Pineberry Lane All Good Witches and Updates

I'm calling both of these done. Good Witches only needs the centers of the diamonds on the dresses filled in. Otherwise it's done. It was very hard for me to work on this or even want to keep it, quite honestly. I started it when Jenny was alive, and I have a difficult time finishing projects that are ongoing when something bad happens. Anyone else have this issue? 

Regardless, I did manage to derive some enjoyment from putting in some stitches recently. Even more so when I found a few stray hairs in this piece. They will definitely make it in to the framed piece when the time comes. This is one that I can say I'm just glad it's done and I'll be happy to move on to my next project.

Little Jenny hair

Looks like the VA heat is going to be awful and oppressive this week again. I'm telling you, I really feel for all the little (and big!) animals out there. Just seems to be no break.

I have been wanting to learn to embroider forever. I decided to give it a go a couple weeks ago and bought a little tiny pattern on Etsy. I think I enlarged it too much because I definitely have way more embroidering going on here than the designer had! But I'm learning, so I'm not going to be too hard on myself for now. I can definitely see doing more of this in the future.

I'll try to finish this one up this week. Work has been abysmally slow. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy that, but I have to try to make up the time somehow and that gets a bit tiresome. No pleasing me apparently! LOL.

I need to stitch, crochet, embroider and sew more. It takes me out of my life somewhat and gives my brain something to focus on and concentrate on, and aside from all the beautiful things we make, isn't that why we do it anyway? I think it is. It's like a form of meditation with needle and floss or thread.

I made these earlier in the spring when I really need a break from my thoughts. I think they turned out pretty good!

I also crocheted this for myself after making one for my sweet daughter in law. I love this thing so much.

I have more to catch up on, but I'll leave that for next time! I sincerely hope everyone who comes across this blog is well, and enjoying life, and getting lots of stitching done. Be back soon with a new stitch and more updates! Take care everyone.

Where did February go? Stitchy update finally!

February has been a blur. Lots going on. I actually got some stitching done the past week or two! Here is progress on All Good Witches.

I still couldn't put the crochet down. I made a sweet little Pug Bee for myself.

The tail. C'mon, the tail!!! You can find this pattern HERE.

And a little Mandrake to keep me company.

Is he not the cutest? You can find him HERE.

Hmmm, like I said, there is lots that has been going on, just not much of it blogworthy. My husband is retired now. Just two days ago. That will be nice for him. And me. I have grown really, really, really, exhausted to trying to live my life around that job. Time for me to make some adjustments. 

I hope everyone is doing well and getting in the Spring mood. It will be here before we know it! Take care of yourselves and get in lots of stitchy and crafty time! We're all gonna need it this upcoming year I think, lol. I will see you soon with more updates!

End of Year Wrap Up! Goodbye 2023!

We are at the end of another year. It turns and turns whether we want it to or not. I haven't done much stitching at all, but finishing up Summer Bouquet was a years long goal of mine. I have always loved that sampler and I am so happy I finished it! I'll take it in for finishing soon! I'm not that confident with pinning and framing linen, so I'll probably leave this one to someone else to do. I do hope to continue to work on stitching that I love this next year. It's just been tough lately. 

Here's a pitiful update on All Good Witches by Pineberry Lane. The lighting on these is awful, lol. Oh well. You get the jist!

I did lots of amigurumi projects this year and I was really happy with that! I need to keep using up all this yarn, so I'll be crocheting more this year too. I also started designing here and there again, but haven't officially released anything just yet. Maybe I'll get there soon.

Look at my second gorgeous embroidery from my amazing daughter in law! So beautiful! I'm in awe of her embroidery skills! I am so appreciative of her time and effort in making these things for me. Just awe inspiring.

Our Christmas was so wonderful. The kids came over in the morning and after an incredible opening of gifts in which they got us the most thoughtful and great things, we cooked a big breakfast and we all sat around and enjoyed it at our table. My father in law lives with us now and it was so nice for him to celebrate his second holiday here with us.

Thanksgiving was good. I got to see my nephews for the first time in 2 years. Dynamics change when people get divorced and that is what happened here. I sure miss seeing them, but they are busy boys now with lots to do and two households to do it in. One of them is graduating college soon and they've just grown up while the world was spinning and I have missed out on most of it! Seeing them, and being with my kiddos was the best thing about it. I could honestly do without Thanksgiving though. Not really my favorite holiday or event. Am I weirdo feeling like that? Anyone else who isn't fond of Thanksgiving please chime in, lol!

My sweet little boo boo had to have surgery this past Friday. She's doing OK, and recovering well. But this pup is 17.5 years old! She is s tough little Jack Russell and keeps on trucking. This past year has been tough on her with losing her eyesight and most of her hearing. She still loves to eat and has a good appetite. One of us usually always has to be home with her as she gets stuck in corners and her legs may splay out on the wood floor areas. Poor baby. Sweet little Jenny. She had this same surgery last year, when she was ONLY 16.5 years old, and it was a totally different game. She is just much more delicate this year.

