Time to Snuggle...

Snow on the nest this morning... Not many little heads peaking out today. Poor Momma is getting kicked in the ribs BIG TIME, but she is committed to keeping her babies warm. Dad's duties today will not only include providing fresh fish, but shielding the little ones from the wind...he is spending much more time in the nest this morning then I've ever seen. They get my vote for "Parents of the Year"...brrrr, they look so cold.

Snuggle time in the nest... I love you, yes I love you too...

Have a good weekend,

Brenda

Finished!

Klaar!

Finito!

C'est fin!

Fertig!

However you say it...

Ann Sandles 1846 is finished! Framing is next...

Antique reproduction chart of the sampler due out soon!

With thy Needle & Thread,

Brenda

P.S.

I've had several emails with frantic stitchers who don't have a LNS for the "Birds of a Feather Mystery Sampler". We will not be offering the club on our website. The publishing, printing, collating and packaging for this club over the next 3 months will be enough on our plate, me thinks!!!

BUT,

if you do a Google or Yahoo search engine search, typing in the following - "Birds of a Feather Mystery Club by Brenda Gervais", it will take you to shops who are willing to include you in their group via mail order. What did we do before Google??? Hurry though, the time is drawing near where your subscription to this club needs to be committed to!

Time is running out...

If you haven't signed up for the "Birds of a Feather" Mystery Sampler Club, at your local needle work shop yet, time is running out! The shops will be submitting their orders very-soon-like for the hand-dyed linen and threads, so they need your club subscriptions ASAP!

Have a good day, Brenda

So it's last evening at the

Gervais household...

it's that time of night where the husband settles into his TV trance, remote at hand.

Meanwhile, I'm over at the computer being serenaded by the hum of infra-red (yes, you eagle addicts know what I'm talking about) while updating the website with new goodies.

When I look over at the dh and he looks at me....there is an exchange of looks, if you will, as he carefully picks up my stitching mess to make room for his cute little be-hind. I'm sure he was thinkin', I wish she'd do something with this bleepidy bleepidy stuff and I'm thinkin' don't mess with my floss, I have a sophisticated floss system going there... He then nicely says, "How many things do you have going at once here, dear?" My reply, just 3....{sigh} Gosh, I love this guy and am most thankful that he puts up with this stitching addiction of mine.

Did I mention I love my kitty too? We fight over that spot... and... well...today I'll let him win!

Sorry guys, and thanks for putting up with me,

Brenda

A sneak peek at a head start...

I just could no longer stand wondering and worrying if the floss choices that I selected for the "SOAR SAMPLER" were going to look how I wanted them. Designing a piece without actually stitching it, before putting it into pattern form, is very much out of the norm for how I do things. So rather then waiting (& worrying) to join you all for the SAL, I've cheated and did a little head start on you all. It won't be long before you are all caught up with me, because, well, I have a mail order pattern & design business to run during the week and my stitching is limited to just weekends.

What I've found after stitching areas that I was concerned about (adult eagle & horse), is that the DMC floss colors are looking fabulous on the 30 count Onyx linen that I'm using for my background. Use of hand-dyed flosses would look scrumptious too! And guess what? The cute little nest of eaglets lands smack dab in the center of the pattern...don't you love it when fun stuff to stitch lands there??!! You will see I sort of jump around when I stitch, it's the ADD in me! I always start in the center and work a small area and if there is a border I then bop over to that and complete it. That way I know the border meets and everything else needs to fit within this area. It's easier to do some "fudging" on the inside area rather then on a border in most cases... But, we don't make stitching mistakes do we?? Naaahhhh....didn't think so! Remember...count twice, stitch once!

If black isn't your favorite to work on, the chosen floss colors should also work just as nice on a light tan or tea-stained background, as well.

I would also like to clarify that this IS NOT an e-pattern. So if you're sitting and anxiously waiting for an email to appear in your in box from me, it ain't gonna happen!! This is a beautifully printed, full colored pattern that is on it's very way to your mail box...

I invite you to join in on the fun of this SAL. Begin sending digital photos starting Monday, April 18th. Please limit yourself to 1 photo. I'll begin posting pictures of WIP right here on the Friday of that week. Remember to let us know what fabric color/size and flosses that you are using. If you are blogging about this on your blog, give us your blog web address and I'll share these goodies as well.

With thy Needle & Thread,

Brenda

Sunday Morning News...

It was a nasty night of tornadoes, winds and baseball hail reported in the little rural Iowa town that the dh works in, but we survived and so did the eagle family! This mornings Sunday paper's headlines is about weather & eagles. One headline reads like this...

FAR FROM HOLLYWOOD, EAGLES ARE STARS ONLINE, IN PERSON

and the article starts out like this...

Everybody was supposed to be enthralled this month with Price William and Kate Middleton and their lavish royal wedding April 29 in London. But an Iowa couple - a pair of eagles nesting 80 feet up in a cottonwood tree in Iowa- trumped the British lovebirds...

To read the article in it's entirety, and take in some lovely photos go here. Take note that the eagle photos in the article can also be purchase there from the Des Moines Register online. I know there are lots and lots of school children & even grandmothers with grandchildren watching this...how fun to have a picture to hang upon the walls of the class room of this famous Iowa couple. Dollars raised thus far from the "Soar Sampler" pattern for the Raptor Resource Project - $635.00 & counting. For those of you who are joining us for this stitch-a-long*, the official kick off day of the SAL* is Monday April 18th. It is at that time you can begin sharing digital photos of your works-in-progress with me at order@countrystitchesonline.com and I'll post pics on consecutive Fridays through May 13th. Also, please share some info along with your photos, such as fabric choice (size & color), floss choice and blog address if you are blogging about your wip. Should be fun...I can hardly wait!

