Damn I'm Good

First of all. I would like to start this post with a big THANK YOU to Christopher Columbus for giving me the day off!  ; )  I'm going to spend the day getting extra snuggles from my bebe and maybe stitching a little bit, too. Today I'm sharing the latest finished piece in the tea towel swap. This time I stitched for the amazing Bascom.  Please visit him here, you will be amazed by his art and stitching.  I knew right away what I wanted to do for him...the pattern featuring a devil playing a banjo of course!

Bascom always says... "Damn I'm Good" which I love because we really should value our own creativity, so I added the words.  I free-handed the lettering so it's a bit wonky but it adds a little character right?

The pattern is part of the Jim Woodring artist series set from Sublime Stitching.  Man that's a mean-looking banjo player, I bet he picks a good tune.

I think I've only got a few more towels to stitch on.  I will hate to see this end.  

I've also been thinking about the holidays.  Christmas will be here before I know it and I need to make sure I get a head start this year since my time is a bit more limited now.  Well I'm off to enjoy my day off!  

'Til next time!

Desserts of the Month: July, August and September

Phew!  I had some major stitching sessions this past week.  I was determined to get caught up on the desserts of the month patterns,and I did--stitching up July, August and September in record pace--well maybe not record pace but pretty darn fast.  Here they are!

  July is Strawberry Shortcake! Perfect for summer.

August is Frozen Yogurt!  Yum Yum.

September is Candy Apple!  Cuteness on a stick!

All together now---just three more months!  Wow has this year flown by.  Just the other day I was thinking I needed to get started on Christmas---yikes!  Again, if you'd like to join in you can here!  Well the baby is awake now--off I go.  Later!

A Fuzzy Hooty

I thought I'd share this really cute owl I found at the thrift store.  It's a crewel embroidery piece and I had to have it for the baby's room.  It goes right along with his little woodland critter theme!

Totally cute.  Later gators!

P.S. I'm still thinking over how personal to make this blog.  I started it as a art and craft blog but there have been some non-artsy posts that are more personal.  I want to share the birth of my baby and his development with friends and family that read my blog but still thinking about starting up a more personal blog.  Baby will probably be a year old before I decide! 

Yellow beams

Just another quick post folks!  I finished up another of the tea towels for the swap.  This time around, I stitched for the lovely Victoria.  She's an amazing stitcher and artist. Check our her endeavors here.  I decided to keep with the circular theme that was happening.

This pattern is here.  I really like the design and decided to go with bright colors.

 I used three different yellows for the outside beams but I think it's a bit hard to see in the photo.

Her apron so far.  Looking good.

Now I'm just waiting for my next towel.  In the mean time, I've started stitching the July Dessert of the Month.  Catch you all later!

'Til Then!

A fairy good day

I almost forgot to share my little fairy that I finished!  I stared this before I gave birth, even stitching some when I started laboring at home.  It helped to have something to focus on between the contractions.  I finished it during some spare free minutes after bringing the baby home.  

This is a Sublime Stitching pattern you can purchase here.  That's one sexy fairy if I do say so myself.

 I really wanted to play with color for this design.  I'm really pleased with the outcome.

  

I added  a few extras to the outfit and shoes to give it a bit more detail.

I love the fiery hair--what a vixen. 

I'm not sure what I'm going to start working on next.  I'm waiting on the next towel to arrive for the tea towel swap.  I'm also now THREE months behind on the Dessert of the Month cross stitches--so maybe I'll start one of those.  It's also getting close to Halloween so I'd love to do some spooky stitching.   I also want to start some small pieces for my own art. Ack--so many projects, so little time.  Now that I've gone back to work, I have even less time for creating but I'm going to fit it in where I can.  How big is your project list?

MOM

Hey ya'll!  I've got a few free minutes so I thought I'd drop in.  I've been super busy, of course, with the baby but loving every minute of it. I'm pretty sure he's the best baby in the world (but I guess I'm just a little partial)    ; )    But believe it or not--I have had some spare moments to stitch a bit.  I'm still working on the tea towel swap and I completed another towel.  This towel belongs to Jack B Nimble, an awesome manbroiderer.  Check out his blog because he stitches amazing things.  Or better yet, buy those amazing things in his etsy shop.  

   At first I wasn't quite sure what to do for his towel but after reading that he likes tattoo flash, I immediately thought of the iconic 'mom' tattoo.  I thought it would be really cool to stitch that seeing as how I just became a mother.  

The pattern is from Sew Lovely Embroidery's Mad Ink patterns.  Visit their etsy shop for more great patterns--they really do a great job.

I decided to stitch the flowers in blue since I have a little boy and hopefully achieved a bit of dimension by using 2 different blues. 

The lettering may just be my favorite thing.  I am very happy with this piece and hope dear Jack likes it!

On another note--I've been thinking very hard about starting a more personal blog in addition to my art/craft blog as way to keep up with the happenings of my family and as a way to share these stores with my family and friends that are not close by.  Anyone else write more than one blog?  Do you find it's hard to keep up with?  I just don't want to clog this one up with way too many baby pictures and stories about what we are doing.  Hmmm--still thinking it over. 

'Til next time!

Checking in....

Hi all.  I just wanted to check in and let you all know that I'm still alive.  I had the baby on June 25th.  He is wonderful and we are having a great time getting to know each other.  I haven't had a ton of time to stitch or do much else other than take care of the little man but I'm OK with that.  I am relishing the time I have with him before I have to go back to work.  I hope to get back on track soon though.  Til then!

Waiting and Stitching

One good thing about sitting around waiting for the baby to come is the time it's given me to stitch.  I've been sitting on the couch with my feet up--doing nothing much else but stitching and watching TV.  Not so bad really.  I have already finished up another tea towel and wanted to share it. 

