I feed my soul...By the stitches I sew.

I have had an interest in embroidery for as long as I can remember. As you can see, I'm not that good at it and my stitches are all wonky and uneven. Over the years, I have completed many cross stitched pieces but no embroidery. I'm finding that cross stitching is a piece of cake when compared to embroidery. I'll admit that this is one skill that I have yet to hone, but I won't let that stop me. I'm a firm believer that practice makes perfect and I plan to practice until I get it right.

This is a classic pattern and one that I'm sure many of you have seen before. There is a certain nostalgic feel to it and it reminds me of my paternal grandmother. It looks very much like something she would have embroidered onto her pillowcases.

I have been admiring quilts that include embroidery work in their design for a very long time. There is something very pleasing to me to see embroidered pieces scattered amongst the beautiful blocks of color. I know that I won't be attempting a quilt anytime soon, but maybe a few embroidered pieces may find their way into my handbag designs this year. This is just in the planning stages, but one that I hope to bring to fruition sometime soon.

I want to apologize for the quality of my photo. In an effort to post early in the morning, I'm having to take my pictures while it's still dark outside. I'm sure there is a way to get better photo's even in the darkness, but I'm a bit camera challenged. If you click to enlarge it, you will get a better idea of what it looks like in person.

I want to extend my thank you to each of you who made a comment to yesterday's post. I will admit that it has gotten a little bit overwhelming at times to answer each and every one of you individually, but please know that I appreciate the time and thoughtfulness of each comment that I receive from you.

I'm off to practice my stitching. I hope you have a great day!

Aloha!

***Don't forget to enter my giveaway. If you are new to my blog, please refer to my post of April 8 for the rules.***

Beautiful Hawaii.....Well, Usually.

Imagine this...You've been saving your money for many years to take that once in a lifetime trip to Hawaii and upon arrival, you are faced with dark, angry, overcast skies. I'm sure that with the passing of each rainy day you would be trying to convince yourself that there would most certainly be blue skies tomorrow. After all, this is Hawaii, right? I'm sure our recent visitors are still shaking their heads in disbelief and cursing their most unfortunate circumstances that they have visited during such an extended period of lousy weather.

The photo above was snapped on Sunday afternoon from my patio. Where's the sun you ask? Well, let me assure you that it's under there somewhere. Notice the tiny blue patch of sky peeking from between the clouds. Tiny snippets of blue sky made intermittent visits throughout the day. Ah...it's sure to clear up by late noon, you enthusiastically say. Well, if it's anything like yesterday or the day before or the day before that, it likely isn't going to happen.

From time to time we go through periods like this. The downside is that the tourists probably won't get that fabulous tan that they told everyone back home they would. The upside is that they probably won't go back home looking like an overcooked lobster either. If you have ever had the opportunity to people watch at the Honolulu International Airport, you'd know exactly what I mean. Tourists step off of the plane looking like normal human beings. Hawaii sends most of them back home looking like bright red lobsters. I kid you not! The only advice I have to offer while vacationing here is to use a sunscreen with a high SPF level and to plan your vacation during the summer months. The weather is usually the most stable then and you will be sure to go back home sporting a beautiful shade of red, err, I mean tan.



As you can see, I continue to have pinwheels on my mind. I squeezed in a little time to put together a quick pinwheel project. I used the extra fused fabric from the wall pocket to make teeny tiny pinwheels for little girl's hair elastics. Of course, I'm sure the little ones would appreciate much prettier patterns and brighter colors. I think that the experiment was a success and I probably will be making more very soon.

I hope you all had a very fun-filled, creative weekend. Tell me about your weekend if you have the time. I love hearing from you.

Aloha!

**EDITED TO SAY: Who woulda thunk it, when darkness turned to light, lo and behold, blue skies reign over Hawaii once again. I guess I was starting to feel the effects of the dreary weather we've been having lately, hence today's post. LOL**

***Don't forget to enter my giveaway. If you are new to my blog, please refer to my post of April 8 for the rules.***

T.G.I.F.

Thank you to everyone who stopped by yesterday and entered my giveaway. I'm sorry that I couldn't respond to each of you individually. I spent much of the day with my head on my pillow in a semi-unconscious state. Cough, cough, sneeze, cough....you get the picture. And the fever, oy vey! I awoke this morning to some really wonderful comments. It's amazing how intertwined our memories are. My heartfelt thank you for sharing them with me.

