Delivering Posies

Good morning, everyone! Hope your week is off to a wonderful start. I spent the past week stitching this whimsical piece by Homespun Elegance which is aptly titled "Delivering Posies." I couldn't resist the plump blue bird and his tiny companion, Miss Ladybug, pulling a cart full of daisies to surprise an unsuspecting friend. They look so serious and determined, don't they? For this piece, I used 28 ct. dirty linen and the recommended WDW, Sampler Arts, and DMC threads. The center of each flower is filled with French knots (grr... well, some of them resemble French knots!) and I really like the texture they add.




Two rustic metal buttons that I spied in my button jar were used for the cart's wheels and I substituted a dragonfly instead of the peachy-pink colored moth that was originally charted. Guess I'm just not a big moth lover! Don't you love it when designers' charts are sized to fit in a standard sized frame? Wish more of them would design that way. This fit perfectly into a simple 5" X 7" wooden frame that I purchased at Marshall's for $6.99 and it now brightens up the bookshelf in my family room...




I wanted to send my wonderful friend, Shari a little surprise for a big birthday (don't feel bad, Shari--you'll always be younger than me!!) so I stitched this summer pinkeep for her. (This is the second time I've made this one--I also stitched it for one of my "ornament a week" pieces back in 2009.) It's from the "Seasonal Baskets" chart designed by Sue Hillis and I used 28 ct. summer khaki lugana with DMC threads. This was my first ever pinkeep; can you believe that with all of the small pieces that I've cross stitched, I'd never done a pinkeep until now? I trimmed the sides with some rope-like braid, backed it in the red and gold starred fabric shown, added a blue and white checked bow, and finished it off with some gold pins. I'm so happy that Shari liked it--"Happy Birthday" again, my friend...





My mailbox was filled with a delightful delivery all the way from Texas last week. They say that "everything is bigger in Texas" and that is certainly true of the amazing giveaway package I was lucky enough to win from Natalie at "A Stitch in Time". I thought I had died and gone to stitchers' heaven when I opened her box of goodies all revolving around a red, white, and blue theme: tiny red Kelmscott scissors, two beautiful LHN charts, a sweet strawberry smelling Paula Deen candle, darling handmade pin pillow, marking pins, and a very unique needle holder, a sweet red and white needleminder (my first ever!), red/white/and blue finishing fabrics, the Just Cross Stitch Ornament Preview issue, a handy memo book, and to top it all off--a huge can of those decadent Pepperidge Farm chocolate fudge Pirouettes. I was overwhelmed and touched by your generosity, Natalie! Thank you so, so much--everything you sent brought a huge smile to my face... And if you're not familiar with Natalie's blog--please run on over! She has created some perfectly finished ornaments, very unique needle holders, and many lovely stitched pieces. I know you'll enjoy it...

Do you remember back to when you first began blogging and didn't "know" any of the other wonderful cross stitch bloggers? I sure do... but what a difference 18 months makes! I now feel like I've made so many wonderful new friends, learned so much from and been inspired by your blogs, and hopefully, even inspired you a tiny bit. So, that being said, I would like to introduce a new blogger to you... my friend, Mary over at "Sweet Sentiments and Stitches" has just started her very own blog. Please drop in and say "hi" and welcome her to what has to be the nicest community on the internet! I know she would love to meet all of you and discover your blogs, too...

I'll leave you with these photos of some patriotic looking flowers growing in our garden! I hope your week brings only pleasant things and that you'll find some time for yourself to stitch, or read, or garden, or whatever makes you the happiest. Thank you all so much for dropping in and taking the time to say hello--I still get that little thrill each time I see that a new comment has been left...