Copyright

(c) 2009 - 2024 (MEM)

Please keep in mind that, unless otherwise noted, everything on my blog is copyright material of some sort. Either by me (as picture taker, writer, creator) or more importantly by the designer of the needlework pieces I present. If you promise to be copyright mindful, my promise to you is to do my best to provide you enough information in my post for you to obtain your own legal copy. Please be respectful of these copyrights and not take business away from our wonderful designers. Thank you.
............. . ."She looks for wool and flax and works with her hands in delight" Proverbs 31:13 NAS


Tuesday, December 20, 2016

Our 2016 Ornament

When I posted the blasts from Christmas past, I realized I did not have an ornament for our tree this year!!

 So I designed, stitched and finished this little guy, (it is 3" by 3.5") which fits perfectly into our new life here in the Valley of the Sun! It is a Sun City Stitcher exclusive.




Happy Stitching!!!


Friday, December 16, 2016

Some Blasts From Christmas Past

Since I am stitching for current Christmas gifts and can't post any photos, I thought I would post some of my favorites from the past.

A Shepherds Bush from the 2000 Just Cross Stitch Ornament Issue. It won an Honorable Mention in the 2001 North Carolina State Fair (I think it could have done better, but I was a novice at finishing and had a bid of trouble).


2009 ANG or EGA project, designed by one of our members.



A netted ornament from a class I took in 1999.

This angel I made in 1994 and it won a third place ribbon in the L.A. County Fair.


Miss Maddie in 2009 with her new toy.


This from Issue 39 of Jill Oxton's Cross Stitch magazine (1999). The legs and arms move up and down when a string is pulled. It won a third place ribbon in the 2001 North Carolina State Fair.


This is also from the 2000 Just Cross Stitch Ornament Issue. I made two that year, one for my brother's family and one for us. It was fun to stitch.



I made this in 2009 for my friend, Sandra. Sorry I do not know the design or designer.



These two Santa I made in 2005 or 2006. I have looked high and low for designer information and can't find it. I want to say it is through Rainbow Gallery, but I am not sure.


These are just a few of my favorites that I have made. 
At this point I realize I have not made our 2016 ornament!! Yikes, I best get stitching!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 I may post other of my ornaments later and maybe do a post on ornaments I have gotten from friends and exchanges. I have them on their own metal ornament tree.


Thursday, December 8, 2016

Beaded Bracelet


I took out some time in my week last week to attend a class offered by my local bead group and finished this very southwest looking bracelet on Nov. 30, 2016.


It was fun to make and includes two holed tiles and super duos. I have never used two holed beads before (and I do not mean a hole on each end as two holes - it has two holes on each end of the bead).

I have worn if a few times and got some nice compliments. I may make another in a different color.

I think that covers it for now, I am doing some Christmas gift stitching and can't post any of those items until after the 25th, so stand (you may also sit) by!

Saturday, November 26, 2016

Sad Day

Today we had to put our chocolate lab Miss Maddie to sleep. Wednesday night she was no longer able to fully use her right leg and today her left paw would twist inward when she tried to walk. But she showed no sign of pain. Today was the first appointment we could get to see the veterinarian and she suspected degenerative nerve damage due to Maddie's age (she turned 12 this past Oct. 25) and the posturing of her paws. They offered us pain reduction regime, but also said the nerve damage is not curable and would only get worse.  So we made that hard decision.

I was afraid this might happen so before we left the house I cut up  some cheddar cheese for her (her favorite) and the vet tech checked to see what they had in the lunch room, because why not spoil her now? The refrigerator had been cleaned out, so all she could find was some whipped cream! A first time for Maddie and she thought it was GREAT, cleaning the plate! They also made a paw imprint in some plaster like stuff  that takes 48 hours to cure which is in a nice display box with the Rainbow Bridge Poem and place for her photo.

We stayed with her and I gave her ear rubs, belly rubs and gentle petting as she went to sleep. It was hard, but she had not been able to move around and was not able to do all the fun lab things she did before, even simple things like rolling over for belly rubs, patrolling her yard, greeting visitors, etc.

