Scissor Happy

I'm pretty sure that scissors are the one implement that crafters of all kinds have in their tool kits.  People who sew have fabric scissors that have never cut paper.  Scrapbookers treasure their pattern cutter scissors.  Stitchers love a good pair of sharp embroidery scissors to snip those threads closely.  Scissors are a topic of conversation on the cross stitch message board I like to visit and at Stitch Days alike.  What kind do you like?  How many do you have?  Are expensive scissors worth it?  Do you have the new Ginghers yet?  Can you carry scissors onto an airplane?  (The answer to this last question is yes, metal scissors with pointed tips are allowed, as long as the blades are less than four inches.  BUT the TSA can prohibit any item on that's not on the prohibited list, meaning go ahead and carry them on, but it is possible that they could still be taken away.  I've carried on small scissors the last four times I've flown without a problem.  Just don't carry on your favorite/heirloom/expensive scissors.)

Like many stitchers, I have more than one pair of little scissors.  So when the topic of "How do you store your scissors?" came up on the message board, I was interested.  People shared photos of creative ways to store their scissors.  Then my Facebook friend and fellow stitcher, Martha, posted a photo of her scissor storage and I immediately went to Ebay.  My purchase was a glass flower frog.  It think it has 16 holes, which I thought I'd never fill.  Ha ha.   It was very inexpensive and fit perfectly into a bowl I already had.  Another fellow stitcher, Shannon, recently posted photos chronicling the steps to make a scissor holder board.  Lovely!  And let's not forget the creative scissor holders that Mark makes on the lathe.  See my "Crafty Guy" post.

Soooooo, here's how not to use scissors.  The other day at work, my bangs kept hanging in my eyes and just irritating me.  Yesterday morning, as I was attempting to arrange my hair into something presentable, the bangs were being difficult so I got a sharp pair of scissors and snipped them to what I thought was a good length.  Wrong.  They now resembled the bangs on a somewhat unstable character in a movie I once saw.  I was once told by a hairstylist that everyone does this. When I have to go in for a haircut in the next couple of weeks, the girl who cuts my hair will probably laugh.   Sheila related an experience in which Fred gave her a trim which resulted in a Dutch boy look.  I don't remember that.  I'm pretty much over it and am dealing with it, but will probably never do it again.  I think.  And no, I won't be posting a picture of my new 'do.

I took my own advice this week and sat down and stitched a little more.  I'm on my feet a lot at work, so it was good to get home and sit down for a while.  And not feel guilty about it.  Here's the result:

I'm happy with the way this is turning out.  I thought I'd do the main stitching first and then go back and do the metallic thread and beads.  It will make a very pretty bellpull.

Tomorrow is Stitch Day at The Stitch Store!
Looking forward to that.  It's going to be a full house of stitching friends.  Think we'll talk about scissors?

A Turkey & Time Management

Whew, this has been a busy month.  I'm not complaining.  Most of what's been going on has been enjoyable.  I'm finally getting used to the new routine that my new job is creating.  I'm really liking it!  I'm so lucky to have every Thursday off so that I can work at The Stitch Store.  I was there this past Thursday after being absent last week and it was good to get back.  As usual, it was a pleasure to help the customers with all of their stitchy needs.  As for the rest of the days of the week, I can be scheduled for any of them.  With the addition of extra working hours, I'm finding that I just need to remember to take some time for stitching or just puttering around in the craft room. 

The good news is that the turkey is done!  Now how can you not like this little feathered friend?  Gobble has yet to be framed, but I already have the special frame made especially for him.

Chicky 2.0

Purse by Sheila

Now for something I haven't done in a while -- crocheting.  If you need something square or rectangular, done in basic single crochet, I'm your gal.  I've made quite a few baby afghans (and small big-people afghans) and scarves in my time.  Yes, I am the expert when it comes to simple, basic crochet.  One time, I even got crazy and made a ripple afghan!  I will say that Matt really seemed to like the hipster man-scarves I made for him.  A few weeks ago I found a skein of cotton yarn and started crocheting.  Sheila will tell you that first I had to untangle the yarn, which took about 3 hours.  And I ended up with a cute dish washing cloth.  Pretty cool, huh?  Maybe I should expand my crochet horizons and learn a new stitch.  OK, now I have a new goal.  I don't think I'll ever be as talented as my Auntie Helen.  One year she gave Matt an Easter basket with cute little crocheted Easter eggs and chicks.  I still have one of the chicks.  The white one disappeared sometime after Ozzy chose it as his favorite toy.  Oh, and look at what Sheila made on her first attempt at crocheting - a very cute little purse for Grace.

