Handmade Holiday 2012 Gift Exchange

Hello, readers!

Does anyone know what yesterday was?  Here's a clue.

It was September 25, which means that yesterday was exactly 3 months before Christmas!  Now that I have built up a small blog following, I was wondering if any of you readers would be interested in a holiday handmade gift exchange.  What better excuse to stitch up that cute little ornament you have been eyeballing? I always read other bloggers' sites and see the adorable gifts that they have received from other crafters, and I thought it would be fun to host my own holiday exchange.  You can give something awesome and get something awesome in return!

Here are the rules:

1.) Make something handmade that you think would make a great holiday gift!  It can either be a craft made from a pattern or an original creation.
2.) Materials cost limit of $10
3.) Labor cost - no limit, up to your discretion, but please invest some time and thought!  Make something you can be proud of.  :)
4.) Sign up by November 1, 2012
5.) I will select gift exchange partners on November 2, 2012.  This gives you approximately one month to get your project ready.
6.) Mail your gift by December 1, 2012
7.) US and Canada residents only, please.  This is just so nobody has to pay an exorbitant amount on shipping or worry about customs - although if I receive interest from a few people from the same non-US/Canadian country, I will definitely consider changing this rule.
8.) If you sign up for the exchange, please subscribe to my blog - that way, if there are any updates, I can post them here for the participants to read.
9.) Disclaimer: although it is in everyone's best interest to reciprocate, I cannot be held responsible if someone fails to send a gift.  Let's just all play fairly, please.

You can sign up for the gift exchange on Elfster at this link: http://www.elfster.com/exchange/view/6974686/020ed2/.

This is my first time hosting an online gift exchange, so if anyone has any tips or advice, please leave them in the comments section!  I am just really excited to interact with some crafters outside of my usual circle, and I think this could be a really fun opportunity for everyone.  If you agree and would like to share the holiday spirit, please join!

Happy Crafting!  :)

-Erin

Quick weekend trip to Tucson, AZ - for a Western wedding!

Hello, readers!  I hope you had a great weekend.  Here is what I have been doing – it has been a trip!

I have been traveling SO MUCH lately.  This weekend, I went on a quick (Friday-Sunday) trip to Arizona for my aunt’s wedding.  My fiancé was supposed to meet me in Tucson, but unfortunately, his flight was cancelled because AA is having labor issues with its pilots.  :(  It was still good to see my parents and my sister, though!  :) It was such a beautiful ceremony – my aunt and her new husband held the ceremony at his stepmother’s house.  The wedding was country Western-themed, so all of the wedding party wore vests, denim, and cowboy boots.  The happy couple got married standing on a platform overlooking the lagoon-style swimming pool amidst a background of desert, mountains, and saguaro cacti.  Here is one of my favorite shots from the ceremony:

My aunt's country Western-themed wedding in Tucson, AZ

So, now, I am sitting in the Detroit airport waiting for my flight back to Boston.  I have been quite busy stitching, of course.  “A Day at the Beach” is coming along very quickly – I only have two panels left to stitch.  Here is a shot of how it is coming:

"A Day at the Beach" - only two panels left!

I am going to try to finish it in the next week or so!  It will be nice to get my last summer piece out of the way so I can get started on Christmas projects.

I have been trying a new thread organization trick lately.  See, one of the things I hate most about needlework is continually threading needles and winding thread bits back onto bobbins when I switch colors – especially when tweeding or metallic threads are used.  I have been trying instead to keep a stock of needles pre-threaded with each of colors I use.  I store the needles in a scrap piece of fabric, and I label the scrap with the name/number and symbol of each of the thread colors.  Here is what I mean:

New needlework trick - keep one needle pre-threaded for each color

Label the colors with their chart symbols

I also found these cute little plastic organizers at Michaels.  They are just the perfect size to hold about 9 or 10 floss bobbins, and they are great for traveling with your projects!  I think they were about 3 for $4 or something.  They are very sturdy and snap tightly closed!

Tiny little floss bobbin container!  So cute, and perfect for traveling.

Finally, I have one last bit of good news.  On Friday, I presented my thesis project proposal and passed my oral qualification exam for my PhD!  This means that my advisor is officially committing to fund my research until I am done with my degree.  I am going to be studying gene mutations in liver and colon tumors in mice.  It is a HUGE relief to have the proposal out of the way, and I am looking forward to having a little less stress in my life, at least until the research picks up.

Thanks for stopping by and for your very thoughtful comments!  I really appreciate the time you take to let me know what you think.

