....And The Livin' Is Easy

Welcome to summer everyone! Down here, summer begins in mid-May and oozes along until past Halloween.  But after so many years of living in Florida, I've learned to roll with the tide.   Let me start with some of the summer fun we've been up to Florida-style, and then I'll move along to stitching news.

Our latest beach adventure was a day trip to visit the Hillsboro Inlet Lighthouse   Having only been there once before, a return trip seemed like the right way to spend a Sunday.  The lighthouse itself sits on a small barrier island that can only be reached by ferry.  This is the view that greeted us.

 

Funny thing about lighthouses though is that you can never get to the top without a climb. 

 

 

But conquering all those steep steps and sharp turns was quite worth the effort.  The view from the top was much more impressive than the struggle to get there.

 

 

And the view straight down and directly in front to the lighthouse was interesting too...

 

 

In all our beach escapades, I've never seen so many sharks cruising so close to the surf line.  From the top of the lighthouse, I could see them all along the beach.... amazing! 

 

And in stitching news, now that Atoche is in the finished pile, I have made a tiny bit of progress on Ann Grimshaw, but nothing to have a lot of excitement over....I'm not sure when I'll feel the love for Miss Ann again, but maybe in a few months.

 

 

What has caught my attention though is the return to "Once Upon An Island" that I've been raving on about for a while now.  I don't think this design is available any more, so this is what first caught my attention many years ago.  Please excuse it's tattered appearance - Molly has managed to trounce it more than once while claiming her place on my lap in the middle of the stitching jumble. 

 

 

 

I just love little pieces like this because they seem so ready for personal changes to the design.  After a few attempts at color choices  that were closer to the original, I decided on a faded, sort of washed out beach palette for it.  Not a lot of progress so far, but I'm having fun dabbling with the colors.

 

 

I rememered I'd acquired several cards of the most intriguing overdyed floss at a local stitching shop several years ago and never had a real project in mind for them until now.  Anyone ever heard of "Stranded By the Sea" fibers?

 

 

Reworking Once Upon an Island seemed like the perfect project to play with them on, so at last I've given them a place.  You'll see the dividing band under the first row of letters is worked in the card on the right side of the picture.  I doubt if I'll use all of them, but then I've learned to never say never when it comes to changing my mind about color shades.    

 

So that's what's going on down here in the swamp these days. Thanks so much for checking in! 

Atoche Es!

Huge news I couldn't wait until my typical weekend to post - Atoche is finished!!   I really am tickled with it, even if I do say so myself. What do you think?

Let me explain some of the details, because as has always been my way with this piece, one change usually brought up others that fell in line with it.  First of all, at the top....

After scratching my head and thinking about it for awhile (thanks so much to those who made suggestions!)  I decided the date of the shipwreck really needed to be there in full, not just the year.  Jim had the idea of stitching it in Spanish, since Atoche and its fleet were all Spanish ships.  As luck would have it, the spacing for that fit perfectly on the line above the year.  That left what to put above it?  The original Prairie Schooler design had those cool waves on either side of the lower text line, but the Spanish date was quite a bit longer than the original wording.  I really did want to keep those waves - somehow, it just wouldn't say "Florida" without them.  Fortunately, there was enough room for them between the little stone crab and the letters of the date.  And best of all, the blue shades really do make them look like the surf off Key West.  I love it! 

Next comes the guardians of the treasure....

The mermaid.....

...and the serpent.   When Atoche sank, it was carrying a cargo hold full of emeralds and gold and silver bars out of Havana.  I was really hoping to capture that somehow, but wasn't sure how I could do it until after the date and the waves went in.  That little space at the end of those rows was just enough room for a bit of shiny sunken treasure.  And how fitting is it that the space happened just in front of the guardians?

The poor cow nosed ray began his life as a gray seal, then morphed into a light brown ray.  That original tan color just wasn't sitting right with all the other blues and grays, so it came out one more time.  The final ray is now the palest silvery gray, which actually isn't too far off from what they really are out in the Gulf..  I couldn't resist adding my finish date in Spanish as well.

Full sail, out of Havana.  Notice the waves are picking up?  Anyway, I had soooo much fun with this piece.  It really captured my imagination as well as all that inspires my stitching. 

I do want to give a shout out to those of you who left such wonderful comments about my Mom and her quilting in my last post.  Reading them  was so nice and she appreciated them very much.  What fun, I came home from work this week to find she'd sent me a little surprise - new place mats!  In the exact shades of my kitchen. 

