A Valentine's Day gift

It was an amazing day.  I opened the door to the postal guy who was delivering a package....along with special encouragement and generosity from a fellow blogger, needle felter, artist extraordinaire and friend.

Remember me saying I wanted to make my own Snowdrop?  Just like Gretel makes..?  Well, of course, it would be pretty well impossible to make a twin of anything she makes because she has a special knack and plenty of talent and ... hahaha.... a much healthier, working arm/hand..etc.... .... ...but I so wanted to try one.  Beginning slowly due to this silly arm business.... I did make a start ... but, then had some questions....especially about the type of wool...

This is mine that I was using and I have used it for several little bears of course..but, the finished surface will never be very smooth when the wool is kind of rough textured like this, and  ...well, ...almost kinky by comparison ....  but mostly I put on some extra 'fur' after making the little shapes for my bears anyway...so it doesn't really matter with them, does it?











However, her Snowdrop looked so smooth to me...I was sure I needed something different for wools...so I asked.... and she explained how different her wool is compared to my rough stuff.  And, then...she sent me some lovely soft Snowdrop wool ... (I could hardly stop caressing it) and a close up picture .. so I have a better chance at playing copycat.  How lucky am I to have a friend like that?
Look at the difference in the texture of the two wools.

And, this says it all.... one of her amazing whimsical art cards. A special fantasy boat.. swan figurehead and all ...  an intrepid passenger aboard... . Guess what it is called?

 The Hopeful Quest...

It's me sitting there I'm sure .....  .... the intrepid traveller ..  ..on my quest to make my own little Snowdrop.... thanks so much Gretel.....

                                                                 

WOYWW(T)

Missed it.  The day that is.  Wednesday came and Wednesday went.... just like that! Snap... sooooo ....I added the T in brackets for Thursday...cute hey?  hahaha...oh, alright ...it's no big deal...but I kinda like it and thought I was being pretty humorous.

I haven't done much at all with anything crafty since last week.  All I managed to do is stitch into place a gusset on the head of my guy.

Here is the head with the 'gusset' in place.  That is the part on the top of the head that gives the head some width and some shape.  Different shaped gussets totally change the shape of the finished head.  However, they all look strange to me before they are stuffed.
Doesn't it look like a crocodile shape to you?  It does to me.  Always ...even when I make totally different shapes of gussets.

 Many of the other WOYWW participants will have much more to keep you intrigued.... check them out.... perhaps join in the fun...

Happy Valentine's Day

Not much exciting to show that looks like it belongs to the day though....so I give you, instead.... flowers from my garden last summer.  I love peonies .. they look like fluffy pink clouds.

I gave away my heart cookie cutters a couple of years ago to another blogger... silly me.... and haven't come across a new set yet.

 I didn't always use them just for cookies either....they were handy for all sorts of things.  See how cute they look as part of my table decorating on another Valentine's Day?

So, no cookies..but, I did bake a cute little loaf of bread yesterday... and we had a slice of it hot ...slathered with lovely butter.  And...I declared it was our "day before Valentine's Day treat" ... does that count?

Actually the recipe, which is Carson's, from over at The 7 MSN Ranch, makes two cute little "couple" sized loaves (or one bigger loaf), but I took the other to a neighbour.  Bread is so lovely hot and fresh.  And, the husband of the couple wants to learn to make bread...so this is the very simplest of loaves to make ...and,....it tastes great!  I'm encouraging him.

It finally looks like winter here this morning....we had a few inches of snow yesterday........

Soggibottom Giveaway....

acckkkk!! almost didn't give you a chance to win this little guy!  I went to Soggibottom blog to enter..and part of it was ...of course.... letting friends in on the giveaway.... which I totally forgot to do.
How rude of me.

I was busy hopping about from blog to blog and got lost and then found my way again...and ...well... you know how it goes.  And...it can go on for hours...as some of you also know.... I waste a bit of time on here some days.... okay.... a lot of time.  Too much time.  If I crafted as much as I do 'computering'..... well...I might have a body stitched up already for my little white fluffy guy. Oh..... bad me.


