Good Saturday Morning!

Everything is so beautifully green this spring morning, after a little overnight shower.

Everything got a little drink overnight. Yesterday it was a chilly over-cast day, the sky was perfect for picture taking. My picture taking consist of me, in my kitchen, taking pictures through the windows (they might be clearer if I'd wash my windows {sigh}) and my 18mm - 270mm camera lens...I can sneak up on the birds, without scaring them away.

But this little guy (Orchard Oriole) is a tricky guy to sneak up on, even from the inside of the house. He has a keen sense and any movement I make, and he is gone. I'm still trying to get a good picture of him. The Orchard Oriole's are the smallest Orioles...isn't he pretty in his rusty brown vest and black top hat?

And I was excited, beyond excited, to have a pair of these visiting today...

A pair of Indigo Buntings!
I only was able to snap a picture of Daddy. I'm surprised the photo turned out as well as it did, as I was shakin' with pure excitement! I have not seen one of these since I was a young girl. I will spend my Saturday looking for these two I suppose, and taking a picture or two, or three or four if I spot them... They are absolutely iridescently brilliant and their song is like no other...beautiful!
The birds were so nice and plump, with their feathers all poofed out on this chilly spring day...

their way of trying to stay warm...

And they are still hungry...
I'm thinking the old saying "eating like a bird" has taken on a whole different meaning in my humble opinion...
I'm beginning to think they are pigs!
Here is Momma Grosbeak...she looks like an over-grown sparrow, with a big fat, cone-shaped beak...
she's not too showy, nothing special, really...yet still very cute in her own little speckled way...
you must admit,
she's not nearly as pretty as her honey...isn't he stunning? He likes to show off his pretty red bib...

Everybody needs to behave and get along when they are visiting my yard, that is the rule...

Here is the Grosbeaks Boy Choir (as I call them)...all getting along so nicely. Aren't they cute?
and another, visiting right up and close to my window...pecking at a spent hydrangea head.

And here is the Baltimore Boy's Choir...they don't always seem to get along...always fighting over the grape jam and chattering at one another.
And since birds seem to be the top of discussion today...the Mystery Sampler "Birds of a Feather" part I pattern has now made it to the needlework shops! Have you got your copy yet? Inquiring minds want to know!
Have a lovely weekend,
Brenda

Week 4 - Soar SAL...

Welcome to the final week posting of the Soar SAL...

Judy stitched and stitched trying to get hers completed for this week, but just couldn't quite get it done. She plans on sharing her finish on our 4th of July posting. Judy has just recently taken up cross stitch after taking a 10 year sabbatical...she is really glad she picked it up again!

I like what Judy has done to her floss choices for the stream, here are her substitutions-
610 for 640
300 for 3023
3011 for 3013
3866 for 3782
ecru for 644
for the water Judy used 926, 927 and 928 for a variegated look

Pat too came up a bit short of a finish. She too would have like to have stitched more, but life got in the way. Don't you hate that when that happens??

Below is Sharon's update. She too had the very same comment as Pat...life got in the way of her stitching, too. Sharon also had to do a little frogging on one of the fish!

Last but not least is Harriet's update. Everyone had good intentions of getting their piece finished, but it just didn't quite happen according to Harriet. I like Harriet's personal touch, she added IOWA to her sampler. Harriet hails from Iowa too!

And from Teena I just received an email, no pics...she has nothing new to share. Upon completing her piece she realized she was off by one thread. somewhere.... She was making frog noises too... rippit, rippit, rippitt....augghhhh, we all feel for you Teena!

And an update from the nest...

our little fluff balls are now pretty well feathered out in their adult colored plumes. Today the first hatched (E1) actually fed himself! There was lots of nest improvements made today, as well, by both parents. Mom & Dad just keep adding taller safety gates to the edge of this already "ginormous" nest, as their young ones get bigger & bigger.

