Minnesota Needlework Guild Prework and Bracelets

Thank-you for all your lovely comments on my last two post, I would send individual email thank-you's but summer is very busy here in our home.
Many tomato's popping up the cherry kind of tomato's, most do not even get into the kitchen, due to us eating them off the vine, yummy in our tummy's.

I am starting work on a Guild project that will be a  guild retreat class  by Ruthmarie Hofmann, it is a beauty in my eyes, it is called Well Of Wishes 11, you know I love thread and beads this is perfect for me.

 

 

I made two bracelets this week, one is a kit, the other is a class project, I love me some beads, but my first love is counted thread. The top one was the class I took at Becka Beads, stop on over to her website beckabeads.com she is now making fly swatters out of horse hair, they are wonderful, this is for the horse rider of course, but you can surely have one made for swatting flies when sitting outside on your deck, I will try to have her send me a photo, or you can visit her web site and ask for information.

 

We are getting warm weather here this week, I love the hot weather even the humidity, it does not bother me at all.

We have been sitting and laying out to get a tan, this is the first year in over 40 years I have had a front and back tan, yahoo.

A little visitor to our yard, sometimes I get mad at them but they are so much fun to watch, sadly a mink has been coming around and leaving small gifts for us, not nice ones either, I can put up with the rabbits but not the minks, they are a vicious animal towards humans and other animals, even large animals like dogs, swans etc, so I want to get rid of the mink but need to do a live trap due to poison can harm other animals, we need to either have this mink caught and transferred to a different unpopulated area or destroy it I would rather move it to the forest but some of the neighbors have other ideas. we will see what happens.

Chicken for dinner and French green beans so time to cook.
Have a great week and find time to stitch, thank-you for stopping by.

Blessings
Catherine

Found On Pinterest

I had to post this I love this photo, I find it touching and lovely.
Found on Pinterest.

Blessings
Catherine

Stitching Beading With Some Nature Photos

Thank-you for all the beautiful  comments.
I really am thrilled to be back posting, reading and leaving comments.
I have been having problems with Google, I cannot comment on Gracie's blog http://needlespinsanddragonflies.blogspot.com and another is Preeti over at http://createwittyunleashed.blogspot.com
 For some reason Google will not let me leave a comment on their BlogSpot, does anyone else have a problem like this? please let me know or if you have a solution.

I did get a bit done this week, I sat in my sewing room all day on Wednesday, I had to take in three pair of slacks, one pair of capris and a dress, it was so comforting to sit and sew finally, I also finished the Heart I stitched  With Thy Needle and Thread Love Letters a heart shaped pin pillow, I love this little beauty, I stuffed it with crushed walnut shell's, I find the batting dulls my needles to soon, the walnut shells seem to not do that.
Mike found the crushed walnut shells at a pet food store, they are ( I guess used for lizard aquariums)
Of course you know I love this designer.

 

 

I took a beading class last Saturday, it is always fun to go to Becka Beads in Maple Lake Minnesota, Becky is a hoot and a new Grandma two times over.

This is the bracelet, I have never beaded anything in purple but this one really turned out pretty in my eyes, so sorry about the threads I was anxious to get a photo, the threads are now gone, I wore it to lunch today with my Sister In Law, she really liked it, this is a pattern from Ellad2 it is called Duoletta Bracelet,  you can google her designs, Ellad2

This is the first time in over 10 years my cactus has bloomed, yellow flowers this time, last time they were pink, I am not sure why it has not bloomed more or why the color changed, it sits in my sewing room window in the southeast window.

We have a visitor every evening he is a beauty he is small I do not know if the bumps on his head can be seen but when he is standing in front of me close I can see the bumps where his antlers will be, we feed the deer and rabbits along with birds and of course the little rascal squirrel.

We were going to fill the old garden with cement and a fire ring but cannot do this till late August or earlier September due to the three spots a turtle laid her eggs, it was very interesting to watch, she dug and dug with her hind legs one at a time and got very deep and laid the eggs, I am excited to see them little creatures come out of the ground and start their life. it takes up to 90 days for some turtle eggs to hatch, I am not sure about this type, I am hoping it only takes 30days, I will take photos if I see them on their new journey of life.

