UK stitching buddy, trees with sweaters and wedding sampler??

this month i was finally able to meet my UK stitching buddy Linda, we have exchanged, all kinds of goodies and emails over the years but finally a face to face meeting on Mercer Island,WA.
 i am standing with black on and Linda is standing next to me she runs The Sampler Guild in the UK and she is wonderful. Beth in light blue to my right and then Becky, and Linda's friend Denise and Julie in red. we had a great dinner and lots of laughter. How lucky can one person be to have such good friends who enjoy what you enjoy. Life is good.

we have had a very cool summer here and believe you me i am not complaining when i see what everyone else is putting up with. i love the coolness of the Pacific Northwest thank you very much.

i have been busy gardening and as always i love my garden this time of year. this is an incredible passion flower bud, looks like an insect. it is a beautiful purple flower when it totally blooms.

who doesn't love a tree with a colorful sweater?
while walking with my daughter in Seattle WA, her new hometown and we happened upon these wonderful sweater trees. it made me smile and i was so happy that there are such creative people in the world and that they love to share their creativity.

they also had these interesting white cut outs that looked like some kind of honey comb texture in the trees.
  i have finished the wedding sampler for one of my daughter's friend who is getting married in August.  i went with a very simple design that i made up and i used some beads to give a sparkle. i used Hand Dyed Fibers which i love and some Gloriana, all variegated silk threads.
 now on to the framers sometimes the hardest part for me.
should it be in a round frame, square? dark wood, black, matts or no matts... the questions are endless when it comes to framing and i am lucky i have a great framer who helps me make decisions.

homemade two tier sweet stand!

i have been wanting a dessert two tier plate stand for ages but always felt i could make my own and get exactly what i want.
the other day i was shopping with my daughter and her friend and i found this great plate.

my favorite color and the bird and leaves add something extra.
next i found a simple white one tier cake stand. you can see it in the background of second photo.

i had this clear glass candle holder which i glued to the red bird plate. first find the center and mark with a pencil. i used Beacon 527 multi use glue crystal clear put around the rim of candle base.

i added some quilting weights on top to hold tight.

i then glued it to the white single tier cake stand i put a red glass heart in the center of the candle holder, weights again on top. i glued candle holder upside down as you can see. leaves more room for goodies on plate.

ta da it is done i love it and can't wait to use it in my new kitchen!

3 Owls

OK i feel bad it has been almost a month since i posted. i have been so busy animal sitting and then the yard work. yet i still feel bad, i love my blog and hate to ignore it. I have done some light stitching but really nothing to share.
instead, some garden pictures.
these incredible creatures flew into a friends yard , 3 owls was so amazing to be so close to them.

they even stayed for awhile and eyed me, puffed up and then flew away....

my soon to be son in law Matthew and Stellina all relaxed in the hammock.

and then who doesn't love passion flowers. even the under side is beautiful.
i hope to get some stitching done this week, home for the whole month. YEA!
stay cool.

one bird and a long night.

 i am sure many of you have nights like this where you start a project and you just can't stop.
i have been working on Mary Wigham for over a year now and i really want her finished.
 i have decided that instead of her name and all the initials on the piece i will add my own family initials or maybe even a verse or two of a poem. something that will remind me of how this piece started with my great stitching friends on Guemes Island,WA., our first retreat in the big red barn, a place that no longer is available for us to rent.

this is Mary as of 12:30pm tonight

i stitched the bird motif while watching or listening to mindless TV you know the kind, reality shows, Glee Project, HGTV and a BBC show on travelers (Gypsy) weddings.

i like all the bird motifs but i did change this one a bit. sometimes i change patterns because i find that when i am stitching along at a quick pace i forget to look back at the pattern and you know the rest, who likes to pull stitches out. other times i change it because i want it to have more of me in the piece or maybe part of the pattern doesn't agree with what i want it to be.
i have learn allot stitching with white and off white silk thread. it is interesting how white lays so differently on the linen than a colored silk does. i find i have to step back to appreciate it.
each piece i stitch teaches me a little something different.
 i do love the look of the white on the dark brown linen.
enough for tonight i think i hear my pillow calling me.
sweet dreams stitching blog friends