Again I'd like to thank everyone for joining in and sharing photos of their pieces...it's been a joy! For those of you still stitching or for those of you just starting...remember I will post pictures of finished samplers on the July 4th posting...a goal to set for getting your sampler finished!!

Tis cold here again. We had 99 degrees a couple of days ago and today we have 50 degrees and back to running the furnace...how's that for some extremes??

Have a good weekend,

Brenda

Thursday Musings...

One of my favorite autumn-time decorations is a sign that I hang.

It reads...
" I shall not go to town when the bittersweet blooms."

I love the verse and think of it often at this time of year.

It reminds me that I need a sign to hang for this time of year.

It would read something like this...

"I shall not go to work when the grosbeaks are in town."

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
It's been a busy morning already...

I've put some of my morning stitches into the Autumn Sampler of the Seasons, it is progressing nicely...watch for it's release date on the 1st day of Summer, June 20th.

I've done my morning chores, bird chores that is. Feeders are filled, jelly replenished and juicy oranges are hung. Currently these feathered creatures are eating 8 oranges a day...yikes! I'm thinking it's time to start buying generic jelly...they won't know the difference between Welch's and generic, will they?

The website was updated too this morning...new applique/quilt patterns from Wednesday's Best and a couple of cross stitch charts from Pineberry Lane. Check them out when you have a spare moment!

Speaking of cross stitch...

remember tomorrow is our last Friday posting of the Soar SAL...send me pictures today folks of your wip's.

And lastly...

the Mystery Sampler, "Birds of a Feather" is released! The patterns are on their way to your LNS, as I type.

With thy Needle & Thread,
Brenda

Grape Jelly????

In regards to yesterday's post, pertaining to the grape jelly...

I feed it, as is, straight from the jar. Both orioles (Baltimore & Orchard) and Robins love grape jelly. One of my feeders (see yesterday's post) holds two oranges with a small cup for placing the jelly into.

And I leave you with a few more pictures...
The bottom two were taken from my kitchen, through the screen door so they aren't as sharp as I would have liked, but I was afraid to open the door in fear of startling them. The photo on the left you will see both the Baltimore Oriole and a Orchard Oriole (upper left hand corner). The yellow one with the black bib is a first year male Orchard Oriole. They make lots of chatter when at the feeder, but seem to settle down once they realize there is p-l-e-n-t-y to go around for everyone.

A simple S-Hook with oranges threaded on it is another great way to feed oranges. The Orioles seem to like to cling when they feed. This particular S-Hook is about 2 feet away from my back door. The females are way less skittish & nervous, allowing my to slowly open my screen door and get clearer pics....good girls!
Once their bellies are nice and full, they will settle into the tall cottonwood trees that line the edge of our lake, as their nesting place. We then enjoy their song, once again, on our summer-time walks around the lake.

The orioles arrive in our yard just as the blooming trees are setting on their buds. I usually hear the Orioles before spotting them. They have a beautiful song. It is at that time that the oranges and jelly get hung. The feeders also get switched over to pure safflower to attract the Rose-Breasted Grosbeaks...there were 4 of them hanging from the feeder this morning when I awoke.

Off to take some more pictures...the Grosbeaks are calling,
Brenda

Music to my ears...

It's a beautiful spring morning here today in NW Iowa,

&

our backyard summer visitors have arrived

they are hungry

&

that means oranges & grape jelly

are added to my shopping list...

a small favor for what I get in return...

the song and chatter that comes through my screen door is priceless...

music to my ears!

Enjoy the day,

Brenda

A Special Mother's Day Treat...

I had an early Mother's Day treat. My dear husband took me to Pella, IA to celebrate a little of my Dutch heritage and enjoy the tulips. Iowa is home to two communities where Dutch immigrants settled in the mid 1800's. The Dutch heritage remains strong in these communities and each spring they celebrate it with their own tulip festivals.