  
I really do have the coolest Mom in the world! 

Thanks again for taking time out of your week to stop by for a look.  I think I'll spend a few more nights on Ann Grimshaw, and then settle in to something else new and fun on Sunday..  Here's hoping the rest of thw week finishes as well as the begining started out!

Life's a Beach

Where have I been lately?  Well, I think this picture will say it all.....

With the long holiday last weekend, Jim and I have made the very most of the perfect sunny weather and warming waters.  In 4 days, we did beaches on both coastlines, including the Canaveral National Seashore and Don Pedro Island State Park.  Jim took this beautiful shot along the boardwalk over the dunes at Smyrna Dunes Park , just north of Canaveral.   By the time Tuesday rolled around and it was back to reality, I felt like returning to work would at least give me a chance to rest! 

Some tokens from all the adventures....

But it hasn't all just been frolicking on the beach.  While gathering my thoughts for the last portion of work on Aoche, I decided to put my nose to the grindstone and return to Ann Grimshaw....at least for a motif or two.  She's starting to flesh herself out a bit!

However, the hike across the dunes stirred up some other stitching thoughts.  That low, scrubby plant growing as covering on the sand is full of the tiniest yellow blossoms.  They're beautiful, but wiry and tough, well suited for life on the beach. It made me think of my barely started "Once Upon an Island" sampler....remember this?

As luck would have it, I laid my hands on the chart for it not long ago, which put one obstacle toward finishing it out of the way.  And with the chart safely located, I realized I hadn't put so much work in already that starting over.....with a different palette of beachy shades....would be out of the question.  I'm thinking those border blossoms really do need to be the same orangy yellow as the ones on the dunes!  And to make it all perfect, my box of Needle Necessities rendered up two of the most amazing skeins of beach blues and greens....perfect!  All this is just free associating in my head right now, and definitely won't get underway until Atoche is done.  But I love the excitement of it and the idea of putting my own twist on a design that's been in the works for far too long.  I'll post a picture of the design and my chosen thread palette as soon as Atoche is complete.

I'm so proud of my Mom!!

She won first prize in her division at the American Quilting Society's big show in Paducah this spring.  But what I'm most proud of is that she did it after losing my Dad in December and adjusting to a new life in the depths of a dark and lonely Illinois winter.  Those tough little beach blossoms remind me of her as well.  I love you Mom! You've shown us all the beauty in being strong.

OK, so I think that brings me up to speed.  As always, thanks for stopping by to visit and here's hoping that whatever you're working on, you're having fun with it!

Blue Water

Hello there!  Recently Nicola was musing about how much stitching inspiration she takes from her walks by the sea .  Very well put Nicola, and I'm so right there with you.  It got me thinking that she and I can't be the only two who find inspiration in our surroundings.  Surely there must be other local stories, pictures and stitching connections to share.  So I'm really curious to ask this question of each of you  - "What is it in your home, your community or your location that influences your stitching choices?".  Perhaps it's the views, the scenery, the local history.  Or maybe it's the the general peacefulness and vibrancy that influences what and how you stitch.  If you're challenged by this thought, please take it to your own blog, tell you story and post your pictures, then challenge someone else to do the same.  We'll all be inspired!

So to get the ball rolling, let me tell you a bit about Egmost Key, which is a tiny smudge of an island at the mouth of Tampa Bay.  It's protected as a state park and a national bird sanctuary, only accessible by boat.

Now days, the only real activity going on there comes from the birds and beachcombers who find their way on shore.  But what's remaining is rich in the past, evidenced by the crumbling and overgrown Spanish American War forts.  A small military cemetery is testament to the ravages of 19th century yellow fever.  The center of the island is whisped with brick pathways, all that's left of a bustling community that supported the navigation and defense of Tampa Bay.  And from every point on the island, the lighthouse stands above it all.....

I love the history and the romance of these artifacts, but what influences my heart and my stitching every time we visit is simply the expanse of sand, sky and water....

Something about the brilliant water, the rasp of the palmettos and the subtlety of the sand and sea grass is expressed in my stitching.  I love every color. shape, pattern  and movement of them both.

As a very obvious example, here's progress today on Atoche.  Excited to have the end in sight!

You'll see that misguided gray whale has been replaced with these friends of Flipper, although it looks like one of them still needs an eye.  Much better, don't you think?

And that little gray seal, so far away from his natural habitat?  He's morphed into a cow-nosed ray.

