Happy Kitty

This kitty is happy because he will be Molly's Christmas ornament!  The flower is ribbon loops made from Splendor and the red center is made of loops of red beads!  SWEET!!

Linda

Bullions

tapestry and bullion needles

I am almost finished with the last Geisha and am doing the hair embellishments - a gold hair comb done as a bullion.   The first bullion I did with the needle I was working with - a 22 tapestry needle.  It looked a little loose even on the second try so I decided to use my bullion needle.  I have one anyway - why not!  I think it makes for a neater bullion.  I am not sure if it's because the bullion needle isn't tapered like the tapestry needle or that it was my 5th one!

hair comb with 22 needle

hair comb with bullion needle

Don't you love finishing projects!!

Linda

Copy Paste

Yesterday afternoon on our way home we saw a special "vision" in the sky - a double rainbow.  We were trying to find a "sign" in this.  I of course saw a victory for LeBron James and Dwayne Wade, but my daughter wanted to think that she and her boyfriend are going to be successful in their job search.  I know that the kids will do better than the Heat did last night.

The heading of my blog is Copy Paste which is what you can do with my last blog entry referencing the Heat.  I think the Miami Herald must be one of my followers because they pretty much verbatim lifted my blog entry onto the sports page.  One last thing before I close that door and return completely to flying and needlepoint - Pat Riley needs to PARENT this team back to winning.  Eric Spoelestra cannot do this alone - he looked almost helpless last night himself.

I am going to spend the next week finishing the last Geisha and plugging away at the Creche.  Oh and back to flying lessons, because the wind has died down!

Linda

Creche update

Hi everyone,

I have almost finished the little lamb in the manger scene.  His fur is two kinds of knots which add depth and are done in Vineyard Silk Merino Wool which is wonderful to work with - perfect on 18.  I am leaving his ears for last so I don't mess them up along the way.  Once I finish the donkey I can complete the grass inside the stable.

In one of my very first blogs I referred to LeBron James' meeting and exceeding expectations, something  he has clearly done up until the past week.  I am afraid that the pressure may be getting to him as the Championship slips away from the Heat.  I feel sorry for him (as sorry as you can feel for a 26 year old with $100 million dollars) and even though he is a big guy he is being swallowed up in the moment.  His coach and his friend Dwayne Wade are the only people who can help him out of this now.

Why do I feel this way?  Because in the past week as we reach the half way point in the year I have been erasing half of my "to be finished in 2011" list of needlepoint projects.  I had WAY too high expectations for my needlepoint this year and am drastically becoming more realistic.  Just because a canvas is 13x17 doesn't mean it will be finished fast.  So I am resetting my list and priorities!

I have moved the creche into it's own space where it can sit on a table and be worked on for a little bit each day.  Sort of like the old jigsaw puzzle tables.   It's a lot easier than putting it away and taking it out each day.  My new plan is to work on the creche as my big project and surround it with all the ongoing little ones.  Hopefully that will work!

On to the donkey! GO HEAT!!

Linda

White Hot Stitching

I have been waiting to finish a nice BIG section of the creche before  blogging but life and the Miami Heat have gotten in the way.  I am currently living on an average of 7 hours of sleep (when I need 8) because the Heat have been sucking up every ounce of energy in Miami.  And last night they did NOT use that energy wisely :-(

So... I thought I would post a photo of my Gingerbread House which I just got back from The Needle House in Houston which looks good enough to eat!

One good thing about having the Miami Heat in the playoffs is that the tv stations have postponed (or eliminated) our annual run-up to Hurricane Season which started on Wednesday.  No one seems to care about that right now.  We have plenty of time to make those survival lists!

And now on to watching Amy do detached needleweaving!

Stay cool,  Linda

Landscaping

Creche grass

I have the age old excuse for not making an entry.....the dog ate my camera.  Actually, I can't find it since we have been back from my baby's college graduation in California.  Not to worry though, there aren't any graduation photos on the camera because it was pouring rain and we were outside for the ceremony so it was in more than one way a "memorable" experience!

I am back to the creche and working on the grass to the left of the stable (that's a thread hanging down from the plant -  not to worry).  It's amazing how 6 different combinations of green thread make such a subtle picture.  I am still working on the sky in the windows,  and will try to finish the windows so I can pull out the basting threads and work on the crumbling walls.  This is turning into a 6 month project from 4, but I am having fun!

My helicopter lessons are progressing nicely - my teacher has started being critical which is a good sign that he thinks I have potential and can take it.

Lastly, I went to school in Tennessee and I thought I knew what a tornado was until this week.  These people are resilient and strong and we should all be thankful for what we have in life.

Linda

Do This Not That

There's a very popular app out there called Eat This Not That.  I keep trying to follow it but candy is much more enticing than carrot sticks. Get it...both sweet...only one healthy.  (Although, I have moved from Pringles to Veggie Chips).

Last night I was happily doing elongated continental on the "town in the background" on my creche scene when I decided that the steps under the door didn't look quite right.  That's when I consulted the stitch guide....

Now, I had already read the stitch guide twice and written down all the colors on a post it note, but obviously that doesn't seem to be enough for me.  You see Amy has this nice little diagram of the town which I had followed at first and then ignored.  That is NOT a good idea.  If you're going to have the sweet stitch guide you had better look at it!

This is a project that needs constant referral to the stitch guide so you don't have to rip out.  Which is what I just finished doing!

Wrong

Right!

Don't the steps look better!

Linda