It Only Needs A Stem...

Once I've made the twist stem for the top, it will be officially finished, but I just had to share it with you now. It's a tiny bit bigger than my other strawberries, but I love it just the same.

I'll list is up to my Etsy shop this afternoon. Wouldn't it make a lovely gift for a special someone? Wooly Bear, acorn, luscious fall colors. Who could possibly want for more? I'm in love!

More Autumn Flowers...

 

I think all I need to do to finish my embroidery is to add the silk ribbon flourishes on the left side of my strawberry. I'm calling the floral section "complete". It's possible to overwork a piece, and I want to avoid that.

 

Notice the little critter I added to this one? A wooly bear! Based on the width of its center section, this wooly says it's going to be a mild winter. That's hard to believe since today it was in the 20s and started blowing as the sun set. It's not even December yet, and I'm crying "uncle!". At this rate, I'm going to get a lot of needle dancing done this winter!

Here's an angled view of the embroidery, so you can see how I added a little more dimension to this piece. I added dried hydrangeas to the rusty orange flowers, the fuzzy yellow blossoms, and my wooly bear is truly wooly - thanks to the turkey stitch I used. I'm going to be adding more wooly bears in the future. I loved doing this one!

I'm going to get my hair trimmed this morning at Wendi's, and then I'll be home to complete my work on the this so I can assemble it into a strawberry. I can't wait to show you the finished piece. I'll share the completed goldwork frog scissors fob, too! I'd better go so I can get to my appointment on time. Results of this piece and the frog tomorrow. See you then.

Tuesdays With Tag - The "Frowsy Factor"...

 

Hi, Everybody!

 

As if night time pictures aren't blurry enough, Mom had to take one of me when I'm in a serious moltin' phase! Mom or Dad are vacuumin' the livin' room and kitchen every single day. Sometimes twice even!

Dad says I look like a manky ol' shoebrush. Mom's always grabbin' clumps of my fur as she walks by. I'm sure it's a drive-by pluckin'! Who can I report this to? Can she do jail time for tryin' to de-fur me? I mean, she's brushed me; she combed me; and she's done everythin' except shave me. Nothin's workin'. I just keep blowin' all this magnificent fur.

I kinda have to admit, though, after lookin' at this picture, I can see Mom has a bit of a point. No wonder my nose is always itchy. Both the girls are blowin' coat, too. They're leavin' their black fur all over the house, and it's a lot easier to spot than mine! Nobody's pullin' on their fur. What the heck?

Mom said if I don't get this sheddin' out of the way and done with, she's gonna send me back to Miss Joy's for another groomin'. As much as I love Miss Joy, I don't wanna go back there anytime soon. Believe me, I'd like this done with as much as Mom does. I mean, next thing you know she'll be wantin' to cut my toenails, or makin' me take a bath upstairs, here at home! No thanks.

Come back next week, and you'll be able to see a brand new picture of me. In the meantime, I'm hopin' to dodge the proverbial bullet. Brush me all you want. Just spare me the agony of another bath. That's a definite negatory.

I'll see you again in seven. 'til then... 

"Be A Good Dog." 

Do A Little Dance...

 

Make a little frog... (Are you humming Casey and the Sunshine Band, "Get Down Tonight" yet? Sorry. I couldn't resist.)

I still have to turn the wee frog into a scissors fob, which I'll do today. Most of Sunday was spent baking. I made white chocolate chip scones for breakfast, and mixed up a batch of brownie mix to have on hand. I took all the dry ingredients used to make brownies and made a huge batch. When I want to make a batch of brownies in the future, I just scoop a measure of the mix and add the wet ingredients to pop into the oven. (I didn't bake brownies today, though.) Then I baked bread. When everything was cleaned up and dinner was in the oven, I sat down to stitch a bit.

I managed to add quite a bit to my Autumn Strawberry project, but I have a lot more to add, to create a lush fall floral design. This is shaping up nicely, though, in my humble opinion.

Handsome has a dermatology procedure today (my fair-skinned Swede), so I'll be taking along my needlework to keep me occupied while I wait. I'll share my progress when I see you again on Wednesday. Tag will be here tomorrow. What are you up to this week?

Sunday Scripture...