Drum roll please...I have finally completed one pincushion. Yes, you read that right, just ONE pincushion. I have absolutely no motivation to get this project done. Here's a photo of the pincushions in various stages of completion. Hopefully they will all end up looking like the black and red one in the front. One down, 56 more to go.



Here is a close-up which shows the beading that I have done. I love how it adds a little bit of interest to an otherwise mundane pincushion.




Have a fabulous weekend. See you all on Monday.

Aloha!


***Don't forget to enter my giveaway. If you are new to my blog, please refer to my post of April 8 for the rules.***

Pinwheels In My Pocket

As a child, I remember how much I appreciated each and every toy that came my way. I didn't have everything that I wanted but I'm sure that I did have more than many children. I have very few memories of expensive, fancy toys. Most of my toys were simple things like jump ropes, liquid bubbles, jacks, hula hoops and pinwheels.

I grew up in simpler times. A memory that I hold so vividly is playing house and dress up. A calabash aunt from across the street gave my sisters and me a bunch of old clothes and shoes that she had acquired from a friend. I remember how the clothes looked so "old" to me at the time, probably items from the 40's and 50's. We cherished them just as much as our favorite toys. We'd gather the neighborhood kids, dress up in our finery and play house for hours and hours each day. Pure and simple fun and great memories.



If you are wondering why I'm reflecting back, it is because memories of my childhood came flooding back to me as I assembled this wall pocket. I began reflecting on many things that I hadn't thought of in years. Who would have thought that making pinwheels would bring back so many happy memories.

My pictures are pretty dark because of the lack of sunlight due to heavy cloud coverage. If you click on the image to make them larger, you will be able to see the details much better.



I know this will not be my last pinwheel project since making them brings me so much joy.

I wish you all a memorable day.

Aloha!


***Don't forget to enter my giveaway. If you are new to my blog, please refer to my post of April 8 for the rules.***

It's a Rainy Day in Hawaii Nei

Woke up this morning to terrible weather and a terrible cold. My son and his girlfriend have been sick for a couple of weeks and finally hubby and I have succumbed. The islands are currently under a flash flood warning with rain expected through next week. This looks like it's going to be a very icky week(s).

For my new readers, please refer to yesterday's post for the rules to enter my giveaway. I will try and post as early as possible each day so that my international readers will have the same opportunity to enter the giveaway. Sorry for the inconvenience. I'm going to try my best not to leave anyone out.

I'd like to show you a bookmark that I've been making for my craft fairs and plan to do so again this year. Notice in the photo all of the woven ribbon that is still waiting to be turned into bookmarks. The story of my life, I tell you. If there was an award for the person with the most incomplete projects, surely I would win.

The main part of the bookmark (the flower stem) is made from woven ribbon. I've attached a flower and leaf to each end. Simple, cute, effective.



Here is a look at it in action. I love how the flower and the leaf peek out from both sides of the book.



I hope you all have a truly fabulous day. Good luck in the giveaway, everyone.

Aloha!

Yes, It's Another Giveaway!

That's right, I'm doing another giveaway. The last giveaway was such a success and so much fun that I'd like to do it all over again. If you'd like to see who the lucky winner of my last giveaway is and all of her goodies, scoot on over to Cheryl's Blog. She has a very charming blog filled with many vintage items that I'm sure you will just adore. And lucky you, she even has a shop where you can purchase her little lovelies. So hurry on over!

This giveaway will include a quilted tote. It is 15-inches in width, 13-inches in length with a handle drop of 11-inches. It's a very nice size for carrying around your crafting or quilting supplies. And of course, a few other "surprises" will be included too.



A closeup...



THE RULES (There are many so please read carefully)

This time, the rules will be a little bit different (I like making things difficult, err, I mean fun). To enter, all you will need to do is to make a comment whenever you see a new post, starting from today through April 30. You can increase your chances of winning if you make a comment each time I make a post. YOUR COMMENT HAS TO BE DATED THE SAME AS THAT DAYS BLOG POST AND MADE IN THAT DAYS POST FOR IT TO BE ELIGIBLE. I seldom blog on weekends unless I have something important to say and usually blog anywhere from 3-5 days a week so be sure to check back often. This contest will end on April 30, 2008.

On May 1, 2008 a random date will be chosen, anywhere from April 8 all the way through April 30. For example if April 10 is chosen, all the people who posted on April 10 will be entered into the drawing. From that pool of people, one lucky winner will be chosen.

