3rd Wedding Anniversary During COVID

Yesterday, Skip and I celebrated our 24th wedding anniversary, 27 years together, and our 3rd wedding anniversary during COVID. 

Last year we celebrated by dining at our local 'creative diner', Hot Rocks, which has a covered, outdoor patio - perfect for dining out during a pandemic. It was the first time we'd been to a restaurant since COVID had begun 15 months before. We were giddy with anticipation.

Hot Rocks is about 200m from our house, so we strolled over - happy to be able to partake in 'adult beverages' with no concern for being impaired whilst operating a vehicle driving home. We were thrilled to be doing a somewhat 'normal' activity that we hadn't done in so long. 

This year we decided to do the same thing and it was a lot of fun.

Skip enjoyed eggplant parmesan with house-made tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese, cheesy polenta with baby arugula salad, and I had lobster ravioli with sauteéd leeks and tomatoes, in a vodka dill cream sauce. Yum! We shared the crabcakes appetizer. Our server, when she learned we were celebrating, brought us complimentary glasses of champagne! What a treat! She got a great tip, believe me. 

We both are amazed how quickly the years have gone by since getting together 27 years ago. It's been a great run - especially since we both retired. Yes, we've had family and health issues like every other family but overall it's been pretty fun - the longest sustained period of contentment I've been fortunate to experience in my life.

We decided not to go to the LPGA event in Midland MI next month as our cross-border shopping 'itch' had been scratched. We may make a trip to the Buffalo area sometime before the fall. We now plan to attend a steam threshing show in Forest ON in August. It was great fun the last time we attended and we also had a chance to visit my sister and her family.

I have about 2/3 finished on the first house that I'm stitching for Pansy Patch Quilting and Stitchery. I hope to finish the second house and the outer borders by the middle of July.

Tomorrow is Canada Day. We are planning to have patriotic beef tacos for dinner and Portuguese custard tarts for dessert. 

Half the year is done already!

All Finished and a New Venture

I finished the last square on the faux sashiko piece. I used #12 perle cotton B5200 on 14ct navy Aida. I think stitching it on evenweave would have driven me crazy. Checking back on my notes, I noted that I may have started it using Coton A Broder 16 but I think I switched to perle cotton early on. That may explain why the second square in the top row looks so dense.

This is the Sashiko Sampler pattern from The Steady Thread. I actually preferred it to the botanical SAL I did last year because it only used one colour of thread. 

Yesterday I met with Lori Pengelly, the proprietor of Pansy Patch Quilts and Stitchery. She gave me the fabric, threads, and charts for the sampler she wants me to stitch as a display for Market next spring. She doesn't have all the elements charted yet (a series of autumn-themed houses) but I can do the ones she has done and the border. 

Her business exploded after Kimberly Jolly featured her Houses on Peppermint Lane series on a Fat Quarter Shop video. I'll be stitching the big model that features all the patterns on one big piece as was done for the Peppermint Lane series (pictured below). It will be used for display purposes at trunk shows, etc.

Her patterns are available on the Pansy Patch Quilts and Stitchery website,  Kimat Designs in Whitby, Traditional Stitches in Calgary and many other bricks and mortar stitchery shops and online at Fat Quarter Shop,123 Stitch, and many others.

One of Lori's quilt designs will be featured in the upcoming Fall 2022 issue of Primitive Quilts and Projects Magazine. Here's a sneak peek.

Lots of wool felt appliqué and embroidery stitches. I'm sure it will be a big hit.

Almost Done

Last night I got all but one square done on the faux sashiko piece.

This square uses tons of thread and stitches. I figured out how to do it mostly with stitches two squares in length.

I really enjoyed doing this counted work. I'll get more navy Aida and do some more.

It would also be a very nifty 15 sided biscornu or two-sided with 4 squares on each side.

In the Mail and Fiesta 2022

Yesterday I received the fabric kits I ordered last month for the floral paper piecing blocks. The shipping was 2/3 of the cost of the three kits!

A couple of the backgrounds aren't to my liking so I will probably substitute other fabrics from my stash of batik squares left over from another project.

I purchased the patterns separately and can print out as many as I like of each flower. 

I'm meeting up with the Pansy Patch Quilts and Stitchery designer tomorrow morning to receive the fabrics, threads, and patterns for the model I will be stitching for her. I may have to pop into Quilter's Cupboard for a quick look-see. I really don't have anything new in mind that I need anything for - I'm still finding places for the loot I acquired on my Syracuse trip.

Last night Skip and I picked up food at the Italian pavilion to bring home to eat. Fiesta is on again this year in a much pared-down format. Only 10 pavilions are open for dining - some only for a day or two. No Greek one this year.  This year, no passports are needed for the evening shows and dinner.

