Christmas Decorations Are Up!

Amazingly, I got the fall stuff put away on Sunday and a lot of my Christmas decorations out!! I have a rather large collection of Santas, but didn't put a lot of them out so the decorating didn't take as long as it has in some years. I'm thinking about selling some of the smaller Santas on eBay just to minimize the collection.

But I'm very glad to have the decorations out! I don't have the tree decorated, but think that will happen tomorrow night. Now if I can only get my shopping finished (or started...), I'll be happy. I've watched some movies on TV lately and feel I need to relieve some of my holiday stress, most of which is self-inflicted. I have a Christmas birthday (December 23rd) so the holidays are stressful for me anyway and the last few years, they just seem to be getting worse. So I'm going out in the next few days to do some shopping (or all of it...).

I have some vacation days after Christmas so I'll be off work from Christmas Eve until after the New Year and I'm looking forward to being off work and working on some crafts. Working on my crafts always helps me be less stressed.

And my blogoversary is coming up soon so I might have a giveaway, who knows...

I'm Behind With the Holiday Cheer

The pictures posted above are from last year. I haven't got any of my holiday decorations out yet and haven't even started my shopping for the holidays. My significant other and I spent 16 hours over the Thanksgiving weekend decorating the conference room floor of my employer (a large law firm). It turned out beautiful and I've had many compliments about how lovely it is. But since then I've had no motivation to get my fall stuff put away and start getting out the holiday decorations at home. I have a large amount of fall decorations that I put out and it's rather overwhelming to put it all away and then get started getting all the holiday stuff out. I have a rug hooking event for my guild this Saturday, but I'm determined to get started on the decorating when I get home on Saturday afternoon. We'll see... It sounds good, but I lose my motivation easily. I usually would have my holiday decorations out by now, but taking the whole Thanksgiving weekend to decorate somewhere else kinda put a damper on that. Granted I did the decorating at work because they paid me and I need the money to buy Christmas gifts. It's all such a vicious circle!!

I'm trying to make a promise to myself that I'll get a lot of it accomplished this weekend. I'll post later about whether that happens or not!

Happy Thanksgiving!

My intent to blog more often has once again gone by the wayside. So instead I'll wish all of my fellow bloggers a Happy Thanksgiving. I sometimes grumble about the things in my life - my finances, the stress in my job, my family's issues - but they are all trivial. I'm very thankful for my job, my family and my home. I know others are less fortunate so today I'll try to remember all that I have and be thankful for it.

Hope each of you has a nice Thanksgiving.
Sharon

I Haven't Posted in Over a Month!!

I don't know what's come over me! I haven't posted in over a month! Sometimes I feel like I have nothing important to say. Other times, I'm covered up and can't even find a little time to post, even a small one.

This time of year I sell handmade crafts at a few craft shows and I've been busy getting ready for those. Unfortunately, this year I procrastinated and waited until 2 weeks before the 1st show to start making additional items. Hello!!! All of my items are hand sewn - pillows, ornaments, pincushions, etc. - and it takes some time to actually make the items as I don't use a sewing machine. My sewing machine and I are not exactly BFFs... So I had a craft show today and was up until 4:00 a.m. last night finishing several items. I'm wore out now after the show. I didn't sell a lot of stuff today which is always disappointing, but there's not much you can do about it. It didn't seem like we had as big a crowd as we've had in the past. I'll blame it on the economy.

I've been in a slump lately mainly due to my financial situation which is really dragging me down. I barely have enough $$ to pay my bills and then there's rarely any extra for groceries and gas, you know, the non-essential stuff. It exhausts me trying to borrow from Peter to pay Paul and then try how to sell something to get a little left over for Mary.

The only bright side is that I've started selling ThirtyOne products (purses, tote bags, etc.). I've had 2 shows besides my open house which I had to get started. Both of my shows were over $1,000 in sales each. So I'll make over $500 for the 2 shows!! YAY!! I'll get the money on November 10th. I'll be so glad to get the $$ as I'm behind on some bills. (I get really tired of saying that...)

I'm hoping that this ThirtyOne job is going to ease my financial situation some. I figured I could make better money selling ThirtyOne products than I could if I went to Target or WalMart for minimum wage and then they made me work every weekend stocking shelves. I'm not exactly a spring chicken and after I've worked all day at my regular job, I don't know that I'm up to stocking shelves. Besides my significant other works 2nd shift and I really only get to see him on the weekends and Target or WalMart would schedule me EVERY weekend between now and Christmas. Plus I get to sell cool purses and tote bags. That's way better than stocking shelves.

I'll try to do better posting on my blog. I'm trying to get an attitude adjustment about life in general, but have been really dragging lately due to financial burdens.

I'll post again soon, promise.
Sharon

Hectic Weekend

I'm so very glad this past weekend is over. My significant other's family had a family reunion which we were in charge of on Saturday and I had an open house to start my ThirtyOne business on Sunday. Too much going on for one weekend!! The only good thing is that my house is really clean now and all my lovely fall decorations are out.

I just love my pumpkins and can't wait every year to get them out. I wish I had a place big enough to leave them all out year round. Pumpkins are my favorite things and I love the color terra cotta. I'll try to take some pictures and post them soon of my decorations. I think you'll like them.

It's finally cooled off enough to be fall-like outside and we're enjoying that, too. I'm over the heat and humidity as I know most everyone else is, too.

Happy fall to everyone!

