A Bluebird Finish

A lot of stitching time this past weekend allowed me to finish my latest project.  This is LHN's "Singing The Blues and it's going to go into a very special quilt for the "Xstitch For Those Impacted By The Sandy Hook Elementary School Shooting" group on Facebook.  I've linked it for those of you who are interested in this project.  So if you're on Facebook and think that you might like to help with this, just click on the link.

Oh, that's kind of a shadowy photo, isn't it?  Sorry about that.

I've started on my second quilt square, a little butterfly freebie chart I got off the internet.  There are many, many cute freebies online, and I looked closely to make sure that they were legitimately free.  It was also a challenge to find suitable charts for this project.  Suitable in terms of appropriateness and size limitation.  But I think that hearts, birds, butterflies, little animals and flowers would work just fine.  As for my finish, I'm glad I took the time to sit and stitch this weekend.  I feel a little sense of accomplishment.

I want to welcome all of my new followers!  And I'd also like to remind you that there is still time to enter the drawing for the bracelet I'm giving away as part of the Grow Your Blog party.  All you have to do is leave a comment on my Grow Your Blog post by Thursday, January 31.  I'll announce the winner on Friday, February 1st, and will contact the winner at that time.  Make sure I have a way to contact you!

A Finish And A Snack

It's been fun participating in the Grow Your Blog party, organized by Vicki at 2 Bags Full.  As far as I'm concerned, it's still going on because there was no way I could go to all of the listed blogs in just one weekend!  So it's going to be an ongoing process for me.  I'm doing a giveaway drawing on February 1st in connection with this event.  You can still sign up for the drawing by commenting on my Grow Your Blog post. You don't have to be a follower, but I will need a way to contact you if you win. 

Welcome to my new followers!  I appreciate each and every follower that I have and I welcome all comments.  Especially the nice ones.  I've also found a bunch of new blogs to follow myself, and you can see my list if you look on the right of the screen and scroll down.  Looks like I've found something new to collect, right?

Yesterday Mark said that he wanted to watch the big playoff game between the Atlanta Falcons and some other team.  So I made a delicious snack to munch on while the game was going on.

I found this spicy cracker recipe on Pinterest and then saw variations of it in other places.  Sometimes they were called Firecrackers.  This is the version I used:

Firecrackers

1-1/2 boxes of Premium Mini Crackers

1 Package of Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing Mix

2 Tablespoons Red Pepper Flakes

1 Cup Canola Oil

Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Mix oil, red pepper flakes, and ranch dressing mix in a big bowl.  Add crackers and stir around until the crackers are well coated.  Let stand for about 5-10 minutes.  Stir around one more time and then spread crackers on a large cookie sheet and bake for about 10 minutes.  Stir around on cookie sheet and bake for 5 more minutes.  

You can also use regular sized crackers for this, and I've seen where someone mentioned using Cheez-Its.  Mmmmm.  You can also adjust the heat by using more or less pepper flakes.  So go and make some.  And then make some more in two weeks for your Super Bowl (which the Falcons will not be playing in) party.  

In all the busyness of the last couple of weeks, I forgot to show you a stitching finish!  Yes, I actually finish stuff once in a while.

Here's Holiest of Nights, all ready to be framed for next Christmas.  See how organized I am?  I already have a Christmas finish for next Christmas!  And those of you who know how long I've been working on this are probably smirking right now. 

I'm also working on LHN's Singing The Blues for the Facebook group I'm working with. 

As you can see, I've got a long way to go.  So I think this afternoon will be dedicated to working on this.  I'm using DMC variegated threads for this.  I hope to make at least two other squares for this very special project.  You can find information on this group here.

Grow Your Blog - Welcome!

Welcome to CraftyCat!  In this post I'm taking part in the Grow Your Blog party organized by Vicki at 2 Bags Full.  I started this blog several years ago to showcase my crafting endeavors, and I think I've accomplished that.  If you look through past posts, you'll see that I've covered all sorts of craftiness -- jewelry making, sewing, crocheting, beading, scrapbooking, framing, holiday stuff and decorating.  There are even some baked goods in there somewhere.  And cats.  Yes, I know that cats don't constitute a crafting adventure, but there they are anyway.  I love all of this stuff, but my favorite hobby is cross stitch.  Stitching supplies take up a lot of space in the craftroom, and I always have at least one (ahem, ok, more than one) project going.

Blogging has also allowed me to become a part of a community where I have learned new things, craft-oriented or not.  Plus I have some wonderful followers who offer all kinds of encouraging comments.  My hope is that my followers and all readers of my blog can learn something from me, and just have fun when visiting.  I can be snarky and goofy, and I can also be sappy and sentimental.  My aim is to make my sense of humor evident in my writing to keep things interesting.  So even if someone isn't a crafter, they still might find something here that they'll enjoy.

In honor of the Grow Your Blog party, I've decided to have a little giveaway.  I used my jewelry-making skills to create this beaded bracelet to be given away in a drawing.

If you want to enter the drawing for this bracelet, just leave a comment on this post.  That's it.  Oh, and you'll probably want to give me an e-mail address so that I can contact you if you win.  You don't have to be a follower to enter.  The drawing will take place on February 1, 2013.  Good luck!

Thanks for stopping by!  Become a follower of CraftyCat, or just check in once in a while.  Either way, I hope you'll find this a fun place to visit.

Grow Your Blog

A few blogs that I follow posted this announcement about the Grow Your Blog event taking place this Saturday, January 19.  It sounded interesting so I'm joining in.  I'm such a daredevil.  You can find all the info you need about Grow Your Blog at 2 Bags Full. 

It's suggested that those taking part in this have a little giveaway.  Hmmmmm, yes, I think I will have a little lovely something to give away as a prize.  So visit my awesome blog on Saturday to find out more. 

Ringing In The New Year Blog Hop Style

I was glad to see Loretta's Blog Hop still going strong in the new year.  Blog Hop #14's question is this:

What was your biggest stitching accomplishment in 2012?
What was your favorite stash acquisition in 2012 and will you be using it in 2013?

Let's start with the stash acquisition question.  As you may know from my previous posts, in 2012 our local cross stitch store closed.  It was a sad occasion indeed, but I did stock up on quite a few charts, floss and fabrics before the store shut its doors for the final time.  As a result I now have enough stitching supplies to last a lifetime.  I can't say that I have a favorite chart in the bunch, but I will enjoy stitching them and as I do, I'll remember the fun we had at The Stitch Store.

As for stitching accomplishments, I actually had more finishes this year than in any year I can remember.  I feel like I've devoted more time to stitching, realizing that it's something that relaxes and centers me.  My favorite accomplishment was becoming part of our stitch group, Sisters In Stitches.  We were just a group of stitchers who met once a month at The Stitch Store and gabbed and stitched for a good part of the day.  There was eating involved too.  When we found out about the upcoming closing of the store, we decided to cement our friendships and our group by giving ourselves a meaningful name and vowing to keep meeting.  And we have!  We are currently seeking a centralized location to meet, but have been getting together in each others' homes until we do.   It's not always easy to keep a group like this going, so I think that this is a major accomplishment!

Come and join the Blog Hop in 2013!

Visit all the blogs in this round of the Stitching the Night Away Stitching Blogger Blog Hop:
Find the instructions on how to participate in this round by clicking here.