-Erin

Finished - "All Things Bright and Beautiful"

Good morning, readers!  I promised you I would have some stitching done this weekend, and I am not letting you down!  I am typing this Sunday morning, and I have already finished a project that was kicking around for awhile.  Here is "All Things Bright and Beautiful!"

"All Things Bright and Beautiful."  Designed and stitched by Erin E. Turowski

I designed this piece because I am a veterinarian, and there is a lack of veterinary-themed pieces in the cross stitch world.  I wanted to be able to make something that shows why I love my profession.  The central verses are inspired by a 19th century Anglican hymn - they were adopted later by James Herriot as the titles for his autobiographies.  Stitched around the border are six embroidered animals.  I selected them because they are all likely to be encountered in veterinary practice, and I designed the motifs myself.  Here is a close-up of each of the little critters:

Little orange kitty

Chocolate Labrador retriever

Blue bird

Black stethoscope

Tan Jersey cow

Black horse

Pink pig (Landrace, maybe?)

I like the orange kitty the best, but I am partial.  :)  I didn't do anything fancy to design these - I just sketched them out as line drawings using KG Chart and tweaked the stitches until the shapes looked right.  I also stitched certain words in the text in scarlet and gray to represent my alma mater (Go Bucks - although they looked pretty terrible playing Cal in football yesterday).

Scarlet and gray accent words in each line - Go Bucks!

I am going to list this in my Etsy shop and offer custom embroidery to include the buyer's selected name, vet school, and graduation year, along with embroider in school colors for the "bright," "beautiful," etc.

Now, I am off to Michael's to pick up some floss - now that I have finished this project, of course, I have permission to start another!  :)

Have a great weekend, readers.  Thanks for taking some time out of your busy day to visit my little blog!

-Erin

Freebie Friday - Mini Apple Cross Stitch Pattern

Hello, readers!  It has been awhile since I posted a free pattern for everyone, so here is a shiny, bright red apple!  It can either be stitched with or without the script at the top.

Free apple cross stitch pattern. For personal use only.  (c) Erin E. Turowski, 2012.

Key (DMC colors):
+     320
E     829
X    349
*     350
-      blanc

Stitch all cross stitches using two strands.  For "Apple" writing, use 1 strand DMC 349.

Finished size (14-count): 1.07" (2.7 cm) wide x 1.5" (3.8 cm) tall

Also, I have been stitching along on "A Day at the Beach."  I have finished the center panel and have started on the beach house on the left side of the pattern.  Here is a picture:

"A Day at the Beach" - coming along nicely

My plan is to do a fair amount of stitching this weekend, so I should have another update for you early next week!  Have a fantastic weekend - and thanks for stopping by and commenting!

Cheers,
Erin

Finished - Christmas on the Beach!

Hello, readers!

I have just returned from a stitching trip.  My fiancé and I took a semi-impromptu trip to San Diego, so I had a chance to get some stitching done on the plane.  Good news - I finally finished "Christmas on the Beach!" Here is a photo:

"Christmas on the Beach"

Sometimes, I have mixed feelings after I backstitch something, but in this case, the backstitching really makes the details pop - especially the presents and the ornaments on the tree.  I am really happy with this finished piece!  :)  Now, I just have to motivate myself to frame it so I don't have so many loose seashells sitting around my apartment.

I also made some progress on another beach-themed piece, "A Day at the Beach."  I feel like the last rose of summer trying to finish these things in September, but this one is really cute, and I really like the hand-dyed thread in it.

"A Day at the Beach"

I am making headway on the center panel.  Here is a peek at the model:

"A Day at the Beach" by Nikki Leeman

This pattern uses Crescent Colours hand-dyed floss in Blueberry Tart (blue), Peanut Brittle (tan), and Poblano Pepper (green).  This floss is so smooth - it really glides through the fabric, and there is a bit of an ombre character to the fibers.  Plus, it's from New Albany, Ohio - just on the outskirts of my old stomping grounds in Columbus!  The colors in the picture below aren't the ones in this piece, but the picture shows some of the pretty colors in which you can order this floss.  I think I bought it for about $2.00/skein (5 yards) from Stoney Creek's website.

Crescent Colors hand-dyed embroidery floss

And, to bid you farewell for this entry, here are some photos from my travels to California!

The Lodge at Torrey Pines - La Jolla, California

The Lodge at Torrey Pines - La Jolla, California

The nature preserve at Torrey Pines

The nature preserve at Torrey Pines

Beach - La Jolla, California

Snail on a plant leaf - Hotel Del Coronado, Coronado, California

Western fence lizard - La Jolla, California

Thanks for stopping by and for your kind comments - take care!

-Erin