She is officially the last pet we'll have. I just don't have it in me anymore. We've given 7 doggies, 2 kitties, quite a few fish, and two guinea pigs a good life. I'm done! 

Well, I'm tired from caretaking for a little doggie this weekend, and it's NYE, so I'm going to sign off. I hope everyone has a great New Year's Eve and new start to 2024! Take care of yourselves and one another. Be back soon!

Stitching Updates and Vacation!

Whew, it really has been a couple months??! Got busy with life, doggie, family, etc. Did do a bit of stitching and Summer Bouquet is SO CLOSE to being done. I'm hoping to have it finished this week. Here she is so far. So many fun little details in here. It'll look nice all framed up.

Speaking of framed, I finally got around to pinning and framing Shoo! by Pineberry Lane. I thought I had that thing perfect, but I did not. And guess what? It's fine. I doubt anyone will notice but me. Love this design! If I can't stand it I can always undo the back and repin.

We just came back from vacation with my son and daughter in law. Had a nice time, but BOY was it super hot there in OCMD. We were not prepared for the heat this late in the season. For my beach stitch, I purchased and took along another Pineberry Lane. This one is called All Good Witches. Stitching her on PTP 14 ct. Wren. It's beautiful fabric.

And vacation would not be complete without a trip to Salty Yarns! They moved from the boardwalk to Berlin, which is only about 8 minutes outside of OC. I so miss their old location, but wow, is their new store to die for. My goodness, it's amazing. I was in there a good hour and I know I didn't see it all. I only bought a few things. I'm trying to be more mindful about buying patterns. I came back with a few pieces of fabric that I have plans for, so that's good too! 

I'll have more stuff to post, but I'll catch up next time. Just wanted to say again how much I enjoyed spending a whole week with my kiddos. It's been a few years since we were able to vacation together due to jobs, etc, so I am so thankful! Taking along two dogs was a trip, but it worked out fine since we had separate rooms. The food was awesome and I managed to bring back a couple pounds with me. Totally worth it.

I hope everyone reading this is doing well and enjoying life. Today is 9/11, and it's something I will never, ever forget. If you are looking for something new to watch regarding that day, please check out National Geographic's 9/11: One Day in America. It is 6 episodes of about 45 min. each and well worth it. It is graphic in the descriptions and images from that day of course, so be forewarned. But it's amazing to me to see this day from so many perspectives. I don't ever want to forget, and so I make an effort to spend some time reviewing what happened, and looking for new information every year. 

Be back soon with a finish and some more pics and updates! Take care everyone! And lets hope next time I post the weather will be cooler here in VA!

 

Tansy Yarrow Rue is DONE!

YES! First finish of 2023! I don't even think I had any stitching finishes last year. But after looking back and seeing all I was dealing with, it's OK. 

So here is Pineberry Lane's Tansy Yarrow Rue. It is on 16 ct Aida, which I hand dyed myself and using one strand of floss. The left side looks weirdly dark, but it's not. Must have been a shadow.

I'm very happy with this one, as I am with all the Pineberry Lane designs. She just makes the cutest things.

So now to figure out what I want to work on next!

Well, I'm going to leave with a pic of my sweet Jenny, 16.5 years old and spunky and sweet as ever. She amazes us! And she loves to keep me company while I stitch, so she's been pretty happy this week while I finished up this one.

Good luck with all your 2023 stitching and try not to put too much pressure on yourselves to compete with everyone else! We all have to go at our own pace to keep the stitching fun!

Until next time!

Thanksgiving, Pineberry Lane, and a Witchy Primitive Pinkeep

I hope everyone is recovering nicely from turkey and carb overload! Nice to sit down and type for a bit after a couple days on my feet. Thanksgiving was really nice. Small gathering with my father in law and my son and daughter in law. They called in the morning to say how strange it was to wake up on Thanksgiving and not be in our home, hearing all the goings on in the morning, etc. It was equally weird for me not having them here. I miss them so much! But they are just a couple streets over and I'm very thankful for that! 

Got only a tiny bit of work done on Tansy, by Pineberry Lane. When I have another block of time, I should be able to nearly finish it. I absolutely love her designs. 

 I forgot to show some stash I acquired a month or so ago when me and my mom drove up to In Stitches on a spur of the moment one weekend.

I could have gone really overboard, but this was it. Not like I have a shortage of patterns, you know? LOL. 

Well, there's another primitive Halloween finish here! It's from Prims By Denise on Etsy. I saw it and thought maybe, just maybe I could do it. So I carefully followed the instructions and VOILA! I now have an adorable witchy pincushion of my very own!

She could maybe use a couple more pins, but I don't want to overload it. Pretty proud of this one! I'm not a stranger to a sewing machine and I love the one I have. It's an old Singer that my husband got for me at Woolworth's (believe it or not), back in about 1988-89. Knock on wood, it's a workhorse! And it's served me well for all my crafty needs this whole time.

There are so many wonderful Etsy designers out there with primitive patterns and cross stitch and all kinds of other things. Getting on my tablet in the evening before I go to sleep and just perusing....that's my habit and I don't wanna kick it. It relaxes me just dreaming about all the things and planning out what I want to do next.