  
I cleaned house yesterday and today it always takes two days due to I move all my furniture and the washer and dryer every week, I guess I am a little finicky about dust.
I am taking a tatting class in August at Needlework Guild Retreat, I had my interest piqued by Gracie and her lovely tatting charms with the crystals she does.
Well its almost time for bed the dog needs a little walk and so do I.
Thank-you for stopping by.

Blessings
Catherine

 

I am finally Back

I want to Thank Vickie over at http://astitchersstory.blogspot.com she has checked up on me to make sure all is well, thank-you from the bottom of my heart Vickie, you are an angel. I also want to thank RJ over at http://stitchingfriendsforever2.blogspot.com, you also are an angel thank-you for the beautiful letter and your kindness at the passing of my Mother.

I have been very busy since April, with my Mother being ill and then passing, it has been a challenge, she was my dearest and best friend, I do miss her so.
Cleaning and getting the home she owned was hard, my husband and I gave the home to my sister in law, she lived with my Mother and was her care giver, so it was only right she get the home, she has made some beautiful improvements, is having fun doing so and I really want to keep her in the family, she was my youngest brothers wife, after he passed away from cancer she let my Mother live with her in her home, until my Mother bought a home, then Julie moved in with her.
Julie is like a sister to me now, I am so lucky.

I have been away also on a almost two week vacation with my wonderful husband, we left on June 4th and came home June 15th, I am so relaxed, I needed that vacation., we went to Live Aqua in Cancun Mexico our second home is what that place feels like to us.

They had a message on our bed made out of rice, they are a fantastic place we only mentioned to our favorite waiter that we had been married for 40 years, he must have mentioned it to management and this is what they did for us, this is the best place to vacation for us.

Mike had a message put on the beach made out of seaweed as a surprise for me, the words are about four feet tall and one foot wide so you could see it from the balcony's of the resort, all rooms face the sea, none face the streets of Cancun.

I did get a few stitch's in on Plum Street Sampler Merry Friends, I love this design, I bought the tins to put the finished design in from a second hand store, so they will be hanging somewhere in the home this Christmas.

I finished this at a stitching retreat in May, I found the buttons in my stash button jar, I need to have a finishing day soon, I have loads of stuff to put together, the stitching is done but if you know me I like to stitch and not finish, maybe I need to send a bunch to Vonna!

I did finish the stitching on Blackbird Designs Lady Liberty and need to finish the top for the pin cushion, soon very soon.

I had a beading day with Julie, she made these adorable bracelets for me, I did not know she was making them for me at the time, I was also making bracelets for her one I finished the other I had to finish after she went home, one I have a photo for the other I will have to post later when I get her wrist in front of the camera.
This is the one I made for her.

So sorry the photos are not so great I do not know what is wrong with my camera.

I hope you are all well I am going to get caught up with commenting on other blogs today.

Blessings
Catherine



 

Thank-You

I am writing to say than-you to all who left condolences on the passing of my Mother, from the bottom of my heart you are all wonderful and lovely people.
I have tried to send all of you thank-you's by email some of you have bounced back and some have no emails for me to find ,  thank-you so very much my heart is warmed by your kindness.

Blessings
Catherine

Some Stitching Finally

Hello and Happy Spring:
First of all thank-you for all your kind words and prayers about my Mothers passing, I really am grateful from the bottom of my heart.
I will send email thank-you's  as soon as possible.
You all have touched my heart greatly, if not for Family Friends and of course my Friends here in Blog Land I would be a basket case.

Some stitching, you al by now know I like Brenda Gervais designs, heck I like all designs, but she is one of my top ten, I stitched this this week for some comfort, my Mother would not have wanted me to grieve so much (which is hard not to do) so I put myself into my favorite chair and stitched, I love this design, it will be a pin pillow after I sew an insert and add the crushed walnuts.

So sorry about the wrinkles, I just did not have the energy to run into the laundry room hook up the iron and iron this lovely piece.

This is my next project, I love this design, I have seen it in person it is much prettier then the photo. I am doing it on 32 instead of 36 count linen, only because I live 60 miles from Stitchville USA needlework shop, it will be just a little bit larger but not that much.