Sharon

I'm Now a Thirty-One Consultant

I signed up today to be a Thirty-One consultant. If you've not heard of Thirty-One, it's a company that sells purses, tote bags, backpacks, storage bags, etc. in a variety of prints and you have the option to have the bags embroidered with your initials. I'm hoping this will be a good endeavor for me. I've sold other direct sales over the years - Pampered Chef, At Home America, Premier Jewelry - so I know I can sell these purses and bags. They are so cute and the embroidery makes them even better. They will make great gifts especially with the holidays fast upon us. I need the extra money (don't we all?) and I hope that this will be the ticket.

Check out their website - www.thirtyonegifts.com.

Sharon

No Ribbons on My Rugs :(

Well, I went to the Kentucky State Fair today on my lunch hour and to my surprise there were no ribbons on my rugs... :( I was really bummed. I felt sure that I had a winner of one ribbon or another this year. Whoever was in charge at the Fair this year in displaying the rugs did a pitiful job. My table runner was rolled up (along with some of the other table runners) and you could only see about 1/5th of the rug. The pumpkin rug was thrown over a rod in a glass case and you couldn't really see the whole rug. The only rug you could see entirely was the pomegranate rug which displayed well. I've decided not to enter any more rugs in the Fair. Apparently the judges don't like my work or the way I hook. Either way, I was very disappointed and so I went shopping after work and bought myself some new pumpkins to go with the 16 tubs of pumpkins I already own... probably didn't really need any more, but I'm in love with pumpkins so I can always use a few more!!

I appreciate the positive comments I received about my rugs. At least someone liked them!!

Sharon

Tomorrow's the Big Day

Tomorrow I'm going out to the Fairgrounds at the Kentucky State Fair to see if I've won any ribbons!! I hope that I have, but won't know until I get there. I'll be disappointed if I don't because I worked really hard on the three rugs I turned in this year. My style is different than anyone else's around my area. It's called higgledy piggledy which is a more random style of hooking than hooking in rows like most hookers prefer to hook. It's definitely a unique style and not too many hookers use this style of hooking. Deanne Fitzpatrick hooks in a style of hooking similar to this if you've ever seen her rugs or videos.

I changed the background on my blog today. I'm pleased with how it looks. I'm so ready for fall!! I only hope we actually get to have a fall season. After having such a hot sweltering summer, we're probably not going to have much of a fall season and will probably go right into winter. Ugh!! We had snow on the ground for 2 months last year which is highly unusual for this area. I hope we don't have a repeat of that again this year... :(

I'll post again tomorrow to let you know about the results of my rugs in the competition at the Fair!! Thanks for the nice comments about my rugs.

Sharon

Pictures of My 3 New Rugs - Taken to The Fair Today!

Here are pictures of the 3 rugs I entered in the Kentucky State Fair today. I won't know until Thursday of this week whether they will win any ribbons. I'm extremely proud of my rugs this year. I think they all turned out great, but then I am a little biased...

The first rug is the rug I tried to get finished in time for last year's Kentucky State Fair and it just didn't happen. It is adaptation from a Blackbird Designs pattern called Autumn's Grand Finale. I really love this rug and am glad I was able to enter it this year.

The second rug is a table runner and is adapted from a Sally Van Nuys pattern which was featured a few years back in the Create and Decorate magazine. She used a dark wool for her background, but I chose a plaid for mine and it made the background of the runner very different than the original pattern. I think it turned out well, and of course, I adpated it to suit my tastes.

The last rug is a white luminary pumpkin. Pumpkins are my favorites and I can't wait to hang this up next month along with my other fall decorations!!

I always draw my own patterns even if I have a pattern to go by. That makes my patterns my own as I "tweak" them as I hook them. As you can see, I lean toward the primitives which is how I decorate my home. I really love the creativity that rug hooking gives me. I'm so glad I've found rug hooking, but wish I had known about it sooner!

I'm going to have to stop hooking for a while as I have several fall craft shows coming up and I have to have stitcheries, wool felt pillows, penny rugs, pincushions, ornaments, etc. ready for the shows and must get busy with these items to have them ready in time.

I hope you like the rugs. Feel free to leave me comments to let me know what you think. I've only been hooking 3 years in November, but am very proud of what I've accomplished in my rug hooking. I'll let you know later in the week regarding the results of whether I won any ribbons at the Fair!!

Sharon

A Very Good Weekend - Rug Hooking, Pig Roast and a Picnic

Finally, a good weekend! The hot weather finally broke some and the humidity wasn't so bad. It was still hot, but with the lower humidity, it was much more enjoyable outside. I was off on Friday to take care of some things at home. My significant other and I went to Bass Pro to buy some hunting boots for his brother who was on vacation. We went to Cracker Barrel for a nice breakfast and then came home to cut down a dead tree in my yard. He works 2nd shift so he went to work and I worked the rest of the day on finishing one of my rugs for the Kentucky State Fair. The finished rugs are due to be turned in next weekend before the Fair starts. So it's down to crunch time!!

Then on Saturday, I worked again on my rug while I was fixing some picnic food to take to a pig roast. We went to the pig roast which was about 1 hour away from home. We had a good time and the potluck food that everyone brought was awesome - especially this potato casserole with bacon on top (yum) and this incredible homemade pecan pie (double yum!!).

This morning we went to a local Catholic picnic and then to my significant other's brother's farm for him to help his nephew do some work on the farm. I worked again on my rug trying to get it finished in time for next weekend. When they were finished working, we came home and went over to his brother's to see his great niece who's 7 months old. She is the sweetest thing. I didn't get to see her last weekend, and I was having a bad case of withdrawal... I had a bad week, but she always makes me feel better. She's changed a lot in 2 weeks and is talking up a storm. Babies are good medicine when you're feeling down!

