Hot and Muggy is All Right With Me

Happy Sunday to you. It's a glorioius day...if you like heat and humidity.  I promised my husband 17 years ago I would not complain about summer in the south ever again, having lived in the Pacific NW where summer is defined by three consecutive days of sunshine and 80 degrees. However, the older I get the harder it is to keep that promise.  Who am I kidding! I complain EVERY summer. But I admit it's not summer without the heat and humidity. And I will always be glad to be living back in the South. Don't get me wrong. Washington state is a beautiful place, but NC is home.  In a job interview my senior year in college I was asked if I was willing to relocate. I replied I was. Then he asked where I wanted to be in ten years. I thought he was referring to career objectives.  He wasn't. He explained that in his vast experience most people want to move back to within 100 miles of where they grew up within ten years. I lasted thirteen, but I now understand.

So, even though it's hot and muggy outside, I can still stitch without dripping all over my work.  And I really should find out the name of the genius who invented air conditioning so I can pray for him to be blessed every day. Here's my latest on Quaker Diamonds.

Tweet

Are you a Gadget Person?

Just wondering. There are so many great gadgets available to stitchers these days. I remember when I first got a Boo Boo stick. Hated when I had to use it, but loved how it got out all the fuzz from ripped out stitches. There are cute little painted magnets for keeping those loaded needles handy (and not in the couch cushion). And don't forget chart magnifiers and line markers...all very helpful in making your stitching time more efficient. And we all know that's important because we have a pile of projects lined up until doomsday!

Of course, I'm partial to scissor fobs. Even before I started making beaded ones for my Etsy shop, I collected and stitched them for my scissor collection. Besides being pretty, hopefully when you drop your scissors, the fob hits first so the points are damaged. Counting pins are helpful too. Even though counting is the easy part for me, it's still helpful when you're starting a row of 200 stitches to mark every 50 or so. That makes me not so paranoid about miscounting that I count the entire row 8 times! Because you know you'll come up with at least 4 different counts. LOL And if you are doing a big bargello area on canvas large counting pins can be used to mark the top of the row and the bottom to ensure that you don't get carried away with the ups and downs of the pattern.

Now, I've added beaded laying tools to my shop. Great for canvaswork since you are usually making larger stitches with more strands of fiber. So many opportunities for them to get twisted. Laying tools or stilettos are a big help.  They're also helpful on cross stitch project because it's amazing how easily two strands of floss twist just as they slip through the linen. I'll be adding more on a regular basis, but I'd love to hear your thoughts on them.

Tweet

Quaker Diamonds Lives!

I realize I may have to reintroduce myself to some of you because I haven't posted in almost three weeks! I've been traveling back and forth to my mom's since her shoulder surgery. Her balance was really messed up for a while and we were afraid to leave her alone because she fell so often. But she's out of the sling and improving daily. Physical therapy has begun...not to be confused with anything one would look forward to.

Anyway, I figured out long ago that I don't get a lot of stitching done when I'm away from "my nest", but apparently I have nothing to blog about if I'm not stitching. Does that mean my life has a narrow focus or is stitching just the only interesting thing I do. Hmmmmm.

Quaker Diamonds has grown, but not as much as I would have wanted in this period of time. But here it is and hopefully I'll have more to show more frequently now. My mental health really suffers when I don't get to stitch every day.  So you should probably be glad that I haven't filled my blog with immense whining! LOL

Tweet