Next I have a question for you: Does anyone know what this design maybe from, I found this in the stash relocation pile last August and have this thing about unfinished projects, I found it this way with the it started in this pretty green.

Thank-you to Vickie for the email about the missing photo.


I want to tell you about a couple of new Bloggers that share the same Blog, it is Mary and RJ  the link is http://stitchingfriendsforever2.blogspot.com

Stop over and say hello if you can, they did a couple of cute Bunny pillows that are adorable.

I need to get shopping for some 32, 36, and some specialty threads, I am running low.

Today it is gloomy only because of the rain, it has been raining and windy for almost 24 hours, Mike fertilized last Thursday and will be on his second mowing tomorrow if it does not stay cold and rainy, I like to mow but he will not let me, it was hard for him when he was recovering from surgery last summer I got to mow for almost three months, I loved it, we do not have a rider just a self propelled mower, we have a lot big enough for a rider but we still like to walk.

I am in my head planning my flowers this year, it is still too cold to put any out, I know that there are some that can handle the cold but I cannot, so it will wait.

It is noon and time for a fruit smoothy, yummy, I hope you all are well and having  great  progress in all your crafts.

Blessings
Catherine

Thank-you

From the bottom of my heart to you all, thank-you for your kind words, comments and Prayers.
My Mother passed away last evening at 9:20 P.M. I was with her until the end it was hard for me but I needed to do so, she was such a beautiful Lady.
I shall miss her so much.

Thank-you again
Catherine

Prayers needed please

This is not stitch related and I hate to ask, could you if you believe in prayer please pray for my Mother, she went to the ER this early morning and is not doing well.
I do not cry easily, I thought I was stronger but can no longer help it,she is gravely I'll.
All I ask is to say one prayer for, I hope that is not to much to ask.
From the bottom of my heart thank-you.

Blessings
Catherine

Do You Like My New Header?

Greetings everyone: I have been very busy getting my spring cleaning done, today would have been my outside clean the windows day but it is raining, we need the moisture so I am not unhappy, the farmers need it the most to produce crops to feed us.

I have been stitching, I finished my class project from Blackbird Designs Retreat, I just need to put it together which will happen this evening, I did change out the colors a little on the square design, I wanted a little more of a brighter color.

This is what it will look like after construction, this is a photo from the model from Retreat, used with permission from Blackbird Designs.

I will be starting a new design this evening, it is what else a Brenda Gervais  Design, I love her designs.

Today is cleaning day, almost done just need to do the floors now, which I hate, vacuum and then mop all the floors are wood so its like doing the floors twice.
Then I will make a latte and relax a little and read.

Blessings
Catherine

Happy Easter

A Very Blessed And Happy Easter to you.

Blessings
Catherine

Some Stitching A Retreat and Just A Little Stash

Hello my dear friends: I am stitching up a storm, I am so sorry I have not emailed you all and thanked you for your comments, I have been busy, you see the snow is gone and I have been spending time outdoors and coming in to stitch and stitch some more, I know it is not a good  excuse but it is true.
I had the pleasure of attending the Stitchville USA Blackbird Designs Retreat last weekend, Barb and Alma are such a treat and so sweet.
They tell us stories about their lives and how they met, they have been best friends for many years.
On Thursday many of us meet at the conference center and have a fun night of stitching and dinner, there were about 30 of us this year, all the Ladies are a treat to see and stitch with, some of them are stitcher's for some of the designers that we buy patterns to stitch from, oh my many of them are some of the best stitcher's I have met.

The class was an amazing event, we started out painting a heart shaped box sanding it and then waxing it, the frame was done the same way, so sorry you cannot see the green paint on the side.
The top is from a piece of paper copied with the antique stitching from the antique sampler they used to create the Sampler, as you can see from the pattern face sheet.

This is the Lily Of The Valley And Blossom as The Rose  designs we started to stitch on Friday afternoon, I did finish my Lilly Of The Valley and need to frame it, I have started to work on And Blossom as The Rose, I will finish it this weekend, hopefully

 

  See the color of the frame that is what my frame looks like, I am in love with that color green.