So my next challenge is to figure out how to fill in that empty space at the top.  The original design has a cheesy verse about Columbus in the ocean blue, but I'm not feeling the love for a rhyme.  Perhaps I need more inspiration?

Florida Stitching

Blehhhh....Monday morning.  Where did my weekend go?  I had every intention of posting this yesterday and just ran out of time......Anyway, a quick update:

Take a look at the miracle  Faye performed on my little Blue Dwelling.

It's been transformed into the sweetest little stitching bag, fully lined and cuffed and complete with a perfect little strap too.  Awesome!  Here's the back:

I just love how the fabrics chosen are a perfect match for the tones in the stitching.  Thanks again Faye - more on its way soon!

After my last post, it took about a minute to come to my senses regarding an immediate return to Hannah Pepper.  What was I thinking?  She's so huge and with miles still left to go, I didn't see how putting in a few more stitches on her would really solve anything.  Hannah is one of those behemoths that requires some dedication and focus. 2 qualities I seem to be quite short on right now.  So I tucked her back away and and refocused on Atoche.  The main ship has set sail!

I've reached the part where some harder decision need to be made.  But the upside is that the end is getting closer - yay!

I started pulling at the big whale last night - he just has to go.  Not only does he not work for the Gulf of Mexico theme, he's just way too dark and competes too much with the hull of the boat above him.  I think I can take the dolphin on the left side and turn his design into a pair of dueling blue marlins to take the whale's place below.  And that little seal?  His days are numbered too, soon to be replaced with a cow nosed ray.  I'm not sure what to do with the top just yet, but am waiting for inspiration to arrive!

I found this little beauty in the back of the closet and may give it some more love too, if I can figure out what I did with the chart and threads.  This is a oldie, "Once Upon and Island" by the Stitching Parlor.

  
I started this with the notion it would be another Key West themed piece,  Do you see a pattern here....it was started in a flurry of excitement, stitched just enough for the thrill to die down and then stuffed into the abyss for an interminable length of time? 

Anyway, a few more details.  Love this funky chicken - I do remember how much fun his tail was to play with.

And the wandering blossoms and tendrils are found everywhere in the Conch Republic.

   So fingers crossed, the necessary chart and fibers will turn up before something else catches my attention.....

You'll notice I haven't even mentioned Ann Grimshaw.  Poor girl, she hasn't been abandoned, but she is getting a nice long vacation.  All in good time.....

Well, Monday morning means back to the grind.  Time to face the music and earn a paycheck! 

Growing Up

My goodness, I'm overdue for a posting! No excuses really, just waiting for the right moment....and finally this morning it's here at last.  So the first thing I want to do is give a big welcome to those who have signed on as followers recently.  I love it!  I'm really flattered that you're interested enough in my meanderings to keep up with them. In any case, it's long time for an update.

Have come to the conclusion that as far as my stitching choices ago, I really am a big 6 year old.  You'll notice that I'm constantly drawn to huge, bright projects with bold, sharp images.  Which brings me to progress on Miss Ann Grimshaw.......

  These 2 big girls took more time than I thought they would, but now that they're finished I love how they round things out.

But also just like a 6 year old, I've  noticed that my attention span for any one of these big bold projects I like so much is only so long.  Then I have to go outside to play for awhile.  So while I'm head over heels with Miss Ann and am quite impressed with myself for having her nearly 1/4 or the way finished, I've found myself distracted by other new and bright playthings lately...like the shiny silks and tempting chart of Jane Atkinson.....

The more grown up and mature stitcher in me knows starting Jane would be a really bad idea right now.  Soon enough I'd be tired of her too.  Then there'd be one more huge and partially finished project added to the pile that now would also include Ann Grimshaw.  Where does it end?

So this morning I tried taking a look at some of my previous semi-retired projects to see if I could feel a little love for one of them enough to give me a spring break away from Ann.  You know, something small,  nearly finished and different enough from Ann to make me feel like I'm playing hooky.  Atocha came immediately to mind...

  You can see the big ship has begun to emerge onto the scene lately, so there has been a little bit of recent progress on it.  But what's killing my enthusiasm is that huge gray whale at the bottom.  He and  the little gray seal on the right side have both got to go..  The grown up mature stitcher part of my brain keeps pointing out that you'd never find either of these creatures out in the Gulf of Mexico.  Not that you'd ever find sea serpents and mermaids either, but they appeal to that kindergarten stitcher who seems to be running the show right now....

So then I considered the possibility of more work on Frances Eden, who's been patient and long suffering for far too long.  You'll note a similar pattern with her.  Huge size, bright colors, strong motifs......only a quarter of the way finished.

