Showing posts with label non-candle. Show all posts

1

Blogging and Stitching, week 3...

Posted on Saturday, May 25, 2013

And, once again, I prove how badly I FAIL at keeping anything updated!
I apologize for not posting an update last week, but my family was really, really busy and I didn't get much time to stitch. (Honestly, I think I sat and cross stitched for maybe 2 hours last week.)  So, there really wasn't anything to actually post...

I did get some time to stitch this week!




I only worked on this one piece the last couple of weeks, because I really enjoy it!  It is a relaxing piece for me, so I'm able to unwind a bit. (Its been a pretty hectic couple of weeks.)

I do have a funny story to share...
My husband and I went to the lake last Monday, so he could do some fishing...
I of course, took along my cross stitching.  Well, my husband caught a fish, so I had to drop my stitching, grab the net and bring it over to him...
I got back to my stitching (which was safely on my chair) and noticed that a bird poop had landed on my cross stitch!  Luckily, most of it was on the plastic bag, that I carry the pattern and floss in...
...but, a small portion did land on my actual piece of cloth! (Thankfully, it is on part of the cloth that will be cut away when it is time to frame it.)
Now, I've been going out to the lake for years with my hubby and I always take my stitching bag with me and I've NEVER had that happen before!
And, I really hope it never happens again!

Anyway, since I had so little to share in this update, I thought I'd add a few pictures from our yard!
(The verbena tree and lilac trees' blooms are starting to open...)
Can't wait for all the lilacs to bloom, the smell is just fantastic!
Anyway, I really hope everyone has a wonderful (and safe) Memorial Day weekend!  I plan on updating again next Saturday...fingers crossed! (Changing to Saturdays, because Sundays can get really hectic, with my husband's work schedule.)
See everyone later!

Oh, one last picture, that I had fun editing!

Happy Weekend!

2

Blogging and Stitching, Week 2...

Posted on Sunday, May 12, 2013

Almost didn't think I would get this post up today...
...got busy working on new pictures for the shop and lost track of time.  Luckily, my hubby made it home from work and is making dinner for us tonight, so I have a few extra minutes to get this post written up!

Well, after finishing my post last week, I started this week all "gung-ho" to get stitching! (I really wanted to make some progress on my projects.)
So, I started the week working on my angel project and you can finally see the angel!



(I think the entire piece is coming along nicely.)

My hubby came home on Monday and we finally had a few nice days, so we headed out to the lake to go fishing. (Well, my hubby fishes and I sit and stitch or read.)
I had planned on stitching most of the afternoon, but I got busy reading through my cross stitching magazines (planning out future projects) and didn't get much time to actually stitch...
Thankfully, Tuesday was a lovely day, too!
And...I finished my first piece!

 I'd started this piece last summer, after coming across different "Keep Calm" patterns and adapted this one to suit my needs. 
I'm just happy to finally have it done!  Now I just need to clean it and get it framed!


(Looking through other cross stitch blogs, it seems customary to show a picture of the back, of a finished piece...which is quite scary for me!  Honestly, the backs of my pieces are usually a mess.  This one isn't too bad...good one to start with!)

Well, you'd think that with one finish under my belt, I'd set to work finishing other pieces...
Yeah, my brain doesn't think like that!


I started TWO new projects!

Thursday night, I started the kitty project...
I've had this kit for around 2 years, but just never got around to starting it.
Well, I wanted something bright and fun to work on, so I thought this would be perfect!


It doesn't look like much, but it is the start of the gray and white kitty.
This project is going to be a challenge for me...
It is full of quarter stitches, which I've done in the past, I'm just not crazy about them.  Plus, it has a ton of french knots. (I have a love - hate relationship with french knots...I love how they look, but I hate to trying to make them.) 
So, this project will probably make me pull my hair out, but it will probably turn out to be my favorite, once its finished!

Lastly, I ran into town and Friday and picked up the Live, Laugh, Love kit. (I never intended on doing that, but I just couldn't pass up the piece.)
I've only put in two days worth of stitching, but I think it is shaping up nicely...

 I'm having a lot of fun working on this piece and I'm quite excited to see it when it is all finished!
(Plus, I have the pattern now and I would love to try using different colors and see how it comes out.)

So, that has been my stitching week...
Managed to get my first finish, but I think I canceled that out, by starting two new pieces! :)
Either way, I'm excited to keep working and see what I'll have done for next week!

Hope everyone had a great Mother's Day and has a terrific week this week!
(See everyone next Sunday!)

10

Blogging and Stitching...

Posted on Sunday, May 5, 2013

Well, here it is May 5th all ready and I haven't posted anything in almost a month....
I completely FAIL at keeping a blog updated! 
Honestly, I was really, really going to try my best to post everyday, or at least once every week, but I just couldn't do it!  Why?  Because, I had no idea what to post!
I didn't want to bombard everyone with candle updates. (I don't mind posting a few, but I didn't want that to be the only thing I posted about.)  So, what was left...
What was left was my life in general and quite frankly, I'm boring!  My life is fairly boring (which is the way I like it), so I had no clue to write about.

Then a couple days ago I had a small epiphany...
I have trouble completing projects...especially large projects! (I do fine with the candles, because I can start a batch and usually have it completed, photographed and ready to post to the shop in about 3 - 4 days.  Some take a bit longer, but in general it is easy to stick with.)
Besides the candles, I love to cross stitch...
(I cross stitch mainly for myself and my family.)
But, I have a HORRIBLE time completing a project! (The larger the project, the harder it is for me to complete.)  So, I thought..."What if I start blogging about my cross stitch projects and post weekly updates?!?!"
That way, I'll have something to post on a weekly basis (obviously, I'll post more if something interesting happens or I release some really terrific new products) and I'll finally get around to completing some projects! (Plus, I'll get to post new projects, too!)

