Cruise, Last Day

Our last full day aboard ship was at sea, and we had both morning and afternoon stitching sessions back in the dining room.  During the morning session, Claudia and Elizabeth helped with any questions stitchers had on their projects.

During the afternoon session, I covered construction of the star shaped biscornu.  I have stitched it twice so far for Sue and will need to stitch it once more for myself. 

 

Sue also presented another cruise project, an exclusive stitcher’s necklace.












 

 

 

There were more door prize drawings, and by the time we were through every stitcher received a door prize.  There was also a grand door prize drawing won by Sandy Falconer, who claims she never wins anything!

 

There was one last dinner together that evening, and it just as yummy as all the other evenings.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was a fun cruise, I really enjoyed the time aboard ship with Sue and all the other stitchers, some who have become very good friends over the years.  Hope to do it all again someday!

Cruise Day 5

On Thursday in Cozumel, Sue and I, along with Jan, Stephanie and Priscilla, took a Mexican cooking class.  It was great fun, and we loved eating what we created with the guidance of Chef Louis. 

 

 

 

 

Although we made everything in reverse order, here is the appetizer, a Sope.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The main course was a fish dish.  Very tasty!   

 

 

 

 

 

 

Desert was fried plantains with a chocolate sauce.  It was a very enjoyable morning!

Cruise Day 4

On Wednesday, Sue and I (and our handsom escort, Karl) went to the Altun Ha Mayan ruins and then took a river cruise back to port.  It was very interesting, but…once you have seen one pair of iguanas, you don’t need to see many more.  They all look alike.  

 

 

 

The monkeys however, were a different story.  I got lots of pictures of the howler monkeys for Logan!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Once we were back aboard ship, we took this group picture.  A few people were missing because their tenders were late getting back to the ship, but for the most part here is our great looking group.









 

 

Cruise Day 3

 

We were scheduled to dock in Roatan, Honduras, but the seas were too rough and the captain felt he could not safe dock the boat.  After a number of failed attempts in two different harbors, it was decided that we would spend the day at sea. 

 

 

No one from our group seemed to mind, and many spent the day in the stitching lounge, happily stitching for most of the day. 

Cruise Day 2

 

 

Day 2 of our cruise found us dockeding in the Cayman Islands, and where we were tendered on to shore.  Many stitchers spent the day exploring beautiful Grand Cayman.

 

 

It was a beautiful day, although it was quite warm, actually it was hot! 

Sue and I walked around, and stopped at MargaritaVille and the Hard Rock Cafe.

 

Once back on board ship, Sue invited all the stitchers and their traveling companions to a cocktail reception before dinner.   I enjoyed my chocolate martini....it was yummy!

 

 

Cruise Day 1

We met back in the dining room after breakfast, ready to start stitching! 

Besides Sue, we had two other designers along for the cruise; Claudia Dutcher Kistler of Dutch Treat Designs and Elizabeth Tallado of Dames of the Needle. 

 

 

 

 

Cruise tote bags were distributed to each stitcher

 

 

 

 

 

 

Everyone was very excited when Sue’s cruise project was revealed:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Everyone got busy stitching as soon as Sue gave a bit of instruction.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After a break for lunch, we were moved to a different area of the dining room.  Apparently we were having too much fun and were disturbing the group of business men that had meeting on the other side of the large dining room.  We didn’t let it bother us, and continued to enjoy each other’s company while we stitched. 

 

 

 

Elizabeth Talledo of Dames of the Needle presented her wonderful project about South American mermaids and gave instruction to stitchers that needed help.

 

 

Claudia Kistler of Dutch Treat Designs presented her project and give some instructions on the tips and techniques of stitching a table topper and stitchers started stitching on a small version of the table topper to get used the Anne Cloth before graduating to the topper itself.

 

  

Before heading off to dinner, we were warned:

 

Wanna hear about my last cruise?

In January of 2012 I was privledge to help Sue Hillis with her Western Caribbean Cruise.  I never blogged about it, so now that I am sick of looking at snow, it seemed like as good as time as any to remember the sunny carribean. 

