♥ Poodle Project Pocket ♥

Hello friends! How ya doin'? Things are going pretty well here. Mabel is doing pretty good on meds. Like I said, she will have activities that trigger more pain, for life. That's just the way it is with slipped discs.

So I began a new stitch, but then decided to quit putting off the project pouch/pocket that I have been wanting to  make. I have had the fabric pulled for this for a looong time. I set aside the stitching for a day and made this.

So "me" right? I found this vintage fabric on Etsy years ago. It was time to use it. I fussy cut the poodles for the front and the back. The polka dot lining is a calico from JoAnn, not vintage, but a perfect match. I did not want a snap closure. I used velcro dots. And yes, I GLUED them on. I did not want a button closure either. The focus is on the poodles here. ;)

So back to stitching. What are you up to? I hope it is fun! I have prayed for YOU today. I thank God for YOU. Thanks for stopping by. Leave me a note so I know you came. ;)

Stitching and praying,
Vickie

A Few Finishes To Share

Good Morning my friends! So glad you stopped by. Your comments are heart warming. ♥

I had a productive weekend. I finished up my pretty scissor fob only to discover I CANNOT find the pink with white polka dots scissors gifted me by Peggy! Not anywhere! I have no idea. I saw them two weeks ago, this I know. So very, very frustrating.*~* I tore everything apart looking. Well, obviously not everything or I would have them. Anyways here is the fob.

When I saw this freebie by Brooke I knew, I just knew I would stitch it up for the fob. You can find the freebie here. I stitched this two over two on 28ct Aunt Marle's Violet linen. Love this stuff! I used all my own choices of DMC.

Are ya ready for the back?

♥Love it!!♥ hahaha! So maybe it is Mabel in ultrapuff mode. When she is in need of a haircut, but it is still her. =) This is another poodle freebie found here. There are other cats, kittens and dogs that are to be found here also friends.

I stitched her two over two also. I have my colors all set for her. I took time and figured out the correct colors so I am ready to stitch her at any time. ;)

The beautiful, variegated ribbon I used for the fob is from Theresa. She had bought this in France. It goes with the linen so well. And the purple, handmade poodle you see, is from France as well. I didn't go there to get him though. ;) Ebay! hahaha!

I have had this little freebie chart called Good Luck Robin by Pamela Kellogg in my stash for years. I tried to come up with a link for it for you and could not find one. I am sorry. I decided this was the year to get him done. I mean really, it is so tiny!

I changed a lot of the called for colors. The berries were supposed to be pink. That didn't seem right. So I found these fabrics in my green stash and matched the DMC berries to the fabric berries.

I stitched this two over one on 25ct cream linen.

I filled this cute little pillow with crushed walnut shells. I am happy with how it turned out.

I pulled the linen and chose my DMC for my next stitch. Another freebie, imagine that! ;)

Rainy day here today. It rained all weekend too. Maybe we will get to see real robins soon then. Can't wait for spring. =)

Hope you have a very good Monday friends. Thanks for spending a little time with me.

Stitching and praying,
Vickie

A Finish For Friday

Good Morning my friends! Welcome to my newest follower Julie.

Well, firstly, I decided not to make the bargello a scissor fob. The "V" I stitched for the reverse is on white linen. I don't think that works well with heavy usage. Also, that bargello took a looong time. I don't want that getting worn or fuzzy looking.

 
 

Secondly, I DID backstitch around both sides and whip stitch them together. I know this takes a lot more time than sewing a pillow up on the sewing machine, but I really wanted a perfect edge to the bargello.

This bargello pattern was a freebie that you can find here. This site has many lovely freebies.♥ I stitched it on 28ct evenweave with 6 different DMC colors.

 For the reverse side I chose a "V" from the Sajou alphabet. I do not have the exact pattern page, sorry. It might be pattern number 172. You can check out all the charts here.

I stitched this with DMC 720, 2 over 2 on 28ct white Meran linen. I am very happy with this little pillow. It measures less than 2 1/2 inches. So sweet.♥ It joins my other smalls in my big bread bowl. =)

I finished stitching up the reverse side to the scissor fob last night. I backstitched around both sides. Yep, I am going to whip stitch them together. ;)

Two days ago I forgot to give Mabel her muscle relaxant. So I gave it before bed, 4 hours later than I had been giving it. Twice a day, so I picked 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. Turns out that was meant to be! She gets the most from that muscle relaxant when she is sleeping overnight. This has been the thing to help her in the mornings for two mornings now. I pray this keeps up. I will continue to give it at bedtime. She will hopefully wake up okay then. She had been waking up like a 15 year old poodle, shuffling along in pain. We are thinking she may never return to her "good old days". This may be her new normal. I am weaning her off the steroid. She could just remain on the two other meds with a pain pill as needed and be good. Kinda like her mama's set up with pain and pills! ;) We both just have to watch our activities, so as to not cause pain flare ups.

