Simpler...

but still too much.  And I left two trees in the attic!   My trees are small, the biggest is the six foot with the Santas, but it's still becoming a real chore to decorate them.  Do you follow the same scheme every year?  I think if I did, it would be a lot easier than changing things every year.  Next year may be fresh greens on cupboard doors and shelves, pomanders, no trees.  Who am I kidding.

 

This little tree was a tall alpine last year and I pulled the trunk off the stand, cut a foot off, trimmed the branches by several inches, and I like it now.  With all the PS Santas on one tree, I simplified the mantel this year.  Instead of spreading the other smalls around, I hung them from the large basket.

How?  These are all .... what the heck do you call little puffy things that can't hang ..... tucks?  Pillows?  Little puffy things? 

This is how I hang my stitchery because I'm always changing my mind and don't want to have sewn in hangers showing.  But for the basket, this was easier.  The safety pin is vertical and I can use the wire hooks which are easily bent to the height I need.  The further down on the back, the flatter it hangs.  Such an easy no sew way to allow changes.  And I'm all about changes.

 
 
 
 

I started stitching Niky's little free design that you can find here. So small and quick and cute.  I need something like that before I start a sampler.   I want to order her Primitive Christmas pattern too, but as usual, I procrastinate.

 I have all the gifts bought and finally found a cup holder for my cousin's wheelchair that is stable and sturdy, plus other accessories to make it easier for her.  I had everything shipped direct to CA so that's taken care of.

I can't wait until Frazier is back on at night and Lucy in the morning.  The new comedies are not funny to me.  I guess I'm just old, but their situations and constant mention of smoking weed are so gratuitous and really not funny.  Give me Frazier and Raymond and Seinfeld and MASH and Cheers, back when writers had talent and networks didn't have agendas.  I wish Hallmark would run Gleason's Honeymooners once in a while.  Yes, I'm old!

 

Thank you all for taking time to visit and welcome to new followers!

Hope your week is going well.

 

 

 

Santa tree

Hiya.  Regarding the prior post, I have no idea how the tiny bit of bleach will affect the floss in years to come.  I'm assuming it will be OK since it was just touched lightly, but you never know!  By the time it deteriorates, I may be gone.  If not, I'll stitch them again on linen.  So the correct answer to daredevil or stupid, won't be known for a while.  Stitching white after staining is the best practice, but these are 20 years old and I wanted to darken the light green fabric.  Removing the stuffing and dunking in cold water would certainly be a good idea, but I'm lazy. Anything other than a full rinse would allow the bleach to seep to the fabric.   But if I rinse them, the coffee stain will change too. Actually, taking them apart wouldn't be a bad idea because back then, I didn't use fusible interfacing and the difference between these and my recent finishes is huge.  I really prefer the structure and firm feel of the fusible and should do that.  Later.  And here they are with the others.

All Prairie Schoolers topped with a Mary Beale wreath, rusty stars and bells.

Unlit

 

With lights.

 

 Other than a few sprigs of greenery here and there, I'm done.

Thanks for visiting!

Daredevil or stupid?

Hiya.  I know I've made some of you cringe before, but this may top them all.  When I coffee stained my old light sage Aida Santas, I was happy with the change.  My first attempt and I got a little sloppy with the stain.  Just as with inkpad aging, a light touch with a brush gives more control.  I either dabbed or sprayed the coffee and made somewhat of a mess.  I'm still practicing with the inkpad and found that the first contact is very dark so I touch the brush to a scrap piece one time after swiping the inkpad and it works better for me.  It also came off for me with the stamp cleaner but needs to be washed or dabbed with a little soap so the cleaner doesn't leave a mark.  Getting complicated isn't it?  Well think about this!  Clorox!  Yep.  Here they are before...

And here they are after...

 

I did the whole group and although I love aging (not my own - my stitchery), I like to see contrast of light threads, especially on Santa.

 

Here's what I did.  Using a Q-tip, I lightly moistened the end, pulled the tip, cut off the excess, and rolled the fuzz for a tight end.   By not having a lot of cotton on the tip, it can't hold much liquid, and I had more control with it narrower. Then I dipped it in straight bleach, not enough to have it sopping wet, just touched it to the small amount I poured into the bottle's cap.  Very gently and lightly, went over the stitches.   Since they are raised from the fabric and the cotton tip is moistened, not dripping wet, the bleach didn't touch the fabric or spread to other threads.  I even used a toothpick that was dipped to touch the top of the stitch in areas like these..

