Please Vote These Dogs

For two days now, I have been meaning to take some pictures of my recent cross stitch finishes but haven't gotten to doing it yet. I've also received some care packages recently and wanted to post about them but not until I re-take photos of all the great stash that was sent to me by some really nice and generous people from Blog Land since the first round of pics didn't turn out so well. I truly am an expert at taking pictures out of focus.

You may have seen already since the Little Pink House Tutorial since it's been linked all over the place but go have a look at it over at Sew Mama Sew if you've haven't seen it yet. This afternoon I cut out all the house, flowers and leaf pieces, and then I ate pizza and watched poor pitcher Hiroki Kuroda get beaned in the face/head with a line drive during a Dodger game on TV, (I just read online that did not suffer any bleeding or fractures which is pretty incredible), and then I was on Facebook rearranging my farm on Farm Town for about 17 hours so I haven't had a chance to stitch up my Little Pink House just yet. I'm resisting the urge to add a John Cougar Mellencamp figure to it.

So I have nothing to share tonight but I know of a couple of dogs who are trying to win two different contests, so I thought I'd try to get some votes for them. You don't have to register to vote. Just click the links. Thank you to any and all who vote for these two pups!

First up is Buddy who is entered in the Doing More For Pets Rescue Stories Contest. I can't give you his background story because I voted once for him already and now they won't let me get back to his page but it looks like the rescue group who saved Buddy -- that would be the American Lhasa Apso Club Rescue --- will get $5000 worth of dog food from Purina Pro Plan if he wins. Try going here and then clicking on the Return To Voting button. If that doesn't work, my apologies to Buddy for not drumming up some more votes for him.

Voting for Stanley is easier. Just click the graphic below. I love his picture.

Happy Wednesday

Hey, did you guys know Sew, Mama, Sew was doing a month of hand sewing on their blog? Monday's post is from Margie of Resurrection Fern and she's doing a tutorial on a nature- inspired easy embroidery sampler. I love the pattern she is sharing and I'm eady to go stitch it up now. And, she mentions a new-to-me way of transferring designs to your fabric which I have to try out.

Be sure to check out the previous posts on Sew, Mama, Sew to see more photos and tutorials on embroidery, working with felt, hand piecing, chicken scratch and cross stitch. (All my favorites! Woo hoo!)

Finished For Friday -- Bunny SAL

Nicole announced her Bunny Stitch A Long back in early June and I thought it was such a cute pattern. I finally started working on it the other night, mainly because I found out Mary has been checking my blog to see what I've been making while recovering from foot surgery and I felt bad that there hasn't been that much posted.

My original plan was to cut the animals and leaves & acorns out of felt and attach them to the fabric, and then embroider the rest of the design. I stitched the squirrel's tail first and then, forgetting all about the felt plan, I embroidered the outline of his body. Mr. Squirrel looked very blank, and when I realized I didn't have enough gray floss to fill him in, I colored him with a pencil. I figured I may as well keep going and used crayons to tint everything else since my other pencils were pink, blue and purple. Can you tell I was coloring at 2 am in a dimly lit room? The craptastic crayon job aside, I'm happy with how this turned out, even though it's nothing like I originally wanted to do it. Woodland creatures frolicking in the forest -- how could you not love it?

I'm not sure what made me do a chain stitch with two strands of white and two strands of gray floss but I love how the squirrel's tail came out.



I think I could have done a little less of chain stitching on the hedgehog's tummy. Do hedgehogs have quills like porcupines do or are they called something else? I shocked myself by not following the lines to do these. Usually, I'm not such a rebel. (And, yes, I can see the spot I forgot to embroider.)

You can find the cute pattern for the SAL on Flickr and on Nicole's blog. And, be sure to check out her Etsy shop for more of her adorable embroidery patterns.

Technically, I am not completely finished with this embroidery but the stitching is done so I'm posting it for Finished for Friday. I haven't posted anything for FFF for weeks and I miss it. And, I miss blogging and I know you all miss me. [Insert sounds of crickets chirping here] Well, at least I know Mary does.

Show off your latest finishes for the week at Finished for Friday, hosted by Lit and Laundry.

Enjoy the weekend!

Remember Me?

Surprise, surprise. I am still here. (My new FB addiction is Hatchlings.)

