Finished

Well, the snowman is done, and it didn't turn out perfect. I must admit it is adorable, however, I learned a lot during this process. I think I used the wrong thread to add the beads. I will work on that. And, ironing it after the beads were attached was a challenge.

I know what not to do next time.... just remains to be seen if I know what to do.

Thanks for going on this trip with me.

Actual Lunch Time Doodles

Here is a "doodle" I did while sitting with nothing else to do with my hands. It started out as a light pencil scratch then I got down to business, and actually did the design. Thank goodness for erasures, because I used it quite often....over and over.

Then, I finally got what I had in my head. I went over it again with the pencil, then used transfer paper to get the design onto some material.

Now I am embroidering the design on the small piece of material. I will be using small white beads for the little drops of snow.

Then, the final process - I will glue it onto a blank card. And, there it is.. a Christmas Card.... A really pretty one.

I have an idea to do one with a Christmas tree..... That will be in the works when this is done.

New Etsy Store

I came across this beautiful jewelry shop on Etsy. Normally, I don't pay much attention to jewelry because I am allergic to metal, but this girl's pieces are exquisite.

I looked at her profile and was blown away by her dedication to jewelry making and her life in general. Here is her story.............. enjoy!

My name is Jihee kim born and raised in Seoul, South Korea. I came to the United States to study MBA and have worked for International Financial Organization for several years in Washingtone D.C.. After I got married, I have lived in several different places such as Singapore, L.A., and Miami. Currently I live in Seattle with my husband and two adorble boys. It was great experience to learn different cities' own life stlyes, cultures and food. One of my unforgettable taste of food was "Black Pepper Sri Lankan Crab" in Singapore. If you go there, don't forget to try that. One day, I just happened to sign up whole day class of "how to make earrings" at Community college which was availabe on Saturday. After I took that class, the rest is history. I can not stop thinking of new design. I decided to make jewelries for the rest of my life! I never expect that class was going to change my life. The most great pleasure to make jewelry is creativity. There are always a lot of possibilities to make unique piece of jewelry with same beads. Creation of jewelry with beautiful materials makes me feel so live and happy. I do oil paintings, but making jewelry gives me more instant gratification and fun to work with beautiful and precious gems all the time. When I am at bead stores, I feel like being at candy stores like a little girl.When I make jewelries, I am always thinking of the person who is going to wear them and doing my best to help person look more beautiful and feel more confident on them. I hope my dedication and efforts show on my jewelries.

You can see her beautiful things at http://arionjewelry.etsy.com/

Wordless Wednesday

Is It My Birthday? .... No!

I was beginning to think it was my birthday yesterday when the mail came and there was a package from my Sister. She knows (of course) that I have been doing a lot of embroidery lately. In fact, I asked her where to go to buy some nice linen to embroider on. She gave me the name of a place on the internet. Well, I had some linen (not a lot), and thought I would use that for now. Then she called and said she would send me a few pieces she had that were extras. I was thrilled.

The package that arrived was just chuck full of lots and lots of linen. All colors... even purple and peach. As you can see from the picture, I will be supplied with embroidery linen for a very long time. This was soooo special!! Just can't wait now to get going and do something with it all.

She also sent a little cross stitch she did. I have 3 more of these and they are just adorable. I guess now I could call it a "collection". This new one will get put up on the wall with the other 3 in the morning. (Too hot now to wield a hammer)

Sisters are special!!

Update

It's been a while since I udated my little blog here. I have been busy, but the weather has me under the weather!! It has been very very humid, with showers and rain every day. This does not do well for me. And, there seems to be no end to it. Every day I spend more and more time laying down on the couch, even though I sleep 8 hours every night. (Fitfull sleep).

Enough of that!! I did do this little embroidery. I call it "Dancing Daisies". As they said in the embroidery guild....They really do look like they are dancing. This was fun to do, and it makes me smile.

I'm crocheting some small purple flowers (violets?), and I think I shall put them on a notecard like I did the pink flowers. They are so little and so cute.

I am also working on getting a blanket done for the linus project.

Like I said... I have been busy.... just a slower busy than usual.

Knitting Group

This is my Wednesday Morning Knitting Group. We are a small group, but this is a small senior housing facility. We meet for a few hours every Wednesday morning to share stories, patterns, and camaraderie. We bolster each other up when we are down, and share our happiness as well as our sadness. Mostly, we laugh a lot.

On the left is Kitty. She is from England, and claims to knit "The English Way". Kitty has 6 children and 4 grandchildren. I love her accent, and her enthusiasm for life.

In the middle is Audrey. She is from right here in Saratoga Springs. She knits and crochets faster than anyone I know, and she never looks at what she is doing. ..... Thus, there is the occasional "bleep" word. Audrey has 11 children, and 28 grandchildren. Needless to say, she has a wonderful outlook on life. She had to, in order to survive 11 children.

On the right is Betty. Betty is originally from the area near Watertown, NY - The 1.000 Island area. Betty recently lost her husband of 60+ years, and is trying hard to adjust to life without him. It has been hard for her, but she has 4 children and 14 grandchildren who are seeing to it that she keeps busy. Also, we are all trying to help her through this rough time.

Since I have 2 children and 2 grandchildren........That means that between 4 of us there are 23 children and 48 grandchildren. Needless to say, most of the stories we tell are about our little ones. I didn't even try to count the Great Grandchildren. I just know there are a bunch.

