quick takes

September 20, 2013

Another round of randomness coming at you! (Linking up.)

one

Fair warning that it just might start to get very crafty/nesty up in here. Our new carpet will be installed in a couple of weeks, and we’re painting our bedroom this weekend. I have barely touched the back half of our house and so this is really inspiring me to fix up our room. It’s such a sad state of affairs in there right now and I would love to have a happy master bedroom. I have plans, people. Will be sharing them soon.

two

I’m also spending almost every spare moment working on my niece’s stocking. Here is what it looks like so far:

stocking far

The lighting is kind of weird here but you can see just how far I have to go. So far I’ve just embroidered and sequined the gold stars and sequined/appliquéd Santa’s hat poof.

stocking close

Here’s a close-up; it’s still kind of hard to see the poof but I think I got the hang of the appliqué and I hope the rest will get better and faster. So it’s not much progress so far really. But I’ve never done this before, so time has been spent doing research and watching tutorial videos and practicing. Look for weekly updates on this process.

three

I discovered a new crafty blog this week, and it made me so happy to see that she’s a cross stitcher! What was even more exciting is that she has a shop selling patterns, and is doing a seasonal sampler subscription program. I decided to sign up for the autumn sampler subscription, and even though I’m not sure how I’ll fit it in, I’m going to attempt to keep up with the stitching each week and share my progress here too.

Look at the cuteness though!

Autumn_Sampler_Sneak_Peek_2

Any current or wannabe cross stitchers out there that I can enable into doing this with me??

four

We had a bit of an up and down week around here. First we discovered that our mortgage increased by almost $300 a month, so that was not fun. Then my car broke down and we were 90% sure we were going to have to buy a new one. All this right after we had placed our carpet order, which was a big expense for us. So stressful when we’re trying to save for new baby! But then the car got all fixed for under $500, and a doctor’s expense we thought we were going to have to pay ended up being totally covered by insurance, and the carpet guy took pity on us and gave us a discount. All in all more than we wanted to be spending, but way better than it could have been.

five

Last night was kind of a bummer for me because I came home ready to make dinner, spend time with the family, and work on the stocking. But as soon as I stepped in the house – it was so hot and stuffy in there – I got a wave of nausea and fatigue so strong that I couldn’t even stand up. I laid down on the couch so of course Meredith wanted to lie on top of me and roll all over my stomach. David could tell I was down for the count so he took Meredith to his parents’ house and I ended up sleeping the entire evening starting at 6:30. I woke up briefly at 8:45 to brush my teeth, throw the diapers in the dryer, and feed the dogs, but otherwise I was OUT. I’m better today though, so it seems it was just a weird pregnancy thing and not a real sickness of any kind.

six

“Meredith, what is mommy going to have?”

“Baby brudder.”

“Where is baby brother now?”

“Right dere.” (Points to my tummy)

“Very good!”

“And cake?”

Posted in: personal, conversations, crafty, personal


Comments on quick takes

  1. 1

    From Nora:

    “and cake?” Love that.

    So on the cross stitching thing, it’s not pre-stamped, right? so I have to count stitches? I do love how adorable the fall one is, I have to say. But I’m not so great at counting seams and things… but I’m also kind of curious about it.

    Glad the expenses weren’t as bad as they could have been, but still, unexpected expenses SUCK.

    Hope you have a relaxing weekend! xo

  2. 2

    From kapachino:

    No, it’s not prestamped and you do have to buy your own supplies as well (fabric, thread, needle) but I really don’t think it’s very hard! I did this when I was a kid and picked it back up easily in the past few years. :)

  3. 3

    From Sarah:

    I will have to check out that cross stitch site! Her samplers are all adorable but I better stick with my current project (a floral piece that I’m going to stitch my new niece’s name and birthday onto instead of the alphabet at the bottom as the pattern calls for. Plus I have a stocking to knit for the new baby at my house! If I can get both those things done by Christmas it will be AMAZING. It’s fun having a new baby but I have no time to myself anymore.

  4. 4

    From Kim (Sophisticated Dorkiness):

    My mom does applique for stockings at Christmas. I always think it looks just beautiful when they’re done, but sort of putzy in the middle. I’m a wannabe, sort of cross stitcher and that sampler is beautiful, but I’ve got another project I’m working on slowly that I should probably finish first :)

  5. 5

    From kapachino:

    Yeah they look totally dorky in process but awesome at the end! (At least I hope mine looks awesome too!)

    I am also in the middle of another project that I should probably finish, but that’s not stopping me. :)

  6. 6

    From Ruth:

    Yay for Santa’s poof!

  7. 7

    From kapachino:

    Haha – best comment ever! I am entirely too pleased with it. :)

  8. 8

    From Amanda:

    I tried cross stitching as a kid and I have been wanting to pick it back up!

  9. 9

    From Sarah:

    Those samplers are so cute! But I totally can’t start a new one now — it’s going to take all my efforts to get a Christmas stocking I’ve been working on since last October done by this Christmas… :-/

  10. 10

    From Mindy:

    You are so crafty! I would love to do the cute cross stitch… but I’m struggling keeping up with knitting projects. Darn. Hopefully at some point. :)

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