The other day Mary mentioned on Facebook how she has been checking my blog every day to see what I've been stitching since I had my foot surgery. That made me realize how I had planned to make a bunch of things during my recovery but have only finished a few. That put me in the mood to make something, so last night, I traced the design for the Bunny SAL on to some fabric and began to embroider it. All I have left to do is the hedgehog. And, if I wasn't sitting at my computer writing about it now, I would be working on it this very minute.

I did a little blog reading the other day and found a few embroidery freebies that I wanted to link to but I have to do some back tracking to find them again. For now, the August pattern is up on Bad Birds. and it's a buffalo.

See ya on Friday! (I actually have some finished ornaments to share. Alert the media!)

July's TUSAL Photo

Last Wednesday, I happened to read on someones blog that it was time to post a picture for the Totally Useless Stitch-A-Long. Once again, I had forgotten all about doing that and thought I'd go take a photo of my orts jar as soon as I was finished with the super important work I had left to do online. (Farm Town, much?) And, then I completely forgot all about the TUSAL and my jar of threads. Until now. So here you go.


After a craptastic episode this morning with a huge-ass spider in my bed and a bunch of deaf relatives who I can't count on for much of anything, I decided to hang my orts jar -- from my walker, of course -- instead of hanging myself. :P

How about a link to a giveaway over at Craft Gossip to cheer us all up? The prize is a super-cute mini-cross stitch kit from Miss Woolly, which I am sure will perk up whoever is lucky enough to win it. Go to Needlework News to enter the giveaway. You have until 8 AM CST on July 31st so go leave some comments now.

And, if you'd like to join the Totally Useless SAL, check out this post on Dragon My Needle and read all about it.

Needed: Animal Craft Patterns And Projects

UPDATE: I've decided not to do the Blogathon but I'm still going to put together a post with some links to animal patterns soon.

Since this is a craft blog, I'm planning on posting links to craft patterns that feature animals during next weekend's Blogathon. I'm going to go through all my saved and blogged links but I'm sure you all know of some great projects I can share. Anything to do with embroidery, cross stitch, knitting, crochet, felt, and fabric would be great. Free or...uh...non-free.

If you know of any animal patterns, could you please send me a link at nahnahnah@aol.com?

If you have made something with an animal pattern and want to show it off, send pictures.

If you sell animal patterns in your Etsy, send a link to your store.

Thank you!!

Blogathon 2009

Happy Friday, people! I've been working on a cross stitch and a felt pillow this week but neither one is done so I have nothing to share for Finished for Friday over at Lit and Laundry, so instead, I will tell you about the Blogathon.

The Blogathon is an online event where participants update their blogs every thirty minutes for 24 hours straight to raise money for charity. Bloggers collect pledges from sponsors before the Blogathon and when it's all over, sponsors send their donations directly to the charity.

This year the Blogathon is being held on July 25th. Sorry for the short notice but it's not too late to sign up. For more information, check out the website and the FAQ pages. Or you can ask me about it. I've done the Blogathon four times since it started. And, since I just decided to do join in this year, I won't start hitting you guys up for money until tomorrow. :)

Two Cute Embroidery Patterns

Since I'm supposed to stay off of my foot, I haven't yet figured out how to transfer an embroidery design on to some fabric so I can stitch it up. I can't see myself standing on one foot at a window and tracing a design on to my material nor can I see standing at the ironing board...wait a second. I've been doing dishes while resting my knee on my desk chair for support. I'm sure I could iron in the same position. It only takes a couple of minutes to transfer a design so I wouldn't have to stand there for that long, right?

Yay for blogging! If I hadn't decided to link to a couple of cute embroidery designs just now, I wouldn't have discovered a way to transfer some patterns in my current unable-to-put-both-feet-on-the-ground-at-the-same-time state.

Over at Babalisme, there's a super cute tabby cat pattern and a sweet little girls' dresses one at A Print A Day. I love both of these. [Both links via Sweet Tidings.]

Have a great weekend, y'all! I'll be embroidering my little heart out. And, if I fall while at the ironing board and break my hip, you guys will come and vist me, right?

Finished For Friday -- Cross Stitch Pincushions

For today's Finished for Friday, I'm sharing my latest cross stitch finishes. Remember that biscornu that I sewed together incorrectly and ended up with a pincushion instead? Technically, a biscornu is a pincushion but biscornus have eight sides (or more) and my pincushion only had four. Well, I also stitched up a biscornu using the same charts since my original plan was to make one. Here they are side by side:




I used a varigated floss, DMC 57, for everything but the strawberry stems. I really like how it goes from light to dark. Both of these are stitched on 14 ct Fiddler's or Fiddler's Lite.



