have stitched on hand dyed blue 16ct Aida called Royalty from Enchanted Fabrics. The picture does not do it justice, it is really cute with the blue background. I either need a better camera or some basic photography lessons. Perhaps next time I will try hubby's camera.

Prairie Schooler Santas and Snowmen Booklet #151

This is the original snowman I stitched with errors. Even though it looks okay, there are mistakes in it and I will not send something with noticeable stitching errors. I was able to save it just need to finish it off with some ribbon so it can be an ornament for my tree this year. It is stitched on 14ct ivory Aida with DMC floss.

My Blue Ribbon Design SAL, "Stop and Stitch the Flowers" is coming along very nicely. It is a fun project and I really love the colors. It will hang in my kitchen once it is finished.




Finally started stitching the Gazette 94 SAL, after struggling with material color and changing the floss colors three times before settling for a medium blue and pink on hand-dyed Aida. Needless to say I am far behind on this project and I need a few, actually several, late nights up stitching to catch up.

This is a freebie from Gazette 94 that I finished while visiting my MIL during Spring Break with my three kiddos. I was able to get lots of stitching done at her house and it was quit enjoyable. I plan to finish this as a flatfold. It is stitched on 28ct hand dyed Monaco call Blood Moon. I used DMC #500 floss and I love it.


I am also stitching some Floss Tags with a simple flower design for an upcoming Swap-Bot exchange. One one of my exchange partners is a fellow stitcher from the Chatty Stitching Exchangers group on Yahoo. How funny is that, I am excited to be sending her something that I have made. Hope to have the stitching done this weekend, so I can spend next finishing them up and mailing them off to their new homes.

Card Making

I have been making cards for Swap-Bot exchanges. Hope you like what I have done so far. I even covered a chocolate bar and decorated some tea bags with paper for another exchange. It looks much nicer to open a packet with a little decoration than a just a simple bar of chocolate and a card.

See ya!!

CJ

It's A Friday Update

Boy, where has this month gone. Whew, February has just flown by us like a whirlwind. This has been a busy month for me and my family with PTA functions, subbing and then there was illness. Yes, everyone in my family was sick this month including me -- I had the dreaded Pink Eye, yuk!!! But that is all behind us now we are just suffering with allergies in North Texas since the trees have started to flower, hurrah, now pass the tissues.

Stitching

Yes, I did a little stitching this month. I made my first flatfold, actually made six of them. I started my Blue Ribbon SAL, really need to get cracking on that one. Completed a Snowman for a Prairie Schooler exchange and I finished the scissor pocket for my MIL's birthday, she loved it.

Hummingbird Scissor Pocket, pattern from Cross Stitch Happy, stitched on 14ct Pink Aida with DMC Floss, green beads were used for leaves. This was my first scissor pocket and I am pretty pleased with the outcome. My MIL loves birds so I thought this design was perfect for her.

Speaking of stitching let me tell you about my PIF; well, I will update you on my PIF. Some of you will remember way back in July I decided to run a PIF and asked folks that were interested in the PIF to comment and I would pick three to send something I stitched. Well I only had four people sign up so I decided to include all of them. So now I am ready to mail my packages and I can only contact two of the four, Meari and Angela. So Diane and Lynda I need you to contact me at texdelch@sbcglobal.net with your snail mail so I can send this to you. I have worked really hard to make these PIFs special so please contact me.

I ordered some fabric from Enchanted Fabrics for the Gazette 94 SAL. I just did not have anything in my vast inventory that suited this particular project. Speaking of fabric, be on the lookout for a fabric give away in the near future. I really need to thin out my fabric stash.

What Else Have I Gotten Myself Into

Hum, lets see. A week or so ago someone posted about Swap-Bot exchanges. I had never heard of this before and being the curious person I am I just had to check it out. Now I am signed up for two Swap-Bot exchanges, one for tea and the other for note cards. I just couldn't help myself. Decided against joining the stitching exchange since my "stitching plate" is full right now.

A Little About Cooking

If you enjoy cooking with your Crockpot then check out this blog, A Year of CrockPotting. I heard about it on a post around the holidays and I have been following along. Her year long adventure has got her a book deal and appearances on Rachel Ray and Good Morning America. Now you can't beat that for cooking with the Crockpot for an entire year.
I plan to try the Indian and Thai Curry recipes she got from Rachel Ray. Today I am cooking Pork and Kraut in my CrockPot. Yummy!!!


See ya!!

CJ

Happy November!!

Okay, I know it is the 10th already, but Happy November anyway!! Whew, I was very happy to see the backside of October what a busy month for me. Unfortunately, the months ahead will be just as busy with Thanksgiving, hubby's retirement from the AF, nephew graduation from University of Oklahoma, and finally Christmas. No biggie, that is what life is all about so I am going to make the best of it.

I do want to share a few things with you that I received in October from my different groups. I opened two of the packages today; what can I say I have been busy and I do not like to open the packages when my kids are home--I'm sure many of you can understand why.

