Next!

The blue thumb is coming along.  My gloves are nitrile, I always include a box in hub's quarterly OTC allowance from his Advantage plan.  Great for potting, painting, messy jobs, but using a smaller size finger tight and long enough to stay put and hold bandage/balms in place is a great aid for healing.  My thumb is already less sore and I should have protected it as soon as the split started.  My hands become velcro like in winter, was told it is a form of seasonal hand eczema (?) and using cortisone cream really calms the condition.  Miracle Hand Cream and others recommended are also used throughout the day but without the steroid cream, mine does not resolve. No rash, no itching, just sticky paws!

First, I decided to add a darker green thread along the border of what will become a roll.  The light green was not strong enough on this linen.

Trying to choose a small project is really tough, but the BBD book that the above project came from is my next stitch.  I've stitched so many of the projects in this book, so so glad I have it.

So this one was chosen, but the bottom section is also featured as a sweet short drum pincushion.

The book recommends 32 count WDW linen shown here, but I don't ever remember the gingham offered in 32 count.  Was it?  I have a small piece of 28 count, would have preferred 32, but never found it.  I ordered two eighths from HobbyHouse and will shrink to a higher count. I have it in my brain that I want a small sampler on a dark gingham .... we'll see how that goes.

So.  In my mind, this baby drum in red check linen with black thread would be adorable.  Doesn't look it with this start, but envisioning the finish ... sweet.  But just in case, I'm also stitching it on the straw check with red thread.  When you can't decide, do them both.   I am adding a top border, do not like it without.

Winds have been brutal, snow is not welcome but came anyway.

Feel better today, not sick, just .... I don't know. And my BP meds are certainly not keeping it down.  Doc called in the script, did not require office checks, and told me to return in a year.  Through my own research, I found that when your cholesterol rises, chances are great you will have HBP.  I stopped my statins this summer when Advil and Tylenol were taken around the clock for months, and it rose quite a bit which coincided with the high BP.  Hmmm.  Why did I have to find that on my own?  Regardless, I'm hoping it will lower as my number goes down, but no blood work for 12 months.  I'll message the cardio office NP for a requisition in a few months.

This is what my Italian family calls spitini.  I have heard of some restaurants offering spidini which is probably the same.  One of our favorites. The beef (usually eye of round roast, best is filet if affordable) is partially frozen in order for the butcher to slice wafer thin which we cut to smaller piece when rolling.  The dish for breading them combines lots of garlic (twice through the press), seasoned bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, and olive oil.  Rolled and alternated with onion slices and bay leaves on skewers, broiled on second rack for 3 minutes each side (less for very thin rolls).  The bay leaves are every other roll and really flavor the meat.  Hubs always makes early in the day and covers in fridge for the flavors to meld.  My sister's friend was too embarrassed to ask, and ate the bay leaves. NO!!

Hope everyone is staying safe and warm.

Every day, closer to Spring.

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Thumbs up?

 Hello hello.

My stitching has been sidelined because of a painful deep split that is not healing.  It is no longer fresh to allow the two sides to meld and heal, the skin inside has hardened preventing that.  Happens during cold weather but visiting more stores during holiday shopping increased sanitizer use, and dry skin suffers. Covering with a finger from latex or nitrile gloves protects and holds the healing balm.  Snug fit stays in place all day (not worn at night), even through water, shortens healing time. 

My last project had a row of solid fill with negative letters.  And that is called .... ?  Reverse stitching?  Negative fill?  Whatever, it has always been difficult for me.  This time, I worked rows vertically making them shorter and so much simpler to count.  Filling the graph's negative space with a color also made it much easier.

These were finished before the split.

Kathy and Lauren's trees inspired me to try something different next year.  While browsing, these real glass icicles caught my eye.  A seller on Amazon offered a three box set for cheap so I grabbed them.  Now there are single box offers for more than half of my three box price.  Some sellers state  "GLASS",  but description beneath states "acrylic".

My new same brand, style, size, compression stockings are ... well ... a little smaller than a year ago.  Really?  Too late to return, did not expect a problem, a costly mistake.  Surprisingly, those silicone dotted bands stay in place without the It Stays roll on. 

I've been feeling crappy for a week but thankfully am not ill.  I hope it's not caused by starting bp meds.  My body does not like drugs.  Was hopeful that Pilocarpine would help the Sjogren's but even a low dose caused a reaction. 

Hope your new year is feeling good!

Thanks for visiting.

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Helper gifts

 Hi stitching buds.

Today is nutroll day #3.  The first yeast cake dated 1/24/24 was opened after all other dough ingredients were in the bowl, and it had black spots.  Hubs went to the store for another, same date, but dead.  Not a bubble, no foaming at all.  Day #2.  A different store with date of 1/17/24, very active, but hubs insisted on using the previously prepared bowl and I knew the foamed yeast would not incorporate once the dough's butter had hardened in the fridge overnight.  Men.  What can I say?  Another failure and wasted cake, this time, our fault.  At $4.50 each x 3, I was ticked.  So today, starting over from scratch, with dry yeast.  We could go back for another fresh cake but what if it's not as good as the last one?  The store would not replace or refund the first two duds and I will not take the chance again.  Never ever in all these years have I had a bad cake, and this year, two.