This is one of my favorite photos of her, she is very perky because I have a piece of cheese in one hand. If you look closely you can see a little bit of anticipatory drool on her right whiskers! I call it "Cheese Please"


Miss Maddie
10/25/2004 - 11/26/2016
Rescued by us 7/5/2008

Tuesday, November 15, 2016

UPDATE on Autumn Sewing

Now that it has cooled down here a bit, we were able to do some work on boxes in the garage and storeroom. I found some of my fall decor which included two stuffed pumpkins. The smaller one fits great in the center of my folded wreath so I think I will go with this look instead of a candle.

I still want to get some pumpkin buttons for where the tips meet.





That is all for now!

Thursday, November 10, 2016

Autumn Sewing

I took a class given by my quilt group and made a pretty fall decoration - it could be any combination of colors, but I wanted fall since my Thanksgiving decor is limited. It was TONS of fun to make.


I started with three fabrics


I sewed them into these 12 squares.


I then sewed the squares together to form a circle. 


I then sewed the top points together and wa -la! 
A Folded Wreath!

I may sew some pumpkin buttons where the tips join, not sure yet.
I plan to find an LED tall candle for the center as soon as I get to town to shop!



Friday, October 21, 2016

Display Case Plus a Little of this and a Little of That

I have been doing a little bit of this and that lately.

 First is a card I made for a beader who is moving away. :(



I finished the stitching on this in 2014, but just now finish finished it into a flat fold. The hat fabric is what I used for the finishing. I hunted through all my stuff and can't find any information on the designer, I will keep looking and do an update - unless someone knows and can tell us in the comments. I think Lizzie n Kate, but not sure.



I have a fair number of "smalls" that I had in a bookcase with glass doors, but we did not move it with us to Arizona, so I had to figure out something else. Well this is it! The first photo shows two of the display cases on a bookshelf and there is room for one more. They open from the top and you can see the clasp to "unlock" and open the case. It has two dividers and it is meant to be hung on the wall. Basically what I am using as dividers is meant to be a shelf. I removed the saw tooth hanger from the back so not to scratch the shelf.




 Below are photos of each case with my small items in them. All items were made by me except the mailing envelope in the lower right of the bottom box. I lined all the wood with acid free material so that none of my textiles is touching wood.

I got the cases at Michael's a couple of days ago with their buy one get one free sale. It is called Studio Decor display case and they are 8.625 inches by 5.125 inches on the inside (according to the label). I almost did not see them on the bottom shelf in the store with all the other shadow boxes.




I got in the beading bug and finished a couple of items I have had since I lived in North Carolina and we moved in 2007!!

I must apologize for this one's orientation, I keep rotating it and saving it, but it will not sit up straight!! It is called Peyote Pendant for Donut with Netted Rope and is designed by That Bead Lady at  (www.thatbeadlady.com)


Finally this a kit I bought and is a Red White and Blue version of a project in the August 2000 Bead and Button magazine called Abstract art pendant by Beth Stone. It uses different sized beads and combines peyote and brick stitch in places and was quite fun to make. I may make a beaded necklace to hang it from, but for now this rat tail cord works.


I think that about covers it for now!!


Sunday, October 2, 2016

Halloween 2016 - BOO!

Here is my display for Halloween 2016. 




Look closely it is a devil candy corn. 
The box is a Mill Hill Kit and I do not recall the others, but probably blogged about them in the past with more detail. Maybe a search for Halloween will pull them up.















I think the center one is a Sweetheart Tree design. I know the stand ups are Bent Creek designs.




I do not recall all of these, but the candy corn is now in the ANG Chapter Project Notebook
for ANG Chapter use.















Halloween is one of my favorite holidays to stitch for and my stuff has grown beyond the table. This is Witchy Hats by Caela Tyler a Foothills EGA project from last year.


That is about all for now!

Wednesday, September 28, 2016

Where to begin??

It has been a busy summer, with ups and downs. My father in law passed away at 93, but we moved here in time to share three nice months with him. We miss him, but know he is in a better place. 

I did get some needlework etc., done, during this time. First is Witchy Poo designed by amy bruecken Designs and adapted for canvas by the late Caela Tyler. The canvas is a lavender that I just can't get to photograph well. This was a fun project.


