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Hi friends! I have finished March-Shamrock from Rainbow Gallery, the 2005 Cross Stitcher's Surprise Series. I chose my own DMC colors and once again omitted the charm since my finish is so little. I stitiched this one over one on 25ct cream evenweave.

At the end of this week, it will go into the cubby shelf.😉

I am now getting close to a finish on a special gift for a special friend. I am really enjoying stitching this gift! It is going to be hard to give away!! Cannot share a picture just yet.

I really enjoyed this book! If you like Clark Gable and Loretta Young, two of the main characters in this book, you will enjoy this book. This book takes place during the golden age of Hollywood. Really interesting and really good.
Adriana Trigiani, the New York Times bestselling author of the blockbuster epic The Shoemaker's Wife, returns with her biggest and boldest novel yet, a hypnotic tale based on a true story and filled with her signature elements: family ties, artistry, romance, and adventure. Born in the golden age of Hollywood, All the Stars in the Heavens captures the luster, drama, power, and secrets that could only thrive in the studio system—viewed through the lives of an unforgettable cast of players creating magic on the screen and behind the scenes. In this spectacular saga as radiant, thrilling, and beguiling as Hollywood itself, Adriana Trigiani takes us back to Tinsel Town's golden age—an era as brutal as it was resplendent—and into the complex and glamorous world of a young actress hungry for fame and success. With meticulous, beautiful detail, Trigiani paints a rich, historical landscape of 1930s Los Angeles, where European and American artisans flocked to pursue the ultimate dream: to tell stories on the silver screen. The movie business is booming in 1935 when twenty-one-year-old Loretta Young meets thirty-four-year-old Clark Gable on the set of The Call of the Wild. Though he's already married, Gable falls for the stunning and vivacious young actress instantly. Far from the glittering lights of Hollywood, Sister Alda Ducci has been forced to leave her convent and begin a new journey that leads her to Loretta. Becoming Miss Young's secretary, the innocent and pious young Alda must navigate the wild terrain of Hollywood with fierce determination and a moral code that derives from her Italian roots. Over the course of decades, she and Loretta encounter scandal and adventure, choose love and passion, and forge an enduring bond of love and loyalty that will be put to the test when they eventually face the greatest obstacle of their lives. Anchored by Trigiani's masterful storytelling that takes you on a worldwide ride of adventure from Hollywood to the shores of southern Italy, this mesmerizing epic is, at its heart, a luminous tale of the most cherished ties that bind. Brimming with larger-than-life characters both real and fictional—including stars Spencer Tracy, Myrna Loy, David Niven, Hattie McDaniel and more—it is it is the unforgettable story of one of cinema's greatest love affairs during the golden age of American movie making.

Our weather remains the same here in Wisconsin. Cold with snow.☹️ Oh well. Nothing new. That is to be expected around here. Spring is a ways off for us.

I do hope you have a great week my friends. I thank you for stopping by. I am so glad you did!

“Come now, and let us reason together,” Says the Lord, “Though your sins are like scarlet, They shall be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They shall be as wool."  Isaiah 1:18

Stitching and praying,
Vickie

Pansy Bouquet

Hi friends! Let me share with you my little Spring finish.

This free pattern is called Pansy Bouquet. It is offered by Stitched Modern and you can find it HERE I do think these look more like primroses than pansies though. What do you think? I love them either way.

I stitched this two over two on 27 count white linen with some of the called for DMC. This pattern was designed to use almost every single one of the new 35 DMC colors. Well I only have 8 of them, and I did not want to use the browns! So I chose my own for the rest.

I have finished the March Rainbow Gallery piece for the cubby shelf. I need to finish it off. I will show that next time.

I am now stitching a special gift for a special stitching friend.

I baked a loaf a cinnamon swirl bread in the bread machine the other day. A good treat on a cold day!

Our friend Martina had asked me to share a picture of my orchids. I finally remembered.

Have you noticed I do not tell you about crummy books? That is because once I start a book and realize it is a stinker, I stop. I also don't bother to mention here the so-so, or not so great books. I just pass on the good or great books to you!😁 Tony's Wife by Adriana Trigiani is yet another great read.