So basically it was a pretty busy weekend. Unless something crazy happens, I'll have my rugs ready to turn in next weekend to the Fair. I hope they do well this year in the competition. I'd love to get ribbons on all 3... we'll have to wait until the 19th to see how the judging goes. There's a lot of heavy competition in rug hooking in my area and some amazing rugs are entered in the Fair. I always think mine are worthy of blue ribbons, but then I don't do the judging!! I'll post some pics before I turn them in at the Fair.

Hope everyone has a good week. It's supposed to heat up again here... can't wait!!

Sharon

Diappointing eBay Sales

I have a lot of items on eBay now because I need to downsize some of the massive amount of stuff that I have in my home. The unfortunate thing is that I'm not selling much. I'm assuming a lot of it has to do with the economy. Maybe other people trying to sell things on eBay aren't selling theirs either. I really need the money. This living from paycheck to paycheck stinks and really wears on my nerves. I'm trying to downsize because I'm supposed to be getting my house ready to put on the market so I can move in with my significant other of 18 years. I have 25 years of stuff that I need to downsize to be able to move in with him into a house that's 125 years old with one closet on the first floor that's about 15-18 inches wide... It's more than overwhelming. But my bills are suffocating me and we're paying 2 mortgages for 2 homes and 2 sets of utilities and all that goes with having 2 separate homes. I just need to get motivated to get everything ready to stick a sign in my yard that says FOR SALE. Overwhelming barely touches how I feel.

But I'm bummed that my stuff on eBay is not selling. It's good stuff like Gooseberry Patch books, rug hooking wool, wool felt patterns, etc. I guess I'll have to yet another yard sale to see if I can make some money there. It's SO HOT to have yard sales and the weatherman acts like it's not going to let up anytime soon.

Well, something will probably work out. It always does.

More Posting

Sometimes I feel I should post more. But sometimes I just don't have much to say. Some of the blogs I follow post almost every day. I'd like to come up with a catchy same-day-of-the-week-post like Whatcha Doin' Wednesday, Teacup Tuesday or Freebie Friday or something on those lines that I see on other blogs, but have yet to come up with something snappy like that. I know I would have more followers if I posted more. So as of today, I'll be posting more. About what, I'm not sure.

I'm working on finishing 2 of my rugs which I've entered in the Kentucky State Fair (see my previous post). I enjoy rug hooking very much. It's a very creative outlet for me. I create my own designs and then draw them on the linen. I pretty much do that with everything I work on - stitcheries, wool felt, penny rugs, etc. - I may have a pattern to go by, but I usually adapt it for what I need or what I like and rarely use the pattern to actually draw it on the medium I'm working with. I'm continually flying by the seat of my pants!!

I have several craft shows coming up this fall and into November. I need to get busy making my items to sell. I've been in a slump lately. This hot weather we've been having FOREVER has really been taking its toll on me. I come home and should get busy working on new items to sell, but instead I sit on the couch in potato mode until it's time to go to bed. But first, I have to finish the two rugs I'm hooking as they'll be due at the Fair August 14th for the competition. So I guess I'd better leave this post and get busy hooking. I'll post a picture of the table runner I'm hooking as soon as I have it finished which should be in a few days.

Try to stay cool this weekend if it's hot where you are. The heat index was 105 degrees here today... :(

Sharon

Rug Hooking Entries for State Fair

I just finished placing my rug hooking entries online for the Kentucky State Fair. I have 3 hooked rugs that will be in the Kentucky State Fair in August, one of which is finished, the other two not so much. The registration cutoff is midnight tomorrow, July 1st. They are then dropped off to the Kentucky Fair & Exposition Center by August 15th so I have some time to finish them. I've had rug hooked items in the Fair the last 2 years. I really enjoy entering my rug hooked items. So far I've received two 4th place ribbons and an honorable mention.

I'd like to enter them in the Indiana State Fair as I've always lived in Indiana, but it's a 2-hour drive one way to Indianapolis and just a 15-minute drive to Louisville where the Kentucky State Fair is located. I would have to get the rugs to Indianapolis, make another trip up there to see all the rugs and see if I won any ribbons, and then make a third trip there to pick up my rugs. With gas as high as it is, I can't really justify three 4-hour trips to Indianapolis just to enter my rugs. Maybe one year I'll get to enter them in the Indiana State Fair. But for now, I'm happy to enter them in the Kentucky State Fair. Our local rug hooking guild is made up of members from Kentucky and Indiana and I'm the President. It's always such a thrill to see my rugs on display with all the other great rugs.

Going to the Fair to see the amazing quilts, cross stitched items, crocheted/knitted items and rugs is a really great time. I usually make several trips with family and friends to look at all the displays, photographs, etc. I think someone said last year that there were around 30,000 different entries... amazing!

Anyway, I'm hoping to come home with ribbons this year. We'll just have to wait and see later in August.

Father's Day without Our Dads

My Dad's been gone since 1991. I still miss him like it was yesterday. My significant other just lost his Dad in March of this year.

So we spent the day today at a friend's graduation get-together for her niece. My friend was so nice when Eddie's Dad passed away and brought food to the funeral home. We had a great time at the grad party today and Cathy's food was awesome. She and her Mom (also Cathy) have done some small catering jobs and the food was unbelievable.

