Owl Growth Chart #2 Part 2 First Finish of 2016!

Hello everyone!  Oops I didn't mean to wait so long to publish the second half of my Owl Growth Chart for my son... I think this is where I left off.

Adding the pupils made the owls look less menacing...

Daddy owl gets a swing.

I felt like there was so much green in this design!

And here is the finished piece!  I believe I started it on December 12th 2015 and finally finished it on April 4, 2016.  I still haven't fully finished it up to being able to hang it on the wall but I will get to it eventually.  This design did stitch up rather quickly.  I stitched it 3 over 1 on 11 count fabric that came in the kit.  I felt so relieved to get something that I felt obligated to stitch off my list.  Awhile ago I joined the group "Stitch Maynia" on Facebook.  They had two SALs in March one was called Its Not Easy Being Green, where you stitched something green in honor of St. Patrick's Day, and Mostly Monogamous March.  It was nice sharing progress with others and the SALs honestly helped keep me on track to finishing this.  But as I was plugging away at this one I kept dreaming of starting something new just to take my mind off this for a bit.  I didn't give in but the idea of joining in the SAL called Stitch Maynia where you start something new for EVER DAY in May seemed more and more like a fun idea.  Did I really have 31 new starts in May?  You'll have to stay tuned to find out.  Until then...Happy Stitching!

New Start Owl Growth Chart #2 Part 1

Hello out there!  A few of you may remember that I stitched the Owl Growth Chart by Dimensions way back in 2012 for my daughter.  Well since we move around so much I also wanted to do a stitched moveable growth chart for my son as well.  I looked around and couldn't find one that I liked so I decided on redoing the same design I had completed earlier.  I wanted to use different colors though and have them match his baby blanket below.



Since I already had the chart for this from the first time I stitched this design I was hoping to just buy colors to match and find the right size 11 count Aida and that would be all I would have to purchase.  But the crazy thing is that it was less expensive to buy the kit again since the fabric size of the 11 count is so big.  So that's what I did and here is the first half of my progress on this design.







I purchased this needle minder from Gina's Unique Boutique on etsy after Thanksgiving.  I bought it just because I thought it was a great colorful owl and didn't have a project in mind for it.  But maybe subconsciously I bought it because I have been planning to start this one for awhile and it goes perfectly with this design!



This is how far I was when we first moved from the US to Taiwan.  The rest of the pictures were stitched in Asia :)



The big blue "Daddy" owl used up so much floss!  It was three strands to get good coverage on the 11 count and I think I used about two complete spools of floss.


















It seemed like stitching the leaves took forever when I was working on this!  I enjoyed seeing my progress on this but sometimes I really had to make myself stitch this piece.  I think it was because I've felt that I have to get this done for my son because he's already two years old and I did one for my daughter.  I really enjoy stitching but when you feel obligated to stitch it isn't quite as fun.  Here we are at about the halfway point of this project so I'm breaking up this finish into two posts.  Stay tuned for part two and the finished product.  Until then...Happy Stitching!

Grow Your Blog Party and Giveaway!

I decided to join the Grow Your Blog Party at 2 Bags Full at the very last hour.  Really I'm not a procrastinator but I just found out about this fun opportunity.  When I first started this blog I thought maybe a few of my friends or family might follow me but that is about it.  I have been so overwhelmed by the wonderful followers I have met from all over the world, and figured it would be fun to try to meet some more too!

I originally wanted my blog to me mostly pictures and info on cultures I have lived on with some of my craft projects on the side.  But the crafts including cross stitch, cardmaking, and sewing have pretty much taken over.  One of my goals for the new year was to add in more posts from the different places I have visited.  Welcome to the new followers and thank you to my current ones and I hope you all enjoy taking this ride along with me.

A little while back I promised you a giveaway and that is still in the works but for the meantime I am offering a small giveaway for this Grow Your Blog Party event!

Just comment below for a chance to win a cross stitch chart for Mirabilia Designs Cherub Collection by Nora Corbett, and a cute little teal owl wallet!  The chart is perfect to stitch up and make into a Christmas ornament, and the wallet is a gift from me to you in my favorite color teal and my favorite animal that I stitch up quite a bit the owl.  You do not have to be a follower of this blog but be sure to check back on February 1st to see if you are the lucky winner.  Also I will ship it to you wherever you live anywhere in the world :)

Good Luck and thank you for stopping by my blog!

Christmas Crafty Gifts!

I forgot to mention and show some of the beautiful hand knitted items I received from my mom for Christmas and some fun stitching stash!

Here is a beautiful Owl sweater my mom made for me and a yellow "sunshine" cardigan for my little girl, as well as a rainbow hat and socks for her.

You can see the pattern a bit better if you look at the button eyes of the owl.

My mom also made me this beautiful owl knitted ornament.  Unfortunately it was wrapped up in the sweater and when I held it up to me this fell out, but luckily it bounced and did not break!

And here is the Stitching stash I got from one of my Mother In Laws! 
What stash did you all receive?

Glazed and Amused Pottery Painting in Oslo

Last August I organized a small group trip to the local paint your own pottery place in Oslo Glazed & Amused.  I used to go to a studio almost every week for awhile with one of my best friends in the whole world...so I was so excited when I found out that Oslo had a studio like this!

The studio is in a pretty easy to find location in Oslo's Grünerløkka neighborhood which is the student/working class/artsy neighborhood in town.  The owner Thea was very nice and welcoming!   Even though she does not speak very much English, our group still managed to communicate through hand signs pretty well.

