Hello, my friends! Everywhere I look, green is popping up and I love it! I honestly think St. Patrick's Day with its accompanying green theme comes around at the perfect time of year. The days are longer (hooray!), thoughts of Easter and renewal are on our minds, and gardeners are beginning to see tiny green sprouts popping up from the brown dirt. (Well, I won't dwell on the fact that we were hit with over 7 inches of snow on Saturday! The good thing is that it will melt quickly as our temperatures are going to be in the 60's this week). Green is everywhere and guess what you're getting in this post? Lots of green--hope you like that color!
I talked about falling in love with the sweet Perrette Samouiloff designs in this post from 2019. Those little children just capture my heart and when I saw this St. Patrick's Day design I couldn't stitch it fast enough. I mean--how cute are those little Irishmen? I have to say that is the first time I ever stitched a mug of beer! Or a fiddle!
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| My latest St. Patrick's Day finish |
This one was stitched on 40 ct. Woodland Newcastle (have you noticed how often I use that fabric?) with DMC colors. I used most of the suggested threads, but moved them around a bit and added a few more ferns and plants to fill out the bottom. I had the frame in my stash ($3.00 from Goodwill) and I originally was going to chalk paint it white. However, I ended up leaving it just as it was and I'm so glad I did. I love the little gold band around the inner edge. I added the ecru colored ric rak to just the top and bottom of the finish to even out the margins of green gingham a bit--love how it turned out!
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| I love the endearing designs of Perrette Samouiloff! |
Here is a better photo of the piece before I mounted and framed it... Isn't is charming?
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| Looks like they're in for a fabulous St. Patrick's Day celebration! |
Unfortunately, I believe the chart is only available in the book, Un Air de Fête by Perrette Samouiloff, which I purchased on Amazon a few years ago and no longer see listed... Those of you living in Europe may have a better chance of finding a copy of the book, though. It is a darling book with charts for celebrations throughout the year.
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Even more green stitching appeared in the form of this sweet chart by Carol Hodge in England. The chart is available in her Etsy shop called "Samplers and Stitches" which you can find right here. Isn't it sweet? She has designed a chart for each season so I plan on purchasing the others soon! I used the suggested overdyed colors for some of it, but substituted DMC threads for the word Spring, the vine, and the yellow flowers. Can you spy the tiny chick popping out of his egg in the bottom middle? Just...too...cute!
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| My latest Spring finish from "Samplers and Stitches" Etsy shop |
I stitched this one on 40 ct. white Newcastle linen and added mini pompoms to the bunny tails. Doesn't it look sweet in my kitchen corner cupboard? I've been gradually decorating for Easter and this was the first shelf I finished. Bunnies and chicks and lots of bright green and yellow really brighten my kitchen!
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| Those pretty pastels are such a treat after a long winter |
In other stitching news... I'm almost done stitching the special Christmas piece that I've been teasing you with! Hope to share it with you in my next post. I've also been working on my Christmas ornament for April and another special project using Aurifloss threads by Aurifil which I'll tell you more about next month. I will give you a hint though--shades of blue.
Giveaway winner... I had quite a few entries for the cute Lizzie Kate Sampling Easter chart. Unfortunately, many, many of you forgot to include your email address. I need your email as I have no way of contacting the winner if you don't already have a blog. Anyway, the name pulled from the hat as the winner of Spring Sampling is...
CATHY H. (from Arkansas)!
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| Congratulations to Cathy H! Please contact me with your mailing address, Cathy, and I'll get this cutie to you as soon as possible! |
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| An abundance of charts from my new friend, Janet! Thank you again from the bottom of my heart! |
1) Specifically mention that you would like to win the chart in your comment
2) Be a follower in my blog's sidebar (to the right)
3) Make sure to leave your email address in your comment if I don't already have it--(this is very important as I have no way of getting in touch with the winner if you don't)
4)
Answer the "Getting to Know You" question below.
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| To enter the giveaway for this sweet spring chart, please follow the four guidelines listed above. |
Getting To Know You... Today's question is: Are you a saver or do you like to clear things out? Have you saved anything from your childhood or your children's? My answer: The only things I own from my childhood are my (slightly) creepy looking Santa doll, a little prayer book from the early 1960s, my beads earned from my time as a Camp Fire Girl, and a lovely handmade ceramic heart made by one of my maternal grandmother's dearest friends on the occasion of my birth. I do have the baby book where my mom recorded a few of my milestones and some old photos, of course.
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| A few remaining treasures from my childhood |
As for the second part of the question--yes! I've saved many toys and books from when my sons were little and I'm so happy I did! Mister B loves playing with the toys and reading the books when he visits--in fact he'll be here for a visit later this week and I can't wait. My sons actually love seeing the old toys and books come out of the attic, too, and reminiscing. If you have the room, I highly recommend storing at least a few special books and toys for possible grandchildren. Being a retired librarian, I kept three very large cardboard boxes full of books from my sons' childhoods, of course :)
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| Mister B (enjoying the snowfall in Maryland on Saturday) is coming for a visit this weekend! These cars and books (and more!) will be waiting for him. He hasn't played with the cars yet, but when we showed him this basket filled to the brim with vehicles of all kinds on FaceTime, his eyes grew wide and he exclaimed, "Wowwww!" |
Baking... I'll leave you with one of my very favorite recipes which I've been making for years: Oatmeal Raisin Cookies.
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| One of my favorite cookies ever! |
The plate I have them on is so cute and I thought it was perfect for St. Patrick's Day. I got it from the "free" table at the library when I worked there many years ago.
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| Look at the festive dancers surrounding this plate--so darling--(along with the lady milking her cow and the man plowing his fields). I absolutely love this plate. |
Here is the recipe if anyone cares to bake some! Don't skip that first step--I truly think that's the key to the wonderful taste of these cookies...
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| Oatmeal Raisin Cookies |
I've gone on far too long, as usual! I hope you enjoyed this "green" post and if any of you are celebrating St. Patrick's Day, I hope you have a wonderful day. I have a tiny bit of Irish in me according to my middle sister who has dug up some genealogy that we were unaware of, but other than wearing green, I won't be doing anything special on that day.
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| A gentle reminder... I receive so many comments with questions that don't include your email address. Unless you have a blog, I can't reply to you. Please, please, please make sure to include your email if you would like a reply! |
I had hopes that peace talks would be achieving some success in Ukraine, but things are still so tragic and terrifying. My husband and I have made donations to humanitarian causes including World Central Kitchen, Unicef, and United Way that I hope bring at least some comfort to the refugees and those trapped inside a country at war. I wish I could do more... those images shown on television of the innocent children bring me to tears every time. Hoping and praying for a peaceful resolution--and soon. Bye for now...
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| ♣♣♣ Enjoy Your Day! ♣♣♣ |
"May you always have... walls for the winds,
a roof for the rain, tea beside the fire,
laughter to cheer you, those you love near you,
and all your heart might desire." ~ Irish Blessing
