I'm still here!!

I wanted to drop a quick note to let you all know that I am still here!  I know it's been a while since I've updated.  We bought a new home so we've been busy with that.  I've finally been stitching somewhat regularly again this last week.  We're settling in our new space and totally love it.  I do have some things to share so hopefully I can do that soon!

'Til then!

An artsy/craftsy Blog Hop!

I was tagged by the lovely Sophie from Threadhead to join in on a crafty blog hop.  I just have to answer a few questions about my crafty habits and tag three other bloggers to play along.  I love this kinda thing, it's such a great way to 'meet' other artsy/craftsy bloggers. So here goes!

1.      What am I working on? Right now I’m working on some swap pieces so I can’t really show photographs for fear my partner will see.  It’s a Halloween swap so there’s lots of spookiness going on.  I am still working away on the Quilty Stitches and Gingerbread Lane as well….a bit behind but still plugging away!

Gingerbread Lane by The Frosted Pumpkin Stitchery

Quilty Stitches by Little Miss Shabby

 2.      How does my work differ from others of its genre? Honestly, I’ve been feeling lately a bit ho-hum about what I’ve been doing.  I’m not sure what it is….a creative rut maybe?  I’ve been doing a lot of cross stitch lately and I enjoy it but I really miss making my own things.  Not that there is any ‘wrong’ with stitching patterns.  I enjoy that very much and frankly, it’s what been keeping my needle moving.    Not to get too blah, but I’ve been feeling down about not having enough time for myself. I miss painting.  My easel has been packed away since my son was born. My sketchbook hasn’t been opened either.  I keep telling myself that I’m going to just do some small-scale mixed media works.  It will keep my creative juices flowing but having difficulty finding inspiration.  So for now, I will keep doing my patterns and swaps.  The swaps especially at least keep me making things and challenge my brain to come up with things for my partner.  I’ve missed swapping and so glad I’ve gotten back into it. But I miss painting and expressing myself in that way.

3.      Why do I create what I do? I am a maker.  I studied fine art in college focusing on fiber arts, painting and photography.  I love using my hands to make things.  I feel better when I’m creating something—whether it’s a painting or a holiday wreath.  I enjoy it immensely, especially when trying a new technique or trying to make something I’ve never made before.  Plus, it’s fun! 

4.      How does your creating process work? For my mixed-media pieces, I usually start with a story or a memory.  My work is usually auto-biographical.  I like to throw on bright colors of paint and then white wash over them and then layer more bright colors and white wash over them again. I love the effect it creates. I normally layer fabric and embroidered pieces on the canvas to create the full story.  I truly enjoy it. 

"A Place to Be" 2011

So I'm going to tag the following folks and see if they would like to play along. 

1. The amazing Olisa over at cocoa eyes the stitcher. She's an amazing artist and stitcher who does fascinating mixed media pieces with explosive and graphic quality.

2. QuirkieCraft--she does Ah-ma-zing embroideries.  Please go check her out.  I'm fairly new to her blog so I'd love to know a bit more about her!

3. Let's see if Bascom will play along.  He stitches amazing redwork, paints and welds.  He's a regular jack-of-all trades. 

And please remember to check out Sophie at Threadhead at the top. She's an amazing embroidery artist.  Thanks for tagging me!

A side project

I've decided to start a more personal blog about my new family--Exactly Where I'm At!  I will still post artsy and craftsy stuff here but wanted a place to talk about some things on my mind lately.  Come check it out!

I have managed to do a little stitching here and there, working on something for the hubby's birthday.  I'll post when I get a free minute!  Little dude is keeping me busy!

Til then!

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!

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!

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!

Goals for the year

Yes I know it's already mid-February, but I really wanted to post my goals for the year.  I think it's important to write these sorts of things down so I can really take a hard look at them and be accountable for staying on target.  I really don't structure my life in such a regimented way, so most of these are more of a guideline--things I hope to achieve for my own well being. 

Creative Goals

*Produce more art work throughout the year--perhaps smaller scale works (I realized that last year I only produced one painting, so maybe working on a smaller scale will help me be more productive)

*Stitch a little everyday (so far so good on this--I've been stitching like crazy!)

*Try to work on at least 2 larger scale cross stitch projects.  (I think the one I'm starting for the baby will be a good start!)

*Make meaningful gifts for people-especially for holidays and birthdays---and start early! I never seem to give myself enough time when making things for other people and end us rushing at the last minute. 