Anyway.... look at this sweet little donkey we could win.  Any of us.... yes...I'm serious.....you still have time..... so,  hurry over to  Soggibottom and check out some real donkeys too... all fluffy with their winter coats... so cute.... ..

WOYWW

Almost missed it!  It's after 11 at night.....

But... if I want to play...I must try to be regular...so here I am.  Better late than not at all I guess.

A friend came on Saturday to get some pointers on making a bear of her own.  I found some old pattern pieces I had cut over a year ago... and managed to put a head together while she did some stitching.  It's not a bear...... but, actually from the look of it ....well, hey...it could be anything at this point, right?

We yakked and laughed and had some fun.  Oh, and some biscotti too...

more pieces .... just hanging out ....waiting for some stitching......

If you look closely..you will see that I traced my pieces with a ballpoint pen.  Don't do that. Especially on white fabric.  It might show through the fabric at a later date.  And, if it gets wet... there could even be some dye leaching into the fabric from the ink.  I do some dumb things sometimes...and now...I am stitching in from the edge further than I usually do...so that I can just trim off the lines.  More work.  But, that's me for ya some days.  Duh......

I won't do it again.... .. honest.... ...


If you would like to play along with us on WOYWW ...why not head over to Julia's Stamping Ground and see what it's all about? ..

Day after Groundhog day..

I didn't see any groundhogs yesterday, and actually...didn't even hear about or read about what the famous ones had to say regarding how much longer our "winter" will be.  Who cares?  La la la la la ...... We have been so lucky with our phenomenal weather...I don't dare even think about it becoming winter at this point.... we have been totally lulled into some kind of trance .... with sunny days..plus temperatures...and great driving conditions. In Canada..in the winter!  Unbelievable!

Besides...I was busy admiring Gretel's goosie... on groundhog day... and trying to get a decent photo for my show and tell.  Each month of my beautiful calendar from her has a different little Middle of Nowhere creation.
This guy... yikes! sorry Snowdrop....this girl!! sorry Gretel... the diamante collar should have definitely given that away! ..it's me old eyes! .....  makes me want to get out my barbed needles...and start stabbing!  I want to create one too....or ...well,  ...I doubt I can do one quite this lovely....but, you know...something even remotely resembling Snowdrop would be great...

If I get going on her soon ...she will be done by about ...oh,.... say.... summertime?

WOYWW

Found this tiny needle felted mousie (and the panda head too; he wonders.. can he have a nose please? ) during the whirlwind week of desk tidying.  Sort of 'forgot' where I put her too in the wildness of it all.  Oh, man....somehow I must get more organized.  And then...must give away some of the stuff I just never get around to using.  We know we won't be able to ever do the many and varied crafty things we want to try...but, we keep on trying ...don't we? ..

But, this week, I am definitely looking in all the bags and boxes and containers to  make sure exactly what I do have. ...and there she was. Half finished. .... well, more than half actually...but, I do wonder what I was using for that dainty pink of her toesies.... hmmm.... maybe I'll come across some of whatever it was if I continue to tidy. I know it was not wool...I have never had any pink wool. I'm sure of that. Nobody will want a mousie with only one or 2 toes...must find it....

She doesn't look much different from my little felted bears... although, if turned sideways...she does have a bit of a longer and point-ier snout.... and those are just test eyes and a test nose.... on pins. To check for size and placement.  She is just all pinned together and her little flower pinned on too...

And, they are not even on my workdesk.  They are hanging out on the dining room table...so I don't forget about them.  They want action.  And, they want it now.  Good for them.  So tiny and yet so insistent...ahhahha.... kind of remind me of me.
Karen stopped by and asked if they were felted.... and I thought I should just pop back to say...yes..they are.  See that little bit of purplish fluff at the front of the foam block they are sitting on?... that is how she began.  Needle felting is bits of wool that have been stabbed ...many hundreds and thousands of times with a barbed needle...til you get them into the shapes you want.  Then I join the limbs and head to the body with upholstery thread.  The eyes are black onyx beads and the noses will be embroidered with Perle cotton.  The pink bits...I'm not sure...hahha...but, I think they were tufts of rayon pulled from some pieces of fluffy rayon fabric... and then needled in.  I have discovered that all sorts of things felt up alright..

