Here is a little angel I sent to Linda H, all handcrafted (not by me). It was so adorable I swear I had to buy it!

Giftie #1

Here is a wonderful little suprise I received from Linda H., a lovely friend from a group I left earlier in 2006. It is a holiday bayberry candle - I forgot to take a picture of the glass 'container' Linda sent me with it, the paper text is taped on it. She and her sister have a tradition of making such candles every year... I loved lighting it!! And it was packed so nicely like a frosty winter candy!

One more Happy New Year!!!

I'm still in bed, worse instead of getting better, and that is the first New Year Eve in my life when I'll go to bed much before midnight. It's soon 10pm here, I'll just watch a TV program I want to see and fall asleep - if the sound of fireworks doesn't get too disturbing. People started popping them as early as 8pm tonight. Neither my dog nor queen-cat seem to care though :)
H. snored in bed most of the day as well, my father and wife decided not to go to the New Year Eve concert at the opera and instead handed the tickets to a (delighted) neighbor. Since they've been ill since two full weeks I don't see much hope for me for the moment :(.
My brother, wife and son were supposed to travel to spend a few days with them on Tuesday before they head back for Switzerland but the news being as they are, neither me nor my father are going to see them this time. Not sure if my father can accept not seeing his grandkid though!
The thought that out there, there are healthy people who dance, celebrate, kiss and laugh is so.... unrealistic LOL!
Back to bed, enjoy your evening wherever you are, whatever you do, just have it nice for yourselves! Happy New Year in 2 hours (my time)!

G'night...

... last night before 2007 arrives! :)

I've stayed in bed and concentrated on feeling poor, miserable and abandoned by the world LOL! H.'s plane arrived in time and he's also been staying in bed all day and we talked on the phone several times, exchanging experiences (is your nose running now? does your throat ache? mine has stopped, have you taken your medicine?) Yeah right, what a lovely week we're having! :)

I was planning to blog about the lovely gifts I received from several stitching friends including a wonderful Prairie Schooler quickie exchange with Suzanne, but it's too dark to take good shots now and I feel ill and... plain lazy... LOL! I'll catch up tomorrow.

I should write among my goals for 2007 not to start a project when down with a cold. I stitched half the border on LHN's Coffee chart just to discover it's too long for the piece of SW's fabric I chose. Will restart the whole thing tomorrow on a different shade of fabric, as I don't have enough of this one in lenght. Vrrrrrr!

Was planning to watch some movies on TV but I'll just pity myself in bed with some pills against the cold and hope to wake up feeling better tomorrow. I'll try to fall asleep very soon. Nity nite, everyone!

Happy New Year!!!

To all xstitch fans and friends, I would like to wish a wonderful 2007, filled with stitching, laughter and warmth!

(me and my dad's wife)

I am back from Christmas at my father's and back from the airport, H. is now on his plane to Oslo. Christmas was nice, really, just that both my father and his wife had a bad cold so the main topic was illness, coughing and running noses, doubled with sinusitis and fiever ;-) and well, yes, despite all protective measures I and H. got it too. With the zillions of bacterias flying in the air there we knew it would happen. We spent the last 3 days in bed, the greatest part of the day, but it didn't help. Today is the worst (hopefully, I mean, I really wish this won't continue), I cough with bad sounds, my nose is like a leaking pipe, oh well, you know how the story goes. We've been taking medicines since many days so we hope this will end soon.

Christmas... well. No snow, no hopes of snow, and up till +6 Celsius. Warm. It did NOT feel like Christmas and I almost have the feeling there was no Christmas :(. My brother, wife and kid couldn't come this year from Switzerland because my SIL couldn't get days off around Christmas and they only arrive tomorrow for a week. Somehow I got used to having Christmas with my 4,5 y.o. nephew, with the laughter, joy and all the Santa-seriousness. And I think for my father it just isn't the same when he doesn't have his both kids around, and now also his grandkid. But don't get me wrong, it was a lovely time, very relaxing.

H. spent a lot of time installing Windows XP on my father's computer, we also drove to buy him a new HP cheap printer and he got a Skype phone and a bigger hard drive from us - and he's thrilled. He immediately started calling acquaintances in various part of the world. And he is sooooo happy to have his computer modernized!!!

Their doggie is not going to live much longer, his heart is very bad now and he was out of breath and coughing terribly....