I can see in this photo that I didn't get all the stitches.  They are so close to the fabric color that I missed them, but they're fine.  The cuffs and hems which contain reds and greens in these designs, did not change.  The tip needs to be twisted to tighten often so no stray fuzz touches anywhere else. I almost made a large error by not realizing that the bleach was on my fingertips every time I twisted.  But I caught that before I made any finger spots on the pieces.  So there you go.  Another reckless maneuver that came out well!

I had planned on stitching them again on linen but they were my first Santas, and are a reminder to the days when it was all new to me.  I've decided to hang them with all the others, including my recent finishes, one one tree instead of scattered on several.  That's tomorrow.  Being a reckless daredevil wore me out.

 

Thanks for visiting!!

 

 

A sampler and a song

Greetings to all!  I hope your weekend is going better than expected.  I have snow again so you know how crabby I am.  I did the sewing to complete my latest projects and then tried a little decorating.  Again.  And once this idea popped into my noggin, the engine started.  Decorate around the samplers and don't be concerned about Santas.  This is more me.

And I absolutely love this.  I took a large round mache box, covered it in one of my unframed pieces, filled it with dried fruits, and happy happy happy.  This is my gray tree.  All tin, or gray metals.

My other Schooler Santas were moved to the 3' tree in another room and I hung the heavy snowmen and Santas on the four foot. 
And my finish for the larger green Santa included a tassel for his hat and I added the recommended cinnamon stick bundle.

I woke up with a cold and plan on putzing with decorating the rest of the day.  Just when I put all the boxes away and decided not to do more, the samplers sucked me in.  Most of my smalls and unframed pieces are still packed away from the drywall dust but I will be tearing through those today.  I miss seeing Dorothy Allen and others. 

I may have three boxes for sale if Barb doesn't let me know by tomorrow if she still wants them.

And I received a fabulous package of Santa charts (some of your favorite Schoolers) from Connie.  Her generosity may spill over to you!  She asked that the charts I can't use be passed to stitchers that could.  More on that this week.

Thanks for the kind words regarding my cousin.  She and her sister live in Minnesota so I don't see them often.  She asked her sister not to tell us that she has been having some problems in the last two years and Pat honored that which is why we were so stunned by the news.

 With all the Christmas music playing, it's easy to have one get stuck in your mind.  Mine is Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas. Sinatra, Taylor, Garland, Carpenter - anyone's!
I have my own version so hum the tune while you read my version.

Have yourself a merry little menopausal Christmas

Let your mood be blue

From now on, your hormones

have control and rule

Have yourself a menopausal Christmas

Make the yuletide fun

From now on, your emotions

tend to sharpen your tongue

Here we are in our olden days

Sane and youthful days long gone

Faithful friends who are dear to us

Now do fear us and move on

Through the years, we all will be together

If the mood allows

Hang a hormone patch upon the highest bough

And have yourself a menopausal Christmas, now

Here we are in the Santa line
With our wishlist in bold pen
Youthful dreams dancing in our heads
of tighter skin and estrogen

Through the years, we'll all become impatient

Fighting tears somehow

Hang a warning sign upon the highest bough

I'm having myself a menopausal Christmas, now

Back to decorating.  Maybe more later!
Enjoy your Sunday, stay safe, thank you for visiting.

The moods of the season

Hello boys and girls.  Can you believe the date?  I hope winter flies by as quickly as the last few months have. 

I haven't stitched.  My arthritic hand is still restricted after all the painting, sanding, waxing, so I tried a little decorating.  I don't know why I'm not in the mood to do so, but maybe the delays in completing these house projects is the culprit.  Sometimes I think we get more wrapped up in the decorating than the meaning. 

 

 My Italian aunts hung a single wreath and had a small indoor tree.  All their time was taken up with baking, entertaining, doing for others.  I think we spend more time decorating and shopping these days, but everything is so very different now. 