Frances has also gotten a little attention lately, though not nearly as much as she deserves.  I took her with me last month when I was in Tallahassee for a few days.  Unfortunately I wasn't able to bring scissors along in my carry-on bag, so each time a color change needed to happen I had to start with a new strand of floss. 

 
The grown up, mature stitcher in me knows that the right thing to do with Miss Frances is to dutifully run all those thread tails down before moving on to anything further with her.  But the 6 year old stitcher doesn't see that as a lot of fun, so poor Miss Frances will probably continue to be neglected.

But then I unearthed my completely abandoned Hannah Pepper.  Now Miss Hannah is 100% the opposite of what I had in mind.  She is 1) HUGE; 2) not nearly finished and 3) a lot more like Ann Grimshaw than is good for either project at this point. 

 I started Hannah many years ago.  She's one of those epic projects that I'm either obsessed with or not speaking to at all.  What put me off her last time was those ridiculous little over one red blossoms.   I just wasn't in the mood for them, so I left her high and dry.

But now this morning, when I'm searching for something small, simple and nearly finished as recess from Ann Grimshaw, who's dazzling me all over again with her awesomeness?!  You got it....Hannah Pepper. 

And in other news....

My brother Mark and his dear wife Carol recently sent us a gift certificate to a local nursery.  It included instructions to purchase a  tree for planting as a memorial to Jim's dad.  God love them both!  We chose a young live oak tree for our back yard. It will put down deep roots and provide shelter, shade and protection for a very long life.  I can't think of a better tribute to both our fathers.

The large tree in the background of the picture is also a live oak.  This one - in 100 years - will be just as magnificent.  I think of our dads and my family every time I look out now.

And it's official!  Miss Molly has reached the age in every girl's life where birth control is an important consideration.  We named her Moonlight Molly because of the moonbeam she had on her forehead when she first came home.

But now she 's all grown up and interested in boys.  This is her on her return yesterday from the vet's office, safely spayed and ready to romp.

 

Anyway, I'll close hoping this finds everyone enjoying their Sunday and doing things they love.  No doubt that means stitchng!

Off to Carolina!

Hi everyone!  Hope your St Patty's Day is full of good music, food and green beer.  I love all 3 of them and for someone who doesn't have a drop of natural Irish in them, I still embrace the fun of the day,

The big reason for this post is to announce that I do have a finish that will soon be on its way to Faye of Carolina Stitcher fame for her special touch.  You may remember a few posts back when I  needed to sulk for awhile aftter making a horrendous goof on Ann Grimshaw.  Someone suggested a little "comfort" stitching to get over it, whick was an excellent idea.  So I decided to show a little love to my long forgotten Blue Dwelling is My Station, a purely impulse project I started several years ago and quickly lost enthusiasm for.  Here's how it was at the end of January when I found it in the box I  think of as my stitching orphanage.

Not much going on there, you'll have to agree.  But even after I made back up with Ann, I found it was fun to keep going on this little project as a way of taking a break from Miss Grinshaw's vast expanses.  Little by little (that's the time term, not the name of the design company!) I filled in the letters and then moved on to the borders and the actual blue dwelling.  Lo and behold, last night....it was done!

I decided to ask Faye if she could whip it into something awesome for several reasons:

• This little piece has been living on borrowed time for quite a while now and it deserves a little respect.  Faye's finishing will do that in a matter of a few weeks.  If finishing is up to me, it could linger again in limbo for ages and never see the light of day.  
• Even if I was up for the challenge of finishing it, the likelihood the end result would be anything I'd want to claim as my own is next to nil.  Bottom line - I will mangle it and then hate myself for even trying.  Faye will turn it into something awesome, worthy of showing off to sisters!

So I'll keep everyone posted as to it's future destiny with the amazing Faye.  No matter what, I'm sure it will be wonderful!

And speaking of  sisters, after I told the story  in my last post of how my sister Teresa got me terminally hooked as a stitcher, I wished I'd posted a picture of the two of us.  Unfortunately, I didn't have one in all our 1980's permed hair glory, but I did find this little sweetie, taken at an even earlier point in time.

I'm the one with the short pixie hair cut, while Teresa is sporting her famous blonde curls.  Funny thing is, all these years later we still have basically the same do's, only now the looks are mostly the result of hair color and skilled professionals.

Thanks for stopping by, especially to the new followers who've made their way here.  I love your comments!