We then went over to Eddie's brother and sister-in-law's house for dinner. Eddie's sister-in-law lost her Dad five weeks after Eddie's Dad passed away. It was a rough spring for our family. Eddie's nephews and niece lost both of their grandpas within 5 weeks. So without Eddie's Dad, his sister-in-law's Dad, and my Dad, we all just spent the day together. Eddie's brother and sister-in-law just had a pool put in and even though it was unbelievably hot, we had a good family day together. We needed to be together because it was the first Father's Day without Eddie's Dad Charlie and his sister-in-law's Dad Frank.

So another Father's Day passes, but it was a good one with our family around us.

Time for Everything I Need to Do

I have so much to do, as I'm sure everyone does, but I just can't seem to get motivated to do much of anything anymore. I hook on my rugs, work on my wool felt pillows and other items, and do my stitcheries, but other than that, my motivation is pitiful.

I'm supposed to be getting my house ready to put on the market so I can sell it and move in with my significant other of 18 years. But the problem with that is I have 25 years of "stuff" that I need to downsize to be able to move in with him. He lives in his grandfather's house which is 125 years old. The problem is that he has a house full of stuff and I have a house full of more stuff (way more stuff!!) and I'm having a hard time jumping in there and downsizing my stuff. Because his house is so old, it has little or no storage, because I guess back then they didn't need storage because they had way less things than what we have now. The only closet on the 1st floor is about 15 inches wide... Hello!! That's pretty scary!!

So every weekend I have all this stuff in my mind that I know I need to do, but instead I put it off and really don't get anything done. I have a few "tweaking" things that I need to do my house to get it ready to list, but those involve $$, and I'm not really very flush in that area right now. Who is? I love my significant other, but he wants my house sold before I move in so that debt is gone. Naturally, after all these years together, he waits until the worse time in the history of time for me to try and sell my house!!! Duh. My good friend tells me I should not look at the whole picture of how much I have to do to get ready to move, but should take baby steps, and just look at it as one project at a time. Easier said than done.

Right now my significant other and I are paying 2 sets of bills and we're both strapped for $$. Things would be a lot easier in the money area if I could just sell my place and move over there with him. As I said, his house was his grandfather's home and it needs some work, but after I don't have a mortgage, insurance, utilities, etc., I should be able to help fix it up. At least that part should be fun!!

I'm getting out my notebook right now and starting a list of things that need to be done in order to get my house ready to sell. Maybe I'll just fix up what I can and sell it as it is. As long as I can enough to pay off my mortgage, then at least I'm in the clear and the new owners can fix it up as they wish.

Gotta go. Have writing to do in my notebook!!

And the Winner to My 1st Giveaway Is...

Rebekah of All Thingz Related. Congratulations Rebekah! You won my giveaway in connection with the 4th Annual Cottage Charm Giveaway. Please provide me with your physical address so I can mail your items to you. I hope you enjoy the items.

This was my first giveaway. I had 50 people enter which I thought was great for my first giveaway. I really appreciate everyone entering the giveaway and following my blog. I hope to have my own giveaway soon so watch my blog for future updates about it.

Thanks again for the great support. And congrats Rebekah!! Your package will be coming to you soon.

Sharon
Starlight Primitives
myfolkart@live.com

I'm Participating in the 4th Annual Cottage Charm Giveaway!

I'm participating in the 4th Annual Cottage Charm Giveaway hosted by the Twice Remembered Cottage. This is my 1st giveaway and I'm excited about participating in it.

What is the Cottage Charm Giveaway?: This is a multi-blog, month long event beginning Saturday, May 1st where bloggers give away on their blogs items they feel exhibit "Cottage Charm". Anyone can join at any point in May before the 29th. On May 29th, all participating bloggers will announce their winners and post it to their blogs. An ongoing list of ALL the giveaways and participating bloggers is maintained at the Twice Remembered Cottage blog during the entire month of May. The list grows and grows the whole month of May as bloggers add their Cottage Charm Giveaway to their blogs.

Here is a brief rundown of the items I will be giving away in my drawing:

2 small shabby chic mirrors;
1 ecru round doily;
a square planter box decorated with roses that would be cute filled with flowers or a candle;
a ceramic holder decorated with roses that has a hanger (this would also be cute filled with flowers or maybe to hold your scissors);
and a small white pillow with pink flowers and green leaves handmade by me.


Here are the rules for entering:

1. Please post a comment on this post only. Please leave your email address so I can contact you if you're the winner.

2. For a second entry, please add your name to my list of followers.

If you have a blog and want to add the 4th Annual Cottage Charm Giveaway banner to your blog, feel free to do so. The more people who see it and participate, the more fun it will be!

Due to shipping costs, this giveaway is only open to those living within the continental United States.

You do not have to have a blog to enter this giveaway.

Go to the Twice Remembered Cottage blog and check out all the other giveaways. You can sign up for as many as you like. You don't have to have a blog to enter. Last year there were around 70 different blogs participating! Sounds like fun to me! Hope you enjoy the items I'm offering and sign up to win them.

Sharon

Rug Hook-In at Sycamore Farms in Terre Haute

I haven't posted in a while. We had another death in the family and I've just been dragging around. But I think I'm ready to move forward and get in a better mood.

