Friday Update...

Let's begin by saying, I located my lost item last night after dinner. I was able to sleep without that gnawing at my brain. 

I woke up refreshed and ready to dance. This is what I'm working on now. I'm creating a smaller version of my exclusive Something Blue Bridal Brooches for baptisms and confirmations. Of course, in hopes that it will become a treasured heirloom, it could certainly also become a bridal brooch, but not for "something blue".

These will be beaded or have more goldwork fibers, with a cross in the center. I'll be working more on these over the weekend. 

One more thing...unrelated. Handsome's truck died this week. I mean really died. We're currently debating whether or not we need a second vehicle, and if so, just what our next move will be. We don't want a brand new truck or car that will tell us how we're driving. We'll be discussing it more in the coming days. Just what we needed. This definitely wasn't on my 2026 bingo card (along with three + weeks being sick to start the new year). sigh

It's the weekend again! I hope you have sunshine skies and warm(er) breezes. 

Wasted Day...

Did you ever have one of those days that you completely trashed because you were trying to find something you misplaced? That was a major portion of my day. I did get a little bit done, but most of it was spent "looking", and no. I wasn't successful. Dang!

I also know myself well enough to know that this dog won't let go of the bone. I'll keep searching - to the exclusion of all else - until I find "it".

How was your day?

Canned Beef...

Six pounds of local ground beef became seven pints of shelf-stable canned beef. No need to take up freezer space or wait for thawing. It's ready and waiting for future barbecues, tacos, or whatever else I'd like to do with it. Believe me when I say it's always worth the effort  

I didn't get to stitch today, but I did set up a new project. I'll share photos tomorrow  

Thanks to a long-distance friend, I got a lead on a wonderful cache of now-discontinued Kreinik metallic kid leather. My order arrived yesterday. A nice surprise was that there were bonus pieces, over and above what I purchased.

Now, I have more than enough to use in future goldwork projects for personal use, as well as projects to sell.

I'm also waiting for new brilliant check purl colors (and other metallic threads) to use in those projects. I'm looking forward to more wee frogs, bridal brooches, perhaps koi fish, and thanks to a brilliant suggestion via a blog post comment, baptismal brooches. I also have ideas for a few other brand new designs.

I'm working on new patterns for my shop once the sale ends, because my plan is to revamp much of what you see there now. That's news for another day, though. I'll tell you all about that soon enough. 

Work went really well yesterday, and my shift was over almost before I knew it. I was pooped, so it was an early night for this girl. 

Today will be another busy one. Handsome has an appointment in town, but if you're looking for me, I'll be in the kitchen this morning after I pack up my current orders. I intend to get some needle dancing in this afternoon. Photos tomorrow! So, I'm pouring a cuppa and will see you then.

Officially Twenty Two Inches...

According to our friends who live a few miles north of us, we got 22" of snow from Winter Storm Elsa (along with a lot of wind and drifting).

As far as I'm concerned about this winter, I'm past ready to "let it go"!

Andy came down with his tractor with the big snow blower and managed to move most of the white stuff for us. Late afternoon, Handsome and I got out our tractor with a front bucket and rear blade and managed to move what was right in front of our garage door. Andy continues to be a blessing to us (for many more reasons than just this).

Thankfully, Handsome's band rehearsal was cancelled, following the lead of local schools and many businesses (including the station until mid-afternoon, when the owner had my boss go in to open back up. (Nuts, if you ask me!) 

I'm working today, and will get to see just what the "outside world" looks like from the station. I'm pretty sure I'll be quite happy to accomplish my shift and get back home. I'll let you know how things went tomorrow. 

Happy St. Patrick's Day and more importantly for our family, Happy Anniversary to Son #2 and his bride!

Donna

Today's Forecast...

 What's left to say? I'll be doing a bit of canning, perhaps some snow removal with Handsome, putting out more birdseed, and a lot of "staying inside!

Sunday Scripture...

James 5:13

 

Saturday Silliness...

They're just not sure. 🤭

  

Ready To Travel...

Go To Listings: https://brynwoodneedleworks.etsy.com/

The sheep and flowers are finished. They're listed and waiting to go to new homes. 

I've repriced nearly everything in my shop, so the discounts add even more savings than earlier this month. I'll be adding new items this weekend. A perfect task, considering it started snowing last night and is expected to continue from today through Monday. 

Happy Weekend, friends!

Becoming Jewelry...

This is what my entire hooped linen looks like before I remove it and cut out each individual oval. 

These will all come pendants. Hollyhocks and a single sheep. 

Clover and another sheep.

...and one more sheep. One sheep will be chosen by the friend who requested one. The others - sheep and flowers will go to my Etsy shop (sale).

I've gone back and reduced prices on some of my shop items, too. You might want to check out the new prices if you've had your eye on something. 

