So beautiful...

And so overpriced... see this little heart kit. I wish I'd put my hands on it... but I honestly think some items come very overpriced recently... Sigh.

Some pictures

Very late, I know, but here are some pictures I uploaded end on January and forgot to post!

Norway, view from the living-room window, we got sooooo much snow before I left. A couple of days later it was all gone and then returned, creating big havoc at the airport as I read in the Norwegian newspapers I follow.


Will you let me out or not? I said I do NOT mind snow!
(I brought her back with me but don't let her speak here, she'll tell you she misses the big house, the garden and all she can think about now is summer, 'cause summer is when she returns to Norway!, at least these are the current plans)

Here is the awesome Christmas giftie I received from Nath ! I stitched the Tournicoton biscornu last week-end and it's certainly one of the most delicate finished of mine. I haven't assembled it yet because I can't yet decide whether I want to add buttons or not. It looks super even without them! Nath' even included the skein of NN silk the chart called for, how thoughtful is that! MERCI encore une fois, Nath' !!!

Oh I just have to show you this candle holder I received from Linda H. I just can't find words to say how much I love it. I will always, always cherish and exhibit him during the Christmas period!!! Linda also sent cucumber/minth candles... what a lovely smell! I so regret you don't write a blog Linda... you're among my very special friends...


Yup, H. wraps the gifties we offer to our furry "kids"... :) It's part of the fun for him! Here's Toska and her Christmas giftie... she needed a little help to open it though :)

See that paw digging in? It's too funny!

After Christmas, it's not the best period to go stash shopping but I squeezed my walled, went deaf at my credit card crying loud and got some spring items, having in mind the PS exchange I planned to do :)
- Hey, it's really high time you let me in!

Hi everyone! I've been missing in action for a month but here I reappear. Sometimes blogging is less important than other life things. As a shortcut I'll just say I'm still seeing doctor after doctor, making different tests and checks and I'll go on with that for the next months, till a certain issue is found out. Others have been discovered, so apart from more checks to do and a treatment to be ordered (kidney "sand", a lighter form of stones), I will undergo a surgery on March 18 to get something removed and tested. I try not to chicken out, but it's 20 years soon since I last have stayed in hospital and I got unused to having anything done to or in my body. The good (I won't know what's happening!) and bad (always that fear of not waking up...) thing is they'll make me sleep for the duration of the op' and if no complications, I should be home in the late evening or the next day. Hopefully the endoscopic procedure will be enough and they won't have to cut in the usual way. So, here's the big news in my current life. I was told I will have to rest a lot for 5-7 days and will probably feel pain, but what are pain killers for if not that? :) Anyway, I try not to stress too much even if the whole thing is a bit, well, uneasy. I'll remind you to cross your busy fingers for me that day!
H. will be here to take care of my stress, walk Happy and cuddle Toska :)

I've been sorting a lot at home and my camera just can't be found! It's decided to hide somewhere under a random bit of paper and it drives me nuts. Hopefull I'll find it today because I have lots to show!

A short stitching update:

- I'm almost done stitching the 5th of my PS private exchange and then I'll finish all of them off in one batch. Mind you, each of them will be finished differently and each is different from the others in colors and shape :) I used silks and overdyes and they look very cute even unfinished :)
- Nath' already sent me her piece and I'm expecting it to arrive tomorrow. I just can;t wait because if you know Nath', you know she is an awesome stitcher!
- I finished several samplers and other pieces. Two: The Blessing (Examplar) and Haste Ye Back need an additional skein of WDW to finish the background but otherwise they are done. I finished the recent reinder (Dash Away All) by Tanya Anderson (sorry I forgot the name, need to check) and today I received two more charts bought at her etsy shop. I was hoping for H. to receive one of them stitched and all for St. Valentine's but it's one of those cases when the mail plays tricks on you and it took 3 weeks to arrive. So I will stitch it today, finish tomorrow, this way I will still feel St. Valentine'ish tomorrow :) and offer it to him nicely packed in March. Hah!
- One of my PS pieces is highly experimental in colors so I thought I'd ask, in alphabetical order: Cheryl, Donna, Ela, Nath, Sharon - is there one of you who likes bright, bright colors? If not I might keep it for me. It definitely is a PS chart but it doesn't look PS too much now! I mean, PS colors are very much muted, at least the older designs.
Hoping I'll find my camera ASAP, I'll leave you here now and start digging it from under the many piles on my desk, sorted but yet not put in the right boxes!

