Homemade Gift Idea #3 Embroidered Tea Towel

Hello everybody! Today's homemade gift idea is an embroidered tea towel. It's simple and fairly quick to do once the embroidery work is done. Hope you enjoy the project.

Supply List:

1 flour sack tea towel

embroidery transfer

iron

embroidery floss

rick - rack (2 1/2 yard package)

sewing machine

sewing thread

1.Decide what pattern you would like to use and transfer it to one end of the towel using the instructions for transfer on your pattern. You'll need an iron for this.

2. Embroider your design.

3. Cut 3 lengths of rick-rack 1" longer than the width of the towel.

4. Place one length of the rick-rack above and below your design leaving 1/2" on each side .Pin in place and tuck under the 1/2" and pin to the front of the towel. Take the remaining length and place at the other end ,at the same distance from the lower edge of the first side. Tuck in edges in the same manner as the first side. Pin in place.

5. Sew down the rick-rack and iron the entire towel if you wish. You're done!

This idea can be used for a number of occassions as well as Christmas , such as birthdays, Mother's Day, weddings. It's fun and easy to do.

'Til next time,

Happy Stitching!

Sharlotte

Bass Pro Outdoor World

Greetings all! Yes, I know I know , today is Friday. So where's the homemade gift post you ask? Well hubby took the camera to work today so I don't have it to make my post. I will make an extra post tomorrow with the gift idea , I promise! Well it is just about time for deer season here ( bow season has already been in session) and all the hunters are gearing up including my guys.Yesterday we went to Bass Pro to get a deer blind. We live in the city where the headquarters is. Mr. Johnny Morris got his start selling bait in the back of his dad's liquor store, now he's known worldwide. Here's some shots from our visit.

They're gearing up for Christmas here as well as deer season.

checkers anyone??

We thought that this welcome mat was hilarious and want one for ourselves!

One of the fish tanks. I think hubby said that these are Gar. Alex and I went a few years ago on a homeschool field trip here behind the scenes and was actually up above this tank where no one could see us. The host showed us how they feed these guys. They are much bigger than the look in the pic , probably about 4 feet long.

This is how the ceiling is in the main hall. You feel like you are under the lake. It 's really cool.

One of our favorite taxidermies in the store is this bear. You can hardly go to Bass Pro without finding this one.

Over on the hunting side.

We can barely go to Bass Pro without the guys going to the Shooting Arcade and here they are.

Well that's it for today. I'll be back tomorrow with the gift post.

Thanks everybody for all of your wonderful comments!

'Til next time,

Happy Stitching!

Sharlotte

'It's Berry Time' done!!

Greetings all! Well 'It's Berry Time ' is finally done! I loved working on this one and plan on framing it, hopefully in the near future. I am thinking on framing it in a very dark antique looking frame. Maybe cherry wood? I also am going to start on the strawberry emery for myself that came with the pattern. I might even have to make myself those pins!

Here's a couple of close ups. Sorry they're not that great. Not sure why one turned out a different color. Picture taking is not my expertise.

Here's a project I started. It's from the Cross -Eyed Cricket "Be Ye Thankful " pattern that I won from Jolene. I am planning on making it into a basket top , but I have also thought about making it into a top for a shaker box. Not sure yet.

Here's a little closer look.

Alex took this picture yesterday of a tree here in town. There was a big stink raised here about the cutting down of some of the older trees. Many people had to cut down trees that were 50 or more years old. This resident protested and you can see how he chose to express himself. He had someone make this huge meat cleaver. At the bottom of the tree there are logs from the tree that he painted red to look like the tree was bleeding. This wasn't a Halloween prank , the tree has been like this for quite some time. From what I gather, he won his case, but left the tree this way to remind the city of what they were trying to accomplish didn't entirely work. That clever would make Paul Bunyun's day wouldn't it? I'll try to get a better picture of this later on.

I enjoyed reading everyone's comments yesterday. I had a feeling after posting about the name change of the hamster ,that someone might think he died! Sure enough Sadie had commented that she just knew that I was going to say he did. Didn't mean to give you a fright! Sorry ! The pet store said that they would buy back the babies IF Cheerio was pregnant when the sold her to us. Alex is wanting to raise them ,but I don't know. Five or so could turn into 30 or 40 pretty quick. I was starting to think that the names were starting to go along the snackfood line myself, and J Rae's comment cracked me up. Alex said that he was already thinking of naming one of them Twinkie! Kids are funny aren't they?