My Happiest Place...

No more work until Friday. If you're looking for me, I'll be right here. 

Mondays Are For Baking...

After they cooled, I frosted the cinnamon rolls. Most are going to friends. A few will stay here. Bread for the freezer, and some for our neighbors.

Today, I'll be working my regular shift, so I'd better get cracking. See you again tomorrow. 

Baaaa, Baaa, Baaaa...

At the request of an online friend, I'm making a few more sheepy pendants. One will be for her, and the others will go into my Etsy shop this week. 

I'll finish the third sheep, plus a couple floral pendants that are sold out (clover and hollyhocks), too. I'm looking forward to working in miniature again. Plus, I do love making these French knots!

I'll show you what else I did last weekend when you stop by tomorrow. You didn't think I sat around lamenting the time change, did you? (I kept busy instead.) Photos on Tuesday. 

Sunday Scripture...

 

Numbers 6: 24-26

March Madness Sale...

My March Madness Sale begins today! Everything in my Etsy shop will be 40% off until March 31st. I will be adding new items daily throughout the month. 

You'll find handcrafted cork fabric products, patterns, books, needlework supplies, and finished pieces. You can use my direct link to see my offerings:  (https://brynwoodneedleworks.etsy.com/) 

I hope you have a great weekend!
Donna ❤️

Working For The Weekend...

 

Foggy View From The Farmhouse

I was busy working on the sale all day. I woke up to a wet yard, as it had rained, but as the day progressed it got foggier and foggier outside. By evening, I could no longer see the street lights on the overpass, and only two lights at the end of the road (likely because the fog lifted near the corner).

I'll continue working on my listings today, and I'm planning to launch the sale on Saturday morning. I'm thinking the sale will go live then, and I'll continue to add new things throughout the month - all on sale. Should be fun!

Resting...

 

I worked Tuesday and because I still have a cold, I pretty much sacked out when we got back home. Sorry I missed a post for yesterday. 

I spent part of the day at the computer, but my head really wasn't in it. I did prep a package to mail out one of the brooches that was purchased, but I mostly rested. 

Andy brought more hickory nutshells down from the fall harvest, so hickory syrup will definitely be in my future. That's for another day though.

While im sitting here conserving energy, all the birds that flew south for the winter are making their way back north. I want to be ready for them, so im planning to scrub all the feeders this week. The temps will reach into the sixties, so it's the perfect time to get ready for their return. 

Im also going to buy a couple new birdhouses for the bluebirds, and one or two wren houses. I think the Compass Barn could use one or two on the east wall. I want to have a nice welcome buffet for them when they arrive.

I'll be back at the computer today, too. I want to activate my sale by the weekend. Coffee and computer. See you later!

        

Laundry Soap...

Stone Gable Laundry Soap Recipe

It's time to make more laundry soap. I no longer buy store brand laundry soap. I've been making this for years, and we love it. I don't make it in a garbage bag, but use my huge stainless steel bowl instead. 

This soap works really well, and covers many loads. I may have shared this recipe before, but I think it's worth sharing again. (Sorry the edges are cut off this image. It's the only one I have from her blog, and she no longer has the recipe on her site.) On her original post, she showed a photo of her glass apothecary jar with a bee image. She got it free from The Graphics Fairy website, which carries thousands of copyright free images. I've used their images before and they have something for just about every need.

I'll be at work today (thanks to Alka seltzer cold gel tabs). I'll see you again tomorrow. 

Heart Brooches...

 

Three New Brooches

I was feeling much better on Sunday. The sun was shining, even though it only got to about 29ºF , so it was lovely sitting in my favorite spot for a bit of needle dancing. 

Something Blue Bridal Brooch - Soft Blue

I completed the second Something Blue Bridal Brooch, so there are now two that will be available. I think I may do a third that will be completely beads with only the cross in the middle to see how that looks. I think that could be really elegant, too.

SOLD. Something Blue Bridal Brooch - Shimmer SOLD

These brooches will regularly be $65 each, plus $5 domestic postage (I'll pay the difference if it costs more.) I'll also ship outside the US, but buyer is responsible for postage and import fees, however during March, I'm offering them for $45 (plus postage as listed above). If you're interested, please send me a private message and I'll make arrangements to send a secure invoice through my Square account.

Now that I'm caught up with that, I'm going to turn my attention to new photographs for some of my current Etsy listings, and then I'll launch my 40% off March Madness Sale. Once that's up and running, it will be in effect until the end of the month. I'm hoping that most all of my current stock sells out so I can start April with new inventory, much of which I'll be creating during the month.

I will be working tomorrow, so I'm going to take it easy today. I've got a bit of computer time in my future to set up the sale. I might take an afternoon nap, too. See you tomorrow. Oh, and Happy March!

Sunday Scripture...

 

Philippians 4:8