Everything But The Acorn...

Our granddaughter's brooch is finished, save for adding Grandma's signature acorn to the back.

I used silver-finished kid leather for the backing, and a pin back to secure it to her gown or bouquet.

Grandpa and I will give this to her at the upcoming couples' shower. I'm also working on a large lap quilt for them. I'll be shooting for their shower date of September 25th. Once again, I'm going to be busy. sigh

We actually had a cool wedding gift planned, but found out that it's not going to work. The kid's bought a duplex as their starter home, which we think is smart and practical. So was our idea.

We wanted to gift them a quarter beef share, which necessitated a freezer for storage. We asked their dad to slyly find out if that would work. He contacted us yesterday to inform us that, not only is there no freezer (which could easily be rectified), but having no basement, there's no space in the house to accommodate one either.

So now we have to rethink our plan and come up with a new one. Any ideas from my wise and creative readers? Let me know.

 

Looks Like I Made It...

Well, I finished ahead of schedule...but barely. I got down to the very last spot only to find I was about three chippings short and out of brilliant check purl in that size and color.

I looked in the corgi cup I use for thread ends, and even checked the carpet for the rare snippet that bounced off my fabric when I was cutting them, and thankfully found what I needed. I know more is already on the way, but I would miss my goal. As it was, I finished ahead of time by a few hours.

Next, I'll release it from the ground fabric and finish it into a brooch for our granddaughter. All that will be left then is to create the insert and place it in a special box for her. I'm one happy grandma.

Could Today Be The Day?...

I sat at my Lowrey stand all day yesterday and made great progress. I panicked at one point, thinking I'd used the last of my .5 mm brilliant check, but I found more in my inventory. I'm sure I have enough to finish now, so perhaps today will be the day I secure the last piece. I'm certainly going to try. 

We're expecting rain today, so l plan to stitch until dinner time. I think a bit of laundry is on the agenda, too. Here's hoping I'll be ready to cut this brooch away from the ground fabric today (or very soon). 

I hope you have a great day, too! I'll be back tomorrow.

Piece By Piece...

I know it doesn't look like much, but the silver brilliant check is a smaller gauge than I usually use, and each chipping (cut piece) is tiiiiny! You can see them in my little bees wax pot in this picture. That silver strand next to my laying tool is what they look like uncut. It seriously took me a couple hours to get this far.

I'll work on it again when I get home from work today. (I'm liking these new hours, by the way.) I'm hoping to at least complete half of this heart by the time I stop later today.

Wish me luck!

 

A New Start...

I started the bridal brooch for our granddaughter yesterday. I chose all the components, set up the ground fabric in my special hoop - the one that belonged to Handsome's mom, and started work on it already.

This is how far I got before I stopped for the evening. I'll work on it more over the next few days, as I embroider toward the finish. 

Although I haven't heard a date yet, I'm sure there'll be a bridal shower pretty soon, and this is one of the gifts I'd like to give her. So I'll keep stitching until this is finished.

Oh, My Heart...

Completed Brooches

 

....and my ladybug, and my acorn! I'm so happy with how they all turned out. These are all magnetic, so pinning these brooches to a garment won't be necessary. 

Reverse of Brooches

Of course, all of these have a second magnet included, but I wanted you to see that each one has a Brynwood signature acorn, as well as my name and year created. 

I also shared a short video on Instagram, so click HERE to watch it and catch all the sparkle. I'll be creating an link today to purchase these directly from my blog because they're separate from my sale items. 

What's next, you ask? Your guess is as good as mine! See you tomorrow...

Adding The Bling...

 

Brynwood Ladybug WIP

All I have left to do is apply the red chipping so it's sparkly. Once that's done I can cut all my brooches free and create the brooches. I'll do that this weekend. Next week, you'll see finished brooches!

Happy Easter Weekend!

Ladybug, Ladybug...

Earlier Ladybug Brooches

I actually didn't get much any needle dancing in yesterday. Handsome had a doctor's appointment for a wellness checkup, and I needed to get a few things for an Easter project, so we went out together. (One vehicle, remember?)

By the time we got home it was late afternoon, and I had orders to pack for tomorrow's mail.

So, I thought I'd remind you what the ladybug brooches look like. The one I'm making now will also have a magnetic back. I'm doing the same for the baptism brooches, specifically to avoid the pin backs on babies.

So, I'll plan to get some stitching in again today. After all, this ladybug isn't going to stitch itself!

 

Acorn Brooch...

I finished stitching my acorn brooch last night. You'll notice the drawing for the oak leaf is larger than what I made. I decided the first one was a bit overpowering, so I sized it down.

I got all my planned baking done, too. Bread, hamburger and hot dog buns, and a batch of molasses cookies. The cookie recipe was new, and I must have over baked them (even though I used the time called for in the recipe.) Handsome likes crisp cookies, but these are hard. I prefer chewy, so these definitely missed the mark.

I didn't taste the cooled results until after I'd sent some up to Shelly. I sent her a message apologizing, and she sent back a reply that made me laugh. She (graciously) said she considered them "dunkers". I promised to send up replacements when I go back to my old recipe.

Today's my work day, so I won't be stitching, but I am going to finish the ladybug this week. 

One more thing...I've decided to run my shop sale one more month. No April Foolishness here. No code needed. Everything in my shop will still be 40% off, plus I'll add more items soon. 

I'd better get ready for work. See you tomorrow!

Crystals Are Here...

 

My crystals arrived yesterday, so I'll finish this brooch today. It's going to be so sparkly! I wish I could capture how the light bounces around when it hits these crystals. 

I'm also going to work the ladybug and acorn over the weekend, and then I'll cut out and turn them all into brooches next week. It's going to be a fun weekend. 

Two More Baptism Brooches...