I went to a rug hook-in last weekend in Terre Haute. The weather getting there was not pleasant, as it rained almost the whole way there. But the hook-in was a lot of fun. I sat with 3 other hookers from the Toledo, Ohio area. They were great women and made me feel part of their group. The hook-in actually took place in an old barn that's been renovated. It's called Sycamore Farms. It sits next to a bed and breakfast called ButtonWoods. We had a lovely fancy luncheon in the restaurant at the bed and breakfast. I think the restaurant is now closed to the public due to economic reasons, but the bed and breakfast is still open. Wendy Miller of The Red Saltbox was hosting the hook-in. There were no classes, but all the hookers came home with a bag of rug hooking goodies - 2 nice pieces of wool, a pattern drawn by Wendy especially for the hook-in and a small hooked bird pin. I had a great time and was thrilled to get out of the house and have something enjoyable to do.

The best part of the day happened on the way home. The weather once again turned ugly as I drove the 3 hours home. I was not too far away from home when a rainbow appeared. Then another rainbow appeared to the left of the first one. Amazingly, you could see both rainbows completely touching the ground from end to end which I don't think I've ever seen before. People were pulled off the road taking pictures and staring in wonder at the sight! It was truly one of the more beautiful things I've seen lately. The main rainbow had the bright colors on the left and the second rainbow had the bright colors on the right so they were exact opposites of each other. They stayed in the sky where you could see both ends touching the ground for probably 20 minutes. Needless to say, it really made a great day for me even better.

A Primitive Place Magazine - Premier Issue Giveaway

A Primitive Place is having a giveaway in honor of the Premier Issue of their new magazine, A Primitive Place, Where Prim Friends Gather. The magazine sounds like it will be great and will be out this fall. So if you're into primitives, jump on over to http://aprimitiveplaceblog.blogspot.com and check out the new magazine and the giveaway.

My Son The Music Man

My son gave me a CD at Easter that he has been recording lately. It had 6 songs on it, 4 of which he had written. The most amazing thing was that he had completely done everything on the CD - written the songs, laid down the guitar and bass lines, played the drums and dobro and even harmonized with himself for a two-part harmony on some of the songs. I didn't listen to the CD until the Tuesday morning after Easter on the way to work. I was completely blown away by the fact that it was all him and nothing else. I knew he had talent because I've seen it over the years as he's played in several bands, etc. and I've been able to witness first hand the quality guitar player he is. But I had no idea that he could completely generate something from scratch that sounded like he had a whole band recording there with him. I am so proud of his accomplishments with this endeavor. I know he wants to take it further. I've listened to the CD a bazillion times since I first heard it and still cannot believe it's him.

The pride I have for him is simply amazing.

My Giveaway Items from White Sheep Farm Primitives

I received the items from the White Sheep Farms Primitives' giveaway which I won a few days ago. The items are very prim and very cute! There are 4 prim pillows that say "blessings", "simple folk", "be ye thankful" and "simplify". They will fit so well tucked in among my other prim stuff. They are so adorable. There's also a small folk art doll made of muslin and homespun. A bunch of dried flowers which I believe is Sweet Annie was wrapped gently in paper and included in the package. What a surprise! The last item in the box was a large tin pan with 3 cute very prim eggs each tied with grungy cheesecloth and topped with a rusty bell. They are wonderful! I love the whole package and can't thank White Sheep Farm Primitives enough for their giveaway.

I'm hoping to have my own giveaway soon. I live very close to Louisville, Kentucky (I actually work in downtown Louisville and have most of my life) and am thinking about having a "Derby" giveaway. I'll keep you posted on the details.

I'm posting a picture of the giveaway items that I received in my package. Thanks White Sheep Farm Primitives!

Sharon

This Has Been a Good Blogging Day!!

First, I find out I won the giveaway from White Sheep Farm Primitives. I'm so excited about the cute primitives in the giveaway! :)

Then I see I have 17 followers - that's awesome!! I didn't think I'd ever have any!!

And for the first time since I've started blogging, I actually saw my blog on someone else's blog! I didn't think I'd ever see that either!!

I've been in a rough patch on a personal level lately, so all of this cool stuff helps bring me out of the pit I've been in.

I enjoy blogging and when I can get all this blogging stuff figured out, maybe I'll be able to have a giveaway, too!! I'm trying to figure out something cool to make bloggettes want to come to my blog and visit. I'm still thinking...

Thanks for all the help and tips I've received from other bloggers to help me set up my blog. I'm not very much of a techno geek and struggle with some of the blogging setups. So if you've helped me along the way, thanks!!

So it's been a good blogging day... maybe things are picking up. :)

Take care.
Sharon

Rug Hooking - So Many, So Little Time

I've found so many great blogs about rug hooking. I'm really enjoying looking at everyone's rugs and the different designs and techniques. I have so many rugs that I want to start (and finish) in my lifetime, but how am I going to accomplish all of that? I also have so many other crafts to do - stitcheries, wool felt items, pillows. Sometimes (actually a lot of the time) I come home from work and I'm wore out. I basically sit on the couch and don't get a lot accomplished. I'd like to say that I work on some kind of craft everyday, but we all know that it just doesn't happen that way. Life keeps it from happening. I have a fairly stressful job and I'm not exactly a spring chicken... It seems to be wearing on me more and more lately. I also want to get into the dyeing thing for the wool for my rugs. Of course, I've been saying that for 2 years. I have all the stuff to dye, but just can't seem to take that first step to try it. Sigh...

So I guess I'd better go ... I have much rug hooking to do ... or stitcheries ... or wool felt pillows ... or pincushions... I think I need some chocolate...