I hope you have a wonderful, stitchy weekend my friends.

Stitching and praying,

Vickie

First Blogoversary Giveaway Winner

Good Morning my friends! I am so glad you are here. Glad you like my new pink shoes too. ;) They do add some brightness to my day!

I drew the winner for my First Blogoversary Giveaway this morning. It is Minnie! Minnie had commented that pearls are her birthstone. Me too! So glad you like the earrings Minnie. Enjoy it all. =)

I would have finished up the bargello scissor fob last night, but I need interfacing. The "V" I stitched for the reverse is stitched on 28 ct Meran linen. It is a looser weave. I like it, but don't need the fiberfill sticking out. And another thing. I knew I was taking a risk. I used 28ct evenweave for the bargello. 28ct Meran linen for the V. I backstitched around both last night. With plans to then whip stitch them together. They are not the same. I figured this would happen. After I get to JoAnn for the interfacing, then get the interfacing on, if I whip stitch the two sides together and it doesn't work out, I AM GOING TO PUKE! I backstitched one less on the Meran. I am hoping I can make this work.

So this makes me ask you: Do you hand stitch in this manner your scissor fobs and ornaments? I do when I am adding beads to the edge. I did it this time because that bargello took me a looooooong time and I want the seams up against the bargello nicely. I worry when I use my sewing machine sometimes. I try to be a perfectionist about seams. I didn't say I AM. I TRY.

Okay, another question for you all. Do you have worn out, or beat up looking scissor fobs? I only have one fob so far. I use it all the time. It has our old white house on it. It is just beginning to look tired. What do you do with tired looking scissor fobs? Tell me. I want to know what YOU do.

I plan to get the bargello scissor fob done today. Stitching up the other fob too.

I finished reading A Dark History: The Popes. A loooong book. Been working on that one for a while. Let me tell you, I was not taught quite a bit about the Holy See. Yikes! Half the reason the book took me so long to read was the horrid sin. Did you know that more than one pope was a father? As in, he had kids!! Wowie zowie! Did you know more than one pope ran a brothel? Oh. My. Goodness. And trust me, there was a LOT more to the Inquisition. Well, it was very interesting reading that is for sure. I am NOT bashing Catholicism. I was Roman Catholic for the first 30 years of my life. My whole family is Catholic. My FIL is a Roman Catholic Deacon. Just saying.
I also read And The Soldiers Sang. It is actually a kid's book. It is about Christmas Day, 1914 in World War I. I knew about the truce, just nice to read again. Are you familiar with this? Sorry if this does not interest you. I was raised learning about weaponry and wars from my father. I do find WWII most interesting actually.

Have a great day friends. I am thankful for YOU! ♥

Stitching and praying,
Vickie

Oh What Fun!!

Good Morning my friends! Thank you for your kind words. Your comments make me smile. =)

Here is the little magnet I made up for Brian. I placed it on one of his tea tins for him to find. It didn't take long. ;) He loves tea. Me, not at all.

This is called "Two Hearts One Love" by Alita Designs. It is a freebie you can find here. I changed every color. I stitched this one over one on 28ct toasted almond linen. I thought it was a nice "tea" color. I had the exact match in felt to back it with. Sweet.♥

I had to contain my squeals Friday in Good Will. I found these!!!!

THEY WERE $1.79 A PIECE PEOPLE!! Oh joy!! I just love, love, love a great deal. The top book is filled with Ellen Stouffer's designs. I have been a fan of her art for at least 25 years. Time! I need more time please.

While we were out and about Brian noticed my sneakers. I usually do not wear them out and about. They are mainly for walking the treadmill. Well, I try to use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without. What he noticed was the holes. For some reason the seams came apart in the same spot on both shoes. I didn't have a real problem with it. I have had these for a few years now, and the holes have been there for at least one year. Well, he took me to Kohl's and take a look at these babies!

Whoo hoo! I'm a talkin' neon pink people. Just look at 'em in the snow. Yowza!! ;)

You stitchers are so smart. Thank you to Jo who told me it was a misunderstanding on my part with the bargello pattern. Every square on the chart should be stitched over two threads while using evenweave. I never, ever heard this before. That is why my peaks are not so very high. Oh well. I have finally finished stitching it. Now to stitch up the other side and make a fob out of it. =)

I hope you are having a happy, love-filled, stitchy weekend my friends. I thank God for you.♥

Stitching and praying,
Vickie

Do You Know Why?

