THE BUZZ FROM THE HIVE

Saturday, August 31, 2019

All My Bags are Packed.....






 ...but one last post before I go. It has been hot as blazes here, so quiet inside stitching has been on order.....run errands in the AM before it gets blistering, then stitch the afternoon away. So I do have some projects to share in no particular order.

First, I finished stitching the Amethyst Sampler Band SAL from iStitch Designs. I did mine in greens and will be finishing it on a vintage spool as I have the others. I may add my name or initials at the bottom, but haven't decided yet.




I got a package from Salty Yarns with the pre-stitching for one of my classes in October.  I jumped right on it .....well, because it was so darn cute....and because I wanted to know it was done. There were three designs, all from Cathy Habermann at Hands on Design. Our class will involve finishing the pieces. It's called Halloween Chalk and hopefully I'll have them finished by then.

 The jar of eyes makes me giggle every time I see it!!!


Then, a friend has been patiently waiting for me to stitch a C A Wells piece so I can pass the chart to her. I had done this as a gift, but wanted to also make one for me. It is still getting interrupted but I am determined to get this done by the next time I see her. It's called Stitching by the Sea Needecase.


For my trip, I plan to get a whole lotta background stitching done on my Year of Celebration pieces. Should be easy-peasy since they're done on the 14 ct. perforated paper. But I'm also bringing a project on 28 count, since I just got  new pair of glasses. It's Lizzie Kate's Pair O' Pilgrims, which I started so I had everything placed for the trip.





Finally, I had seen this piece on FB, inquired about it and was told it was a class only piece. I contacted the designer to see if it was ever released as a chart and she told me she couldn't even remember the piece, so I figured that was that. But, a friend had seen my comment on FB and told me that the piece had been taught for my now local guild and maybe someone still had it. So I put out a request on our VGN FB page and, lo and behold, one of the members offered to lend me her chart. I wanted to get it done ASAP even though she said she wasn't in any hurry. So I've gotten the "innards" done and am now stitching the circle outline, so all I have to do is fill it in at my leisure. Another friend thinks she as an extra pin ball ring!!! Aren't stitchers the best!!!!! Here's Bee Pin Ball ( you know why I had to have it) by Carriage House Samplings.





Speaking of stitchers and how they love to enable...here's a cool little something someone had at a recent stitch group meeting. They are little "glasses" that just sit on your nose...no ear pieces..just sit on your nose. They are very light weight and come in cute colors...easy to throw in a project bag or your purse. I ordered a pair and hope they'll come in handy on the trip. They are by a company called Nooz (sorry photo has name upside down).





Then I saw somewhere about these little thread spool huggers that are supposed to keep the ends of your spools of thread under control. But, I saw where people were using them to hold the extra fabric on their Q-snaps. See photo above with green ones at the bottom....pretty cool huh??? Oh how I LOVE gadgets!!!

So back to my bags being packed..... I am sticking to one checked bag (even though Southwest lets you check 2 for free) and a carry on tote for my stitching. I weighed my bag and it comes in at 35#'s so I'm good. Have I ever mentioned I love Southwest? They have always been our preferred airline because they are fun, friendly and on time more than any other airlines we've flown. Recently, I noticed our flights at a significantly lower rate than what we booked.... we called and they credited us the difference which we can use for another flight at a later date. I can see another trip in our future...maybe one of their "wanna get away" flights!

Thanks for stopping by and your "twisted threads" of friendship! See you on the flip side....off to Yellowstone!!! Oh, maybe we'll see Kevin Costner!!! :)

Stasi






Sunday, August 11, 2019

I Survived......and a little Strollng with a couple finishes (514-515)



Yes, we survived the week with the grand kids and are happily recuperating at home. We had a great week, but couldn't have done it without my younger daughter. We spent a ton of time shuttling kids to baseball, soccer, VBS, dance class, etc..I'm not sure how my daughter does it when sometimes different kids have to be different places at the same time---what an eye opener!!! We went to the pool, to see the Lion King, school clothes shopping, had a spa night..... and a trip to Urgent Care for James, who hurt his wrist playing soccer. Here are a few photos from spa night and the pool....I am terribly negligent about taking photos.
 
Esther doesn't like getting her picture taken....


 
First a foot soak

Then face masks
Followed by a cooling eye treatment
A little foot massage


A Little glitz on the nails




Concluding with a warm cuppa!!!

No stitching was accomplished, but I do have a couple finishes to share from the week before.....both are by Jardin Prive'. First up is Carre' a' Abeilles. It is stitched on 32 count cream Irish linen and I converted the DMC to Victorian Motto Shoppe fibers. It's "stuffed" with layer upon layer of Warm and Natural and I love the way it feels and filled out. I added some sweet JABCO pins.






 
The second finish is Parterre de Fleurs. I used DMC threads on a 32 count mystery linen. I added a couple Puntini Puntini pins.



That's all she wrote for today. Thanks for stopping by and your "twisted threads" of friendship!

Stasi