The lasagna I had was stupendous. There were 5 layers of noodles and meat sauce. The noodles were so thin and tasty - definitely home made and from scratch. I bought an arancino with sauce (not stuffed with anything but rice) and had the delicious cannolo (singular of 'cannoli') for dessert last night. The arancino will be a snack or maybe even my supper this evening. 

I have attended at least one pavilion for Fiesta since moving here 33 years ago. I taught in the south end of Oshawa where many of the pavilions are located and since it was always on during exam time, we used to go out for lunch as many times as we could. As retirees, Skip and I try to attend as many lunches and dinners as possible during Fiesta Week - which always starts with a parade through downtown Oshawa on Father's Day.

A few years ago Todd and Shingo were visiting that week and we ate every lunch and dinner at one or another of the pavilions. At night time, some have their cultural groups do shows - mostly singing and dancing. 

For us, it really marks the beginning of summer. I, of course, always welcome the opportunity to not to have to plan, shop for, prepare, and clean up after a meal.

Here's to a great summer of 2022!

Cross-Border Shopping Again After More Than 2 Years

Skip and I travelled to the Syracuse NY area on Monday for a cross-border shopping getaway. The Tru by Hilton we stayed at is located in the parking lot of one of two Costco stores in upstate NY. A Home Depot was a block away and a Mexican food restaurant two blocks away. 

I was disappointed with the poor Wifi at the hotel this time. It was intermittent and only occasionally could I get my VPN to connect. The room was smaller than I remembered. Last time I stayed there was on a girls' trip and there were 2 beds in the room so maybe they have bigger rooms for that configuration. Otherwise, it was a comfortable stay. I rarely complain about food that I don't have to prepare myself but the steak tacos I had La Azteca Mexican Restaurant were also a disappointment. The steak was overdone and very gristly and chewy. I should have had one of the enchilada plates even though they didn't have just beef enchiladas. My frozen mango margarita was spectacular. There was only one other table of guests in the room we ate in. I'm guessing when they saw us masked, they knew we wouldn't want to be in a crowded area. We felt comfortable dining indoors there as a result.

After supper, we went back to the room, watched a bit of TV and crashed really early. We were pooped from the 4+ hours of driving, all the excitement of being out and about again, and not having travelled more than 300km from home since March of 2020.

Yesterday, I spent a couple of hours at JoAnn Fabrics in Fayetteville. Then we drove over to Wegmans for lunch. They have hot and cold prepared food and lots of well spaced-out tables where we dined outdoors. It was lovely. We look pretty happy here.

After lunch we shopped at Hobby Lobby and TJ Maxx. I really didn't NEED anything but did indulge myself a bit. At JoAnn's I did get the rotating cutting mat that I had wanted and was able to use several coupons for my overall purchase.

In no particular order, this was most of the rest of my haul yesterday.

A watercolour tablet.

A couple of jelly rolls and a charm pack of patterned white on white fabric.

Some stamps.

Three colours of #12 perle cotton.

Butterfly charms (to use as zipper pulls, maybe?)

Some evenweave and linen fabric for my stash.

A circle-drawing tool.

A corner trimming punch

An acrylic stamp block.

A stamp pad that I thought was black but on closer inspection is midnight blue.

And some lobster claw clasps.

I also got a new Baggallini purse at TJ Maxx which should last me for as long as the cross-body travel bag I purchased about 20 years ago.

For dinner, we ate at a restaurant in the same plaza area as the hotel - The Brasserie Bar & Bistro. Again, we were able to dine al fresco and avoid an indoor crowded space. It was lovely and so close to our hotel. Watched the TV in the room and I caught up on the January 6 hearing on YouTube that had happened earlier in the day. 

We weren't as tired but still got to bed at about 10. This morning, we got up, packed, and checked out before 9 and dropped into Home Depot again for a couple more things that Fred wanted, then hit the road northward. There was very little traffic and we crossed the border before noon. There wasn't a big lineup so we didn't have to wait too long to get through. I had the ArriveCan info for both of us on my phone. We were only asked the usual questions: where we lived, how long we were away, if we had any alcohol or tobacco, and the total cost of the goods we were bringing in. I had the ArriveCan QR code showing on my phone which she may or may not have glanced at. She handed our passports back and we were on our way. No delay at all. No scanning of the QR code. No hassle at all.

We drove along the Ivy Lea Parkway and stopped for lunch at McDonalds in Gananoque. Then got home before 3. We got the A/C going right away. Thank goodness we checked it last week and got it repaired then. I certainly wouldn't want to be without it tonight.

This is Fiesta Week - the first since 2019 so we'll probably go for take-out food.

The trip was a big success. We did as much shopping as we wanted for the short time we were there. We wore our masks indoors and the only meal we had indoors was in a practically vacant room. We never felt like it was too people-y. The weather was great, the bed was comfy, the TV was huge, and the shopping was lots of fun.