Good Morning my friends! So glad you came to visit. I have some new friends too. That is wonderful! Thank you for leaving me such nice comments. You make my day! =) In case you missed it, I am having a One Year Blogoversary Giveaway.

I am STILL stitching this little bargello. Well, yes, I did just get sidetracked with another small freebie that I am making up into a magnet for my husband today. (And NO, it isn't a poodle for him!!)

So, this is the bargello freebie I found on Google Images. I picked my colors and thought "This won't take long." HA! Could you tell me friends, why does the chart have higher peaks? Mine is stitching up flatter and wider. Why? I am stitching it on 28ct white evenweave. This will be one side to a scissor fob. I stitched one side for another fob. I have the two other charts for the two remaining sides of each fob. All four patterns are FREEBIES. I have F.A.B.L.E. !!!!! Freebies Acquired Beyond Life Expectancy I made that up. Yes, it is true. Just ask my family. @_@

So, it has been a crummy week. A few days ago we thought we were taking Mabel in to the vet to be euthanized. Really. We were all a mess. She could barely move from the pain. We figured she was very close to being paralyzed. We have been told that can happen at any time really. The vet took another x-ray, since she had not had one since this slipped disc junk began last May. She has 2 slipped discs at L4 and L5. She also has one in her neck now. =(

I am happy to tell you she was put on gabapentin. She can be on this for life if necessary. This treats the nerve pain. It is actually an anti-seizure medicine. I was on this same drug myself for years. I am still on anti-seizure meds also, just a different variety now. We two girls are in the same boat, Mabel and I. We are both in chronic pain and take pills to numb it.  Yuck! Such depressing talk.

Here. Take a look at the beautiful bouquet Brian bought to cheer us up.

The lilies have opened since and are just gorgeous. And if that isn't cheery enough, Maggee sent me an RAK. What fabulous timing. You are so kind and sweet. Thank you my friend, such a surprise! =)

My gastritis has settled down. Nearly gone now. I will do the finishing on that little magnet today. I'll get a picture of it. Then I will keep on a stitchin' the bargello.

Here is one last picture of Mabel. I took it a few days ago. She is almost herself again, ALMOST. She is so precious. We are glad and thankful for every day with her.♥ She is smiling here. =)

Stitching and praying,
Vickie

One Year Blogoversary

Good Morning my friends! Hello to my new followers. I am so happy you have decided to stop by. =) I have been blogging for one year now. It has been a joy to join in with all of you.♥ It really warms my heart to experience such friendliness. I have met so many nice, caring friends.♥

I would like to give a few gifts to you for this, my one year blogoversary. Firstly, I made another bottle cap pincushion. I have never made two alike. So, yes, this is another Wintery Wisconsin one, but it is white with pale blue, DMC 775 floss. I also made the pale crystal counting pins.

These are freshwater pearl earrings straight from the jeweler (never worn).

 And this is a pretty pinpillow I have a hard time parting with! ;)

This pattern is from one of my older magazines, The Cross Stitcher, April 2009. The pattern is by Olde Willow Stitchery Threads, it is just simply called Quaker Motif.

This is stitched one over one with DMC B5200 on 32ct Antique Pink linen. I loved, loved, loved stitching on the little white buttons. I have never finished like this before and thought it up and loved the idea of it!

And this is the back. Isn't this just the sweetest motif? I found it at my library. ;) It is from the book Better Homes and Gardens Stitching Pretty. I just adore this little motif!!♥ This pinpillow is so  me!!

So my friends, if you are interested in this offering of mine you need to be a follower. You also need to leave me a comment on this post, please tell me if you are interested in the giveaway. Would you tell me how long you have been blogging?  I will draw a name for the winner on Wednesday, March 6th.

Mabel is improved. She is still on her medicines. She does seem not exactly the same. Like maybe she has only recovered 90% of the way? We are working with the vet with her medicines. We hope she makes a full recovery again, and goes a long time with out another flare up of pain.

As for me and my tummy, well, it is still burning. It takes some people longer to get rid of that while on the acid blockers. If it is not gone by the time the two weeks of meds are done, I have to call the doctor of course. I do NOT want an ulcer, nope!

Still stitching bargello and little things. =) Pictures soon I hope!

May God richly bless your day my friend.♥

Stitching and praying,
Vickie