Deborah Fillmer's » cross stitch

2012 – Week One – Let’s Do This

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Category : Featured, Fiber Arts, Journal

Tags: arewenschild, cross stitch, etsy, gifts, knitting, ron paul, sewing, smocking

I’m starting off 2012 with a positive surge of energy and eagerness because I know this is going to be a great year! This year, although I don’t set new year’s goals or resolutions, I am looking forward to staying out of the hospital for the entire year, seeing my Etsy shop, Arwen’s Child, take off, and finally, voting in a new president! Don’t know what your political affiliations are, but I am leaning heavily toward Ron Paul at this time.

All the gifts I made throughout the year and stored for Christmas seemed to be appreciated and loved by all recipients. We had Christmas dinner and desert with the parental units on Christmas Eve and I made these.

Christmas Day we shared with the kids in Colorado via FaceTime.

We were able to open presents with them and visit for a while, which was really nice. It was still not anything like having them here, where I could hug them and enjoy their extended company, but it will have to do for now. I started thinking about it and realized that I saw Luke the day he was born, and I won’t see (touch) him again until he is walking. Life…

As far as I can tell, EVERYONE liked what I made for them for Christmas. Everything fit every recipient, which was a plus! I think I am going to continue to make or (in rare cases) purchase Christmas gifts throughout the year. It really saved a lot of stress and $$ at the end of the year. So, if you are (or want to be, I’m happy to make gifts for those who will cherish them) on my list, please make sure I have your sizes and pertinent information so that I can make you something that fits.

Christmas for me was pretty cool this year, in terms of gifts, also. I pooled my saving stash with my Christmas gift money (and Scott’s) and picked out this baby.

She is a Janome 9500 and is totally awesome! I haven’t done any embroidery on her yet, but I will very soon. Over the Christmas holidays I was able to finish up one of the two wine colored dresses that had been commissioned last year before I went into the hospital. Unfortunately, I had to refund the deposit to the customer because of the hospital and recovery issue, but I still want to finish the two dresses for Arwen’s Child. Here is the first one of the pair. This dress is called Hope and is available. The dress is size 6 and would make a wonderful special occasion dress for a lovely little girl. If you visit my shop, please make it one of your favorites. I would appreciate it!

The second gift I received was an Amazon gift card. Yep, it is spent! Those things don’t survive long in my hands. Here is what I procured with it.

Finally, I did finish one other project over the holiday. In 1995, I stitched “Blueberry Homecoming” and now I have, framed, it’s twin piece “Raspberry Homecoming.” Sixteen years between the two but I can cross them off the bucket list.

Here’s hoping everyone who reads this has a super 2012.

DKF

Week Seven – A Tender Touch From The Past

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Category : Fiber Arts, Health

Tags: cross stitch, tatting

It has been said of Scott’s great great aunt Dotie that “she would tat around anything that sat still long enough.” This week we were blessed to be given a box of her tatting that had been saved by Scott’s great aunt Lynn who passed away last year. In the box were yards and yards of edging that she had tatted, as well as, about 25 motifs. I came home with the motifs and will be using them on the Christmas tree this year. They are all in need of a good washing and stiffening, but they are all so intricate and beautiful even as they are. She was very good at it, indeed!

This week I also managed to get the Corset cross stitch framed. I bought a black frame and spray painted it silver along with another frame holding another cross stitch from the past that was gold. Now both pieces match and I think they look awesome!

While I am still waiting for Sock Madness 2011 to begin, I started my next tatted motif, twice. Yes, attaching to the wrong picot seems to be a problem of mine… It should be completed next week, so photos will have to wait until then.

