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Elegant Stitch
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may 30, 2008 life certainly has been an interesting blip on the radar the last week or so...first i didn't have anything to update with and then i couldn't update. we went from 105 degrees over two weekends ago to raining and more rain and horrible winds for almost a week last weekend. we got enough rain to split the cherries that are ripe and also split the apricots. all the grapes need to be sulpher dusted to stop the mold from the rain...interesting weather indeed. also interesting things happening with the doggers and my mother has needed some health care so that has taken some time also...but i think we are on the right track now...and i've spent some time this morning and will be spending some more time on monday taking care of a few things she needs to have done that will require a trip to stockton...but that is easy. the doggers are going in for beauty appointments sometime in the next week - neither one of them can see from underneath their "bangs" and they are both quite stinky. gatsby had a "no bathie" policy for 10 days while he recovered from his surgery and it was too cold for them to go wading in their little pool...so the only thing of excitment was that the gray persian would sit in the empty pool and torment nicky who would then spend a great deal of energy barking at the cat... and so it goes with kids. with my mother living in the retirement community right behind us - the doggers can go for a walk and see their grammie all at one time...and i think we'll do that tonight or tomorrow night. the bmw drive for the cure is coming to modesto early this year...it will be monday, june 9th...and that will be an all day event (and into the evening as well!!) when we are finished here in modesto - a merry bunch of transport drivers will take the cars up to sacamento to the bmw dealership up there for the event on tuesday, 06/10/08. we take all of this very seriously and as fun as it is - it is also a very special cause and we are hoping that with our help, bmw will be able to raise the 12th million bunch of dollars for this year - 12 years of doing this - 12 million dollars to the komen foundation - it's pretty outstanding. you can track their path at http://www.bmwusa.com/Standard/Content/Experience/Events/Komen/Default.aspx?enc=/eiUrYOZA so...because this is "live" and i'm "on-point" here - i had better shake, rattle and roll and see what i can do here so this thing doesn't fall over on me...and - away we go.... october's retreat - we have exactly 6 spots left at our retreat. if you are on the fence - probably time to get off on either side that you choose because this is going to fill up and i can't extend the number of spots. the fabric is discontinued and we've ordered the carriers...and it is now out of our control :) if you can - we'd love to have ya...we always have a wonderful time. just nan: we have ordered our gilded dragonfly scissor purse &
fob. we have a list and once that list is filled - we can't get anymore of
them because this is a limited edition run by just nan. these will be
shipped on 06/25 and will ready us the first week in july. little house needleworks: country cottage needleworks - sweet treats - block #4 - ice cream has arriveed...this is really a cute little piece... blue ribbon designs: keepsake stitches: that's all i know at the moment..other than my name - i do know that...i do know that the weather is going to be beautiful this weekend - not to hot - not too windy. i know that my dirty car (see above about the rain) is going to get a bath on sunday - along with the doggers. i do know that the new blackbird loose feathers should be to us very shortly and that this loose feathers will include the first part of the "mystery sampler" as they promised and we are very excited to see what they are doing. i also know that we have more stuff in this back room that needs to be cut, bundled, skeined, papered, crimped, put together, sorted out, bundled, ironed, stuffed, glued, rotary cut, etc. than i know what to do with...and that it is incredibly fun to watch it all be taken out of one set of bins - dealt with - and then end up in another set of bins...that's fun. i also know that my hand hurts from cutting squares of bristol board...and from sewing little moda fabric bags for our blackbird treat that we are working on. that and wool rugs for retreats and little birds and felted balls and beads everywhere...and me learning (or trying to learn) to square stitch - and i'm not doing such a terrific job at that...and i thought the loom was difficult - holy moley!! anyway...i am pushing my luck here with this update...so hopefully by the time i try this again - the denial of service attacks will be over and everybody all over the world can have their web sites back without the abusive attacks a great many of us have suffered...i have to remember not to take it personally...but when it hits my web site and there is nothing i can do about it - i have a tendency to take it just a little bit personally. enjoy your weekend - we shall enjoy ours...and i'm off to play in the piles and bins and cut beading cord and sort out some birdies and some crimp beads...it's way too fun... thanks for visiting us this week...let's see if i can get this loaded with little to no trouble ;) all of us at es wish you a wonderful first weekend in june... may 13, 2008 been busy - obviously and here i am back - trying to catch up. i don't know how things can go so wrong and throw everything off in such a short period of time - but it has happened and once again i am circling the planet looking for a place to land. the pile is bigger than usual and so i will snap to it and get this finished and hope that the new method for updating is going to work for a little bit longer...we can only hope and in the interim - i'm cleaning off the website on-line as quickly as i can - so...any finger crossing would be very helpful and much appreciated. primrose needleworks: jeannette douglas designs: cherished stitches: carriage house samplings: drawn thread: milady's needle: canvas work: i've discovered over the last couple of weeks that when i'm terribly tired and i want to stitch - counted canvas is just wonderful. we have branched out into 18 count canvas here in the shop and we are putting in counted canvas charts, bars, tacks and fibers - and will be adding more. i don't even need a dazor to do these and i can handle them when the brain is just about mush..and the most i can do is thread a needle - annie and i both just love them!!!