 

Brynwood Baptism (or Quinceañera) Brooches

I danced all day! (Needle dancing, that is.)  I loved the idea of a Quinceañera brooch, so I've created some that are extra sparkly to appeal to that potential customer.

I should have the crystals I ordered soon, so I can finish the last heart. I also drew a ladybug and acorn on this calico, so I'll do those over the weekend. 

I knew this week was going to whiz by, but gosh, has someone actually sped up time? Who can I complain to about this? Not that I am a complainer by nature, you understand. 

I have an eye appointment this morning, and a few hours of work tonight. What do you have planned this weekend?

Too Comfy...

Work was fast-paced and fun yesterday. Handsome came to pick me up and we decided to have a light dinner there before  coming home  (No dinner dishes to wash. Yay!!)

My plan was to come home, change clothes, and have a hot cuppa before adding some new shapes to the fabric currently in my hoop. I got all the way to sitting down with a hot cuppa. It was just what I needed. Next thing I knew? You guessed it. I'd nodded off.

HSo rather than showing you what I didn't do, I'm sharing a photo of the inside of an interesting old tin I've had for ages. This is where I keep the containers filled with beads, goldwork fibers, and/or threads used in whatever is currently under my needle. Perhaps next time, I'll show you what my entire setup looks like when I'm working.

I have a hair appointment this morning, and a classmate dinner this afternoon, but I'll definitely find time in between to draw a few shapes onto my calico. 

The weather is supposed to be beautiful today, so I just may set up on the porch to get a little fresh air as I needle dance. I hope you have a great day!

Ain't That A Kick In The Pants?...

Brynwood Swarovski Crystal Brooch In Progress

This is an example of poor guesstimating. As you can see, I have half of this brooch to finish, and the last of my crystals are on my velvet bead board. I admit, my optimism had me convinced that I had plenty of crystals to do the whole brooch. Sadly, I was wrong - and I was on a roll, too! I didn't have nearly enough to finish. 

Internet to the rescue! Iimmediately went online and placed an order for what I need (and more). It should be here by the 29th at the latest. 

In the meantime, I'll set up a couple ladybugs, and maybe another heart to work on while I wait. 

I'm working today, but hope to show you which other brooches I'll have set up to work on later this week. See you 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.

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!

Needle Dancing Hearts...

Making Progress On My Heart Brooch

Goldwork always seems to take a little longer than I think it will. I spent the afternoon needle dancing with a different (softer) blue bead and silver bright check. Just what the doctor ordered. (I think I'm fighting off another cold, by the way, so I've doubled up on my Vitamin C and have added other immune building supplements to my daily regimen.) 

I'm going to take it easy today, but of course I'll work on this. I think homemade chicken soup will be on today's menu! Catch you tomorrow!

Two of Three...

Creating Baptismal Brooches

I completed stitching two of the baby brooches over the weekend. I'll be working on the third today. I'm still deciding what I want it to look like.

I'm thinking I'll do a few lady bugs and a red heart before I cut out the completed baby brooches. I really don't like wasting calico, which happens once I cut out the pieces, so adding more in the hoop first is always my preference.

Stitching these small hearts really makes me smile. Actually, creating something new always makes me smile.

I guess I'll enjoy a morning cuppa and then settle in at the hoop. See you tomorrow.

 

Nearly Finished...

Brynwood Exclusive Something Blue Bridal Brooch WIP

I almost finished this Bridal Brooch. I'll get this one done today, so I can do the third before cutting them out. 

I have plans to bake a special Valentine's treat for Handsome and his sweet tooth. It's a new-to-me recipe, but I think he'll we'll enjoy the result. I'll show you tomorrow.

I promised the recipe for English muffins today, but I wanted to show you hearts instead. I moving that post to Monday. 

Happy Friday the Thirteenth! 

(Did you know that the number 13 is actually GOOD luck? Yup! I'll tell you about that some time. Have a great day!)

                                                               

Purple Heart Brooch...

Purple Heart Brooch In Progress

I completed all the stitching for the Purple Heart Brooch yesterday. I can't cut that one out yet, because removing two from the ground fabric would destabilize my other two brooches I still need to stitch. I'll cut them all out when those blue ones are done.

It was really lovely to sit in my favorite sunny spot to stitch. Bella was sleeping at my feet, while Handsome ran errands with Bella's kid. 

I'll be working on the blue hearts today. I'll begin with the pearl purl outlines, and progress to the chippings, beads and crosses. These will be Bridal Brooches when they're finished, but the purple one is already spoken for.

I hope it's warming up with a little bonus sunshine where you live. I'm looking forward to the temperatures continuing to rise. I'm completely done with the deep freeze stuff! I know there's a cuppa with my name on it, so I'm off to start my day. See ya later, gator!

Cold Day Needle Dancing...

Brynwood Needleworks - Purple Heart Brooch In Progress

It's still cold and the wind picked up again, so the best place was indoors needle dancing! So, that's exactly what I did. I sat in front of my favorite sunny spot and listened to the wind beating against the farmhouse, but it was nice and warm inside.

The Something Blue Bridal Brooches are padded out and waiting their turn, but I wanted to work on the purple heart brooch first. I started using a different fiber around the beads but didn't like it, so I removed all that work and started over. I'm much happier with the bright silver now.

I'll work on this some more today, and I'm also going to make the dough for cinnamon rolls. I promised a tray for Teresa when I see her at work tomorrow night, and in return I'll get a dozen of her beautiful farm eggs. The yolks are almost orange, and they're soooo good. I'm sure I'm getting the better end of the deal, and I know she'll say the same about my cinnamon rolls. That means it's a perfect trade, right?

I'm going to start today with a nice, hot cuppa, and then I'll turn my attention to my needlework. I can already tell it's going to be a good day. Wishing the same for you!