Have a good week & we are in for more bad weather today...

keeping our fingers, toes & talons crossed,

Brenda

Predicament in the Nest...

Did any of you eagle-cam followers see Momma eagle in her "branch predicament" yesterday?? No? Well she brought a "bigger-then-life" branch up to the nest and had "remodel" on her mind. She tugged, she chewed & got caught up in it several times before getting it just so... only to have Dad fly in later and do away with the tree branch. Some things never change, even in the bird world. This Mommas nest building skills have always been in question in Dad's eagle eyes, dating back to their first nest building in 2008. As a young, first-time mother he was always rearranging what she did to the nest and 3 years later he's still doing the same...so funny to watch!

Well I sort of have my own predicament in my nest. Yep, that's my nest above...this is where I spend my time most days. Today's predicament is that I sold out of the "Soar Sampler" and now I'm getting emails from very very sad eagle followers that didn't get a pattern. Well being the "softy" that I am...I've decided to make a change mid-stream, is this allowed?? Here's what I have come up with...

I will continue to sell the pattern for a limited time, rather then a limited number of patterns. I will continue to give a portion of the proceeds to the Raptor Resource Project. BUT, once the eagles fledge the pattern will be retired...sound okay with you all? I've moved the purchase tab over to the side/top of the blog, patterns can be purchased there. I will continue to keep you all up to date on dollar donations made to this wonderful project. DISCLAIMER: I am in no way affiliated with the Raptor Resource Project...I'm just a bird lover at heart, have been totally captivated by this eagle family and want to do my part in helping out those that have made this possible for us to enjoy. Have you made your donations yet? It's just a simple click of the button, paying via PayPal.

As I sit here typing this post I'm hearing what I think is thunder rumbling off in the distance on the web cam. There is nasty weather predicted for the state this weekend, with a good probability of tornadoes. Let's keep our fingers crossed that the weatherman is wrong, for the sake of everyone and the eagle family.

The first little eaglet popped his head out from momma at about 6:15 AM today. By 6:30 the whole nest was awake, with trout on the breakfast menu. (I wish Momma would "clean-the-fridge, too many leftovers...) All three little eaglets seem to be doing well, with E1 still being somewhat bossy. Rumor has it that the bossy first born is a female....YOU GO GIRL!! Really, rumor has it that the nest consists of two females and one male.

And I leave you today with the above photo of daddy eagle sitting so proudly on guard, above the nest...such a good daddy!

Have a good weekend everyone and lets hope the bad weather doesn't hit us, Brenda

P.S. I've taken some phone calls in regards to the stitch count of the sampler...it is 127 wide by 121 high. The first 100 sold sampler patterns will go out in Monday's mail, you should have them by weeks end.

THANK YOU, THANK YOU!

You helped us reach the $500.00 donation goal for the Raptor Resource Project in less then 24 hours...I'm overwhelmed, touched, thankful etc. etc...

Thank you so kindly for purchasing the SOAR SAMPLER pattern and making this donation possible, Brenda

Join us for a stitch a long...

Introducing "Soar Sampler" cross stitch chart!

Like so many of you, I've spent many of hours watching the eagle family via web-cam here in Iowa. It's inspired me to create a little momento to remember this event of 2011. After watching a 2008 documentary on PBS, about this daddy eagle and all of his trials and tribulations, late last evening, I knew I wanted to create a sampler in honor of this eagle family. So I arose at 5 AM this morning and started to create the below sampler on one computer screen, while watching the eagle cam on my monitor to my right....yes, call me a geek, a dork, a nerd, or whatever... By 9:30 AM the sampler was finished!

You will find things tucked throughout the sampler that are familiar to you, if you follow the web-cam. The tree is a great Cottonwood...just like the one the nest sits in. The crown symbolizes the majesty of this bird...the bird our founding fathers chose as our country's bird in the year 1782. The 13 points around the sampler represent the first 13 original colonies.

The remaining motifs represent what we see from time to time when the web cam zooms out...the horses in the pasture & the white granary. Eagles like to build their nests along moving water...you will find the river on the bottom of the sampler. Then there are the two cottontails towards the top & the fish in the river...well, we all know what they represent. While it was never fun seeing one of these in their nest, this is life!

The flag, I just added, because!

"SOAR SAMPLER PATTERN"

To purchase pattern, look to the upper right/top side of blog.

I will be offering this pattern, for purchase, exclusively here on my blog. We are limiting this pattern to a printing of 100. Five dollars of each pattern sale will be donated to the Raptor Research Organization. Pattern price includes travel fare to you. USA orders accepted only, thanks for understanding.

Let's see how much we can raise for this great organization! I will keep a running total of dollars raised over to the right side of the article. The pattern will not feature a photo of a finished piece on the cover, as I am under other stitching time constraints on another piece, currently...and I wanted to get this started.

BUT,

how's about if we have a stitch a long and I'll stitch mine along with you?

Sound like fun?!! Are you in??!!

So here's how the stitch a long will work: You purchase the pattern, you stitch the piece and please feel free to work the sampler in thread colors and linens of your choice....be brave, go outside of the box! That's what makes stitch a longs more interesting...lots of different thread and linen choices. Then send me pictures of your work in progress @ order@countrystitchesonline.com (with a subject line reading - Soar Stitch Along) and I'll post pictures of the WIP on each Friday. And most important...send us pictures of the finished piece!

