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Wow! It's hard to believe it's the end of January already! And it's the final day of my month long celebration :o( I've been having so much fun (and I hope you have been too) that I'm sorry to see it come to a close. But don't worry, there will be other giveaways in the future ;o)
Here is the last batch of items to be placed in the big green bag -
January 25 - a retractable tape measure. Perfect size for carrying around with you :o)
January 26 - a 3.5 x 5 inch wood frame. You know you can always find something to stitch that will fit in there! LOL!
January 27 - a complete kit by Pine Mountain Designs called August Is Cookin'. Gotta love these pre-finished projects ;o)
January 28 - two new patterns. Love Blooms by Mosey N Me and Christmas Ornaments 2 by Prairie Grove Peddler.
January 29 - a white theme...a piece of 20 x 24 inch of white Monaco and a card of white 3/8" Pull Bow Ribbon (6 yards). If you have trouble making bows, this will do the trick!
January 30 - five ceramic Mill Hill buttons. Four trees (two different styles) and one teddy bear :o)
January 31 - and finally...two pieces of hand-dyed fabric! One 9 x 13 inch 28 count Opalescent Lugana (Mystique Cafe Mocha) by Enchanted Fabrics and one 17 x 14 inch 28 count Linen (mystery color but I think it might be called Pepper) by R&R Reproductions.
You may have noticed a Just Cross Stitch magazine in the picture as well. That's because I'm going to swap the January 11 item. I did have the November/December 2010 up but I'm going to replace that with the January/February 2011 issue. I hope you don't mind. My rules anyway ;o) LOL!
I'm also going to include a little something from my province; a Nova Scotia lanyard. I find these perfect for attaching my scissors to while I'm in the car. That way you always know where they are!
There's still a bit of time left to enter so remember to comment on the first post in order to get your name thrown in the hat. PLEASE read all the rules beforehand! Tomorrow I will use Random.org to choose the winner and then post that name here. Good luck everyone :o) 
Yes! Yes, yes, YES! I did it! I met my January goals :o) I know it's not the end of the month yet but I doubt I'll complete another project in the next few days. LOL!
Here is block one of Christmas Rules by LK -
I love the little cardinal :o)
So here's what the whole thing looks like so far -
I apologize for the terrible pictures. You really can't see just how warm that Light Mocha fabric is.
Not only did I finish a WIP but I managed to squeeze in my SAL AND an ornament sized project during the month of January. I'm very pleased :o) Next month I'll tackle block two of Christmas Rules and start my SAL with Jenn. Sabrina is also going to be coming back out. I see there were some worries out there that Lady Of The Mist might take over but I'm a one woman girl ;o) "Not that there's anything wrong with that!" ~ Seinfeld.
On Friday I had another good mail day when a package arrived from Nia :o) We did a swap and this is what she sent to me -
I wanted one of the gorgeous table runners that she had on her Blog and I wasn't disappointed! Nia snuck in some lovely ribbons and those can always be used :o) Hopefully my package will get to her just as quickly. Thank you Nia!
It has begun! Of course I procrastinated and waited until the end of the month. Nia and I are stitching this together and will be doing one block per month. The only exception is the month of January where we need to stitch the header along with the first block. I won't lie, I was worried...but last night I put the final stitches in that header and now it's DONE!
I love the colors. I splurged and went with the hand dyed fibers :o) I'm stitching mine on 32 count Light Mocha linen. This afternoon I put a good start on block one so I'm really happy and I know I can make my deadline. Phew!
It was an awesome mail day today because I got my order from 123 Stitch -
My dear friend Karen bought me a gift certificate from there for Christmas :o) I've always wanted Lady Of The Mist by Mirabilia so it was excellent timing. Of course the beads jumped in there as well. LOL! Now I'll have to decide what color fabric to stitch her on. Don't get too excited because she won't be started anytime soon! Thank you again Karen :o)
I am SO pumped! Today was my third week of aerobics and I actually feel like I have more energy. Not to mention the fact that I AM getting more coordinated ;o) No, I won't be on Dancing With The Stars in the near future but at least my body is figuring out that my arms and legs CAN do separate things at the same time. LOL! Who would have thunk?
