Hoot Hoot

I'm fresh out of witty titles.

Not that I ever came up with witty titles.

You can find the Wee Folk Art applique pattern that I used for my owl here. Since I don't applique, I decided to stuff mine so I cut out two body shapes and two sets of wings. I used regular craft felt and attached the eyes, nose, feathers and feet (talons?) to the top body piece before I sewed the top to the bottom body piece together. The wings were added last.



I've been working on a biscornu and I was nearly finished with closing it up, when I remembered biscornus have eight sides. Oops.



To see what the biscornu should look like, go here. I still can't believe I did that! I've made a few biscornus in the past so I know how to put them together but I guess I wasn't paying attention to what I was doing until it was too late. I've already started another one and hopefully, I will remember to assemble it the correct way next time.

For the charts for this biscornu, click on the last two photos in the entry.

The TUSAL Report For June

I'm a little late with this but there was a new moon on Monday (and a firedance through the night) so it's time to post another picture of my orts jar for the Totally Useless Stitch-A-Long. A lot of floss in that jar was ripped out from mistakes I made while putting that owl together (more about him in a later post) so it was fitting they hang out together for the photo shoot.

The TUSAL is the easiest SAL ever. All you do is save your leftover bits of floss (and anything else you want to add) in a container and share a photo of it once a month. For more information on the TUSAL, check out this post over at Dragon My Needle.

And, on a serious note: R.I.P. Farrah Fawcett, Michael Jackson and Ed McMahon

The First Finish Of My Convalescence

Thank you all so much for the comments on my last post!!! With all of you wishing me a speedy recovery, it should be no time before I am back on my feet again (pun intended).

I had planned to make tons of "stuff" while recuperating from my surgery but so far, I've been too busy reading and playing Farm Town on Facebook to get many projects done. But I did make a cross stitch ornament a few days ago.

There's a monthly pinkeep SAL at Les grilles de Maryse [link via LaGattaC]. I doubt I'll be stitching them all (then again, I do have time and I think they're pretty) but I wanted to do the the June design because it has cherries. As you can see, I didn't finish it as a pinkeep. It has red felt on the back because it was handy and I didn't feel like searching for some fabric to use instead. I used all the suggested floss colors and stitched it on 18 ct Fiddler's (or Fiddler's Lite -- I forget which one I've been using and who knows where the label is at this point). My mom's already claimed my ornament even though I didn't get the loop smack in the center. (Let's blame it on the Vicodin, even though I haven't actually needed to take any.)



Go here to see the pinkeep charts for January through June. And, check out the January 14th post where Maryse shows how to make a pinkeep. The directions are in French but I think you can figure it out. I might try making one with the January chart.

Thanks again for the get well soon wishes!!

Bunionectomies Are The Best Medicine

I'm supposed to keep my foot elevated and I've been on the computer for a few hours now so I'll make this quick: I had my surgery last week and was awake for it, which was interesting since I got to hear all about my doctor's love life. In case you just tuned in: I had an operation to remove a post-traumatic bunion that had formed after I broke my foot nearly two years ago. Even more backstory: in August 2007, I had broken my knee and it wasn't until after that healed that it was discovered my foot had been fractured in four places, most likely when I fell and fractured my knee. By then, my foot had healed on its own and this gigantic bone was curving out below my big toe which made my foot so wide that I could no longer wear regular shoes. My doctor recently decided it was time to do surgery on the humongous bunion so that's what I had done last week when I got to hear all about her current boyfriend while lying on a gurney and listening to Bon Jovi and Depeche Mode on the radio.

On Wednesday, I saw my surgeon and they removed all of the bandages and I wanted to do a happy dance after seeing how normal my right foot looked. It's still a little oddly shaped -- she couldn't do anything about the toes that curve to the left now but the giant bunion was all gone. Woo freaking hoo! I now have a plate and some screws in my foot, which match nicely with the metal plate and screws in my knee. (Does anyone know if I'll set off metal detectors now? I keep forgetting to ask.) I still can't put any weight on my foot for quite awhile -- the bones need a chance to mend -- but knowing I will eventually be able to go back to wearing regular shoes has cheered me up considerably.

I still have a chronic wound on my other foot that is just not healing and she is talking about doing surgery on that too but I'm still on the fence about having that done until I hear more details. Anything with that requires more than a week of recovery is not something I'm ready to sign up for. Between losing my drivers license and dealing with broken bones, it will be three years in October that I've been housebound and I am truly sick of it and ready to have a life again. And, to wear cute shoes while doing it.

Please cross your fingers, say some prayers, and think good thoughts that my foot will heal the way it's supposed to. I won't get my stitches out for another 11 days so infection is still a possibility, but I'm staying out of the shower until then (ugh) and fortunately my circulation is still pretty good for someone with diabetes for over thirty years.

I've only finished one cross stitch during my convalescence but I've read at least 6 paperbacks in the past week. If you like stories about amateur detectives who solve murders AND bake cookies, check out Joanne Fluke's Hannah Swensen series. The books are fun and a quick read, and loaded with recipes.

Back to putting my foot up and reading another Hannah mystery.

Finished For Friday: Remember Weepuls?

Lately, every time I see something cute to make, I add it to the list I have going in my head of things to keep me busy while I'm recovering from foot surgery (it's finally going to happen next Thursday). I just added the Bunny Stitch-A-Long to the list. It's an embroidery project with a super cute pattern from Polka Dot Bunny.

The other day I had planned to link to the Weepuls tutorial from Zakka Life, and also wanted to include a photo of the Weepuls that I've had for years. Well, I totally forgot to snap a picture of them so I held off on adding the link. So, today, in honor of Finished for Friday, I am completing my task by linking to the Weepuls tutorial and showing you mine.

I don't remember these little fuzzballs having a name. Thank you to Zakka Life for tracking it down. Wikipedia says Weepuls or Wuppies or Wuppets were invented in 1979 and became extremely popular in 1981. I don't know how long I've had mine but the whites of their googly eyes have yellowed over time so I think it's been awhile. Sadly, I don't have the supplies to make a Weepul tonight but I can always play with my old ones.

Be sure to check Lit and Laundry to see who else is joining in for Finished for Friday.

Yet Another Post (Shocking!)

When you have some time, you need to visit Freebies For Crafters, a blog loaded with "patterns, tutorials and links for free crafting, sewing, quilting, scrapbooking, stitchery, embroidery, cross-stitch, redwork, knitting, crochet, dolls, primitives, and much more!" I spent over an hour there yesterday and will go back when I have more time. [Link via Niki.]

Check out the Garland Along going on at Creative Breathing. How fun!

I keep forgetting to mention I've added a few more vintage embroidery transfers to my other blog. The latest are from the same sheet of Artex dog & cat designs. Will I ever finish getting them all scanned and be able to move on to a different set of patterns? Stay tuned.

Look at this cute cross stitch doll that Annie made for the Comfort Doll Project. Handmade dolls are collected and sent to women's shelters in all fifty states and New Zealand. What a great idea. Thank you to Pat for starting it!