Back to the PBS documentary as I mentioned above...it is very educational & entertaining! You will want to watch this 50 minute piece, on the life of our daddy eagle, who lives near a fish hatchery in rural Iowa....have a Kleenex handy, though! Bob Anderson, the "eagle guy" narrates pieces of this documentary.

Have a pleasant evening,

Brenda

So... it's quarter til seven

this evening

and

I'm running

around

like a

headless rooster...

supper still needs to be made, husbands on the phone with sonny boy and I'm trying to listen to half of that conversation, and it's American Idol night, like in just a few short fifteen minutes. I'm trying to do all of the above at the same time... Probably is going to be another Wednesday night with supper in front of the TV, I'm thinkin...darnit, I think I've reached the age where I need TV trays...I tell the dh that TV dinners are the next step after TV trays. He doesn't seem to find the same humor in the TV tray/TV dinner thing... So the burgers are on the grill, I will try my very best not to burn them...

it is now 10 minutes til seven

and I check the computer

and I see this...

(sorry about photo quality...pretty sure I was shakin with excitement)

I then yell (no, scream) up to the dh, whose still on the phone with the son, "THE EAGLES HATCHING"....husband continues his conversation. I figured he'd jump off the couch, tear down the steps, tell his son he'd have to call him back, to witness the hatching of an eagle. Not. Have I mentioned, the dh isn't as into this as I?? I'm now yelling, NOT NOW...it's almost time for American Idol! So as you can see, at approximately 6:50 PM CST the 3rd egg hatched. Let's just hope this little one can put up with that one naughty sibling....you know the one, the one that needs to spend some time in the time-out chair!

I'm exhausted...this having baby eaglets is exhausting,

Brenda

That darn cornhusk...

This post is for you who have now been consumed by the Iowa eagle cam and your laundry has piled up, the sink is full of dishes and the kids are now writing the words "dust me" on the furniture...because...well, you'd rather watch the eagle then do these mundane chores, right? Sorry, I do apologize!

While watching the parent eagles patiently waiting & waiting and tidying up there nest, I always noticed that one, big, darn, corn husk. You know what I'm talking about, right? They would work & work that corn husk, determined to get the large clumsy piece woven into their nest. I often times just wished they would do away with that darn corn husk...it just always seemed to be in the way. From time to time I go to You Tube as there are lots of clips of these eagles there (just type in Decorah, IA eagles in the search). Great, just what you needed...another place to watch the eagles...I won't tell the family, if you don't! Lots of fun stuff to see (from this year, as well as previous years).

Well yesterday, as my brats were burning on the grill, I came upon a clip that I must share with my crazy fellow eagle fans... Check it out. PLEASE NOTE - for some reason it is only showing a short clip...after viewing the short clip, a new screen will pop up, over to the right you then can click on the UP NEXT to view the full minute clip of what is known as the Decorah Shimmy...you must see the full minute clip! NOTE #2- you may want to scroll down to the very bottom of this page to turn down the volume on my background music.



Isn't that a hoot???

I'm gettin a bit concerned about that 3rd egg....do you think it is ever going to hatch? I'm thinkin that little fuzz ball better hurry up or he's going to be the weakling of the eaglets. And you know what happens to the weakling in an eagles nest? No? Well, let's just say it's not a good thing...sibling rivalry at it's worst and I don't want to witness that!

You may notice the background behind the eagles is now taking on a greenish hue...that is spring arriving in Iowa! The grass here is just starting to turn green,the tulips & daffodils are up. The trees are setting on leaf buds and in a few short weeks our trees will look like green lace...my.most.absolute.favorite.time.of.the.year!

Hoping it is sunny and warm wherever you are,
Brenda

All in a weekend of work...

As I mentioned a couple of posts ago, I had the urge to create something for Autumn. Here is a peek at the design, in it's very early stages. There are plans of 4 samplers in this series...

~ one for each season ~

Their release dates will be on the first day of the new season, but always working one season ahead.

Autumn Sampler - Release date June 20, 2011

Winter Sampler- Release date September 22, 2011

Spring Sampler - Release date December 21, 2011

Summer Sampler - Release date March 20, 2012

The sampler size has a stitch count of 190 wide X 196 high. All will be of similar size. I have chosen a 35 count linen by R & R Reproductions with Gentle Arts flosses used throughout. The sampler size isn't too overwhelming, making it possible to get each season's sampler done in the 3 month span between releases. How fun...a new piece to hang upon your walls, as we usher in the next new season.

Well it's bright & sunny here, but another windy day on the open prairies of Iowa. Still patiently waiting for the 3rd eaglet to emerge. Boy, lot's of meat choices at the eagle residence...anyone have any idea what yesterday's meat of choice was?? The thing that was laying stiff legged, feet straight up in the air!!

Must toodle loo folks, there are orders needing to be filled...off to work I go, Brenda

Smorgasbord...

3 choices of meat

all you can eat.

I can tell this is now to the point where it probably isn't for the weak hearted or weak stomached. Linda, have you gagged yet???? Tee heeeee...my sister Linda is a gagger, we all like trying to make her gag. Aren't we mean??

My advise to the eagle mom & pop, puleassseeeee leave the robins alone...don't you know there are bigger birds in the sky to catch??? Poor ruby red-breast was today's mid afternoon snack. :-(

I have told myself that the day I see a cat in the nest is the day I shut this off...

