The Essentials

Yesterday Sharon (Daffycat) shared her essential stitching items on her blog and asked to see what other stitchers couldn't live without.

Here's the "must have's" on my list.


A hoop - I use a hoop for my larger projects, I have 4, 6 and 8 inch hoops. For smaller pieces, like ornaments, I usually stitch in hand.

Scissors and fob - I like to use my fob (this one received from Nita in an exchange) as a pincushion for my needle too when I have to put it down for a minute or two. I also have a little pair of scissors that fit into my container for "stitching on the go". Unfortunately, I don't have a "real" pair of embroidery scissors, but maybe Santa will help me out with that this year!

TUSAL container - must keep all those thread clippings!!

Little pot - since I only add thread clippings to my TUSAL container, I keep this cute little striped pot nearby. It will hold everything from fabric remnants & DMC bands to snack wrappers :)

Floss organizers - I use two systems to hold floss for my current projects. I'll either use a floss tag (this one from Theresa in an exchange) or this blue container my mom found at the dollar store. I love this little divided container, I can hold threads for multiple projects all in one place!

Pill bottle - this fits just perfect inside my little blue container and is where I keep spare needles.


Well, there you have it! What are the items you can't live without??

What a Weekend!

This was the craziest weekend we'd had in awhile! Are you ready???

Friday night was hockey. Saturday morning was hockey. Then again before lunch. Then Saturday night. Then again on Sunday afternoon. And a meeting for bingo (for the hockey club of course) Sunday morning! Ahhh, such is the life we lead :)

But on top of it all, my oldest was in a dance convention all weekend, 8 hours on Saturday and 8 hours on Sunday. The exciting part of her weekend was...


That's Peter (the tapper from this year's SYTYCD) and Taylor (Season 2 SYTYCD Canada)! They were at convention as instructor's this year. My girl was over the moon, especially for Peter. Tap is her favorite class, and what teenager wouldn't love to meet him anyways! LOL! Katee was there as well, what a star studded weekend!

Well, after all of that, there wasn't much in the way of stitching happening. I did manage to put a little time into BoInk on Sunday, here's my progress:


I finished off the left cross & did a wee bit more of the black border on the bottom motif.

Well, that's it folks and thanks for stopping by! Oh, and thank you so much for all the love on the needlebook in my last post! I enjoy reading all your comments :)

TTE Needlebook for Mary

Mary sent me an email yesterday letting me know that the needlebook I stitched her for a recent Tiny Treasures exchange had arrived. So, without further ado....

Count Your Blessings
Lizzie*Kate
freebie found here

I'm so glad you like it Mary! I hope your needles enjoy their new home :)

Have a great weekend!

Update Time!

It's already time for another TUSAL update... wow, this month has flown by!


As you can see by the TUSAL pic, there's been BoInk progress (finally)! I've been missing my regular Sunday stitch sessions, but on the last two Sunday's only one of the kids has had hockey, or they've been at the same time and DH and I have headed off in seperate directions with kids & gear in tow. As a result, there's been more time spent working on BoInk.


Sorry for the crappy pic... trying to figure out how to take good pictures of this one, especially now that it's so much bigger!

And there's been many hours spent at the rink over the last couple of months, which means there's been crocheting happening. There's been a few more rows added to this afghan, I think I'm about three rows away from a happy dance! The only part I'm dreading now is weaving in all the ends... I don't know why I never do them as I go along, I always wait until the end!


Have a wonderful week and Happy Stitching!

Lest We Forget

BeCause it's Pink from Jean

I stopped by the post office tonight and picked up my BeCause it's Pink exchange from Jean. Jean chose to stitch Lizzie Kate's Peace, Love and a Cure for me and finish it into a pillow. Jean picked the perfect design for me, this one has been on that never-ending list of patterns to stitch since I first laid eyes on it!!


Jean also included a few yummy goodies:


Thank you so much Jean, this beautiful pillow will have a special place in my home :)

BeCause it's Pink for Stacy

I always feel a little anxious when I send a parcel out the door. I want it to get there in an instant so I know it's safe!! So much relief was felt when I heard from Stacy this morning that she received the HoE beCAUSE it's Pink exchange I sent her.

I chose to stitch Ink Circles Breast Cancer Awareness Ribbon Mandala and finish it into a needlebook for Stacy. Freebie can be found on the Ink Circles site here.

The front:


The inside:


And the goodies:


This was the first time I have tried finishing something as a needlebook and was so excited when it turned out as it did. I think this piece has become my favorite finish ever!

Enjoy Stacy, I'm so glad you like it!!

Truly Blessed!!

Halloween has just passed, and yet it's felt like Christmas around here!!

Recently, Cameo was having a massive chart giveaway and I was fortunate enough to win two (two!) of her daily drawings.



Thank you so much Cameo, it was fun!! I can't wait to stitch these up, especially the basket & accessories!