Vintage finds

This weekend is a bit of a change from my typical weekend. I'm not working at the theatre, or hanging around the house. I'm helping my mom sell Depression-era glassware at a local show. My gramma did this for years, and, since she passed away, we've had all her stock sitting around, literally collecting dust. So we set up a booth and are selling it. It's hard, because this was something Gramma did, so it brings back a lot of memories to see her handwriting, and things she touched, but I think she's happy that we're carrying on for her, even with a 5 year hiatus. It's hard work.

One thing that has changed is that dealers are starting to carry vintage table linens. I half-collect old linens; I say half only because I don't want to admit to another collection. I think it's the stitcher in me, and my insane need to preserve someone else's work, like I'd like mine to be preserved. Love and time go into these projects. Stitching on these items is the truest sense of "love is in the details." How better could a woman (I'm assuming women stitched these)love her family to use her precious free time to embroider up an every day object so that her husband or children or friends wouldn't have an "ordinary" towel, or tablecloth to use? And what better way to show they loved her back than to save them. I think it would hard to sell these objects, especially at yard sale prices. Could there finally be an appreciation coming for our handwork? Judging by the response from the attendees, I would say so. They were loving on the hand-made items. So I had to investigate.


My first purchase was this set of 7 tablecloths.




They are hand-embroidered, hand-hemmed, with a crocheted edging. I LOVED that the set was intact--she had a set of kittens, but there were only 4 days represented. I thought it would better to have the entire week.

This is my favorite:


No, I have no idea what I'll do with them, but they were too adorable to leave there. Another dealer asked me if I was buying them because I have small children. Nope, I just wanted them!




Mom found this MAGNIFICENT tablerunner.


It has cutwork, crochet and THE FINEST single-strand cross stitch on linen I have ever seen. You can not tell where the stitcher began and ended her threads. It's STUNNING. Pictures don't do this justice at all. It has a few small stains on it, (but then again, so do most of us), but it's the prettiest piece of needlework I've ever bought. And, incredibly, I paid $15 for this. Could you have left it for that price?




We are having Mother's Day at our house next week, and I have a huge diningroom table, so I'm planning to use this, with the understanding that we're not eating at the dining room table. It's just a pretty, for our two pretty moms! I had been trying to figure out to beautify our table, and this is perfection. I'm so pleased with it, and pleased someone loved it enough to save it all these years. It will have a good home.

Does anyone else collect vintage linens?

Another finish!

I got this freebie kitted up in a grab bag a couple-few years ago. I think it's by Bent Creek, but not sure--the chart has the shop information. I was looking for something small to do since I've been burning up the unused vacation I have from my job (which may be the only vacation I get this summer, honestly, at least til I get some leave accrued), and this was perfect. I started it last week, and finished it last night.




It's another Easter tree ornament, I think. It had the word "Ouch" on the egg, but I left that off, because I didn't think that was very springy or very Easter-y.

I had some time yesterday, so went down to the nearest Hancock Fabrics. They seem to have a better seasonal fabric selection than Joanne's--their Christmas fabric selection is second only to a quilt store, I think--and I wanted to look at the patriotic fabric. They still need to add some selections, but I picked up a few half-yard cuts of summery prints, and some ribbon for finishing.

I also went to look at their selection of Sullivan floss. I have a couple skeins of this, but don't have a lot of experience with it. I also had some concerns about how one would go about converting DMC to Sullivan. Do they stock it by DMC number or by the Sullivan number? I found out . . . it's by the DMC number, which makes it A BREEZE to kit up. I don't know how much of a commitment I want to make to this floss, though. There is only one place I know of to buy it locally, and that's a hike, and I don't typically buy floss online. If it were carried at places like Walmart, that might help me get acclimated to it. I bought the colors needed for the newest LHN Ornament of the Month. I don't think, at this point, I trust it for a chart that involves shading, unless the design is charted for Sullivans, but I think it would work for the kind of simple designs I do.

