The Fun Work

I made a trip to Abilene yesterday to Picture This Plus to find a piece of fabric for my 2nd "Caritas" design. I had a piece of relic lugana that was a very nice gold color, but wasn't sure this was what I really wanted to use. So, I picked a few crystal colors - chime, sterling, stellar, and ancient - to study along with the earthen and aerial I had. Last evening, I had them together with my palette of Dinky Dyes threads to decide what colors to use. I also picked up some Rainbow Gallery threads - Arctic Rays and Fuzzy Stuff in a couple of colors for another project I need to get finalized. I decided I do not think the ancient will work and may need to get a little farther along with the design because any of the other three are potential candidates.

I have also been working on my desktop publishing. I need to get an ad together and find that they want it to be in Quark or InDesign. I have several of the individual Adobe products, but do you think that works to upgrade to what I need? Nope, have to purchase the full program. That irritates me. I guess I will submit as a pdf and see what happens.

I was also looking at a camera upgrade but think I have decided to stick to what I have. The model that I want is heavy. I did not consider the weight difference in a "better" camera and have decided that maybe I can get along just fine with what I have rather than lug around an extra (seems like) ten pounds. I did have a very insightful visit with the helpful person at Wolfe's Camera, however, and will return to purchase there if I work out and bulk up so that I can carry a better model. I actually came out of there with no purchases. Two points for self restraint!

The Stitchers' Village may seem quiet, but I have been busy, busy organizing information and the July newsletter. We had an oops with one of the time-specific classes, but think we have it all straightened out.

Back to designing and ad layout. Patty

The Past Week

Is it Thursday, again? I have spent the past two days in bed. It started with a sore throat on Sunday night and went downhill from there. Of course, it could be the result of a crazy weekend. We stayed in KC Wednesday night and got up at 4 on Thursday morning for an early flight to Syracuse. Julie and Matt picked us up and took us to the Mirbeau Lodge where their wedding was to be. A bridal shower was held that evening which lasted until about 8 and then I went with the girls for the bachelorette party. We were out until 3 a.m. Friday morning. I don't remember the last time I was up nearly 24 hours straight, but obviously, I'm not up for it any more. Friday night was the rehearsal dinner and a much earlier retirement time. Saturday was the wedding and it was beautiful. The Monet garden was the perfect setting for a perfect wedding. Everything was wonderful. After the reception we pretty much went to bed, but I wanted to get up in time to see Becky and Jessie off to the airport. I heard a door (we were in a suite of rooms with a common area) so I got up, ran smack into the door of the armoire that wouldn't stay closed, only to find it was only 2 a.m. and Julie was trying to get a fan for their room. The airconditioning was out and it was fairly warm. I wanted to let Michael sleep, so I got up and read until I heard the girls wake up call at 4:30. I made it back to bed and slept until 7:30 when my cell phone rang. It was the airline telling me the flight had been cancelled and in the middle of that call, Becky was beeping in so I was very confused and did not register what the airline said other than the reservation had been changed to the 1:15 flight. Note to self - when making reservations for others, don't give your number to the airline, give them the the number of the person flying. It was her flight that was cancelled. Oh, well, I tried to get everyone home in good time on Sunday as they insisted.

I've got to feel better today and back to full strength by Saturday. Marilyn and I are making a mad dash to the Columbus TNNA wholesale show. I have got to be up for walking most of the day Sunday. It is a huge show and I understand that there is no longer a counted thread section, but it is scattered through. That is good and bad for various reasons. Stamina wise, it might be bad. As of June 1 I am now the proud owner of the web site "The Stitchers' Village" (http://stitchersvillage.com). I have been trying to get up to speed on everything to do with it and make plans to keep it interesting. Losing three days to sickness has not been helpful. I have been stressing out about the whole thing and that may have been a contributing factor to my physical ailment, also. So, hopefully, I will get some order restored to my house today and get on track with plans for The Stitchers' Village fun page which is not coming together as quickly as I had hoped.

All conversations can't be intelligent

Started the morning with my dear husband finishing my sentences for me - incorrectly!! I tried to explain that it should not be made into a guessing game when I am trying to talk. I know I amuse him, but sometimes I'm not amused.

