Three Exchange Pieces

One of my quilting groups is having a Christmas cracker exchange. We make crazy quilt blocks to embellish and then roll them up into crackers stuffed with stitch goodies. These are the blocks I made for the exchange - all of it done this week.

Joyeux Noel Done

I got something done! It feels good to have something completed after such a long drought. Now this goes off to my husband to frame or whatever for one of his colleagues. I like the way it turned out, and it counts toward my project challenge, since it was stitched totally from stash.

Rhodes Around the Corner

With all that's gone on this past month, I feel like I've made so little progress with everything. That's why I decided to go ahead and finish Joyeux Noel. It'll make me feel better to get something -done-. The bottom left corner has all its Rhodes in place on this neglected mandala, and the bottom right is started. At least it's something new.

Housing Fun

It's been great working on more than just the blue border, pretty as it is. I've really enjoyed starting the housing. Ask me in a few months and you might get a different answer...

Over the Halfway Point

One project I managed to work some on in the past couple of weeks is this little ornament. I still love the colors on it. They look brighter in person than in this picture. I think I'm just going to finish it before stitching on something else, and ease myself back into stitching.

The Rest of the Stash

I bought lots of stuff at The Needle Works in 26 Doors in Austin during my holiday. The threads patterns, and canvas are all from them. They have Gumnuts, the whole line, and I love the feel of that stuff. I bought several other threads too, and a canvas to help me remember home where ever I am.

The beads were all bought in Rice Village in Houston, almost next door to where I got the ribbons in my earlier stash post. Aren't these mother of pearl flowers great? They had them in sizes from about an inch across to nearly four inches.

And I got lots of strings of beads too. They were relatively inexpensive and oh so beautiful! Now I have to make more things to embellish.

This bag of miscellaneous beads was

only six dollars, and it's -heavy-. And the crystals below are dark blue with an AB finish. The picture doesn't do them any justice whatsoever.

Finally, a Post!

Okay, so my surgery knocked me for more of a loop than I thought and I should have pre-written some posts. I'm much much better now and ready to start stitching again! This picture was taken before the stitching and is of Poirot. I got some of the ribbon outlines done on it before I put it aside for the holiday and surgery. I'll have Texas Ren Faire and Ellington Field pictures up in the next few posts, so you now know where I went. It was a great way to avoid the anxiety pre-op buildup. I like how this is coming along and hope to finish it before Christmas (yes, I can hear you laughing now).