The other little thing I found was this super-cute little sewing box.


My big sewing box is great, but it's not that portable. This little guy goes anywhere, and I can stick needles in the padded top if I need to. The best part? It was $2.99, on sale! What a sweet deal!

A Stolen Idea--Revisited

I this on my blog a few years ago. Last spring, I printed off a list of the 1001 Books to read before I die, and I've been trying to read a lot off the list. It's interesting--I've been introduced to some new to me authors. It really makes me wish I'd taken more lit classes in college. So much to read, so little time to do it. Anyway, I like looking at list for new ideas to "improve" myself and broaden my reading experience.

This list looked fun.

Look at the list of (100) books below. Bold the ones you’ve read. Italicize the ones you want to read. Leave blank the ones that you aren’t interested in. (Movies don’t count.)
1.The Da Vinci Code(Dan Brown)
2. Pride and Prejudice (Jane Austen)
3. To Kill A Mockingbird (Harper Lee)
4. Gone With The Wind (Margaret Mitchell)
5. The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King (Tolkien)
6. The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring (Tolkien)
7. The Lord of the Rings: Two Towers (Tolkien)
8. Anne of Green Gables (L.M. Montgomery)
9. Outlander (Diana Gabaldon)
10. A Fine Balance (Rohinton Mistry)
11. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire(Rowling)
12. Angels and Demons (Dan Brown)
13. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Rowling)
14. A Prayer for Owen Meany (John Irving)
15. Memoirs of a Geisha (Arthur Golden)
16. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (Rowling)
17. Fall on Your Knees (Ann-Marie MacDonald)
18. The Stand (Stephen King)
19. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Rowling)
20. Jane Eyre (Charlotte Bronte)
21. The Hobbit (Tolkien)
22. The Catcher in the Rye (J.D. Salinger)
23. Little Women (Louisa May Alcott)
24. The Lovely Bones (Alice Sebold)
25 . Life of Pi (Yann Martel)
26. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (Douglas Adams)
27. Wuthering Heights (Emily Bronte)
28. The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe (C. S. Lewis)
29. East of Eden (John Steinbeck)
30. Tuesdays with Morrie (Mitch Albom)
31. Dune (Frank Herbert)
32. The Notebook (Nicholas Sparks)
33. Atlas Shrugged (Ayn Rand)
34 1984 (Orwell)
35. The Mists of Avalon (Marion Zimmer Bradley)
36. The Pillars of the Earth (Ken Follett)
37. The Power of One (Bryce Courtenay)
38. I Know This Much is True (WallyLamb)
39. The Red Tent (Anita Diamant)
40. The Alchemist (Paulo Coelho)
41. The Clan of the Cave Bear (Jean M. Auel)
42. The Kite Runner (Khaled Hosseini)
43. Confessions of a Shopaholic (Sophie Kinsella)
44. The Five People You Meet In Heaven (Mitch Albom)
45. Bible
46. Anna Karenina (Tolstoy)
47. The Count of Monte Cristo (Alexandre Dumas)
48. Angela’s Ashes (Frank McCourt)
49. The Grapes of Wrath (John Steinbeck)
50. She’s Come Undone (Wally Lamb)
51. The Poisonwood Bible (Barbara Kingsolver)
52. A Tale of Two Cities (Dickens)
53. Ender’s Game (Orson Scott Card)
54. Great Expectations (Dickens)
55. The Great Gatsby (Fitzgerald)
56. The Stone Angel (Margaret Laurence)
57. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Rowling)
58. The Thorn Birds (Colleen McCullough)
59. The Handmaid’s Tale (Margaret Atwood)
60. The Time Traveller’s Wife (Audrey Niffenegger)
61. Crime and Punishment (Fyodor Dostoyevsky)
62. The Fountainhead (Ayn Rand)
63. War and Peace (Tolstoy)
64. Interview With The Vampire (Anne Rice)
65. Fifth Business (Robertson Davis)
66. One Hundred Years Of Solitude (Gabriel Garcia Marquez)
67. The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants (Ann Brashares)
68. Catch-22 (Joseph Heller)69. Les Miserables (Hugo)
70. The Little Prince (Antoine de Saint-Exupery)
71. Bridget Jones’ Diary (Fielding)
72. Love in the Time of Cholera (Marquez)
73. Shogun (James Clavell)
74. The English Patient (Michael Ondaatje)
75. The Secret Garden (Frances Hodgson Burnett)
76. The Summer Tree (Guy Gavriel Kay)
77. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (Betty Smith)
78. The World According To Garp (John Irving)
79. The Diviners (Margaret Laurence)
80. Charlotte’s Web (E.B. White)
81. Not Wanted On The Voyage (Timothy Findley)
82. Of Mice And Men (Steinbeck)
83. Rebecca (Daphne DuMaurier)84. Wizard’s First Rule (Terry Goodkind)
85. Emma (Jane Austen)
86. Watership Down(Richard Adams)
87. Brave New World (Aldous Huxley)
88. The Stone Diaries (Carol Shields)
89. Blindness (Jose Saramago)
90. Kane and Abel (Jeffrey Archer)
91. In The Skin Of A Lion (Ondaatje)
92. Lord of the Flies (Golding)
93. The Good Earth (Pearl S. Buck)
94. The Secret Life of Bees (Sue Monk Kidd)
95. The Bourne Identity (Robert Ludlum)
96. The Outsiders (S.E. Hinton)
97. White Oleander (Janet Fitch)
98. A Woman of Substance (Barbara Taylor Bradford)99. The Celestine Prophecy (James Redfield)
100. Ulysses (James Joyce

