My mom is visiting, she came in on Monday and is staying through till Monday.  On our way home we stopped at Shepherd’s Bush stitchery store and spent way too much money.  BUT, on the bright side, I got some great projects to work on that should last me a long time, probably till her next visit.  haha.  I got the patterns, linen, and perle cotton to do stockings for the kids, Adair picked this one, which I started on Tuesday, and an nearly done on the angel’s dress, just need to do her wings and sleeves, head and a few of the leaves on the dress.  Then I am going to do this one for Alec… and after I get the two done, I’ll buy the embellishment packs and affix those, then send them off to my mom in Oregon to do the finishing, she’s much more the seamstress than I.  My car project (what I work on while I wait in the car for my kids during soccer practice or picking up from school etc.) I started Fear Not, by La-D-Da… it’s so pretty.  I changed the flosses and linen, but it’s working up so lovely.  One strand over two is such a delicate look, and also inwardly I love it because I know I’ll have lots of floss left (*wink*).

I think after I finish the kids stockings, I’d like to do this one for Mike and this one for me.  They really go fast with the 18ct. linen they are on… seriously, it’s like a stiff burlap, but it’s a fun change from 32ct. linen!  I don’t even have to use a magnifyer.  And the perle cotton floss is lovely, so nice to not have to divide floss for this, it really makes it fast! 

My brother and his wife are expecting their second baby in September, and I’d really like to make a set of these for their family… I’ll already have the patterns, and some of the floss, only having to buy the certain ones needed that you use most of.  Plus the embellishment packs, which are like $20 per stocking, and the linen $17 per stocking, it would be a really nice gift/heirloom for their family.  I have lots of good intentions, but will it actually manifest, we’ll see.  I hope so… I think a handmade gift is much more precious than something storebought, so I’d really really REALLY like to do this.

THEN, the project I spent the most for (and am waiting for some of the things to be mailed to me because SB had to order it) is for the Quaker Virtues!  This thing is going to be huge and beautiful!  It calls for 38 skeins of Old Blue Paint (Cresent Colors), and three skeins of Wisconsin Woods (Cresent Colors).    They are ordering 40 skeins of the Old Blue Paint  for me so that they are all from the same dye-lot, and I am waiting for the over-dyed linen I got too… it’s a beautiful light creme with some antiquing… I forget the name, but I hope they include that when they send it to me. : )  I cannot even begin to imagine how long this project will take me, so therefore I’m not putting a time limit on it, and will just rotate it in when I feel like it.  This one is certainly going to be a keeper and  definetly NOT something I’ll give away!

Well, the kids start their short spring break today… lots of stuff to do, and probably little stitching time, (wink).