Sharon

My Front Porch - A Rug Hooking Forum

I signed up today for My Front Porch which is a rug hooking forum. It seems like it will really be interesting to see others' interests in rug hooking. I'd like to get signed up for the Welcome Mat, too, but I think you have to be invited. I was able to post pictures of my completed rug hooking projects on My Front Porch and I was very proud to have them so everyone could see them. I wish I had found rug hooking years ago - I feel like I've missed years of something which I now really enjoy!

An Unbelievably Long Weekend

Eddie's Dad's funeral was Tuesday. Unfortunately, before that I had to find out that his 3 older brothers (who are separated from Eddie and 2 of his other brothers and his only sister due to a family dispute) had decided to leave me out of the obituary for his Dad. Eddie and I have been together almost 18 years. I was terribly hurt and spent most of the weekend feeling very insignificant and crying a lot. They couldn't really give me an answer for why they left me out of the obit; I can assume it was for no other reason than probably to hurt the 3 brothers they don't get along with, one of them being my Eddie. Everyone from our area and Starlight where Eddie lives kept asking "why weren't you listed in the obit?" In addition to dealing with Eddie's pain and loss, I struggled all weekend just to make sense of why someone would do that to someone who's been in the family for almost 18 years. Eddie and I aren't married, but what the heck does that have to do with it? We're life partners - have chosen each other to spend the rest of our lives together. And I think it's unfair and hurtful that his 3 older brothers are so mean to do such a thing. And then to top it all off, the 3 older brothers had the gall to ask me to take up the gifts at the funeral mass. How's that work? You kick me in the head, but then you want me to help you? Hmm... I just don't get it.

At any rate, the weekend is finally over. The funeral is done and I hope not to have any contact with the 3 older brothers and their wives anytime soon. Eddie's Mom is still living so at some point there will be some contact. But I'll just have to deal with that later. For right now, I can pretend they don't exist, which is exactly what they did to me last weekend, only in print - where everyone could see it.

I have to go pack now. I'm going to have to join the convent for all the bad words I said this weekend about Eddie's 3 older brothers... :) It probably wasn't nice, but it made me feel better at the time.

Wanting What You Have

I have been with my significant other, Eddie, for 17 1/2 years. We have been through a lot together. Yesterday his Dad Charlie passed away from pneumonia and other complications. He would have been 88 in October. My Dad's been gone since 1991, although it seems like yesterday.

Times like this makes me realize that some of the things that I make a big deal of are not really all that important. I try very hard to let things go and be as they are, but as we all know, that is very difficult in this day and age. But losing someone we care about does bring it all home on how short our time here really is. For instance, everyone's been blogging about how awful winter has been, the huge amounts of snow and the long depressing months of winter. But yet, here it is already March - how that happened I have no idea - and spring is just around the corner. Before you know it, summer will be here and we'll be rushing through another year.

I cannot help but wish that I had some of the years back to live over where I lost precious time with my loved ones, or spent too much time being in a foul mood or feeling sorry for myself for whatever reason. I know I can't get the time back, so maybe from tomorrow on, I'll try to be better about everyday things and work with what I have. I have a framed stitchery that says "For a happy life, want what you have." I'm going to try to do my best to maybe accomplish that in the days to come and making the best of what I have.

I'm 53. I'm not exactly a spring chicken anymore. So if things are going to change, I think I'm probably the only one who can make them change, at least for me.

I'll let you know how that goes...

Blog List

Thanks to those who offered help to get my blog list to appear on my blog. I've added a lot of the blogs I follow per your instructions. The help was great!

Sharon

Help with My Blog

I follow a lot of other blogs, but can't figure out how I get the links with the active posts from those blogs to show up on my blog. Could anyone give me any pointers on this? I think I would have more followers if everyone could see the active posts. But I'll be darned if I can figure it out. I'm not not real savvy with this blog thing, but I've actually managed some things that when I first started out I thought I'd never figure out! So if you want to give me a point or two about this, I'd surely appreciate it. I want my blog to look like others that I follow so when people come to my blog they can click on active posts from other blogs and see what's going on in blogland.

Any help would be so much appreciated.
Sharon

My Surprise Valentine Swap

Yesterday I received a lovely surprise from Jeannie in Florida. She was my recipient in the Valentine swap I recently participated in. She did not have my name in the exchange; someone else did. But that person decided not to follow-through with the swap and didn't mail anything to me. So Jeannie, who I sent my package to, decided I should receive a package so she sent me one. It had the cutest things in it! A great journal with cute charms on the front, a beautiful zippered pouch (both handmade!!), a red and white paisley mug, white chocolate muffin mix with raspberry frosting (OH YUM!) and some jelly bellies! I can't believe how much stuff she sent me and she didn't even have my name in the swap! Unbelievable! Jeannie is a very nice woman who apparently has a huge heart. I can't thank Jeannie enough for making my day, or my week actually!

Starlight Primitives: Meeting New Friends Through My Blog

Starlight Primitives: Meeting New Friends Through My Blog

Meeting New Friends Through My Blog

I recently signed up for my first Valentine swap. I thought it was going to be so much fun - making something handmade and combining it with a few other items to send to someone I didn't know. And then waiting for my package to arrive from the person who had my name. But it was disappointing as apparently the person with my name decided not to participate and therefore I didn't receive a package. I was really bummed. I came home from work every day looking anxiously for my package only to find that it wasn't here. My significant other knew I was very disappointed. I was so pleased with the handmade items that I had sent my exchange person (a penny rug pillow, a wool felt heart ornament and a wool felt pincushion). I've now received an email from Jeannie (my exchange person) about how much she enjoyed the items I made for her. It made me feel so good. I expressed to her that I was glad she enjoyed the items and how much fun I had making them for her. I also expressed the disappointment about not receiving a package from my exchange person.