Changes

I know I haven't been around as much lately as I used to be. That may not be actually true, but it feels like I've been slacking on blogging, and, when I do blog, it's not the same as it used to be.

I have a good reason, or at least it feels like a good one to me.

I've had a lot of turmoil lately. My car is still in the shop and it just seems like a comedy of errors to try to get it fixed. We've started talking about getting rid of the car if we ever get it back, because I don't know if I really want to pay another penny on that vehicle--I just paid the car payment, and the insurance and satellite radio payment comes out this week, and I can't even drive the car, and no one seems to be able to actually FIX the car. The situation has degraded to the point where I am referring all calls on the car to Left-brain, since I just get madder and madder every time I talk to them. Left-brain is a bit calmer, but I can see he's getting annoyed too.

Professionally, I've been unhappy. It's not a new issue, but I haven't been able to put my finger on precisely what it was that was bothering me so. There are a lot of good things about my job. I get to work from home, which is a great idea and gives me a lot of time with Left-brain and the dog isn't in his kennel all day. I love my close co-workers. They are very close friends now. I also have a job that makes me feel like I make a difference, and it's interesting. But, when I came down to thinking about it, on one of my epic 120-mile round trips to our regional headquarters, if the only reason I'm staying at a job is so that the dog doesn't have to be penned up all day, it's no reason to stay. I'm Facebook friends with my work friends, so that is no problem, and I found another job doing what I do for my company. I won't be able to work from home, but it's not too far away, no highway driving, a friend works there, it felt like a positive vibe. I start Monday. This week is tying up the loose ends at work. Part of me is nervous and sad to leave the job, but 99.99% of me is overjoyed and ready to bust into this new opportunity.

There may be a period of a few weeks where I don't post as much as usual, while I'm transitioning. Our computer is dying, slowly but noisily. I need to replace it, but not sure how quickly that will be viable. I promise I'll make every effort to keep up!

