Shredding

Good day to you.  Everyone well?  Hope so.  I worked on Eliza a little and although this linen is not coarse, I have been shredding the DMC like crazy. 

This has happened before but because of pulling out a good number of errors in this piece, it's become maddening.  Just this morning, two times.  The arrow shows where the thread comes out and you can see one is fine, the other shredded and broke into several pieces.  Another piece...

 

 

I never had this trouble with my old DMC skeins.  Maybe because this is 32 count and I never used higher count linens in prior stitching years.  Whatever, it irks me.

This is what the original design looks like and I didn't care for the wacky vase so I changed the symmetry, colors, and fill.  In my defense I didn't change everything - the handles are the same.

Here's where I am and the color I'm considering for the house.  The Uniform Blue is spot on with DMC 413, I'll probably go with the Gentle Art thread.  I haven't followed many of the recommended colors and would prefer the house to not be a color used elsewhere.

And here's what I got yesterday.  I saw the wood frame and metal wheel which made me think it was an old-timer, but my husband said it's a contractor's wheelbarrow.  Still older but not what I thought.  It was free for my bathroom consultation at my cousin's.

I now have several with metal wheels so I think that's enough.  This will go in the back yard somewhere.  I also bought two oak whisky barrel halves that Lowe's had on clearance for 1/2 price.  No where else around here has them any longer, just the newer light wood versions.  Mark drills the metal bands and puts little stainless screws through them to hold the staves in place. We learned from prior barrels!  They stay intact even when rolling to move. I think I'm finished with hanging baskets and will just fill barrels next year.  Next summer.  Summer.  ((sigh))

The cake is gone.  I was going to tell my husband that it slid off the aluminum plate and hit the floor. But he knows that floor dirt would never come between me and chocolate.

 

If you're looking for a really nice (large!) bundt pan, I recommend the Simax.  I have the 10" and would like to get the 8" and the European.  Very very nice stuff.  Several sources online in various prices.  One is here.

I need to find a small project for my Magma (I'm still in love with it) for the doc this afternoon.  The last time she was there, before the hospital stay, she waited 2 1/2 hours in the waiting room.  I'm taking a cooler with snacks.

I have two things I want to post.  One is about what the doc recommended yesterday, and another is storage of threads.  As soon as my head is on straight!

 

Have a great day!!

 

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One of my favorites

Chocolate zucchini bundt cake.  Intense, extra moist, luscious.  I posted the recipe on my food blog and finally put a link to it in the top right column.  It was included in a post back in 2012 but is worth repeating. 

One thing I love about bundt cakes is they don't require icing which cuts down on the calories.  But their greatest feature is the self-healing trick.  I always take a slice right away and then close it up.  No one can tell that I'm an impatient piggy unless they measure the humps.

This is mom's aluminum cake pan, I have another that is larger and locks with a handle.  But this wooden acorn top and the embossing is my favorite.

 

And here's something interesting.  Mark closed the garden and look what he found.  Two completely separate peppers on one stem.  Cool!  Today will be spent baking sausage/rice stuffed hot peppers in spaghetti sauce for the freezer, jalapenos stuffed with breakfast sausage, and a few zucchini casseroles with diced ham. They all freeze well.

 Silk mums and a 5 day candle will be put on my parents' grave for their anniversary.  My cousin has been bugging me to stop and give her some ideas for a bath remodel so I will get that out of the way too.  Mark was searching for mushrooms in the woods behind my brother's house and found a perfectly good old white porcelain farm sink with drainboard and high back buried in mud and brush of an old junk pile close to a steep ravine.   How could old farts with bad backs rescue several hundred pounds of cast iron out of dense woods?  We're thinking.

 

Enjoy your day.

 

Thanks for visiting.

 

For all the prayers - edit

EDIT to this post - to make sure you understand my gibberish. ALL comments on this post will be included in the drawing. I guess it wasn’t clear enough, but anyone can enter. I received many emails and comments offering prayers and wanted to thank them but not exclude everyone else. So they are getting a double entry, but ALL readers that comment are included. Just leave your entry on this post, with or without prayers. No exclusions.

Original post..
Good morning. It's been cold and rainy, my furnace is on, and I am not a happy camper. But there are other things to be grateful for, and one of them is my group of stitching buds. I have gone through my comments and noted everyone that offered prayers and wish I knew who anonymous was. Why? Because every one of you is already included twice in a giveaway. We won't have enough information to gauge Carole's condition until Thursday, but we greatly appreciate all the caring concern and prayers that you have given and I want to offer something in relation to that.

What would be more appropriate than a heart? I added a little to my heart freebie, stuffed it with sawdust,

added a pretty fabric back, and you can be included by leaving a comment on this post. Even though I have you praying stitchers already, enter again if you would like a third chance.