They wouldn't eat a cat, would they???????

If you haven't visited the eagle cam recently, there are now 2 eaglets. Both seem to be doing well. Tomorrow there should be 3! Did anyone see the one little eaglet was on the outside of the nest cavity this afternoon? OMG, I immediately went into frantic mode. It was out along the edge, near the twigs. What keeps these little varmints from falling through the cracks of those bigger twigs is what I want to know? I sat and yelled at the parent and told the dh that that this is all I need... one more thing to stress over... worrying that these little fuzz balls are going to fall out of the nest. Finally the parent eagle picked the little one with it's beak and tucked it back into the nest and I then crossed that off my "worry list"...

Have a good evening, Brenda

My weakness...

Recipe. Web. Sites.

Do you visit recipe websites? If so, share your favorites with us...I'd love to have a few more to visit! My new favorite food website is simplyscratchrecipes.com . Like I don't have any cookbooks or cooking magazines...(said with sarcasm)

I made two recipes this weekend from Simply Scratch Recipes. The dip I've made before and the chicken salad was my first try....it gets a smiley face! Oh and the dip, it already got a smiley face! Don't you love it when you try a new recipe and it's worthy of a smiley face?

Do you have a NCCA Hoop Finals party plannned or invited to one? This dip would be a nice goodie to nibble on while watching the game. The crisp triangular Triscuit is my favorite cracker for this dip.

8 oz. Cream Cheese, Softened

3/4 cup mayonnaise

1/2 tsp fresh cracked black pepper (be sure to set your pepper mill on coarse...this is what makes this dip)

3 whole scallions (or green onions) sliced using white and green portions

3 oz. green Spanish olives, sliced

4 oz. black olives, sliced

8 oz. Monterrey Jack cheese, grated

Triscuit crackers for serving

Add cream cheese, mayo and pepper into a medium bowl and mix until blended. Add in the chopped green onions, olives and grated cheese; fold in until all are incorporated. Put into a serving dish and serve with crackers. Keeps for up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator. Makes 2 cups.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Don't you love spring & summer time cooking? It's so nice to put away the casseroles and ready up for some nice light spring time salads. Or girl food, as I call it. Saturday's lunch at the Gervais household was this wonderfully easy salad. Don't you love easy?

DRESSING:

1 cup mayo

4 teaspoons apple cider vinegar

6 tsp. honey

1 teaspoon poppy seeds

salt & pepper to taste

SALAD:

1 rotisserie chicken from the super market (cut into bite sizes) Allow to cool.

2 oz. pkg lightly toasted whole pecans, then coarsely chopped

1 cup small red grapes, sliced in half

2 celery sticks (chopped)

Mix dressing ingredients and store in airtight container in your fridge to refrigerate. Upon serving, combine salad ingredients and add chilled dressing before serving. Serve on a bed of baby romaine leaves or on a croissant.

I'm so sorry that these recipes aren't low-cal in nature...hummmm....why is it that it's the bad stuff that always tastes so good??? (sigh)

Enjoy, Brenda

Hatched!

The first eaglet has hatched!

I missed it?

Did you?

I get up with the birds in the morning, therefore I usually retire with them in the evening. This eagles nest has just become my screen saver...always open...for graphic purposes I use two monitors. I told the dh before I went to bed last evening that if the egg starts to hatch to wake me up. He looked at me like I was cracked!!

Let's just say he's not as into this as I....

So I awoke this morning at 6 AM to find this little bundle of downy fluff...

oh mercy me...isn't it cute??? In just 6 short weeks it will be the size of it's parents...

Amazing.

Have a good weekend everyone,

Brenda

This & Thats...

Here's a peek at our latest addition to our note card collection...

The card features a photo that I took of one of my antique sewing vignettes....two tiny antique tomato pincushions, old scissors, crochet lace trims and old ivory buttons...some of my favorites. The photo was then digitally altered to look like an oil painting for a cool and funky look. An antique sewing tape measure neatly frames the photo. The photo lies upon a linen ground with one of my favorite verses across the bottom...

"any day spent stitching is a good day..."

You can find these cards for sale here.

Now onto the thats of the this & thats...

I received word from our Valdani distributor that more of the threads that have been out of stock for some time are on their way into the states. I am hopeful to have them by late next week, or early the following week. Out of stock colors in this shipment will be the JP12, O505 & O510. For those of you waiting for these colors, we will get them out the day our order arrives. Thanks for your patience!

We also received word that our Prairie Cloth has been shipped.....yipppeeee....we've been waiting for this since late last year. We will have both the ivory and red coming. We'll update our website, marking this item as back in stock just as soon as it arrives.

And of course I can't end this post without reminding everyone that today is the expected hatching date of the eagle eggs. I awoke this morning at 5:30 AM and found mother eagle was awake too. This is somewhat early for her to be awake. She was very vocal. I think she was telling Dad to get home, we're gonna have some babies today!! He later arrived with his talons filled with fine bedding grasses. I was able to get a peek at the eggs and it appears they all have peck holes in them. In the quietness of the dark early morning hours you could hear the little ones making peeping noises in their eggs...pretty cool! I still am wondering what their plan is for the dead rabbit on the lower left hand corner of the nest. I'm pondering the thought that perhaps they will eventually pull the fur from the rabbit and line the nest with it...or perhaps they just like their rabbit meat well-aged.....