Today it's sunny out, with no snow, but the wind is wild and C-O-L-D! This is the first real cold snap that we've had here. I really shouldn't complain ;o) I figure it's a good time to get some work done and post another round of goodies for you!
January 18 - a serious stitcher has to have more DMC ;o) Here's another eight new skeins of floss (Ecru, 815, 3024, 3362, 3363, 3364, 3371 and 3866).
January 19 - a stitcher has to have beads as well! I'm including one package of Mill Hill Petite Glass Beads (42027) and one package of Mill Hill Glass Seed Beads (02019).
January 20 - I can't forget that blending filament that we love so much ;o) Included are two spools of Kreinik (001 and 100).
January 21 - this poor pattern looks well used but I found it in a second hand shop and thought it might appeal to those sampler lovers out there. It's called Sampler Stocking III by Mary Beale. It's copyright 1985 so I don't know if it's OOP or not.
January 22 - buttons! Buttons are always good to have in our stash :o) This is a package of Dress It Up buttons in squares and circles. Perfect for LK, BC, HIH or snowmen patterns!
January 23 - I figure you'll need more finishing stash as well so here are two fat quarters. I love the paw prints :o)
January 24 - how can you finish something without ribbon? So here are two spools; one a brown satin and the other a blue grosgrain.
Only one more week to go! Are you getting excited? I know I am :o)
There's still time to enter so remember to comment on the first post in order to get your name thrown in the hat. PLEASE read all the rules beforehand!
I want to thank everyone for their kind, kind words on my last post. It made me feel a bit better knowing that there have been others in similar situations. I'm still expecting to see or hear Popcorn so she is still missed but I do hope that she finds the right home. I have faith that she will.
Sigh! I have some sad news to share with you all. It's something that I had been fighting with for months and finally I had to make a decision on what to do.
Yesterday I took Popcorn back to the shelter :o( This was not an easy thing for me. I SO wanted a bunny back in my life but for some reason the special bond that I was looking for never developed between us.
As sweet as Popcorn could be sometimes, she was quite aggressive most of the time. She loved to be petted but hated to be picked up. The whole time she was here was basically a training period and I've never had to put that much work into a bunny before. Please don't take that the wrong way! Most relationships happen naturally but I would have continued to work with her if I thought things would have changed.
I was so hurt when the shelter told me that "Adopting a pet is a huge responsibility and it takes time, patience, love and commitment..." Yes there have been a few times when pets have not worked out for me but the majority of the time they have. I had my bunny Scooter for almost seven years and Pickles for eleven. They were both with me until they died. If that's not commitment, I don't know what is.
But that bond that I was hoping for with Popcorn just wasn't there, even after seven months of work, and it's not something you can force. I just didn't feel that maternal instinct. I had it with Scooter, with Pickles and most of all Brie. It was so strong that I would have killed if someone harmed them.
In the end though I am disappointed in myself because I feel like I have failed Popcorn :o( I hate seeing animals shuffled from home to home and I only hope that they will find the right home for her next time. If there is one blessing in this it's that Popcorn totally made herself at home when we got to the shelter :o) That was the very last thing I expected of her! It made it a 'bit' easier to leave her behind.
I am missing her and keep looking for her. I want to call out her name when I walk into my craft room. It will take some time to adjust. For now our house will remain bunnyless but at least the memories will still be there :o)
Last night DH and I went to see the movie The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest at our local theatre. It was phenomenal!!!!
If you are not familiar with this movie, it's the last of a trilogy and based on the books by Stieg Larsson. The weird thing is Stieg Larsson passed away 'before' his books were published so he never got a chance to see what a success they were.
The first is called The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo -
Who is this girl? Her name is Lisbeth Salander and she's played by Noomi Rapace. I'm not used to foreign films but I have to say that these were a delight to watch and even though they had sub-titles, it didn't bother me at all or distract from the acting.
The second is called The Girl Who Played With Fire -
By this point you've become one of Noomi's biggest fans. She plays the part of the heroine so well. Foreign films are so much more graphic than Hollywood films so I'm giving you a head's up. I have to say that it does add to the realism and draws the watcher in that much more.
The third and final is called The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest -
Now you absolutely love Lisbeth's character and you're part of the cheering squad. You even get to feel a little smug :o) That's all I'm going to say...