You can find the charts for the biscornu by clicking the last two photos in this entry on Les loisirs d'une Sablaise.

Finished for Friday is hosted every week by Lit and Laundry and it's a fun way to show off what you've been working on for the past week.

Vote For Chone Figgins

Click the button to vote for Angel Chone Wiggins to help him get enough votes to play in the All Star game. Or vote for another player. I don't care. I just like adding widgets.

The Not Finished For Friday Post

Next week, I will have something to share for Finished for Friday. I just need to track down where I found the pattern for an embroidered dog that I finished before my surgery. This was my second attempt at stitching it and I do believe Version #2 is jinxed. Every time I take pictures of it, I find a hair on it (I know it's not the same as one in my salad but still, ew) or a piece of thread or a mystery spot or two that wasn't there last time. So, I'll be showing it off next week. Unless it spontaneously combusts one night and burns down the house.

Speaking of embroidery, do you like kitties? And anthropomorphic silverware? And Santa? Well, check out the vintage patterns over at Green Jello.

And, in more embroidery news, when you get a chance, go take a look at Martha's ABC blocks (that's the main page of her blog so just keep scrolling down to see more). I promise you will swoon over them. I tend to drool.

Hope everybody has a safe and super fun 4th of July!!


(That's about the only semi-patriotic picture of one of my dogs that I could find in my stash. I have no idea why I added a green background to it or how I even put that hat on her.)

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!

Sunday Linkage

It hit me the other night how I hardly ever print out free patterns anymore. That's because I hardly ever look for free patterns anymore. Not that I'm addicted to Facebook or anything. So, here are some links to some freebies for you and me and all the other hoarders out there.

First off, you can find some adorable summer embroidery patterns over at Green Jello. I will definitely be stitching the glass and the lemon slice design on to something.

There's a super cute cross stitch chart of some Stackable Cats at Mochimochi Blog. Also on her blog is Reason #47 I must learn to knit.

I love the Kettle Dolly embroidery pattern [via Craft] from Misako Mimoko.

There are some woodland critters embroidery patterns (owl, hedgehog, squirrel, mushrooms) [via Craft Gossip] at Tangarang.

At One Red Robin, you'll find a sweet little bear to embroider and at Feed Dog, there's a pattern for making a yummy looking Swiss cake roll and mini jam roll out of felt. [Both links via Whip Up]

Now, I need to decide what to make first.

TUSAL May Report

Well, I totally forgot about the new moon last week so I'm late with my picture for May for the Totally Useless Stitch-a-Long aka TUSAL. My jar and I had a nice long photo shoot a little while ago but the majority of the pics were out of focus and had that glare on the glass so I ended up deleting them. Here's one (complete with glare) of the jar lounging on my bed.



And, here's a nice shot from up above. I wanted to show off the one strand of gold in there.



The TUSAL is hosted by YoYo at Dragon My Needle. If you'd like to join in, please go here for more information.

I'm off to circle June 22 on my calendar so I don't miss next month's report.

Tagged By Bea

Bea over at Bea's Babbler tagged me to share eight things about myself.


8 things I'm looking forward to:

1. lunch with Dawn (who I have not seen since we were 8 yrs old -- yep, she found me on Facebook)
2. wearing regular shoes again
3. crafting with my new stash of made-from-recycled-plastic-water-bottles felt (thanks, Mom!)
4. having a piece of the ricotta cheese pie I just took out of the oven
5. wading through that pile of papers on my bedroom floor and hopefully finding my lost pocket calendar
6. the new seasons of Burn Notice and The Closer
7. using the sewing machine (finally!)
8. getting enough coins on Farmtown to buy a little house


8 things I did yesterday:

1. ate a porkchop and some brown rice
2. read some of Linda Fairstein's latest book (not sure if I like it enough to care who the killer is)
3. used my dad's computer because I thought my keyboard and mouse were ruined from a spill
4. cursed my dad's keyboard and mouse because they didn't feel "right"
5. sniffed a peony
6. put groceries away
7. watched several episodes of Chelsea Lately
8. yelled at cat for knocking things over on kitchen counter


8 things I wish I could do:

1. buy cute fabric
2. knit
3. crochet
4. get caught up with all my favorite blogs
5. type with all my fingers
6. turn back time so my dog would be here for another 15 years
7. get a pony
8. talk to my grandfather


8 shows I watch on television:

1. 24
2. Bones
3. The Closer
4. Law and Order
5. House Hunters
6. The Real Housewives of New York
7. NCIS
8. What Not To Wear

That was fun. Thanks, Bea!