The tulip is my very favorite flower and the tulip beds were amazing to say the least. This post is somewhat picture heavy...enjoy!
The cobblestone streets are lined with tulips up and down it's sides. The historical society replants the bulbs every year to insure top quality blooms for the festival...lots & lots of work!The Scholte House tulip bed alone consisted of 32,000 tulip bulbs...and it is totally amazing.
Pella has a town square...something quite common in the southern parts of Iowa. The streets are lined with fun boutiques, dutch bakeries, butcher shops, a working 1850's grain wind mill, klokkenspel. The retail plaza (The Molengracht) has a dutch canal and working drawbridge that runs throughout the shopping area.
Did I mention who was along with Grandma and Grandpa? Yep, Beckham and his Mommy and Daddy joined us for the day.
Pretty flowers + Beckham ='s lots & lots of pics!!
The tulips were taller then Beckham.
Grandma was the paparazzi for the day...
Beckhams highlight of the day was the water fountain. We threw probably 50 cents worth of pennies in the fountain....lots & lots of wishes were made. After Grandma's purse was drained of pennies he realized he could extend the water fun by just picking pennies out of the fountain and toss them in again. It was getting to be lunch time and I wondered how we were going to peel him away from the fountain...but after some bargaining between Momma & Beckham we were on our way to enjoy a picnic of pizza at the town square park.
While eating our pizza I noticed Beckham had spotted a young girl with a small dog. Let's just say he was more interested in the puppy then the pizza. He was somewhat confused by the whole sitting on the grass thing and eating there too. So a couple bites into his pizza he got brave and tootled over to see the puppy. I'm just sitting there, camera in hand, knowing what's going to happen...
Yep, puppy dog kisses!
After our picnic someone was getting tired,
&
it was time to head home,
but not before stopping at the bakery...
You cannot go home without a dutch pastry or two, or three, or four...

Have a good day,

Brenda

New from down under...

New book arrival this week in our shop from Australian designer, Anni Downs. She has joined up with Kansas City Star and together they have put together an absolutely darling book, titled "Some Kind of Wonderful".

And everything

in this book...

is absolutely wonderful!

Just a little peek at a couple of projects in this book that are on my "to-do" list. Isn't the pincushion darling?

There are patterns for embroidery, patchy quilting, punch needle, wool applique, sewing bags, coin purses...to name a few. Book is now posted on our website and available for purchase.

With thy Needle & Thread,
Brenda

Happy Mother's Day...

to all you Mom's...

wishing you the best on this special day!

(Mother's Day, 1962. I'm the little one on Mom's lap, with sister's Linda & Sandra...all wearing pretty little dresses hand-made by Mom.)

Have a good week,

Brenda

Week 3 - Soar SAL

I'm excited to share with you more progress and 3 finishes! We welcome two newcombers this week, Carolyn & Nicolle.
Newcomber Carolyn already has a finish. Carolyn says she has hopelessly fallen in love with the Decorah eagle family and thoroughly enjoyed putting in each and every stitch of her sampler. She will now have a lovely momento to remember these little ones after they fledge the nest.

Below is Carolyns lovely finish. She used a 32 count Lakeside Linen (color - Vintage Sienna Night, double dyed). She did her own conversion to Crescent Colors, Belle Soie and Thread Gatherers Silk'n Colors. Carolyn enjoys working with silks and has a good amount in her thread stash. Carolyn has a blog, please visit her here.

