Those little bastardos

AUGH!!!  Such a little item and if it wasn't me tripping and having them fly off the plywood, or sudden rain drops while out back, or a stupid swarm of tiny bugs, or floating cat hair, there was always something messing up or sticking to the little bastards while I was spraying the final sealer.  Use a thinner to smooth the finish, lift the paint, ruin the label, sand it down, start all over!  I will never make these again.  But don't quote me.  Today is the last day I am wasting, and I mean wasting, on them.  For the hours put in they should be $40!  Haven't decided for sure on price but it will certainly be under $10.  This has put a real damper on continuing with the boxes too.

 

I do have progress to show on the sampler.  Starting on the birds and bottom motifs now, holding off on the eyelet ABC (after the last z) until I see the entire piece.  Maybe those three large letters in red would be perfect, maybe not.  I'm not following the chart's color placement and decided to use only three neutrals in the center area so as not to compete with the bright birds in the bottom.  Once the bottom is completed the sampler will tell me which color will work best.  I've had quite enough of stitch removal these last weeks. 

 

 

It's September, it's cooled off, I'm crabby as hell.  Hope to be done with canning by tomorrow so I can put that behind me also.  Someone gave us a jar of hot pepper rings last year and we loved the recipe so asked if she would mind sharing.  Not at all, her sister in law's friend's mother's neighbor's daughter's boyfriend gave it to her.  God bless her for being able to remember the source.  I would have said..... uh..... I can't remember where I got it.  So we spent a day cutting and seeding a half bushel of hot peppers and immersing overnight in the brine, as directed.  Good grief you never saw such twisted faces after testing a pepper.  We had to throw them all out.  Yes, that's the way things have been going.  Frustrating but that's life.  One good thing - I picked up Nitzy, set him on the swing, and the entire vial of flea med was used before my blood was drawn.  He was a good boy.

 

Hoping your September is a good month.

 

Thanks for visiting.

 

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The hornie winner

 Greetings folks.  Random selected Grand Mary as the winner of the hornbook.  She is not no-reply!  So I will contact her shortly.

 

Thanks everyone for the sweet comments, still surprised at the number of entries and thanks to all for participating.

 

We had a very humid day and now I have rashes wherever the electrode patch has been or is currently.  Too much sticky sweat with no where to go.  All was quiet for days and as soon as I get in a store, beep beep beep!  Maybe all my run-ins with mannequins and poles created repressed anxiety. 

 

I tried to give Nitzy his flea meds while he was sleeping on the garage floor.  All our steps were made 6" high so it would be easier for mom, and sitting on one that low was a big mistake.  As soon as my butt crashed into it and my knees were chest high I knew I was in trouble.  I didn't realize what a drop it would be to land only 6" higher than the floor.  But I decided to give the meds a shot since I knew I was stuck there for a while.  He looked at me, blinked, I started scratching and talking, and as I was contorting to get through the fat knees and bent legs, the monitor slipped out of the tshirt pocket and hit him.  So there I am, an open vial of flea meds, a cat hiding under a car, muscles screaming, knee joints ready to burst, and no way to get up.  Fall over and get up on my knees?  I couldn't.  My legs were locked (folded) so high I couldn't raise my foot off the floor.  So I leaned backward and spotted an umbrella by the steps, used it to extricate my foot from the floor and it sprung off like a snark-in-the-box.  I was fine, but Nit won't come near me for the next week.

 

One more thing- saw this on a Facebook page and thought it was a great idea.  Too bad I already got rid of my quilt stands.  With wire or regular baskets this would be great in a kitchen, pantry, entry (mail, gloves, glasses, boots) or a bath, even filled with fat quarters and supplies in a sewing room.  Original post is HERE.  It looks like the rails were unscrewed to loosen and then turned to an angle to hold the baskets.

 

Have a great week.

So sad August is over, and so hard to believe!

 

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No takers

I guess we'll be handing them out at McDonald's this morning while enjoying our sausage gravy and biscuits.

 

 

 

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A sampler and a santa

Hiya.  Remember the rust that I removed after I removed 4 other colors first?  Yes it looked good on the dark brown, but I just couldn't envision it with the red and blue at the bottom.  Thank goodness for linen's strength.  Because after I changed it to 632 which blended very nicely with the muted colors, I popped for red. 

Yep.  Something hit me (unfortunately it was right after removing the rust and completing the 632 replacement ) that 3777 was it.  I have removed as many stitches as I put in, over and over, same letters. Some evenings I looked around for Bill Murray because this project felt like Groundhog Day. Glad I finally hit on something I can live with.  I planned on the top of the piece being drab so the bottom pops, but it just wasn't working on this very dark linen. Now the large alpha is finally completed, the colors finalized, and I can move toward a finish. 