How do the books compare to the films? To be honest, the first and third were VERY well done. For me, the only thing missing in the first film was the depth of the relationship between the characters. In the third film, there were a few parts missing and changed around but if you didn't read the book beforehand, it wouldn't be something you would question or wonder about. As for the second movie, DH and I were quite disappointed :o( It was the shortest of the three and there was a lot left out.
If you're looking for a good read, I highly recommend this trilogy! It's been quite awhile since I've read a book in which I didn't want to put down.
Would you believe that when we arrived home at 10pm, there was a mosquito on our front door? I don't think the rest of his blood sucker friends told him it was supposed to be winter here ;o)
I went a little astray but I figured that since I already had all the threads out, I might as well complete the mate to Cuddle Up Snowmen 3 :o) Here is Cuddle Up Snowmen 2 by Stoney Creek -
I love his little jacket. He's just so cute :o) I'm still not sure about the green fringe on his scarf. It was supposed to be red but I thought there was too much red in him already and changed it out. DH said he liked it so I guess it will stay.
Here is a picture of the two together -
The pillows aren't the same colour. One is antique white and the other a light tan. They still go well together though and I'll keep them out on display for a little bit longer so that I can admire their cute little faces a bit more :o)
If you happen to look at my list of goals for 2011, you'll see that I considered this an ornament sized finish. When I categorize my patterns, I do so by stitch count and not by the size it will be when completed (32 count vs. 12 count, blah, blah, blah). These snowmen were 45 x 45 so as you can see, definitely ornament size when you look at it that way. Make sense?
A few days ago I started Christmas Rules by LK. I'm so excited about this project because Nia and I are doing it as a SAL :o) My plan is to have the header and first block done by the end of January and then a block a month until December, when it should be completed...
Today was my second low impact aerobics class and I seriously thought I was going to die! Once the class was over, K and I sat down and weren't in too much of a rush to leave. It was a good workout! I'm very pleased with the instructor though. Considering that I have Fibro, I am able to get out of bed the next day. Of course I have the typical soreness that accompanies exercise but it's not making me bed ridden. I also like the fact that I have K there to give me incentive :o) We ROCK! LOL!
I can't believe how time flies! We're now onto week 3. I hope you have enjoyed what you have seen so far :o) It's so fun picking out items to put up each week. Are you ready? Here you go -
January 11 - the November/December 2010 issue of Just Cross Stitch. This is new but I do see a rip on the front cover :o( That may have happened while it was piled under all my rubble...
January 12 - this isn't really stitchy related but I thought a cute puppy calendar would be nice. Hey, you can keep track of you stitching with it! The picture on the front is my favourite ;o)
January 13 - how can one stitch without floss? Included is 8 skeins of DMC (white, 371, 372, 564, 606, 725, 986 and 3756).
January 14 - another new pattern! This is called Fall Baking by Of Generations Past.
January 15 - so far there hasn't been any fabric so this will get you ready for Christmas :o) It's hard to see in the picture but it's a piece of 28 count silver/white Metallic Lugana, 18 x 13.75.
January 16 - another new pattern but this one includes the threads AND a sterling silver charm! This one is called Me And Thee by Charland Designs. Perfect for Valentine's Day :o)
January 17 - and the final item for this week is a heart tin frame by Twisted Threads. I've had this in my stash for years now and have never stitched a pattern for it. I'm passing it on in hopes that it will be used :o)
Before I forget, I want to welcome all the new Pumpkin Stalkers to the Pumpkin Patch. It's been nice to see new faces and to check out your Blogs as well :o) I hope you will enjoy future visits here. The Patch is a pretty laid back place that not only combines my love for cross stitch and photography but it does have a little sense of humour too. LOL!
Sigh...I hate to do this but I feel I must :o( For those of you who want to enter this giveaway, PLEASE read ALL the rules (and there aren't many) on this post before commenting. If you can, let me know what your ID is if it's not easily picked out among the Stalker list. Just because you follow me in your Google Reader does not make you a Follower of my Blog. To have your name entered, you have to comment on that first post as well. If you leave a comment on another post, your name will not be entered and I will not track you down. Sorry but that's not my job ;o) I would hate to see anyone left out so if you have any doubts, please check the comment section of that first post to make sure your name is there. Thank you!