Well we turn another page of the calendar today. Where did March go? It was complete March Madness here at Country Stitches. March is always a very busy month for us, with lots & lots of orders to fill. Everybody is ready for new and fresh spring-type patterns, I think. Country Stitches' anniversary also came and went in the month of March...she is 24 years old.

I think I'll get the sketch book out this weekend, I feel the need to create...time to move onto new patterns for Fall...I may throw in a couple patriotic ones as well...we shall see!

Have a good weekend everyone,

Brenda

Ann Sandles 1846 Update...

After another week of stitching here is an update of the Ann Sandles sampler, photo courtesy of model stitcher Suzanne. Suzanne lives in Ohio and myself in Iowa, so it is with digital photos and email that I watch the progression of the Ann Sandles sampler being reproduced...isn't technology fabulous? As you can see, Suzanne has now made her way to the larger-then-life border. Young Ann didn't mess around with small dainty borders, she loved them big! Everything in this sampler is big, relatively speaking, to the size of the overall sampler. Not much spacing between motifs on this piece. For some reason I don't picture Ann as a dainty 13 year old...

The larger then normal border was another feature of this antique sampler that grabbed and wowed me...I liked it's uniqueness. There are some leaf placement errors made by young Anne (age 13), throughout the border. In keeping true to the original sampler, the pattern will be charted with these errors as well.

The windows are waiting for their cute little white panes and there is outline stitching in red around the blue letters that will be stitched yet, before the piece is done. This outline stitching in the red really makes the letters pop.

Wait until you see the top portion of this sampler...this is where you'll find Adam & Eve, some birds, apple trees, frolicking puppies and other star-shaped motifs...and of course, a serpant hiding within the apple tree.

This is the final sneak peek, the next showing will be of the finished piece...stay tuned!

With thy Needle & Thread,

Brenda

Oh dear...

no, oh bunny!

I'm hoping that isn't the Easter bunny in the Eagles Nest...take a look!

Me thinks I see a bunny wabbit in it's nest.... (Look up towards the top of the nest...is that a cotton tail?) Click here to see!

Do you suppose they know their due date is just a couple of days away? Perhaps the reason for the bunny....

Sorry, gotta run...lots & lots to do today,

Brenda

Baby's Real Soon!

Our pair of Iowa eagle's, featured on the web cam for the Raptor Resource Project, egg hatching due date is expected at some point between Wednesday and Friday of this week. If interested tune in here. It is also there where you may make a donation towards this project. We are seeing the eagle make a come-back here in Iowa, after spending many years on the endangered list. The eagles were featured in today's Des Moines Register. Photos are courtesy of the Des Moines Register. The article states the camera has almost four million page visits a day from over 130 countries the past month. The article also states the web cam will be turned off in July, about the time the fledgings leave the nest.The job of a Raptor Resource Project volunteer often requires them to scale great heights to reach the eagles nests. Here, a volunteer rests in the nest...gives you some idea how big that nest really is!

Also...take note of how each eagle prefers the eggs in their nest. One observer noted that the male prefers the eggs to be in a row and the female prefers them in a triangle (I may have that turned around). This rolling of the eggs keeps the embryo from sticking to the shell.

Let's hope for warmer weather this week for these little ones as they make their way into the world. Friday we awoke to a slushy/snowy mix here in NW Iowa. These conditions made for tricky travel on Friday. Road conditions were blamed for an accident that claimed the life of a local woman, a mother of 6 young children. One can only imagine, such a tragedy for this young family...our thoughts and prayers are with them.

Have a good week everyone,

Brenda

NEW cross stitch club!

"Birds of a Feather" Mystery Sampler Club

is coming to your local needlework shops

this summer!

Here is how it works...

The Birds of a Feather sampler is a 21st century sampler, with a 19th century flair, designed by Brenda Gervais/With thy Needle & Thread. The stitch count of the finished piece is 173 wide X 190.

Finished sampler size:

15/30 count - 11 1/2" wide X 12 5/8" high

18/35 count - 9 1/2" wide X 10 1/2" high

20/40 count - 8 5/8" x 9 1/2" high

This information and the little blurry photo snippet above is it, that's all we're revealing...the rest is a mystery! The sampler pattern will be revealed in 3 parts to the club member over the months of May, June & July. The 1st pattern supplied to the member will detail the border, the 2nd and 3rd patterns will consist of the alphabet and the "fun" main focal motif of the sampler. Each month more of the sampler pattern will be revealed to it's members...can you feel the anticipation already?? It should be a fun summer club, many shops are hosting stitch-ins, stitching camps & events to coincide with the Birds of a Feather Mystery Sampler Club...join the fun! Visit your local needlework shop for more information on joining the club. For shop owners interested in being a part of this stitching event, contact Norden Crafts at (800) 323-1252 - mail@nordencrafts.com (contact info for shop owners only please, thank you)

With thy Needle & Thread, Brenda

My two Anns...

Here's a little sneaky peeky of the work in progress on the Ann Sandles 1846 sampler, that is currently being reproduced. This piece is now in the hands of my model stitcher, Suzanne. She is making good progress and she fills me in (so to speak) each week with photo updates. I really appreciate these little photo updates...helps calm the nerves a tad as there is lots of time, energy and money invested into a piece...floss colors (the hand-dyed flosses can be sneaky tricky), contrast, etc is critical. I love the colors in this piece and think you will too... lots of warm-tone reds, greens & browns...yummy! Adam and Eve are the focal motifs on this piece. The motifs of this piece are larger then typical...this is what drew me to this sampler. Young Ann didn't leave any linen left un-stitched on her sampler...