Coming up this week:  I'd like to start a new project.  It's "Christmas Box Ornaments" by Country Garden Stitchery.  They're shown finished
as separate ornaments, but I'm going to stitch the three of them one on top of the other to make a little bell pull.  It's all kitted up and ready to go, just in time for Saturday Stitch Day at The Stitch Store next week!
Have a wonderful week! 

Too Busy To Stitch?

The last couple of weeks have been a whirlwind for me.  First, there was the family get-together in Hiawassee, GA which was so nice.  Beautiful weather, lots of laughs and all four of us siblings together.  That doesn't happen very often.  Then last weekend was stitch camp at The Stitch Store.  Another reunion of sorts because in attendance were two friends from our first camp, and one from last year's camp.  Plus, as a bonus, a new stitcher and friend joined us.  And let's not forget Terrie, the owner of the Stitch Store who makes camp possible and wonderful.  Camp is so relaxing because: a) we can stitch all we want; b) we don't have to cook or clean up; and c) it's just fun to yak with friends about stitching or anything we feel like.  We had our Chinese gift exchange, which meant lots of "stealing" of goodies, but I think everyone was happy in the end.  My gift was a cute Halloween chart, floss, fabric and candy, all put together in a cute Halloween carrier.

I did get in some good stitching time at camp.   Here's my progress on my current projects, Kitty Kalendar and Gobble.  But since camp, I've hardly picked up a needle.  Right now, our son Matt is here for a rare mid-semester visit.  It's great having him home.  Yesterday, he sat down with me and helped me to spiff up my blog layout.  A little bit of computer craftiness!  What do you think? 

Add to all of this a new job and I'm on overload.  I'm a person who likes routine.  And I like my stitching time and crafting time.  So I think that tonight I will do a some stitching on Gobble because I'd like to finish him before Thanksgiving.  Speaking of which, I've already heard two commercials reminding us that the holidays are right around the corner.  How did that happen so quick?!  I've also heard people talking about Christmas shopping that they already did!  Who else has started shopping?  Not me.

Thanks to everyone who has read, commented on, and decided to follow my blog.  Feel free to leave a comment now and then so I'll know how I'm doing. I love comments and new followers!

For the present, I'm just going to enjoy the rest of Matt's visit and a few days off.  Have a good week!

Finally Framed!

Thanks to everyone who had great ideas for how I can get going on my scrapbook, both here and on Facebook.  Those were some wonderful suggestions that make total sense to me.  I'm going to set some time aside for working on it. 

This hasn't been the biggest stitching week for me.  I've been a little tired and instead of taking out my stitching in the evening to do while watching TV (pretty impressive multitasking, huh?), I've tended to veg out in front of the TV.  But I recently framed up three projects myself, which is quite an accomplishment.  Stitchers often have a dilemma of what to do with finished projects.  Let's see, you can have them framed, make a pillow, craft it into a bellpull or wall hanging, or sew a pin cushion.  I know that there are other extremely creative things that people do with their finished cross stitch.  The dilemma comes when we want to frame our finishes.  Framing can be very costly and the more you stitch, the more $$$ you will part with. 

A few years back, I decided to learn how to do my own framing.  With the help of online instructions on how to pin my finished project to foam core board, and the discovery of American Frame, I am now a pretty good framer.  American Frame is a good source for custom frames, mats and foam core.  Plus, they'll cut a piece of plexiglass for you if you want.  They include all of the finishing hardware too.  The good part is that you can get a good result for a fraction of what the framing places cost, all for a little time and do-it-yourself work!  Now, if I ever finish my giant UFO or do any other large project, it will go to the professionals.  But for small stuff like what you see here, framing it myself just makes perfect sense. 

From left to right:  Snow White by Little House Needleworks; Joyful Summer by Country Cottage Needleworks; and I don't know what the one on the right is.  I stitched this one in 1988, first time stitching on linen.  I thought it was about time it was framed.