Aha.  She found him a nose.  Too tiny.  Makes him look more like a racoon....but, it'll keep them happy for now.

I have no idea how it can possibly be Wednesday again...already.  This is craziness.  Another week shot.  Warp speed.  Sigh...

Check out all the other ladies and their workdesks at Janet's on a Wednesday...

Commenting...

I hear every so often that some folks are having problems leaving comments on other blogs ... apparently this might help. Found it through another blogger....

http://downourcountryroad.blogspot.com/2012/01/cant-leave-comment-not-getting-comments.html

it is as simple as changing some settings... for those NOT using Safari or Firefox...

just popped on to say......  and I'm afraid that's it for today.... off to physio now....

catch ya later...

Huh ???

Yes, I guess I obsessed.  More than just a bit.  I had to figure out where I had put poor little Rumpel.  It totally freaked me out that I had absolutely no recollection of having put him anywhere at all... am I losing those last three marbles?... is it happening already? ...

So... back in there again I went.  He had to be there...somewhere... in that room!! No place else he could be.

I looked in every drawer and cabinet..once again...after already having looking several times.  This time I even climbed onto a chair to make sure I hadn't missed him ... perhaps on a higher shelf.
It was kind dim up there with no lights..but.... hey.. just a minute!

What's that? ?

Are those two trying to conceal something?
Is that a tiny foot ? ... a spindly leg?....

What the ????

Oh, sure ..just pretend nothing happened.  Nothing at all.  Weirdoes ! ...

.... oh, alright .... it wasn't all their fault.  I have to 'fess up.  Suddenly, I did remember.  During the week, I did a reeeellly good tidy in my craft room because we were having neighbours over.  I placed him in an inconspicuous spot... safe til I wanted to work on him again.  Yeh...safe... til about 2020 if I hadn't spied the poor little guy....

You know how we like to make sure there is not a lot of 'stuff'  hanging around making things look messy if somebody other than us peeks into a room... ...even if it IS my craft room.  Well, I do anyway.  And..I guess I figured I would make him disappear for the night.  Just like poor Harry Potter ...pretending he didn't exist.. and then... after a week of excitement and busy-ness....totally forgot what I did with him.

Whew!  I did actually have the awful thought ..for just a moment... that I had perhaps done away with him for some reason.... ...

Missing.

Last seen in my untidy craft room.
Then,....I cleaned and tidied.

Uh, oh.....

Now...I can't for the life of me find him.

Rumpelstiltskin.

Gone.

Remember him?  He still needs proper booties....and I was sort of thinking maybe I could do something with those to get me going on crafty stuff once again.  But, I can't find the little guy.

I've opened and shut every darn drawer in the room... looked under and in every single box, package and basket.

Where the heck did I put him?

Oh, man...I bet I won't find him for a decade or two........... and he'll still need boots.

WOYWW

Hahahha...if you haven't heard it or seen it before it could throw you for a loop, eh?  What's on Your Workdesk.  Wednesday...   


I see it on Twig's blog every Wednesday...and she, and her sister, are always sooooo busy... it boggles my poor little mind.


This is my workdesk today and has been for months now.....my kitchen counter.  Yep. That's about it.  

 Seems to me all I've been doing is baking and cooking.  Which I do enjoy...but.... I must try to get back to some sort of crafting and fun stuff.... and soon.  When one bakes...and eats; one must spend an inordinate amount of time working out to get rid of excess calories!