Kitty progress

They're coming along




I had the day off yesterday to use up some of my vacation, and, after I went to the bookstore to get my UK magazines, and then went to the used bookstore to pick up some reading material, I turned on my clip-on lamp and went to work. I managed to almost finish the calico on the right (it just needs a leg and its ear finished), and started on the orange tabby next to her. I'm also trying to work on the barn itself as I move across. I figure it will be much less of a hassle to work on that as I go than to try to do it all at once, at the end. I don't like this aida, though--it frays like a mother, and there isn't a lot of framing margin. I wonder, do framers see Dimensions kit finishes come into the shop and curse to themselves? I think I would.

I'm working today, but off tomorrow. I'm hoping to make some more progress on it. I'm trying to decide if I should go to my LNS, too, but not too sure if I want to do that. I have some framing to drop off, but it's a long drive. I don't know yet.

A surprise gift

Yesterday, the mail lady took a very long time to drop off our mail. I heard her come up onto the front stoop, and wondered what the heck she was delivering. I don't buy much that can't be shoved in the mailbox, and DH hadn't mentioned shopping lately. So I opened the door to find a package from my friend, Linda.

I've never met Linda in person. We met online through a stitching board. A couple years ago, she was job-hunting, and I referred her to the company I work for, which is a global entity that does just about everything. She started working there, and we've gotten to be buddies. I chat with her as much as my co-workers on the same account, and she's wonderful. Witty, just a lovely person! I'm glad we're friends. We'd been chatting about the loss of the Primitive Needle, and she said she had bought some of the charts and somehow we got to talking about the ones I wanted. I mentioned Retro Halloween and Let Your Life Speak, but I knew it was going to be difficult to get them as they're all back-ordered.

Do you know she bought me the two charts I really wanted? They were in that package as Easter presents. I am so touched at this lovely gesture. I don't know how to put into words what this means to me, but I am so blessed to count her as a friend. I'm going to have to start working on these really soon--they are too nice to wait!

In other areas, I realize that I have neglected to get a link for the Autumnal freebie I showed yesterday. It's Equinox in Autumn, by Mingui, chart to be found here. I know that looking at my progress without knowing what it will someday look like is . . . well . . . confusing. I know you swing wildly in subject matter, Rachel, but I don't see Autumn in that. I didn't know you were into post-modern. Well, I'm not. I'm working on the goddess' face for now. And maybe a leaf or two. At least that way, she gets a little perspective, LOL.

Weekend works

It was a stormy weekend here in Crazyville. We got remnants of the devastating storms from North Carolina. While we did not get damage here, there was a tornado warning for the greater metropolitan Crazyville area, and I did spend a few minutes downstairs on Saturday evening. I realize I could never be a storm chaser--the second a warning is issued, I freak out. Yesterday was a little nicer. When I left the house for church, there was a rainbow in the sky to the west, the trees and flowers finally are letting loose and coloring up the landscape, and it was a bit warmer. We even got a small concert at church yesterday for Palm Sunday; the City Band of Washington, a bagpipe orchestra, played for the 9:15 service, but we heard them in the parking lot on the way out from early service. I'm a sap anyway, but it was so joyous to hear such beautiful music on a beautiful morning.

I did make some progress this weekend. I FINISHED Plummy Fairy. I'm not happy with her French knot eyeballs and may pick those out and redo them, but I love this finish. Adore it!




5 Crazy January starts are now finishes. Woo hoo!


I worked on this as well. This is something I started in December. I know, I know. What is it? No, it's not a map of the Washington Metro system. It's Autumn, a freebie by Minguistitch.


Yes, it's tricky. Yes, I wish I was stitching a facial detail. But really, anytime you start a new design that has a lot of color changes, there is a moment where you have to wonder how the mass will eventually relate to the picture as a whole. It's getting easier-ish. I am relying heavily on a highlighter to let me know what I've finished. and I think I've done the hardest part. The pink blob to the left top are the goddess' lips and I'll soldier through. I'm enjoying the challenge and moving around so as not to get too frustrated.

Lastly, my kitties.