It's not a perfect finishing job, but I've been a little distracted lately so it is what it is.

If you happen to notice that I am always wearing the same bracelets, let me explain. I am lazy. I don't want to be bothered taking jewelry on and off and I feel naked without bracelets. Gold is too expensive and soft, silver tarnishes quickly on me, so I browsed Kohl's and JCP online and purchased men's stainless steel. I chose styles that had links and could be shortened which was a plus because women's are usually too tight. Then I can add costume pieces to them but these never have to come off.

OK getting off track. Random will draw a winner Friday night at 8pm EST.
Make sure to leave your initials if no-reply or anonymous.

Thank you all again so much for your support and kindness.

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For all the prayers

EDIT to this post - to make sure you understand my gibberish.  ALL comments on this post will be included in the drawing.  I guess it wasn’t clear enough, but anyone can enter. I received many emails and comments offering prayers and wanted to thank them but not exclude everyone else.  So they are getting a double entry, but ALL readers that comment are included.  Just leave your entry on this post, with or without prayers.  No exclusions. 

Original post..
Good morning.  It's been cold and rainy, my furnace is on, and I am not a happy camper.  But there are other things to be grateful for, and one of them is my group of stitching buds.  I have gone through my comments and noted everyone that offered prayers and wish I knew who anonymous was.  Why?  Because every one of you is already included twice in a giveaway.  We won't have enough information to gauge Carole's condition until Thursday, but we greatly appreciate all the caring concern and prayers that you have given and I want to offer something in relation to that. 

 

 

 

What would be more appropriate than a heart?  I added a little to my heart freebie, stuffed it with sawdust,

added a pretty fabric back, and you can be included by leaving a comment on this post.  Even though I have you praying stitchers already, enter again if you would like a third chance. 

 

It's not a perfect finishing job, but I've been a little distracted lately so it is what it is. 

If you happen to notice that I am always wearing the same bracelets, let me explain.  I am lazy.  I don't want to be bothered taking jewelry on and off and I feel naked without bracelets.  Gold is too expensive and soft, silver tarnishes quickly on me, so I browsed Kohl's and JCP online and purchased men's stainless steel.  I chose styles that had links and could be shortened which was a plus because women's are usually too tight.  Then I can add costume pieces to them but these never have to come off.   

OK getting off track.  Random will draw a winner Friday night at 8pm EST.
Make sure to leave your initials if no-reply or anonymous.

 

Thank you all again so much for your support and kindness.

 

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Final winner

Hi everyone.  I've very tired, been a long day, so I'll get to the point.  The name chosen by Random.org is Jacqueline.  I will contact her shortly and I feel so bad that I couldn't share these charts with everyone.  From the response, Prairie Schooler Santas win the popularity contest hands down.  Thanks to all that participated.

 

I did get my sister to the doc today.  She stopped taking one of the pills to see if it would help and it did, but she was still weak and very pale.  He prescribed another and wanted to admit her to the hospital again, the electrical system of her heart is still not good.  Next appointment will be in a week but she may have to give in to another hospital stay before then.  Of all days to rip out and repave her very steep winding driveway!  No way she could ever attempt to walk it from the front or side. I got her to the doc, over to the center for blood work, rushed through the market for easy dinners and essentials, dropped off the RX, stopped at the bank, and sped home to get her up the drive before the paving started.  Just made it. 

 

Enjoy your weekend and stay safe.

 

 

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Another winner

Greetings.  No, my sister did not make it to the doctor.  She was dressed and ready but did not have enough stamina to get in the car and go.  These new meds are making her so light headed and weak, no appetite, insomnia, and we are trying again on Friday. 

 

Do you remember the little free chart from Gentle Arts that I made into a small pouch?  I just realized that I never finished the design.  The stamens!  One good thing about using fusibles for closure is that you can press them with a hot iron again and they will release.  Since I used the fusible hem tape to attach the lining at the opening, I may do just that and add the final stitches.  Or not.
 

 And here's Eliza's progress. Ready to start the motif bottom - I think the house will be blue. I haven't followed the colors or the color placements because frankly, too much on my mind to pay attention to details.

But this little queenie hasn't a care in the world.

 

 

 

 

 

She loves to pose for the camera.

 Until she's back to "I will make you bleed" mood.  She looks calm and sweet, but those little eye slits are watching my every move, ready to pounce.

The winner of the Homespun Collectibles batch is Anonymous Colleen.  Please email me with your address Colleen.

 

The final Santa batch is Prairie Schoolers, six cards and two leaflets - interested?  Leave your entry in the comments and I will draw a name Friday at 9pm EST.  Two Angel books sold for over $20 each on Ebay this summer!  Now I want to stitch them so I checked and yep - I have another one.

 

 

 

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