So how shall I do this?

Since I am behind on everything, I have nothing ready to offer for a Christmas giveaway.  Have a few designs I worked up that aren't stitched yet, everyone is tired of the boxes, and I'm afraid to do any sewing.  My machine is an old Sears with metal housing, quite heavy, and I could really hurt myself throwing it out a window.  Best I stay away from that room until the moods calm down.  Surprisingly, I was in a really good mood Sunday.  

My outdoor decorating followed prior years of filling containers with greens, and then removing half of the them.  Too much.  I spend more time taking away after putting it out than putting it out.  I removed the wheelbarrows, several tubs, the beat up chair and buckets.  I had extra greens so I filled a few of those buckets and hung them out back.  I like it.  Considering adding mini lights but changed my mind. 

 

I thought I had a lot of buckets but after hanging them all around the deck, I could use a few more.  I was really surprised that wearing latex gloves protected my hands from the prickly blue spruce.  No problem at all.  I am way off track!

I wanted to talk about the giveaway.  I've decided to offer a $30 gift certificate but do I choose the shop?  Or do you?  As long as the shop offers gift cards payable in US funds through Paypal, you can choose.  Sound fair?  Or too confusing?  Not for you - for me.  Let me think about it and I'll post the giveaway at the week's end.   Or before. 

 I'll show you my two new charts next time.  I haven't stitched one Santa this year and probably won't. 

 

Stay safe!

Thanks for visiting.

 

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Snowless Sunday -

YAY!!  Hope your day went well.  I got some outside decorating done, which consists of throwing bundles of fresh greens in buckets and slapping a branch on the door.  Houses look handsome with their holiday finery and glittering lights.  But my beat up siding and sparse style does not.  I added a long neck gourd to the door greens one year and my neighbors had no idea what it was and thought it very odd.  When the garage door guy (yes he was cute and very nice) came inside and saw those grungy gourds hanging on my ladder, he did a double take...twice.  Finally I told him that they are dried gourds.  Oh......why?..he asked.  I don't know Buddy.  Please don't expect an answer as to why I have dirty looking gourds that serve no purpose.  I'm still trying to answer why I got lost on the main road in town.  That is still the running joke among husband's friends.  When he told them I lost my voice they said "how will she ask for directions?".  Men.  But he did tell me about two contractors that he has done work for and although there is no way they could squeeze us in right now, I am contacting them both tomorrow.

 

When shopping over the weekend we encountered an elderly gentlemen with his sons buying memory foam pillows, mattress topper, fancy pillowcases, and other comfort items.  He was getting choked up and then we overheard that they were Christmas gifts for his ailing wife in a nursing home.  To see his sons helping to shop and carry those large bags for him, thinking how upset and lonely he must be, brought a tear to the eye.  Just like in the hospital when I saw an elderly man sobbing in the arms of a priest.  I quietly watched him while feeling his sadness and shed a tear with him.  These touching moments were missed by everyone else around as they stared at the small screen in their hand.

 

I was blessed with a surprise package! And perfect timing.  For the first time in YEARS I was without Dove because my illness kept me inside for a few weeks and my supply dwindled.  My sister asked me (as every year) to get the gifts she needs for others.  I did, and forgot to stop for Dove.  When I got home, the package had two bags of dark Dove inside, another box of glorious candy that is already gone, and a pouch with her stitching and Faye's finishing.  Great fabrics inside and out.  I am one lucky gal. 

 

Mary Lamin hasn't been stitched much lately and I really need to get back to her.  When I break from a project, I lose the desire and that's what has happened.  I ordered two small Christmas designs and would love to get them stitched but am afraid to put the sampler aside fearing I will never return for completion.

 

More shopping for Carole tomorrow and I'll finish the outside decorating.  December 1 is the day mom passed away seven years ago.  So hard to accept how quickly time is passing.  Sometimes it feels like yesterday and other times, like it was so long ago.  December is already here with Christmas in a few weeks.  Summer is getting closer.

 

Have a good week ~ thanks for visiting.

 

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Happy Thanksgiving

Hope everyone has a wonderful day!  Mark is working, my sister is enjoying the day with her son and grandson's family, and I'll be dusting, sweeping, and drinking cough medicine.  Is this the correct spelling of relapse?  I put the rest of the paper mache away for another time, and decided to donate several dozen of the last shipment to the nursing home.  They are ivory inside and out and I think they would be perfect for craft activity, either applying stickers or coloring with highlighters, and residents could make a pretty little box to keep or give as a gift.  Maybe I'll get a few books of stickers for them too.

 

A few boxes are listed on the Sampler Box page if you are interested. 

 

 

When reading Ellen's blog With my Needle, I saw that she purchased sampler note cards.  Without local shops, I don't know if they are something commonly found but they sure aren't easy to find online.  Great gift for stitching buds and to have for personal handwritten notes which are always appreciated.  If you want to check them out you can find ordering information here.  The photo and offer is from Morven Museum in New Jersey.  Now I'm seriously considering using my sampler photos to make note cards and sets.

 

Wishing you all a great weekend!

Stay safe ~ thanks for visiting.

