TUSAL – April 2013

Posted on April 13, 2013 by Heather

Different month, but same old song–I’m late posting again. That’s me. Would you believe I have this in my calendar? So, TUSAL time! (Want to know what TUSAL is about? Check out this link.)

TUSAL - April 2013

TUSAL – April 2013

This month my little container is full of a lot of bits from Canvaswork Dragon. (I am finally making more progress on it!) And, there is a lot of browns from Santa’s Journey Stocking too, and all kinds of orts from the Love Stitching heart.

Large TUSAL jar

Large TUSAL jar

The little thing underneath my jar is a mug mat. I followed this tutorial from Meanderings of a Crazy Quilter. The fabrics are various leftovers, but the majority come from the quilt I haven’t finished yet. (I’ll be getting back to it soon!)

Mug Mat

Mug Mat

I really like the way it turned out. I hope the lady who requested it feels the same way!

 

6 Comments | Posted in Cross Stitch, Memes & Collabs, Sewing | Tagged , , ,

Sock Madness – Round 3

Posted on April 12, 2013 by Heather

First off, I’d like to say thank you for all the kind words and good wishes yesterday. I consider our family extremely lucky, especially since the person affected is back to normal and back to work already. Thank goodness for modern medicine!

Now, on to something very sad: a not so great pair of sock. 😉 (Pardon the humour. Sometimes it is the best way to deal with things.) These were finished up Thursday evening.

Greenhouse Sock

Greenhouse Socks

The pattern is Greenhouse Socks and the yarn is On Your Toes Bamboo in colour Blooming Pink.

This was an… interesting sock to knit. Unfortunately, they are much too wide for my feet. And I’m not sure how I feel about the seam across the toe.

Greenhouse Socks sole (colour is wrong)

Greenhouse Socks sole (colour is wrong)

Still, they were interesting to knit, and I like the idea of the shaped sole. And, I’m so glad I made it on to the next round.

2 Comments | Posted in Knitting | Tagged , ,

Stitching a Cure

Posted on April 11, 2013 by Heather

This year my family had its first close brush with cancer. Thankfully, in just over two months life is back to normal for everyone involved, the the chance of recurrence is thought by doctors to be very low. We were lucky, but cancer never goes away, you just have to hope you die of old age before it comes back. To put it plainly, cancer sucks.

Peace Love and a Cure, designed by Lizzie*Kate

Peace Love and a Cure, designed by Lizzie*Kate

A few years ago I started stitching Lizzie*Kate’s Peace, Love and a Cure. And although it is dedicated to breast cancer (not the kind of cancer we dealt with, at least this time), it sort of feels like the right time to finish stitching this. So, it has been put back into my rotation and is my current computer stitching.

I hope desperately that my family, and your family, never have to deal with cancer again. But if we do, I can only hope that it will be as relatively painless as this experience was.

 

5 Comments | Posted in Cross Stitch | Tagged , ,

Santa’s Coat

Posted on April 10, 2013 by Heather

Spring has finally started to make an appearance here in Southern Ontario (although I understand we may see a bit of snow over the next three days o_O ). And lovely spring weather is making it hard to work on Christmas projects. Nonetheless, stitching continues on Santa’s Journey Stocking.

Santa's Journey, designed by Dimensions

Santa’s Journey, designed by Dimensions

I think it is turning out quite nicely. And I’m so glad I stitched his face first. Now he sits on my stitching table and implores me to continue working on him. 😉

6 Comments | Posted in Cross Stitch | Tagged , ,

Guided Journaling Giveaway Winners!

Posted on April 9, 2013 by Heather

First, I’d like to apologize for taking so long to post the winners. Sometimes life gets in the way of blogging. Shocking, but true! Also, you all call it a couch, not a sofa! I usually say sofa, and sometimes chesterfield. I guess I’m just weird that way. 😉

Anyway, on to the winners!

Guided Journaling Giveaway Prizes!

Guided Journaling Giveaway Prizes!

So, thanks to a spreadsheet and Random.com, I’d like to announce that the winner of the of the first giveaway, the Adventures in Guided Journaling – Vol. 2 is:

Anna of Stitch Bitch

Lots of journaling goodness!

Lots of journaling goodness!

And, again thanks to Random.org, the winner of the large package for everything you see above is:

Darlene of CraftKitten

Thank you very much to everyone who participated. If you didn’t win, I sure hope you will take the time to check out Christie Zimmer’s free journal pages and her etsy shop.

And, most importantly, I’d like to thank Christie for making this giveaway possible. She was very open to the giveaway when I suggested it, and she generously donated the items. Thank you again, Christie!

1 Comment | Posted in Site News |

Guided Journaling Giveaway – Part 2

Posted on April 5, 2013 by Heather

I’m so glad to discover that I’m not the only one who loves journaling, and that I’m also not the only one to have given it up even though I really love it.

Thanks to Christie’s generosity, I’m now able to offer two prizes! One of the prizes is the Adventures in Guided Journaling – Vol. 2 and the friendship card that I shared with you on Monday. (Don’t forget to head over to that post and leave a comment to enter.) The other prize is below:

Lots of journaling goodness!

Lots of journaling goodness!

All together you could get Adeventures in Guided Journaling – Vol. 1, Adventures in Guided Journaling – Vol. 2, the Friendship Card set, and the Guided Journaling Stickers.

To get a second entry into the giveaway, please leave a comment below. This time, why not try a lightning round (inspired by Christie).

sofa or couch; up or down; grey or silver; mild or spicy; wind or rain; water or wine; play or movie; Christmas or Halloween; tv or book

All entries will count towards winning one of the prizes, regardless of which post they were made on. Make sure you post a comment on both posts to get two entries! And tell your friends, or anyone you know who loves journaling. I think Christie’s journals are fabulous, and I think everyone should know about them. 😉

Don’t forget, both comment sections will close Saturday evening at about 9pm Eastern.

While you are waiting, don’t forget to check out Christie’s shop and her free printables on her blog.

7 Comments | Posted in Site News |

Bunny and Being a Passionate Mom

Posted on April 3, 2013 by Heather

As I was putting away the Easter decorations on Tuesday, I realized I forgot to take a picture of this little cutie:

Dwarf Bunny, designed by PlanetJune

Dwarf Bunny, designed by PlanetJune

The pattern is Dwarf Bunny by PlanetJune, and the yarn is Bernat Satin in Antique Rose. I’m not sure I like the colour choice, but I still think he is kinda cute. 😉

By the way, don’t forget about my guided journaling giveaway!

passionatemom

I also wanted to share one more thing with you. I was lucky enough to be able to read a book called [amazon_link id=”1595555099″ target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Passionate Mom[/amazon_link] before it was released, and I have to tell you that I really, really enjoyed it. It talks about how to be a good mom using ten points that are taken from the biblical store of Nehemiah. Now, I’m sure a lot of you know that I’m not exactly Christian, but I still found that this book really spoke to me. The framework might be a biblical story, but the advice is firmly based in the real world. The ten points (Perception, Pondering, Passion, Prayer, Patience, Preparation, Purpose, Planning, Problem Solving, and Perseverance) speak to any mom, regardless of her religious beliefs (or lack there of, really).

The Passionate Mom Book from Family First on Vimeo.

Check out the trailer for the book, and also Susan Merrill’s blog. And, if there is interest, I might be able to do a giveaway for a copy of the book as well.

4 Comments | Posted in Crochet, Site News | Tagged , , ,