Then there is the 2nd Ann...Did you know I collect samplers stitched by Ann's? No not really, you would think though!!! It seems appropriate, with Ann being my middle name...

The Ann Dickinson 1819 that I've been stitching for sometime now....or should I say, a lack of stitching??!! I started her around the holidays. This poor "Ann piece" has been set aside for the moment as I've had other irons in the fire - aka "Mystery Sampler Club". I hope to get back to this sampler in a couple of weeks with an anticipated release date of this pattern pushed back to late summer.

I'm sure Suzanne will beat me done on the other Ann, anticipated release date for the Ann Sandles 1846 sampler is May/June, I'm thinking...

With thy Needle & Thread,

Brenda

Stitching Suspense...

A "Mystery Sampler Club"

presented by

With thy Needle & Thread,

distributed by Norden Crafts.

A new stitching club like no other!

Coming to your local needlework shop this spring! Keep your eyes and ears open for further details...

A summer of pure stitching suspense awaits it's members.

Until later,

Brenda

There once was a little coat.

A little green and yellow plaid linen coat.

A coat hand-sewn by my mother.

Not for Miss Teddy,

but rather for me.

I was in kindergarten.

It was Easter.

It was my favorite Easter coat.

I loved the "bally" buttons!

I'm sure there must have been a matching dress...

Many years later,

this little linen coat of mine

is still

my favorite

Easter coat

&

Miss Teddy's too!

A coat that's a wee tad too big for Miss Teddy,

but

I keep telling her

she'll grow into

it someday...

Happy Spring,

Brenda

New Cross Stitch Pattern...

Bunny & Co, in cross stitch, is here and ready to ship!

A couple of posts ago I was contemplating the finish of this piece. Per one of my blogger friends suggestions, I went with purple frills around this pillow. She said, purple reminds her of Easter...Purple IS the color of Easter and I just so happened to have a bouquet of fresh purple tulips for the photo shoot....P.E.R.F.E.C.T!!

If purple isn't your color, there are other color options for the seam tape ribbon finish on this design. Other colors that beautifully match the floss colors in this piece are - Moss, Posie, or Grecian Pink. The Grecian Pink is an exact match to the Baby's Breath linen by Weeks that this piece is worked upon...I think the Grecian Pink would give the pillow an elegant finish, as well.

Bunny & C0. is worked on 30 count linen (Baby's Breath by Weeks Dye Works) over 2 threads using Weeks flosses throughout. When the pillow is completed, sewn & stuffed it measures 8" x 12"...a perfect sized accent pillow. I have a vintage teddy bear that is sitting in a child's chair that is currently holding my pillow...so sweet!

* * * * * * * *

New market release patterns from other designers are still arriving weekly. New patterns from Stacy Nash, Karen Cluba and Primitive Traditions arriving this week.

* * * * * * * * *

Also new, are 6 new shades of the vintage seam tape ribbon. This is the ribbon that we use to add the frills to the edges of our cross stitch designs...it is beautiful! And YES, we do give the detailed instructions, in the cross stitch pattern, for adding the seam tape ribbon frill to the piece.

The six new colors are very reminiscent of faded colors of floss that you find in antique samplers.

New color arrivals are:

Coconut

Dusty Olive

Iced Lime

Leather Tan

Log Brown

Metal Green

Sea Moss

Suntan

To view all 56 colors of this seam tape ribbon click here.

It's going to be a beautiful day here, I'm off to open some windows and backdoor so the kitty can enjoy this beautiful morning and then mix up a batch of blueberry muffins for breakfast nibbling...

Have a good weekend everyone,

Brenda

Put on Your Birthday Hat!!

Here is a picture of our boy.

A picture of him at one of his finer moments...

Today he is our birthday boy.

He is 28 years old.

Can that be?

He is on his way to the sunny beaches of Mexico for vacation.

I'm finding myself worrying about him loosing his passport while there. He's been known to lose an item or two... so, I'm just sayin'...

&

I've also been finding myself wondering if he still will immediately check out all the little goodies (amenities) in the bathroom, at the hotel, upon arriving. This was standard procedure for this boy of ours each summer vacation. I have pictures as evidence...

The shower hat seemed to be his favorite...

Don't ask me why?

I'm thinking he probably doesn't do this silliness anymore...

yes, he has probably outgrown this.

I probably don't need to worry about this anymore, right?

Soooooo Matthew, put on your birthday hat...

(even if it's a shower hat)

and know we are thinking of you today.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MATTHEW!

We Love You,

Mom & Dad

My yesterday...

I have little daily rituals, routines or what ever one wants to call them. One being, I stop at a local gas station across the street from Country Stitches, and pick up a cup of coffee to sip as I'm invoicing orders each morning. Yep, gas station coffee... no Starbucks in my town!

Yesterday, as I thumbing through change in the bottom of my purse to locate 85 cents, the store clerk say $1.06...my response, "oh that's just coffee"...thinking, she's thinking, I have cappuccino...she says our coffee prices went up. Wowser... I thought, and now I'm scrounging for a green back and change!

So....the price of oil keeps going up, but is there some news about coffee beans that I'm missing out on?

So... I pay the buck six and am on my merry way to work...thinking the whole time, jeeper socks, that's over a 20% price increase!! The coffee is good... don't get me wrong and I enjoyed every drop of it!

