Flower Mandala, Again

While I was in the coloring mood, I completed this flower mandala, too. It's also from the Flower Mandala Coloring Book by Thaneeya McArdle.

I was more deliberate in my color choices on this piece rather than the random way I picked colors on my previous mandala. I added the black background while editing the image for this blog post.

Glamorpuss

Oh, she's a girly girl!

All decked out in pink and silver. I think she may be French.

Just look at the way she flirts!

Flower Mandala

I have to admit that between the Covid-19 news and the low barometric pressure of this rainy week, my emotional blues have been amplifying over the last few days. I wanted a mindless activity to do that would replace the hundreds of games of Spider Solitaire that I've been incessantly playing.

That's when I noticed that a friend of mine has been posting coloring images on her Instagram account.

Coloring! Excellent! That's a lovely meditative practice for me.

I pulled out my Flower Mandala Coloring Book by Thaneeya McArdle and ripped out a random page. I really didn't want to think too hard. So when I pulled out my colored pencils, I decided to close my eyes, dip my hand into the pencil bag, and use whatever color landed in my hand.

I find this random color pallet rather appealing.

When I finished the coloring, I scanned the image and played with it in my paint program a little. The main things I did was even out the yellow background, took away some of the brightness, and added some saturation and contrast.

This was such a positive pastime for me that I worked on a second mandala yesterday.

Storm's A-Brewin'

#flowersforfriday

Rocks in my head

Well, on my window sill. But I'm still thinking about them.

Throwback Thursday - 2006 Part 12

This week the Wayback Machine takes us to October, 2006. That month I did more crocheting than cross-stitch or crafting.

Baby Afghan

I stitched this baby afghan for my niece's child who was due at the end of the month. I had this lovely Red Heart yarn and Leisure Arts pattern in my stash, so decided it was time to use it.

The yarn is really pretty and soft, a sport weight yarn. The yarn is primarily white, with soft bits of pink, green, yellow and blue in it. It's the first time I ever crocheted with this lighter weight yarn and it took me a while to get the tension correct. Once I got that figured out, the afghan took shape quickly.

The stitch is a double crochet / single crochet repeat. One stitch goes in the front loop, the next stitch goes in the back loop. So the completed pattern gives this interesting 3-D, twisted appearance that you can see in the stitch detail.

The pattern called for a very open, lacy edge. I thought it looked like the baby could get his foot caught in it, so I chose to do something different. I concocted a variation on a scalloped edge and was quite pleased with the outcome.

The pattern is called Lacy Edge from Crocheted Afghans for Baby Book Two by Leisure Arts.

This "baby" is a strapping young man now. Wow, how times changes things!

Home

This is the fifth of twelve ornaments in the 12 Blessings of Christmas set by Lizzie*Kate. I changed the house color to match my own home and added some backstitching for the white trim.

I love the way the reindeer charm looks like it's ready to fly off the roof.

God is Love

This is another quilt square that I stitched for a charity quilt for the Love Quilts organization.

One of the gals in my charity group became overextended and needed some help with the squares she had signed up to do. I had some free time, so offered to stitch the pattern that she picked out.

On these particular quilts, all the squares will be Precious Moments charts. The boy charts were stitched on blue fabric, the girl charts were stitched on peach fabric. The biggest challenge of stitching this chart was not having seen an image of the finished piece before stitching the chart. So it was very interesting seeing the colors unfold as I stitched it. The details of the piece came out when I added the backstitching. Before that, I was really scratching my head trying to figure out the complete picture.

It's great to see these charity quilts come together. But the best part is knowing that they are offered to give a bit of warmth and love to a family in crises.

#throwbackthursday

Golden Boy

More Hearts and Dots. This second rock is one of my favorites.

The penny reveals its scale.

Hearts and Dots

I'll share my latest painted rocks over the next days. I call this my Hearts and Dots collection. All but one fits within this category.

This rock is about the size of a deck of cards. It covers the palm of my hand.

Work Space

I've got my worktable set up in my Studio for a few days. Working on two of my 20 Goals in 2020. Painting rocks! It's been nice to do something a little creative while listening to a couple audiobooks. I'll share the results of my efforts before too long.

Thanks, Upcycled

I wrote a long overdue letter to an old friend to thank her for a Christmas gift. By the time the letter was done, the two pages were too big to fit into the Thank You card I'd selected.

What to do? What to do? Well, make the card B-I-G-G-E-R! Using the printed card as my jumping off point, I upcycled it into a larger, fancier card. I added layers,

and embossing, and a glittery blue heart to the front.

I reshaped the inside greeting, added more layers,

more embossing, and a glittery happy green heart inside.

On the back of the card, I added my usual rubber stamps and my signature.

The project fulfilled two purposes. An afternoon spent reconnecting with a friend, and a chance to flex my creative muscles. I needed both.

Inspiration for Melody

My granddaughter, Melody, got her first pair of tap shoes this week. Time to make some noise!

Ruff Park

A couple weeks ago, Dale and I drove over to a small park in Springfield.

Ruff Park is a magnolia arboretum. I saw it at the end of the season last year while visiting Jodie. This year, I wanted to see it in full bloom.



Unfortunately, we were a week or two early. The trees were only starting to bloom.



But it was apparent they'd be in their full glory soon.

Some of the varieties bud and bloom just a little before their sisters.

This variety, Darjeeling, has buds as big as my hand!

I do hope we can go again sometime this week. Dale may not be strong enough to walk the entire path, but perhaps he can sit on one of the many benches and enjoy the view.

#flowersforfriday

Throwback Thursday - 2006 Part 11

Here are the final three projects I completed in September 2006. The first two are counted cross-stitch. The last is felt craft. 