 

I had trouble getting out of Chicago the day before the cruise.  A snow storm threatened to cause havoc with my travel plans.  I was able to get on a flight that was probably the last one of of O'Hare that day, and finally got to Fr. Lauderdale about  hours later than originally scheduled.   

Before the cruise, many stitchers met at Embassy Suites hotel for dinner in Fort Lauderdale and some shopping at the boutique set up by the Golden Needle.  It was great to see some old friends and start getting acquainted with new ones!

The next morning, we boarded busses and drove to the harbor to board our ship, the Crown Princess.

 

After muster (life boat drill and instructions) we met at the bar on the upper deck and sailed into the sunset…..

 

 

After a yummy dinner with all of our cruisers and their guests, Sue and Eva headed off to the stateroom to finish up the kits that would be needed for the next day’s classes.

Poinsettia Stocking Finish

Finally!  I put the last beads in this Poinsettia Stocking just a few minutes ago.  The flower on this one just about did me in!  It's not perfect, but I am done!  The rest of it was a fun stitch, just the flower petals were tedious and a pain in the you know where! 

Edited to add:  It's much more sparkly in person, lots of gold metallic and some sparkly gold beads.

After the Snow Storm.....

No room to park in my parking space......

Snow Day!

When the weatherman predicted lots of snow for Tuesday, the boss told us to stay home!  I am glad I did, it looked pretty bad out during the snow storm, but looks really pretty once it stopped!  We got just under 10 inches.....

Looking for Spring?

I am really getting tired of winter and am looking for spring.  Spring reminds of flowers and gnomes.....

I stitched these two some time ago, and framed them last summer, but I don't think I ever showed them to you.

The first one is by Sue Hillis.....

The second is by Hinzeit.   I have one more gnome piece to stitch before I hang them up, but there just aren't enough hours in the day to get all the stitching done that I want....

A Tropical Get-a-Way

This weekend, a bunch of us (94 to be exact) traveled to Key Lime Cove for a fun filled, wet and wild weekend.  This was a "reward" for my children's folk dance group members and their families. 

The kids had a blast!  They had water dumped on them by the giant pineapple, they went down lots of different water slides, and they even enjoyed the lazy river. 

The parents spent time supervising the younger children, or in the hot tub.  I spent my time cuddling Owen and watching the little ones have fun. 

We shared an evening meal together, and once all the little ones went to sleep, many of the adults found their way to my suite to consume adult beverages and munchies.  Sunday morning we got up and spent more time in the waterpark before going back home.

Mark Your Calendars!

We are organizing a trip to Welcome Stitchery in beautiful downtown Crystal Lake IL for Saturday, March 23rd.  We will meet at the shop about 10:30-ish, and then head around the corner to either Finn McCool's or the Public House for lunch about noonish.  After lunch and show and tell, those that wish can head back to Welcome Stitchery for round two of shopping. 

Let me know who wants to join us and if you have a preference for lunch. 

February Progress, March Goals

Where did February go?  It seems like the month just started and we are already done with it!  Only 94 hours of stitching this past month, only 3 1/4 hours per day average, but it's better than nothing.  7 Finishes, and one almost finished (just waiting for the beads that were missing from the kit).  2 of those finishes were models for Sue Hillis so I didn't have as much time to work on my personal stitching, but that's okay too.  I really enjoy stitching for Sue, although I do stitch slower when I stitch a model so that every single stitch lays perfectly.  With Easter coming up, work is much busier this month, so I predict less stitching this month.

February

WISPS:
Work on Bavarian Table Topper 
10 hours on Rocky Mountain Christmas  
work on Logan’s stocking 
Antique Map and Needlebook
Heirloom Christmas Sampler

In Progress

Poinsettia Stocking worked on it
Halloween House #9 

Crazy January starts

Natalie’s Birth Sampler 
Quaker Rose Sampler page 1 worked on it
Sampler au bouquet 1 finished
Baked Goods finished