Terrie asked me how I can keep the iritis from coming back... The thing with Iritis is that it's an offshoot result of another problem that is going on in the body. I have had numerous tests to try to find out the leading cause and so far they have not been able to find out anything. Very depressing , BUT at least I have a break from it for now! This last bout was one of a few with it I've had and doc thinks that I will likely have it again at some point in my life, but he says that you never can tell with it, it may never return. Here's hoping! So Terrie... your shop is in Haiwassee, GA? Do you know the DeMarco sisters? I love their quilts and other designs! I finished one of their quilts this summer and it is on my wall in the living room. That is the quilt in the background of my "about me" picture .

Thank you all for all of your wonderful comments , they make my day!

'Til next time,

Sharlotte

What's in a name?

Greetings all! Well Munchie is no longer Munchie. No he's not dead, his name has changed. He is now Twix. What is it about kids not being able to make up their minds? Oh well, I can live with that name. We found Twix and Cheerio in...uhem...somewhat of a compromising position shall we say? So I checked and yep, Cheerio looks different than Twix, who we already knew was a boy because the petstore had told us that he just became a papa. So I am guessing that with the hamster gestation period, we will have a few new hamsters in about 2 1/2 - 3 weeks! What to do?

On the stitchity front, I worked some on It's Berry Time and getting so close to being done.I'll probably finish it up tonight. In deciding what to work on next, I'll probably work on Alex's quilt that needs the hand quilting completed . I'll probably also work on some closets that need to be cleaned out. A few weeks ago when Edgar was cleaning closets, that prompted me to do the same. I got the hall closet done, but need to work on the monsters in the bedrooms! Thanks so much for all the comments! I really appreciate them all!

'til next time,

Happy stitching!

Sharlotte

A tisket , a tasket , a little bee basket

Greetings all! Thank you all for your wonderful comments, and for your kind words about little Oreo. They mean a lot! They really do.I'm glad you all liked the strawberry and the pins. Yes I made the pin heads myself out of polymer clay. They are so fun. I hope you all are doing well and staying anyway from that nasty H1N1 flu. My BIL had that and it's a nasty bugger! I need to make a correct on Sadie's link that I gave you yesterday. I had added a comma where I shouldn't have. Hope you found it anyway, if not ,the correct link is : http://stitchingupastorm.blogspot.com/ . You must take some time to visit! I can't take the credit for finding the error. It was pointed out to me from someone else who didn't want others to miss out! Thanks for letting me know! Here is a little basket that I made a few years back and I didn't think I had posted it yet with my other past projects. It's a zippie by Bent Creek titled A.Bee.C . I just love it!

Well, as you can see, I am wrapping up on It's Berry Time. I have liked working on this project ,but I am ready to make myself that strawberry! After that, I really only have one other project to work on and I don't know where to go from there. I am drawing a blank! Well, other than I am working on a basket top using the pattern that I got from Jolene. But other than that, I guess I will have to pull out some old WIP's that I had gotten tired of working on.

I do have some excellent news I wanted to share! I went to my eye doctor's yesterday for a check up.For those that hadn't been following my blog until recently, I have been suffering for the last year and a half, almost two years, from iritis. That's an inflammation of the iris and I've had it in both eyes. He informed me yesterday that the pressure is down to 12 in both eyes ,( from 28 in one eye and 23 in the other) and that I have no inflammation! My vision is even up by two lines on the eye chart! It appears to be gone for now and I'm so excited! Now I go back in a month to check to see if everything is the same. If so, then he will proceed with getting me some glasses. He's been putting it off all this time because my vision kept changing and would be a huge waste of money. I like those kind of docs don't you?

Thanks so much for stopping by.

'til next time

Happy Stitching!

Sharlotte

Some exchanges and a finish

Greetings all! I hope you all are having a wonderful day! As stated last week. I have the winner for the LHN's Hometown Gameboard. The winner is Loraine! I'll get it off to you soon! We have had a pretty crazy weekend that went way to quick. There were some bright sides though. I have decided to make Mondays a little cherrier for my readers by sending them to some terrific blogs that I think they will enjoy . Some will be blogs I know you already know about and some may be new to you. This is in no particular order. The first one is Sadie's blog. You can catch her at http://stitchingupastorm.blogspot.com . She hails from Scotland and has lovely finishes on her blog. I know you'll enjoy your visit. I wanted a share a pic of a personal exchange I have done for Jolene. It's the little strawberry emery from BBD's Loose Feathers #37 'It's Berry Time'. I really enjoyed stitching it and have to make one for myself. I also included four little strawberry pins that I made for her. I thought they would compliment the emery nicely. She tells me that she is going to use it for a fob on a pair of red and green scissors. Won't that be darling?!