I'm not going to tag anyone but if you decide to do this, please leave me some comments and so I can check out your answers.

Finished For Friday -- Pincushion

Guess what? I plugged my computer back in just to see if the mouse and keyboard would still work -- I had given them both up for dead since they acted like they had drowned after I spilled iced tea on them the other day -- but they've both recovered and are working just fine right now. Maybe all they needed was some time to dry out. And, let me add that iced tea is perfect for removing the layers of dust off your desk and the dirt off your floor.

I'm excited to share a finish for Friday FINALLY. Last weekend, I made a pincushion based on the tutorial on Creative Breathing. The fabric and rick rack came from a place mat that I had in my craft cupboard. (Some people have a craft room; I have a cupboard.) The puppy dog came from a website a few years back -- I bought it because it was cute -- and for now, he will just sit atop the pincushion.

Earlier in the day, I had attempted the Bitty Bug pincushion but I had problems sewing it all together -- the fabric was puckered in some places and the felt I used for the head was so thick, it made it very bulky. Plus hand sewing a seam in the shape of a circle and having it actually look like a circle instead of a roundish blob is way out of my league so I scrapped that project and decided to give the Creative Breathing pincushion a shot. One thing that made a huge difference was sewing along the circle I had drawn on the wrong side of the material per Elizabeth's instructions. I actually had a circle seam when I was done. (I'm going to try making the Bitty Bug pincushion again because it is the cutest thing -- I love how the wings are folded back.)

I like how Elizabeth uses beads to add words to her pincushion. I have an idea for doing something like that the next time I make one of these. However, I don't have any beads with letters on them so I may have to improvise. But making more pincushions will have to wait for now because I think I just discovered my next project: check out this adorable reindeer from Creative Breathing. The owl and the bluebird are also on my to-do list. Oh, wow! While going back through her blog to find the post with the bluebird pattern, I found the Airedale pattern. Adding that to my list too.

To see who else is participating in Finished for Friday, check out Lit and Laundry.

Public Service Announcement

Before I get to the PSA, I wanted to say that I knocked over a full glass of iced tea on to my desk the other day and drowned my mouse and wet some of the keys on my keyboard so until I hook up new ones, I can't get to the photos saved on my computer and blog about the pincushion I made or tea towel I embroidered for my mom. Good thing I can get to Facebook from any computer!

Here's my PSA: Sonia Sotomayor has Type 1 diabetes. It's caused when the pancreas stops producing insulin. It has NOTHING to with diet or being overweight. If I read one more comment about her having type 1 diabetes because she's fat or ate too much candy or junk food, I am going to kill someone.

Here, Have Some Links

When was the last time I posted some links? I really have been neglecting my blogging responsibilities.

Thanks to plaid & herringbone, I have another hedgehog pincushion pattern to add to my collection. This one is on a French blog and I think you can figure out how to put it together without translating it. The pattern is not a pdf or clickable so I just saved it as a jpg and then printed it out. And, then added it to all the 471 other hedgehog patterns I have saved. [sigh]

Oh, I just remembered, I did start making a hedgehog sometime ago when I was in my pom-pom phase but stopped before I gave my poor hedgie a face/head. Maybe I can get him finished up this week. The tutorial for making a pom-pom hedgehog is over at Zakka Life.

Craft Hope has its second project underway, and for this one, they're collecting handmade dolls for an orphanage in Nicaragua. You can find out all the details here [link via All Sorts]. And, if you need a doll pattern, check out the list at One Crafty Place. The deadline to get the dolls to Craft Hope is June 13th so get sewing!

There's an elephant pattern (another thing I tend to collect and never use) at Cicada Daydream. I like how he's made with all different fabrics. And, Amazing Mae has a great owl applique pattern that you could also use for embroidery [both links via One Crafty Place].

This Japanese site has a bunch of cute coloring pages that could be used for embroidery patterns. Thank you, Kellie, for finding this one!

One Pretty Thing has another great Embroidery Pattern Round-up.

This post was not written while I was under the influence of Vicodin. I couldn't get in to the clinic to have a physical and EKG done before my foot surgery on the 15th so the operation has been postponed for about a month. Knowing I have another four weeks of being stuck in this house in addition to however long it takes to recover from the surgery (2-6 months) depresses me to no end and I'm hoping someone will take pity on me and send me a bottle of vodka and/or some happy pills. Let me know if you need my address.