We have bad light in the master bedroom, which is where we basically hunker down to watch TV when it's too cold to go downstairs--basically October to May. It's workable when I'm working on something in white, but this black has proved to be a challenge. We were working on shifting lamps to provide better light, but I was whining. Left-brain came home on Friday with a clip-on lamp for me. I attached it to the headboard, and got a lot of progress done. All the new parts of the kitten were done in 2-3 hours, serious progress for me!

I hope this week is kind and gentle to us all.

A finish, two WIPs, and a wonderful gift

I finished my third UFO of the year. Autumn Leaves is done, and will be off to the framer's. I'm thinking nubbly, woodsy, pale for this piece. I think a roughish, prim frame will really highlight the loveliness of the fabric and floss, sort of like when you see someone wearing a luxurious sweater with perfectly aged jeans.






I'd like to believe my WIP bin looks noticeably emptier, but who am I kidding? Although, I am taking it as a sign that I've not started anything new in over a week, and focused on things with stitches already in them.



Barn Kitties is coming along, if you can see it in this blurry picture. The half-stitches are all 4 strands, except one symbol which is 5 strands. What.The.Floss? Why is it necessary for them to do this?

Though, when you think about it, it's no wonder people don't like the floss in Dimensions kits. They say it frays. If you have to tug 5 strands of floss through aida long enough, it will fray. Mine did. I'm hoping enough survives to finish this.

And my lovely little Sugar Plum Fairy by Country Cottage Needleworks. I've had a very stressful week, and it was a delight to pick her up yesterday and work on her.


Simply a delight to work with the candy-colored flosses! I did swap her metallic out for Kreinik. I prefer them over DMC metallics. I think she looks adorable.


And lastly, I went out to the mail on Monday, and this was waiting for me. I won this in a contest from Riona.



It is so pretty, and Riona's finishing is wonderful. I've already started using it. I have a shameful confession to make. I usually toss my orts on the floor, and then vacuum them up later. My side of the bed is shamefully hairy with orts, but now, I've been so good about putting them in the jar. Riona just may have made me turn over a new leaf! Thank you so much, my friend.

150 years ago . . .

this week, the American Civil War started.





I was raised in a small town that saw a lot of action in the war, and so have been a Civil War buff all my life. Not the military part of it, but the social aspects, how it affected the women and children who watched their loved ones go off to war, never knowing if they'd come home. It's always been a question I ask myself: would I have let my husband, father, or son go off to war, stoically holding back the tears, or would I have cried and begged him not to go? It changes from day to day, year to year. My great-great-grandfather was a veteran of the war; when we visit Gettysburg, fairly often because it's not that far from here, I am always reminded that I walk the same fields he walked, only his walk and his fear (he had to be slightly afraid, even if you got shot and lived through the initial hit, the doctoring could kill you) bought my right to walk freely. And, on those quiet June evenings, which is my favorite time to drive through Gettysburg, when the sun is setting and the horizon is lit up pink and purple and there is a peace and stillness, and all feels right with the world, that that peace was bought with blood.

There's a line in Traveler, Richard Adams' great book of the war, told by Lee's horse. I have to paraphrase it, but the idea stuck with me. He says the soldiers talked about going to War with such excitement, and he thought it would be a great party, and everyone laughing, plenty to eat, but he never knew what happened, because they never got to a party.

So I wanted to take a minute to remember the men who left their homes and families to fight, on both sides, and never came home; they still find skeletal remains on battlefields, and I often wonder who mourned them, and what difference could they have made in the world, given the chance to live? And the men who left, and came home, wizened by their experiences; my great great grand married that winter, and fought his Mennonite church for their anger at his acceptance of a military pension. They weren't there when he earned it, he said, they wouldn't tell him how to spend it. And the women, children, and families who let their men go to war, suffered for "the cause", and learned to go on when the man they let go, didn't come back.

Wild weekend!

