A little bit of this and a little bit of that...

I could start with the "I'm so sorry for not blogging" speech, but I think we've all heard it before. So, I won't bother you with that.  Let's just get right to the good stuff. 😊

I've been busy!  There have been some family health issues that have been dealt with, but are still ongoing.  Then there was the regular Christmas business that happens every year.  This year was a bit more busy for me because I worked Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year's Eve, and New Year's Day.  Some would say who hates me so much at work lol.  But that's not the case at my place of work.  Since I work a shift work rotation, it is just the way it worked out.  My rotation just so happened to land on all of those days.  Go figure!?!  Nobody complains when it's their turn to work it because we all know it's inevitable.

Now, that takes me up to January.  In January, the family health stuff was number one on my plate and pretty well takes me right into February.  February has been busy too.  I'm not sure if any of you follow the East Coast weather forecasts, but we had some brutal weather!  Ice storms and flash freezes....  and then so much snow I swear we were buried alive.  Oddly, here we are at the end of February with absolutely beautiful spring-like weather.  Our massive amounts of snow and ice are melting.  The temperatures were in the low double digits today.  Just absolutely fantastic to see.  

Amidst all of this insanity, I have managed to sew and stitch a few things.  It's time to bombard you with pictures. 😏

I'll begin with an update on my stitching:

First up is Birdhouse from Just Cross Stitch Ornament Preview Issue October 2007. An unwritten goal (I guess it's written now though lol) is that I'd like to stitch more from my magazine collection in 2017.  I have accumulated goodness knows how many magazines and rarely stitch anything from them. So, this pretty little design is the first to be stitched for that challenge.

Now, those that follow me have seen this one before.  I started Santa's Secret, a Dimensions kit, just before Christmas.  I made quite a bit of progress, but bored of it as the Christmas season came to an end.  It is one that I will definitely finish for next Chrsitmas. 

The next picture is of a pair of hearts that I embroidered onto a handmade pillowcase as a Valentine's Day stitching project.  The transfer design is one that I had printed off ages ago and don't remember the source.

I guess this is a little out of order, because this is what I picked up when I set Santa's Secret aside.  This Easter Egg was a Drawn Thread kit aptly called The Easter Egg Sampler.  Some may say it's a bit too early for Easter stitching, but it called to me... and the rest is history.

Now, for my next magazine challenge. Here is Bloom Pincushion from Just Cross Stitch March/April 2011 issue.  It is Volume 29 Issue 2 for anyone that would like to know.  As you can see there are still a few stitches left in this one, but it will be done soon.

Now, Seville is one that I've been working on for awhile.  I haven't quite finished page 2, but I'm getting close.  I'm stitching this on 36 count linen and I find I have to set it aside after a bit of stitching.  I guess my eyes aren't as good as they used to be 😡.  For those that would like to know, Seville is from a Just Cross Stitch magazine as well.  It is in the June issue of 2015.  Also, I'm using DMC 744 as my thread of choice for this pattern.

I think this will be the last pic I'll share with you tonight.  It looks pretty plain and boring, I'm sure.  But this little stack of white cotton is actually five pillowcases I made last night.  I really wanted a pair of Valentine's pillowcases, but only had the one pillowcase made up.  So, last night I busied myself by making five more. Five blank slates all set for embroidery.  😊

 I'll leave you with that cause I know it's a lot to sift through.  Tomorrow, I'll be back with an update on a few other things I've been working on.

Wishing you a wondeful weekend!

Karen