So Jeannie decides that she will send me a package because she said that was not right that I didn't receive one in return. I cried because I was overwhelmed that someone that I didn't know would be that in tune with my feelings and care enough to do that. What a sweet person! She said she's already mailed the package! I just can't believe it.

And then on top of that cool thing, I won one of the journals from the giveaway from With Thy Needle & Thread! This has turned out to be a good day, even if I did have to stay home from work because of the bad weather here.

So Jeannie, if you read this blog, I've already thanked you once. But thank you again for making my day, maybe even my week.

And thanks to With Thy Needle & Thread for my great new journal!!

Sharon :)

Organizing My Wall of Wool

We have snow today (only about 4 inches, which is not much compared to some who have more than 2 feet). So I'm spending some of my day inside organizing what I call my "wall of wool". Since I've started rug hooking, I've become obsessed with purchasing wool, whether it is on eBay or at thrift stores. I have no idea why I've purchased so much, but I have. I've slacked off some in the buying lately because I have so much of it. I use it for my rug hooking, pillows and ornaments that I make out of wool and wool felt. I sell the pillows at local craft shows.

At any rate, I have the wool organized by color on stackable racks. So I've spent part of the day organizing the wool and putting back the wool that I've pulled out recently to make pillows for the craft shows that I participated in before the holidays.

I'm working on several rugs now, one of which is a white pumpkin with a pumpkin-colored background. I haven't hooked in 4 months or so because I was working on the pillows and ornaments for the craft shows and then the holidays came and things just seem to have been busy lately. And I really like working with the wool felt and making pillows and ornaments. But I'm President of my local rug hooking guild so I need to be hooking.

On another note, I want to get my blog to where I have more followers. So maybe I need to have a giveaway. I'm going to ponder the idea and maybe come up with something handmade to give away. I'm still having trouble getting my blog to look like some of the other blogs that I follow. Maybe I can find a little help to fix it up.

I sent the items to my Valentine swap person from the Irish Rose Creations Valentine swap, but haven't received mine. Hopefully, the person who had my name will remember to send my items. We'll see.

Making Items for My 1st Blog Swap

I recently signed up for a Valentine swap with fellow bloggers. The items that we will be swapping are to have a Valentine's theme and one item is to be handmade. For my fellow swapper, I've made a decorative penny rug pillow in various shades of pink and red, and also a pink wool felt heart ornament. I bought a heart shaped candy dish and am thinking about doing a small stitchery item to add to the box. I've never done a swap before so I hope the items that I plan on including in my swap box will be enjoyable for my swap partner. I'm excited about getting my package from the person who has my name. In this swap, you don't swap with the name of the person you're given. Someone else has my name and will send me a package of stuff. I hope to be in more swaps as I find them on various blogs.

We're expecting snow this weekend here in Indiana so I should be able to get some crafting done this weekend. I've also absolutely positively got to get my craft room cleaned this weekend. Things have gotten out of control. I need to have some organization so I can decide which crafts I'm going to work on next. I'm thinking about signing up for the Wool Crazy Sew Along. I'll need to get the Wool Crazy book so I can follow along with the others in the sew along. I just have to decide if I'm going to join.

I'd also like to see if I can figure out how to list some of my handmade pillows and wool felt ornaments for sale on my blog. Everything on my blog is in a straight line. I've been told that you can click on pictures, etc. and drag them over to the sidebar. I can't get mine to do that. I see other blogs that are so cool and I'm aiming for that.

I'll post a picture of the items that I'll be sending in the Valentine swap. Everything has to be mailed by Monday, February 1. It should be fun!!

Sharon

Pennies and Pillows - 2 of My Favorite Things

I was on another blog tonite and Julie at Bush Baby Jag was talking about cutting out pennies for her penny rug.  Pennies have got to be one of my favorite things.  They are such an uncomplicated thing.  It's very soothing to cut out circles of wool or wool felt in different sizes and then sew them together.  I enjoy making penny rugs and also pillows made from my rug hooking wool and the pennies.  They turn out great and sell very well at local craft shows.  I have a few pictures of some of the pillows and one of the penny rugs that I've done recently here on my blog.  Penny rugs, rug hooking and needle punch are all lost art forms that are making huge come backs.  People everywhere are making penny rugs, taking rug hooking classes and learning to needle punch.  I haven't quite tackled the needle punch thing yet, although I do have many patterns.  I just need to step outside my comfort zone to try one.  Maybe I'll try one this weekend.  It's been a more than crazy week at work and I need some downtime this weekend.  And crafting is just the ticket.

What a Wonderful Day It Was Today

Today I was off from work for Martin Luther King Day.  I woke up with a headache for the 3rd day in a row.  But I had made plans before today to spend time with my son, Adam, whose 27.  So I picked him up and we went to a restaurant called The Butterfly Garden to eat lunch (which is a total chick place to eat).  Once in a while you'll see a guy in there eating, but unfortunately not today - Adam was the only guy there.  But Adam was good about it.  We had homemade soup and a sandwich and good conversation.  We left and went to a local antique mall.  We had a good time looking at a bazillion things in the mall.  We left there and stopped at a peddlers' mall (you know, where there are booths of assorted items for sale - a lot like an indoor yard sale).  Anyway, Adam discovered this one area that had many, many boxes of old LPs.  He rummaged through the boxes and found several cool LPs that he liked.  We walked through the entire peddlers' mall and then stopped next door at a thrift shop.  Lunch had long ago worn off so we stopped at Steak N Shake to eat a bite before I dropped him off at his house.