This contest will be open to everyone. Please, no "anonymous" posts unless that's your real name, okay? LOL If you have a blog, please link back to it when you post. If you don't, please make sure to leave your name (and don't forget to check back on May 1 for the winning name since I won't have any way of contacting you for your mailing address). For example, something like, Shelby T. from Middleton would be ideal as it will help me to distinguish you from Shelby T. from Honolulu. If I end up with three comments from three different Mary's, it could be difficult to determine the actual winner. It would make my life so much easier if you were to comment as Mary S. from Seaside or Mary K. from Seattle or Mary P. from Gainsville. Okay? And please, only one entry per IP address, per household, per day. I hope I have it covered. Any questions, please leave a comment and I will get back to you.

And last but not least, I'd like to give a shout out to the Garden Web Quilting Board gals. My stat count soared by leaps and bounds today. Thank you to Crafteedee for linking to my blog and most of all, I hope you all enjoyed the yo-yo tutorial.

Good Luck to everyone.

Aloha!

Miscellaneous Rambling and a Pinwheel Pin

When weekends roll around, my mind tells me that it's okay to take it easy and do nothing. Well, this past weekend, I accomplished just that. Nothing. I partially cleaned my bedroom. Notice that I said partially. I gave up doing anything productive after a conversation with the Vet as it was a little bit of a downer.

Mouse had another test done on Thursday. The test results show that his kidney function is better but it still shows that he's in kidney failure. In order to slow this down, the Vet recommended changing his food which should result in a little less stress on the kidneys. We are hoping that by doing this, we will slow down the kidney failure. He will continue to get his fluids, but for now, it will be limited to twice a month since he seems to be doing a lot better. That is such a relief because the constant transporting of him to the Vet was wearing thin on both him and me. In jest, the Vet mentioned that he sees that Mouse is getting better because he's gaining weight. Believe me, Mouse does not need to gain any more weight. According to the Vet's assistant, Mouse is the biggest cat that they've seen. He's the biggest cat that I've ever seen too.

I also did some long-needed grocery shopping. Thank goodness my husband doesn't mind going with me. I dislike grocery shopping with a passion. I try to do the major shopping once a month with just a quick run for the essentials in between.

If you are local, you can relate to buying rice in 20 pound bags (islanders eat a lot of rice). As I was transferring the rice to my rice container, I dropped a little onto the floor. I felt a few grains cling to the bottom of my foot. In an effort to rid my foot of the rice, I rubbed it about 3-4 times back and forth on top of my other foot. Somehow I couldn't dislodge the grains from under my foot. When I looked down, the upper portion of my foot had several deep gashes and was oozing blood.

Let me take you back to a little earlier...As I was unloading groceries, one of the bags that was sitting on the floor fell sideways and a bottle broke. The breakage was contained to the plastic bag, or so I thought. What I didn't realize is that one piece of glass found it's way outside of the bag. And wouldn't you know it, I stepped on it without knowing. I'd show you a picture of my foot, but I know you don't want to see my ugly Luau feet(a.k.a. wide feet from going barefoot as a kid). Suffice to say, I'm in a little bit of pain but nothing that needs stitching, thank goodness. I have since found another piece of glass in my kitchen even after sweeping it twice. Either I'm a lousy sweeper or those are some sneaky little pieces of glass. I'm probably a lousy sweeper. LOL

On another note...For at least a couple of years, I have been wanting to make pinwheel pins. I know that I mentioned that I would try and stay away from pin making for a while but I couldn't help myself. I finally decided to try my hand at it (anything to get away from sewing those pincushions...LOL). Well, I must say that it turned out pretty cute and it's everything that I was hoping for. The pattern that I used to create this pinwheel can be found here
This gal has a site dedicated to paper crafting and rubber stamping. I hope you give her a visit as she does wonderful things with paper and is sure to inspire you.



The pinwheel is made by fusing 2 contrasting fabrics together with Heat 'n Bond Ultrahold prior to cutting out the shapes. I frequently use fused fabric in my projects as it keeps fraying to a minimum. It also adds body to an otherwise floppy piece of fabric. I hope you give it a try. It was fun to do and it brought back memories of how much I loved pinwheels as a child.

Well, I'm sorry that I've been so long winded. I will close by wishing you a fabulously creative day!


Aloha!