Happy Valentine's Day...

© 2011 D. Liljegren

 "There are three things that amaze me—
no, four things that I don’t understand:
how an eagle glides through the sky,
how a snake slithers on a rock,
how a ship navigates the ocean,
how a man loves a woman"

                         - Proverbs 30:18-19

© 2012 D. Lljegren

   "Place me like a seal over your heart, like a seal on your arm; 

for love is as strong as death, its jealousy unyielding as the grave. 

It burns like blazing fire, like a mighty flame."

                                                           - Song of Solomon 8:6

My custom-created pincushion by Susan Piloto

"And now these three remain; faith, hope and love.

But the greatest of these is love."

                                                                                             - I Corinthians 13:13

There's still time to enter the Brynwood Sweetheart Valentine Giveaway!

I'll be drawing three names at 11 pm ET this evening 

via the Random Number Generator and

I'll post the winner's names tomorrow.

Click here to enter.

Good Luck and Happy Valentine's Day!!

A New Friend...

Do you remember last week when I put a note on the end of one of my blog posts trying to answer a contact from Ann here? I wasn't able to get a reply to her until she saw my note and added my email address to her online address book. Then, she wrote to me again and we were finally able to make contact with each other.

She told me that she doesn't have a blog, but regularly read mine and felt motivated to send a "little gift" to me. She saw that I love pincushions and wanted to make one especially for me!

Her package arrived yesterday and to say I was "excited" would be an understatement. The notecard she included explained how she decided on certain elements - but said that all were chosen with me and my interests in mind.
I now have a new mouse in the studio to keep "Cheerful" (Susan Pilloto's creation) company. Look closely, and you'll see acorn buttons and charms, scissors, a cup and saucer with a teeny, tiny spoon, chocolate, miniature bolts of fabric, a tiny sewing machine, a thimble, and much, much more.

I see something new every time I look at this sweet creation. The pincushion is actually the Brynwood Acorn Ornament (which you can download from my "Tutorial/Patterns" link right under my header! Of course, Ann personalized the acorn with "Love to Quilt". (She noticed! lol)
There are crystals, sprinkles, details all the way around this sweet mouse. Ann is a real artist, and I'm convinced that none of her choices were random.
Ann doesn't have a blog, but she creates one-of-a-kind items for friends, family and occasionally for sale. If you're interested in contacting her to commission an item, please let me know and I'll have her contact you.

I didn't get home from a day trip yesterday in time to photograph Miss Sweet Mouse (that's what I've decided to name her) before I lost my "photo light". I apologize to Ann for using these flash photos. I'm going to rephotograph this incredible gift again today to have better pictures that show off all of Miss Sweet Mouse's details.

Ann, my (new) friend - I really can't tell you how much I love this generous and most unexpected gift. You really are an incredible artist, and I appreciate all the time, energy and creativity that went into conceiving and executing this piece. I'll treasure it always....always. Thank you again. I'm humbled beyond words.
I wanted to let you know that I've started receiving notes from the gals participating in the Mug Mat Swap. If you're part of the swap group, you can join my Flickr group and upload photos of your mat into the album. All you have to do is join the group, place your photos on your desktop and then go to the "Upload Photos" link and choose them from your desktop when Flickr asks which photos you want to share. I think you need to upload them into your own photo feed first and then choose them to "Add to Group".

If you haven't used Flickr before, it's really intuitive to navigate and use their site. If you have problems and want me to just upload photos for you, I'm happy to do that, but "brynwoodneedleworks" will appear under your photo, instead of your Flickr user name. If you have questions, please feel free to send me an email and I'll try to walk you through uploading the photos yourself.

Anyway...here's the link (click on this) to go to the album, see what others have created and to share your mat, too.

I hope you're all having fun. I know I am. Mine will go to my partner by Saturday. Can't wait to see everyone else's creations, too!

Joyful Stitching, friends!!

The Most Recent Member Of My Team...

I'd like to introduce you to my newest assistant at Brynwood Needleworks. As I always try to bring a plethora of fun, creative, informative, joyful and cheerful posts your way, it only seems fitting that the most recent member of my team is "Cheerful". No, really! That's his name! Cheerful.
He's getting to know his way around the studio...asking lots of questions, teasing Kes, and most of all, bringing a wonderful sense of whimsy into my day. When I read his resume' and I saw that his pincushion was made using one of the French General fabrics, I knew he just had to move to Florida!

Cheerful comes to Brynwood Needleworks by way of the fabulously talented Susan Pilloto of Mouse Droppings blog and Crowsnest Pass Primitive Art in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. (By the way, I had a little chat with Cheerful and there'll be none of that mouse droppings stuff in the studio!)Susan's work is in high demand, and she always contacts her followers to let them know when she'll be listing up her creations. (Often only a one hour window of opportunity to purchase one of her "kids".) I persevered and was finally able to score Cheerful for myself. No indentured servitude here...only love and adoration for the little guy, and loads of admiration for Sue's creative flair.

Just look at his sweet face with a sly, little smile. Don't you agree he's the most wonderful little mouse ever?
Speaking of sweet faces...(nice segue, right?) Guess who I'm going to spend time with today? The photo is a little hint. I am thrilled beyond words that one of my beautiful blog buddies is driving to Williamsburg today to be with me! How special do you think I'm feeling right about now? Do you recognize her?

You can bet I'll spill all the details and share lots of photographs...tomorrow! muahahahahaha
I'd like to wish all of you a fabulous day today, but I have to tell you...unless you're getting married or giving birth...no one else's day is gonna hold a candle to mine!