While on vacation last year, I was having a manicure and pedicure the very nice manicurist and I were talking. She was telling me where she was from in Africa. Somehow, when discussing dangers, etc., she told me that women with small children were cautioned, in her home area, to keep them nearby because sometimes the monkeys will snatch babies and small children. She then told a story about a child who was found several years after having been taken by the monkeys and the difficulty in trying to rehabilitate after living as a monkey. She then made the statement that, if her baby was taken by a monkey, she wouldn't want it back. I explained to her that she would want her baby back no matter what. Ok, when relating this conversation to Michael, I realized it was a mistake. I do know how silly it sounds to admit that, first of all, you are having the conversation at all, and secondly, that you are trying to convince someone they WILL want their baby back from the monkeys. Yes, dear, I understand that it was not an intellectual discussion!

There was a salamander in the garage last evening. When I walked out, something scurried, so of course I called Michael out to "get it". I told him it was huge, but he did not seem concerned. His solution was to open the garage door and I found myself herding it across the driveway into the bushes. At least it was out of the garage.

As to relevant news, I will be taking over The Stitchers' Village http://stitchersvillage.com/ on June 1. This will be quite a project and I am excited, yet nervous. I am working on plans to make things interesting and fun! Several popular designers have submitted ornaments for an ornament insert to The Stitchers' Voice, the site's newsletter. I am working on a plan for those! Plan, organize, etc. Better get back to work!!

Monday, May 17, 2010

Some days I need to stop and prioritize my to do list. I tend to try and do them all at the same time. Then, I tend to get sidetracked. I took my daughter's camera to Wolfe's Friday and they were having a sale. I tried not to look, but they had scanners on sale (which I really did need to get) and I was amazed to see that you can scan photo 35mm film negatives on a relatively inexpensive scanner. So, this morning while working on the "organize storage room" item on my to do list, I could not resist opening up the old boxes of photos and finding a few of the packets that contain negatives. I grabbed the nearest negative when I set up the scanner on Saturday and was amazed. My daughters will probably come and take it away from me when I begin scanning and uploading their childhood memories! From a designing aspect, however, I am excited to see if I have any photos that I can use.

I finished "Friendship" (pictured) - a design based on Chinese indigo designs. I am posting a preliminary picture - this is pre-framing shot straight out of the q-snap. I had a frame that I intended to use for it, but find that I am not quite happy with the way it looks, so will take it to the frame shop tomorrow to pick out something better. If you noticed 'blank slate' on a previous post, this may be the way to go with designing because I sometimes end up with a piece for which it is difficult to find a satisfactory frame. Which reminds me. Perhaps I should consider doing something different with the finishing of this! Add that to my to do list!

Would you find it a little creepy if someone randomly sent a text message to your phone saying "U out there? U ok?" followed by "Wondering when!"? I replied to inquire the identity of the sender only to have the reply "Guess this not jill?". Then they explained how they typed the wrong number without their glasses. That was last November, then in April "U alone nw?" To which I replied "no". And now, this morning, "Gm bg" which I have no idea what that means and I suggested they add Jill to their contacts so that they don't keep sending me random texts. Sounds shady, right? Particularly when they claimed not to know anyone named Jill.



My husband and I attended church services in Wakefield yesterday to see my grandson's pre-school program. Unbelievably cute, particularly, when being given their materials, each were asked what they want to be when they grow up. The first boy said "a superhero" and then most of the boys after said the same thing. One little girl said "a mermaid". Too cute. I really have to give the teacher credit because they went through the abc's with a little bible verse after each letter and the class knew a lot of it from memory! Good job!

After leaving Wakefield, we headed for the May Day cemetery to take some pictures of some markers. That's to go along with my ancestry project. I multi-tasked since that was as close as I was going to be to May Day with a free afternoon for a while. If it hadn't been misting rain, I would have been more thorough, but I only got the shots I wanted most before taking my wet feet out of there. I haven't had a chance to view them yet. I did have a chance to look at the pictures from Saturday night. We got a private tour of the Matrot Castle here in Topeka. I took some pictures of the design on the door and other things that I had no idea if they would turn out or not - but they did!! It was very interesting to see the size of the building and to go up the tiny winding stairways to the upper floors. I thought about it afterward - how would I like to have a full length dress on going up and down those things! Wouldn't be easy. Especially if you were carrying an infant (or anything else for that matter).

It's back to the list for me now! At least I can cross - blog - off!!! Have a great day!!!!