As always, it's good to be home.

Once home, I got online with my Wednesday Zoom group and did a bit more stitching on my faux Sashiko piece. I had issues with one of the balls of B5200 perle cotton. It looked like it had yellowed or something - quite a contrast from the threads I'd already stitched. I had to pick out a bunch of stitching as a result and re-stitched with a brighter ball of B5200. Then today when I picked it up, I grabbed the wrong ball again and stitched some more which I had to pick out and re-stitch. I only have one square and the rest of two squares to stitch. 

It was a fun exercise but again, I'm not sure how I will FFO it. 

I bet two rows of 6 designs would make a great front of a project bag. Hmm. I think I have more navy fabric, too. Stay tuned.

Smalls Exchange and Another XS Clutch

We had our final guild meeting on Wednesday. It was our Annual General Meeting where we elected (acclaimed) the Executive for 2022-2023 and voted to become members of the Embroidery Association of Canada (EAC). Joining the EAC solved a big problem we were encountering going forward as all venues we wish to use are now requiring liability insurance and EAC provides that plus many other benefits.

Several of us participated in the smalls exchange and six of us were present to reveal what we received. 

Poppy received a triangular scissor case from Bernie.

Bernie received a personalized needlepointed needlebook from Diane.

Diane received a personalized Hussif from Jennifer.

Jeanette opened her flower bloom pin cushion remotely - while visiting family in Ottawa.

Jennifer received a triangular scissor case, fob, and scissors from me.

And I received a beautiful dragonfly needlecase from Poppy. The sparkly threads are perfect for the dragonfly wings. 

We still haven't seen what Barb or Siobhain received as they were unable to attend. 

Today I made another cross stitch clutch from a butterfly and dragonfly fat quarter.

I repurposed a knitting stitch marker for the zipper pull, adding a 6mm lobster claw.

I have another butterfly fabric selected and ready to cut out. I just need to find more binding fabric as only a 2" x 17" strip is left of the yellow binding fabric.

More Inspired Sewing

Once again I created another Cross Stitch Clutch from my stash. The pattern is available here. I did have to buy the zipper, though. 

I'm pretty sure I purchased the fabric in McAllen TX in 2018 or 2019 and have made a couple of other items from it.

It went together pretty quickly. That's what I like about this project - I like to do stuff quickly.

I modified the pattern by omitting the interior fabric pocket, leaving only the vinyl one. I also changed the strips above and below the zipper to 2" strips, double folded. I enclosed the vinyl in it on the bottom and sewed it to the zipper. On the top, I enclosed the top zipper tape with the fold. I glued the top strip to the fabric rather than sew through all the layers. I could have used a decorative stitch in lieu of straight stitching.

The wool felt square is for pins or needles.

Folded, it measures 8.5" x 5" and easily holds my iPhone 12 Pro, or any other stitching accessories.

I fashioned the zipper pull from a lobster claw clasp, 7-strand wire, and beads and the key charm from my stash.

I did also consider the directional fabric, added 1/2" to the outer fabric, cut it 4 1/2" up from the bottom, rotated it, and sewed it to the top. The seam is hidden under the zipper.

The clutch is perfect for a small item of stitching. Once everything is cut out, it sews up pretty quickly. I'm going to be checking out her other patterns for fun things to sew.

Another Project with Selvages

I wanted to make a smaller project with selvages so I hauled out the pattern for the Cross Stitch Clutch from Starlight Stitching Co.

The interfacing was already cut out and the vinyl was a remnant. 

My idea was to use selvages with printing or numbers on one half and solids on the other half.

I'm not sure it was a great idea but with the contrasting zipper and binding, what the heck.

I substituted buckrim for the Pellon 70, a firm stabilizer. The buckrim was fusible but the batting was not so I basted the pieces all around with a 1/8" seam so things wouldn't shift.

The other modification was omitting the pocket fabric and just having a vinyl pocket. That eliminated two other layers of fabric when attaching the binding all around.

The snaps are put in place before the vinyl pocket and binding are attached.

The other two were left until the end and placed to match up with the others.

I'm pretty happy with how the mitres turned out in the corners.

The little felt piece is for needles or pins.

It actually went together pretty well. Instead of sewing down the wider strip above the zipper, I glued it in place as I didn't want a seam line to show up inside.

I just need to add a zipper pull. In the future, I'll make that piece narrower so it doesn't go over the spine of the closed clutch. 

I haven't found a use for the selvages that have fuzzy edges. I may just discard them because heaven knows I have enough bags of things to keep organized.

I watched a project bag YouTube video tonight and learned something that I will try on my next bag. 

The small for our guild's exchange was delivered to our house. The person rang the bell and I only caught a glimpse as they scurried back to their car. I didn't want to look and see who it was so I looked away. We're all waiting until next Wednesday for the big reveal at our final meeting before the summer.