Samplers-and-Santas
Hi all. June has three birthstones, one being alexandrite, a grayish lavender. Since June is my birth month, I thought I would use that shade for the June pear. 
Here's the railroad stab on a regular cross stitch. I may keep practicing and see if it becomes a habit I can handle. I doubt it, but it's only because of my lack of patience and absence of caring what anything thinks. It bugs me that my threads are twisted, but not enough to be more careful. Beth also directed me to this article on correct placement of the first stitch. I can never remember, but this article used the term, "leaning on the post", and that was all I needed. Thanks for your help Beth!
I just love the Black Scallop Ajuga ground cover when it blooms. They last quite a while.
Take a look at the color key. Notice anything? Need I say more? Yes, I removed the entire line and stitched again with the proper colors, but honestly, I kept being drawn back to the symbol matching the letter I was stitching instead of the actual symbol for that letter! I felt like I was playing one of those trick brain teasers. 
This next border line is a doozy to start but obviously, any errors on my part won't be noticed. My eyelet stitches are usually too tense and I'm anxious to see how well I do on the next alphabet. When I saw the perfect stitches in this March post from Barrick, I felt stitch envy. 
In case you're wondering what I'm doing, this was mom's dining room/kitchenette, and there was a wall separating it from her living room where she watched TV. That area was carpeted and the wood flooring square next to my kitchen entry was her cabinet area for dishes and foods.
The wall is gone, the wiring from it worked back into the walls, ceiling boxes moved, the carpeting will come up along with the wood, and a new floor running all the way into the kitchen and my family room. My kitchen plans are completed and sent to the designer. Mom's been gone for 5 years and that's how long it took me to change this. I still have her 2 marble top provincial tables and such and will find a good home for them elsewhere. This area will have a large table and chairs for dining, and a few cupboards. Her bedroom and bath are off of this room.
Now for my shoes. I love red or yellow shoes. Reasonable and comfortable flats are not easy to find here but I spotted these sling backs at Sears. The store ordered them for me in my size with free shipping. They are as comfortable as Bare Traps and look the same, but these are on sale for $24.99 and they're leather. I love 'em!!! If you want yellow shoes, they're here.
I got a call this weekend that my guy can give me a day to start our project which means this will be hit and miss. This of course, is my fault. Same old problem with deciding on the kitchen, where the ceiling light should be, do I want a header over the doorway, beams....?????? And so it starts.
And will you look at these paws? They want to come in the house for a snooze and then I can't get them to leave. All my family member's cats are clean! These little pigs play hard. The back of their white legs have never been clean and their fur is filled with outdoor particles. The new cat has brown stripes and I got within five feet of her today. The others still circle with threats, but no fights recently unless she comes closer to the house. Wonder how many kittens I'll be dealing with.
Here's my brother's little girl after her spaying. She's gained weight and the vet said she is very healthy. A recent article in our local paper was focused on the huge number of strays and kittens our valley has. Terrible. They try to trap and spay, then release. I don't agree. They are starving and homeless with no protection. Euthanizing them would be more humane to me, but they claim it is more expensive than spaying. ?????? 
Just wanted to remind you of this product, invaluable for sandals and summer sling backs, tank top and spaghetti straps, and peeking bra straps. My legs are crossed and I'm twisting my ankles, and look how the straps still hold. I was never able to wear these because of the sling constantly falling down.
Here's the baskets after their Rit dye bath of Pearl Gray, Black, Orange, and a touch of green. Rit's brown and black have a red tone which I don't like, therefore, the green to tone it down. Each basket dyed a little differently.
And my Sargent Crabs made it! They were almost dead last summer so I was hoping to see blossoms this spring.
I burned a dozen very small wood boxes that I planned on painting and was tired of storing, and found this little dome in with them. I covered it - sidetracked. Now I'm playing with the large heart boxes and some others instead of completing my work. Which led to another idea I'm working on and can't wait to try.
