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Sunday, May 10, 2015

Mother's Day at Home

Here's wishing a Happy Mother's Day to everyone with a Mom!  Hope the day if full of time with the ones you love.  I've just finalized details for a visit coming soon with my own Mom.  Can't wait to see her again.  It's been awhile since my last post, and there's lots going on to share.....

First things first though, a stitching finish! Remember last time, I was just getting started with this little sweety?


I'm so glad I decided to make the time for it, because the whole little piece has been a delight from start to finish.  Here's the finale.


You'll notice I decided to pass on the surrounding hemstitching.   It didn't seem to add too much to the final look of it and I was afraid putting it in might make the finish finish on it a little sketchy.


Found out I'm in love with the Milkpaint silks,  While their colors are all soft and muted, the fiber itself just glows on the linen.   Wonder if there's a conversion for them with AVAS?  It would be so much fun to stitch a full sized sampler with them.



 So this little treasure will soon find its way to Faye for the final finish it truly deserves, and I'm back at work on the nagging harpy Hannah Pepper.  Hopefully there will be a little more progress on her by the next time I post. 

This time of year, Jim and I are usually spending a day each weekend soaking up the sun and surf at one beach or another.  But this year for a number of reasons, we're keeping a little closer to home.  That's OK though.  One great thing about living in Florida is that the beaches will always be there whenever we do have the chance to return.  Instead, we've been focusing on a back yard project  - a new deck!  And Jim, in all his attention to detail, has turned it into wonderful place to enjoy all the birds and beauty in our own yard.  Want to take a look?

  
These are the balustrades going in.  Eventually the entire deck will be surrounded with them.  I just love all the Spanish moss hanging from our live oak trees.

'The new patio set is my Mother's Day gift!  You can tell by my stitching laid out where I'll be spending my time.  As work progresses, all the framing you see will be filled with balustrades and then stained to finish.


And finally a spot for my Key West wind chimes!  These make the most magical, gentle chime tones, but they've never had a good position in the yard for the breeze to strike them before now.


This southern girl loves her okra.  Its potted just around the other side of the deck and will soon be too high to reach the pods. 

Margaret at Days of a Sampler Lover thought enough of my blog to nominate it for a One Lovely Blog Award.  Thank you for the shout-out Margaret!  In response, I'm doing a modified version by not passing the nomination forward and just going straight to the fun part - 7 little known facts about myself.  My life is pretty much an open book, so let's hope I can muster 7.  Here goes:

1.  I have 6 brothers and sisters.  Yes, my parents were very traditional Catholics!  As the oldest girl in the brood, I'm certain they spent all of 10 seconds deciding on my name.

2. My amazing husband Jim is my first love and my high school sweetheart. 

3. My awesome daughter Halley was named for Halley's Comet.  Naming her for a celestial event that only comes once in a lifetime seemed fitting.

4. There is nothing - good, bad or indifferent - that isn't made better with a glass of chilled Pinot Grigio.

5. Ditto for a plate of cheese.

6. I'm extremely left handed and right brained.  I kick with my left foot, listen with my left ear and chew on the left side of my mouth.  As a lefty, I always  stitch from right to left.  Meanwhile, my right hand mostly just holds my purse.

 7.  I'm learning Spanish!  Reading it is easy, but speaking it takes some coaching.  Lucky for me, my coworkers aren't shy about correcting my pronunciation.. Muy bueno!

So there you have it for Mother's Day 2015.  Thanks so much for stopping to visit

10 comments:

Marilyn said...

Love the Mary Garry!
That turned out so cute.
That's a nice deck your hubby is building, and a great Mother's Day gift too.
Marilyn

Catherine said...

Such a sweet stitch! Love your outside space ~ very inviting and comfy, I'm sure you'll have many great hours spent there. Loved reading your facts!

Margaret said...

Oh what fun! I loved learning more about you! It's funny, when you said about chewing on the left side. I think I tend to chew on my left too, but I'm right handed. Whatever! I love your Mary Garry finish. Can you still find the milk paint silks? I have to dig around for my kits -- I know I have a few of them. Can't remember which ones though. lol! Love your new back deck. Looks like it's going to be a wonderful hangout for you!

Barb said...

A great sampler, a super deck, and fun information about you!

marly said...

Your yard is beautiful! The colors in your finished piece are so soft, really sweet design. I have those chimes and the larger double hammer one. Beautiful sound.

Melissa said...

Oh, the Mary Garry finish is lovely! I'm so glad I have that kit in my stash for the 'one day'.

Nice deck in progress! Wow. That will be a nice place to hang out. Hmmm, okra. It's not really part of the cuisine here and I may have had it once. Can't really remember. What's your favourite way to cook your okra?

Love finding the facts about you! Good luck with the Spanish (now translate that one)! ;-)

Samplings from Spring Creek said...

Am not a big fan of big paints, I have two of the Remember the Ladies samplers and haven't finished either one! Your outside gardening efforts look fabulous!

woolwoman said...

enjoyed your post Mary - your new deck is a lovely haven. can't wait to see what Faye creates with your cute little piece. Enjoy the week - Mel

Carol said...

Your finish looks so, so much better than what is pictured on the kit, Mary--I love the soft shades in this one. And what a great place to relax you have in that deck--I would never know it was in Florida except for the Spanish moss.

Fun to learn about you--good luck with your Spanish. Reading it is definitely easiest :)

Anonymous said...

What a lovely finish! your stitching is perfect! :D Your deck is beautiful. Looks like you'll have many a happy stitching hour there :)