After having a lousey day on Thursday, I came home to some wonderful mail. It was from Tracy D. at http://madstitching.blogspot.com/ for the HOE/ HOE II Halloween Exchange. She sent me some orange silky fabric, a little jack-o-lantern tealight, a jack-o-lantern bucket, some chocolates ,( which I ate right away!) a Debbie Mumm porcelain witch's hat button, a little brass pumpkin charm and....



this wonderful little pillow! It's a Maryse design, which lots of you probably already have in your wonderful Halloween stash. She stitched in using DMC on Sugar Maple evenweave. She added over 100 black beads around the edge which I think was the perfect finish for it. I was just telling someone else that morning that I should stitch that and BAM , it came in the mail. Funny how those things work!

Here is a finish that I got done yesterday afternoon. For those of you that didn't see last week's blog entry about this, it's from Little House Needleworks and is called Starlight Sampler. The co-ordinating fabrics that I choose to finish the pillow with are from Moda. It will eventually make it's home in my bedroom ,but is in the livingroom for now 'til I get the quilt done.

Well, do you remember how I told you last week that Alex got some new hamsters after Lionel died? Two days ago Oreo, the dark grey and white one started getting sick. We lost him yesterday afternoon. He was such a small little guy, and very sweet. Alex didn't cry this time as he wasn't yet very attatched to him, but that made me think of Lionel and then feeling so sorry for Oreo, guess who did?! Here is Oreo. He sure was a cutie.

The pet store gave us the option of moneyback or an exchange. We let Alex make that decision , and so... we now have a new hamster named Munchie. I'm sure we'll have pictures in a couple of days of him and Cheerio.

Well that's it for today .

'Til next time,

Happy Stitching!

Sharlotte

Homemade Gift #2 The Best Hot Chocolate Syrup!

Greetings all! Ok , today is Friday and you know what that means! It's homemade gift idea day! Today is for a wonderful hot chocolate syrup that I just know you are going to love. Let's get Started shall we?

Supply list:
1 quart canning jar w/ lid
fabric
ribbon
some sort of suitable tag for instructions
2 cups sugar
1 cup Hershey's cocoa
1 1/3 cups hot water
1/4 teaspoon salf
vanilla extract to taste ( imitation if you like ,but the real stuff is better)

Mix sugar, cocoa, and salt in medium saucepan, stir in water. Cook and stir over medium heat until mixture boils; boil 2 minutes. Add vanilla and stir in. Set aside to cool. When cooled, pour into jar. Tighten the lid and place in the refrigerator until you are ready to give to the recipient.

Next, using the lid as a guide , cut a circle of fabric giving about 2" or so past the lid's edge. Next, take the tag and write the directions on the back as follows: Add as much syrup as you like to hot milk.The more chocolatety the better! On the front of the tag you can add a sticker or whatever you have that looks cute, if you're not using one that is already decorated. I wrote BRR on mine. If you are using a tag without a hole, you'll need to make a small one in the top corner that will hang from the jar. Cut a length of ribbon and thread one end through the hole on the tag. Center the circle of fabric on the top of the jar ,while holding in place , carefully add the ribbon and scoot the tag past where you will be tying the bow and tie in a bow . You're done!

*** As you can probably tell by the picture, I only made half a batch to show you how to make it, and I used a smaller jar . You'll want to make sure that you either make the whole batch or use a jar small enough to use what you are giving. No one wants a half -filled jar. This is a great recipe and can be used all year long. If you want to go a little more elaborate with your gift , you can also give different flavorings along with the syrup such as nutmeg, cinnamon, maybe a litte bag of marshmallows, or some mugs. I think most people in general would be pleased that you took the time to make them something.

Hope you have fun with this one!

'til next time,

Happy stitching!

Sharlotte

Climbing Fences and ...a GIVEAWAY

Greetings all! I hope you all are having a wonderful day! All this rainy weather we've been getting here has made me more a little slower . That got me to thinking about a sign that I have hanging in my kitchen. I bought it years ago from a friend who was doing home catalog parties. I thought you all would get a kick out of it so I took a pic of it . Rings true for a lot of people I think.

Here is a piece from LHN titled Starlight Sampler. It is one of Diane's first designs once she set out on her own. I have had this sitting unfinished for a little bit. I didn't realize that I had the perfect fabric in my stash for finishing it until recently. Isn't it funny that it takes something a while to sink in? Anyway I will be making it into a pillow for our bedroom. It will fit right in with the Pinon Pines quilt when I get around to getting that one done.


...And a close up of a part of it.