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Star Angel

Here's the last of the snowmen angel quilt squares. These designs present by The American School of Needlework are from the mind of Marilyn Frable from the booklet Angelic Snowmen. The squares were combined and made into a quilt for charity.

Joy

This is the fourth of twelve ornaments in the 12 Blessings of Christmas set. I'd already stitched Song, Love and Hope. The tiny charm popping out of the top of the stocking is a teddy bear.

Pumpkin Basket

Here's a different kind of embroidered piece. This jack-o-lantern pattern was spotted in a Keepsake Quilting catalog. I fell in love with his jaunty face!

This jack is about a foot tall and a foot wide. It's made of a double layer of felt, glued and sewn together.

The embroidery is mostly blanket stitch and stitched by hand. The leaves have running stitch stems. The eyes are French Knots and the eyebrows are stem stitch.

The handle is wired so it is sturdy and stands up. The nose is a yo-yo made of the same felt and stuffed with fiberfill (the pattern called for a painted wooden dome).

I'm so pleased with how he came together. I've used him every Halloween since 2006 to hold the candy that I hand out to the costumed kids who ring my doorbell.

I spent much of October 2006 with my crochet hook in my hand. I'll show those photos on the next #throwbackthursday.

Rx for Our Days

via Kim Stafford
American poet from Oregon

Child's Play

This time of self quarantine reminds me of the children's book, Frederick by Leo Lionni. Artists all over the world are bringing their A Game to help those in our circle of influence stay calm and get through the confusing, difficult times. Frederick the mouse did the same for his family.

Fire to the East

I was up early to get to the grocery store and gas station before the crowds. I was greeted with a stunning sunrise. It was hard to keep my eyes on the road! This snapshot doesn't do it justice.



I need to get early more often. Maybe next time with my big girl camera by my side.

Raining Red

Last night's sunset

On the Wetlands

Dale and I saw two more of the big birds walking in the wetlands near our home. This time we were able to get closer without scaring them away. Not very close. We were still in the car at the curb and had only Dale's phone as our camera. But this is as close as I've gotten to them so far.

I'm looking forward to the day I find the telephoto lens for my big girl camera. (I've narrowed down where in the garage it might be). Maybe then I'll get a photo clear enough to figure out what kinds of birds live in these fields.



One of the things I like about living so close to the wetlands is that in the evening, we are serenaded by a full chorus of frogs. I haven't been close enough to see any of them yet.

Teamwork

Dale received a nice surprise via UPS today. The data science team from work sent him a card and gifts to wish him well during his stroke recovery. Most of the gifts had to do with Dale's love of astronomy. The Hello, Kitty items? That's a story for another time.



I know my daughters and I think very highly of this generous man. It is great to witness how his team feels the same way.

Throwback Thursday - 2006 Part 10

In September 2006, I was able to complete seven small projects. Here are the first four.





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Angelic Bell Ringer

In 2006 I joined a group of stitchers making snowman angel quilt squares. The squares were gathered and the quilts were constructed by volunteers. The quilts were then donated to children facing serious illness or to elders in care facilities.

This is the third snow angel I stitched from designer Marilyn Frable of The American School of Needlework.

A Cool Gift

I stitched this penguin for my daughter Julie's 20th birthday. After seeing the movie March of the Penguins, she started collecting some of the birds, displaying them in her dorm room.

This pattern by Mosey 'N Me was in the October 2006 edition of Just Cross Stitch magazine. He was too cute to pass up. I finished it as a door knocker ... a stitching that is finished and hung from a doorknob for decoration. The finished size is about 4.5 inches by 5 inches.

Pumpkin

This might be one of my all-time favorite stitcheries. It's simple. Graphic. Has nice shading and a lovely color pallet. I kept this for myself and display it every Fall. I believe this is one of the first pumpkins I ever crafted. Now I have a whole patch of pumpkins in many mediums including felt, crochet, painted, decoupage, candles, glass, and more. Yet this one still holds a place of honor. The pattern is by Carolyn Meachum of Serendipity Designs. 

I actually stitched the pumpkin in the year 2000. But in 2006 I did the finishing and framing. The orange "mat" is really a fabric border sewn to the stitchery ground cloth. The finished stitchery is small -- only 3.5 inches square. It sits in a five inch gold frame.

Hope

My Year of the Ornament continued in September with the third design from the 12 Blessings of Christmas by Lizzie*Kate. The tiny charm that accompanies this design is a dove. Appropriate.

The next #throwbackthursday post will feature three more projects stitched in September 2006.

Sundown Sandwich

Finally! Safe Food!

We ordered it Dec. 2. It arrived Dec. 21. Freezer didn't work. Called ALL the places. Then the fridge failed.

7 repair visits later, the company agreed we had a lemon. Three weeks ago. Promised us a new unit.

This morning, TA DA!

The temperature is dropping. If all goes well, we get to have fresh and frozen food in our home. 

Plus ice. Glorious ice.

Done and Done!

Lookie what I managed to do today!

I dunno about you, but this feat is not easy for this ol' gal.

On my list of 20 Goals in 2020, goal #8 is "Zero out email box once per quarter." So far, so good! Go me!

I've Seen Flowers and I've Seen Rain

I've been living in Oregon for just over three months now. There are two natural phenomena to which I'm still becoming acclimated:

1. How often it rains ... off and on most days

2. And how the beautiful flowers bloom so much earlier than in north Idaho

I am so blessed to live here!


On another note, I found my 20th geocache of the year today. That's another of my 20 Goals in 2020 that I've completed!