After golf season (which was waaaay back in early October!) and my extremely painful elbow...I could not do any small things with finger and thumb at all!  And... now... just seem to have grown away from it all.... no motivation or inclination to do much of anything...and my elbow still is pretty painful if I try to use my hand.  Last time at physio they froze my elbow and my neck and upper scapular muscles...supposedly to try to break the pain loop, damage the muscles a bit and try to initiate more of a healing response.  So far...all it did is produce a huge lump on my upper back...and a painful lump on the lateral epicondyle of my elbow area... fingers crossed.  Oh, yeh...hahhah.... and the young sports medicine doctor jabbed her own finger, had to retire to her office for a brief time out and to get a new needle ... I had a laugh at her expense.   


This is my workdesk today.... all tidy and waiting for somebody to play in there.  Can you tell an ex dental assistant lives here?  hahahhah.... All the tools of the bear and doll making trade...neatly aligned, organized and just waiting to be used.  Look...I even splurged and bought a pair of Ginghers, (yikes! the $$$$$ )  Those pretty patterned ones.... blue and yellows, see 'em?  Can hardly wait to try using them.  But...on what?  

Today ...it will be Banana Chocolate chip muffins.  Check out my other blog for more recipes some time.  Mr. BV likes to take a muffin in his lunches and I try to make sure he has a few choices in the freezer.  Who wants to take the same muffin 8 days in a row?  Right now the only ones in there are strawberry ... so today's will be a nice addition.


There are lots of interesting blogs to see on WOYWW.  Check them out here.  All of a sudden...you are hopping here there and everywhere from those as well...ooohhhhhh it boggles ..... but, I have found two neat tutorials already, what fun!  I definitely want to try the pincushion/box I hopped to from one other blog ... maybe that could be my jump starter....     

another little cutie..

Not that long ago, I had him on my Etsy page as one of my favs.... because he was so sweet looking... and then...he went on sale ...and then... well...it's just one of those little faces who have to come live at my house because by then.... erm..., who could refuse him a home?  Not me!

Same as the saying about "beauty being in the eye"..blah, blah...I'm sure cute is also probably only in the eye of the beholder and how each beholder perceives cute...... and my perception of cute is Ogi...

He came all the way from Poland... and his little toque and scarf are hand knit...  worth the price just for those.  I must ask her if she would knit a few more little things for some of my tiny bears.  I don't know how to knit.  She obviously has it down pat.
Agnieska (check out her Flickr site to see her felting) is a needle felter I met via my Flickr site.... she stopped by to see my needle felted bears one day and we struck up some conversation.  Check out her Etsy site to see her little bears, dogs and other critters.. her prices are very affordable if you would like to get a little fellow of your own...

It doesn't have to be Christmas for me to appreciate a snowman...this is Canada after all.  Lots of us have "after Christmas" wreaths for our doors...or huge pots of twigs, greenery, pinecones, berries etc... usually no glitter or ribbons .... just lovely-to-look-at winter decor.  And, why not?  Winter is going to be hanging around these parts for many months yet.  We like to put some colour and fun out there to complement the snowy or dull surroundings.  Right now... we do have some snow and it is pretty...but, some weeks... it is just dull, brown, and dead really.... except for some doorway and porch decor.

My little snowman will be an indoor guy.  Sitting on my dining room table... with plants.  He won't melt.  And he has an occasional bear to keep him company...

I love brown paper packages!

Especially from 'Royal Mail'  .... ooooh   ....  always sounds so posh doesn't it? ......Tied with string or taped...I don't even care about that.  And, why can't I get my print over to the left side now that I have changed out a photo?   arrghhhhn....... 

I'm going to show you each month and its photo as we go through the year... January is Oscar, the blue elephant.  Last year I missed out on a calendar from Gretel.... not this year!  I was at the ready the second I knew there were some in her shop.

                                                                       








Each month has a lovely photo of one of her amazing creations...my photo is not amazing in this case... I'm a blur myself today.  Trying to get some clearing out and sorting done.  And... taking every single teeeeeensy bear out of my curio and washing all the glass, inside and out.. plus the shelves and mirrored backing..... a very loooong procedure if you are me.  Plus...the glass shelves are a bit tricky to get out with this wrecked wing.  I may have to wait for help if they defy me....

Have you seen her Mrs. Mouse's Cupcakes?  They look yummy enough to eat.  I'll have one with berries on top please!