So sorry about the crappy photos, no sun and bad lighting in the house make for horrible photos.

I also bought some stash on Thursday before going to the conference center, Mike gave me a gift card for Stitchville  for Christmas, so of course I had to spend some of it.
I had to buy the Hats Off To Uncle Sam pattern, Blackbird  Designs had the hat and pin cushion on display for us.

I also bought Lady Liberty which I just love, it is a beauty.

Well I do have more to show but do not want to make this a long post.
I will stitch some more this evening and post again maybe on Saturday.

Blessings to you all that Celebrate Easter
Catherine
 

Happy Easter

Happy Easter to those who celebrate this Blessed Season.
Thank-you to all who have left comments on my last post, I thank-you from the bottom of my heart.

I have been stitching and love what I have stitched, Eszter stitched it as a heart, I plan on putting it on the top of a cigar box that I will keep my traveling needles, scissors and other things I need for stitching.
This is the Rose Hamilton Heart. ( so sorry about the wrinkles)

I started this design on Friday evening and I am almost finished, I love this Easter Design another by SubRosa. http://e-subrosa.blogspot.com Eszter has a new design a Carrot Bag which is adorable, she does send PDF patterns so you do not need to wait for the pattern.

I actually have the big red flower and the stem done and have started to stitch the eggshell.
This is another design I really like.

I will be away at a Retreat put on by Stitchville USA this coming week-end, I will leave on Thursday come home on Monday, I have never missed a Retreat from Stitchville, this year we have Blackbird Designs coming again, I do not know what we will be stitching just yet it is always a surprise.
If you ever can get on the list for one of Deb's Retreats I encourage you to do so, they are the best retreats around.
Barb and Alma are such a hoot and have such beautiful retreat designs.
I am really looking forward to this event, after 2017 entered I have had one heck of a year so far, I am back to normal and hope to stay that way.

On Tuesday last week I had to have a chemically induced stress test to make sure my heart did not sustain any damage from being dehydrated and from the pneumonia, I am so happy, I have no plaque and low LDL and HDL, not bad for a 66 year old gal.

It is cloudy today about 45 degrees and sprinkles  every once in a while, nothing to complain about.
The Red Winged Blackbirds have been here since the beginning of March, the Robins are back and I have seen and heard the Morning Doves, they are so calming to listen too in the morning, soon we will be able to sit out on the patio or front porch and drink our coffee in the morning, something I really look forward too each summer.

It is time for my needle to hit the fabric, thank-you for stopping by.

Blessings
Catherine

 

A New Start And A Finish

Hello my dear friends: I was able to finish my Santa beaded ornament, however the package did not have all the beads I needed to finish or enough of one color, so I had to hunt in my beading stash and find the right beads, lucky for me I had what I needed. The Snowflake was also missing so I just used gold beads to make a fringe on the tip of his hat.

 

I started a new design it is Rose Hamilton Heart from Sub Rosa, I have a few of Eszter's designs, I love the simplicity and beauty of her designs, http://e-subrosa.blogspot.com

 

Here is my progress

 

So sorry about the wrinkles in the photo, my printer tried to eat my paper when printing the pattern it is a PDF from her site.

 

I hope to have this finished by Wednesday evening or before, I plan on using it for a top on a box for my scissors.

 

I wish you al a Happy Spring

 

Blessings

Catherine

 

 

Greetings Friends

Well it has been a rocky start to 2017 for my Mother Michael and myself, finally we are all three getting things back to normal, I am so proud of my Mother and the great progress she is making with her weight loss and her rehab program, she is an amazing 86 year old woman. I LOVE YOU MOM.

I have been feeling better just get tired easily, I did finish the Paper Snowflake, I was off by one stitch but it all worked out in the end.

So sorry about the wrinkles, I do want to get this framed soon.
I must say the fabric called for does not look like the photo on the package photo, I looked closer and it seems that there is a film or something on the photo giving the design a darker look, I do wish designers would not do this, I was expecting my fabric to look like the photo, does anyone else find this annoying?