During H.'s stay, we threw out my new couch :( from last year. It was an expensive one and really beautiful but the system didn't work well for extending it daily, I think it just wasn't meant for such an intense use and some wooden elements broke, making it very hard to extend. We drove to Ikea and got a new one and I just looooooooove it! My cat and dog love it too LOL!

H. also helped me to sort what seems almost the last batch of old stuff, I threw some and we drove twice to the storage, where we repacked it all into boxes. H. insisted and pushed me to do that job while he was here, saying it would be so nice, clean and empty in my tiny flat and that I would gain so much space for storing stuff. And it is true :) Now I just need to wash and clean here and there and I can rediscover a neat flat after several years of having it clogged completely. It is such a great feeling! I worked 4 months by bits to get to that result and yes, it was worth the bone aches LOL!

So now I will just go to bed to help my body get rid of that %$#%#%^# cold and in some hours I will upload more pictures+++.

Happy Saturday, everyone! :)

"My first Christmas" ornie

I made this one last night for a friend whose first baby girl was born this summer. A month later they both followed hubby/dad far away to Tahiti so I haven't yet had the opportunity to see the little princess, only on photos - and she definitely is the most beautiful baby girl I've ever seen :)

Anyway, this is for little Helenka (or Hélène, her daddy being French).

The pattern is by Echevette, who creates the most gorgeous freebies and shares them with all the stitching community.

Ah yes, the picture is really bad. It shows a weird pinkish colour while it was a sparkling white. I seem to always take pictures in the evening, when the light is too bad for the digital camera.

Swiss Birdhouse :)

We couldn't resist to this birdhouse :)

We found it at a huge Christmas market in Switzerland, in the town where my brother lives. It was organized in a gardening center and it occupied several buildings! We spent quite some time in there. Unfortunately I had to be reasonable with money this year.

This is a real birdhouse; the seeds are put from the top, by opening the house's roof and down the building, there are little openings on each side where the grains come out. And the little birdies can sit around on the edge and stuff their little yellow Norwegian butts! LOL I can't wait to see it hanging in H's garden.

There were about 5 different such houses to choose from. Oh, and it is quite big, about 35 cm tall.

Busy, busy Tuesday

Can you believe that I spent 7 (yes, SEVEN) hours preparing and packing Christmas gifties for friends abroad? This should be the last batch and I am happy to have it done. I also prepared wrote and packed several Christmas cards for customers and friends. All will leave early tomorrow morning. Still, it is beyond me why it took me such a long time! Luckily, I didn't have work today on my desk.
I also took photos of some finishes (including the secret [...] PS exchange for Suzanne - I am so proud of this one! It is the first time I made a [...] and two more, little .... for ... and ... LOL!). I've uploaded them to a secret folder on webshots where they will wait till they will have reached their destination! :)

Soft trees freebie

I just can't resist sharing this one with you. I just discovered it but apparently it's been popular for a while as confirms this site with photos of some of the trees made by its fans, and the pattern is here.
I fell in love with it the moment I saw the one Elisabeth made and posted to her blog. Yay! I hope I'll find a short moment to make at least one to offer this Christmas! It looks so simple to make and its up to anyone to make her own version. I love it, love it!

Isn't the new Trilogy lovely?

I am on a stash diet for money reasons till at least the New Year, but I love looking at the new designs :) That new one from Trilogy is co cute with its lines of red robins, penguins and mittens... I can already visualize a little pillow or cube with it :)

New 24h Freebie!

Hurry up, Tonia from OakHaven Cs Designs has made it available for one day only.
You need to scroll up till the bottom! It's called Loving Swirly Snow and it's available at http://site.oakhavencsdesigns.com/index.html.

Afghan delivered...

