My Master Disorganized Organization - September 01, 2011

I have tried to promise my self that I want complete organization in my life . I am desperately still trying to figure out what my new "normal" is now without my beloved husband, Max. I have learned that the definition of grief is that it is the price you pay for loving some one. I just want to know how much more I have to pay if this is true!!

Oh well, it will be six months this Monday since I lost Max. It has gotten a bit better, but I still have to admit I have a LONG way to go yet.

TWENTY DAYS and counting!! Debra Hall is flying up to visit me on the 22nd. I am so very excited and happy!!

Now, for tomorrow's I.L.C.S. "Virtual Stitch In"!! I plan on extending it by beginning as soon as I finish this Blog update and not quitting till I go to bed on Sunday evening. Of course, if I am being real honest, I never got to bed the previous two evenings as my stitching nest is so comfortable that I have fallen, and stayed, asleep in my lift recliner!!
I truly have been stitching quite a bit the past few months and I have so been enjoying each, and every, "x" I make. A few more things left on my "ToDo" and "Deborah's De-Stash" lists and I will pretty much be able to stitch most of each day and evening as the weather will be turning again soon and I simply am not able to get out by my self. I have truly been wishing to see my self getting to this point of having nothing left to do and just being able to stitch day in and day out - as I have no husband, children, pets, responsibilities, etc. to have to do any thing but what I want to do.

Below is a picture of today's accomplishment!! I went to LNS for simply just TWO skeins of DMC and ended up with $174 worth. But, who could have not done the same thing as my copy of the brand new JUST CROSS STITCH Christmas Ornaments Magazine was also just waiting for my arrival there also!! I got the fabric for about a dozen of the ornaments and five new charts and their needed things to start them. I just had my new "rotation" set up as pictured below and now it has suddenly doubled!! Oh well, I have a BIG smile for every "x" tonight with my biggest problem being which one I want to begin tonight!! God is Good!!

Below is my start on NOEL EN ROUGE by Sue Hillis. I am doing this on a sparkling bright white fabric with garnet thread.

Below is GOBLINS ON PARADE by Blackberry Lane Designs. I am doing this on Weeks Dye Works Linen and I absolutely DETEST it. Sorry, I have dust rags that look better than most piece of Weeks Linen I feel, but that is just my personal opinion. Of course, I have always stitched "in hand" and perhaps this linen works out better hooped. My best guess is this will end up a dust rag as I am not enjoying it much at all!!

And, this is SPOOKY HALLOWEEN MANTLE by Bent Creek. I originally did not care for the fabric or perle cotton threads that came with this three part kit. However, I persistented in at least trying to do this one and have surprisingly found that I love this one more than any other in this "rotation" group (that is growing by leaps and bounds and about two dozen new pieces of fabric)!! I very much look forward to each time I pick this particular piece up and predict it to be a finish for this Halloween

I LOVE doll's houses and any type of "buildings" to stitch better than any thing else other than my beloved tea cups and tea pots. Below is a spook house called THE HAUNTED HOUSE also by Bent Creek. I very much like it, however, I encountered confusion in two of it's symbols. I took it back to my LNS and asked the owner, Diana, how she was interpreting these symbols. As always, Diana was most helpful and got me back on track again. I can not wait to get some real progress in to this house now!!

The project below is quite dear to me as Max picked it out and specifically requested that I stitch this for our Pastor's birthday. This Pastor spent his own birthday with Max all day and well in to the evening this year as it was the day Max decided to stop his dialysis and begin hospice. This was a special verse that the Pastor read daily to Max. Thus, this PSALM TWENTY-THREE BY My Big Toe. I am hoping to have it finished for the Pastor's birthday next year on March 01. This is a real BAP that is going to take some real discipline by me!! But, it does have real special meaning to me and some how I WILL get it done!!

This project is going to be a real P.I.T.A.!! However, I do love it and I will keep at it till I get it done. It is called QUILTED GARDEN by Blue Ribbon Designs. It has SIXTY-THREE little square quilts and almost every one is full of fractional stitches that I do not particularly care for!! But, it is going to be absolutely exquisite and fairly good in size. I think it will be worth every little nasty word I have to say to it as I stitch it!!

And, my next little project is called SANTA BISCORNU. It is going to be so cute. You put little yellow star buttons on the top of each tree and these threes make up some of the corners in the Biscornu. I am hoping to get a few of these made for Christmas gifts.

I know this one does not show too much, but it is called POCKETFUL OF PEPPERMINT and is by Blue Ribbon Designs. It calls for a great number of specialty stitches, but I very much enjoy trying to master each of these. I think this will be a very pretty finish for holiday decoration.

Below, is a very special project I have started. I have a passion for collecting older perfume bottles. I LOVE these and have several placed around my home. This project is called PERFUMES and is by a woman named Isangel. She was one of the nicest ladies I have met online as she could not help me enough to get this complete chart. There is a different perfume bottle for each month of the year. This is going to be a very unique and beautiful piece!!

I just began the project below. It is one from CANDY CORN CRAZY from Sue Hillis. Can not say I am too much liking the designs, but the candy corn shape is unique and different for my Halloween decorating. And, below is Number Nine of Twelve ornaments for a Bride's Tree by Brooke's Books. It is called HOSPITALITY. And, it is "tea" related so it is a very automatic favorite for me. In fact, I have the previous eight ornaments all kitted up staring up at me, but feel no urge to begin any of them!

This is becoming a real favorite for me and I absolutely love it. It is called WHEN WE DO and is by Lizzie Kate. There are some companion pieces that go with this one and I have another right below this. This is going to be a very exquisite piece!!

This is the companion piece for the above project. I have to figure out a way to finish them to be displayed together. This is called I KNOW GOD by Lizzie Kate. I very much am looking forward to this becoming a fin

The next project is one of the Little House Needleworks Ornaments and is called HALLEUJAH. I am a bit disappointed in the colors, but they are exactly what the chart suggests. I think the right finish will make it a real beauty though

This became a great favorite very quickly with me. It will be quite colorful and all in over-dyed threads. I like Halloween and it will be a real heirloom to me. Max and I used to decorate every inch of our home, inside and out, for each holiday season. It is now utterly impossible for me, but I still want some special favorites to decorate with each holiday that will be easy for me to do. This is called MOONIGHT MIDNIGHT and it is by Blue Ribbon Designs. I think this may get a bit of preference in rotation order

This is going to be a real cute Christmas piece. It just makes you smile. It is called simply SIX FAT MEN and is also by Lizzie Kate. I think it will end up being very colorfrul also. I am anxious to see more progress on this one!!This is an error. This should be HALLOWEEN RULES by Lizzie Kate. Guess I will have to do some checking in to what happened here and post my HALLOWEEN RULES progress in next post.

I have no idea, as of yet, as to how I plan to "rotate". And, to be perfectly honest, I KNOW I will be having a few more additional starts from the new things I picked up today. The new JCS Ornament Issue is a real good one and has so many things I want to get stitched. I need about ten more life times.

Bottom line, I am MOST enjoying my stitching and more importantly I am finding "normal" again. It is definitely a very slow, and quite painful, process, but I never give up as there is always hope!!

20 more days and counting till Debra arrives!!

Love and Hugs!!

Deborah