Last Week in January

Today is dreary and overcast.  No rain in the forecast, but a gloomy sky.  A little breezy and the chimes are sounding, leaving that long, deep resonance in the air.  

Stitching.  Finished the third panel for 25 Million Stitches!  It will go in the mail this week, leaving me having to begin a new stitchery project to keep myself calm.  :)

 About 7,000 + stitches in this one.  I quit counting when I got close to 7,000, but kept adding more elements.  The stitches are fairly large and the pearl cotton is a craft variety, the kind that comes in packages with assorted colors and is very inexpensive.  I bought them when B.E. was interested in sewing, and they came in handy for this panel.

As soon as I finished the final panel, I had to begin a new piece so I could play with the beautiful, hand-dyed, fine pearl cotton from Stef Francis.  I've been buying her beautiful threads for about ten years.  Tiny stitches in this one.  Another hand stitching project with no goal or purpose other than to enjoy the process and use the beautiful very fine pearl cotton from Stef Francis.  Maybe at some point I will figure out what to do with it.

I rediscovered these mini tart molds when straightening up.  Bought at a flea market years ago for a baker doll I was making.  Since the muslin was already out, I traced the edge of the mold and outlined it in back stitch.  Moving on to a center with a circle of stem stitches and then, filling in with French knots and seed stitches.  Improvising as I continued with more circles.  

Mail

from Connie

2nd letter from Sherlock Holmes

Have to admit that these letters aren't as much fun as I'd hoped.
Fee, on the other hand, is delighted with his historical letters.

from Penne

Penne also included this magnet!

Of course, reading shapes dreams--

I love it!

Goals--another week of goals completed!  My "get out of the house" goal was to the recycling center.  Not much fun, but still satisfying.  Maybe this week, I'll get the GoodWill stuff delivered.

Books/Reading--Finished Nicholas Delbanco's Why Writing Matters.  Currently reading The Indomitable Florence Finch.  Both are fascinating for such different reasons.

Podcasts-- A Needle Pulling Thread is a series of excerpts from a wide assortment of folks who discuss the importance of stitching in their lives.  

January is almost over!  This month has flown by.  My pantry is neat and clean again, but I'm a bit tired of cleaning and organizing.  The cabinets await--they may be waiting for a good while.

Hope you are having a good week!