About the stitchery:  stitched on off-white kona cotton using 2 strands of DMC embroidery floss.  Pattern was shared (a while back) from Claudia on flickr but I’m not sure if it is still in her photostream.  While I usually use a variety of stitches when I embroider, this piece ended up being entirely backstitch with some french knots.  I’m still not exactly sure what I am going to do with the stitchery, perhaps turn it into a pillow or maybe a dresser scarf, but it was most fun to stitch up!

Stitch along theme:  This is for the New Embroidery with Vintage Patterns stitch-along for January 2012.  The theme was to stitch something up that ties into your New Year’s resolutions or goals for the year.  For me this stitchery represents a two things.  One:  Have more fun.  2011 was a hard year, within a 6 month period, I lost my paternal grandpa, hubby & I lost our baby at 9 weeks, and my maternal grandma passed away.  Needless to say, the cheer was a bit subdued for a while.  But this year is brand new and I am ready to start fresh and have some fun.  I don’t know exactly what this type of “fun” will be since hubby and are pretty nerdy (reading, play Scrabble, trying new recipes, and watching movies at home are the kind of things we enjoy) but we’ll figure out something fun to do outside of the home.  Two:  I like that the woman is steering the bicycle, smiling, leading the way, taking charge.  Anything, good or bad, can happen during the day, but if I continue to hold on tight and steer the ship (as the phrase goes), I can have a bit of control in how I react to what is going on.  This will be the year of calm control, staying happy and positive despite what might be going on.

As most of y’all may know, my entire fabric stash is pre-washed, even my charm pack and that was done very carefully!  I even pre-pre-wash!  Before putting my fabrics in the washing machine, I give them a quick rinse in the sink (or tub, depending on size) to rinse off any sizing or chemicals that is on the surface of the fabric, and to also check to make sure no dye bleeds.  Yesterday Benjamin’s dog bed fabric showed up (and wow, the quality, drape, and hand of Sheri Berry’s mod tod fabric is SO nice!) and I just put the fabric in the washing machine as is, no pre-pre-washing!

(1)  I’m making progress with my three-times in a row soapy hand washing — thankfully I do not wash my hands for no reason at all, only when the need arises to cleanse them.  I’ve made good progress over the past week or so and there have been many times when I’ve washed up just once with soap, just one time, like normal people!  Although, I admit I thought about back-pedaling when I saw this video on yahoo, but I will just go along with the “normal” belief that one-good thorough soapy hand-washing will suffice.

(sadly, I am having trouble getting the video to embed)

germiest-places-27920044.html

(2)  At the grocery store, I am weird.  I examine the produce for a long time before selecting a “near perfect” produce item to put into my shopping cart.  As if “near perfect” produce exists considering it travels a long way from farm to grocery store.  I am thankfully getting better.  On Saturday I probably made record time picking out apples to make applesauce with.  Really.  I probably only handled a few apples that didn’t make the cut before putting 4 in my buggy.  Hubby was impressed at the quickness I completed the task.  Admittedly, as we made our way to the dried fruit section, I was a little short of breath — which is more a symptom of anxiety than weirdness — which caused me to laugh really hard and I probably looked like a nut, but I did not steer that buggy back around, I just kept going.  And wait, there’s more normal-ness to report at the grocery store!  When I was selecting yogurt, I just picked one from the shelf, plunked it in the buggy, and rolled away.  I didn’t take the time to root for a “good one” from the back.  Seriously, people, I was amazed at me, just being all crazy (in a good way this time) carefree and picking up a yogurt and just putting it in the buggy without a thought.

The cluttered library/sewing room.  There’s even clutter/furniture-that-doesn’t-belong-in-here not not pictured!  Technically yes, I could clear some things off my sewing desk and chair, but ugh, I don’t think I could fully enjoy my sewing experience with all that clutter around me!  The S2061 pants I cut out last weekend will simply have to wait to be turned into pants.  Thankfully I have my NEwVP January stitch-along to work on!  Perhaps you can spy my floss boxes, hoop, and WIP on the left hand corner of my desk?!

A concerned Benjamin looking into the bedroom.  He’s like me, he likes routine and same ol’ same ol’.  He’s being a good sport about it though, and I suppose I am too!  Although both he and I will be quite happy when the house is all put back to normal!