Egyptian Sun God Blackwork

This is the piece I am working on now. It's called Egyptian Sun God, designed by Carol Leather. I am doing it on 40count lambswool linen. Call me crazy but I absolutely love this kind of stitching! I put a penny in the picture so you can see how fine the stitching is. I'll post detailed photos later.



I've experimented with lots of techniques but, for some reason, this seems to best fit me. I work on it just about every day for a couple/few hours. The above shows my progress after 2 weeks. Yes, it's slow going. Yes, that's quite alright with me!

Blackwork Butterfly

I recently finished this piece, a blackwork butterfly designed by Karen Buell. I don't even remember when or where I got it but, since I had it, I figured I might as well do it.

It was a pretty fun piece as far as the stitching goes but I have a real problem with the fact that it is not symetrical! I tried, I really did. I was very aware that the design and picture of the finished piece that came with the pattern were not symetrical either but....I just really wanted it to be even on both sides!

I like the way it turned out and I am accepting the fact that nature isn't necessarily symetrical. But I think I may be sticking to other kinds of designs from now on!

Gift for Sonya

This little piece I did out of love. Love for the desert, for cacti and most definitely love for my sister Sonya. I made it to say "thank you" to her...for years of support, help, and "taking care" of me. I've lived outside the States for over 20years but she's always made me feel like I'm still part and always close. Thanks Sonya!

Hardanger Spring Piece

Here's my latest finish. It's my own design. There are close-ups as well. Enjoy!

Cliff Dwellers

I finished this last month. Obviously it was inspired by our trip out west. It's a simple piece, just cross stitch with beading, that reflects the inspiration I felt in southwestern Indian art.





Below are some close ups of some of the details.







Each motive was placed in accordance with the cliff dwellers in the middle. Earth beings below and sky beings above. The hand prints represent earth, air, fire and water. In different Indian lore, it can also represent the four directions and the four colors.

Soap Project - or Things Not To Try

In August with my parents were here, my mother and I started my soap project. I was so sure that some way, I could melt down all the little slivers of left-over soap and mold it into new bars of soap. Although all my research pointed toward a disastrous end, I was so sure I could figure out a way. My mom and I worked and worked at trying to melt those stupid slivers. It just wasn't working. No matter what we did, the soap wasn't really melting and it was, as we thought it would be, pretty much a flop. And when we tried to let it cool down and solidify, it wasn't doing that either so I shoved the pan full of the half melted soap somewhere and forgot about it until January. When I dug the pan back out, I found that the half melted soap actually had solitified and I could cut it into pieces. I used a grater to shave off the rough edges and there actually ended up being a couple of pieces that stayed together well enough to use!

But, no, this wasn't good enough. I still had lots of slivers left over. So I thought if I used the grater and melted down the shavings, it would work even better! Here endeth the lesson...do NOT attempt this. It doesn't work and it is not worth the effort....or the smell in the house.

If you have to use the slivers, put them in an old knee-high or in a net or something and just use them that way.

I've been busy sewing (I think I'll stick to it from now on and not try any more weird experiments for awhile!) and I'll post my newly finished pieces soon.

Vacation Pictures

We just got back from vacation. What an AWESOME trip! 6200 miles (yes, that's just about 10,000 kilometers) through California and Arizona, dipping also a bit into Nevada and Utah. I'll be posting slideshows on The Camera Lenz if you'd like to take a look at them. I also got to go to an awesome handwork store in Tucson called The Busy Needle. I was in heaven. So, my creative juices are a flowing and I'm already stitching away...even before the laundry is all done!

Feature Article

I was featured in this issue of the NordicNeedle Newsletter. If you would like to see the article (it even has pictures!) please check it out here. Thanks Roz and everyone at NordicNeedle for featuring me!

Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving! I hope everyone had a great day, whatever you did. Here, in my little corner of the world, we celebrated with a traditional turkey dinner. I ordered a fresh, Bavarian turkey. The problem with ordering a fresh turkey is that you don't know exactly what the size is going to be. Well, my "tom" weighed in at 7.2 kilos (almost 16 pounds)...a bit much for 3 people, wouldn't you say? At first I thought it wasn't going to fit into the oven, much less the pan. All turned out well though and I discovered that fresh turkeys get more "bendable" after you wash and prepare them.


I have a wonderful "umlauf" oven with I think is called "circulating heat" so my big bird browned nice and even and it hit the right temperature after just 4 1/2 hours at about 300. It was "picture perfect".


In fact, the whole meal was perfect! Of course, I have a truckload of leftovers, even after passing on the "American tradition" of guests taking leftovers home. Have tupperware....will share the leftovers!



I have to say that my stuffing was the best. Do you know why? ......


Just imagine...stuffing made from SEMMEL!!!! Yes, it just can't get any better than that!!

For more pictures from my Thanksgiving, please click on The Camera Lenz for a slideshow.

Cousin's Get Together and Completed Pieces

Once again this year, five cousins and I got together for a couple of days of good food, great company and fun times. This year we were in Salzburg...does it get any better than that?


The weather was fantastic, the view...well, the view was magical as it always is.


We did some things that I've never done before.


We celebrated a birthday and talking until our throats were sore...at least mine was!


Thank you all for including me and I sure look forward to next year!

I've completed a few pieces I'd like to share. I posted this one pretty regularly while stitching it. I now have it back after my sister completed it. It is absolutely amazing. The pictures don't do it justice, that's for sure!


Susan and Steve....you outdid yourself with this!


The tray is unique and perfect.


I've always said that if my stitching looks good...just wait until Susan finishes with it...it will look great! You can see more pictures of it on The Camera Lenz if you would like.

I've also completed this piece which I call Chickens And Eggs.


It's canvas with beads.


I tried to make each part a different stitch and used many different threads and beads.


It's a bright and bold piece.

This next one, called Albuquerque, is also done.


It's also canvas and beads although a different style.


The beads are all very large and the piece is very different than anything I've done before.


The colors are also very atypical for me.


But I like the way it looks and feels.

I'm now attempting some cutwork or drawnwork. I'm not sure what it's called. The best book I have on it is a very old Austrian book and it is called "Durchbruchstickerei". That literally translates to "breakaway" so I'm not sure exactly what it is. But that's okay.