Happy Monday!

P.S. To clean up my vintage transfer patterns, do I need Photoshop? Or is there another way to do that?

Finished For Friday -- Watch Pincushion

Every so often, I actually take a break from playing Farm Town on Facebook and make something. Behold my wrist watch pincushion.



This was fun and quick to put together. I did make one change. When I started to stitch the strap pieces together, my fabric began to fray so I cut another slightly larger piece of fabric, folded all four edges in (and ironed them) before I began sewing it to the felt piece. I also left off the winder.

You can find the tutorial to make your own wrist watch pincushion on LucyKate Crafts [link via Craft].

I finally finished something for Friday! See who else is showing off their finishes at Lit and Laundry this week.

Did You Wear Your Apron Today?

Here I am, celebrating National Wear Your Apron Day by hanging out with my camera in the bathroom. Don't I look super excited?

Mia's New Apron

The subject of Crissy dolls came up on Facebook this past week. I no longer have my childhood Barbies or Dawn dolls, but I still have Crissy, Mia and Tressy, and all of their clothes. Last night, I decided I would make an apron for my Mia and show her off today for National Wear Your Apron Day because I wasn't sure I would find someone to take a picture of me to mark the occasion. Plus, it gave me a good reason to stitch up that cute puppy dog pattern I posted yesterday. I had some major issues sewing on the bias tape by hand (I really need to learn how to work that sewing machine), and finally I just dug out the fabric glue and used that to attach it. Mia doesn't seem to mind my craptastic glue job, does she?



Back in 1973 or so, I made Mia her first apron. I can honestly say my hand sewing hasn't really improved much since then.


I am off to get dressed and choose an apron to wear today. Happy Apron Day and don't forget to tie one on!

Edited to add: The Apronista wants links your apron posts today, plus there's a giveaway.

National Wear Your Apron Day

I recently found a Scottie dog pattern on some website that was divided into two parts. So I printed out both of them. One was scanned at 117% and the other at 129% so the pieces are not the same size and don't match up. I'd like to thank the braniac who created those pdfs.

Today is National Wear Your Apron Day so I might go make an miniature apron. Or I might go to bed. Or I might go eat something. The spinach dip in the fridge is calling my name.

If you've never made Knorr spinach dip, you should. Even people who claim they hate spinach, love this stuff. Here's the recipe but you can also find it on the back of Knorr's dry vegetable soup mix. I always leave out the water chestnuts because as everyone who has read my Facebook page knows, they serve no purpose whatsoever and the world would be a much better place without them. Oh and don't wimp out and use low fat mayo for this dip. Use the real stuff. As Best Foods. (Or Hellman's depending on which side of the Mississippi you're on.)

Thanks, Kellie, for the image!

My New Blog

I finally got out my vintage embroidery patterns that I had bought on eBay and other places online a few years ago and decided to scan them. None of them are made by Vogart or Aunt Martha, (one is labeled Artex), so as far as I know, it's ok to post them on my blog. Just not this blog. They're on a new blog. This way, all the embroidery junkies could find them easily and not have to wade through posts about my pathetic, retched, miserable existence in order to get to the good stuff.

I scanned about half of one sheet of patterns and then I lost interest. I'll be adding more patterns this coming week, but for now, you can check out the poodles and cats on Pip Stitch Patterns. (Oh, my creativity just kills me sometimes.)

National Wear Your Apron Day Is Monday

I haven't felt much like blogging lately since I haven't made anything since last week (thanks for all your nice comments about my needlebook!) plus I'm having trouble with my cataract eye so I haven't felt much like working on anything and I have a broken tooth and it looks my foot surgery may be postponed until June. Hopefully, Jack Bauer will kill Tony Almeida on Monday night and I can get happy again. I did want to remind you that Monday is National Wear Your Apron Day (thanks to Kellie for the reminder!) so don't forget to tie one on. And, Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there! I'm off to stick my head in the oven.

My New Old Vintage Needlecase

To enter the not-a-contest giveaway at Apron Memories, you have to create something from vintage "fabric, hotpads, handkerchiefs, table coverings, curtain paneling, toweling, embroidery, doilies, placemats, napkins," so I took this vintage embroidered piece, some bias tape (pretend it's blue in the photo -- there was a change of plans after I took the picture) and some gingham...



...and, made this needlecase



No, I was not drunk when I stitched that.