we continue to keep marsha cauthern from criss cross row and her husband ken in our thoughts and prayers. every hour is a blessing at this point and it's been a very, very long road and they are both incredible heroes... and so - there we are...update done and back to the matters at hand with family emergencies and trying to straighten out the tangled webs that have been woven...i'm for using a seam ripper or a chain saw...it works for me - but that approach might appear a bit drastic. the weather is warming up here - we should see over 100 degrees by the end of the week...we haven't had our usual "heat spell" in april - it's just a couple of weeks behind normal - and then it will calm down and we'll just do the regular summer heat...but the first couple of heat waves are always the worst until we get back in the summer saddle again. if the winds would stop - that would be much better - at least it wouldn't blow all the pollen around and into our eyes - i would be very happy with that. the make-up stays on for about an hour in the morning and then the eyes start to water and it gets ugly. have a great week - sorry for the delay in updating...sometimes family things just get in the way of being here 24/7 and accomplishing everything on my list and everybody else's list too!! may 12, 2008 am doing my best to work on this - we got some improvements off on the sidebar to the left...am hoping that makes it a little bit easier to navigate...more tomorrow...hopefully this is all going to work...and i'm actually editing directly on line... april 30, 2008 i am trying to put some rumors to rest...if you click on above - it will take you to the dmc press release...this is just insane...and certainly we have more important things to worry about than cotton floss - don't we??? i am behind again this week - no kidding...but my server is having problems because microsoft has ceased to maintain and support frontpage extensions...so guess what - i have to find a new software and totally rebuild this web site...and that should make me truly stick my head into a vice. but, nothing like a challenge to keep me focused...but, i'm getting way too old for challenges. doggers went to the vet this week - mr. gatsby will be having his "surgery" in two weeks from today; mr. nick has a tiny hernia that we are watching and had his 3rd pupper shot. the weights are in and gatsby at seven months is 9.5 pounds full grown and the slugger known as nickolas at 16 weeks weights in at 8.5 pounds. daddy and momma have told gatsby to be careful about picking on his baby brother...because in about a pound time - they will be on equal footing. and we thought nickolas would be small like gatsby - NOT!!! he has 2.6 pounds in three weeks...and i think a brick on his head would be in good order. it has been very very windy here for almost 5 days - we went from hot and windy to cool and windy...and we had a 20 degree temp drop overnight...and more and more wind so the allergies are just nuts and everybody is walking around with runny eyes and sloppy makeup sneezing all the time...and it makes a person so tired...very tired indeed. i have to finish cleaning out the rest of the mess in the next door unit...but we are freeing up some space here in our back area so we will have some extra room to put the extra stuff and we are massing boxes and boxes for our sidewalk sale in july so that is coming along too!!! and, i might actually be able to find a little bit extra time in the next couple of months...so i can get working on all the things i want to do for the store - life is good - if the wind would just stop blowing... we are working on our special treat from blackbird...moda fabric came the other day - am contacting weeks for the threads we need; sampler threads are already here...and i just need to find some ribbons and wait to see what our waxer is going to look like...this is going to be way fun. we are also playing with other things too - special pin cushions, bag, this and that...and waiting for our kelly to come home from school for the summer so she can help me with all this computer stuff...she is a wizard - truly a wizard. so..without further ado...and because i have to go clean up the web site on the server when i try to get this update loaded...and because i have to go fuss with new software...and because and because and because... it's fine-ally finished
- this was my birthday pressie this year - inspired by the wisteria that grows
in our back yard. we have completely kitted it and we are doing a limited
number of kits based on the oscar de la renta silk taffeta that lines the piece. shepherd's bush - two new ones for mother's
day...i love them both...one quaker and one very sweet - one small count and one
big count...it's a very good thing. little house needleworks: country cottage
needleworks: lizzie kate: from europe: and so...i'm out of here to see if i can figure out how to load this correctly and then start searching for a new program. i just had a lovely visit from a good friend from new york who is in california - it was great to see her...she and her daughter just left for san francisco - so good to see her!!! so...enjoy the rest of your week - have a great weekend - wish me luck on a new program - and after that learning how to get the new program to work...life is a series of challenges...and nothing is ever too big - or so i've been told!! see ya soon - maybe with a new look...and then again...maybe not - all depending...thanks for joining us this week...until later...lgm and the gang at elegant stitch * april 26, 2008 * there has been an inordinate amount of things to clean up, put away and scrub up since our retreat ended last sunday afternoon and jackie climbed on a plane monday morning to head east. we've had week 5 of puppy dogger class and that was just the start - i don't know where all the stuff comes from - to give you an example - the blue tub with all the extension cords and power strips is still in disgusting condition and i have to removed the shipping boxes at the end of the room so sara can make some sense out of it this morning when she comes in. the incoming box fairie pooped on us tuesday and wednesday and thursday and by yesterday - annie and i couldn't see straight - let alone function. actually it takes about a week to get our acts back together after a retreat...so we are right on schedule. i have a pile in my basket - and i'm coming in tomorrow to do the update - but tonight annie, kristen and i are being the clean up crew for kelly's mom cindy at the school auction. we are in charge of the shrimps for munchies and making "dump cake" (i have no idea but i have a strange feeling i am going to find out) and then we are clean-up crew...so everything i 'dump' in those glass baking pans i had better be neat - i hate scrubbing backed on ick off!!! anyway, we told cindy a very long time ago that we would be her crew...and she knows she can count on us to cover her back...and besides, we absolutely love the big room at the church for our retreats...so whatever it takes...we'll do it!!! closing the shop at 4:00 this afternoon so we can go "shrimp" and "dump" and i'll be in tomorrow with an update and some serious cleanup and list making...it's going to be a fun year...and we have lots of stuff in the planning stages. lgm april 16, 2008 two very clean doggers, one very clean shop, one very
organized (or so we think) shop and we are ready for our retreat starting on
friday with the first of our guests arriving tomorrow. i finally got all
the rest of the pictures hung above the front windows, annie helped me this
morning...and jessika and annie are just finishing up the last of the
"stuff" and the last of the orders as we head into our weekend.