I'm posting this because it was one of the best days I've had in a while.  The holidays were rough for me, as usual, mostly of my own doing.  In fact, I still have all my Christmas stuff out.  But I wouldn't have traded today for anything.  Adam and I used to be best friends when he was younger.  We had some rough times when he went through his young adult years.  But the last few years have been back to that special relationship we used to have.  I could have stayed home today and taken down all my Christmas stuff or organized my craft room.  But instead I spent the entire day with my one and only son.  Priceless.

Adam, I love you.
Love, Mom

I can't get anything done for blogging...

I haven't posted anything in a while because I can't anything done except blogging!!!  I think I'll get some of my crafts done, but once I get online I go to a bazillion different blogs, sign up for free giveaways, link blogs to mine, etc. and before I know it, I've been online for hours and hours... I guess everyone else does this, too, but OMG!!! I'm never going to get anything done if I don't stay off the computer!!!  I've joined the OPAM (One Project a Month) and here it is already the 17th of the month and I don't have a clue what I'm going to have done this month.  Hello!?!  Today all I did was blog 'cause I had a migraine and didn't feel like straightening up my craft room which is what I told myself I was going to do today.  Well, that didn't happen.  Maybe tomorrow...

If you look at my blog and want to respond, I'd like to tell you about a deceitful woman stealing my money from a craft show.  I was involved in several craft shows in October and November, some of which where I had the booth space by myself with only my items being for sale there and having paid the entire booth rental myself.  Then I met this woman who wanted me to share a booth space for a few shows with her and her friends to cut the cost of the booth rental by dividing it among everyone who had items in the booth.  I thought that sounded like a good idea because the booth rental on some of the shows gets pricey so I thought I'd try it.  It worked OK for a couple of shows.  Then we had this show over Thanksgiving weekend where you don't sit with your items, but you have labels on everything and you pay a commission of the amount of items you sell to the people running the show.  The booth rental was lower so I thought paying the commission wouldn't be that big of a deal.

The problem lies in the fact that the woman that I had met had the booth in her name so the check for the entire booth came to her with my portion of my sales included in the check.  We finally, after much deliberation, decided what my portion of the show should be (around the end of December) and she said she'd mail me my check.  I've yet to see the check which means I not only lost the money I spent on the booth rental and commission, but all the proceeds from my items.  My items were hand sewn pillows and ornaments made of wool felt and my precious wool that I use for rug hooking.  I am very frustrated and angry with this woman for taking my money.  My significant other says she has no intention of paying me.  I've sent her emails saying I'd even come pick up my check, but she doesn't email me back.  I think it's pathetic when I know how hard I worked to make the items and then she doesn't even have the decency to give me my rightful portion of the money.  Next time (not that there will ever be a next time), I'll know better than to ever share a booth with anyone unless it's someone I've known for a long, long time.  How dumb could I be?  Anyway, I'm terribly disappointed that I stayed up late all those hours making all the pillows and ornaments by hand and now I have nothing to show for it.  I just had to vent a little because I feel so used.

My wool felt pillows and ornaments are very cute and sell very well.  I will just have to make more for future shows later this year and will just have to chalk this up to a learning experience.

Thanks for listening.
Sharon

Valentine Swap for Artists or Crafters

I've just joined my first blogger swap for artists or crafters!!  I'm so excited.  These swaps sounds like so much fun.  This one is for Valentine's Day.  The website for the swap is primandwhimsy.com and the deadline to sign up is January 15, 2010.  

I'm having a lot of difficulty understanding the "grabbing" of badges or banners to place on my blog so others can see what I'm interested in or participating in.  If someone wants to help explain this to me, that would be great.  I've tried to search for help on this, but can't really come up with a good answer.  I get the impression that the badges or banners are actually supposed to be links to the sites, but so far I'm not getting that to happen on my website. 

I'm anxious to sign up for other blogger swaps.  There seem to be so many - Easter swaps, harvest swaps, Christmas swaps, secret Santa swaps, and probably many more I haven't explored.  I can't wait!!

If you read this post and want to let me know about a swap for artists or crafters of which you are aware, please let me know.  I'd be glad to check it out.

Sharon

Customizing My Blog

Well, I've already added a border to my blog and it looks so much better!!  I didn't think I could find some of the cute stuff I'd seen on other blogs, but I did!!  So now I need to get some of the blogs that I visit listed on my blog as ones that I "follow" so other bloggers can see my blog when they go to these websites!!  Things are looking up already.

Happy New Year 2010!

Happy New Year to anyone and everyone who reads this blog.

In 2010 I very much want to get my blog up and going so I have people actually reading and enjoying it.  I'm going to start working on the features of my blog and its appearance for those who will log onto it.  I'd also like to participate in some of the "swaps" that I see on other blogs - ornament swaps, pincushion swaps, Secret Santa Christmas swaps, Harvest swaps - just to name a few.  I think the "swaps" would be fun to participate with people that you don't know and it appears that you receive some really great items in the swaps.  I need some instruction on how to improve my blog.  If anyone wants to offer some help in that regard, I'd appreciate any help offered.

So I'm leaving the blog now to work on improving my blog. 
Sharon