Worn out

Greetings folks.  Hope everyone ended March with no issues.  Our visit was exhausting but enjoyable.  Cousin's husband makes donuts so ..... we went all over testing.  Research and development you know.  The winner was Apple Castle in New Castle PA, glazed honey wheat, by a landslide.  I had no choice but to join Weight Watchers when they left (Dove minis are 2 points each and oranges are free, not bad together).  Too much good food, ridiculous amount of donuts, desserts and snacks galore.  An old favorite was made by my sister, (who never invited them for a meal which I had counted on), but she ate more than half of it before bringing it to my house, so I had to offer other options since we had ten people for dinner.  Loved seeing them, but glad to be quiet and alone for some rest. 

 

So what am I doing now?  Ridding closets of excess and being a total P.I.T.A. to all.  I don't know why.  Stitching and blogging are not of great interest to me but I started another small in my continuing effort to regain mojo.  What a pleasure to be off the grid for 10 days and away from the vile hatred taking over this land.  

I've stitched this before for a friend and have always wanted one for myself.  Handwork Club 1820 Redwork Pinkeep from 2011 by Stacy Nash.  Not easy to find and I've seen other club pieces released after a period of time, wonder if Stacy will.

 

Simple and small, good choice for a crabass.

 

While ridding the linen closet, I came across the same old table cloths that I continually put back, never use, and several are not wanted.  This one was my mom's, the heavy wrinkle free woven cotton and openwork.  I used several applications of Biz for spot cleaning food stains, Lestoil for grease, oil, butter, and found that the orangey looking stains are ..... rust!  Bar Keeper's Friend in a paste, applied several times and rinsing between.  Gone.  A few spots were missed but hopefully I will get them all.  It's hard to see yellow stains on light fabric but holding it up to a bright window shows even the slightest which I mark with a piece of blue or masking tape.  I hate to see these wonderful heavy linens thrown out because of stains but that's what happens to most.  I'm taking the Battenburg to the vintage shop, no desire to iron. 

I'm hoping someone can give me information about this cloth.  It presses easily, white on white, 52" wide (selvage edge) by 48" (hemmed).  Very heavy cotton.  I had to tilt it in order for the light to hit the satin stitched design.  A coat of arms (?) with three arrows, U.S., many stars, and outlined on selvage edges by three solid rows.  I have not been able to find anything about the emblem.  Is it just a design and not representative? Anyone know?

A few years ago I showed several vintage print tablecloths and was emailed by a reader that she collected them and was interested.  The saved email was lost three crashes ago.  Please let me know if you are still interested.

 

That's all I have.  Dental visit I am dreading tomorrow.  Cats are slowly coming back in after retreating from the visitors.

 

Have a good one folks.

Thanks for visiting.

 

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The difference between crabby and snotty

Had to take Carole early this morning back to her doc, pain became much worse, traveled to the shoulder, he wanted to check her heart.  Carole talked to him personally and he left orders with the front desk to put her in a room as soon as she arrives.  We wait, we wait, until I blast the snotty bitch that handles the front desk.  I've had enough of her attitude for the last few years. 

 Snotty is being rude and disrespectful, crabby is a generalized nasty attitude.  Mostly I am a crab but there are times when I am a crabby snot.  I can relate to hassles in medical settings, but she is always rude and there is no place for that when dealing with the public.   

 

It happens that her meds were filled and sitting on a counter yesterday, but with inept and useless employees from office staff error to pharm techs laziness, no one took the time to actually check.  We didn't know this until today when I took the new written scripts in.  I wasn't snotty.  I wasn't crabby.  I was full on bitch slap.

 

She is feeling better already after two rounds of the meds, is still in terrible pain, but no longer nauseous and in tears.  After three nights of no sleep at all, she was able to take a nap.  And my three days of her appointments and errands are finished and I can concentrate on the guests coming.

So here's the stitching plan.  I doubt there will be any time for it but I'm trying to line up a few choices so I can start right back in.  You know I've been having a pretty long slump and smalls were my only desire.  I am considering a large sampler, working on it a little each week so as not to get discouraged.  (Mary Elliott at left)

I thought it would be a good idea to choose and kit the linen with many of these larger projects, but all my yardage is 28 and 30 and I am preferring the higher count and single thread.  But since I have the linen, I should use it.
(Ann Spence at right)

(Sarah Jacklin Goulsby below)

Another contender is Sarah Harvey.

Things change often with me, and the look of an entire wall of samplers that I aspire to, no longer tickles me.  I prefer seeing one or two which allows notice.   Too many to see at one time is striking and a great focal point, but their detail and verse is lost in the mass.  My view is contrary to most stitchers' displays, but it's my current view which may last anywhere from a month to two years.

