Dreaming Into Creation

Well, a few months.... well.... five months?  Eep!  I've been meaning to post sooner!  Since the last post, I have finally fully settled into my apartment, and have been enjoying living alone.  Although, it does get pretty quiet here.  I think that may be changing tho... new neighbors moving in next to me.  As long as they don't have a loud dog like the last guy I think I can handle it.  XD Hopefully.... Anyway, back to things happening in my crafting life. First update: Extracts.  Yes.... extracts *waves bottles of extracts imitating the 9th Doctor with the Anti-plastic* The vanilla extracts are both successes!  First, my rum vanilla extract.  I ended up keeping it sealed and shaking it once every few weeks all the way up til mid December.  So, thats about ten months I believe that I let it extract itself.  Pun totally intended there.  It is a lighter flavor of vanilla, and I will be using it in things that are ...

Yes, I know, its been forever since my last blog post.  But, fear not.... just because I haven't posted does not mean that I haven't been working on things!  Not only have I been working on my current cross stitch projects, I have started another!  Yes, another... hahaha  And, I have been getting ready for a move.  My friend (who I am helping out with various sewing projects) and I are looking for a new place, so it will be hectic for a little while in my life. First up on the progress list!  Middle Earth!  It took me some time, because I did not have all the colors I needed to continue, and its also summer... I have had a hard time concentrating on it during nice days, so I have a feeling that most of the progress on this work in progress will be in the winter time.  I will finish it tho! It just will most likely take me many years hahahaha. I think its turning out very pretty XD Next on my progress over the last few weeks/months... ...

...kinda... Well, after a few awesome complete cross-stitch projects, I thought it would be a fantastic idea to start one of the things that I really  wanted to do, thinking it wouldn't be that  hard. Didn't take into account how different stitching on linen if compared to stitching on aida cloth.... Or how small it would be... Or how to read an actual  pattern... Or.. Well, you get what I mean.  However, I have started  Heaven and Earth's Map of Middle Earth  about two weeks ago and so far I think I'm doing an alright job. So far, I think I've done an alright job! But, it will be a long time in stitching!  First, I have maybe a fourth of the needed threads.  Maybe.  Might be less that that.  And on my budget, I'll only be able to buy a few threads a month (shipping can be a biotch, and there is no Michael's or JoAnns or anything like that where I live.  Yay for small town living... :'( ), and this thing is o...

...of the December cross stitches!  Oh so nice to finish the ones that I started (minus the two for niece and nephew... those will take some time yet...)  First, as said in previous installment of things from my boring life (which I plan on changing, and soon  XD), my sister's present was finished quite a while ago, but I didn't want her to see it.  Now that it is safely in her possession and no longer in danger from cats who assume they rule the household, I can put pretty pictures online.  It makes me happy!  So the pattern is one I found online when searching for Lord of the Rings inspired crafts.  It is a free pattern from Hancock's House of Happy  and I fell in love with it!  It says Mae Govannen (well met) in Quenya.  I changed the colors for it, as the ones I had would fit in with my sister's decorations around the house better than the green and tan.  Also, I didn't have any green or tan... So, it actually d...

So, after coming home from Pullman for my brother's graduation from WSU, I thought about how annoying it was getting in and out of the travel bag I had packed in order to get work done on the Xmas gifts I'm making for my sister and her family.  I had everything I was working on in one of those hanging makeup travel bags.  Well, it was great and all, but it was bulky.  So, when I got home I scrounged around and put together this little thing! I had been looking online for some neat ideas for a good travel embroidery set, and I found quite a few good ones.  However, since I don't have an Altoids tin, or even just a cute little tin, I decided to go with something that I already had.  I saw one (I think it was the DMC blog website) made from a slim wallet, and thus this was born. A friend was gonna get rid of this pretty nice slim wallet when I was helping her unpack after moving, and I said I would take it off of her hands for her.  I hadn't ...