What I have been doing the since January

Made this ornament for an exchange

Made this for a dear friend for her b-day

Enjoyed making and framing this for my mom!

Also made this candle mat for my mom

Made this Blackbird design and framed

Made this for an exchange and sent it to Mexico

Made this one also in March

Here is an update on how far I am on my Mirabilia

Started this Rosewood Manor sampler done with silks.... Love working with them

Here I am in October on Wisconsin River in Lake Tomahawk, WI with my dear dog Maddie

Merry Christmas/and a Few Crafty Sewing Pics

Below is a blouse/tunic that I made one morning this week..I think it will go well with a jean jacket over it or a black t- shirt under it.  It is made from rayon and found materials on clearance at Walmart .

Above is the pattern I used and did the view pictured on the model. 

Below is the view from our sunroom taken this morning on Christmas Eve....see the tops of the trees glisten with ice and snow.

Merry Christmas!!!! Hope yours is full of blessings!!!!

An Exchange From Hungary

I received from Angela K this cute ornament as part of the "Little House" Exchange.  It is ornament #8 of 2012 series.  I love how she finished it into a mitten shape!!  

Exchanges, Exchanges, and More Exchanges

 Here are a whole bunch of exchanges that were made the past few months in need of finishing.

 Isnt this clever......from Notforgotten Farm.....covers 3 seasons.

 Two exchanges from Little House.......finished with the neatest (not shown) material from a quilting store near Madison.  They were a joy to make and quick too.

 This is an exchange I received from Lilly from all the way from Malasia.  It is called "Spells" from The Stitcherhood.

 Arent these two just darling.  I made the Joy one for a Christmas Exchange and the owl if a freebie I made for a Halloween exchange.

This little pretty is from Rosa and features antique tatting and beautiful bead work from a Christmas exchange.

Beginning My First Mirabilia

 At the Black Cat Stitchery in Zion, IL (my favorite cross stitch store) I purchased this neat moss green linen and this new "lap doodle" stretcher bar (comes in 3 sizes). See the pin that marks the middle.

 Here is the Mirabilia pattern.......it is so intricate that I need to use a magnifier to be able to read!

 This is what the finished piece will look like!

Here is my start on the new project.......I will keep you updated on my progress.

My New Cross Stitching Lamp and 48th B-Day Pictures

 Sorry for the mess around my new lamp but let me show you my new Daylight floor lamp.  Some of the features are bulb that is moveable with a special bulb that even helps with lack of sunshine in the winter, a clip that can hold your pattern off to the side of you when you stitch and a magnifier lense that you can put in front of your pattern . It also has a tray which I put all my threads and needles on.  The lamp comes with 6 wheels on the bottom and is nice and heavy and very solid.  I am SO pleased with it that stitching is more of a pleasure than ever.

 Here is a pic of me on my 48th birthday last weekend.

Here are 3 of my children that took me out to eat at the Duck Inn last weekend for my birthday.

A Little Halloween Pillow For Me

This evening I finished this charming Halloween pillow.  I started out a month ago making it for an exchange.  But silly me thought I had signed up for the exchange and at last minute found out I never did!  This was two weeks ago when I was freaking out about not being able to finish in time.  I lucked out and found out I can take my time and finish this pillow for me!!!  I found this pattern in this years JCS Halloween edition.  I used Sullivan threads which was new for me!  Isn't it cute!