Mermaid Purse

When I went to Stitchville a couple weeks ago, I got the silk threads I needed to start filling in the Mermaid Purse.  The Mermaid Purse is way easier than the Big Mermaid because you don't have to fill in all the background.  I am making good progress:

I'm not sure I like the mirror reflection.  She looks a little weird.  I changed her expression from a frown to a smile so I am happy with that part.

There is a lot of pink hair.  That is also a bit weird.  But maybe it is the norm for mermaids.
I have to order the purse frame from Lacis.
I actually have one more Sharon Cohen pattern that I want to stitch.  It is called Off With Her Head.  It is a blackwork piece from an Alice in Wonderland illustration.  I got the recommended thread for that when I was at Stitchville.

I saw it recently on ebay for a hundred dollars!  Crazy!
I went walking this morning at the park.  It was so nice and 68 degrees.  Then I went to the Farmer's Market.  We are still waiting for the market to have red delicious apples.  Maybe next week.  I got some Mackintosh apples to make a pie.
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Squirrelly

I have been putting a few stitches in here and there on the Big Mermaid.  She is coming along slowly but that's okay.  Over one is always slow.  I got the squirrel done.  I changed his main color.  It was supposed to be green.

You can't see it very well but the top of the acorn is a checkerboard.  Those little touches are cool.  I wanted to see what the water would look like so I started around the fish and did just a bit.

Then I started those eggplant shaped things.  I'm not sure what they are.  They could be fruit or flowers.

This is how it looks overall.

Slowly but surely she is taking shape.  Tomorrow I'll show you how the mermaid purse is coming along.
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Kit in the Mail

I'm an away swan.  That means I am a member of the Salt Lake City Swan Sampler Guild.  But I don't live in Utah.  I live far away.  But the Swan Sampler Guild is very thoughtful and will let me sign up for kits even though I can't be there for class.  I signed up for Betsy Morgan's Pioneer Girl.

It is a new design.  I saw Betsy stitching on it when I was at Williamsburg last December. The design is so nifty.

I wanted  to make it so bad.  So now I can.  My kit came in the mail over the weekend.  Now if I didn't have so much other stuff to do, I'd start it.

I started stitching on another Betsy project actually.  I saw Elizabethan Eights on Facebook and was reminded that I have the pattern.

I can make it too.  I just needed the threads and I got those when I was at Stitchville.  I like the Celtic cross border that is done with pearl cotton.  I got the first of eight sides done yesterday.   Ta-dah!

 The next side is a spot sampler design.  I want to work on that today.
Fun!
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The Ugly Bird

When I first saw this design, I thought the bird was ugly.  I am a fan of Just Nan but this didn't do anything for me.

That is, until I saw a finished one on FaceBook somewhere.  I thought it was darling and just had to find the pattern.  This is a pattern copyrighted in 2012 so it has been out for a while. I looked for it at Stitchville, no luck finding it.  Then I looked for it on Stitching Bits and Bobs.  It was on sale!  So I ordered it.  BFF#2 thought I was crazy.  She thought it was ugly too.  But she hadn't seen it all stitched up.  I told her she would change her mind when she saw it all done.  So now I am challenged to convince her that it is darling.  It stitched up pretty quickly.  I just used some linen I got at Stitchville.  It is a new color called Antique Lambswool.  I really like the color and wish I had bought a larger piece of it.
I changed it a teeny tiny bit.  I added a few green stitches and made the lettering just a bit more simple.  I decided that what the bird needed was an eye.  Maybe one of the motifs was supposed to look like an eye but I added a purple bead as her eye.
This is how she turned out:

She is supposed to have some tail feathers but I left them off.  I don't think she needs them.
Well BFF#2, what do you think?
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Just a Note

This is a quick post so that you know I'm fine.  I've been gone again.  DH and I met up with son#2 in Chicago this weekend.

 It was so nice to have a chance to get together.  I went to the Chicago Art Institue on Friday and asked if they had any 17th century embroidery.  Alas, there was none on display.  This was the only thing I found.