While we are on week 3, below you will find Sharon's week 2 of her progress. She joined in last week. She is stitching with 1 strand, using the recommended DMC flosses over two threads on 36 count linen. The one strand gives the piece a nice delicate appearance.And below you will find newcomber Nicole's start. She just started her piece this week. Nicole's linen of choice is 32 count Black Belfast. She is using the recommended DMC flosses thus far. It's been fun to see where each member of the Soar SAL starts their piece. Some start around the edge, as Nicole and then their are others who start in the center. Then there is me, who has stitchers attention deficit and is all over the place...a little here & a little there! Nicole has a blog with lots of stitching lovlies on it...be sure to stop by and visit her here.
Below is Harriet's wip. She didn't stitch as much as she would have liked, but plans to work hard on her sampler this coming week. Do you suppose we'll see a finish from Harriet next week? Harriet wanted to share that she loves the fact that this Soar SAL reflects something actually taking place at this very moment in our culture... I would have to agree with you Harriet. I don't know if I've ever stitched something that represented something that I was spending hours of each day enjoying...
Judy is another one who commented that she didn't get much accomplished this week. But lucky Judy is heading to the mountains today for the weekend and plans to just relax and stitch. Do you suppose she'll take us with? She is hopeful for a finish for next week!
Pat's week of progress is below. I love her comment! She says it doesn't seem like she made much progress, considering the amount of time she spent stitching this week...I think we all can relate to this...it can be slow going! Take notice that Pat worked her initials into the stream...a nice personal touch to her sampler, don't you think?
And another finish! Here we get to see our first Soar Sampler finish on a light background. Looks lovlely Connie, congrats on your finish! She plans on having her dear husband make her a frame from old barnwood. I think the rustic-ness of barn wood will be a lovely compliment to this piece. She commented she has enjoyed this sampler and choosing her own colors as she went along. The Decorah eagle cam has given Connie a better perspective of an eagles "home" life. She now has a better understanding of what is happening in the tree top of their local eagle family, that resides, in Arkansas.
And lastly,
I put my last few stitches in my sampler this morning, as I sat and enjoyed my morning cup of coffee. The sun was shining brightly over my shoulder and I enjoyed the natural lighting as the final stitches of the fence posts were stitched. I then gave my finished piece a little spritz of Distress It spray and popped it into a low temperature oven to dry. I went a little heavier on the spray around the green border and on the stream/fish portion. I just like how this product takes that bright edge off of the floss, giving it a warm time-worn look. ( Note - I only do this step if the flosses are color-fast.)

Now it's onto making the decision on frame of choice. I'm leaning towards a hand-grained frame from the wonderfal gals at Valley House Primitives. I'm thinking a medium tone color, nothing too dark and nothing too light. Below is a corner sample of the Dark Ale...thinking I like it...not too dark and not too light and it really makes the letters of the alphabet pop.
I'd like to say a BIG "thank you" to everyone who submitted photos of their work this week. I enjoy being able to share your work with my readers. It's also been such a pleasure to see your progress and hear about your enjoyment that the sampler and the eagle family have brought to you and your household.

Next Friday will complete the weekly postings for the SAL. Nothing like putting any added pressure on you, right? Let's see how many finishes we can have by next week, shall we?

We are still sending out patterns daily, so there are many who are just starting and I hate to leave anyone out. So here is my next plan... My Fourth of July posting will be of finished/framed samplers. This gives you all some time to get your pieces finished at your leisure. Send me your photos of your finished piece by July 2nd to be included in my 4th of July posting. More reminders to follow.The eaglets will be very near or already fledged the nest by the 4th of July...then how are we going to spend our time??

It's a beautiful spring morning in NW Iowa. My later variety tulips are in full bloom, the apricot tree is blooming, with the red buds and crab apples soon to follow. It's such a pretty time of year and it is even more special that it happens to be like this for Mother's Day...Mother Nature's gift for all us Moms.

Have a wonderful Mother's Day weekend to you all,

Brenda

Reminder...

If you want to participate in tommorrows picture share of the Soar SAL, photos need to be emailed to me by 9:00 PM CST, this evening at order@countrystitchesonline.com, with a subject line - Soar SAL.

Next Friday, May 13th will be our final posting of your Soar samplers in progress...time to get you pieces finished folks!

Have a good day,
Brenda

Labor of Love...

A picture share today with you of a 19th century sampler that is in the process of being reproduced. I'm in it's very early stages of the charting.
Deciding on floss colors...

