WIPs and new stash

A quick update before April 2010 is history.

This past week DH's brother and SIL visited us from Michigan. We so enjoyed their stay even though my poor BIL came down with a double ear infection which was no fun for him at all. Although we didn't take all the outings we had planned we did manage to do things he felt up to.

We had a great day trip to Death Valley where the spring flowers were in bloom. There weren't as many flowers blooming as there were in 2005 when we had very wet winter, but it was still very pretty. We also drove up to Scotty's Castle which is a special place to visit in Death Valley.

Another day we drove up Mt. Charleston (a twenty minute drive from Las Vegas) which this year boasted the longest ski season of the entire nation. They will be closing tomorrow. It was fun to take J & C up there to see the skiers and snowboarders doing their thing in shorts and tank-tops.

We also went to the strip where we visited The Venetian, The Palazzo, Wynn & Encore, City Center (which I find disappointing) and our old favorite The Bellagio. It is always fun to bring visitors to these beautiful hotel/casinos.

Of course we spent hours and hours just resting, relaxing, catching up, laughing, eating and drinking wine. All in all a great visit. Just hope J feels better very soon.

Now for my WIPs.


First up is the lighthouse I am stitching for my SIL Jane. Jane and her DH have a sweet cottage on a lake in Michigan and she has decorated it in a lighthouse theme. When we visited them last year and were looking through some old cross stitch magazines we came across several lighthouse patterns and I said she could pick out one which I would stitch for her. This is the pattern she chose. I figured I would have it stitched up in no time but let me tell you - the patterns in a 1988 Just CrossStitch magazine with hand-written symbols are much harder to read than today's patterns. There certainly has been a lot of progress in our stitching world.

Usually I'm all lyrical about the wonderful journey of the stitching process but all I want now is for this journey to end. I'd say another week of stitching and back stitching should do it.


Just so I could get away from the lighthouse now and again I started a new project on March 4. This is 'The Red Lady Sampler' by Kirsten Edwards from the April 2008 issue of 'The Gift of Stitching'. Thank you so much Juls for giving me this pattern when I fell in love with it in 2008. Unlike the lighthouse this pattern is a dream to stitch. If you would like to see the painting it is based on check it out here: Mary Wright at the Metropolitan Museum.

Since I have several projects planned as soon as these are finished I probably shouldn't have bought new stash. However, I just couldn't resist. Of course (1) I really do need a new sampler to start as soon as 'Red Lady' is finished. (2) Since I love to decorate for any and every special day of the year and JoAnn Fabric gave a 50% discount on Sunset's 'America' it would have been a shame not to buy the kit. Oh yes (3) - the Marjolein Bastin pattern. Well I don't have a pattern she has designed and as a good Dutch girl I certainly need her in my stash.


Made another sweet purchase this past week but I will keep you in suspense a little longer. I am planning to make a cute little something to go along with it so stay tuned.

Wishing each and everyone of you a wonderful weekend with plenty of sunshine and fun things to do.