Mmmmmmm... yes !....thanks.........

Contrary to popular belief...

I am still alive and kicking.  Haven't been kicking very forcefully though, because my Christmas gift was .... a cold.  Yup.  That's what I got.  And other than two sort of sniffly days last year the first real honest to goodness cold I've had since 1995.  It was a doozy.  I hope my body has now renewed its vows with some wicked cold antibodies and that together we are good for another wonderful 15 years of cold free bliss...

After a full 13 days of varying stages of feeling crappy....I declare this...the 13th....to be the end of it.... although, I still don't think I sound like me when I speak. Maybe one more day.  The usual 10 to 14 days plus lingering symptoms for 3 weeks is definitely at work here.

Yesterday... when I was still at the giantpuffballforahead stage, I tried to get some appointments organized...ohhhhhh....I wish I had waited one more day.  I had to actually drive to two separate doctor's offices because I couldn't get past hanging on this end of the phone waiting to speak to a real person.  Nobody seemed to be answering phones when I walked in either...hmmmm.... and then the confusion that ensued between me not asking the right questions or the receptionists not getting my drift or them not being very helpful.  I felt totally confused, small and very weary by the time I pulled the van into the driveway.

I do now have an appointment with a specialist for my ongoing elbow problem and am organized with more physio.  I can't believe how quick the doctors are to assume a person just wants more or stronger painkillers.  Without even looking at you really.  Just walk into the room and ask what you are taking and if it is covering the pain.  I don't want painkillers doc....I want this darn arm fixed.  Shocked silence. Not my regular doctor, but still....    I have been suffering ...without pain killers .. just taking an occasional Ibuprofen more for the anti inflammatory part of it... since August ...with October being the very worst and when I could hardly move the arm.....  which I told her.  More silence.  We finally got on the same page, as they say.... and she referred me to a guy I have seen before.. for other injuries, but, he is backed up 4 months... and, I'm definitely not waiting that long as it has already been far too long.  So... his 'second'... and in the same office ... good enough.

Nobody knew where she worked at the onset though,  so it was a confusing thing to take my referral note to the first guy's office only to have the receptionist say she would put it on the desk after saying he couldn't see me for months.  Huh?  Whose desk?...why the second doctor of course.  Oh, silly me...of course...sheeesh.... I had no idea she worked in the same office. ..and nobody actually said... oh, well...loong story shorter...I'm organized.  I wrote it all down.  They can't fool me forever.  But, needless to say I felt like an idiot after the conversation went around in circles long enough for the actual doctor to come out of her office to try to clear up the conversation...only to be sucked into it totally and from there ... it got even worse..hahahhahahha.... oh, brother.

Enough of that.

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I had some cranberries left ...fresh ones.  So, I found some relish/chutney recipes and made some.  I have no idea what the difference is really, although some references point to chutney being more about fruit than vegetables..as is relish.  Jury still out I think.

As usual, it's my own concoction anyway...and does have some onion in it... along with some orange peel and other goodies.  Mmmmm... it is yummy.  And, seeing as the days after Christmas are pretty much a blue blur...I will be using it soon.  Because now I have some energy, and am planning to make Tortiere...which is usually a French Canadian Christmas Eve tradition.  I didn't get around to making one, and now...I want one.  With a big dollop of my new chutney beside it.  Which I managed to do just fine even with my puffball head.  Maybe making it up as I went along was better than trying to actually read directions ..hahha.... but,  honest...I did read some of it.... really I did.  I just improvised a bit...... to make my life easier.  And..it would seem.... pretty tasty at the same time.

here's what I'm doing today...

baking some of these.  Double Chocolate Chunk cookies...with cherries.... mmm... and with the link....reprising an old post from 2009 on my other blog.. Tea and Scones .... and.... figuring out how to make some photos smaller so that I can continue loading them ..even though I am nearly at 98% as far as blogger is concerned ( and, thank you to Catherine for helping me figure that one out)! I guess other people probably figured all of this out long before I did.  I AM a bit slow.
And...perhaps my way is still a bit convoluted... I am now exporting them to my documents..in smaller size and then uploading them from there to blogger... but, it does make them much smaller files to upload so perhaps I will have to go back through many postings.......and reload the pics.... smaller.....oh, dear...... I see a lot of work ahead of me......sigh...... or...I could just pay a few bucks and add more space to my blog....
Anybody have a better solution?  If so, please let me know.....