I played with paper crafts and made this birthday cake card for one of my sister-in-laws, It is a pop up card that designed myself.


I am trying to reduce my stash and working on projects I have had around for a while. This is an EGA Petite Project from 2007 called Square Stitch Beaded Halloween Bracelet designed by Bonnie Marshall. The finished size is 6 1/8 inch with out the clasp, so I had to add a few extra rows at each end to make it 7 1/2" without clasp.


  Our Twisted Cereus went nuts with blooms one night! It turned out 12 total overall, each about 6 inches in diameter!

Finally, I found this little gem (?) at Tuesday Morning this afternoon. It is supposed to make twisted cord. I have not tried it yet, but the instructions seem easy and provide the number of strands and lengths need to make up to an approximate 18" cord (as long as you "turn the gear properly").

When I play with it I will report back, or if you have used it you can comment about it.















That about covers it for now, other than to say I have joined the ANG and EGA guilds in my new area and look forward to sharing some fun projects with you!




Sunday, August 7, 2016

Birds!

One of my other non crafty interests are birds. I have been a "birder" since about 1986. It depended on where we lived if I had bird feeders or not,  how serious I was bout looking for birds and if I participated  Cornell Lab of Ornithology Feeder Watch.  Which was a lot of fun. Not sure I will put up a feeder here other than for humming birds.

Well two have showed up on our patio or courtyard with out much effort on my part. We leave our porch lights on and have acquired a few dead insects and probably a few still living around the plants. We have since put in yellow bug lights and the insects seem to have reduced quite a bit!

But this little fellow stopped by yesterday and today. He (or she) has been doing a fantastic job a cleaning up all the insects, even checking in the cracks. I had to take its photo through our greenish tinted thermal windows, but you can tell it is a Cactus Wren. On one hand it is one to add to my Life List, if you only count ones on your list that you have seen. I had heard this wren in So. California, but not seen it until now. Funny but it seems to be elusive in the hills of So. Calif, but I have seen them here and at other places in our community. Maybe that is why it is the Arizona State bird?




Also seen, but not photographed and another Life List addition was a Gila Woodpecker. Other birds I have seen are a road runner fighting it's reflection in a neighbors sliding glass door - not sure who won that battle.

Maybe I should explain to any non birders out there what  Life List is just in case you are interested. Basically it is a list of the birds you have seen (and some add heard) during your life time.

Some long tailed crackles seem to be in the area along with a phoebe like bird I have not been able to identify. We eat fairly often at the Indigo Grill here and I have seen house sparrows there (as well as the Cactus Wren and Grackles. Also a humming bird that whizzed by too fast for ID.

Well that is the Sunday birding round up. Hope you are having a fun day!

Thursday, August 4, 2016

Houston We Have a Problem

Things are settling down here a bit and I decided to work in my new "stitching nest". An area with my floor stand, scissors, ort container, end table, etc. It also has a very nice OTT Floor lamp to provide extra light over my left shoulder. I have had this set up in all our houses since 1999. It allows me to stitch and "watch" TV with my hubby. I mostly listen and look up once in a while, he watches. This gives me a good 2 or 3 hours an evening to stitch and many times I end up getting a lot done and a reputation as a speedy stitcher. Which may or may not be true, but stitching almost every night for threes hours sure helps get a lot done. Just remember to get up and walk around every hour!!

Well, my nice bright stitching light shows up as a big white glare/blob on the new (and wider) TV! So I can't use it or I have to move to the side and then the TV viewing is not so great and I do not have a table for my stitching supplies!

So, what to do??

I am thinking of getting a clip on light to put on the chart holder on my floor stand to provide direct lighting to the stitching area, hoping it does not show up on the TV.

 Any one have any other ideas??? I would love to hear them.

Itching to stitch here in AZ!!

Enjoy this funny from FaceBook.



Wednesday, August 3, 2016

Happy Days Are Here Again!