I started this on Monday evening and finished stitching it Monday evening a fast stitch,  I need to have a couple of finishing days, I have loads of designs I have stitched and are sitting and waiting for them to be finiahed.

I started a Christmas ornament last evening and hope to have this finished tomorrow evening.

That's about it for now.
Thank-you to all the wonderful people who are following me here in Blogland, thank-you to all of you that leave such beautiful comments, I am really grateful for your friendship.

Blessings
Catherine

 

Finally Stitching

Hello to all my dear followers: Thank-you so much for your comments about my health, I am rid of the pneumonia and slowly getting my strength back, I am sad to say that pneumonia is making a big arrival here in Annandale MN, I know of 11 people with pneumonia, wow what a number.
I hope they are all getting over this nasty bug.
I have been busy cleaning and doing laundry, I cleaned yesterday, it normally takes me 3-31/5 hours to clean the main floor but yesterday it took me a good eight hours, I would clean a little and then rest clean a little and rest again, it feels so good to have a clean home, I clean every week faithfully but since being sick Mike has helped as much as possible.
He is such an angel to me.

I have done some stitching on my Paper Snowflakes and will be done this week-end, I wanted to be done by January 26 but being sick would not let me do so, January is the month od pneumonia for me, yuck.


 So this is my progress:  From this:

   To This

 

I am going to stitch this evening and hope to have more done barring any interruptions.

 

I have to show you what mother nature left for us earlier this week: 5 inch's of snow yuck, I am so ready for spring.

 

I have to shoiw you what the cat and dog did yesterday, they never sit or walk beside each other however they took a nap together in the sun, Blondie The Cat usually hates the Krissy but for some reason she did not mind Krissy laying with her, Blondie is really Starlynn  but because of all the silly things she does we started calling her Blondie, she reminds me of Blondie and Dagwood, she is so funny.

My wonderful husband had cards printed up for me, I was thrilled, what a thoughtful man he is, I love them and am ready to hand them out.
Thank-you Michael, I love you.

 

 

This is Mike and Krissy out on the golf course, I get a kick out of seeing them out there, they are like two kids playing together, Mike even carries a poop bag  just in case Krissy needs to make a pit stop.

 

 

I need to read some emails and stitch and stitch some more.

I hope you are all well and getting loads of stitching done.

 

 

Thank-you all for stopping by.

 

Blessings

Catherine

 

 

A Quick Update

Greetings My Dear Friends: I am feeling better and hope to be stitching tomorrow evening, I have a test in the a.m. a little shopping if I do not get to weak and out to lunch with the best Man in the world, my Husband.

I will post an update of my stitching on Thursday.

Thank-you all for  praying for me and thinking of me during my illness, I have not sent out thank-you emails from the last post comments, but please give me time and I will get caught up.


Blessings
Catherine

Just A Little Stitching And some Bad News

Hello to all my lovely followers: Thank-you for your comments in my last post, I thank-you from my Heart.

I made a couple of charms for a friend, she wanted  to  give them to her sister,  I need to add the charms  and the chain, I stamped the lettering and pounded the metal, she likes what I did so far.

I have not done much stitching of late, I have been very ill, last month I went to the ER and diagnosed with dehydration, a week later I was diagnosed with Pneumonia, I am on double doses of antibiotics, yuck, it has not been good this year, I just want to get back to cleaning and stitching, beading and having a date with my wonderful husband and take my mother and sister-in-law out to lunch.
I have also been diagnosed with an enlarged heart, the doctor said this could be the result of the pneumonia or dehydration, so next week if I can I will be taking a stress test, UGH>
Anyhoo here is the stitching I did yesterday.
Not much but a little is better then no stitching, is what I think.

I had to take a photo of the dad and his dog out on the golf course, I think the dog looks forward to this everyday.

It is so much fun to see them out and running, Mike is the only dog owner who carries a poop bag and picks up after Krissy, other people just let their dogs do their thing ick.
Krissy has found over 20 golf balls from last season, Mike gives the found balls to a friend of his.

Time to relax and read a little reading a  Lee Child novel Jack Reacher  Never Go Back, love this series, a great read, lots of intrigue and excitement.

Time to rest, I will post again soon.

Blessings
Catherine