Before I show my progress, let me tell you about my weekend. I went to a PEEP show. No, not THAT kind of peep show. A PEEP show! These are getting more popular around here. The Washington Post sponsors one, but this was one that you could actually go to. For a $5 donation, I got to vote for my 10 favorite artworks. It was a blast. I am in awe of all the things that can be made out of Peeps. Someone made a hat, there was well-framed artwork with a Peep theme, One of the coffee houses sent in a picture of a cappucino with a Peep outline. There was even a little Jersey shore themed one. AWESOME! Whoda thunk you could be so creative with marshmellow? I have my own ideas for something to make for next year. If you get a chance to go to one of these, GOOO! It's inspiring to realize that we do still have "skillz" in this country.

My car is in the shop for a check engine light today. I had it at our mechanic most of last week for the light, and it needed the 60K mile service. I got all new brakes, transmission system flushed, even my windshield wiper blades got replaced. Our mechanic cleared the codes for the check engine light, told us what it was and said hopefully, it wouldn't come back on, but if it did, the issue was covered by the warranty, to take it to the dealership. I went out on Friday to take it to get emissions tested, and the light was back on, so it's at the dealership to see if it's covered. I'm hopeful I don't have to pay for this repair--it's kinda a kick in the mouth to pay a car payment and pay the repair bill.

I also did the hard task of tossing a UFO. It was an older one by Midsummer Night Designs. I'd started it with Vikki Clayton silks, but the colors, which are so pretty, didn't look so good together on the dark fabric. They were too pale. I've been going back and forth about tossing it, because I don't like to waste things, but it wasn't going to work, and I can use the floss for something else, and it wasn't a pleasure to stitch, so I made the hard choice to toss the fabric and put the floss and chart back in stash. That way, the floss can be used for something that will give me pleasure, the chart can be rekitted in brighter colors, and I'm not guilt-stricken. LOVE IT!

I did make some good progress on Autumn Leaves.


I like how it's moving along, and the bottom, which was intimidating me, is not so bad. I love the way it is all coming together; the silk has a lovely sheen and the fabric is really showing off the colors. I am adoring Winterberry, a winy, plummy eggplant. Just gorgeous! I should have this done by the end of the week, and hopefully, can get it framed and ready for the fair.

I hope everyone is having a great start to the week.

A SAL for bunny/spring lovers

http://kissycross.twoday.net/stories/16553322/

Go here for a fast little SAL. She said spread the word!

The frog came calling

I meant to post a progress photo yesterday, but the frog came calling, and so I had to unfrog a lot of what I did after I took the photo the other day. I had to undo quite a bit of the kitten's chest, and a lot of the wording on Autumn Leaves. I was so annoyed with myself.

I didn't work on the kitten yesterday at all after I frogged him. It was rainy on and off and he's hard to work on in that kind of light, so I put him away and focused on Autumn Leaves. This is what I have now.




It's coming along. I'm trying to get as much done of each color as I can, as I move the hoop down, so it's a lot of jumping around. I worked on the house last night watching a "The First 48" marathon. I think I'm a pretty fast carpenter, even though the house still has a skylight and we have no doors or windows yet.

It's bright and sunny today, though, so I'll probably try to take advantage of good light and focus on the kitten. He needs some work put into him. Keep that little guy moving forward, I will!

Interesting way to use old ties

Someone posted this link:

http://www.ourbestbites.com/2009/03/silk-dyed-eggs-aka-tie-dyed/


This looks like a good idea. Will have to try this. Although, I'm thinking it would work better with blown eggs, cause, really, after all that work, and all the pretty, would you really want to break the shell?

Weekend stitching pictures

Here are my progress photos for the weekend.

This is Barn Kitties, by Dimensions. Please excuse the fuzz. It's clean, we just have a nubbly blanket that gets all over black things. I filled in the kitten's face and he has a leg now. He is progressing forward in the world!


