The last snowfall

I hope! 

Late February/early March is notorious for weird, changeable weather around here.  It has been frosty cold.

And it has been snowing off and on for the last few days.  I think this is probably the last gasp of winter, because spring seems to be beginning to poke up its head.

So I've been continuing to hibernate, dreaming of summer vacation to the desert (yes that's the kind of crazy I am) and stitching the gray days away.  And planning.  This coming week is both my birthday and the six-month-anniversary of this blog.  Celebrations all around!

Stitching at the DMV

A good reminder why I always have the travel project in my purse...

The Next Page and Unintended Consequences

I've been burning the midnight oil the last few days to make some deadlines for the day job, which involves researching old property use.  I look at a lot of old maps.

And a lot of old city directories.

And I never know what I might find on the next page.

Yeah, that's a full-page ad for artificial limbs.  Maybe the world was a different place in 1934.

Then I take all this information and type type type until there is a long, long report.  If I knew in college I'd be making my living churning out research reports every week, I don't know if I'd have made different choices, but I probably would have invested in more ergonomic keyboards.

Which is a long-winded way of saying the ol' carpel tunnel is flaring up and stitching is suffering--just when I could use that meditation-like activity the most.  Isn't that the way the world works?  You never know what's on the next page. 

And, what's the next page for this blog? I'm not sure--maybe I need some direction--but I know it is almost six months old, already!  Look for a give-away celebration to begin in a few days, more mossy rock and stitchy experiments, pretty cross-stitch sampler progress pictures, more book and scissor reviews, more pretty photos of the world around us.  It's also a good opportunity to ask you, dear reader, what you come here for...what would you like to see more of on the next few pages?

Stitching on the slopes

Just like it says.  What a gorgeous day!

More moss

It's not mounted on a rock yet, but here's the latest little mossy patch:

This time I used only natural fibers (silk and cotton) and glass and wood beads.  Gives a little different effect than the last one.

The third mossy patch is in progress now.  Can't wait for my little rock garden to be finished!

Zen, doodling.

 I picked up Totally Tangled by Sandy Steen Bartholomew a week or so ago.  I'm not much good at drawing, though I do a mean doodle, and I'm not afraid to sketch out an embroidery design idea...I think I'm better with thread than I am with a pencil.  But, the book was inexpensive and "Zentangles" look like fun.  "Zentangle" is a method of drawing and making images out of repetitive patterns.  Sort of an organized doodle, you can see some wonderful examples at the official Zentangle website, and elsewhere on the web with a quick Google search.  

I'm very attracted to the look of Zentagles, and their intricate-looking detail. They very much look like the way I approach some freestyle embroidery, and could be a fun way to try out ideas.  Despite the intricate look to a finished tangle, they are surprisingly easy.   

That up there, is one of my first "Zentangles"...I'm pleased, and a bit surprised, with how well it turned out!

There is a book out about Zentangle fabric art called Zentangle: Fabric Arts - Quilting - Embroidery, by another author, I will probably get it before too long and will let you all know how it turns out!

Scenes from a Valentine weekend

 If my weekend had a "color story" like the designers talk about, it was spots of red and pink on a background of gray and blue. 

Mossy evening.

Storm outside. Gathering moss tonight.

I'm not dead yet!

I usually do try to update more often than this. It is amazing how quickly that delicate balance of kids-work-hobby can be upset by a simple thing as a minor cold.

But yes, there are more mossy rocks in the works, and as proof, a photo of all the lovely greens in my project box.

(Photo taken with awesome Vignette app that makes your camera phone pictures look like antique film prints. So much fun!)

It must not be a rolling stone...

Because look at all the moss it gathered!

Next time I do this I will use a darker gray ground linen, to be more like real stones.

Lots of fun though and totally "organic" in feel.  It's not "organic" in materials though, I love the effect of the varied texture synthetic fibers. 

I used Rainbow Gallery "Fuzzy Stuff" in a buttonhole wheel stitch to make the fuzziest parts, you can see one pretty well in the center of the above photo. 

Wouldn't it be cool to mass a bunch of these together in a "rock garden"?

Another growth

I didn't get enough green, so here's a little preview of what is growing now.  And an excuse to see how well phone pictures upload directly through the Blogger app.  What do you think?

Sprout!

This little green adventure is done. 

Cute, I think.  It's not exactly what I was going for, but I can always try again.

And I do really like the way the tiny little green flowers (or bugs) turned out.

OK, back to work!  There are not enough hours in the day, I fear...