Quick PS Spring swap update

Thankya ladies! I will be exchanging a Prairie Schooler spring or Easter themed piece with:
- Cheryl
- Donna
- Ela
- Sharon
- Nath is still thinking :)

End of February is the deadline if it's an Easter piece, just to make sure both partners receive it in time, or let's say March 15 if it's a spring themed design!

I am delighted to swap with you!

Anyone for a private PS Spring exchange?

I'd love to exchange a Prairie Schooler spring/easter piece with someone, or two someones, or three someones... thinking of a deadline date of February 15 to make sure we get it in time for Easter, but could be later, just a spring piece...
That could be any form of nice finishing with that theme.

Anyone? :)

Prairie Schooler ABC Santa

I made this little ornie for myself before Christmas. I bought several PS freebies on ebay in December, those I didn't have yet and wanted to have. I'd always had eyes on the ABC Santa, and I had enormous pleasure to stitch it and finish it before the holidays. I'm pretty sure I'll stitch it again several times for friends, because I find it incredibly cute.
Okay, I admit. I changed colors again :) I picked bright overdyes to achieve a joyful, attractive effect.
I also changed the Santa's smile to an obvious happy one! There's something about the PS Santas' smile that make me perceive them as sad or upset, so I tend to adapt them :)

My version of a PS blackwork angel

One of the many, many reasons why I like Prairie Schooler designs is how easy it is to play with them: change colors, adapt patterns, play with different floss types.

Here is my version of one of the Prairie Schooler Blackwork angels done in color. I used WDW overdyes and silks plus gold Kreinik braid on a piece of Lakeside Linens. I also added gold Kreinik beads. Didn't have time to finish it into an ornament before Christmas, though. But I love the result.

Capuccino LHN

Sometimes I feel for ripping my digital camera into pieces. It just won't take a good shot in bad light - or maybe I should be more awake at mornings LOL! I usually take pictures of my cross stitch in the evening and then it is very difficult if not impossible to get an acceptable one.
Anyway, just for the record then, here is LHN's Capuccino I stitched some weeks ago.

Christmas gift from Ela

Ela sent me a true gem by Blackbird Designs, a designer I especially like. I awwwed and aaaahed and danced around this beauty... This must be one of the most gorgeous pieces I have received from stitching friends. The photos simply don't do it justice. The finishing is a masterpiece. I wish I could let you touch and sense how soft it is, how flawless. Each element is so well matched - the color of the banding and of the back fabric (oh, how I love this sampler fabric!) play so well with the floss and the cream linen. It's one of those pieces you leave out in the room so you can see it all day long and have others drool over it. I love it, love it, love it. As you can, Ela put her name and the year in the bottom part. I usually am not so fond of having initials and such on a cross stitch piece unless it's done in a very nice way, and this has been done so. It will always remind me of her!
Ela also sent me a pattern from my wishlist and a big pack of delicious sweets... they disappeared... immediately!
Now I can only hope we can meet the next time I visit my brother in Switzerland. Lyon is not so far accross the border and I have family in the region. I'm thinking of a time where there will be a cross stitch fair... It's been some time since I've been thinking of attending one in France.

Christmas giftie for Ela

from Blue Ribbon Designs - Red Letter Ornaments

Here is the ornament I made and sent along with Christmas goodies to Ela, a Polish stitcher in Lyon (France) who unfortunately doesn't have a blog - all I'll say is that she *has to* open one soon because her work is fantastic. See next post...