Please stay tuned for my second finish :o) WOOHOO!
Oye! It's Thursday already! I have no idea where this week has gone.
Don't worry folks, I'm still among the living although I feel like crawling under the covers and dying a slow death :o( Thanks to DH (yes, I'm going to blame him), I caught the nasty cold that has been going around. Luckily it's not as bad but combine it with a visit from Aunt Flo; I'd say it's on the same level. I'm going to play it to the max anyway ;o)
Now that the holidays are over with, I'm trying to get my life back into some kind of 'normal' routine. Easier said than done! On Tuesday, I started my acupuncture again. I missed about three weeks and it wasn't hard to tell that my anxiety level was sky high. What a difference this makes in my life. Hopefully this will help me settle down so that I can get some stitching done. I should have a finish to show you soon!
Yesterday I started something new :o) Thanks to my friend K (yes, I'm going to blame her), I am now enrolled in a low impact aerobics class until the end of March!
It's only once a week (TG!) but I hope by the end of it, I'll have a little less around the middle and a little more on my backside. LOL! The instructor wanted to know what kind of exercise experience I had and this is what I explained to him -
Apparently lifting the television remote isn't considered exercise. Huh!
It is quite apparent though that I do NOT possess any form of coordination WHATSOEVER. If my legs are doing one thing, my arms can't do something else at the same time ;o) Talk about embarrassing! At least there was one other woman with the same problem so I didn't feel quite that left out.
We got hit with a snow storm last night but it didn't amount to much. Today it's like a spring day! The sun is out, the temperature is mild and what snow we got is already melting :o) Yay! I know not everyone got off as easy as we did. But as DH says...we live in the 'banana belt'. I love our little piece of paradise!
It's that time of week again when I reveal more goodies! Are you prepared? Just think, last time you only got to see three day's worth. This time I have seven days of stuff for you to feast your eyes on and I hope you won't be disappointed ;o)
January 4 - I'm including one of my own handmade tuck pillows :o) These are great for that instant finish gratification. I left a (very) small hole at the bottom so you can stuff it or leave it flat; whichever you desire!
January 5 - since I won the whole Dinky Dye silk collection, I thought I would share some of the silks that I have. I mean hey, am I 'really' going to use all of this silk???? Probably not in this lifetime. LOL! These three skeins came from one of their OOPS packs.
January 6 - another pattern. This time Colors from Crossed Wing Collection and its brand new.
January 7 - how can you stitch something without a cute pair of scissors? I had picked up the regular embroidery version of these breast cancer scissors quite awhile ago and then the other day I found the stork style in the same pattern. And yes, I did buy a pair for myself too ;o)
January 8 - For The Love Of Cross Stitch was one of my favourite magazines so I'm always on the search for issues that I don't have so that I can complete my collection. I came across a stack of these this past summer and ended up buying two that I already had. These are second hand but always a nice addition to anyone's stash! The issues are July and November 1989.
January 9 - plastic floss bobbins are always a great idea! There are 17 and with the hole at the top, I think they would be great for those hand dyed fibers. That way you can keep them gathered together on a huge ring.
January 10 - speaking of rings...how about a brand new package of them for those floss tags that everyone loves to make? There are 8 in the package, 1.5 inches in diameter and come in four different colors (gold, green, red and blue).
Remember, if you would like to get your name in on this giveaway, please read the rules and put a comment on THIS POST only!
We still have three weeks to go :o)
Woohoo! It took two car trips to NB to do it but I finally got the first completed project under my belt :o) Here is The Merry Skater by LHN -
I don't think I've EVER frogged so much on one piece before in my life! I'm going to attribute that to stitching in the car. Yeah, that's sounds good...
I made two small changes. First off I changed the color of her hair so that it matched mine a little better :o) Then I only used one strand of floss to backstitch the ribbon she is holding.
Now that I have done the Happy Skater and The Merry Skater, I'll have to make some time to finish them into ornaments. Yes, I'm a little late in doing this but at least they should be done and on my ornament tree this coming Christmas ;o)
So that means I have completed one of my 2011 goals and got one of my WIP's out of the way. Ahhhh, that feels good!