...in good hands! H. got it in Switzerland. And you know what? He appreciated it to its real value, many months of work. Now to see it hanging somewhere... LOL! But he was amazed with the amount of work, the details etc. I managed to fringe it by hand before leaving (that alone took many, many hours, so I think I'll let myself be tempted soon by a sewing machine LOL!) and two squares in the bottom left corner are not done yet, but I'll stitch them fast during a next trip to Norway. It's only a piece of broken tree trunk.
For those who don't know yet the little story.... A few years ago as we were hiking above Zakopane, in the Tatra mountains in Poland, we met a mommy bear with two adorable cubs, just 2,5-3 months old, not more. This was one of THE moments of our relationship... We sat for a moment on broken bits of trees with my old aunt to watch the view, look at the map, and go further after a short moment of relax, and then what do I see? The first baby bear. I don't think I realized the danger, I just pointed at it and said: "Oh look at that!!" with delight. That all happened before I read anything about bears and danger and wilderness - and the outcome of such meetings. It would never occur to me to feel in danger there, so close to civilization. H. and my aunt froze, looked at each other and ordered we pack everything fast, but without panick. The little one was just jumping around. Mommy not in sight. My aunt decided we should go further up - and what do we see? Another little bear rolling in front of our feet, on the path, sort of intentionnally falling from a higher path border made of sand, I think. Now that was scary. We turned back. I still remember the look and the eyes of the second cub - he looked at us so surprised, almost friendly. I think he just couldn't figure what those two-legged creatures were! We didn't see Momma bear. She certainly was *very* close and as we were told later by specialists, she probably didn't attack not because we were 3 humans, but because we behaved perfectly (judging by bear's criteria) and because neither of her kids made a sound. They were too young to be scared, they were just there to play and eat berries, they never met humans before and didn't understand the danger, that is what saved us. We returned fast (very fast, if you ask me) to our car. An unforgettable experience... Since then we've been reading lots of reports about meeting bears and well, there are not many people who met cubs so close and survived.
And when I saw this afghan pattern, I just couldn't believe my eyes: the scene is almost like the one we lived, but maybe a moment after? The bear mom and her two kids dancing around, happy that the humans left LOL! The ones we met were much, much smaller than on the afghan design and I can tell you that no soft toy can reproduce how sweet a real small bear looks! :) Even the view of the mountains is like the one where we were sitting, and the fallen trunks... just the eagle wasn't there, but what do I know?
So many reasons why H. really loved his gift... :) and I was delighted! Though I must say, I am happy to be over with it. I didn't find it very pleasant to work on a biiiig piece of heavy, warm fabric, with a multitude of colors (a whole bag of DMC)... Now to move on to other projects!

Prairie Schooler exchange from Linda McM

Tonight I wanted to share the wonderful Christmas finished ornament exchange I received from Linda McM, the listmom of our Prairie Schooler group, and what a listmom!
Linda sent me not one but two ornaments, one bigger - from the Blackwork Angels leaflet and the second is from Christmas miniatures. I hope I am not making any mistake, but the Angels are done in silks (the gold is shiny Marlitt) and for the small ornie, Linda substituted the recommended DMC : the red is GAST Brick, the green is a Needle Necessities... I love both dearly, but I'll tell you in secret I am madly in love with the little cutie: it is sooooo bright in colors, so intricate, so beautifully finished... This is not to say I don't like the Angels, I love them too! But somehow this little one is a gem.... a real gem.
As I often say, I tend to be pathetically nostalgic at times when it comes to gifts from friends... especially those gifts where the person has put a special care and attention to make it, buy it, suit my tastes, you know what I mean.... This week I was spoiled by Mylene and Linda... Two wonderful persons I only know virtually, but they are one of those special people met on Internet, whose friendship is maybe virtual physically, but very real.
Linda also sent me several leaflets and she picked them right into my tastes, how did she know? :) She chose Heart in Hand's "A Christmas Wish", from A Stitcher's Hand a leaflet named "Needle Station", also "Pear's wreath" by Sisters and Best Friends.... and an out of print leaflet from Prairie Schooler, the sought after "Summer Samplers"!! Thank you so much, Linda!!! :) :) :)
The fact that Linda's mother worked on one of the ornaments gives in a very special value in my heart... Linda described the process in her blog, this was a very touching report (you might have to scroll back a few).

I feel a lucky gal this week... tomorrow I'll post about my trip to Cheeseland.

What a beauty from Mirabilia!

I must say I generally prefer L&L designs to Mirabilia, but this one (the new Christmas Tree) is a real gem. I can't afford it currently but I'll remember it when there is a sale in 2007! In the meantime I'll be watching others' progresses on this one... it looks amazing!