Blank Canvas

I got the flower backstitching done on the second new design "Stitch Sisters" for the online wholesale show. I had to post the picture of the framed piece to my website http://www.moonflowerxs.com/ rather than on the booth page. Now I need to decide which design I have "on the drawing board" that I want to finalize and start stitching! I have 7 lovely pieces of fabric lined across the back of the sofa here in my work room. It inspires me while I am working on several things at once. The last time I was in the fabric dealer's den she told me that I should have some of every color by now. Not if she keeps making new colors!! I also (like the packrat I tend to be) brought home a couple of frames from Frame Warehouse because I found that this particular one seemed so right with crystal earthen color fabric. Christmas design here you go!! So, yes, I also have a frame on the earthen on the sofa. Fortunately, both my husband and the fabric dealer find me endearing. Endearing, we decided, encompasses all the adjectives you might use to describe someone you are stuck with! Politically correct and socially acceptable.

So, now that I am nearly human after my first cup of coffee, I should get back to the design programs and finish a design because I have the urge to get some fabric in my q-snaps and get to work. Not that I don't have several q-snapped things to work on, just none of them are my designs. That isn't true - I am re-stitching one or two for models, but what fun is that?

I dreamed I was in a hotel and someone was helping me with my suitcase. They turned the corner and I knew they had gotten on the elevator, but I got on the wrong elevator - the one that only went to the 15th and 17th floor. While I was waiting to get on the correct elevator, a girl and her father were whispering, he got on the 15-17 elevator, and she came over and tried to take my purse from me. I called security, talked with them, they had the girl, and then I couldn't find the elevator. I wandered around, went into a room with a bunch of telephone operators (who all knew my name) and they told me what floor to go to, but not where the elevator was. Then some lady tried to tell me to get on this elevator that had a chair in it, no buttons for floors to push, and when I looked, it did not have floors above it, so it could only be going down, and I did not get on it. Then, another lady helped me find the information desk and the guy would not tell me where the elevators were! I woke up then. Strangely, I have dreamed of this same hotel before, but don't think it is any place I have actually been.

BTW - the picture is the crystal earthen fabric and the pretty little frame I found. A nice little blank canvas. Now I need the color palette - I received the full line of floss from Sullivans - which I used on "Stitch Sisters", and will begin using in addition to DMC when I am not using overdyed threads. I am intrigued with the Valdani spools. I have not actually stitched anything with them, but may give them a try also if I have the right color at the right time. Too many ideas and options!

Today, Tomorrow . . . whatever!

Ok, so I admit to sometimes not knowing the actual date. Yes, I am referring to confusing the 14th for the 15th. But, I had shopping on my mind. I need a dress for a wedding and can not seem to find anything that is even remotely something that I want to wear. I went to KC with Karen yesterday. We meandered through Lawrence and stopped at a little gallery, bookstore, coffee shop. An artist from Topeka I spoke to recently said she had some pieces there. I mentioned to Karen on the highway that I could not remember the name of the place - the right stuff, something like that, so we detoured to Mass street to figure it out. Signs of Life. The very nice lady who was installing a new exhibit stopped and took the time to show us the things that had already been taken down. Disappeared into her magic elevator and returned with the three paintings. So, then we noticed the Pink Box Bakery on our way back to the car. No cinnamon rolls left. I got a cupcake, but it had a muffin top. No to the mt on cupcakes they are strictly for muffins. They just taste scorched on cupcakes and they ruin the frosting layout. Frosting must touch the edges of the cupcake paper. Moved on to KC and wandered through a few stores. Note to sales ladies - if there is a line and you have a special (10% off with purchase of $100 or more or whatever) please don't start ringing up the customer until you know for certain they are not going to go back and look for more merchandise to increase their purchase to the minimum!! It was ridiculous! We managed to find a few things and wandered through several stores. Had lunch at The Bristol. Still a great place. I hadn't been there in a long time. Karen had not been there before. I was talked in to trying on one dress. I knew I wouldn't want it, but that's what I was there for. It was a one-shoulder number with sort of a pleated thing going on. It fit, but felt cock-eyed on and I didn't want to spend the whole time trying to twist it back into place. Perhaps I should evaluate my requirements. I may not find a comfortable formal dress. That is an oxymoron, right?

FRANTIC!

I am working to get my online booth ready for the online wholesale needlework show that begins the 15th (needleshow.com). I have not finalized all the designs as intended and will get those posted to my site ASAP (http://www.moonflowerxs.com/). My deadline for the booth is Monday at midnight. Having had a major computer issue last fall and pulling my pictures, etc. from a backup, I find that I need to go back to the backup and search for one of my folders that I seem to be missing. I have reached the state in which I was just looking at a file folder in front of me on my desk and it now seems to have vanished. Must be gremlins or something impeding my progress!! No more coffee for me!



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