I was afraid I had lost a box of stitching UFOs (unfinished objects) in the move. I just could NOT find it! I looked high and low! So I was upset for a while and then proceeded to create a spreadsheet on replacement so I could file a claim. I had kept a list of what was in the box, so this was fairly easy to do. But is sure was an eye opener!! I was a little shocked at the total, but this could not place a true value of the work I had already put into the items in the box or the fact that some could just never be replaced - like the needlepoint my mom gave me in 1977 and happens to be my oldest UFO, I am down to the back ground and that is not so much fun to stitch, so I pick it up once and while and put in a few stitches. Also, I am not sure where I would put it in my house, so no rush to finish.

For the move I had kept a list of what was in each UFO box and I hate to admit I had 5 boxes total - but there was other stuff in some since the UFOs were of odd sizes. I kept hoping the box would show up and when we got down to just the stuff in what we call the 10 x 10 room (a 10'x10' climate controlled storeroom in the garage) that only had garage and basement stuff in it I was a little dismayed.

Well, I was in the 10 x 10 looking for something else and moved a plastic tub and just happened to look at the markings which were "UFOs #1  Studio and my last name". YIPEE!! The "box" was found. I cannot tell you how many times I moved that tub looking for the cardboard UFO box! As far as I remembered  all the tubs were from the basement which is how I stored stuff in there in case of water. Of course by now I remembered I wanted to put all my UFOs in a tub to keep them safe, but not all would fit and I was too cheap to buy more just for the move. I ended up putting them all in various size zip lock bags, they all had foam core protectors already, and then put in the tub or box.

My oldest UFO - FOUND!!


Hope your days is going well!!



Saturday, July 16, 2016

Landscaping About Done

Well the landscapers have been busy and are about done. Here are a few photos, I took them before the final ground cover of small rocks was put down, but you have a general idea what the front of Sun City Stitcher's house looks like. Monday or Tuesday the last touches should go in and then we can relax and enjoy our yard!


This is an Ocotillo



This is our little Saguaro and a few friends.

Have a great weekend all!!



Tuesday, July 5, 2016

Iris Folding

Another club here in our community is called Paper Crafts and More. Today we made this really cute A2 size card using the iris folding technique. It was fun to make and took a little over an hour to get done, so I thought I'd share it with you. We will see if this (or a variation) is our Christmas card this year.



Happy Christmas in July!


Wednesday, June 29, 2016

Earrings!

We live in a Del Webb Community full of activities and fun. They say if you are bored here it is your own darn fault. There is TONS of stuff to do here between the various groups and the athletic facilities, pool etc.

Well I joined the beading group called Don't Worry Bead Happy and in today's class we made these really cute red, white and blue earrings for the Fourth of July. I got this one done in class and I am currently working on it's buddy just in time for the 4th!


It uses ladder stitch, brick stitch and simple stringing to get this result!
I can see all kinds of variations you could do with this. 

Here is a youtube video that might give you ideas to make your own!



Sunday, June 26, 2016

We are Cooking with Gas! New Studio

New house, new studio. I finally got the cabinets etc. installed and was able to set up my computer. This will not be it's final home, I plan to move it across the hall, but we do not have the desk yet. At any rate, I am now up and at em again!

I have not gotten much stitching done in the past month or so since we moved from the other house. But I hope to get back at it soon.What I can show you is three photos of my new studio. It is all set up with a few minor changes to be make. I can stitch, sew, bead, craft and work on just about anything I want. 

Best of all it has french doors with blinds that can open from the top , so I can close the doors and when people look in they see the pretty top half of the room, not any mess on the counters!! The door blinds can also be opened from the bottom up, but I do not think I will use them that way, I like the view best with the top down - you can get an idea what I mean in the last photo.

I said this before, and I hope to be true to my word...now that I have retired I hope to have more time to dedicate to fun stuff, including blogging more! 

I took these photos from left to right while standing in the doorway. It is a nice sunny day here in Arizona so the first photo is a bit dark due to the window, sorry. The next two show the true wood color better.



This room should keep me happy an busy for MANY years to come. I have a few more things to hang on the wall and a couple other things, but it is READY!!



Tuesday, May 31, 2016

New blog name.

My computer is still packed, but I logged on with my hubbie's laptop and changed the name (but not the address) of my blog to reflect our new location.

Welcome to Sun City Stitcher! Colorado Stitcher is now in the Valley of the Sun.

Not much stiching has gone on, but someone has found her spot!