I have yet to be disappointed by this author.😊
Love, ambition, and the consequences of both lie at the heart of this spellbinding epic of two working-class kids who become a successful singing act during the big band era of the 1940s. Chi Chi Donatelli and Saverio Armandonada meet one summer on the Jersey shore before World War II. Chi Chi is a talented and ambitious singer-songwriter working in a local blouse factory looking for her big break, while Saverio, a singer already on the rise, is fronting a touring band and has the good looks and smooth vocals that make success seem assured. It isn’t long before Saverio becomes Tony Arma and he and Chi Chi form a duo; together they navigate the glamorous worlds of nightclubs, radio, and television. Soon they’re married and all goes well until it becomes clear that they must make a choice: Which of them will put ambition aside to build a family and which will pursue a career? What compromises will they make to achieve their dreams? And on the road to fame and fortune, how will they cope with the impact these compromises have on their marriage, family, and themselves? From the Jersey shore to Hollywood, New York City to Las Vegas, the hills of northern Italy and the exuberant hayride of the big band circuit in between: Tony’s Wife tells the story of the twentieth century in song, as Tony & Chi Chi make studio recordings and promote them with appearances on The Ed Sullivan Show and The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. As they juggle the demands of their public lives, secrets are revealed, promises are broken, and loyalty is tested as the Armas attempt to keep the music playing and their family together. Tony’s Wife is a richly layered novel that explores how a traditional Italian-American family grapples with the seismic shifts they face in a rapidly changing world. Replete with a pageant of vivid, complex characters, this deeply human saga of love and sacrifice showcases Adriana Trigiani’s gifts as a captivating storyteller and reveals her understanding that there are many different kinds of families: that over time love can evolve in ways that nobody can predict, especially when the hearts involved are open to forgiveness, the sweet reprise of redemption.

I hope you have a lovely weekend my friends! I hope you have nice weather wherever you are. Snow, snow, snow. That is what we have headed our way once again this coming week. Spring is quite a ways off.

“Therefore, we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.” 2 Corinthians 4:16

Stitching and praying,
Vickie

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Hi friends!  Here is a sweet free pattern I finished for the cubby shelf right before Valentine's Day. It does have a nice, big red heart, but I am keeping this beauty up all year round.

I took out the partial alphabet on the left and put in my initials AND a poodle! The poodle is from my Dog House of Puppy Dogs by Bent Creek pattern. I got rid of the small checkerboard at the bottom right and added small hearts instead. I stitched this one over one on 25 ct white linen with Atalie Lie de Vin.  This free pattern can still be found HERE

I am now doing some finishing on a sweet Spring freebie. I will show you that next time. I wish it were Spring! As you can see, it is not around here.

This is the waterfall in our village. It is one block from our apartment on Main Street.

I do believe it was our friend Julie? who read this book The Key by Kathryn Hughes.
 
I did enjoy reading this book, I know that you found it a bit difficult to stick with, is that right Julie?
A hidden note. A lost love. A second chance... 'A wonderful, enthralling story; one that I didn't want to end' Lesley Pearse on The Key 'A heartbreakingly powerful read' The Sun on The Key From the #1 best selling author of The Letter, Kathryn Hughes, comes The Key, an unforgettable story of a heartbreaking secret that will stay with you for ever. 1956 It's Ellen Crosby's first day as a student nurse at Ambergate Hospital. When she meets a young woman admitted by her father, little does Ellen know that a choice she will make is to change both their lives for ever... 2006 Sarah is drawn to the now abandoned Ambergate. Whilst exploring the old corridors she discovers a suitcase belonging to a female patient who entered Ambergate fifty years earlier. The shocking contents, untouched for half a century, will lead Sarah to unravel a forgotten story of tragedy and lost love, and the chance to make an old wrong right . . .

I hope you have a nice week my friends! I thank you for stopping by. I am so glad you did. Your comments always brighten my day. Thank you!💗

Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.  Matthew 6:34

Stitching and praying,
Vickie

💘Secret Stitching Sweetheart Blog Hop

Hi friends! Welcome to the Secret Stitching Sweetheart Blog Hop hosted by the one and only Jo!