I chose to do this Sublime Stitching Julie West pattern again.  I really love this entire set but there's something about this pattern in particular that I just really like.  You can see the previous one I did here if you like.

The face has a tribal quality that I like.  You could stitch it up so many different ways.

I hope you have a wonderful week.  I'll just be going to work and waiting for baby.  

Later!

Sweet Duckie with a Sweet Treat

Oh dear friends, I've just been waiting around until the baby makes his debut.  I have officially hit the uncomfortable no matter how I sit, stand or sleep phase.  One more week to go--I think I can do it. I have been stitching away though--which has been great.  I've been trying to tie up loose ends and of course I'm still working on the tea towels as they come in.  I've also got a couple of secret projects that I can't reveal until after the baby gets here so you'll just have to wait.  Until then. I have another tea towel addition to share with you!  This one is for Jill.  Go check out her fun blog, it's filled with such pretty pictures and she's a beautiful stitcher.

I really needed to stitch something cute because I've been feeling so blah, so looking through all my patterns this one caught my eye.  How cute is this little duck holding her perfect cake.  So sweet.  You can find the patterns here.

Just look at that adorable face.  I definitely felt better after stitching this pattern.  Just pure cuteness. 

I'm going to start on my next towel since I'm basically just waiting around for the big event.  Please send me some mojo to get this baby moving!

'Til next time!

Dessert of the Month: May and June

Well I got a little behind on the Desserts of the Month cross stitches, but I got caught up this past week!  So here they are--and somehow they just keep getting cuter!!

A very festive flan!

Super sweet bubble tea!

Progress so far. 

I still can't get over how adorable these patterns are.  Again, you can join in the fun here! 

In other news:  Colby and I are just playing the waiting game now.  I'm just over 37 weeks pregnant, so it could happen any day--or it could be another couple of weeks.  I can't wait to meet my little guy.  I think I'm finally at the point where I'm tired of being pregnant and just my bebe here! 

Peace, Man.

Time for another Tea Towel tour update!  This time around I was stitching for my pal Tara. She takes these wonderful photographs with Bigfoot so when thinking of what to stitch for her--I thought immediately of the Michael Sieben Sublime Stitching pattern from here of the hairy hand giving a peace sign. 

Peace, Man!

I used 4 strands of floss to give it a more chunky, hairy look.  I used four different colors to add some dimension.

I'm very pleased with the way this turned out!  I would stitch this pattern again for sure. It would be fun to do with really bright colors!

Now, I'm working on my next towel and I still need to stitch the May Dessert of the Month pattern!  I'm definitely falling a little behind on that. Oh well, it will get done when it gets done. 

'Til next time!

Getting things ready

Boy did I have a busy weekend!  I worked a lot getting things ready for the baby.  May family came over and put the crib together for us!  Seeing it put together really hammered it home that this baby is really coming----and soon!  Just 4 more weeks to go now (give or take).  So, I thought I'd share what we've got going on in the 'nursery'.  I use nursery loosely because he won't have a room to himself, but has to share with the computer, a lot of my art/craft stuff and a few other odds and ends.  We've only got 2 bedrooms so we're making do with what we've got!  Luckily, I don't think little man will mind.  : )

The beautiful crib.  I love it's simplicity and warm color.  I finally got to hang up the woodland embroideries I made a while back!

I love how all the stitches came together.  You may remember me posting about these here and here!  And can you see the little hedgehog in the crib!  Eek!

There's my beautiful rocker my mom gave me.  Also, you'll see the shelf that has all my art/craft stuff on it behind it.  Hey you've got to work with what you've got right!

Of course Maggie jumped right in as soon as I got it all set up.  The little stinker.  I've got to find a way to keep her out of it.  That may present a challenge--for now I've got the crib filled with a  car seat and a high chair. 

I decided to make my own version of a crib duster.  I didn't like any of the ones online or in stores.  I've had these crocheted squares for a while now.  I bought them for $1 at the thrift store and have been holding on to them until I figured out what I wanted to do with them.  So I decided to make a little banner of sorts and hang around the bottom.  I think it's super cute and adds a little vintage touch.  (you'll also see in this photo--all the stuff I have in the crib to keep kitty out)

And just for the heck of it--here I am at 36 weeks.  I can't believe it's almost here!! 

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend! Today I've been taking it easy and stitching away.  It's been so nice!!

'Til next time!

Yee-Haw!

Well folks, it's time for my second installment of the tea towel swap.  I stitched this up for the amazing Pam!  She's super cool and into all sorts of amazing things--particularly rodeos and cowboys and cowgirls.  So I decided to use one of these Stitcher's Revolution patterns from here of this sexy cowgirl.  Yeehaw!

 I wanted to really let loose with the colors for this and chose bright, fun colors for her outfit--with a touch of sparkly silver. And who says you can't have a pink lasso? 

 I really enjoyed stitching this pattern and I'm pleased with the outcome, particularly the facial features.

  If you've been living under a rock and don't know who Pam is, then please go check out her super fun blog.  It's full of awesome! 

                                                               'Til next time!

April shower

I just wanted to share a few photos from our baby shower we had last month.  We had a wonderful time and were surrounded with love from family and friends.  We got so many nice things for the baby that I can't wait to have him wear, play with, wrap up with etc.  

My aunt made two cute cakes for us.

A handmade fleece blanket.

My grandma made the little pillow and quilt with the cutest little farmer and tractor fabric!

My sweet little bassinet.  If you peek inside, you'll see a green crocheted blanket.  My mom brought me home from the hospital with that blanket!

 We had two cute diaper cakes!

This has become my favorite picture of the two of us.  

We had a lovely day for sure.  Now just 5 more weeks until the baby arrives!