I am a bit annoyed though by the amount of floss they're requiring. The barn itself is calling for 4 strands. Now, I don't know about you, but it's hard to pull 4 strands of floss through anything smaller than 11 count. I am having to tug on it. I don't like that. I thought about using two, but I'm sure there are dimensionality issues I don't understand just now, but I will when it's finished, so I keep tugging through. In good light. I told Left brain we need another lamp in the bedroom. Maybe if we moved the one in my sewing room in, it would work better. HMMMMM


This is my progress on Prairie Schooler Autumn Leaves. It's on Summer Sky evenweave, since I'm always on that quest to capture the autumn sky on my fall pieces, with Hand-dyed Fibers. I guess you would call it a UFO, since it's been almost a year since I worked on it, and I don't even think I've ever posted a progress photo here. I was trying to remember what play the theatre was producing when I started it. My heart wants to say Peter Pan, but I'm not sure. I vaguely remember working on it in our downstairs box office, which was unheated, but I'm not sure if that was the first time I worked on it or if I'd picked it up. I am so confused. So, it may or may not be a two year old WIP.


I swapped out the center motif for the doe and fawn ornament. I liked the way they looked better than what was on there originally, even though I know deer don't usually have babies in the fall. I think I bought the silks when the chart came out, and I'm so pleased at how nice this looks. I really like how flexible Prairie Schooler charts are in that you aren't limited to the fabric and floss you can use. I love the look of them on Aida with DMC, so sturdy, yet fresh, but I've thrown in Weeks on some of them as an accent, and now I'm using special fabric and silks exclusively. Talk about a seamless transition. I don't think it will take that much longer to finish, but the scene at the bottom is a big one, and there is enough variegation in some of these colors that I have to complete each x by hand, which slows me down.

So, HMMMM, that's what I have for now. Hopefully, there will be more progress photos soon.

Blah-y kind of weekend

I don't really think we actually just had a weekend, do you? It went so fast.

We had a family party on Friday night for SIL's birthday. It was a lot of fun. Our niece is learning to stitch and showed me her first WIP. She is doing so good, I'm so proud of her. Since she had her needle and thread, we did a little repair work on some things that Left-brain's mom needed fixing, which, to be honest, children tore. I taught her to make sure her knots are on the inside of the work, so no one sees them. We had to sew the head back onto a stuffed goose, and it was quite an accomplishment. I supervised and sewed the hard bits, she sewed the easy bits and held, and her little brother cut the threads. Well, no surgery can be done by just one person, right? I finally brought my wedding dress home--ooh, that dress is filthy. I tried to be a little bit careful of it, but, not only is the hem dirty, there is a big mark across knee level that either happened at the reception or on the ride over to the after-party. Argggh! I'm not sure whether I want it preserved, but I do want that mark outta my dress!

Saturday, we ran a few errands, then Left-brain took me out for breakfast. Nothing fancy, just IHOP, but we've been so busy the last few weekends, seeing each other without the pressure of "something else needs to be done" is a gift. We came back home and hunkered down to watch the games. Yes, I'm serious. We settled in at one, and my game didn't come on til 9:08. We are good fans. I worked on Barnyard Kitties til the light started to fail, then picked up a smaller WIP to work on during the game.

I will put it out here: Kentucky did not win. It was a good game. They tried. It was a clean game, which I find admirable. But, on tournament games, you can not fall behind a talented team and expect to come back. The Comeback Cats of my college days could, but they were a special group of men. Our 2011 team is young; if they stick together and stay at the school instead of going to the NBA (and we see how well that worked for John Wall), we can really turn the fortunes of our tourney dreams around. And a Final 4 Berth helps recruiting. And we got farther than 64 other teams; they'd be proud to be a Final 4 contender. I tried to tell myself this, but I'll be honest. There were tears in my eyes, and I pouted after the game was over. And I'm not answering the phone.

Yesterday was a work day at the theatre. We had a 2 hour will-call session. With plenty of problems. I was so tired when I got home last night, I just kinda draped myself around. I did work on my little WIP from the night before, but didn't get very far.

I'll post some progress photos a little later today. Hope everyone has a good start to the week.