Time to get Christmas planning. Another year coming to an end. The end of the year just goes so quickly! There's barely any time between Halloween and New Year's it seems. 

Take care and get lots of stitching and crafting time in between doing all that holiday shopping!

Until next time,

Post Halloween, Pineberry Lane, and Primitive Doll Making!!!!

I hope everyone out there had a fun and wonderful Samhain/Halloween! We were pretty low key here, with just sitting on the front porch handing out candy. Had a bit of rain, but it cleared up and it was a nice night overall. 

We did some of our regular holiday ritual things, like going to King's Dominion a few times. We decided there really isn't anything about Halloween we don't love and that Christmas could learn a lot from Halloween. 

I wanted to stop stitching on the patriotic BBD I had going. I'm not feeling very patriotic lately, and since Autumn began, I wasn't feeling it anyways. I wanted to start something with Autumn colors, but not necessarily Halloween, because I knew I would be stitching it after Halloween since I am so slow. So I began Pineberry Lane's Tansy Yarrow Rue. Perfect. 

 I hand dyed some 16 ct. aida and it turned out great. Great colors and simple design. Doesn't mean I'm still not a slow stitcher. In my defense, work has been horrific. I never used that word about work before. I've been there for 15 years and some recent changes have put me square in the "not afraid to use the word horrific" category. Ugh.

One of our very favorite places to eat has closed permanently. Joe's Crab Shack. I was going to meet my mom there last week for lunch. We'd just been recently too! Pulled up and got this in return. No name, empty parking lot, dark restaurant. BOO. I'm very sad about this. We spent so many great times in here with family. Lots of good memories.

As I said, we went to King's Dominion and had a lot of fun. They do such a great job on atmosphere and decorating. Magnificent!

I went out on a limb and tried primitive doll making!!!! This is something I have been wanting to do for a couple years now. And in fact, I bought this pattern online at Etsy two years ago and had all the supplies waiting for me in a bag on the back of a doorknob and I said "enough is enough"! So I got to work and had her done in a weekend! It probably could have been finished in one day, and I'm sure the next one will. You can find her pattern HERE. I cannot recommend this shop enough. Directions are clear and easy! I never thought I could do this!

I got a little glue gun happy so I made her a cowl. LOL. I think she's precious! I am hooked. So yet another craft under my belt and something else to take up my time and money. Makes me so very happy though and it's so fun to learn something new.

These mugs. I bought them at Marshall's and they kept me going this Halloween season. I fell in love with them! Super cute, and I'll be using them ALL YEAR. Adorable, am I right?

Now it's time to prep for Thanksgiving and Christmas I guess. The past couple of years have been a bit surreal. It seems time has gone so slow in one respect, but I look around and wonder where it all went. Story of my life!

I really hope everyone out there is doing well and taking care of yourselves. Please VOTE on Tuesday upcoming. I vote every election and take it deadly seriously. Just do it.

Keep stitching and doing what you love to do. Until next time,

It's a MIRACLE! Stitching project finished!

A miracle has happened! I finished Pineberry Lane's Shoo! It has been a long time coming, but in my defense, this has been a heck of a year. Some good, some bad. Health challenges, and just dealing with a huge lack of desire on my part to do much of anything since fall. This is such a small project, I almost hate making a big deal of it, but I'll get to that later. Here she is! 

As I have been looking around my office during the day while I worked, these unfinished projects of mine were feeling unloved and making me feel somewhat guilty! I like finishing projects. I really hate having things not done and just waiting around. Since I've been getting some medical things taken care of, it's spurred me on to get moving on a couple of them and Shoo! really needed to get done!

Another thing that was just waiting for me for about a year in a plastic ziploc bag was this sweetie!

That face kills me! I love him so much. If you wanted to do him, the pattern can be purchased from THIS SHOP on Etsy. She has the cutest things. I thought he turned out so adorable! I'm getting better and better at doing some of these things, and having too much fun with them!

As I mentioned above, finishing these couple of things that have been staring at me for nearly a year-well, it gives me a big sense of accomplishment right now. I dare say I'm proud of myself, lol. AND, I am caught up with Project Life as well, so, whew.

My son turned 26 yesterday and we took him to our favorite steak place and we all had a great time. I'm so proud of him. He and his wife are moving out at the end of the month, and though they'll still be in our neighborhood, I can't tell you how much I will miss having them here. But I'm really excited for them to start their proper married life and I know they are too. Having to see Mom and Dad when you come and go all the time sure gets old I know! I've just had such a great time having them here. And this is what you raise your kids to do-be independent and self sufficient. It's so hard (and expensive) anymore!

The wheel of the year is turning toward Summer in just about 9 days! I cannot believe it. I will be taking care of lots of things for myself over the next few months and beyond. Time to get back to me for a bit and get my mindset and my physical health back on track.

Well, I hope everyone is doing great and getting way more stitching done than I have. I will shop around in my stash and start another one soon. I'll have to pull a few this week and decide. I have no shortage of things to stitch, that's for sure. I'm excited to begin something new. 

Take care of yourselves, and until next time,