I love how time has changed this piece from what it must have looked like when it was just off the frame. I've taken this piece out of it's frame and took a peek to the backside of the sampler for an accurate vision of what the piece looked like before fading.

This is what I found...
Lots and lots of long threads, which makes me believe this sampler was stitched by young hands, not an experienced sampler maker. The sampler is not dated, but is clearly a 19th century piece. You can see from the photo above that the blue floss has changed the most over time. The other colors have remained pretty true to the original floss used in the piece.
I love how the sampler looks today in it's soft & subtle shades of floss. I'm struggling as to whether to use subtle shades of floss as the front looks, or the brighter blues in which the piece was actually stitched. So it is at this time, I'm asking you sampler makers for your opinion. When you stitch a reproduction sampler, do you want your finished piece to look old & time-worn with slightly faded shades of floss, or bright, shiny & new looking? I've put a poll with this very question over to the right side bar of the blog, your input would be greatly appreciated.
The sampler has been named "The Mansion House Sampler", mainly in part that the main focal point of the sampler is a very over-sized house....much like the Ann Sandles sampler! I like big houses I guess!

But in all honesty it was this little guy down in the lower corner of the sampler I could not resist...
Isn't he the cutest little fox ever? Yep, I think so too.
The sampler measures approximately 16" x 15" with simple floral designs, fruit basket, birds and animals. The 14-windowed brick house on this piece measures 9" x 10"...yes it is big and takes up a very large chunk of the sampler. But there are lots of areas of the house that are not stitched, the mortar between it's brick is un-stitched...so not too overwhelming with stitch fill-in.
The stitch count is a large 12 count. I plan on working the piece on a slightly smaller count, but probably not any smaller then on 28 or 30 count over 2 threads. I think the large stitches in this piece adds to the primitive charm of the sampler and I want to stay true to the over-all look and feel of the original.
Watch for "The Mansion House - a 19th century sampler" later in the year. It will be a nice winter-time project to look forward to!
With thy Needle & Thread,
Brenda

Count down...

We are counting down...just 7 more days until Part I of the "Birds of a Feather" pattern will be released. Shop owners are now placing their final orders for their members of this club. If you haven't signed up yet, don't delay any longer...time is running out and you don't want to be left out!

Look for these to arrive in your shops around May 10th...let the season of stitching suspense begin!

With thy Needle & Thread,

Brenda

Yes Mr. President...

justice has been served!

And to think he used a woman for his human shield...disgusting!

Hats off to our military, they are the best.

My first image...

First of all let me explain that one of my favorite past time readings are books about needle work and it's history. My collection of these type of books is quite extensive. I think what intrigues me most, is their age and how so many pieces of needle work have survived the tests of time. Many of them have out-lived the homes or schools in which they were created in, and the very hands that created them.
Now moving onto the Royal Wedding...When I heard that Kate's shoes had appliqued/embroidered lace, hand-made for her at the Royal School of Needlework, I had one image of what they might look like pop into my head.

This... (Page of book photographed from the book titled, Connecticut Needlework - women, art, and family 1740 - 1840.)

Silly right?!! Yea I know... it made me laugh too!

The shoes are lovely in their own way. These shoes too, were worn for a wedding. This pair of shoes is believed to been made by a pair of sisters, each making a shoe to get them done in time for the one sister's wedding. The quality of handwork varies from right shoe to left shoe, this is why it is believed both sisters were involved in the embroidery. These shoes were worn by Hannah Edwards Wetmore in 1745 in Connecticut on her wedding day. Take note of the shoes, no right and left shoe. Straight shoe constructions (both shoes are the same), was typical shoe construction for this period of shoe-making.
The jury is still out on if we really know what Kate's shoes looked like. In my Google searches, the photo that I posted yesterday is a look-alike. Not thee exact shoe Kate wore. I still haven't been able to locate a good picture of Kate's shoe on her foot. I'm guessing it is safe to say that it doesn't look like the image that first popped into my head...silly me.

Have a good week,

Brenda