Nuclear Blast from the Past

In what feels like my former life, I was the working-but-stay-at-home mother of three children who, in early 1995, were 13, 10 and 3. I had given up my teaching job and started charting for designers, working at Ewe & Eye & Friends and doing data entry at home (I pulled lots of all-nighters). I was a busy girl and was all about stitching. I was an EGA member for several years, and I loved to take classes from designers and EGA teachers.

Way back in those olden days there was a needlework design company called Samplers of Sylke. Marianne and Lillian designed beautiful and complex works of art, as well as some smaller, simpler works. If you don't know about them, you can see some of their work here and here. Anyway, Marianne Rohrer designed a sampler (maybe a commissioned piece) for Dr. Eleanor Sinton, the Sinton Sampler. Dr. Sinton, who died in 2004, then gave months-long seminars on the sampler, complete with a 44-page instruction booklet, for what was a lot of money at the time. So here's a poor picture of a picture of the completed project and my notebook.Now this sampler seminar wasn't like any other I've ever heard of. We met once or twice a month (it's been so long that I can't remember) and received only parts of the instructions and close-up pictures of sections. I think I'm kinda cranky about the whole thing because I felt so manipulated at the time. I remember having to rework my schedule and arrange for kids to be watched to show up for a hastily rescheduled meeting, just to stand at the door and ring the bell for 20 minutes (Dr S did call later to tell me that no one heard me ringing the bell). It was after that incident that I snippily quit the group and stopped working on the sampler. I know! I was silly, huh? But I was feeling controlled, and that's not a happy situation for me. I also remember that Marianne was unhappy about the way things had turned out between her and Dr S, and I felt that maybe Dr S had taken advantage of her and treated her badly.

The point of this rambling account is that, because of all the WIP talk that goes on around here, I've remembered all of the things I started and never went back to. All of a sudden, I remembered this beautiful sampler and how I had wanted to stitch it from the first time I saw it. I think I'm gonna concentrate on it as being a sampler Marianne designed rather than its given name. That feels better.

Below you'll see my progress which, considering all that was happening at the time, isn't too bad. There's no telling when I'll actually work on it ... maybe after I finish ATS. But now I've brought it out of its cute little rabbit box, along with all the memories that accompany it, and I like the idea of working on it again.

Look! An Early Finish

Who could've guessed that I'd finish something on the second day of the new year? Not me! The proof is in the pic, so take a look. I'd like to introduce you to Matilda Harrison, and you'll notice that her name has been altered on my list. Yahoo! Some of you are saying, "Simple minds, simply entertained." I can handle that, because in my world, that is a compliment.

That was the good news. The bad news is that this hateful new (to me) tonsilitis/laryngitis bug is a bitch to get rid of. Even with the use of bacteria-killing drugs and vodka, it's been making me a sad sack since Monday. After finally sleeping hours at a time, today is a better day. My voice still doesn't sound like my voice (good or bad news, depending on who you are), but it's getting there. School starts again this Monday, so I have to be ready, with voice intact, to entertain my little friends.

At the risk of sounding like a sap (you know, it takes one to know one), blogland has been so much fun this week. Every blog I read leads me to other blogs that are incredible. I've discovered so many new ideas and projects and outlooks. OK, no more blathering about blogland.

Tomorrow is the last day of my vacation (huge sigh). I love time off. More specifically, I love unscheduled time. It's a gift that I appreciate more as I get older.

Happy New Year!

I like New Year's. I think it's my favorite holiday, because we sorta get to officially start over and do better. My New Year's Eve is extremely quiet. First, the man I hang out with is on a man trip with brothers and friends. Man trips are good. To emphasize quiet, even though laryngitis is something I've had at least once a year for almost 40 years, some particularly dastardly and disgusting case (that didn't stop me from golfing yesterday) has weaseled its way into my throat. Everyone who calls asks if it's me ... even my mom! It'll be normal soon enough. Oh, and the good news: swallowing is difficult, so I've already inadvertently begun my after-holiday diet!

I know I said the last view of Christmas was yesterday, but I had requests for an answer to the final round of Musical Ornaments. Below are the new ornaments that might have been spotted in the last couple of pictures. That's really the last view of Christmas for 2008.

Next is a picture of the project that has taken most of my stitching time this year, which has to be squished into non-work hours along with a class, a tutoring student, piano practice and lesson, golf and other fun. My version of And They Sinned is being worked in Sampler Threads on 40 count Lambswool. Because I am left-brained and what my friend Rhonda calls a "tuck, tuck, fold" person (she is too, so we get along fabulously), I chose to make the vine border the same all the way down, instead of doing it as charted. Of course, you can't make one change without making others, so some of the cute little things (a brain fart is denying access to the word for those things) had to be moved around. And then I had to center (or center better) some sections because they bothered me. The great news is that I've finished two of four pages, and I'm devoted to finishing all of it this year. Adding to our fun ... my sister is on Page 4 (bitch), and my mom started it right around Thanksgiving and has already made it through the cloud (she's retired and gets to do whatever she wants)! I am definitely the slowest stitcher in the family, but I know more piano songs and chords ... na, na, na.

Finally, here is my New Year's start ... Miss Lila's House. I've started it on black 32 count linen, over one, with Needlepoint Silk. So far, I'm not loving NP silk over one on 32 count. I think it's a fiber twist issue, and I'm trying to get over it (tuck, tuck, fold again rears its ugly head). If worse comes to worse, I may have to change to cotton floss, but I'm gonna give it a chance.

So my goals for 2009 ... 1) finish ATS, 2) keep better track of what I start and finish, 3) make the record more public (a blogland bonus), so I know my successes as well as denials. I'll start with those and see how it works out. Peace, love and understanding to you all in 2009.

Between Rounds

It's been one of those I'm-taking-the-day-off days, so I've been stitching and looking at stitching blogs. After viewing many completed and in-progress projects, I've come to the conclusion that I'm possibly the slowest stitcher in the world, and I still can't imagine how all of these people have time to write so much. They must be much more organized than I am! So you may notice on the right side of the page ... a list is forming. Hopefully, if I start a list of all of the things I've started, maybe I'll become a little more aware of the many things that could use some attention. I'm following a couple of great blogs, so check my blog list at the bottom of the page ... truly amazing stuff is out there to see and to read about. I'll add more as I get to read more blogs. Now, about Round 3 of Musical Ornaments: no one has really had time to play, so I've decided that I'll put together one more round in which you'll have to look for new (no, I'm not kidding) ornaments. I'm working it out in my slow-moving brain, so it'll appear in a day or two. Hope everyone is having happy holidays.