1 Thessalonians 5:18

 

Sharing A Gluten-Free Dessert Recipe...

Jamieson House, Poynette, WI

I went to this restaurant decades ago. It was a bed and breakfast upstairs and wonderful Victorian restaurant downstairs. I was working in Portage as a paralegal and office manager. My boss' nephew asked me out and took me to this place. Dinner was a pure delight. Everything meal offering was a delight and I never forgot it. 

As far as I've been able to tell, Jamieson House has been closed since 2009, however they were featured in an issue of Victoria Magazine around the time Handsome and I were planning our wedding. I saved the article and recipes, and their Devonshire Cream became the dessert for our reception, instead of a wedding cake. We gave our venue the recipe, along with raspberries we'd frozen from our own garden to make into the topping. It was perfect for us, and I still make it from time to time.

When searching for a gluten-free dessert to make for last night's meal, I went back to my own recipe binders, thinking I might make Devonshire Cream. I decided to review the other recipes that were part of that magazine article and found a perfect dessert...Raspberry Torte. No flour whatsoever, so by its ingredient list it was a gluten-free dessert before people even thought about such things. 

It was served last night and became an instant hit. Our daughter-in-law said it was her new favorite dessert. Our grandson wondered what I did to make it so moist, and I told him I simply followed the recipe. Because I know there are likely readers who also require (or prefer) gluten-free eating, I'm going to share this recipe with you. If you make it, I hope you'll let me know what you think.

Jamieson House Raspberry Torte Recipe. Click on the image to enlarge and save.

No Black Friday Here...

 

This is what I worked on yesterday. We had a lovely, quiet day, so I had time to stitch for a bit. We're getting together with #1 Son's family today, so I did a little baking to contribute.

Our dear daughter-in-law can't eat gluten due to health considerations, so I've baked gluten-free dinner rolls, a g-f raspberry torte, and corn casserole. The recipe for the torte is from a Wisconsin restaurant I went to in the late 70's-early 80's called the Jamieson House. It was near where I lived in Portage, and it was also a bed and breakfast upstairs (I never stayed there). Anyway, years later, I saw recipes from the Jamieson House in a magazine for this torte, and also for Devonshire Cream (which I had when I was there for dinner). That dessert was served at Handsome and my wedding reception. I would have made the Devonshire Cream for today's meal, but was really curious about the torte. I'll let you know what everyone thinks.

You can see I made a little progress on this frog, too. I have to finish its back feet and leg, but I'm still deciding on the colors for the oval on its back. I guess we'll find out all together what I choose. I'll get back to it on Saturday.

If you followed me for more than eleven months, you'll know that I don't do Black Friday events in the stores. I may take advantage occasionally of a good cyber deal, but no way this ol' girl is going shopping out in the wild. I just don't see taking a day to be thankful for all my blessings, and then running out the next day to buy more stuff. No thank you, very much. You can always find me right here if you need me. 

If you're going out, be safe out there, and I'll meet you back here tomorrow.

Thanksgiving Blessings To You...

 

 

Happy Thanksgiving From Our Home To Yours!

 

Preparing Our Goodbyes...

 

It snowed again yesterday. Some of the white stuff is still on the ground, and it's perfect for our family's mood these days. My nieces are troopers, in spite of the soul-crushing weight of their grief. Her aunties are helping where we can, but there are some pains only a mother can soothe, and theirs is gone now. I'm sharing this photo today because it seems to be a quiet, warm scene for the end of a hard day.

 

I worked all day pulling photos from albums, as well as my online photos that will be mounted onto picture boards for her memorial service in about ten days. My sisters are doing the same so we'll have quite a collection when we get together to do the boards. 

 

I'm also responsible for the large photograph that will be framed to sit above her urn during the church service. We all agreed on a beautiful, happy photo I snapped of her on one of her visits to Florida when we lived there. It's been hard here, too - which is a massive understatement.

I have to run to town to get more photo paper first thing,  and I need to get her large photo image to a printer for framing. After I print the last of the images I've pulled, I'm going to sit down and stitch. I need to sit down and stitch. My mind can only concentrate on one thing when I put needle and thread to fabric...and that's what I'm working on. It's time for a little rest, and that's the best way to rest I know.