 Spend much of Sunday at the Field Museum and saw a lot of old dead stuff.  It was really interesting getting to the museum when there was the Bears playing the Packers next door.  ARGH.  I certainly got my steps in!
Here is a finish:

Yeah, all done!  Mistakes and all. But no one will ever know.
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Sweet Trip Day Five

Goodbye Minneapolis!  We check out of the Not-So-Great Inn and head down to the Depot for breakfast.  We are on our way back home today.  But we are taking a different route.  We want to stop by two places on our way back to staying in Madison tonight.  First is a place we have heard of from Cathy B. She always stops and has a piece of pie at the Norske Nook in Osseo, Wisconsin.  It is a really small town.

 The restaurant is busy.  Across the street from the restaurant is a funny little house that has grass on the roof.

There is a bakery area.

We see so many pies that we don't know what to order - and they are huge!

The waitresses are all dressed in interesting outfits.

They have lingonberrry pies and crepe/pancakes.  I've always wondered what lingonberry tastes like.  They have a Northwoods Rootbeer pie.  I have to try that.  Then the lemon meringue looks so good.  So BFF#2 and I decide to share the lingonberry crepe/pancakes and I get two pieces of pie. ( I really wanted the pumpkin pie too but it was still cooking.) I guess this is going to be our lunch.

The crepe like pancakes are delicious and the lingonberries taste a bit like cranberries.
The Northwoods Rootbeer pie is very good and really tastes like rootbeer.

The lemon meringue is also very good.

We can't eat all this pie but we made a valiant effort.  So we waddle back to the car and continue on to LaCrosse Wisconsin.  We want to stop at Crosse Stitchery.

 We find the store and stop in to see what they have.  The lady working there tells us about the retreat she is going to in October in Cape Cod.  Oh my does that sound like fun.

It is a small shop but they are very friendly and have a nice selection.  I find a couple things.

 I get a laying tool.

 Now I can stitch the Betsy Morgan hobby horse that goes with the Toy Box.
Now we are on to Madison.  We stay at a Best Western hotel and it feels wonderful to have an elevator and really nice big bathrooms.  We feel like princesses.
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Sweet Trip Day Four

What a shopping day we had yesterday!  BFF has to go back to work so it is just BFF#2 and I today.  First up we walk down to The Depot for breakfast.  It is a great place to have breakfast.  They have good coffee and we can get just what we want.  The blueberry muffins are great too.  We are going downtown today.  We are even driving downtown after rush hour is over.  We have GPS so we are set.  First up is a quilt shop called Glad Creations.  We are a little confused as the shop is in a residential area.  We don't have high expections but we are surprized to find a very nice little shop.  This is the sign on the back of their bathroom door:

They have their row by row up on the wall:

 Lots of fabric:

We are really interested in the darling  "How much do I love you"  fabric based on the children's book.  BFF#2 knows an easy child's quilt to make with just 5 half yard cuts of fabric.  Do I get girl or boy colors?  I like the boy colors best but I have a granddaughter.  Who knows what I'll need these for, so I get some of both.

What cute material!  Then I find a very cute coin purse pattern for a monkey, dog or cat.  I have to make one for Claire.

I love my little green applique scissors and the store has a bigger version.  I get a pair.

Now we are on our way to the MIA, Minnesota Institute of Arts.  I want to show BFF#2 the casket and mirror from the 17th century that they have there.  I love that admission is free.  I know that the casket and mirror are on an upper floor.  Here is the view of downtown Minneapolis.

  We look around but can't seem to find them.  We see lots of other interesting sculpture (I love the veiled lady sculpture) and paintings.

  I ask a docent where the casket and mirror are and she says they are in storage.  Storage!  We want to see them!  But as a consolation they have one 17th century embroidery.  It is a very nice one and we take lots of photos.

We also have fun shopping in the museum store.  I am so tempted to buy Claire stuff for Christmas but I really need to wait and see what she needs.

Now we are on our way back to Stitchville.  BFF#2 bought the wrong magazine CD and we have to exchange it.  You don't have to twist my arm to make me go back there.  I find just a couple more things.

We go back to the hotel to look at our stuff and relax.  Then we have a dilema:  fast food or good food?  There is a Culver's next door or we can go to a restaurant I am familiar with, Dolittle's.  We decide we want good food at Dolittle's.  So I invite Son#1 to join us (DIL is out shopping).  So we meet at the restaurant.  I have to say that the walleye fingers were fantastic.  BFF#2 and I just have salads since we sort of over did it last night.  But when it comes to dessert we have to indulge.  Here's mine:

DE-lish!
We are leaving in the morning but this trip isn't over yet!
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