Stitchy Birthday Gifts

People were very generous with my birthday, and I got these wonderful stitchy gifts.  This first picture is the kit for Alhambra Garden from Chatelaine.  I'm going to start in on it this week.

And Melina and James got me this wonderful crochet book.  Poor James had to sacrifice and buy it in the States to bring down here. 

 And this last one is from Betsy.  She made this fabulous tote for me and I've already put all my stuff in it to make it my daily one for taking to the embassy and back and other places.  I love it.

Thank you all!

Building Along

My little buildings along the edge are getting bigger, and the backstitched flowers inside the outer border are done. 

Another Round Thing

In my quest for more presents to give away at the end of the year, I completed another temari.  This one's a simple design of interlocking spindles with an obi.  I like the way the colors came out.

Shopping and Collecting

About a week and a half ago, we went on a road trip to Punta del Este.  This first picture is what we bought when we got back - we hit up the bead shop yet again.  They always have something new.












 I collected these shells on the beaches of Jose Ignacio and La Paloma.  There are a lot of complete ones - almost all of them are flawless, if small.  Some are definitely going onto crazy quilting blocks.  It was fun sitting in a field of shells and picking through them, even if the day was windy and cold.

Okay, so this one's really different.  We were in the Punta del Este mall, and a place was having a clearance sale.  This was only 100 pesos (about $5).  I'm -not- going to wear it!  I'm going to take it apart for all the motifs and beading and such for crazy quilting.  There's so much of it and it's such a good deal that I bought two.

Celtic Block Home

Thank you to Rebecca, Wendy, Cathy and Faye for working on my Celtic block.  My inspiration in piecing it was Mont St. Michel in France.  I have space to add more things, since Faye had a personal problem and was unable to add more to the block.  Thank you all for the work.

This is a picture of the block before embroidery.

Janet's Jewels on Black DYB

I believe I am currently in six crazy quilting round robins.  This is one of the newer ones, Jewels on Black.  Janet made her blocks all black with only differences in texture.  This is the one I chose to work on.

This is the block after I finished it.  It's quite a bit brighter.  For some reason, it called to me to make it polychromatic and with lots of silk ribbon.  Hopefully, she'll like it.

Mystery Revealed

Yay!  I finished something!  The German Group Mystery by Kelly Searles is complete.  Only one of many stitchalongs in the Sticklounge group that I've been working on, but at least it's complete.  I really like the colors I chose, too.