So here we go...
Since this is the first post, I thought I would open it with a few pictures of projects I am currently working on and projects that I would like to start in the near future...


(These are just a few of the kits I have, that need to get worked on.  I also have other projects from patterns I've found in magazines, purchased online or drawn-up myself.  I don't think my kitchen table is actually large enough to hold all my current W.I.P.s (works in progress).) 
I'm a cross stitch pattern junky!  I love finding new projects, even though, I never seem to finish them.

This is a cat welcome project, that I started about a year ago.  I've actually made pretty good progress on it, but just haven't gotten around to finishing it.
(Honestly, I get bored very quickly, especially if I'm working with the same colors, over and over.  I really like to work with new colors as much as I can!)

This is a kit, featuring the Serenity prayer and a lovely lighthouse motif. 
I'd originally purchased this kit, to make a gift for my mother-in-law for Christmas.(I believe that was 2 or 3 years ago!) 
I actually didn't start working on this until this past December...

This is one very special piece...
It is the Lord's prayer and was actually started by my mother.  She passed away 13 years ago and a few years back, I found this, along with the pattern and floss.  I decided to finish it myself.  I was making good progress, but just got sidetracked.  I would really love to complete it and frame it, so it could be displayed in our house.

And lastly, (I've probably bored everyone enough for one afternoon) my little angel!
I've been putting in a lot of time to this kit recently and I'm hoping this will be my first finish! (Not guaranteeing I'll get all washed and framed, but my fingers are crossed.)

Like I said earlier, I have other projects laying around and they're sure to make an appearance soon, because I can never work on one project for long.  I always have to be skipping around!
I'm planning to write up an update every week, more than likely on Sunday...
I'll post pictures of my progress and probably share little stories along the way!
I'm just hoping that doing this will help me post more often on this blog and keep me working on my cross stitch!

0

Caturday, my kitties...

Posted on Saturday, February 9, 2013

Well, the last couple weeks, I've been busy snapping pictures of my kitties and thought I would share a few on here. 
(I hope no one gets tired of my cats, because I honestly love taking and sharing pictures of them!)




(My kitty Hoss, all tuckered out after a session of playing.)

Some Kitty Close-Ups:




And folks, those are my beautiful felines!  Hope everyone has a great weekend and gets to fit in lots of "catnaps"!

1

New kitty toy...

Posted on Friday, February 1, 2013

Anyone that knows me, knows I love my cats and I just adore finding new things to keep them entertained...
Well, we have one cat, Cooper, that is almost 2 years old and absolutely loves to play.  Unfortunately, my other cats DO NOT enjoy playing with him. (Who could blame them, though, Cooper is about 14 pounds of fluff, claws and teeth and he doesn't seem to realize just how big he is or how rough he is playing.)
So, we've tried to find other things for Cooper to play with...
He destroys most toys, though.  He LOVES feathers (and birds), well, he actually loves to KILL feathers!  He eats them. (I don't like him eating them, because of the end results.)
He loves to play with balls, but he always bats them under our couch, where they are never to be seen again.
So, we've bought several different "chase toys" for him. (You know, the plastic disk with a ball in it or around it that the cats bat with their paws.)
He loves those toys!

This past weekend, we were doing our weekly shopping and found a "chase toy" that has 2 balls for the cats to bat at and one of the balls makes BIRD noises! 
We had to get it, since Cooper loves the birds so very much! (I knew he would go bonkers for it!)
He loves it and so do my other, older cats. (The bird noises really draw them in.)
You can find the toy here: Birdie Chase Toy
This is seriously one of the best toys we've gotten! (Of course, we couldn't put the feathers in the middle, well we tried, they lasted a whole 2 minutes before Cooper pulled them out and started eating them.)


For good measure, here is a picture of the fluffy brat, playing with his first "chase toy". (The ball in that one lights up, another thing Cooper loves, bright lights!)

0

Some new spiders...

Posted on Saturday, January 12, 2013


Recently I had a request for some custom spiders and finally finished them!  
I think they came out really cute, so I thought I would share some pictures of them here...

Black Spider #1



This first spider was made with a 14mm black lava rock bead for the body, an 8mm glass black bead for the head, black bugle beads and clear and black seeds beads.

Black Spider #2


The second spider was made with a 14mm black acrylic bead for the body, an 8mm black acrylic bead for the head, small crystals for the leg joints, black bugle beads and black seed beads.

Red Spider #1


This spider was made with a 14mm red acrylic bead for the body, an 8mm red glass bead for the head, red bugle beads, clear and red seed beads.

Red Spider #2


This lovely spider was made with a 14mm red acrylic bead for the body, an 8mm frosted, red bead for the head, yellow crystal beads for the leg joints, red bugle beads and red seed beads.

White/Crystal Spider



(This is my favorite spider, so far!)
He was made with an 18mm Swarovski crystal bead for his body, a 12mm crystal head bead, clear bugle beads and clear seed beads.

I have some other spiders that are ready to get posted in the shop, so be on the lookout for those!
Anyway, hope everyone is having a great weekend.

0

Halloween might be over...

Posted on Sunday, November 4, 2012

I know Halloween is over and done with, but I thought I would share the final pictures of our yard display for this year.

The Graveyard...


The Inhabitants of the Graveyard...




(First, is the drunk pirate...next, the pumpkin-guy ground breaker, then the flying reaper and lastly, the 3 witches.)

Now, we move to the side of the front yard...

Then, down the side of our house...




Even our entryway sported spiderwebs...


And, what Halloween display would complete, without some carved pumpkins...




So, that was our yard this year!
Everything is all ready put away and awaiting next year. (Of course, we added a few new things, that are sure to make the display next year even better.)