Friday, October 28, 2005

CROSS STITCH "WELCOMES" FINISHED

I finished the 4th Seasonal Welcome from Just Cross Stitch, but have to decide how to mount them now--maybe on navy, which seems to go with all the colors used. I'll have to see what's in my stash here (a lot is in storage).






Winter Welcome Closeup





Winter Welcome





Summer Welcome





Summer Welcome Closeup





Spring Welcome





Spring Welcome Closeup





Autumn Welcome Closeup





Autumn Welcome

I also finished crocheting the first two panels of the baby afghan (that I had to go back on to add more squares) and have started the third panel. I may do the embroidery on the first two before finishing the remaining panels, just to see how it will look.

Thea's poncho was mailed on Monday. I'm trying to see what yarn I have sufficient quantities of to make more ponchos, probably doing Melanie's next--but what color??? Should I do another knit one or do the crochet version??? Decisions!

I also started knitting one of the simple little purses (from our Learn-to-Knit class at the library) for Guinevere. I can do it while watching TV during commercials.

I wanted to do the Autumn cross stitch sampler like the Winter one I finished (need to mount that, too), but I don't have some of the floss and hate to buy it off-sale when I need 12 skeins. So, I'm waiting for a sale (missed the one at JoAnn's since it was only 2 days).






Recently finished reading Donna Andrews' Revenge of the Wrought Iron Flamingos--murder at a Yorktown Reenactment with lots of interesting and funny characters--and Kasey Michaels' Shall We Dance--a post-Regency romance with Princess/Queen Caroline (never crowned) as a major character, which made it a kind of sad story with wacky characters. I also finished the Mercedes Lackey/Rosemary Edghill edited collection of urban elves stories, Bedlam's Edge--very enjoyable, though the story about evil threatening New Orleans was a bit too timely.

Sunday, October 16, 2005

LATEST BOOKS

Just finished Odom's The Destruction of the Books--chock full of action (unfortunately of the kind to make a librarian of any time period shudder). It's another book I can barely wait to read the sequel to--like the next Harry Potter; fortunately I will only have to wait a week or two (I have a "Hold" on it) instead of a year.

The other book I finished was Elizabeth Thornton's The Marriage Trap, a well-done Historical Romance. She's one of the authors I look for.

I started Joanna Lindsey's Marriage Most Scandalous, but did not like the characters, so I didn't read beyond the first 3 chapters.

Still working on my 4 projects. I'm ready to do the neck for Thea's poncho.

Tuesday, October 11, 2005

NAME CHANGE/AFGHAN PROBLEM

Karl compained the title was too boring, so I'm trying this title now. Better? Not? Also, I changed some colors a bit--may need more work, tho.

The baby afghan I'm crocheting is made up of strips of alternating afghan stitch and lacy-ish stitch "squares"--I thought there were 5 "squares" per strip or panel (that's what the picture shows). BUT, on rereading the directions--after having finished 1 "complete" 5 square panel and almost finishing a second--I realized each panel is actually 7 squares. Thankfully I only have to go back to one panel and unravel the edging and just continue on the second panel I'm already working on. Not a catastrophe.

I'm almost finished with Thea's poncho--started the 4th section--and the 4th seasonal cross stitch "Welcome". (I only worked a few days last week and this.) Also have gone back to another cross stitch project I've been working on sporadically for several years.

Just finished Mel Odom's The Rover--which I had started in June before I saw him at ALA. Excellent adventure! Also finished Patricia Rice's California Girl; nice contemporary romance.

Friday, October 07, 2005

NOT ANOTHER BLOG?!!

Yep. I'm going to try ANOTHER blog--not that I keep up with the other 4--to record what I'm working on craft-wise and book-wise.

Right now I'm knitting a "Martha's Poncho" for Thea, with the intention of making a poncho for each of my 5 granddaughters. It's in a really nice medium blue I got at a garage sale.

I'm also crocheting an afghan for my youngest grandson. It's part afghan stitch, part lacy crochet and will have cross stitched embroidered animals on the afghan stitch parts--like the "Toy Fair" afghan I made for Maddie, but lighter weight--which should be better for California.

And I'm finishing the last in a set of 4 seasonal "Welcome" cross stitch designs intended for my parents from Just Cross Stitch magazine. We've been doing this in my AAUW craft group, too.

Also from Just Cross Stitch, I've started a set of 4 small seasonal samplers designed by Gail Bussi, one of my favorite designers. I finished the "Winter" one, but have to figure out how I want to display it--possibly as a little wall hanging rather than in a frame.

[I plan to post pics when I figure out how.]

I just finished reading Marion Chesney's Sick of Shadows (third in her new series and typically full of main characters who never do the right thing to make themselves happy) and Sam Llewellan's Little Darlings (wierd, "typically?" British satire for children, especially for those who like Lemony Snicket's books). I still liked them both.