HAPPY EASTER

First I must tell you about a wonderful giveaway that will end tomorrow. Maggie from Magpies Collectibles.blogspot.com made this beautiful bracelet and is so generously giving it to one lucky winner tomorrow. Sorry for the short notice but I just read some blogs today and saw it. She also donates 25% of the selling price of her bracelets to breast cancer research. Good going Maggie. Happy Easter to all my friends and readers who celebrate this holiday. I took a few pics of small things I set up around the house a couple of weeks back. Easter is one of my favorite holidays to decorate for. The first pic is of the table by the front door. Next is my bunny sitting on the tray with some beautiful ceramic eggs (not made by me). I have had a hard time resisting the chocolate eggs scattered around the grass every time I enter or leave the kitchen. The other bunny is holdin a couple of my smocked eggs that I made quite a few years ago. I also have a beautiful orchid sitting on the counter but the pic did not turn out too good so I will spare you that. Hope you all have a great day tomorrow with family or friends.

APOLOGY

I do not know what I am doing wrong but when I just saw how the pictures come out and the written word with no paragraphs I know something isn't right. When I do it each picture is seperate and I leave spaces between paragraphs. This is a horrible mess and please accept my apologies for it. Is it blogger or me? I think I am going to have to go visit Karen Valentine or someone for their help.

NEW WALLHANGING

I label it a wallhanging but it may end up as a book because now that it is roughly assembled and I look at it I cannot think of one plae in either house would it fit. It needs somewhere with a grey decor. I am enjoying doing it as always so who cares where it goes. I have just finished putting together the 8 blocks and started doing some embroidery on them. I want to use a lot of lace and silk ribbon on it but still stay with the white and grey tones. I made this almost entirely out of cotton with the exception of some white and grey dupioni. One of the cotton fabric had a really nice round lace type design so I am doing all of that fabric with French knots, bullions and some raised work that I have been doing in Karen Ruane's classes. On the middle angel I used white cotton a broder and grey embr. thread plus both white and grey silk ribbon in the French knots and little roses. As I finish embroidering each block I will show it here. Maybe by the time they are all done, 6 - 8x8 and 2 - 8 by 11 (to match the middle angel) I will know what to do with it.

DAYTONA BEACH

We are enjoying a week at the ocean in a condo right on the beach. This is one beach perfect for Harv as he can take his scooter right onto the hardpacked sand beach and accompany me on walks. the weather was great until rain last night and then it turned cold today. It is about 65 but Harv bundled up and has gone to the pier fishing. We had lunch yesterday at a place called the Lighthouse restaurant at Ponce Inlet. It was a typical old Florida type. Here is a picture I took of Harv. Here are 3 more pics - one of me and 2 more of the beach and some birds. It is Spring Break time but there are not very many here and the ones that are here are nice kids and there has not be any problems with that. We will be home Friday as Harv has a bass fishing tournament down in Kissimmee on Sat.

NEW WALLHANGING

I have decided to do another wall hanging and here is the beginning. The center panel is a photo of a angel monument that I have had for awhile and loved it. Sorry I can't give credit to whoever put it on the web because I just don't remember where I got it from. I decided to do silk ribbon embroidery throughout the swag that crosses the angel and cherubs. I did it all in white and shades of grey, both silk ribbon and embroidery threads. She will be in the middle surrounded by eight blocks that each have a smaller pic of a stone angel of some kind. I have always loved going through the old cemetaries and looking at the statues. The small pics came from a sheet I purchased. I have one in each block and want to go heavy on the lace embellishing on this hanging. I could not find many fabrics in shades of grey in silks, etc. so ended up buying cotton fabrics where there was a great choice at JoAnnes. I did buy some grey dupioni and had some white dupioni on hand so will incorporate these in with the cottons. Once embellished you can hardly tell what the fabrics are. We are going to the ocean next Sat. for a week and I wanted something easy to take with me and embroider while sitting at night. I hope to be walking the beach and sitting in the pool in the daytime.