This week I plan to start cleaning Carole's house and I've already purchased a few items to organize and hold the clutter in the kitchen.  

A stand that creates a shelf over her air fryer and coffee pot, adjustable to 23" wide, was a surprise.  The quality for the price is great and the shelf will get items off the counter.  Several options offered HERE.

Wire baskets on the inside of the broom closet and pantry door will hold lots of packets, treats, spices, wraps. Larger and deeper ones will be installed inside the linen closet door for often used OTC products and soaps. 

She was really pleased with the Christmas gifts I chose for her making food prep easier.  The magnetic double sided spoons, rechargeable can opener, battery motion light for ceilings in closets and stairs, easy hold peelers.

When  you can't get out to see what's in stores, or browse/order from a flip phone, receiving gifts to make chores easier and safer is a great help.  This motion light requires 4 D batteries which should last for months and gives a good amount of light for a battery lamp HERE.  I now check lumens before lighting purchases!

I started watching Colorado Cross Stitcher's floss tube and added her to my top five favorites.  Her latest showed an oddly shaped project and wondered how a final finish would be.  The first thing I was taught when working at the framer was to check the borders of needlework for missed stitches, and notify the owner.  Then we moved to creative options when necessary for odd shapes.  For that Alpine design, the mat and frame looks the best (to me) but much higher in price than having wood or HDF cut to shape.  Affix the stitchery to the wood like a hornbook, maybe outline with rustic studs.  The PAINT program is a great tool to play with, helping to envision options.  And fill your time when the knee immobilizes your overweight body. 

The butter is softened, the flour measured, it's time to make the dough!!

Have a  wonderful  day!

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Oh those professional finishers

 Vonna and Faye always tempt with photos of their work.  Many times, designs were never seen, and in some cases, designers not heard of!  Such is the case with Needles and Fred and their chart titled Three stockings.  Oh my.  So I searched and searched, with no satisfaction, and will try to stitch from the photo. Shouldn't be too difficult (sure).  Separately on perforated paper, sweet!  Or on fabric sewn into stocking shape or square, just darling.  Or as charted, divine.

Watching flosstubers reveal their hauls, WIPs, and stash, there are so many designers that I am unaware of.  Maybe that's a good thing.  

Nutroll day!!  Finally.  Unfortunately, the 1/24/24 dated cake yeast had black spots.  Hubs is roaming the stores now looking for another, probably end up with dry.  Searched and searched online, found five different reputable sites claiming entirely different measures for subbing the dry for cake.  Flour and all else is bowled and ready so ....  let's rise!  Bolbalki this weekend hopefully.  I found a new pastry cloth and will try it for kneading the sweet doughs.  My MIL was an excellent baker and would not knead/roll without it.

If you are interested in the hemstitch finish, search for how to videos online, better than diagrams.  Jeanny Cobben is not blogging now but you can still visit her remarkable works HERE.  She shares many photos of edge finishing, visit her September 2020 post.  If I wore a skirt, it would fly up.

Hope your day goes swell.

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Boom 1

 Many changes!

Small pillow ..... or hemstitch edge?

3.5" x 6"

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A stroke of luck

 Working on the primer chart with changes (of course).  Should have been completed but ....

The last row will be solid fill with her name, I may add the date also, the two rows above that are left off.  Small, very quick, quite similar to my favorite small of last year.  

My aging brain was shocked when I realized Notforgotten Farms little thread pouch was not stitched in 2023 (another favorite small).  Since I fail to add labels to posts, looking back for the year's finishes took some time.  Where was that pouch?  2022!!  Very hard to accept my sense of time is that bad.  Vocabulary too!  What the hell is happening?  I wrote 2024 at the end of the date line on a load of personal checks, guaranteeing no flubs until I adjust to the change.

Now for the luck.   Decided to change all bulbs to LED bright white from the soft white.  Not the stark ultra or bluish daylight, the bright is mid range.  Just grew tired of the warmer yellow, this bright is soft enough but whiter, without being harsh.  While browsing that display, a man said "hey, you got old".  As we turned to face him, after a few seconds I recognized the construction pro we had used a few decades ago.  Wow!  He got old too.  So he spent time here yesterday (hours) catching up and we have an excellent knowledgeable pro now!  YAY!  He was working as the foreman for a large builder which is why we couldn't find him.  Now on his own after major surgery (no more scaffolds and roof trusses), he will be fitting our projects into his schedule. 

Someone asked for the source of Spring Green and Budding Twigs finishes in my 2023 recap.  They are both in BBD's Ooh la la book.  

Hope everyone is well and safe.

Happy 2024.

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