Right now, the group is working on making blankets for the children that go to the "Hole-in-the-Wall" summer camp. This is the camp that was started by Paul Newman for children with cancer and other life-threatening illnesses. 900 blankets are needed just for our region. For more information on this project, or if you would like to donate a blanket please visit http://www.projectlinus.org/

Well, I have finished my "Bird on a Branch", and I think he is adorable. I would give him (or her) a name, but will leave that to whomever chooses to purchase him.

You can see him at my second store ... peppers2.etsy.com

Meantime, he makes me smile each time I glance his way.

Work in Progress

Actually, I am still creating... I have two knitting projects going right now, and this cute embroidery. It is a little bird perched on a branch. Ever so cute!! I got the design from a fellow Etsy seller: http://softpencil.etsy.com/. Her designs are sweet and mostly whimsical. She is very talented.

I learned to embroider before there was television!! I remember two summers in a row, when I was about 10 & 11 years old, there were about 6 of us girls that got together several afternoons a week to embroider. Our Moms helped and we helped each other. I can still remember the thrill when I finally mastered the french knot.

So now 60 years later -- here I am embroidering, and thoroughly enjoying it.

My little bird will be done shortly, and will be in my "peppers2" store.

Here I Go Again

I have been doing a lot of reading lately. I do seem to do this in spurts.

I just finished "Grace", by Richard Paul Evans. He also wrote "The Christmas Box", and "The Gift".

It is a book that is written very simply. You are reading along, and don't realize that the story and characters have grabbed your heart. The story line is a teenage boy harbours a young girl who has run away from home. They fall in love, but it is an innocent love of youth. She hides in his "clubhouse" in his backyard, and he has quite a time trying to feed her and keep her warm through the cold weather.

It sounds simple, and yes, it is. But it is the simplicity of the story and the writing of the story that suddenly creeps into your soul.

I do highly recommend this book. It is a good read.

Cute Store

I just found this cute ...and Brand New... little store.

She has these pretty painted pots with all the ingredients to grow you own herbs. What a great idea!! I may have to buy the sage one. But, she has lavender, and chives, and rosemary also. She doesn't give her name, but she is from Winnemucca, Nevada. Now, anyone who lives in a place called Winnemucca has got to be a fun person. To quote her profile... Her favorite materials to work with are anything that makes a mess, or gets her into trouble. My kind of person.

She also has some lovely vintage items in her store which you can see by going to http://istiferet.etsy.com/.

Another Book Review

I'm leaving the book review on the side right where it is becuase I want as many people as possible to see it and read the book. (The Letters)

This is a review of "The Friday Night Knitting Club".
The book is way too long for the type of story and the kind of reader that it would attract. It is a lovely story, and it shows how knitting can draw people of very different backgrounds and stations in life together in a common bond. A bond that is very strong. The characters are wonderful in their diversity, and it is fun to get to know each one seperately. However, the book is still too long for the type of book it is.
Read it if you have nothing else to do.

Yellow Baby Sweater

Well, here it is... all done. This little sweater and hat turned out really cute, in spite of all the trouble with the yarn.

Now I am on to other wonderful things. I am doing a mobius that reminds me of the little towns in Mexico with all their colorful items they have for sale to the tourists. And, after my daughter stole my pretty knit dish towel, I am making another for myself.

The "mobius" is from the UFO (UnFinished Objects) basket that I have since sorting out my yarn stash. I can't wait for this basket to hold only current works in progress, instead of old UFO's.

Mink Yarn

Here is the mink yarn. It is so very beautiful, and so soft to the touch it is like touching air. They do have colors, however, I chose the "natural". I can't imagine have mink yarn that is pink.

The yarn is real mink fiber blended with fine quality Mongolian cashmere, and it was developed by Great Northern Yarns in August of 2008. The yarn has wonderful properties, and knitting stimulates blossoming of the mink and cashmere fibers. The yarn can be washed before or after knitting.

No Animals are harmed making this yarn.

It is DK weight, with 5.5 stitches per inch on #6 needles.

I have 2 skeins that I treasure, and will make something wonderful for myself with them when I come upon a pattern that is worthy. (I think I have one, but will ponder it for a bit).

You can get this yarn at http://www.greatnorthernyarns.com/.

Until next Tuesday you can get a 25% discount....yes 25% on their yarn by using the promotion code 0609. A wonderful buy, and if you are a knitter you won't be sorry, I promise.

Pretty Lace Collar

This collar was knit with bamboo yarn. The yarn is really, really soft. Bamboo yarn is the latest yarn craze, what with all the talk about trying to save the environment. Now they tell us that the processing of this yarn takes a multitude of chemicals, and the processing to make it into yarn is very destructive.

So much for going natural.

What could be more natural than the wool of a sheep or alpacca? I think from now on I will be using the wonderful wool that our animals give us.

Speaking of which, I have recently purchased some "Mink" yarn. It is collected from the wee animals when they shed, and spun into a lovely extra soft yarn that is yummy. It is very much like alpacca - worsted weight -, but much softer.

Meantime, I love this collar!! It really is very soft, so no itching or scratching on the neck. The color is great for setting off a plain sweater, and does wonders for the complexion. You can find this for sale at my Etsy store. Now, I just might make myself one.