Livin' La Needle Loca

 ...slow progress on the studio, so I'm still cross stitching. It's been a long haul with the studio. We started work on December 8th. We knew it was going to take longer than our previous remodel because we were adding a bathroom, but this is going on longer than expected. The good news is that they have passed every inspection - underground plumbing, above-ground plumbing, insulation, and sheet rock. They have installed the new slider, the pocket door for the bathroom, and the new exterior door. They have taped the walls and put on the edging. The room is shaping up, but a few weeks away from being done. Sigh. I'm cycling between Morgana (Mirabilia mermaid) and Stay Warm (which I keep calling Keep Warm by accident). Here's what Stay Warm looks like today: I may switch over to spinning again because I'm getting tired of cross stitching. I really want to quilt or do some finishing work. I just don't have enough room to do quilting in the house. As for th...

 ...still all cross stitch around here.  I'm alternating between the mermaid (Morgana) and the Barbara Ana piece (Stay Warm). Morgana is getting more play, but it's slow going.  Now that I've finished replacing the awful pooling of the Waterlilies Fir section, I'm working on other portions of the tail. I still hate the Waterlilies Fir color--it makes that portion of the piece look dull compared to the rest of it. It makes the piece less interesting for me to work on. I wish I could come up with an alternative for it. Sigh. WIPs Roll Call Worked On: Keep Warm (cross stitch) Working on the face. Morgana (cross stitch) Working on the outer tail fins. No Work This Week: California Red Poppy Handspun (spinning) [ Ravelry ]  My Recipes (cooking)  Website (other)  Queued for Starting Moon Lets Sun Shine (or Luna y Sol) quilt (quilting) Ready for Finishing: Finishing work for some old crewe...

 ...and there are more flowers blooming in our garden! This is our garden path right now with the nasturtiums going crazy: The amaryllis is still going strong: The Marc Chagall rose is setting more blooms:  And a Dutch iris has appeared near the kitchen:

...and it's all cross stitch all week. I was having problems with my floor stand not staying together properly. It's over 25 years old and the wood screw connectors are loosening up, making the stand tilt more than it should. The Husband bought some epoxy and glued the worst offending connector to its wood part. While it was drying, I started a smaller cross stitch projects. This is Keep Warm, another Barbara Ana design. It's a free chart and so far it's going well. WIPs Roll Call Worked On: Keep Warm (cross stitch) Started 2/26 Morgana (cross stitch) Still working on the tail fins. No Work This Week: California Red Poppy Handspun (spinning) [ Ravelry ]  My Recipes (cooking)  Website (other)  Queued for Starting Moon Lets Sun Shine (or Luna y Sol) quilt (quilting) Ready for Finishing: Finishing work for some old crewel pictures (sewing) August 1997 Hat-of-the-Month (cross stitch) Bring Us ...

...and the garden is finally coming alive! We have yellow freesias Red freesias Apricot blossoms Nectarine blossoms For Christmas, my Aunt sent an amaryllis gift from Harry and David. The bulbs were barely peaking out of the soil when I received them. I've been babying them in the kitchen ever since. Anyone who really knows me understands that I don't do well with plants. The Husband is the gardener because I tend to kill everything. I managed to keep these bulbs alive and they finally bloomed this week! After keeping them in the kitchen for another couple of days, we moved the container to the backyard, where I can see them from the bedroom window.

 ...and I just today realized that I hadn't posted it. Oops! Finished: 1/3 To All a Good Night (cross stitch) 1/12 Primrose Path mini(cross stitch)  1/15 Cherub Garden mini (cross stitch)  1/16 Gladiolus Handspun (spinning) [ Ravelry ] Merino-bamboo-silk (4 oz.) from Greenwood Fiberworks 200.5 yds. chain-ply, 13 WPI 1/21 Bring Us Good Cheer ornament (cross stitch)  1/31 Melt the ICE Hat (knitting) [ Ravelry ]  Books: Witch on Probation, Kim Richardson Veiled Justice, Heather G Harris Mystic Justice, Heather G Harris Starlight at Midnight, Katie Winters Magical Misconduct, Kim Richardson Arcane Justice, Heather G Harris Witch Under Fire, Kim Richardson Beach Cove Home, Nellie Brooks Beach Cove Inn, Nellie Brooks Beach Cove Sisters, Nellie Brooks Beach Cove Secrets, Nellie Brooks Tears of the Falls, Elle Gray Shadow Witch, Kim Richardson No One Knew, Kendra Elliot Son Shine, Hope Callaghan...