There are many stitchers participating. We each sent Jo a picture of something sweet for Valentine's Day that we created or stitched. She sent it on to another stitcher. We each get  a picture to post today. You need to visit HERE, at Jo's blog to see the list of everyone's name and the blogs to visit! It is fun!😍

Here is the picture of the stitched piece I was sent. Isn't is beautiful? I do not recognize it? Is it yours? Please identify yourself!💗

Now I am headed off to Jo's blog myself to see who got my Valentine!

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY MY FRIENDS!

1Corinthians 13  Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal.  And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.  And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing.  Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up;  does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil;  does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth;  bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.  Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away.  For we know in part and we prophesy in part.  But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away.  When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things.  For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.  And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

Stitching and praying,
Vickie

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Hi friends! I stitched up this Rainbow Gallery pattern for the pedestal frame for next month.

This is from the 2003 Cross Stitcher's Surprise Series and it is called 'March Squared'.  You can find more Rainbow Gallery free patterns RIGHT HERE

I stitched this pattern on 28ct lambswool two over two with my own choice of DMC, VMSS Tarnished Gold, a mystery variegated pink floss and Wisper for the sheep. The pattern called for lavender color where you see pink, but I changed that. Imagine that!😉

I am now stitching up a free pattern for the cubby shelf.

I know I mentioned The Cat Who... series last year, and how I have begun reading them again after taking a few decades hiatus from this series. I am truly enjoying each and every one of these books! I am actually listening to them now. I read the first twelve books. I plan to listen to books thirteen through thirty. They are fun with a mystery. The last two that I have finished are:

In this mystery in the bestselling Cat Who series, Jim Qwilleran takes a trip to Scotland and brings home a case that only his cats Koko and Yum Yum can solve... Qwill’s on his way to Scotland—and on his way to solving another purr-plexing mystery. But this time, Koko’s nowhere near the scene of the crime. He and Yum Yum are back in Pickax, being coddled by a catsitter...but Koko won’t sit still once Qwill’s traveling party returns—minus one member. He’s behaving oddly, and Qwill knows what that means: Koko may have been miles away from the murder scene—but he’s just a whisker away from cracking the case!

In this charming Cat Who mystery, a misused mansion sets the stage for a strange caper for Jim Qwilleran and his cats Koko and Yum Yum. Qwill’s moved into the old Gage mansion—and the cats are on a treasure hunt. The house’s fifty closets are crammed with several generations of junk, and while Qwill investigates two recent deaths—those of the mansion’s former occupant and a local potato farmer—Koko investigates the contents of the closets. Qwill and the cats wind up unearthing some surprising skeletons—and bringing long-buried secrets to light...

The February cubby shelf display.

Stay warm my friends! That's what we are working on doing here.😉

Thank you for stopping by. Your comments always encourage me. Thank you. I am so blessed to call you friends.💗 I hope you have a wonderful, stitchtastic week!

Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.  1Corinthians 15:58

Stitching and praying,
Vickie

💗Lizzie Kate Finish💗

Hi friends! I stitched up February Flip It by Lizzie Kate. This pattern was a gift from our friend Robin.

I stitched this one over one on 25 ct cream evenweave linen with DMC. I made a few color changes. There are also a few errors in there.😬I tried and tried to correct them and said to heck with it! It looks fine! It is so tiny, who will know? This is now in the cubby shelf. I have not forgotten that you would like to see the cubby display for February. It has been overcast for days. I cannot get a good picture yet. Maybe next post!

After the Valentine piece I dragged out the Bluegrass Bibs.🤪 Yes, the project that never ends! I stitched two more autographs. Ronnie and Garnet Bowen. If you are into Bluegrass you will recognize Ronnie. I have stashed the bibs away again. There are more autographs to stitch. And they are undecipherable and much larger.😒 I am doing this because I love my brother.

Have some of you read The Indigo Girl by Natasha Boyd? I love historical fiction, don't you? This was a good one. A story I was not familiar with at all.

