Staying Warm

I was going to write my first "Signs of Spring" post this morning, but alas, we woke to snow. I actually don't mind so much, though. After days of rain so relentless that it created puddles in the yard, any change in the weather is welcome! Besides, snow is so pretty and peaceful, and gives me a good excuse to stay home by the fire.

During yesterday's downpour, I managed to get another dozen blocks finished for my Picnic Quilt. Perhaps I will do up a few more today.

Speaking of staying by the fire, my March design is nice and cozy, drying out after a warm coffee bath...

I hope you are dry and warm today too.

Sweet Like Honey

Making etsy treasuries is totally addictive... its like being a Museum Curator, Store Window Designer, and Personal Shopper all rolled into one. Too bad I don't get paid for my services! Here is my most recent...

Sweet Like Honey

And a few others:

How Do I Love Thee?

My Kind of Valentine

Yo

Now that I finally figured out how to take a screen capture, I'll be sharing all of my treasury adventures with you in the future.

Move-in Day is Near

Over the weekend, 3 of the 5 "dog boxes" (for lack of a better description) were completed. Here's Bailey, our 8 year old Chocolate Lab, trying one out for sizing, before the dividers went up.


He and the kids had a grand time hanging out in the kennel... we are wondering how Bailey will respond when the 6 new dogs move in. Will he still want to sleep in the mud room every night? Or will he want to move in with his new family? He is such a social dog, seeking out the company of any dog (or cat) he can find.

Each dog box will have its own closing door to the outside, which we will be able to lock down in stormy weather.

They will also have a hinged door on the inside of the kennel so that we can easily let them out to meet visitors or go for a romp in the woods. The top of their boxes will have an inset door for feeding, but will also hinge at the wall, so the entire top can be lifted up for cleaning or to assist when a Mama is giving birth. There will be 4 portable puppy corrals that will push right up next to the outside of the Mama's box, for extra room to romp, and for visitors to have better viewing of their antics. A pretty ingenious set-up, if you ask me.

We are hopeful that President's Day will be Move-in day.

Market Preview

Since one of my distributors accidentally let the cat out of the bag a bit soon, and many of you have already seen the photos, I figured I might as well give you a real peek at the designs to be released this coming weekend in Nashville...

Permit Me Not to Stray


Matchless Grace (a Faithfully Reproduced Antique Sampler)


Both charts will retail for just $10 each, and will be listed in my etsy shop starting on Friday the 18th. If you want to pre-order either or both designs, just send me an email (beth@heartstringsamplery.com), and yours will be among the first to be mailed out.

Picture of the Week

Ta Da! Let Us Be Truly Thankful, the March Edition

Here is my “March” adaptation, the fourth in my mad-designer plan to put Thanksgiving into every season! If you stitch every installment in the coming series, they will all fit in the same frame, giving you the ability to swap them out and celebrate Thanksgiving all year long.

Stitch Count: 101 x 61
Model stitched on R & R Reproductions 35ct. Bitter Betty Brew

Using flosses from The Gentle Art: 0115 Tiger Lily, 0320 Old Brick, 0560 Nutmeg, 7061 Caramel Corn

And Weeks Dye Works: 1108 Honeysuckle, 1269 Chestnut,
2168 Monkey Grass, 2220 Curry

In addition to being available in my etsy shop as a mailed pattern, I have decided to keep this series available in PDF format indefinitely, for a lower price of $7 each... simply email your request (beth@heartstringsamplery.com), and I will respond with the emailed file(s) within 24 hours of payment (in most cases you will receive it in less than an hour, since I check my email almost constantly when I'm home).

aCross(stitch) the Years

The other day, while doing some updating in my etsy shop, I decided to do a little browsing... and what can be more fun than browsing that fabulous site? I tried a new search term, typing "cross stitch" in the vintage category.

Lo and behold, there were 48 pages to look at! Not being one to actually sit and browse for THAT long, I only made it through about 20 pages, but I thought I would share my favorite findings (click the pictures to be taken directly to the listing):

Feathered Friends

I have been collecting photos of some of our favorite visitors to our winter bird feeder. This is a pretty new hobby for us... not feeding the birds, we have been doing that for several years now... but actually having a feeder close enough to the windows that we get to watch and identify them. Even the kids are pretty good at naming some of the varieties now... it has turned out to be a great family activity. Often, the youngest will run to me, saying, "Mama, I wook froo your binocyoors? Deres a bird on the feeder!"

In no particular order, here are our most frequent guests:




Being pretty far out in the woods, and being used to only seeing them in the city, this one surprised us...

Did You Watch?

We aren't really sports fans, but we usually watch the Super Bowl with family or friends each year. This is the first in as long as I can remember that we stayed home, and only turned the TV on once in awhile to see what the score was. Why I felt the need to check, I don't really know, since I didn't really care. Habit, I guess. We did catch the final few minutes, while eating our dinner.

I spent the day, sitting at my kitchen bar, folding umpteen-bazillion charts to send to Nashville, while watching a few episodes of Cranford on my portable DVD player. Have I ever told you that there is conjecture amongst historians that some of the characters in Elizabeth Gaskell's Cranford books were inspired by a few of my ancestral Aunties? Interesting story... interesting thought... and of course, makes the viewing of this historically-set mini-series quite meaningful to me.

Speaking of folding umpteen-bazillion charts... want to see one of the designs that I'll be releasing at Market? It is a reproduction of this antique sampler that I bought last Summer at the same show where I found Unna von Bergen (but not nearly so cheap!)...

Since there is no name or date (I guess I'm drawn to the orphans!), I am calling this one "Matchless Grace". I'll be releasing it at the TNNA show and in my etsy shop simultaneously on February 18th, along with my Adam & Eve design (which I'll be showing you early next week).

And while I was busy in the house avoiding the Super Bowl, my Smoking-Hot-Husband was working on the kennel. He got the play yard fence finished on Saturday,

and put in a back window and the base of the sleeping boxes Sunday.

Aren't we the industrious pair?

If...

If I was a teensy, tiny, fairy, looking for a home, I would be strongly drawn to living Here. Here, with its mounds of plush, vibrant moss to line my bed.

A forest of tympani for my midnight playing pleasure.

A smooth plain for stargazing.

A rugged spire to climb, stand upon triumphant, and proclaim as my own.

And my very own Twin Guardians to stand watch, answer my summons, and carry me away to fairy trysts in the Forest.