Hopefully when I return in a few weeks, I'll have a project started and something to share.
Take care and enjoy the start of spring! 
Back in April.
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Three days to houseguests

My torn up unfinished dusty house.  After spending all morning in Urgent Care yesterday, today I had to take Carole to her primary care doc because he would not prescribe meds without seeing her even though he had the records from the center.  She has a severe case of gout in her wrist and hand.  First time ever. Picked her up, got to the doc's, waited, waited.  Got in, got the RX's called in, then over to the center for blood work that Urgent Care failed to take, wait, wait.  By now it's 4:15.  Stopped to get her something to eat since she can't use her hand to prepare a meal.  Lots of time for the pharmacy to fill the order.  Got there at 4:50.  No orders.  Called the doc office.  They insist the orders were called in.  Verified the phone number and correct pharmacy.  Back to the pharmacist - he said he doesn't have it.  I asked him what we should do.  She is in tremendous pain, I'm here for the meds, she can't drive, the doc called them in and verified the time, why aren't they here?  That's between her and her doctor.  Really.  I asked him to call the doctor's office NOW and get the order.  It's 2 minutes to 5, the office closes at 5, and they turned off the phones except for voice mail.  He left a message that they did not return.  Now I have to go back to her doctor's tomorrow morning and get the written script, go to the pharmacy, wait for the drugs, and then do all her fricking shopping again because she hasn't done any in weeks.  Take the meds and items to her home after.  So three days of planned preparation shot in the ass and now she can't help me with having the guests over for a meal or two next week.  We'll manage to get the last few rooms cleaned and their linens fresh before they arrive, and stock the fridge after.

 

Carole's son is working overtime because of co-workers having the flu, and went directly from work to a fire in which an elderly woman on Hospice care was killed.  Her husband is inconsolable from her tragic death along with losing his lifelong possessions and home.  So I guess frustration and unforeseen diversions are just nuisances that don't amount to a hill of beans in real life. 

 

I have no pie that could shut my crabass pie hole, so instead I ate several slices of Italian bread smothered with cream cheese and a thin spread of jelly. Very very good, but it ain't elderberry pie.

 

Embrace tomorrow and all the crap that comes with it.

 

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Mary on a shoestring

Hey all.  Spent the morning in Urgent Care with Carole, not heart related, and she will be fine in a week or two.  Came home and decided to finish Mary before I misplace her being that she is so tiny.  Size doesn't really matter because I've lost much larger pieces but it sounded like a good enough reason.  And it's always a brilliant move to tackle a potentially stressful project after a stressful morning.

 

I used a different method this time, without interfacing.  I still prefer the stability of it but this linen is substantial and I've wanted to try this for a while.  As always I counted out on all sides and removed a linen thread, further out than where the seam would be, and then ran the Frixion pen in that ditch to make sure I could see it at the sewing machine. 

Machine sewed on this line, right side of the linen, while attaching the muslin on the back, creating a visible guide to follow when sewing the backing on right sides together.  Just 1/8" in from this stitched line and I hoped it would line up the linen threads and be rather straight.  Bingo.  Not bad at all.  I wanted something thin and dark brown for the hanger, used a braided brown shoestring.  She fits nicely in the carrier, but with the longer hanger, she can visit more places. 

 

I have several samplers that hang from the front of a shelf, hanger attached to an object's base.  Nice way to display smaller stitcheries so they are easily seen. I think the pewter is too fussy for little Mary,

 

so I moved her to a small primitive cupboard.

This was stuffed before, but once we start cleaning walls and clutter, everything is minimized. 

Only half the items are returned to their former position. 

 

That's all folks!  Once again, loving the very small projects.

 

Thanks for visiting.

 

Have a great week.

 

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Little finish

Wow.  This one was quick and easy.  Mary Little 1840 from Goode Huswife. I changed some floss shades to accommodate the darker linen and made the house a faded red.  Now I have to decide where she will live.  Filled and puffed in a compartment on a leather strapped carrier which happens to be a perfect fit,

 

 

puffed out over an old skinny box with a small side compartment for goodies,

or just sewn into a little knob hanger.  I'm thinking knob hanger right now.  I like the carrier best but as a hanger, she can be moved at will and still be nestled in when I want a change.

Good idea.  Twofer.

Just because she's perched on an old student chair doesn't mean she is willing to learn.

 

Hope your weekend is going well.  May be offline for a few weeks.  Stay well!!

 

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Busy

with wall washing and getting some things in order before company arrives this week.  Decided it would be best to stitch something little.  Couldn't be more appropriate.

 

I've been having trouble with my printers not being recognized by the computer.  On March 8, Microsoft installed an incorrect driver in their update that affects some devices.  Nice.   https://www.howtogeek.com/298940/microsoft-please-stop-breaking-my-pc-with-windows-10s-automatic-updates/ That's when I lost both printers and haven't been able to get them back, so I assume this is why. If you've been having issue with a linked phone or other devices in Windows 10, this may be the problem.  Their updates are automatic and your computer is turned on and they are installed during down times by Microsoft.  Not a thing you can do to stop it.  I understand that they will find new vulnerabilities and fixes that should be corrected, but it should be my choice to determine which I want installed and when.

 

Have a good weekend.

Crabass over and out.

 

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