Mill Hill exchange

And here is the lovely MH exchange I received from Mary (Ozark Samplers): 4 skeins of Ozark threads, 1 Vicky Clayton silks, 1 DMC light effects and a MH buttoned and beaded kit from the Christmas Village series. And a piece of lovely pink fabric... I am sooooo spoiled this week!! More to come tomorrow.... a gorgeous Prairie Schooler exchange from Linda McM!!

Moose from Mylene!!

See that handsome moose guy I received from Mylene, am I not lucky? :) I have this thing about moose and reindeer.... and this is such a lovely addition to my home decoration!! I love the fuzzy cording and the ornie is soooo cute, so soft, so everything... Thank you again here, Mylene!!!

I think everyone knows Mylene's cards, she is such a talented card-maker. See the beautiful one she sent me for Christmas!!

I am back!!!

Thank you everyone for your care and crossing fingers, the beginning of the trip was awful! I'll send a detailed report about my trip tomorrow or during the week-end, it's been soooo lovely!

Coming back home, I had several lovely packages waiting for me to open...

I have tons to blog, so watch that space over the next days!!! :) Missed you a lot!!

Here is the new Pine Mountain Tie One Up Christmas pillow, I basically stitched it for H's mother, just waiting for him to tell me if it's okay enough ;-) It was a fast stitch, just two hours yesterday and tucking the pillow was a breeze!

I am in Cheeseland!

Hi everyone, i AM in Switzerland, I am here!!! It "only# took me TWO days!!! I was supposed to leave on Tuesday morning and I arrived to Geneva on Wednesday 21:20 PM!!!!!
Will write more when I can, currently I am typing, H. asking questions, my nephew playing with me with a dinosaur and asking me to scare him, his nanny babbling about men and I am trying to work.... LOL! Can't concentrate on writing anything more clever!!! :) Till soon!

MYLENE! Thanks a zillion for your support!!! I arrived DEAD but I arrived!!! :)))

Anxious Wednesday

Thank you Mylene! Please continue having your fingers crossed :). The smiley is here to force myself to smile as well ;-). I am working on a text overnight (slept some in the evening) and around 7, I'll take a shower and take a taxi to the airport. There is really almost no hope - I just watched the detailed latest weather forecast for Warsaw and Poland in general. The fog is here till Friday. There might be little moments when it will lift a big but I would have to have tons of luck.
I talked to H. and my brother in the evening. It was heart-breaking for me. Must be the enormous stress, but I do miss H. so much at this moment that it is almost physical. Like if an internal clock inside me was counting every minute we're losing of our stay together.
The concert is tomorrow in Zurich. We were supposed to borrow my brother's car, drive to Zurich and back in the night after the concert. If I can't fly to Zurich before tomorrow, I'll have to think of a solution, like staying in Zurich and waiting for H. who'd then take the train to join me, I don't know really. I want to be IN A PLANE today!!!! ^%%^#%#
So they were having nice family time in the evening, great dinner (my brother cooks wonderfully). They told me that my 4,5 years old nephew made a very sad face, he was about to cry when he saw "uncle H." alone. He called me in the evening to comfort me and said: there is no fog tomorrow, auntie, please come tomorrow. It was sooooo sweet :)
We *will* remember that 10th anniversary, oh yes we will... :(

Please cross ALL fingers...

I am back HOME after 8 hours at the airport. In short, it's even worse. Just a few flights departed in the very early morning. All the rest are cancelled. Cancelled. Cancelled. We were already at the gate, full of hope, when we were informed that the plane from Zurich was diverted back to Berlin. The fog is incredible. I can't see the next house. Zero visibility. And that's the second day, so you can imagine the thousands of exhausted/angry passengers in the airport halls. No information. I was smart [...] and with another girl, we rebooked our flight for this evening. I was supposed to be in Geneva before midnight. And no. Again. Still no flights starting or flying in. Cancelled. I have now rebooked for tomorrow morning. The terrible news is that the fog is expected to stay till FRIDAY. H. is already in Geneva. Picked up by my brother. Now enjoying nice family time and all. I am close to crying - it really doesn't look like I'll be able to fly tomorrow either. The concert in Zurich is on Thursday - will we miss that too??? This was supposed to be a short romantic stay to celebrate our 10th anniversary. With every minute, it's getting shorter. I am devastated.... Please cross all fingers for me, I so want to fly tomorrow morning... I have to. I just have to.... H. is there alone with my family and he'll be fine, but it all wasn't supposed to be this way, really not.... :( :( :(