Sunday, February 14, 2010

January in February!




Greetings from yet another snowy evening here in western Pennsylvania! Is it a coincidence that my finish this week matches the scenery outdoors? If I could just change the name of the sampler to "February" it would be perfect for this record-breaking, snow-filled month! I put the last stitch in the bottom, blue border last night and I'm so pleased with my wintry sampler. I think I'll keep it out all winter...it is too pretty to display only in January...



Just in case you're wondering, and if you missed my previous post, "January Sampler," by Waxing Moon designs, is stitched on 32 ct. sage Jobelan using WDW and DMC floss. I love the names for the blue floss in this one: "Deep Sea", "Father's Day", and "Sky"--so descriptive. I wonder if they pay someone full time to come up with such perfect names? Many of you asked if I was going to be doing each month of this series...I don't think so. I think they have only designed the months from January through June, but this was my favorite. We'll see what the rest of the months look like when they are published. I love fall designs the most, so I'm hoping September, October, and November will inspire me to stitch them. Then I could use one frame and just change the finished pieces out each month. Anyway, it was a very relaxing piece to work on and I hope you like it, too...


So, how was your Valentine's Day? Ours has been quiet since my husband came down with a bad cold and I'm beginning to have that horrid feeling that I'm on the way to catching one myself. He thoughtfully brought home this beautiful bouquet of yellow roses for me on Friday for Valentine's Day--aren't they lovely? After almost 33 years of marriage, he sure knows my favorite color of rose... I just love the breath of spring that they've brought into the house--only 33 more days to go until spring is finally here!




I know that you're probably tired of hearing us easterners go on and on about the snow, but it really is a rarity for us to get this much in one week (30+ inches.) Actually, we were among the lucky ones--we didn't lose our power at all! Many poor families south of us were without power for days and a few still don't have it after an entire week... We lost a 50 year old pine tree which toppled over barely missing our power lines and have sprung a few leaks in the oddest places--this morning I found water in the middle of my laundry room closet! Other than these few, fixable, and minor inconveniences, we have been very, very fortunate. But, enough snow already!! I hate to even say this out loud, but more is forecast for Monday and Tuesday :o(

Thanks for all of your suggestions regarding my overdyed floss storage problems. I think I'll be purchasing some of the floss away bags and metal rings and try that solution.

Wishing you all a wonderful Valentine's Day with lots of hugs and treats. You certainly deserve it because you are the sweetest and most thoughtful group of stitchers around! Thanks for all of your kind comments--I can't wait to visit your blogs and see what you've been up to this week...

40 comments:

BeckySC said...

Love, Love, Love it, Carol!! What a gorgeous finish :) Congratulations :)

Chocolates4Breakfast (Terri ~ Boog) said...

Wonderful finish, Carol. It will always remind you of the unbelievable winter we've had, won't it. My DH brought me some roses today, too. Gotta love that!

Jules said...

Love the finish! Who says you can't change the month to February?? Is it written in stone??? LOL. I know, make a separate strip with February stitched on it and pin it across the January section on the piece, but only until the end of the month. Ok, so maybe I am a little silly...

The roses are beautiful! I just spent the last week working around hundreds of flowers and the aroma was very spring-like on some days. Happy Valentine's Day!

Sweet Sue said...

Great finish and beautiful roses! Sheesh, you've certainly had enough already:) There's yellow roses here too. And yes~we need Spring.

xoxo

Catherine said...

Love the roses! And what a great finish!

I do hope your hubby and you feel better soon!

Claire said...

Great finish, very pretty.

missy said...

Beautiful flawless finish!!!

Hope your feeling better soon along with your DH!!


hugs
-missy-

Cole said...

Beautiful finish! I can't wait to see it all framed up :)

Beautiful roses too, Happy Valentine's Day!

Blu said...

Lovely finish!
And gorgeous, gorgeous roses!

Cindy's Stitching said...

Carol this sampler is so pretty. Blue is one of my favorite colors. How funny that my favorite color rose is yellow alos. On my wedding I had yellow roses. Your husband picked out a nice bunch. How sweet of him. Happy Valentines Day

Myra said...

That is so pretty Carol. I love the little deer. :o) Stay inside and stay warm. I have to say, I do love the picture in your header.

Annie Bee said...

Beautiful finish and such pretty roses. Glad you are keeping safe in all that snow

Melissa said...