Here it is, opened up, so you can see the inside.



I was inspired by the needlecase project that Barbara from Oodles and oodles shared on her blog awhile back. I modified her instructions a bit -- she forgot to include a step on attaching your bias tape with the most crooked and uneven hand stitches you have ever sewn in your life and then tell everyone your two yr old did it -- I had to come up with that one all by myself. And, I put my needlecase together differently and now see lots (tons!) of room for improvement. Next time I make one, I'll completely follow Barbara's directions.

And, can I just say it KILLED me to cut up that embroidery...um...piece. What is that anyway? It's from a set of three that was part of a larger group that I found on eBay and bought because one was a dresser scarf with puppies embroidered on it. (Got all that?) It wasn't stained or dirty but it was spending its days stuck in a drawer. At least now I'll get some use out of it.

I'm still laughing hysterically at my "sewing." (Why didn't I just blanket stitch it?)

Thank you, Barbara, for the bias tape, the gingham, and the inspiration to make this!

How About Some Embroidery Links

After a certain someone told me my blog was feeling neglected, I vowed to post something every day for the rest of my life. Or at least until I got a boyfriend. Ok, not really but I did want to share some embroidery freebies with you all today.

A little while ago, Miri over at Milk and Honey Quilts posted some vintage Springtime embroidery patterns of a lady bug, a butterfly, birds, flowers and a boy and girl.

If you don't regularly check One Pretty Thing, you may have missed the recent Embroidery Pattern Roundup.

Did you see the corset pattern from Flickr member Rectangle that was linked on Feeling Stitchy? How fun!

Need a pattern for the skateboarding bull dog, a LOL cat or Rick Astley? Check out the internet memes at Totally Severe.

And, if you're new to embroidery, check out Kandra's post on Sibling Craftery for links to some great resources.

Two Giveaways

I have a couple of giveaways to tell you about.

First off, Llyn is celebrating her one year blog anniversary by giving away some cool prizes. Go see them and enter here before Friday, May 1st.

And, over at It's Daffycat, you could win some of Sharon's hand-dyed cross stitch fabric. All the details are on this post. The contest ends on Monday, May 4th.

Alert The Media!

Don't have a heart attack but I actually made something this past week (in between taking countless quizzes on Facebook). I wanted to do a cross stitch quickie so I used two charts from a Japanese website with loads of freebies. (As soon as I figure out how to get back there, I will link to it.) I did a koala first (pictures later) and then I did this bear. What do you think that thing on his head is? A flower? It was supposed to be done in an off-white but I didn't like that so I substituted a darker color, which made it look like a birth mark to me so I just ripped it all out and re-stitched it in the same yellow color as the rest of his head. Also, there was a bright pink under his eyes (that's missing in the picture below) and I didn't like that either so I just used more of the same yellow.



I used 14 ct Aida which I really stay away from these days. I hate how you can see all the holes in it. Here is "Pookie Bear, Blue Shirt" all finished. And, yes, both pictures came from the same camera and I have no idea why the colors are so off in the second one.



I toss all of my floss ends in my orts jar but I save longer lengths on cardboard. Since running to Michael's is not an option for me right now, I try to get as much use out of my threads as I can, but sometimes I wonder if keeping an eight inch piece of three strands of floss is worth it. Well, most of what I used to stitch up the bear and the koala came from this collection of leftovers.


I have a little room left on my Aida so I'm going to add one more animal from that website.

The Totally Useless Stitch-A-Long April Report

There's a new moon today so that means it's time to report in for the Totally Useless Stitch-A-Long over at Dragon My Needle. So, here is my orts jar. I started this one about a month ago.

Look At What I Found In My Backyard

Anyone know what this is? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?



It's leaves on my peony bush! I discovered them the other day and was soooo excited. I really thought it was dead. I know they hibernate (or whatever) for a bit over the winter but there really were no signs of life going on at all and I was about ready to write it off until I saw the leaves.

I just checked my blog and found that my peony had buds on it on April 23rd of last year so it is running a little behind this Spring. I'm glad it finally came out of its coma.

Not a lot of crafting going on at my house. I'm still having fun on Facebook. But my foot surgery has been scheduled for May 15th (FINALLY) and there's a two to six month recovery period so I have a feeling, I will have crafts coming out my ass in the near future. A few ideas for things to make have been bouncing around in my head for awhile now. I just need to log off of Facebook long enough to actually do them.

One more thing: Mollie over at Wild Olive is sharing a cute Earth Day embroidery pattern.

