Bunny Stitching and a Big Blog Honor All the Way From Britain!

Hello, hello! And how are all of my stitching friends on this mid-March morn? March has certainly lived up to its "in like a lion" reputation for many of us here in the U.S, hasn't it? Wild winds, power outages (we had a seven-hour loss of power last week. Oh, dear--I'm afraid there was nothing to do but stitch!!), and the most beautiful snowfalls have been the norm for the past two weeks. It looks like a cold week ahead and I fear my oldest son, who is visiting from sunny, warm southern California, will never want to come back east. I did warn him ahead of time to pack warm clothes! It will be interesting to see if the month calms down and goes "out like a lamb."

My long-time readers know how much I love stitching rabbits; in fact, I love bunny stitching almost as much as stitching Christmas ornaments! The urge seems to hit me each spring and this year has been no exception. My first little fellow is from a Prairie Schooler mini-card and is a perfect example of the finishing part of the process taking almost as long as the stitching part. I forgot to take a "before" photo, so here is the little fellow in his finished form...

Pink and bunnies just seem to go together!

For this pillow, I used 32 ct. white Jobelan and wanted a pinker house so I substituted DMC 760 for the suggested color. I've always loved the pink and gray color combination since I was young. I vaguely remember a pink-gray skirt?/pair of slacks?/vest? (mom, do you remember?)  that I just loved and wore with a pale pink sweater. Not sure that I've owned a pink piece of clothing since! (Oh, I guess I do have one pink/peachy sort of sweater!) So, I decided pink and gray would be the way to go for this as it pulled together both the pink of the house and the gray of the border. I cut a tiny white bunny out of some pink bunny-printed fabric and used him as my lower left corner square, topped it with pale pink ric rak, added cording, and thought I was done. But, something was missing... When I added the little polka dot bow in gray, it just pulled the whole thing together! I love it! And my vintage ceramic bunny seems to approve, too.

My next bunny is also a Prairie Schooler design from Book No. 52 "Prairie Year-Rounds." He is stitched on 28 ct. black Monaco with DMC threads. I changed all of the suggested colors and substituted DMC 223, 712, and 3364. Love his little pink nose and that flower he is jumping over.  I haven't quite decided how to finish him yet, but I'm hoping an idea will come to me and I'll share it with you next time I post.

Bunny finish from Prairie Year-Rounds Book No. 52

As you can see, a bit of progress has been made on my "A Walk In the Woods" sampler. Letters O, P, and Q have joined the party along with the prettiest little brown bird resting on a branch of red berries. I'm still enjoying each and every stitch of this one!

"A Walk In the Woods" progress

So, are you wondering about the second part of my post title: "A Big Blog Honor From Britain?" Well, do you remember (way back in this post from October) when I mentioned that my blog had been nominated for the 2017 British Craft Awards "Blog Of the Year" in the cross stitch category? I'm so honored and humbled to let you know--Stitching Dreams won! I was told by another nominee (my friend, Lynn, over at Happiness Is Cross Stitching) that I had won and then received an official email from Immediate Media notifying me, too. They sent this lovely badge for my blog and told me I will also be receiving a trophy and a certificate of recognition. A trophy!? I've never received a trophy of any kind in my entire life (although I did get a crown once when I was voted Homecoming Queen way back in 1972 as a senior in high school--ha ha!!).  So, that's another "first" in my life. Even at age 62, new experiences and wonders are coming my way...

Thanks to all who voted for me and to Immediate Media!

This award has so much meaning because it was chosen by you, my fellow stitchers--so a sincere "thank you" goes to each of you who cast your vote for my blog. I truly appreciate all of your supportive comments and emails over the past eight years that I've been blogging. They are what keep me going--truly! As I mentioned in my earlier post about the nomination, I don't blog for money or fame. I am actually quite shy and introverted, but I've always loved to write which is why I put in the time and energy it takes to create a successful blog. I'll be sure to share a photo of my trophy when it arrives--wherever shall I keep it?!

New Giveaway for this pretty chart... As you know from previous posts, I've been doing some housecleaning and going through old stitching magazines.  I'll be giving away one chart each time I post and this time it is for a lovely chart from Nora Corbett of Mirabilia fame called "Gathering Eggs" that would be wonderful to stitch for Easter.  Isn't she pretty with those giant flowers in the background and basket of periwinkle hued eggs? If you are interested in giving this chart a new home, just let me know in your comments. This is just two pages torn from a magazine--not the whole magazine. If more than one person wants it, I will do a drawing.  PLEASE, PLEASE make sure to include your email in with your comment--I won't be trying to track anyone down if they haven't included their email address... Also, just so you know, I will be folding this up and mailing it in a legal sized envelope to save on postage.

I'm giving away this old chart from a magazine

GIVEAWAY WINNER from the last post... Only a handful entered to win this chart (which surprised me, as I love it!), so I did a simple drawing and the winner is:

LINDA

Linda, please send me your mailing address and I'll get this pretty chart off to you as soon as possible. I hope you enjoy it... And for those of you who didn't win this time--please keep an eye on my blog for future chart giveaways...

Chart giveaway won by Linda

Putting our lives into perspective... A casual friend died a week ago. She was someone I knew through my best friend's family and I would see her at weddings, bridal and baby showers, and get-togethers once or twice a year. In fact, I sat next to her at a baby shower in late November and thoroughly enjoyed laughing together as we watched a game of charades and discussed my son's upcoming wedding as she shared photos of her son's wedding that had just taken place in September.

And then, everything began to fall apart for her. Her symptoms began in January and just last week she became one of the "one in a million people" affected by a little known disease. It happened that quickly... I'm having a particularly hard time with her death. I think about her husband who just retired and had plans for traveling with her and about her two children and those adorable grandchildren who will grow up making so many memories without her in the picture. And about her elderly mother who still remains... At 65, she was just three years older than me and it really makes me reevaluate how I'm spending my time. Retirement has been on my mind for quite some time, but it has jumped much further forward since learning of her death... We need to try to make your days count and think positively--you just never know what lies around the corner, do you?

"I don't know what lies around the bend, but I'm going to believe the best does."               --Anne of Green Gables

Thank you to all who are still with me at this point--I know this was another long one!  Here's to the coming of spring and better weather ahead. Although, I have to admit, there was a morning last week when I opened my bedroom blinds, glimpsed this beautiful snow, and actually gasped at the sheer beauty that winter can bring. It was like pure white cotton had fallen from the sky and covered everything in the landscape. True beauty... Wishing you all a beautiful day! Bye for now...

Winter's beauty...