Cross Stitch Friends

As October was Breast Cancer Awareness Month the CSF color for October was pink. I received a great exchange from Barb. She really spoiled me with Playtex gloves, a notepad, car air freshener, three ribbons, three skeins of floss, lip balm, a BCA Ribbon Clip, gum, and pink beads. Thanks Barb, I am officially spoiled.

I also participated in a Halloween Pinkeep Exchange. Lucy send me the sweetest little witch and friends pinkeep that I will display with others that I have received. Thanks Lucy, you did a superb job on your first pinkeep, I am very proud to have it.

Chatty Stitching Exchange

In this group I received a Kitted Up Freebie from Amy. October's theme was Santa, the patten she chose is from Just Another Button Company called No Interruptions Day. She included everything I would need to completed the entire project, material, buttons, floss and ribbon. I really enjoy JABC patterns and I look forward to stitching this one. Thanks Amy, I look forward to stitching him up.

Stitch It Quick

This month we had our first Speciality Floss and Needle Exchange. Carol sent me floss from Threadworx, some needles and a notepad. Thanks Carol, I adore the colors you chose and I cannot wait to use them.





Needless to say it was a great month for exchanges. Enjoy the pictures.


See ya!!

CJ

Happy Monday Update!!

Can you believe that it is already the middle of September. Time is flying by. These last few weeks have been so busy, PTA, SHAC, kids, school, doctor visits and then a trip to see Granny. Whew!!!

SISTERHOOD
It is official I am now a member of "The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pattern". The pattern, Waxing Moon Designs #119, arrived from Jennifer on 5 September. I have been too busy to do anything with it other than choose a fabric color, I am going to stitch her on 14ct light blue fiddlers. Now I just need to pick the floss colors, I will probably stick close to the pattern, but you never know. More to come on this subject.

FLOSS TAG/PIF
Not only did I complete my very this weekend, I also received the most fabulous floss tag with scissors from Staci. It was part of a PIF and I am sooooo lucky to get this from her. She is an extremely talented stitcher. I have decided that her floss tag will go on display, never to be used it is just to beautiful.

My Floss Tag

Floss Tag and Scissors from Staci

EXCHANGES
I received two fantastic exchanges on my Cross Stitch Friends group. From Nora, my BFF since teenage hood, a great Christmas package. She sent three skeins of WDW floss, one that I will definitely use on my little one's name flake. A great Mill Hill kit, my very first one, scissors, needles, thread heaven (thanks, I needed some more) and some mints that I will have to hide from my DS, he is addicted to mints. JoAnn, aka Kaghos, sent me a great Dog Days of Summer package. Plenty of treats to keep me energized as I stitch, lovely herbal teas, a Lavender and Lace pattern, a sweet little froggie to ward off the RIPIT demon, as well as blending filament and some seaside embellishments. I have truly been spoiled. Thank-you both.

Christmas in August from BFF Nora

Dogs Days of Summer from JoAnn

BASKET
Do you remember this basket from post on a few weeks ago, well it has a new look. I bought some flowers from Michael's and voila, it is now a nice Fall centerpiece for my table. I think I should be able to use that for years to come.

SO WHAT IS NEXT
I am still working on my PIFs, I intend to send them in November. I have a CSF Halloween Pinkeep, PS Fans Ornament to stitch and I must get cracking on the Sisterhood project.

I wish all of you a great week and I send you all a big THANK-YOU for stopping by. I really am grateful for all your comments.


See ya!!

CJ

Sunday Stitching Update

Where to begin? Friday night was only the second time since returning home from Cincinnati that I had a chance to stitch anything. It always takes me a awhile to get back in the groove at home after returning from a long trip. I spent the week unpacking, cleaning house, grocery shopping, washing the dog, doing laundry, watering plants, visiting with neighbors, and you know it just goes on and on. You know what? I still have loads of laundry, my bedroom and the dining room to sort out. It is still a mess and I have trouble functioning when things are a mess. But that is not what I am here about so let's get on with this update.

PS Fans

In June I participated in a pinkeep exchange. This was the first pinkeep I had ever made. I did post a picture of my stitching but not of the completed project. I wanted to post a picture of it once I knew it was in the hands of its new owner. So here it is for all of you to enjoy. I posted a picture of the pinkeep that I received from Janet in June.

PS - Prairie Birds, Hummingbird
16ct Oatmeal Aida with DMC

CSF

When I returned home from Cincinnati, I found a nice package waiting for me from Kim. It was the June color exchange. She sent me a box full of pink goodies, 3 skeins of floss, bread cover, 2 packs of Mill Hill Beads, mini memo pad with pen, note cards, and a magnetic list pad. Very thoughtful exchange from her. I have signed up for the next group of exchanges with CSF and I can't wait to get started putting my packages together.

More Stuff

I have been making a few changes to the blog and added a playlist with some of my all time favorite tunes, majority from the 70's. If you get the chance checkout Heartland Needleworks, it is a new stitching shop I found that is in Oklahoma City. You can shop on-line and shipping is free in the US. The owner is doing great things to promote the craft in her area and I look forward to visiting her shop someday.

See ya!!

CJ