Vintage Thingies Thursday -- Girl Scouts

Yesterday, I posted a picture of two of my friends and me in our Brownie uniforms from when we were 9 years old in 1972. I really enjoyed the comments I received so I thought for Vintage Thingies Thursday, I would share a few of the things from Girl Scouts that I've held on to all these years (and not old pictures of my mom's family as originally planned).

Like my time in Brownies, I don't remember much about being a Girl Scout. I think I only lasted one year wearing the green uniform, and once again, no s'mores were ever made. My troop didn't sell cookies but we did sell calendars. My memory is really hazy but I think there was some kind of event held at the Anaheim Convention Center to celebrate our sales and the sales of a zillion other Girl Scouts in the county. I could be wrong but I think that's where I picked up these patches. It's funny because as soon as I dug the Scout Sampler '74 one out of the shoebox where I keep this stuff, my first thought was "I could totally make that!" because of the satin stitch and cross stitch on it. (You can click the pictures to get a larger version.)



Karen mentioned having a sash for her Girl Scout badges. We did too but for some reason, my badges never were sewn on to mine. I get what the GS one stands for but what does the cup of coffee mean? I keep thinking we did some kind of cooking project to earn a badge but maybe we just learned how to make cappuccino (yes, it's the barista badge*). As you can see, we had to make our own soccer badge. If only I knew how to embroider back then. I could have made a nicer version with some black and white floss.

I no longer have my Brownie purse but hello, I still have the Genuine Cowhide Girl Scout green one. You can't tell from the scan but the Girl Scout logo is still a nice shiny gold.

And, what's inside the little purse? An identification card which cracks me up. Employed by? No one. Sex? Girl. Blood type? Red. The humor of a ten year old. (Who told me my hair was frosted?)



Unfortunately, I don't have any photos from my days as a Girl Scout. but here's one more from Brownies. In case any of these girls decides to Google herself one day, that's Nicole Royer, Leslie Talley, Shelly Adler, Shelly Monroe, Cristi Bondra and me.



*The cup of coffee badge was for Hospitality. The Vintage Girl Scout Online Museum has photos of tons of badges and I found the coffee one on the page for Junior badges 1963-1980. The one I drew the soccer ball on is called Our Own Troop. Look at all the nifty purses on this page and the hankies and aprons and needlework. Who knew?

Next week, I'll post my Girl Scout pins. Thanks for visiting my blog! To see who else is sharing their Vintage Thingies today, check Colorado Lady's blog.

Did I Miss Christmas?

(This has nothing to do with the following post but was anyone shocked to see Kim Bauer Monday night? And, I don't even want to talk about Tony. I can't wait for Jack to kill him.)

I've been sitting here, working on a post for Vintage Thingies Thursday and thinking I need to hurry up and finish it and then post it before I go to bed, when I realized it's just after midnight on Wednesday and not Thursday like I was thinking it was. (Later today, I am totally making myself a giant calendar to hang up on the wall I'm facing so I can keep better track of which day it is.)

I'm posting some old pictures for VTT tomorrow but this one doesn't quite fit with my theme of Meet The Kraygers (my mom's family) so I'll share it now. This was taken in June 1972, after the Brownie ceremony where you "fly up" to Girl Scouts. That's me in the middle with Leslie Talley on the left (your left) and Shelly Monroe on the right.

I know Leslie is on Facebook but I'm still debating sending her a message about our time in Brownies together. She may not have fond memories of it. Mine are kind of sad. My mother was the troop leader and I don't know why not but we never got to make S'mores. Once, we went to the local fire station for a tour and only one fireman was there because everybody else and all the trucks were out on a call to put out a fire in the field next to our elementary school. (I wish I could remember the name of the kid who started that fire -- we all knew him.) That's really all I remember about Brownies. And, now I'm wondering why I didn't have the cool orange tassels on my socks like Leslie did. Good times.

Happy Not Vintage Thingies Thursday, People!

Happy Easter!

I posted this image last year. I like it because it has Lassie dogs and the tree makes me think of cotton candy.

Happy Easter!!

Wee Bunny & Wee Eggs

Here are the bunny and eggs I finished yesterday. I wish I had a paler blue felt for the bunny. The colors of the eggs are off in this picture-- they're not as bright as in the photo. I had planned to embroider the eggs but that was tough to do after I cut them out. I should have stitched them first. I couldn't get the bottom seam on the bunny to look right, which is why the eggs are covering him up. I don't have enough felt for the handle of the basket I started last night so Mr. Bunny and his eggs will just sit on my dusty shelf for now.