Love that finish Carol!

Mylene said...

A beautiful finish, congrats! Love the blue colour on this design.

Lovely roses and hope you and your hubby get to feel better soon.

Edit said...

Your stitching is so lovely and your roses are so beautiful!!!!

Stitcher said...

Congrats on a great finish. I just love the look of this one.

Martine said...

Your January Sampler is very very beautiful !!!! I love it !!!
Congrats for this lovely finish !!!
Yesterday, sunday, my husband brought me some red roses too... for my Valentin's day !and I was spoiled me at AEF !!!!!
Courage for all this snow !!! The spring will be there !!!...
Have a good day !
Hugs.

Lois said...

What a lovely finish Carol! I love the colours, perfect for the month of January. Sorry to hear you're still under that snow, glad you didn't lose your power. As for the roses from your DH? Well,I say that man is definitely a keeper!

Shari said...

wonderful finish!!!! I really, really love this one!!!!!! I THOUGHT I had purchased it, but I can't seem to find it anywhere. Guess I didn't!!!!
Your Valentine's Day flowers are beautiful!!!!
I don't mind the winter snows, but, we never get as much as you have had!!!!
Bring on spring!

Siobhán said...

Carol, congrats on the beautiful finish!! Woohoo! :) Like Terri said, it will remind you of the wacky weather you had in the arctic--I mean, Pennsylvania--this winter! ;) Beautiful roses!

Julie said...

Beautiful bunch of roses and your sampler looks stunning. Stay nice and cosy and warm in the snow, i hope DH didn't share his germs with you.

BrendaS said...

Beautiful finish! I agree that you should keep it up all winter not just for January.

The roses are gorgeous. A sure sign that spring is right around the corner (let's hope!)

Have a good week.

Pumpkin said...

Congrats Carol! A truly lovely finish :o)

I can't believe how much snow you are all getting down there. It makes us feel like we live in a warmer climate here ;o)

Beautiful roses! VD was pretty quiet here. DH made blueberry pancakes for breakfast :o) I told him it's VD with him every day. LOL!

Btw, do you have a watermark on your photos and if so, what program do you use?

Rachel S-H said...

Looks great!

Lovely roses. They do look so cheery!

Michelle said...

Congratulations on the beautiful finish, Carol! That is such a lovely piece, you should definitely keep it up out all Winter!

Meari said...

Your sampler is beautiful. Hope you don't get too sick. Yuck. I've been pretty lucky *knock on wood*, just these darn hives. Pretty roses. :)

Kim B said...

Gorgeous finish! Good luck with all that snow Carol! I really don't know how you do it. And I hope you stay healthy. Colds are such a drag!

Unknown said...

Love the January Sampler! Gorgeous!

Carolyn NC said...

Lovely finish and such beautiful flowers!

Vonna Pfeiffer said...

So pretty Carol, I just love the finish :)
I've been thinking that someday I'd like to do all the Prairie Schooler Monthly samplers and hang them going down my stairs all together and keep them up year round too...but is most likely my head thinking I could just whip it out....hardy har har...

Kellie said...

Carol, your January finish is absolutely beautiful!!! And you stitched it so fast. :) What a sweet husband. Those yellow roses are so pretty and thoughtful. Hope you are both feeling better.

Brigitte said...

I love this design. It has so many pretty details as can be seen in your pictures, and the colours are just beautiful. A great finish.

Annie said...

The sampler is beautiful, but you may come to hate it after this miserable winter.

Your poor tree! At least you stayed safe.

And how lucky you are to receive those beautiful flowers!

Sweet Sue said...

Am admiring this sampler again, and note you chose sage colored fabby, it's a wonderful choice, very complimentary, very VERY good eye:)

xoxo

Parsley said...

I just dropped by to see your latest project. Lovely! What floss are you using?

I came down with a cold for Valentine's weekend too. Not fun!

Michelle said...

Hi Carol, What a beautiful finish..love the blue colors. Your roses are gorgeous.. I got red ones (my favorite color) :)

Happy stitching and I hope the snow lets up for you guys.

acereta said...

Nice finish! I like the winter colors!

mainely stitching said...

I hoe you didn't come down with the bug that your husband had. Lovely stitching, and beautiful roses!

Despina said...

That is a beautiful finish!

Margaret said...

Beautiful finish! I love this series -- it's so nice to find that you're stitching it!