i am so grateful

for finally having time to explore and dream and create and spin and stitch. this little guy i did tonight, my first softie i've made in YEARS. he's a bonzo-type for sure, and i'm hoping to develop some kind of little spotted dog softie design all my own. and surprisingly, drawing and cutting this design with no pattern and hand-stitching him only took maybe three hours, which is much less than a typical embroidery piece, so that's kind of cool.

and, i am so grateful for the health and company of my family. for the uninterrupted time drinking wine with my mama. for the grumbly generosity of my dear papa. for trips together we never could have taken just a couple of years ago. this time is so precious, and i savor every second, every touch, every word.

for finding the fairy tale of true love i always hoped for. and for loving someone who is so unfailingly good to me. no amount of gushing will describe how i feel about my husband.

for healthy, happy, sweet critter companions, especially my baby (gulp) imogen with her squint and her bad bionic knees. and the fact that her heart is my heart. (but this is not to diss my other critters, whom i cherish!)

for my husband's sweet daughter who has just come to live with us. i love her already and feel so grateful for this chance to know her and maybe even help her out a little at a difficult time in her life. plus, she is adorable and is helping me dress better.

for such long friendships, people who are still with me after years and even decades.

for our new business venture and the sweet smell of self-employed success!

it's an embarrassment of riches, really. wish i wasn't so weepy thinking of it all! damn that cookie dough milkshake! happy thanksgiving!!

wip, all of it

i got some fabric glue today. had not realized before how much easier it makes things. also looked over this wonderful book on art quilts. i had never thought of what i wanted to do as quilting, but there are so many transferable techniques, especially with applique. it's even better for my purposes than the painted quilt book, which is amazing.

i finally met with my errant committee member, the one who i've been convinced wanted to dump me. i went in there with image of myself as a lamb going to slaughter (i'm prone to drama, perhaps?) anyhoo, he had on a cozy, cute-old-dude sweater, and was not mean but very gracious and supportive, although he did summarily dump me. still, i think it's for the best, as now this leaves me with an open spot on my committee that i might can fill with someone artsy. maybe there is still a way for me to make my degree more overtly art-related with an applied component. i feel good about it and he even gave me some much-needed, good advice. he said "i think you are more than entitled to take all the time you need to think, rethink, and write." how's that for a carte blance to spend my time stitching??

flossing

oh my, ok. so i'm spending the second evening in a row winding embroidery floss onto paper bobbins with this little plastic bobbin winder. my mom has been finding boxes of embroidery floss at garage sales, and i have quite a stash, but it is hard to use because it tangles and it isn't organized. so this method of organization seemed reasonable when i was standing at michael's, anxious to make crafty purchases (it's one of the few allowed with my dottie angel challenge. i do enjoy the meditative aspect of organizing my crafty supplies, but now as my progress is slow, super slow going, i'm just not so sure about this vs. the "toss in box" method.

what do other stitchers do??

lookeee!

I've been featured on Mr. X Stitch!!! i sorta feel like i have found myself, my medium, my voice (WOO!!) with this embroidery thang.

after the rain

we discovered a fairy pond! i guess from all the rain. or maybe it's been here the whole time.