Next up will be Christmas Rules by LK. I want to have the heading and the first block done by the end of January. I'm doing this as a SAL with Nia. We've already decided that we're going to do the new Halloween Rules together in 2012 :o) I mean, how CUTE is this new series????
I want to thank everyone for their kind comments on our loss. The memorial service was very lovely and it was so nice to see friends that we haven't seen in quite awhile. DH and I left a white NB with snowflakes flying but arrived back home in NS under twilight skies with bare ground. Yes, we do live in a small oasis ;o) Until this morning that is -
It looks like the s-n-o-w followed us home >:o(
O-M-G! Have you seen the latest patterns by Blackbird Designs and Country Cottage Needleworks???? I'm in HEA-VEN! Be prepared to drool...
First off is Pumpkin Farm by Blackbird Designs -
How gorgeous is this???? Love the colors! Does this have Pumpkin written all over it or what? ;o) LOL!
Next up is Bunny Hop by CCN -
Cute, cute, CUTE! Gotta have, gotta have, GOTTA HAVE! Mine, mine, MINE!
Sigh, my stitching goals may be blown out of the water already ;o)
On a sad note, DH and I are leaving for NB tomorrow as a very dear friend of the family passed away :o( This gentleman was so kind and talented. He will surely be missed by all who knew him.
Because of this, I will be away from Blog reading. Have I mentioned how behind I am???? Eep! I will be bringing my computer with me but I'm not sure how much time I'll have. I may just be checking emails. Anyway, I apologize now for not getting around to everyone but I will eventually, I promise :o)
As promised w-a-y back in this post, I will be holding a month long giveaway to celebrate my 200+ Pumpkin Stalkers!!!! Woohoo! I am so pleased that so many of you think that my Blog is interesting enough to follow ;o) LOL!
So what does this mean? Well, for every day of this month, I will add a prize(s) to the box and on February 1, a winner will be announced :o) Just think of the loot! Since I don't have the time to post an individual picture each day, I will post a group picture every Monday instead. Most of the items will be cross stitch related. Some will be new, gently used or from my stash.
Now the rules are simple... First, you MUST be a Pumpkin Stalker (either old or new). Second, you MUST leave a comment on THIS POST only! If you leave a comment on another post, it will not be included in the draw. And finally, you MUST leave me your email address or have some way for me to contact you if you are the winner. Easy peasy :o)
Do you want a sneak peek of what's to come? No? Ahhhhh, I thought you said yes ;o) Here are the prizes for January 1-3 -
January 1 - a HUGE tote from Stitches N Things! I had three of these so I figured I could part with one ;o) These are great for carrying around big projects. The bag measures 20 x 15.5 inches.
January 2 - the pattern Summer Flies by Shepherd's Bush and it includes the button!
January 3 - a tin because we all know how much fun it is to finish one of these.
Good luck everyone and I hope this will be as fun for you as it is for me :o)
Happy New Year everyone! I hope you all had a wonderful (and safe) evening :o)
With a new year come new stitching goals. I've been thinking about these for about the past month now. It really is serious business you know! LOL! Since I'm not going to add to my neurotic behaviour and join the Crazy January Challenge and since my past method has proven to work very well, I've gone back to where I feel comfortable :o)
I'm going to tweak things a little bit this time around since I did not meet my 2010 goals :o( So here is my final list -
- two WIP/UFOs (one will definitely be Sabrina) ~ 0/2
- one monthly project (Christmas Rules by Lizzie Kate) ~ 0/1
- one medium project (hopefully Gentleman Quaker or Pumpkin Cottage) ~ 0/1
- one small project (this would include designs by Bent Creek, HIH, LK, etc.) ~ 0/1
- one small SAL project (Chilly from Snowman Trio by Stitchy Kitty with Jenn) ~ 0/1
- twelve ornament sized projects (one for each month of the year and hopefully they will not only be completed but finished as well) ~ 0/12
I think I'm comfortable with this. We'll see how it goes...
My list of 2010 finishes has been moved over to the Pumpkin Patch & Co. Graveyard to make way for my 2011 list. If you wish to see the list, just head on over there :o)
Ready? Set? GO!