....OK , on to the giveaway. It's not a super duper one ,but a giveaway none the less. I stitched this Hometown Gameboard from LHN some time ago and wasn't sure what I was going to use it for. Then I forgot about it and stitched it again and finished that one into a gameboard tray . So when I was cleaning out some of my needlework stash I ran across the first one. I have decided to pass it on. It was stitched with DMC floss on 28 count 'tea' monaco . The entire piece measures approx. 8"x 10". Now remember , this is just for the first stitched piece , not the gameboard tray. All you have to do to enter is leave a comment on this post and a way to contact you if you win. If your email is listed on your 'about me' page, then don't worry about it. I will draw a name on Monday.

Well dear blogging buddies, that's it for today. Thanks so much for visiting.

'Til next time,

Happy stitching!

Sharlotte

Some Exchanges

Greetings all! I hope you all are having a lovely day ! My exchange partners that I sent to have both recieved their exchanges , so now I get to post some pics. The first one is for Melinda B for the HOE/ HOE II Halloween Exchange. Her package contained some floss, a couple of small patterns, one Halloween and one a beach scene. I also included some fall themed ribbon as well as a Reese's pumpkin, a little piece of evenweave I dyed, and some clay buttons that I made. Last ,but not least, the stitched piece itself, a BBD Trick or Treat stocking. This was so fun to put together and I'm glad that she likes it.

Here's a close up of the buttons.

Next is the beCAUSE It's Pink Exchange headed up by Jill F. My partner was Carol S. and I stitched a little piece in different pinks and made it into a lingerie bag. This was the first of that type of bag I had made and I'm glad it turned out well. In Carol's package I included some emery boards, a pink Sharpie, a couple of skeins of pink floss, (only one showing) and a bobbin lace book mark done in pinks. The pattern was I'm in the Garden by Erynn Chard. The original pattern had a W on it and I replaced it with a C for Carol. I hope she likes it.

I worked on a personal exchange yesterday and will send it off soon. I really had a lot of fun working on all the exchanges and so far I only have one more to work on. I worked a little on BBD's Berry Time yesterday . Not much else went on other than housework and school. Well I will wrap this up and let you all get back to your day. Thanks for your visit today.Thanks for the encouraging words yesterday!

'Til next time,

Happy Stitching,

Sharlotte

Pumpkin Patch Primitves Giveaway (2nd post today)

There is a great giveaway over at Pumkin Patch Primitive Quilt Shoppe. Go check it out at http://pumpkinpatchprimitivequiltshoppe.blogspot.com/ . It's a good one!

I'm not June Cleaver!

Greetings all! Don't have much to report today. I worked some last night on a Christmas ornament exchange and a tiny bit on Berry Time. I tried like the dickens to get some housework done. There just isn't enough hours in the day to get it all done. I have days that I try so hard to get it all done that I wind up getting nothing done! I dream of a life where I get the housework all done, and stay caught up on it. I have dinner ready at a somewhat desirable hour, have the house smelling wonderful. a beautiful dessert to go with dinner, and all is well. Well.... this chick isn't June Cleaver, so NOT going to happen! :o) I wish it could .Really though, I often wonder how in the world our moms did it all. I think they deserve a lot more appreciation thrown thier way don't you? I know that I am not the only one that can't get it all done. Sad but true. Calgon take me away!

Okay, now that I have blown off some steam, I'm done with my gripefest! For now! LOL! I leave you this morning with a piece I stitched a couple of years ago.It's LHN's Plant Kindness. It hangs on the wall of the family/game room. Maybe one of these days we'll actually be able to use it as a family at the same time. Here's hoping!

Thanks so very much for the comments on Jack's Salem Inn piece. He is very thrilled that everyone likes it. So far everyone at his work has like it too! That's it today folks!

'Til next time,

Happy stitching!

Sharlotte

A package arrived and a Salem finish

Greetings all! Hope you all had a wonderful weekend! Thanks so much for your comments on the cookie bag. I think those of you who choose to make it will really enjoy it. Friday was a rotten day for me. We had so much going on ,lots of confusion too. Hubby and I don't see each other much each day. Just enough to get things confused and not enough time to get it straighten out. Friday was one of those days.Plus I think I was having one of those Princess Must Scream days...you get my drift? .Which didn't help. Alex was outside petting the dogs and came in all muddy. I tried like mad to get the mud out to no avail. Guess I will have to try to soak it in Biz. Wonder if they still make that stuff. Anyway after returning home that afternoon, I was greeted by some wonderful mail. My winnings from Jolene at Dip Diddly Designs arrived! I was so thrilled ! The beautiful pattern, the floss , and that gorgeous towel! She also sent along a pack of Starburst ,which of course with the day I had I quickly gulped down. I was having a grand ole time then.Thanks again Jolene!