An incredible story of dangerous and hidden friendships, ambition, betrayal, and sacrifice. The year is 1739. Eliza Lucas is sixteen years old when her father leaves her in charge of their family's three plantations in rural South Carolina and then proceeds to bleed the estates dry in pursuit of his military ambitions. Tensions with the British, and with the Spanish in Florida, just a short way down the coast, are rising, and slaves are starting to become restless. Her mother wants nothing more than for their South Carolina endeavor to fail so they can go back to England. Soon her family is in danger of losing everything. Upon hearing how much the French pay for indigo dye, Eliza believes it's the key to their salvation. But everyone tells her it's impossible, and no one will share the secret to making it. Thwarted at nearly every turn, even by her own family, Eliza finds that her only allies are an aging horticulturalist, an older and married gentleman lawyer, and a slave with whom she strikes a dangerous deal: teach her the intricate thousand-year-old secret process of making indigo dye and in return -- against the laws of the day -- she will teach the slaves to read. So begins an incredible story of love, dangerous and hidden friendships, ambition, betrayal, and sacrifice. Based on historical documents, including Eliza's letters, this is a historical fiction account of how a teenage girl produced indigo dye, which became one of the largest exports out of South Carolina, an export that laid the foundation for the incredible wealth of several Southern families who still live on today. Although largely overlooked by historians, the accomplishments of Eliza Lucas influenced the course of US history. When she passed away in 1793, President George Washington served as a pallbearer at her funeral. This book is set between 1739 and 1744, with romance, intrigue, forbidden friendships, and political and financial threats weaving together to form the story of a remarkable young woman whose actions were before their time: the story of the indigo girl.

I am now stitching an Irish/Spring piece for the pedestal frame for next month.

Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits: who forgives all your iniquities, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from destruction, who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies, who satisfies your mouth with good things, so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. -Psalm 103:1-5

Thank you for stopping by today my friends. I am so glad you did! I hope you have a nice weekend with nice weather wherever you are.

Stitching and praying,
Vickie

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Hi friends! I have a little Valentine finish to share with you today. This is February-Hearts from Rainbow Gallery, the 2005 Cross Stitcher's Surprise Series.

These patterns are still available for free HERE

I am stitching the whole series with DMC, not Rainbow Gallery Fibers, so I am choosing my own colors. Kinda matching the picture. I stitched this one over one on 25ct cream Dublin linen. It is now in the cubby shelf ready for the February display❣️ I need to get a picture of that for the blog.

I am now stitching a LK Valentine piece for the cubby shelf.

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Sandra!!! I would like to email you in response to your cry for help just a few days ago, but you do not have an email contact. I am hoping you see this. Please email me Sandra. My email address can be found once you click on "View my complete profile" on the upper right , up above. Or leave your email down below in the comments. I will get back to you about the cross stitch book information.

Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson was a book I thoroughly enjoyed. I have also read The Summer Before the War by Helen and loved it. I think she is a talented author. I had hoped for more books by her. There aren't any more unfortunately!
In the small village of Edgecombe St. Mary in the English countryside lives Major Ernest Pettigrew (retired), the unlikely hero of Helen Simonson’s wondrous debut. Wry, courtly, opinionated, and completely endearing, the Major leads a quiet life valuing the proper things that Englishmen have lived by for generations: honor, duty, decorum, and a properly brewed cup of tea. But then his brother’s death sparks an unexpected friendship with Mrs. Jasmina Ali, the Pakistani shopkeeper from the village. Drawn together by their shared love of literature and the loss of their spouses, the Major and Mrs. Ali soon find their friendship blossoming into something more. But village society insists on embracing him as the quintessential local and regarding her as the permanent foreigner. Can their relationship survive the risks one takes when pursuing happiness in the face of culture and tradition?

I am happy to say GOOD BYE  to the Polar Vortex thank you very much!! Ugh! Such horrid, frigid, biting wind! We had days of -30's with -50 wind chill added in! Henry cried when I picked him up once he was done with his business. I practically cried!

I hope you have nice weather and a nice weekend my friends! Thank you for stopping by. I appreciate you! God bless you!

For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen Romans 11:36

Stitching and praying,
Vickie