I've been trying to leave replies to comments over the past week, but regardless of the time I sit down to type, I frequently get a message that my reply has "failed to post". If you haven't seen a reply from me yet, that's why. I want you to know I've read every single message, and again you've warmed my heart. Thank you. I promise I'll get replies posted as soon as Blogger allows. I'll just keep trying at various times until it takes them. 

Thanksgiving will be here before I know it, and we're spending some time with our elder son and his family over the weekend. We're sharing the cooking, which will certainly lighten the load, and my spirits. The actual day, though, Handsome and I will celebrate together here at the farmhouse. I'm enjoying reading what you're planning, too, so feel free to share. 

I'll close for now. I'm going to have my morning cuppa, take care of the barn girls, and then I'll be off on my errand. The sooner I'm out, the sooner I can get back and finish my assigned task for the memorial service.

Tuesdays With Tag - I've Been Very Busy...

Hi, Everybody!

 Not busy that you could see from the road, but a different kind of busy. Important busy.

I've been up to the top of my ears tryin' to be silly to cheer Mom up. It's been a very rough (almost) week for her. She's been runnin' around in her Explorer, and also on the phone a lot more than usual. She's been available to help our nieces with funeral preparations, and spendin' a lot of time keepin' close to her sisters. The brothers are mostly helpin' each other, too. The girls are stickin' together.

Don't get me wrong. She's been keepin' busy, but we're also gettin' to run around outside and havin' cuddle sessions inside. We're also gettin' lots of extra treats from Mom and Dad!

On a happier note, Mom and Dad and the doglets got to pose for our Christmas card on Sunday. The weather was unseasonably warm, so Mom siezed the opportunity to gather our clan for a photograph. Claudette stayed close to watch the shenanigans, but didn't deign to grace us with her presence for the pictures. Crystal didn't want to have anythin' to do with the black dogs, so she stayed well out of sight.

We got a really super image to have made into this year's cards, but when I asked Mom, she told me I couldn't share it with you (yet). You're gonna have to settle for three good lookin' hounds (and Dad). Bella's gettin' a little grey in the face, but you can blame Carly for that. I've got nothin' to do with it! 

There's always somethin' goin' on in the yard, so Mom had to be quick to get us all lookin' in the same direction! In the end, she prevailed and we got one frame that's card worthy. She said, "I got it!", so we all bolted into the yard and started playin' around. Another one in the can until next year. Whew! I'm outta here for this week.

I'll see you again in seven. 'til then... 

"Be A Good Dog." 

Shipping Today...

 

I created a new Bryn Wallet in the Nature Girl Series - Deer and Rabbit - over the weekend. Well, actually, I made it yesterday. I have one in the shop in natural cork like this, but my client wanted navy. So, navy she'll have.

Rather than attach my usual Brynwood badges to the wallets as I do on my handbags, I like to machine embroider my "Brynwood"  onto the back of each wallet. That way, nothing is sticking out on the back to catch on things inside a handbag.

I chose a lovely grey/blue canvas fabric for the interior lining, with the credit card pockets a nice, sturdy cork fabric. This one is sold and is in the mail this morning...but I do have one left with the same flap, but natural cork for the body. You can find it in my Etsy shop HERE.

I'll be getting back to my Goldwork Frogs and Autumn Strawberry Sachet this week. As I'll take each stitch, I count all my blessings this Thanksgiving Week. Are you going to be with friends or family on "turkey day"? Are you traveling? I'll tell you my plans, if you tell me yours.

Sunday Scripture...

Revelations 21:3-4

 

Sharing The Process...

I thought you might be interested to see my process for making my wee goldwork frogs, so I've put together a short video with each step represented in photos. Click HERE to watch. I hope you enjoy it!

My nieces have been busy making arrangements for their mum, and we now have a date. Her Celebration of Life will be December 2nd...the day before my Birthday. They actually asked if that would be a problem for me, and I told them not to give it another thought. Celebrating their mum on that date would be perfect, and I'm absolutely fine with it.

I would usually be in Portage today for our Craft Day - in fact, I was supposed to lead the project this month, but I didn't feel right going out of town while my nieces are still here. I am going out to lunch with my best friend, Lee, though. A "dose of Lee" is just what I need to cheer me up. We have a lot of catching up to do, so we may be there a while.