just spoke with jackie on the phone and it was really nice to hear her
say..."see you tomorrow". and so...because we have a very full weekend with the on-line show and with our own retreat and because we will be up to our eyeballs until at least the middle of next week - i am proceeding along here...and hoping we can go where angels fear to wander :) made a quick trip to costco yesterday morning...made trips to the dogger day spa today...jessika has a flat screen monitor again...the original flat screen got blown out with a power surge at the old shop...so yesteday i got a new flat screen and jessika got the one from my desk...we can all actually see again...you don't realize how small a old monitor is until you go from a flat screen back to one of those. the next celebration will be getting a new copier and then a new fax machine...but baby steps...the move wasn't easy and we are catching up from that...but oh boy, is new equipment just the most fun!!! also...note please...somebody has "borrowed" my e-mail address and is sending out thousands of e-mails for everything thing from "replica watches" to men's health products (you can only imagine) to everything else. we are fielding about 1,000 emails a day now into the spam box and the undeliverable box...and i'm working on getting it solved...but, if you don't hear from me within a reasonable period of time...assume that i didn't get the e-mail or that it landed in the spam folder. until we get this straightened out with the server...i'm just trying to manage as opposed to making any significant changes while i'm not around to monitor it. so...because i have grocery shopping to do and heaven knows what else...here we go...yet again :) primitive bettys: i found
a new designer the other day - i just love these new primitives.. they
just call for a piece of "cross stitch linen" in whatever count or
color you want...and dmc thread...i love them. we are finding that
zweigart flax is a good color - but you can go however large or small you want
to...and what find they can be. bird brain designs: i love
these...i love the pink pin pillow so much...and mine is finished...love it a
million times. country cottage needleworks:
bright, spring, fun - makes you smile despite yourself kind of piece... little house needleworks:
very sweet... homespun elegance: love,
absolutely love pincushions...addictive... prairie moon: love these
too...the cats and the pumpkins made me laugh out loud when annie brought them
in this morning... midsummer night designs:
so nice...be ye kind...and immortal bloom...gentle and kind... the weather has been beautiful, we had 95 last sunday, 85 tomorrow and then a little bit cooler for the weekend...but it's really just the end of april. the wisteria are all gone...and we are madly sweeping dead wisteria blossoms off the patio but my peonies are supposed to bloom any time now. but, every single thing that has a tree trunk is in bloom at the moment...and no matter what...it takes about three hours every morning before i quit sniffing and the tears stop running down my face from allergies. oak, cypress, liquid amber...everything with a tree trunk is in bloom...making us just crazy. annie rescued another golden retriever from homeward bound
two saturdays ago. give her a day off and she's a crazy as i am...her name
is madison or maddie for short and she and the raider dog are good
friends. she's quite the clown...and has been taking swims in the dogger
swimming pools and then jumping up on the patio table...she's a beauty girl and
raider is quite happy with his new friend...it is truly a match made in
heaven...got lots of pixels in this one...but annie has promised to take a good
picture - she sent me this one from her cell phone...maddie on the left...raider
on the right...she's a blonde girlie she is. we have a new exclusive kit that we will put up next week after retreat - it's called wisteria and it's quite beautiful and i know you will just love it...we certainly do...and we also have an exclusive kit from a wonderful designer team done on our pink linen - the fabric arrived from moda this week...i think you will love it but i need to iron out a few more wrinkles and make some plans for some additions to the kit first...this is pink money...and i want it to be "perfectly pink" before we go forward. so...i have to go clean the bathroom and head to the grocery store in a little bit...got some dinners to cook for some friends tomorrow night and then...let the retreat begin..."let them eat cake" and we'll see you next week when the party is over. we thank you for stopping by and wish you a great weekend and terrific rest of the week :) from all of us here at elegant stitch...happy, happy spring :)
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