In other news…my diagnosis is finally in and we have found out that it is not cirrhosis after all. Apparently, I have a 1/1,000,000 rare disease of the liver called Caroli disease. To most doctors, other than liver specialists, it looks like cirrhosis. This explains why the doctors were so perplexed at first and kept asking me if I was a heavy drinker or drug user. My family keeps reminding me that this means that I am one in a million. Hahaha… So, now that we have a diagnosis and a prescription regimen, we will just monitor things from here on out. If things go downhill in the future the “cure” is a liver transplant. I don’t know what the future holds, but I have a feeling that a transplant is a long way off.

See ya next week!

Week Five – Framed

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Category : Fiber Arts

Tags: cross stitch, socks

This week’s post is all about my crafting, specifically cross-stitch. I was working on my latest cross-stitch this week when I realized just how cumbersome and awkward my frame was. I have used my lap frame, like this one, for years and it is wonderful if it is set on a table in front of me, but it doesn’t work so well when sitting on the sofa or other chairs.

Then there is the problem of it constantly getting loose and rotating down while you are working on it. Since I paid big bucks for this frame many years ago, I had used it as long as possible. This week it was time for a change.

I searched the internet to see what kind of frames were out there now and stumbled upon this one.

Immediately, I thought “wow, what a great solution!” Then I looked at the price. I do not have $85 spare change lying around right now, so it was off to Home Depot and the garage to do some wood working. After spending $10 at Home Depot and about 30 minutes quality time with my bandsaw, I created my own version of this frame.

It has not been sanded down yet, but it works beautifully!

In addition to starting a new, much needed pair of socks and joining up for Sock Madness 2001, that is what I did this week for fun. What did you do?

Week Four // Somebody Likes My Cooking

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Category : Fiber Arts

Tags: cooking, cross stitch, ebenezer

This week was a fairly busy one, filled with doctors appointments and travel to Birmingham and back. I did manage to squeeze in a little time for cooking and cross stitch though. Cooking is not something I do well. Since I don’t eat anything, no seriously, vegetables and fruit are not even on the radar, I don’t taste or invest time in what I cook. Therefore, the best things for me to cook are the things that don’t require a lot of attention, and that come pre-measured in a box. However, for some reason, I still like to collect recipes. Here is proof:

Now I just have to consolidate these into my iPad with this handy little App so I can use at least a few of them. The one individual who doesn’t complain or run screaming from my cooking (except for me) is Ebby. So, this week I made her a batch of Gourmet Doggie Biscuits. I used Chicken Noodle flavor baby food because she loves chicken. The next batch will probably be carrots, her second favorite.

She is more of a picky eater than I am and she actually liked them. Awesome!

On the crafting front, I put the final stitches in the Gorset (Corset) cross stitch pattern I have been working on last night. I am just tickled with how it turned out! It is just so adorable. Now I have to stretch, block and frame it.

This week will be consumed by school, work and the beginnings of a new pair of socks. Yesterday, I gave my first pair of hand knit socks to Ebby for a toy as I could no longer stand how itchy they had become. It is a little difficult watching the dog try to tear apart something you spent at least a month creating. But, they served a purpose and now they serve another.

Till next week…Fair Winds.

What I Did This Weekend

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Category : Fiber Arts, From Previous Blog, Knitting In Motion

Tags: cross stitch, knitting

This weekend was our 12 wedding anniversary. We went out to eat at the Olive Garden and then spent the weekend relaxing at home. Relaxing for me meant trying to finish a few works in progress.

As it turns out this weekend was a very productive one indeed. I finally finished and framed a cross stitch picture for a couple in my son’s office who just had twins.

Then I got to work on some new dresses. Here is the dress i made for myself:

And here is the one I made for my sister in law:

Since I completed these projects I allowed myself to start on the Kiri shawl. I am on row 15 at the moment so it doesn’t look like much yet.

The pattern is not too difficult though and I think it will go fast.

2012 – Week One – Let’s Do This

Week Seven – A Tender Touch From The Past

Week Five – Framed

Week Four // Somebody Likes My Cooking

What I Did This Weekend

The Etsy Shop

Just For Fun

Works in Progress

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