I'll have my latest project to share with you on Monday, but don't forget to stop in for your weekly scripture verse tomorrow. I hope you have a great weekend.

 

Thank You From The Bottom Of My Heart...

With deep gratitude for your many kind comments, I'm still working on projects that I'll be able to share in the coming days. Right now, our family is taking care of each other. 

I deeply appreciate that you're also taking care of me through all your beautiful messages. I promise to reply to each one soon. While we'll mourn her passing, each day gets a little easier for us, because we know she's no longer suffering.

Until I See You Again...

 

 July 26, 1956 - November 15, 2023

Rest in Peace, Sister Goldenhair

Batch One Complete...

 

I've completed the first batch of frogs and they're ready to hop to new homes. I deeply apologize for missing my mailing goal due to current family circumstances, but they will go out today.

Two of these are free-standing frogs, one is a brooch, and the last one is the blue frog scissors fob. I've already started another that will be completely different for Clara, but I'm not going to share that one for a while.

Today, I have to sew up a commission as we all await regular updates from our nieces. My sister is back home and under hospice care. The hospice nurse said it won't be long, and we're doing our best to cope with the news. We're all so glad that she will be in her own bed when she's called home. She wanted that more than anything. In the meantime, I'm keeping my hands and mind occupied, or I'd be constantly crying. My sisters and I are doing our best to support our nieces as they come to terms with the imminent passing of their dear mother. We're fortunate to all have each other to get through this.

I'm off to get my morning cuppa and then I'll be in my studio. I have packaging and posting to do, after which I'll be sewing for a bit. Please hug your loved ones and tell them you care. It can all change in the blink of an eye.

Tag Will Be Back Next Week...

 

Apologies that Tag won't be posting today. This week we're focused on my sister, Lyn. 

Yesterday we received news from the doctors telling her that she will not be eligible for a lung transplant. Her body is too frail, and she's too ill for consideration. She wants to go home and has accepted hospice, so now her daughters are trying to make that happen. 

 

It may take up to forty eight hours for all the needed equipment to be installed in her home, and truthfully, we're not sure she'll make it. We believe that now that she knows there's no option for a transplant, she may have given up her fight. She's tired. We're heartbroken.

We're doing our best to be strong for her daughters. I ask for your continued prayers as our whole family tries to come to terms with this latest, devastating development. Thank you from all of us.

My Sister, Lyn...

 

This is one of my favorite photographs of me with my sisters. In this one, we're top to bottom, oldest to youngest. Through all the years, we've taken many pictures like this.

 

This was all of us (left to right = oldest to youngest) at Dad's Celebration of Life in August, 2020. My sister, Lyn was leaning on my brother as she stood between us. She was already frail from Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. There is no cure.
 

 

 

Here are the Four Sisters again at Lyn's Birthday party July 2023. She could barely make it from their vehicle to the house, so she sat here until it was time to leave.

 

Saturday, I got a call that she was back in the hospital in the intensive care unit since Friday. She now has end stage COPD. Her daughters are here from Minnesota and Colorado, our 86 year old mum, Di, Jan and I are all here and we've been to the hospital to be with her. Our youngest brother came home from vacation in Georgia yesterday to see her, and I assume our other brother will be here soon, too. This weekend has not been good.

She's improved enough so that she can probably leave the ICU in the next day or so to go home. She's scheduled to again meet with a transplant team on November 21st to assess whether or not she's a candidate for a lung transplant. She is 5'6" tall and currently weighs 98 pounds. (That's not good.) Her husband is hopeful that they'll approve her for a new lung and that she'll be fine. Lyn has said she'll see what the team says and go from there.

Sunday brought Handsome's last concert of the season with the Fond du Lac Symphonic Band. It was held in St. Paul's Cathedral in Fond du Lac. It was a wonderful and moving concert, at one point moving me to tears. Why does that always happen when I've left all my hankies at home? It's been an emotional weekend, and the music released all that I'd repressed. It was all I could do not to weep out loud. I was sitting next to Mum and she whispered, "Are you alright?" I could only nod. I was finally able to pull myself together before the piece was finished, and maintained my composure the rest of the afternoon. Between the venue and the music, I'm surprised there was a dry eye in the place. 