Christmas gift from Mylene

Now, I invite my dear visitors to see the lovely package I received from Mylene... I loved the magazine, the ornament (I hang it immediately on the branches I bought, see below - I was away at Christmas but wanted to have a Christmas feeling at home before leaving) and the hand-made card - Mylene is worldwide known for her cards :) She also remembered that I liked the fizzy cording she used on an ornament last year and now she sent me a pack! Thanks so much, Mylene!

My first biscornu!

Nath' sent me a super lovely French chart for a biscornu together with the silk skein needed to stitch it and that kicked me out of my scare of biscornus. I had bought this Spring/Summer biscornu pattern from Giulia Punti Anticchi a while ago, because I absolutely loved it, but I shyed out. Biscornus intimitated me. Why? I can't say. I thought they are very complicated to assemble and that I wouln't like going through endless complex instructions. And then I thought that okay, I should start with the one I have, learn how to do it right and then stitch the one from Nath - ideal, with no flaws. Oh how easy it is to make a biscornu. How could I think otherwise? :)
This is the spring face, with the special four pins on it, and it is stitched with Crescent Colours.

Here is the summer face:

And no, I wasn't able to get an explanation from my camera why colors are different on both pictures!

Now I just need to find suitable buttons for the biscornu from Nath' and off we go to the second one! :)

Christmas giftie for Nathalie

Nath is just the friend you want to meet and stay with... another sunray that came my way in 2007 via this blog in 2007... I trust this friendship will last! :)
And I love to spoil people I love... I sent Nath a package with several charts I've already stitched, the 2007 Christmas JCS, a tatted ornament, a yard of Christmas fabric, a skein of silk... You can see it here.
Time to think about a spring giftie! :)

Christmas giftie from Nathalie

Pwaaaaah...... looks like I forgot the pictures at home on another pendrive.... so that's all I can show today... but I'll edit this post in just a few days after I return home!!! Must have been the usual rush before Christmas...

Prairie Schooler Christmas exchange from Elisabeth

Elisabeth is one of the most lovely cross stitch friends I met through Internet, be it via a yahoo group or this blog. We've been chatting offlist and offblog for a long time about all the usual things two woman chat about :) And we were planning a private exchange for some time, but then life got in the way, Elisabeth moved into a new house, I broke my hand... so we were delighted to be partnered for the Prairie Schooler's Christmas exchange. I already posted my exchange piece some weeks ago, but now see the absolute beauty Elisabeth stitched for me!
This is one of the PS Angels which colors she adapted and added beads. Oh, the delight on my face when I opened the package... Oh the joy! Those who had the pleasure to received something her talented hands made know that her work is a true masterpiece... I borrowed the first two pictures from Elisabeth's blog because my camera wouldn't do justice to this beautiful piece.


What a superb finishing on the back... sorry for the blurred picture!

Heh, wasn't I spoiled? Elisabeth sent me Isabelle's Vaultier 'Red and white Samplers' book which I had eyes on for quite some time... And a little heart ornie, and the cutest notepad with dogs (we both love dogs!), and this fantastic French ribbon that looks like a measuring tape, which I'll save for that future very special project, plus a little heart button and a huge package of chocolate candies, a local delicacy from Elisabeth's town. Now, guess why I couldn't make a picture of them some days later! LOL

Did I tell you I surprised myself by making little happy sounds when opening all the wrapped-up packages... like a little child. Oh yes, I was happy, I was delighted.... Thank you so much again, Elisabeth, this was a wonderful exchange!!

Godt Nytt Ar!!

Happy New Year, everyone!!

(the New Year as seen from the garden at 1:00 am)

't was a lovely Christmas dinner...

I forgot to take pictures of some traditional Polish specialties, but here are some photos anyway...

And then the traditional pierogis with mushroom and cabbage... with mushroom sauce.

The unavoidable carp...

I baked bread...