 

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Crabby is putting it mildly

Well, no one is coming to measure for the soapstone today.  Why?  We drove out twice, chose our slabs, paid for half, worked out the base cabinet and apron sink that would be made in their shop.  Right there.  Perfect fit.  I sent emails and photos, received calls asking for cabinet details, and talked to them four times. Yesterday, the day before they were to come out, they inform me that the sink cabinet needs to be in place before they will come out to template the counter.  What?  They're making both.  The opening is exactly 30".  What more do they need?  Almost $1000 to build one 30" wide, plank door, short sink base, before they come out.  Are you fricking kidding me?  After all these months waiting and now they tell me this?  If that's the case, the cabinet should have been built along with the fitted sink and delivered at which time they could have measured for the counter.  The new one will be exactly the same width as the current one and they also want the old top removed in order for them to measure. I don't understand.  I can't tell you how disgusted I am and honestly, I may get Formica and stainless steel which is guaranteed to be installed and completed in a week, and I'll have eight grand to spend on something else.  Sorry to bitch and rant and complain but nearing the end of this frustrating project, I didn't expect another contractor to fail me.  By the time Dominic builds this piece that will be out of square and foreign to his knowledge, it's installed, they reschedule for the template, I will never have it before Christmas. How do you install a cabinet with a plywood platform for a single bowl apron sink, into an existing double bowl/drain without cutting up the platform to get it in?  Remove the sink and water supply and wait for weeks until they fabricate the job?  No.  I'm not willing to do that while needing the kitchen for the holidays, just because they need a new 30" base instead of the 30" existing base in order to measure.  Matches will not be enough, I may invest in a flamethrower.

 

Thanksgiving. 

Yes I have much to be thankful for.  Do I feel guilty for being in this mood?  Yes.  And no.

Do we have to be in a good mood to be grateful?  No we don't.  We have many emotions, hormones or not, and they can't all be squeezed into one neat package of happy for the day.  Sometimes we're crabby and that's OK.
I will get over it, move past it, laugh it off, and come up with a solution.  In the end, it's just a kitchen.  I have a roof over my head and food on the table, clothes on my back, cats on my bed, family, and you guys. 

Ahhhhh. That felt good and the crab is slipping back into the water.  But he won't go too deep, he'll be back.
Thanks.

Be thankful, be yourself.

Happy Thanksgiving. 

 

Box info

Hiya.  I've been receiving emails about the box sale so thought I would update.  The quality of the mache is not what it used to be.  I have to purchase in sets of 3 and when I open the cellophane and see the insides of the boxes, I'm not satisfied.  Locally I have one store that carries boxes (in sets).  Hobby Lobby sells individually by opening the sets, and they won't open another set until inventory in depleted, which means I could wait weeks and get only one box.  Can you tell I'm disgusted?  So the amount for sale will be less than before and except for a special request, will be all Mary Antrim.  They will be listed on the Sampler Box page Thanksgiving morning.

 

I have received three calls so far from the counter top people who are also making the cabinet to hold the sink.  They don't seem to get it.  Photo after photo of the simple inset plank doors on a basic 30" apron sink base, and I got two more calls about it today.  Can't believe it.  Something tells me none of this will go right.

 

My sister is having more episodes of breathlessness and rate problems, won't call for an earlier appointment so she won't be seen until mid December.  I still have to take care of her house which was delayed because of my illness.

 

I went up to take a shower the other day and spotted something large and black on my bed pillows.  I kept trying to determine if it was a sweater or my jeans - until it moved and I almost dropped through the floor.  BUD!!!  How the hell did you get up here!!

 

Right now I am waiting for the garage door opener installer that was to come this morning.  It's almost 2pm.  God help him.  I am a touch crabbier than usual.  For his sake, I hope he's good looking.  I've been lucky for a while now so the odds are getting slim.

 

Have a great day, wonderful Thanksgiving, and safe travels.

 

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The faucet

Hi all.  Happy Sunday of melting snow.  Are you having a busy weekend with all the sales?  "Preview" black Friday prices, but in effect now, a one-day only sale that started two days ago and another one-day sale starting tomorrow that also runs for two days, lowest prices of the season today only - until tomorrow when you'll get the lowest prices of the season.  On select items.  It's the lowest price on certain items and the next lowest price day is on other items.  Give me a break.  Put it all on sale and quit messing with our minds!

 

Let's talk faucets.  No I don't have the countertop yet and he is coming out Wednesday for the final measure which means another two weeks after that for installation.  They are an hour away so I hope weather won't interfere.  I studied all my favorite kitchen designer's photos and found the two faucets they use most often.  Herbeau for $1700 (with side spray, cheaper without).

  Moving on I found several others that I really like but my decision isn't easy.  Since I have to purchase online and have no idea how dark the bronze is or the difference between brushed, tumbled, rubbed, antique, and aged, I hesitated.  But my real question - would the darker browns look OK on a black soapstone counter?  And since I have stainless steel appliances and black hinges and accents, is bringing another metal into the small area a mistake?  Who the hell cares?  It's my kitchen. I won't know how it looks with the sink and counter until they're here yet I need the faucet for the installation.  What to do?

  I found a reasonable faucet in brushed stainless at Lowe's (Wetherly by Moen) in the pump style I prefer, and it goes perfectly with the appliances and also the new and old pewter.  I can live with it and always change my mind later once I see how it all looks. This came in bronze but I didn't like the streaks of red showing that are supposed to age it.  Every manufacturer has a different "bronze" finish and some I do not care for.

 

And this one is Squeak!  He always ends up with food on his nose.  We leaned a piece of plywood against the house for protection and he stays  here once in a while.  I've moved his condo to several places but he is still too skittish to enter.

Hope everyone's week gets off to a good start.  Thanksgiving!!!  Good grief it's only a week to December.

 

Thanks for visiting!

 

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