And the year comes to an end

I have to say that 2011 hasn't been the best of years (losing my Dad) but I am looking forward to what 2012 brings!!! I'm not one of those that makes resolutions or even a list of things that I want to stitch. I will just update you with my resent WIP and finishes.And I'll just surprise you with what I can come up with in 2012.

I did one final ornament for Amberlyn. She loves horses so I did this one from the JCS 2009 ornament issue.

Next, I finished another page on my Mystic! 14 pages done and 7 left to do. This was started mid 2010.

I got a little bored with all the blue, so I picked out a material from my stash (I really don't like doing that part) and started the Lizzie Kate 6 Fat Men Series. I'm doing them all on one piece of fabric. It's on PTP Doubloon 32 ct Belfast linen. They are taking only 1-2 days to complete each pattern.

And I had Carl remove the painted apple tree off my wooden calendar my Dad made me and I finished my January cottage in the CCN Cottage SAL to put on my Calendar.I used a scrap piece of 40 ct opalescent material I had, and the snowflakes and snowman don't shop up real well in photos. It is slightly better in person, but it works for me. I am officially ready for January 1!!!

From my family to yours, I hope the New Year brings joy and peace to all my blogging friends!

Mill Hill Christmas houses finally mounted

I wanted to do something besides framing so I tried this technique. It's not awesome, but if I decide after the years I don't like it, I can always get it framed....so here are some photos to try and capture the beauty. Which photos really don't do! All photos are "clickable" if you want to see them larger.




And here is Amberlyn helping decorate our tree last weekend. I have one more tree to put up and hope to do that today while she is here. All of her ornaments ended up on 2 branches, so after she left I had to do just a bit of rearranging! LOL Hope everyone has a happy Holiday!

Finishing Fool!

I lost the whole month of November! Oh well, this will just be jam packed with photos then.

First let me share my works Halloween costumes....and yes we worked in them ALL day. And if you didn't know I work in an Orthodontic office. I am Peppermint Patty, standing next to Charlie Brown (the boss!)

And then to get you into the Christmas mood, here is my view as I was driving into work on Nov 30th.
That should do the trick!


Now the stitching....here is a progress picture of one more page finished on my Mystic- Seasonal Collide. I am actually close to completing another one, but I'll save that for when it's completed.


Now onto the title of this blog. I have taken a break from stitching for a few days and gotten some
finishing done. Here are all the fruits of my labor.

A freebie from Madame La Fee.

 

 Another freebie....that I have NO idea where I got it! I used Carries Joy Noel threads. If anyone recognizes it, please let me know where it came from! 




This one I changed the pattern to make it a red bird instead of white and a blue box instead of green. It's call Frosty Flakes by LHN, my only pillow type finish of the year. 
 
This is from the JCS 2010 Ornie magazine Festive Quaker Tree by Rosewood manor stitched over one on 28 ct. Using the charted flosses.From the 2007 JCS Ornie issue, Joyous Noel by Cat Whiskers.The material its laying on is what the backing is.
From the 2008 JCS ornie magazine by Midsummer Nights Designs. I added metallic threads both purple and silver that are hard to see in the photo. This is for the daughters of a fellow cross-stitcher who lost her life WAY too early. So far I have sent them an ornament every year in her memory.
This the from the 2006 JCS magazine. I changed the color of the dog to match a golden retriever and added the dogs name in the stocking. This will be a gift for the family that has watched my dog this fall when we have traveled.
Some of these are gifts and some are staying with me and some I am giving to my daughter who now has 2 trees of her own and needs some more to fill them up!!!

Here is Amberlyn the first time she saw my curio filled with Santas. Well she actually does this every time she comes over too! She just loves looking at them!!
With all that is going on this month, I doubt I'll have another post....but I do hope to put the finishing touches on my MH Houses RR so that I can hang it soon! I really procrastinated on that one. But I have everything cut and mounted. I just need to add the trim and put it together. I will probably just post a quick photo of it when it's done. I also joined the new SAL that Vonna put together for the CCN Cottage Series, I think there are a few spots left, so if you like cottages, come join us!

I'm thankful for all my followers and commentors and I hope that everyone has a wonderful holiday season and makes lots of memories to last throughout the year!

Lots to catch up on

Since my last post I've gone on 2 vacations! The first was my "girls" only with my daughter, granddaughter and mom. We just went to Illinois, the weather wasn't cooperative but we still managed to get to Legoland and Brookfield Zoo. There was literally no one at the zoo when we were leaving where I could have someone else take the photo of the 4 of us, so I had to take the photo.
The condo had an indoor pool that was basically our own so we had fun!
My 2nd trip was to Las Vegas with my husband. We met our best man and his wife (from our wedding 30 yrs ago!) for an evening and a day. Carl mainly bet on the NFL games so we came out ahead in that department. I even drove to the local LNS there, Stitchers Paradise. I only got some threads though. We had LOTS of fun and Carl surprised me by getting a trip booked to the Grand Canyon....by helicopter! It was an awesome trip and we landed in the Grand Canyon for lunch! Of course we flew over the Hoover Dam, Lake Mead and the Strip. All spectacular from the air!Not sure he'll be able to top that one!

And of course the beautiful Bellagio gardens for fall.

Anyway...I've been back for a couple weeks now and slowly getting back to "normal". I think I could get used to this not working stuff.
As far as stitching goes. I had to take smaller projects with me to stitch on. I started the Tigers Logo on the first trip and just finished it a couple nights ago. I bought the pattern online several years ago and tried to look them up again and they are not there anymore. Although the Tigers didn't make it to the World Series, they had an awesome run and can't wait until next spring!

I also finished a couple smalls along the way. A freebie I don't remember where I got it and Frosty Flakes by LHN, I changed the bird and present colors.





I also got my 2 pieces for my bedroom framed and now they are both hanging proudly in my bedroom.
And if you are still here with me, I'll leave you with some (several) photos taken this fall of my daughter and Amberlyn. Have a great fall!!!!