Busy Times

Yep, I know you are busy too.  This post is going to be all over the place, but there will be stitch pictures.

I thought I would start with a spring apple blossom.  It's been a beautiful and cool spring here in southern Ohio.  I prefer a long chilly spring. 

My middle child is getting married in two weeks over the Memorial Day weekend.  I offered to make the favors for the shower.   I found lots of good ideas on Pinterest and made my own version.  Here they are all tucked in ready to go.

Two tea bags were tucked into each envelope.

In April my DH and I traveled to Ashtabula, Ohio.  The annual Ohio SoapMakers Gathering was held there this year.  I like to attend each year because I always learn something new.  This year a friend demonstrated making liquid soap.  It's a different process than the cold process soapmaking that I do.  I will be trying my hand at it sometime this summer.

These are a couple of swap items, soap cupcakes.  I will be sure to participate in the swap next year.  Soapmakers make some cool stuff.

Last weekend I took a class from Ellen Chester.  This was my third class that I've taken with Ellen.  She and her husband are very thorough in their presentations, directions, supplies etc. Top notch all the way. 

The class our guild offered was A Lady's Worke Box.  Lots of goodies came with this class.  A gorgeous hardwood box, huge piece of linen (Ellen is very generous with her cut of linen. There's lots of room with nice big margins and the linen is a joy to stitch on), silks, silk ribbon, silk dupioni, horn book, thread winders, just everything for a gorgeous set to enjoy. The instructions are top notch and very clear.

Here is a table of projects that Ellen has designed.

Here's the trunk show.  Yeah, I succumbed to a couple but I showed some great restraint.

We worked on the needle book back.  Maybe 12 to 13 different stitches are included.  I loved working on it so much I finished it up last night.  I can't wait to start the front and the rest of the project but it will have to wait until the young people are married and all house guests are safely back at home.

I finished a Prairie Schooler little card chart recently.  This is going to become a floss tag.  Stay tuned.

This is a really really bad picture.  John Foster is a joy to stitch on.  I think I'm a little ahead on our SAL but that's a good thing.  Mine, compared with the others in our group is very muted.  I really love it though.  I'm the only one using HDF silks.  I find HDF silks not to be saturated colors.  This is the second project that I am using these silks on.  DMC conversions are close but I find you need to pick the deeper shade if you want a truer comparison.

I leave you with a picture of future blueberries.  I have weeded all the flower beds.  The mulchers will be here any day, hopefully before the window washers.  Yep, for the first time I have hired window washers.  I can't wait.  I just hope they come after the mulchers.  (that's a first too)

On to cleaning, cleaning, cleaning.

See you after the wedding.

Marsha