I'm going to town again today to spend time with Diana and Mum. I'm not sure about going back to the hospital right now. Lyn spends most of her time sedated, so acknowledging visitors takes a lot out of her. I'll get updates from her daughters about if and when she's going to go home, and will see her in the next day or so.

 

If you have a prayer or kind thought that you might spare, I'd sure appreciate if you could lift it for my sister. We're praying for her to be comfortable and pain-free, as she's neither right now. I'm going to grab my travel Yeti, fill it with coffee and go meet up with Di soon. Thanks for listening.

Sunday Scripture...

Jude 1:24-25 

 

I Did It! Four Frogs Finished...

 

I met my deadline! Four frogs finished by Friday. (Say that fast four times!) I'll be completing them as requested by the recipients, and they'll be hopping on their way to new homes on Monday.

 

This is a closeup of the green frog I did yesterday, and I'm quite happy with the final result. I have a total of twelve frogs to complete for the Gratitude Giveaway participants, but will work on them intermittently until all are mailed to new homes. 

 

I say that I won't do them all right away, but you know that I won't let this project sit too long. Of course, there are the inevitable sewing projects I have to create for the holidays, and I have a wallet order due up next. I promise the frogs won't linger on my list, and I'll do them sooner rather than later. I'll share one more photograph of this lot after I release them from the fabric and turn them into their final forms. Then on to the wallet commission. 

 

I hope you have a great weekend planned. Once these are done, I'm going to put my feet up for a bit, and Handsome has his final Fond du Lac Symphonic Band concert for the year on Sunday. I wouldn't miss it for the world. I'm off to grab a cuppa, and then I'll be in my studio. See you later!

Three Down...

I completed Frog #3 late last night. It's the blue and green one at the bottom of these photographs. I didn't get to start working on him until after 4 pm, but I have a really great excuse. I got a message from Sis to meet her for lunch in town, and we had such a nice meal and visit that I was out later than planned. Once I was back home, I sat down to my needlework frame and got to work.

 

I'm actually quite fond of this combination, although I do love each one I've stitched so far. I'm looking forward to turning each frog into it's final creation, but I have to look at my work orders to see how each of these will be finished. 

Today I'll complete the green one at the top. I think this one will be a little combination, too...perhaps with gold. We'll see. I usually decide as I'm working. If I stay on schedule, they'll all be complete today and I can release them from the ground fabric. It's going to be fun, for sure!

 

Weeds...

 

I've added a new reference book to my needlework library. It's A Golden - Weeds. It's a reference guide to "the pest plants of the United States that invade lawns, gardens, fields, and roadsides." I guess one man's weed is another man's treasure. I love and promote them in our yard.

Let me explain. When the weather is so dry that the grass dies off, the weeds grow up and show off their natural finery. Chickory, Queen Anne's Lace, mullein, English daisies, sorrel and more are all considered weeds in this book, yet it wouldn't be summer in Wisconsin without them. In fact, many of them have medicinal properties and were used as poultices, teas, and other remedies by native Americans and settlers. There's much we could learn from them.

 

I saw this for sale online - paying a few dollars more than the $1.95 cover price - and wanted it to add to my needlework library as a reference guide for flower and plant embroideries.

 

While the copy is less than favorable to each plant, the illustrations are accurate and I'll be able to build upon them for my projects. I chose the mullein page because we also have these magnificent plants in the surrounding farmlands, and occasionally on the edges of our fields. They're highly prized for medicinal value, so I actually seek them out when I'm walking or driving. It's sad to see that it - and many other beneficial plants - were, and still are considered undesirables.

This small book nearly fits in the palm of my hand, so it will tuck nicely into my sewing basket when needed. It's 160 pages long, so there are a lot of illustrations to draw from. I'll look forward to paging through it for inspiration as I work on my Autumn Strawberry Sachet.

I'm having lunch with my almost sister-in-law/sister-by-choice, Deb (Mom Grace's daughter) today. When I get back I'll sit down to my frogs again. I'm working as I'm able toward completion. My self-imposed deadline is Saturday so I can package them up to mail out on Monday. I'm quite sure I'll make it on time. I think now I'll make my morning cuppa and sit down at the needlework frame for a bit before I have to leave. See you tomorrow!