A very special gift I received from my father... my brother got another one in the same style. They were painted in 1944, that is during the War, when my grand-parents with my father and aunt escaped from a part of Polans that is now part of Ukraine. They spent part of the war in Zakopane and when the war ended, found work in another part of Poland, where most of my family lives. Anyway, the wife of a doctor-friend in Zakopane was a painter and gave them these two paintings, plus my grandma's portrait which is hanging in the family house. I don't know and I don't suspect they have great 'artistic' value, but a big emotional value, yes... I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw my gift. My father had it renovated, varnished and framed by an artist painter and wow, I must say he did a superb job on them. I will really cherish it...


I've uploaded more family pictures HERE. I am not on any,but there is my father and his wife, my brother, SIL and nephew Jeremi, and the new family dogs :)

MERRY CHRISTMAS !!!

My heartfelt wishes to all my stitching friends...

Have a wonderful, joyful, peaceful Christmas!

WESOŁYCH ŚWIĄT!!!

First, apologies...

You know who you are... many lovely persons who are still waiting for an answer, a comment on their blog, news from me... I apologize for neglecting my friends over the past weeks and just in time for the New Year resolutions, I promise to improve...
Life has been *busy*. The water pipe works in my appartment are over, leaving a thick layer of dust and dirt which I've done my best to fight the past two weeks. Others were less lucky than me and when I was leaving on Friday, works continued... noisy and disturbing. I wish I could say it's now behind us, but we face the neat plan of centreal heating pipes exchange in the spring... and that, as I was told, is much, much worse... Can it really be? LOL
I am already at my father's, enjoying an evening at the 'puter while he and his wife visit friends. I am dog-sitting :) two lovely mix-breeds, a 2007 addition to the family. They're small and adorable, one is still young, the female is about 4 years old, both rescued from a shelter almost immediately after the last doggie had to leave... I congratulated them on that decision. When I think they always called me nuts to have two dogs! Well, now it's their turn and they enjoy it. One day, another cat, another dog will join my cat and dog, but for the time being I'll be reasonable, I travel too much and my place in Warsaw is way too small for a zoo :)
H. was in hospital for two weeks. After his heart operation he is taking daily doses of blood thining pills which are adapted after each blood control which he does more or less every two weeks if there's no need to do it more frequently. Well, the last time the doctor didn't take time to think and his blood became to thin, generating an internal bleeding in one leg. He's now at home but still walks difficultly and is in a lot of pain. I'm flying to Oslo on the 27th and I suggested I'll take the airport bus to his home (a > 1h journey) because he can;t drive either. For him, this Christmas is not the best one. At least the whole thing didn't disturb our plans - we had decided that this year, he would spend Christmas with his mother. He was always here with my family... but as much as it is important for me to be together at this special time of the year, it was me who suggested he should stay with his mother... she's over 75 and doesn't deserve to have each Christmas dinner without her only son, methinks :)
I also started checking the reason for my recent health problems. I am finally diagnosed with PCOS and almost happy to finally have an answer after 15 years of noone knowing anything. Then another little thing was found and I need to undergo a surgery early next year, but that's nothing dangerous - just has to be removed before it becomes a danger. Unfortunately the reason of my constant pain in the lower part of the belly is still mysterious so after my return from Norway, I will continue doing checks and visiting doctors.
As you see it's been a time of dust and worries, so again, I apologize for a long silence to all who felt bad about it...
My brother, wife and kid arrive on the 27th as they are spending the Christmas Eve on the 24th with my SIL's family. My father is euphoric : he'll have both his kids and his only grand-son soon around him! :)
I just wish we had some snow... it's getting colder but snow we'll have not, this year, one year more, unfortunately. Ah, global warming...

Watch this space - I spent half last night uploading pictures and now I'm about to post them all , just let me describe them :)

I reduced my participation in stitchers' groups and exchanges this year, so unlike many or most of you, I don't own/receive many stitched gifts. But at this end of year I still received a few very special gifties I want to share with you.

I've elfed myself!

Click HERE.