I didn't add the pom-pom tail because I like having it sit on my night table. It makes me happy to see it and I could really use that right now. (Not having enough felt just led to a crying jag, which just made me realize (once again) how long I have been stuck in this house and how much longer I will be here, blah blah blah).

It looks nothing like the original but the bunny pattern is from Wee Wonderfuls and the egg patterns are from Wee Folk Art. And, I learned how to make the pom-pom from Bella Dia's tutorial. It took me three tries to get it right so keep at it if you give it a shot.

Wanna see my pom-pom again? I know you do.

Even More Links

The hits just keep coming!

Check out this tutorial for Peeps made out of felt over at Dusty Bottom Acres. As soon as I am done with this post, I am off to make some Peeps. I also started on a basket for my bunny this afternoon and I'm hoping to get that finished tonight. Maya Made has a pattern for a felt basket. So does Tiny Decor [via One Pretty Thing].

My supply of felt is dwindling but if I have a large enough piece, I also want to make one of these cones from Tangarang.

A vintage elephant embroidery pattern has been added to knitting-and.com.

So September has a tutorial for a reversible flower pot wrap. Cute idea!

I love the bunnies and chicks embroidery patterns at Blue Bird Studios. I found that blog thanks to a link on One Crafty Place and now I see even more patterns for dollies and eggs. And, take a look at the Spring wallhanging that Heather of Blue Bird Studios made with her sketchings turned patterns. Oh, I wish I could sew!

A Pom-Pom and A Bun-Bun

Say hello to my pom-pom. It's the tail for my newly made Wee Bunny. It's kind of big for the bunny but that's ok.



I am not at all happy with his mouth but I've already stitched it twice and don't feel like doing it a third time. Usually, I embroider before I stuff, but this time, I did it afterwards, plus I didn't draw any lines to follow, and me without a pattern just does not work.



This blanket stitched seam will be done over because I want the edge smooth and round like it's supposed to be. I think mine turned out funky because...well, I don't know why but I think I can fix it.



After the little rabbit is completely finished, I'll share a picture. I'm only posting now to show MaryBT I haven't been on Facebook all the live long day.

No Facebook?

OK, I can't get on Facebook at all. I can't get to my page or their blog or anything. Is it just me or is anyone else having a problem?

Is It Time To Put Up The Xmas Tree?

For the past two Saturdays, I've thought Easter was the following day. Seriously. Since I don't do much of anything that involves any kind of planning anymore, I never know the day or date or when the next major holiday is. Plus all the chocolate eggs I've been eating makes it feel like that bunny should be here at any minute.

I haven't had anything to blog about since I haven't finished a single cross stitch, embroidery or felt animal in quite awhile, and I have yet to do anything fun or illegal that's worth writing about. Oh, I did go back to the foot doctor who still has not heard anything about my surgery getting approved. It's been four weeks since she first suggested it so that's another month down the drain. In my mind, I keep extending the date for when I will once again have a life and I've now set my sights on December 25th.

Well, I'm depressed. Excuse me while I go shoot myself. Hey, how about some links to make us all feel good?

This one makes me happy. You can win a snazzy sparkly pink reversible vintage apron over The Polka Dot Barn. (I so want that cake in the blog header photo.) Details on the giveaway are here. Link via The Apronista -- check this post for even more Apron giveaways.

Kandra over at Sibling Craftery has been sharing a set of DOW embroidery patterns of these cute little ninja girls. My favorite is Thursday's ironing ninja. You can find links to all of the sisters' wonderful freebies here.

There are some new embroidery patterns up at knitting-and.com: a flower and Victory Kittens. Oh wow, it looks like Sarah has added even more vintage transfers since I was last there (last night?). The latest additions are bunnies and piggies and Weldon's Nursery Designs, both circa 1930, and she added a missing bunny to a set of Semco transfers. (That's where I found the puppy I used for my iPod cover.) You can find an index with links to all the patterns on this page.

I have three felt egg shapes sitting in front of me that need some embroidery so I'm going to go play with them. Maybe the next time I post, you will see a picture of them. No guarantees though. Happy Not Easter Sunday!

Look At The Totally Cute Bunny Pattern, Kandra!

Kandra, this is all I have for now but it's a good one!

There's a really cute bunny embroidery pattern over at Orange You Lucky (via Pimp Stitch).