Scrapper's Block

This is a plea to all of my scrapbooking friends out there.  How do I get my scrapping mojo back?  This is a scrapbook that I started two (hanging head in shame) years ago.  Let me just say that I think scrapbooking is cool.  Sheila loaned me a book that was full of examples and hints and it was so interesting to look at.  What great ideas!  I love all the stuff that goes with scrapping -- papers, punches, stamps, etc. etc.  I'm especially enamored with the adhesive selection, like the little sticky roller (awesome). Plus I have completed one scrapbook in the past, and I must say that it turned out very well.  And if you want to get really technical about it, I would put together an end-of-the-year book for each child during my preschool-teaching days.  So I know what to do, I think.  I have all of the stuff.  Except for the "get up and do it".

The book in question will be a remembrance of our trip of a lifetime to London in 2009.  While we were there, I knew that I wanted to do this, and reminded Mark and Matt to keep everything.  Tube maps, ticket stubs, tour books, all the good stuff.  And I took a lot of pictures.  So here I am, with a nice bunch of interesting and colorful items to place in my book.  When I took all of this stuff out over the weekend, I was pleased to see that I actually liked the three pages that I crafted!  All I have to do now is get rid of this "scrapper's block" and get going again.  But how?  Am I overthinking this?  Getting too far ahead of myself?  Should I just concentrate on one page at a time? Is there a good way to organize all of the stuff I want to put into the book?

OK, fellow scrappers, please help me here.  Any ideas, suggestions or criticisms you have will be appreciated, and I thank you in advance!  When it's finished, I'll photograph it and post it here.

Think I'll Get Tired Of Stitching Cats?

I am thoroughly enjoying stitching my current (one of them, anyway) project, Val's Stuff "Kitty Kalendar".  Each time I finish a cat month, it's like I get to begin a new project!  Like a little accomplishment.  It's lots of fun filling in each little square and finding out what each cat is going to look like.  Plus, it's nice to see how all of the Weeks Dye Works colors are going to look together.  It was coincidental that I stitched the "April" cat in the raincoat and hat on the day we had the most rain in weeks.  If you'll notice, the cats don't have their whiskers yet.  They're stitched in long stitch and I'm afraid that they'll catch on stuff as I stitch.  Those will go on last along with the cute buttons for each month.

My latest start is "Charmed Gobble" by Hinzeit.  The first time I saw this stitched up, I knew that this would be a great addition to my framed seasonal finishes.  I like to have something stitched that I can put in an easel stand and switch out for the seasons.  I've got Halloween and Christmas covered, so a little Thanksgiving project like this is just the ticket.  And that turkey is a cutie!

Next, I have to decide what else to start so I'll be all set for stitch camp at The Stitch Store later on this month!  My sister, Sheila, and I are going, along with friends we met at previous camps and a few new stitchers!  It will be a fun reunion and I plan to share pictures of this relaxing stitchy weekend.

Orts And A Happy Find

When we moved two years ago, only two things broke.  One was a wineglass which I think may have broken in transit.  No big deal, easily replaced.  The other was my thread bucket.  It slipped right out of my hand as I was unpacking it and shattered into many pieces.  This one WAS a big deal.  Let me explain.  My thread bucket is not a bucket at all, but a little crystal dish that was given to me by my mom.  It was always right at hand on an end table to put all of my orts, or thread ends into as I stitched.  Our son was pretty small at the time, and he was the one who gave this elegant little bowl the name "Thread Bucket".  The name stuck.  So you can see why Thread Bucket's demise hit me hard. 

Every once in a while, I'd go on Ebay and see if I could find a replica.  There were lots of pretty crystal dishes there, but not one that resembled my thread bucket.  Until a couple of weeks ago.  Yes, there it was!  Maybe not exactly the same, but pretty close!  So I bid and won it!  For ninety nine cents!!  It's slightly smaller and more rounded, but the same design.  And yes, I realize it's not the one that my mom gave me, but the story about this find is something that Mom would have loved:  Finding another one AND getting it for a bargain price!  It now sits at my right hand on the end table next to my stitching spot.  Mark has taken to calling it "Thread Bucket Junior".

One stitching term that I wasn't familiar with until a few years ago was "orts".  I'd been calling them "thread pieces" or "thread ends", so was surprised when I found out that there was an actual term for them!  The word "ort" is short for "old raggedy threads".  I also looked the word up in the dictionary and the definition was "a scrap or morsel of food left at a meal".  (Huh, food left over?)  But I found it funny that this definition also involved a scrap.  And when I realized that many stitchers saved their orts and displayed them in pretty containers, I decided to join the fun.  My jar is sure to be filled up with lots of colorful orts as I work on my Kitty Kalendar.  I'll post an update soon.

Ort Cat