Hubby finished Salem Inn last night. Doesn't it look great? He said he'd love to do more cross stitch as long as it was Halloween designs.


Here's my progress on BBD It's Berry Time. I love working on this.I'd probably have it done by now too if it wasn't for that pesky thing called life! You all know what I mean.

Yesterday we were out and about and Alex wanted to stop at Petland and pet the hamsters. We knew he was missing Lionel so we thought it would either make him feel better or worse ,but desided to stop. Well petting led to wanting, and wanting led the salesman into telling us that they were 30% off, this weekend only. That led to wanting again and in the end, two came home with us. We were surprised that Alex would want one or two for that matter, so soon. He played up a storm with them when we got home. One is dark grey and white, which he named Oreo. The other is a pale peachy beige and white , that he named Cheerio. They are really sweet. No idea at this age what sex they are. We may bave bought more than we bargined for yesterday. Guess we'll soon find out!

Well that's it today kids! Thanks for stopping by!

'Til next time,

Happy Stitching!

Sharlotte

Homemade Gift #1 Cookie Bag

Greetings all! Welcome to homemade gifts week #1. It's a cookie bag. The pattern I used for stitching is a free pattern from Lizzie Kate called Cozy Christmas Wishes. I'm sure all of you seasoned stitchers out there are familar with this one. For those who aren't , you can find it under the free patterns at http://lizziekate.com/ . You can play around with different fabrics and ties for a different look. Put your thinking cap on. There are lots of possibilities. Now let's get started.

Supply list:
Stitched piece
decorative ribbon
fabric
thread
button or charm (optional)
ziplock bag
homemade cookies of your choice





1. Select the piece that you want to stitch . I chose of course Cozy Christmas Wishes but you can choose whatever pattern suits you that would go good on this type of project. If you embellish your piece with a charm or a button, make sure it is one that will hold up in the washer so it can be washed when necessary. Now trim down the piece to desired size.

2. Cut fabric 14"x 34". Fold in half matching short edges. Center design and pin down being careful not to pin fron and back together. Sew around about 3/8" from the edges. Clip threads and then pull a few threads around the edges to fray. Fold right sides together and sew a 5/8" seam allowance on each side leaving a little space at the top, about 1/4"- 3/8" . This is so that you will be able to fray the edges a lot easier. You can zigzag the seams if you want to but I just left them unzagged! Is that a word? LOL!

3 . Now pull the front and back out until points form at the corners of the bottom of the bag. Measure in 2" in from each point and sew a seam straight across each corner. This will give 4 sides to your bag. Trim excess off leaving a 5/8" seam allowance. Turn right side out. Pull a few threads at the top edge to fray.

4. You are ready to bake your favorite cookies to give. I cheated and used store bought cookies for demo. When it's the real deal I bake them. ;) . You'll want to use a self sealing or Ziplock bag to put the cookies in so the butter, oil , shortening, or whatever doesn't soil the bag. Place cookies in the gift bag and tie closed with a co-ordinating decorative ribbon and you're done!

This is a fun and easy project that goes fast once you have your stitched piece completed. Everyone that has gotten them from me just loves them. If something in the instructions was unclear and you need help with it, just send me an email with 'cookie bag' in the subject line.

'Til next time,

Happy Stitching!

Sharlotte

Feeling the Blahs

Greetings all ! Not much to report today. I did want to thank everyone that sent condolences to Alex. They helped perk him up a bit.! I had been home maybe half an hour from talking my hubby to work when he called that I needed to go pick him up. They sent him home because he was throwing up. I had sinus trouble yesterday and I got up this morning feeling like I could start doing the same thing. It's really the pits. I still plan on posting tomorrow with a gift idea provided I'm not sick in the bed! Keeping my fingers crossed. Hope you all have a great day!

'Til next time'

Happy Stitching,

Sharlotte

A family with a heavy heart

Greetings all. Our family has a heavy heart this morning. Yesterday morning my son's hamster Lionel was just fine. Then later in the day we noticed that he was moving really slow and his spine was in a huge curve . Late last night he was hardly breathing so my husband decided to go ahead and get a hole dug because we knew what was coming. We went to bed and when we got up this morning, sure enough he was gone. My son's heart is just breaking and mine is breaking for him. The only thing that we can figure out is that he often times would crawl across the top of his cage and he must have fallen wrong and got a bad injury. We always kept his food dish on the side when my son would feed him. Lionel was funny because he'd always scoot back out into the middle. He was a sweet little thing and didn't bite like most hamsters do. We will all miss him.

If anyone is interested in sending Alex condolences , you can either do it here or on his blog at http://aboyandhiscomputer.blogspot.com/

'Til next time,

Sharlotte