 

 

 

 

  

I have to tell you a story about my Polish

grandfather.  After his wife passed in 1959, he and a group of friends planned a trip to visit their home place for a few weeks.  First time back since immigrating to the US.  My mother and aunt met him at the airport upon his return and were in a panic.  They saw him exit the plane and as he stepped off the stairs, he went face down on the tarmac.  Didn't move.  They went running over to their elderly father in tears, thinking he had a heart attack.  When they got to him, he was sobbing and kissing the ground.  Further inspection showed he had no socks, no underwear, old torn pants and tee shirt, shoes with holes.  They then thought he was robbed.  No, he wasn't.  His old village that he visited was so poor, he left all his belongings, luggage, money, clothing, even his wedding ring, to his people, and wore their tattered clothing home.  He was so grateful for the US and although he had a very small house and no money, he felt like a king on our soil.  From then on, every extra penny he had went to Poland.  

 So what does that have to do with decorating?  I have no idea.  I'm just in an odd mood.  This morning, a woman in Aldi's was forced to leave some food and toys behind when she was short of cash.  We offered her extra money for the toys, and I started crying.  WHY???  She refused graciously and thanked us.  I came home to an email and was told that my cousin (my age) is being put into a nursing home because of early dementia and she is devastated, and rightfully so.  She was a home economics teacher and can do anything related to needlework, is a gourmet cook, traveled the world and visited almost every country.  Now I'm going to start rambling so I'll stop.

I bought another little milking stool.  And look at that baseboard!  Mark installed it and we may tackle the crown moulding next week.  I have final coats of paint to apply after filling the nail holes on the door trims and base.  Kitchen man #3 called and agreed to make my three cupboards - nothing else.  That's the best offer we can get so I took it and the kitchen will not be what I originally planned.  I thanked him and didn't even ask for an estimate. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 I received these old wooden thread spool Santas that are handcarved and painted by Carol Barnes of Back Porch Carver.  Sweet!!!  Thank you Carol!

 

  

Tomorrow I will stay home and sew the latest Santas, maybe decorate a little more, and watch the white crap fall.  We had very warm temps yesterday and I cleaned up the yard of leaves and limbs - again.  All that extra physical work has not changed my mound and I guess that's why they are called Mounds bars.  And here's something new - my sister's car broke down again.  What a surprise.  It would be cheaper to lease one for her.   I still haven't ordered the new charts I want and maybe will add online shopping to my list for tomorrow.  And I have to watch the brats closely.  Bud has decided to turn on Squeaky.

 

Enjoy your weekend, stay safe, kiss the ground, hug your cousin, call your friends, visit your family, hang your wreaths, and bake them cookies!

Thanks for visiting, and listening to my ups and downs.

Announcing!

Greetings.  Are you all shopped out?  Fabulous bargains over the weekend.  The pet store even had wee-wee pads on sale!  Not that I need them - yet.  With very few people to buy for, I went for the bath section and got $25 bath towels for 6.99 less 20%, and sheet sets (with king cases!) for sis's king bed for $15.99, regular price of $90.  Happy happy happy.  Still sad about other things though.  Why is it that the holidays are so merry yet so emotional and sad at the same time?  Anyway, I got an email smacking me on the knuckles about not doing a separate post for the journals.  Sorry.  I said I would post them Monday and I did!  I'm uncomfortable "announcing" my work as if it's some great event.  But to make everyone happy,

THERE ARE A FEW JOURNALS FOR SALE ON THE JOURNAL PAGE - HIT THE "JOURNAL" TAB AND BE AMAZED AND BEWILDERED AT THE  MAGNIFICENT, WARPED, WONKY, CHIPPED, BURNED, AND DIRTY LOOKING OUTSTANDING WARES OF MINE!!!

 

If it's sold, Paypal will take you back to the page and the transaction won't go through.  How dare they!

I did a little outside decorating yesterday and will fill a few more tubs today.  I'm not much of a bow girl.  Possibly burlap ties, but I don't want to get too fancy.

And a note to Barb - I got your message and am still holding your boxes for you.  Not sure if my emails are getting through because of your moving.  Anyone else that has not claimed their order by now, sorry, I'm done shipping.

 I am decorating a little inside today, and I mean a little. The trim is still not installed and we've decided to do it ourselves.  The kitchen man #3 has dumped me again, and if I'm not too old to learn, I may become a finish carpenter. I hope a class on patience is included.  Seems not enough younger people are interested in working with their hands so the old farts will have to take over.  If I can take wee-wee pads with me on the job - good to go!!!

Tomorrow it's back to stitching!

Thanks for visiting and enjoy your day.