 

I hope it comes quickly because the mail brought another order and this guy was in it.  I didn't realize it required overdyed floss so I will have to make another order just for the threads.  I wish he was a little smaller.  On 30 count he is 7 1/2" x 6 3/4".  I also thought Cocoa linen (recommended) was very pinkish brown but this looks very Havana-ish.  I love the 3777 on my current dark brown linen and plan to use this combination for a few Santas.  I see another decision on the horizon.  Not good.

 

Have a great day!

 

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Release the snark day

That should be on a Tshirt.  Well today is the day.  Mark is golfing so I can snark with no collateral damage.   It's a beautiful sunny day, but the last Friday of August.  I'm working inside to complete an order and found a few pieces of wood cut to 3" square. I labeled the back with the dimension and it can be a corner square or just a floss tag.

 

We have been giving away tomatoes as fast as we can but can't keep up with the bounty.  I do not like canning tomatoes so I will try making tomato soup and freezing it along with seeded tomato chunks for winter soups.  Love tomato sandwiches with mayo and also grilled cheese with thick slices.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The garden was the best ever since we installed two Enforcers - it definitely keeps the deer out even though we feed them several times a day in the yard.  And of course, I never remembered it was there and got squirted numerous times.  Felt pretty good in this heat!  The short plastic fence is to keep the cats from using the garden as a litter box.

I'm almost 6' and the tomatoes grew above me since this was taken over a month ago. But now, the blight has taken hold and there are no leaves left, just green and red globes.  Breaded and fried green tomato slices drizzled with reduced Balsamic are heavenly.  Lots of various peppers are being canned and made into pepper butter.

 

 

Bud is enjoying himself on the new gingham oilcloth I found for the little table.

 

 They are all past due for flea meds but these brats have turned into summer snots and won't let me apply it.  I've been buying the PetArmor Plus through Walmart online, six pack for $40.  They had it for $32 which is great for 6 vials but the price changes all the time.  Free ship to store too.

I've decided to send The Attic a box or two for their auction instead of stitchery.  I hope that's OK.  This is one of my favorites (had to redo it since the file disappeared) and I think it came out better than the first time.  I can't get these 8" squares so I found an 8" round that I will use.  I wish I knew what equipment was needed to do the videos.  I can show you how I manipulate these.  For example, the large box has the original stitchery in the grass, but look at the round.  The bunny is now behind the peacock because I wanted the blue instead of brown.  Anyone can do this and so many have emailed to request instructions but I can't explain, it has to be viewed. 

 

That's all I got.  Back to snark central.  I think I will designate a day each week as release the snark day.  We'll see how that works.

 

Have a great weekend! 

 I am really surprised at how many have entered for the hornie!

Be back on Sunday, all snarked out, with the winner.

 

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Hornbook offer

Greetings folks.  After many hours (days, really) working on only three little labels, I have given up.  I don't know if the new inks in the printer have changed formula or what, but they are giving me fits.  Changing to pink or green tones when glued, changing again when sealed, so I am using the design I had printed a while ago when I thought about making these before the ink cartridges were replaced. Whatever the reason, I can't waste any more time on a little inexpensive item.  And after staining them all, I realized they look so much better on a solid background, so I am doing a paint wash in dark brown over the stain. 

 Because of all this trouble, I wanted to burn them, but decided to calm down and grow up.  Things happen, go wrong, create more work, require more patience, cause stress, but they are things.  Things.  Not my health, not my family, not those fricking brat cats, just things.  I am heartbroken at the news of my cardiologist, a wonderful kind man, and also a friend's DIL at 46 years of age.  Devastating and unexpected diagnoses that leave very little hope.  And I'm going to get upset over little hornies that I want to be perfect for my stitching buds?  Cause myself to become Velcro Velma 24/7 with these hot flashes?  Make my monitor beep again?  No.  I'm calming down, enjoying the crock pot's kielbasa and peppers aroma.  So.  For you.  A very small offer.  A little hornbook giveaway.  They will be available when I list the boxes in a few weeks, but thought packing one and shipping it away would be a small symbolic get the hell away from me and satisfy the snark.  I can be thankful, I can calm down, I can accept the insignificant annoyances, but if menopause has taught me anything, it's that the snark must escape or there will be consequences. 

 

If you would like this small offer (these are printed labels, not actual stitchery), you know what to do.  We've done it enough times!  The 3-in-1 hornie measure is 2" across, 3" to the top, and 4" with the handle to gauge your project's stitching or linen margin, but please don't expect them to be exact!  After sanding they may be 1/16" off.  I know it's not even worth mentioning but I don't want any emails correcting me.  Yes, it happens!

Leave your initials in your comment, email me if you are unable to leave a comment, and I will draw a name on Sunday 28 at 8pm. 

 

Have a great weekend,

stay safe, snark with a thankful heart.

You can quote me.

 

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