Future New starts

Marnee Ritter blue heart almost finished, just waiting for beads that were missing from the kit
Hallelujah finished
Joy and Peace
Snow in Love
Good Tidings
afghan pillow bear
afghan pillow moose
Crystal Violets
French Alphabet block sampler
Silent Night (CCN)
Around the World in 80 Days
Julie’s RR finished
Owen’s birth sampler
Peter’s Birth Sampler
Natalie’s Stocking
Owen’s stocking
Peter’s stocking
Mark & Karen’s wedding sampler
Tony & Melissa’s wedding sampler
Sampler au bouquet 2 started
December finished
May finished
Leta’s RR  finished

March

WISPS:
Work on Bavarian Table Topper 
10 hours on Rocky Mountain Christmas  
work on Logan’s stocking 
Antique Map and Needlebook
Heirloom Christmas Sampler

In Progress

Poinsettia Stocking
Halloween House #9 
Sampler au bouquet 2
Marnee Ritter blue heart waiting for beads

Crazy January starts

Natalie’s Birth Sampler 
Quaker Rose Sampler page 1

Future New starts

Joy and Peace
Snow in Love
Good Tidings
afghan pillow bear
afghan pillow moose
Crystal Violets
French Alphabet block sampler
Silent Night (CCN)
Around the World in 80 Days
Owen’s birth sampler
Peter’s Birth Sampler
Natalie’s Stocking
Owen’s stocking
Peter’s stocking
Mark & Karen’s wedding sampler
Tony & Melissa’s wedding sampler

One More Pillow Finish....

Another Handblessings Designs Freebie Series, this one is called:  Blessed are the Piecemakers/Peacemakers.   

I can't find the chart......

I stitched a bunch of these table runners a number of years ago.  In cleaning out a cupboard, I found one more unstitched runner and would love to get it stitched up for an auction next month, but I can't find the chart.  It is from Stoney Creek magazine, and I have all the issues, but in thumbing through them, I have not yet located the chart.  I am sure I just over looked it, but I want to get started so I get it finished in time. 

I have e-mail Stoney Creek with a photo asking them for help, but on the off chance that one of my blogging buddies knows, I pose the question here also.

Happy Stitching all!

Edited to add:  Just got an e-mail from Stoney Creek.  The chart is the the September/October 2002 issue and is called Fall Colors Table Runner. 

A Snow Day!

Well, actually a snow evening.....

The predicted snow started about 11 am today, and within 30 minutes, it looked like a blizzard.  Because of the prediction, our scheduled speaker for our EGA guild had already cancelled, so I pulled together another program to present instead.  I didn't really pay attention to the weather outside, I don't have a window near me in the office so I didn't see the snow coming down sideways.

At 1:45 the boss decided to close the office and send us home.  Most of us have 4 wheel drive, so we decided to work until 3 because the work still needs to be done.  At 2:30 I spoke to our chapter president, and she decided to cancel the meeting.  It was the right decision.  Marguerite, my partner in crime, send out an e-mail to the membership.  I went home at three and made some phone calls. 

I did miss going to the guild meeting and my presentation originally schedule for later in the year is all complete.

Halleluja Finished!

I wanted a break from the counted canvas I should be doing, so I started this Little House Needleworks ornament over the weekend.  It stitched up rather quickly, and is now on the "waiting to be ornamentified" pile.....

Nashville Market Release

Here is the long awaited Dessert of the Month Club by Sue Hillis!   I stitched two of the individual model squares had seen a mocked up version of the complete design.  My sister stitched the model for the banner on top and it looks great in person.  Sue now has it all pulled together to release at market in 4 leaflets!  

I see so many possibilites for this design!  If I do stitch it as one big piece, I think I will do it over 1 on 25 count otherwise it might be too big for my walls!  Can't wait to stitch it....someday!

Welcome Home!

My Round Robin piece came home this weekend!  I had to stitch the date(s), and then add the charms, so now it is finished!  Thank you to the 11 ladies that stitch on it, everyone's stitching is perfect!  This will become a pillow some day.....

I should add that this is a free design, released monthly by Handblessings Designs and is called Baltimore Garden Quilt.  I purchased the fabric and charms from Cecilia's Samplers and they mailed me 3 charts (squares) every three months.

Julie's Round Robin Piece

Last evening and today I stitched Julie's Round Robin piece.  It was finished quite an easy stitch, and now is all ready to send back home to Julie!