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can't upload pics today

 blogger is telling me my account size has been exceeded and I can pay for more storage etc... ...hmmm... when did they start to charge?  Hence ...no header pic...let's see if I can upload one here... maybe it's just a glitch...

hmmm.... seems okay here.... what is happening I wonder?
more cards in my tree.... recycled because I just can't toss them... I love the look of the cards in there.

Here is a cute one I got this year from Bob....the bear...

The Three Wise Bears.... they'll be sitting in my tree next year...

He made it himself....it's a lino cut.

......and decorations on the tree...

I particularly love this little birdie house.. it is made of metal and painted a soft sage green... has rugged old bits of twine holding on some rusty bells...there is a bit of greenery and berries.  Always find a special place for it.



The pile of ornaments grows each year... only by a few though as who needs to buy any more?  But, you know how it goes..sometimes you just see one that wants to go home with you... or a pair perhaps.  Actually I don't have a pear.. maybe some day a partridge in a pear tree might have to come home....                                                                             

Love this plump Santa...with his teddy.  When I bought a few of these..all slightly different...I thought maybe I could make some of my own out of one of the clays..but, so far...nope.  Haven't given one a try.  Maybe after Christmas... for next year...he really is a sweetie.

Our tree is pretty eclectic ...  bits of everything, but still tastefully done, I think.  I saved this tag from years ago... still love it.  Reminds me of the years when I used to have cats...and they would definitely be hanging from our tree or hiding in it ..... kinda miss that....hahahah...and all you cat owners know exactly what I'm talking about!

More of my favourite ornies to make... wish I had some lovely dark green foil ...but, none around this year....

 ..... or, even more of this paler green.... green seems tough to come by...

And...still my fav of all.... a card sent to me by my sis years ago.  I love the depiction of a Victorian Christmas.

We have snow ... and mistletoe.. and,,, la la la...

.................oh....it's not mistletoe? .... alright then....it's Hawthorn berries..... but we do have snow!

... and blue skies and brilliant sunshine..... what a glorious day....

looking out the kitchen window yesterday...

my arm is still not up to shoveling...so I just took pics..... hey....this is not so bad.....it's usually me on the end of that shovel.  I may be able to get used to this.....NOT !!.... I love shoveling!

Pink Ribbon Grass.. in winter turns a soft golden shade.  I never cut it back til spring because I think gardens can still be pretty to see in the snowy yard.

The neighbour's Mountain Ash.  The birds seem to save these berries til last... well, I think they do anyway.

AND....for a day that is snowy and cold....what better thing to do than.... make soup.  Oh, of course and all the Christmas baking etc...but, what really matters is something tasty for supper, right?  Check my other blog for this soup...

having fun making more of these....

Sadly.... only a few at a time...my hand still can't grasp needles or do much precise folding ...before the elbow gives me grief.

Save your pretty foil-y type papers.....even some chocolate wrappers work beautifully.

I can point you in the right direction for folding instructions.... or send you some more detailed pics if I can't find the site... or...we just ask fellow bloggers to help us.  That's how I found a site again last year.

Then, it's just a matter of sticking some points into some other points...ahhahahha...and voila.... a cute little origami type tree ornament.  Attach a gold or silver thread... or ...well, any colour you like, really ...why not?  Make them your own.  Sometimes I like to add a little tiny gold or silver bell....or some beautiful beads ....  my tree is full of these things.   Folks will be able to choose one or a couple to take home with them from the tree.
 Photos in the camera... will upload them tomorrow.... off to physio now...... still at it.   How I wish there was more good stuff happening with this poor old arm.  It is taking sooooo long to notice any appreciable difference...