Then my day gets better, worse, however you want to look at it... I received word from our Valdani distributor that floss prices are going up 40 cents per ball April 2nd. Okay... now I'm wired with caffeine from my expensive cup of coffee, and stressing over another major price increase. Two in one day is almost more then I could handle... When this happens, all kit pricing in our printed patterns is wrong and needs to be re figured and pattern editing needs to happen, all prices on our website are no longer correct and need to be changed (that is, if we follow suit and increase pricing)...this in itself is a major major undertaking. With that being said, it might just be easier to take the loss...

Wishing for a better "news type of day" today & I will remember a line my big sister sent me that goes like this...

"Worry is a waste of the imagination"

And really... in the whole scheme of things, with all the trajedy and loss in Japan, it is all trivial and shame on me for stressing over something such as small as this...there are much bigger problems in this world!

Happy Saint Patty's Day,

Brenda

EAGLE UPDATE...

Did any of you see the eagle bring up a furry creature for the other to eat last evening...it was somewhat out of the viewing but you could see the fur a flying...This morning the male arrived with a large stick in his mouth to add to the nest...housekeeping. Also, a couple evenings ago I spotted a coyote run across the screen near dusk time. A few minutes later you could hear the coyotes howling...neat sights and sounds of nature. For those of you who missed the link, here it is:

http://www.ustream.tv/channel-popup/decorah-eagles

Decisions, decisions...

Look what arrived in the mail today from my model stitcher, April!!! Doesn't she do a lovely job of stitching...the backside of the piece looks as wonderful as the front! THANK YOU APRIL!

Now it's my turn to put the finishing touches onto the Bunny & Co. piece. I'm thinking seam tape frill perhaps...maybe finished into an accent pillow as it is large enough for this...

Hmmm....shall the frill be contrasting green or rose, or a matching pink vintage seam tape...or should I go out on a limb with purple??

Suggestions are welcome!!

Release date of cross stitch chart, BUNNY & CO. is March 21st.

With thy Needle & Thread,

Brenda

Our country's bird...you must see this!

Since I've kind of been stuck on bird topics the past few posts, I thought I'd share with you all an amazing web-cam of a pair of nesting eagles here in Iowa. These eagles have been followed since 2002 and until only recently the taping of these magnificent birds has now been made public via the Internet for all of us to view. The exact location of this pair is not given, to protect their safety.

There are three eggs in the nest. The eggs were laid in late February with babies due in early April. Watch as the eagle carefully turns the eggs and then adjusts and tidies up the nest. I'm noticing steam from the breath of momma eagle this morning...It must be a big task keeping those eggs warm this time of year, when it still gets below freezing here at night.

Here is the link, enjoy!
http://www.ustream.tv/channel-popup/decorah-eagles

Remember this is a 24-7 web cam in the Central Time zone in the USA. If it is night time here, the viewing will be darker and you may even catch the momma sleeping. This is an audio as well as video web-cam....so turn up your speakers to hear the eagles occasional shrill as she communicates with the Mr....I think she is really telling him to get home with dinner!! You'll also hear sparrows tweeting, blue jays squawking and cardinals singing their courting songs in the background...it's like listening to one of those natures Cd's to bring upon relaxation!

Enjoy this "bird's eye view" of this amazing pair of eagles on their journey from egg laying, to eggs hatched, to caring and providing for hungry little bird mouths, to fledglings leaving the nest....these are amazing birds! The males wing span measures 90"...they are much larger then what the bird appears in the viewing. This particular nest is 80 feet from the ground, is 5' x 6' in size and weighs 1.5 tons....wow!

Be for warned though...you are going to see a fish, a bunny or squirrel or two that have succumbed to the powerful claws of this mighty bird before the fledglings leave the nest. This is what they depend on for food.

Have a good day,
Brenda

The whole bird/wind turbine issue...

I can't help but ask myself, "How often do I see a bird run into a tree, a house or a tall building?" Not too often. They do a pretty darn good job about maneuvering around obstacles when they fly....

How often to a see a neighborhood cat kill a bird? All too often.

This is always a topic of discussion to those that oppose wind energy....bird's flying into them.


In regards to the bird-mortality argument: The vast majority of research shows that wind turbines kill relatively few birds, at least compared with other man-made structures. The statistics are shocking, if you consider just how many people are crying out against wind power for the birds' sake:

Man-made structure/technology
Associated bird deaths per year (U.S.)

Feral and domestic cats
Hundreds of millions [source: AWEA]

Power lines
130 million -- 174 million [source: AWEA]

Windows (residential and commercial)
100 million -- 1 billion [source: TreeHugger]

Pesticides
70 million [source: AWEA]

Automobiles
60 million -- 80 million [source: AWEA]

Lighted communication towers
40 million -- 50 million [source: AWEA]

Wind turbines
10,000 -- 40,000 [source: ABC]

Interesting facts...
Now, don't get me wrong. Bird's are important to me, I am an avid bird-watcher and you don't want to know what I spend a month on bird seed...
Birds are important to our eco-system, but wind energy is too!
Have a good week,
Brenda

Feeling good about where I live...

When many of you think of Iowa you probably think of farming, large fields of corn and beans, and pigs roaming around. You are right, except our pigs for the most part do not roam around freely. LOL!!