A Question about Comments and a Pinterest Dilemma

I was doing a Google search the other day, and ended up on a Pinterest page where I found a good number of my finishes pinned.  I should mention that the person who pinned them is a follower of my blog, and my blog URL was listed on each pin, but I am not really sure how I feel about this.

I am kind of new to Pinterest, and haven't figured out how all of it works yet.  I didn't even know you could "pin" things you found elsewhere to your pinterest board! 

I am flattered that someone liked my stitching or the pieces that I stitched enough to "pin" them so that they can refer back to them, but the person who pinned them did not comment on any of the blog posts.  While I know that many of us are very busy and are unable to comment on every blog post that we read, but it is nice to read some comments of encouragement or praise. 

I do want to take a moment to thank each and everyone of you that visits my blog, and especially thank those who do take the time to comment.  I just ask that if you like something enough to "pin" it, please also leave a comment.

Work in Progress

I started this small stocking a few months ago, in December I think, but I haven't been very motivated to work on it until now.  Here is the progress after last weekend's stitching.  I plan to have it finished by the end of March, so that I can have enough points at ANG to get a charm for the year.  

An Almost Finished Heart

At our ANG guild this month, we started this Marnie Ritter 2010 heart, a counted canvas piece.  I love stitching these, it's the third heart by Marie Ritter I have stitched.

Our kits were missing the pink seed beads and the white barrel beads, so I will add those when they get here, but for now it's as finished as I can get it.

Another Round Robin Piece

Here is Leta's RR piece that  I stitched this past weekend.  It was a fast and enjoyable stitch.

How did the Hermiting go?

While the camera is recharging, I will just tell you how I did this weekend, stitching wise. 

Friday evening was a folk dance rehearsal, so I didn't get a chance to stitch, but my 4-person Round Robin piece came in the mail, so I knew what was going to be first up as soon as I could pick up a needle.  After German School on Saturday, I headed over to the Des Plaines Library for an afternoon of stitching.  Not too many people showed up, but those of us that did had a great time and got in some quality stitching time.  I finished my portion of Leta's Round Robin piece!

Sunday, I worked on some counted canvas pieces that need to be finished by the end of March.  I got quite a bit done on Marnie Ritter's 2010 Heart and the Poinsettia stocking. 

Pictures will be posted once the battery is done charging.

IHSW

This is the second International Hermit and Stitch Weekend of the year, and I will am stitching!

Spam!

Celebrating 75 years of Spam?  I don't think so!   I remember having cans of spam on the shelf at our summer home as a child, in case unexpected visitors showed up.   Fried in a pan, it wasn't so bad.                                     

The kind of spam I am really referring to is the unwanted comments, advertisements, etc.  My blog has been overrun with spam!   I don't think my readers are interested in enlarging body parts they may not possess, nor do they want to get various drugs from other countries.....       since I really hate when you have to type in the codes that are hardly readable to be able to post a comment on a blog, I don't want to use them.  I have changed the settings so that I get an e-mail to approve the comment before it is posted. 

 

 

 

Happy Valentine's Day

I didn't do any special stitching for Valentine's Day this year, but did stitchup this little ornament for an exchange a few years ago.  I should stitch it up for myself someday.....but there is so much to stitch and so little time....

Another Sneak Preview

Another model for Sue Hillis was completed this evening.  This is the May square for the Desert of the Month Club series being released soon.

TUSAL February

Time to report on the TUSAL (totally useless stitch-a-long) for February.  Here is my ort jar that was filled this past month.  I started with an empty jar mid January, and managed to fill it in a month..

Sneak Preview finish

Here is a model I stitched for Sue Hillis.  This is one square of a new series of charts that will be released at the Nashville Market.

The series is called Dessert of the Month Club, and will consist of 3 or 4 charts that will have a total of 12 months of dessert squares with a header to tie it all together.  The squares can be stitched as part of the entire design or used individually for ornaments or cubes or whatever!

happy New Year!

And yet another pillow....

I stitched this pillow, which was a free design by Handblessings Designs a few years ago, as part of a year-long EGA project.  I finally got around to finishing it as a pillow.