Here are some shots of the studio from the interior.

                                                                        

Here is what I ended up making!  The colors are a little different after it was fired but I think you get the idea ;)

It's a trivet with my favorite design of an Owl :)  The experience was really fun and of course it was a bit more expensive than it would be in the US but this is a great activity that one could do on a cold winter day/evening in Oslo!

Fourth Finish of 2012 & Danish and Norwegian Graduation Traditions

My fourth finish so far for 2012 is this very old WIP (work in progress) project.  The summer before I was a senior in College I was lucky enough to get to study abroad for two months with the Danish Institute for Study Abroad (DIS).  The program was very challenging (I was one of very few undergrads) and it was the first time I had ever been outside of the US or Canda all by myself since I was the first person at my college to try out this program.  I could go on and on about the experience and I might later in this blog.

While in Copenhagen one day I discovered a hobby shop and this adorable project somehow wound up coming home with me!  It is a Permin of Copenhagen design that is unnamed but I call it Danish Owl Bell Pull.  The Price tag shows the price as 154 Danish Kroner which at the time seemed expensive but with the exchange rate at that time it came in at about $20 for the complete kit. 

I bought this kit because as I'm sure you can tell by my posts I LOVE OWLS!!  And also it features the owl wearing a Danish Graduation Cap.  As I was in Denmark during the summer I kept seeing so many young people wearing these sailor type hats everywhere.  I figured that it must be something important one day when I was getting on my bus and the driver looked like he was saying something complimentary to a girl and boy wearing them.  I had to know what was the significance so I asked my host-family Dad about it and he gave the me details.  Basically in Denmark the equivalent of High School in the US is very, very difficult and after you pass your exams you receive the cap as a sign of your major achievement.  Also students ride around town on trucks on the way to parties at all of their friends houses to celebrate.  So I bought this kit to remind me of a bit of the Danish culture I saw first hand while there.

I am notorious for starting a project and then leaving it for awhile or a long while as in this one.  I bought it in 2002 and probably started it a year later.  It was left as a WIP until I found it and started working on it sometime last winter.  This is how far I had gotten on it before I picked it up on September 19th and started the final steps to complete it.  On my version I changed the date from my High School Graduation like the cap is intended to my College Graduation Date since I studied in Copenhagen in College.  Also I chose the red band on the cap purely to add some more color to the design.

The Danish Cap reminds me a bit of the whole "RUSS" experience (pronounced roose) in Norway.  Before "High School" students take their final exams they celebrate in many ways for the three weeks before they take the tests.  They wear red or blue overalls that show their field of study for the entire time, are asked to do dares, have cards made with jokes or funny quotes that children like to collect, and do some big partying.  The culmination is on May 17th Norwegian Independence Day where the busses that these kids travel on for the time park on the main streets in Oslo shutting them down and one last big party takes place in the streets.  Here are a few of the busses I saw last year.

Here you can see a bit better the RUSS overalls that the students wear.

I love learning about other cultures and their rite of passage opportunities.  I hope you enjoy seeing my finished project and some photos of my experience in Oslo. 

 Also I am very please with having so many finishes this year.  That was one of the reasons why I decided to start this blog so that I would have some peer pressure to finish up my projects...thank you for your support!



Third Finish of 2012!

My third finished project of the year is the Owl Growth Chart by Dimensions!  I started it on June 13th and finished the stitching on September 18th,  but I finally finished the finishing steps so I can hang it on the wall in my daughters room yesterday!

Here is the finished project though I am not quite happy with the results...

I had been trying to figure out how exactly to finish and hang it for a few weeks and then I thought I solved the problem by sewing on matching ribbon to hang it on a hook until I noticed that it started to curl up that way.  So for now the double hooks are a simple solution until I can figure out how to give it some more stability. 

I am proud of myself for getting this far because usually I tend to abandon a project just before the stitching is done, let alone if it needs some finishing steps like this one.


This is definitely the largest project I have ever stitched measuring in at 9" x 40" (22 cm x 101 cm) though not the biggest in terms of stitches.  One challenge has been that it was a little too big to use a hoop or frame for stability, so I stitched it all just holding onto the fabric.  That was a bit difficult at times but it all worked out and I don't feel that the fabric got stretched out by this method. 

Also I am proud that I got this larger project completed in only 3 months with my much limited time to stitch. 

I can't wait until my little girl's next Dr. appointment when I can add in her new height measurement!

Friday Progress Photos, Card Making Fun

Hello out there!  So I don't really have progress photos because I finished the two cross stitch projects I had been successively working on.  However I am still trying to complete all of the finishing on them and I plan to add pics of that when I am done.

This week I hosted a monthly get together of ladies who like to craft and share some wine.  I am thankful that I got to host because now I am enjoying the fruits of my labor of a nice clean house!  Also it got me back in touch with an old favorite craft of Stamping and Card Marking!

Here are the 4 cards I designed for the demo activity part of the night.

I used mostly Stampin Up stamps and punches, and the Owl card was made using the Hoot 'n Holler Cricut Cartridge.  I came up with the Christmas theme for the cards mostly so I could start thinking ahead about Christmas and the Holidays this year.

Here are some of the beautiful, creative variations made last night!

And here is the Owl image I cut to show off what the Cricut can do to those who had never seen one in action!  It is from the October 31st Cartridge.

And the best result of the night besides the great company was that my little girl finally slept ALL NIGHT LONG!!!  She hasn't done that in 4 months and I was unbelievably grateful for the extra sleep last night!

Happy Friday!