Did you know there is a new form of farming going on in Iowa? It is wind farming. Our state sits along a ridge called, the Buffalo Ridge. This ridge runs through Iowa and Minnesota. Areas along this ridge experience more wind then other areas. Yes, it is windy here...most days! Our farmers are now contracting small plots of their land to wind turbine companies and wind turbines are being built. Our windy weather turnes these huge turbine blades, which in turn create energy, the energy is captured and then turned into energy. The farmer still plants fields of corn and beans around the windmills. Iowa is a front runner in wind energy.

From the below photo it is hard to imagine how big these windmills really are. When a wind farm is going up, the roadways will be filled with semi's bring parts to the construction sight. One blade extends the length of a normal semi-trailer, yes one blade at a time is moved into the sights.

I've spent most of my weekend, as probably many of you have, glued to CNN & FOX watching the catastrophic happenings in Japan, with cross stitch in my lap. It is incomprehensible for those of us who sit and watch this, in the comforts of our homes, enjoying all things we take for granted. Life, safety, electricity, clean running water, phone service, ample supply of food and the list goes on. Our hearts go out to the Japanese people and their country.

I've learned a thing or two over the past two days about nuclear energy. I will be the first to admit that physics and chemistry were never my strong suits in school. I really didn't even know what nuclear energy was, or was made from, yes call me stupid!! I even now know that a melt-down is something much bigger and much more serious then a little one throwing a fit. This disaster has piqued my interest in nuclear energy, even doing Google searches on the very topic. We have over 100 nuclear power plants in this country in 31 states. I learned we have one in my state...I didn't know this, call me stupid again!! The readings I found also says there is a big push for more plants to be built in the states, enabling us to be less dependant on foreign oil. My concern is, is it safe? Did we learn enough from Three Mile Island event??

As I sit afar and watch this, a little part of me is scared of the global affect something such as this could have. A total nuclear melt-down sounds scary to me. The fall out can be moved by weather with mention of it possibly reaching the California coast...this IS scary!

Hmmm....
I'm liking the sights & sounds of whirring windmills that dot our local countryside more & more. There is comfort in knowing that they pose no risk of causing a catastrophic event. Most important, they are clean, safe, renewable, and wind is free!

Have a good week,

Brenda

Look who's here!

We enjoyed our warmest day, so far, yesterday...60 plus degrees! LOOK, robins are everywhere! Auwww...my favorite moment of each spring...spotting the first robin! This flock had one thing on their mind...EAT! So fun watching them tilt their little head sideways as they listen for a critter in which to lunch upon...Although, I can't imagine there are too many critters out yet...it is probably slim pickin's...

With the warm weather our lake begins to open up...

attracting all sorts of water fowl. A sign that spring is drawing near.

It also brings out some ice-fishers...
Sorry about the bad picture (click on photo to enlarge...it does help), but I was a few hundred yards away and this is the best my 270 mm zoom could do. Darnit...really could use one of those $2000.00 zooms for moments such as these. Do you see those four dark blobs with white spots?? These are bald eagles out for a Saturday of ice fishing. I'm hoping for a closer picture of these guys before the ice totally goes out.

Looks like it is snowing, doesn't it? These are snow geese. They too come pay us a visit on our lake each spring as they make their way towards their breeding grounds, the Artic Tundra. These guys are quite noisy, making all sorts of honking sounds. You will notice black ones and white ones. Until recently, the Blue Geese, as the dark birds were called, were considered a different species. They are now recognized as a "morphed" (dark form) of the white Snow Goose. Our lake has three small islands on it. The areas around these little islands is where the water opens up first. In the above photo you can see the island with trees in the background, ice covered lake in the foreground and the dark area is open water. This, the open water, is what these large flocks of water fowl have come for. They are always welcome guests. The pelicans will soon follow...

It can only mean one thing...

Hoping wherever you are, you are enjoying a warm & sunny Saturday!

Have a good weekend,

Brenda

Valdani floss update...

I just received word that some flosses that have been sold out of at Valdani/Canada since December are now back in stock....we are doing the happy dance, it's been a l-o-n-g wait. Yes, 8122 is finally going to be back in stock!

For those of you who have some of these flosses on back order, we will get them out to you just as quickly as our order arrives. We are expecting our shipment on Friday or Monday. There always seems to be some bad news with the good...Valdani/Canada is still sold out of colors O510, O505 & JP12... No word yet as to when they will be back in stock.

For those who use and love this hand dyed 3 strand floss by Valdani, you may not know that this floss is made in Romania. It is then air lifted to it's headquarters in Canada and eventually finds it's way to our distributor after getting through customs, and then onto us! The whole process just takes time...

Bunny & Co...

My model stitcher, April shared a little peak of what she's been working on, so I thought I'd share it with y'all...
Bunny & Co. in cross stitch, coming soon!!

With thy Needle & Thread,
Brenda

So Pretty ~ So Delicate...

The color will fade,

the flower wither,
but a virtuous mind will bloom forever...
(verse from an 1816 sampler)

Don't throw away those spent daffodils...lie them on a fancy old plate to dry & enjoy their everlasting beauty!

Think Spring,
Brenda

It's that time of year...

when one doesn't need to tune into the weather on the TV, radio or weather.com for the local weather...

we just know we are in for snow. It is high school state basketball tournament week here in Iowa and that means snow, guaranteed. While the positive minded folk tends to think...it won't last long. I don't tend to belong with these folk...I am ready for warm, wet & muddy spring-time weather. Then there is the old wives-tale that it snows 6 times on a robin's back...haven't even seen the first robin yet here in NW Iowa...robin's please hurry!

Brenda