*Use what I have---try not to buy any supplies unless absolutely necessary.  So far so good on this one also.  I recently reorganized all of my art/craft supplies (because baby will have to share the room with all my stuff).  I now know what I really have and where to look when I need something.  Everything I've made so far this year has been made using what I already have--patterns, fabric etc.(with the exception of the dessert of the month club patterns which I just couldn't resist)

*Make things for the baby.  I'm not talking about making all of his clothes or anything like that.  That will never happen.  But I want to make special things for him which will hopefully turn into a love for handmade and unique items.  I'm not so totally against mass produced items either, but I definitely want there to be a balance.  I'm off to a great start with the things I've made for the walls for his room!

Personal Goals

*Read at least 5 books that I already have. Do not buy a book until I have read those 5.  This goes along with using what I already have.  

*Read baby/parenting books.   I have rad several baby books already and have some parenting books that were given to me, so now I just need to make the time to read them.  This is important to me because I want to have a lot of information and then pick and choose what information I use with our child.

*Work on eating healthier, focusing on more organic foods.  We do OK with this but cold definitely do better.  It's become so important to me that the things I put in my body be good and good for me.  Organic foods (especially meats and dairy) often taste much better and I know they are good for me.  Being on a budget is hard, so buying organic foods that we eat a lot of is one way to get better at this. We also need to frequent the local farmer's markets more often.

*Thoroughly clean the apartment before the baby is born.  This also means organizing things so we know where stuff is. 

*Spend quality time with my hubby.  We often get trapped in our day-today so I want to make an effort to make some time for us.

Goals for baby boy

*Read to him often.  Start building a library for him to stimulate this. I want to him to be a voracious reader.  I read a lot when I was a kid, so starting him on books early will hopefully give him a thirst for it, too. (the above picture are some I've gotten so far from my mom!)

*Focus on good nutrition.  This echoes my personal goal but I wanted to write it out separately so I would stay on top of this. 

*Provide a happy atmosphere for him to live in.  Seems simple but I thought I'd write it down anyway, just in case things get tough around here. 

* Make time to spend outdoors with him.  This is VERY important to me.  I don't care if it's going to a local park or taking overnight camping trips.  I feel it's very important for a child to spend quality time outdoors. Plus we call can use the fresh air.

*Help him and Maggie bond.  I'm a little worried about how kitty will react to him, so I'm going to my best to help them become best buds.  I think it will be very important, and I'm sure I'll need reminding, to not let Maggie feel left out in anyway.

OK it's out there.  Looking over these lists, it seems like a lot but also doable.  These are things I can certainly do and maintain.  Do you make goals for yourself?  Do you write them down or just keep track of them in your head?  I will revisit this about mid-year to see if things are track. 

 'Til next time dear friends!

Trip to the mountains

Last weekend we took a trip up the mountains of NC and TN.  The fall colors were not quite at peak but were still beautiful and the weather was pretty much perfect.  We took a drive through Great Smoky Mountain National Park, spent a night in Knoxville, drove the Cherohala Parkway and spent a night in Cherokee (losing a little at the casino).  It was a rejuvenating trip for sure.

House in the Horseshoe.  We stopped here on the way out of town and so glad we did.  Beautiful farm country and so quiet and isolated. 

A tunnel on the Blue Ridge Parkway

Off the BRP

The Smokies

Hiking the AT in the Smokies

A friend along the trail

I thought this leaf was interesting--split in half down the middle--half red, half yellow.

The Smokies

The Sun Sphere in Knoxville, TN

Along the Cherohala Parkway

Along the Cherohala

Fontana Dam

Playing Star Trek slots at Harrah's in Cherokee. 

Again, I've got more photos on flickr.

Weekend in Wytheville

We took a weekend trip up to Wytheville, VA several weeks ago.  I'm finally getting around to sharing a few photos.  We did couple of hikes, including a small trip on the Appalachian Trail.  We ate a would famous Skeeter-dog and just relaxed.  It's a great area if you're ever in the neighborhood.

I've put more photos on flickr if you'd like to have a look-see.

Time flies.......

Wow.  Today is our first wedding anniversary.  How time flies.  How lucky I am to have such a wonderful man who puts up with my room full of craft stuff, snips of embroidery floss all over the house, walls full of thrift store finds and the occasional meltdown when I mess up something I'm working on.  I sure snagged a good one!

Photo: Nicole Faby photography

Photo: Nicole Faby Photography

Photo: Nicole Faby Phootography