February 2007 - Pretty in Pink

Betsey Johnson

Featured in this month’s House and Garden, the stylish, Betsey Johnson. They show you some real neat items in her Manhattan apartment. Its quite obvious how she has incorprated her unique style into her living quarters. She is full of life and i admire her creativity. She definately has a thing for mixtures of modern and vintage pieces. Quite similar to my own table designs. (www.madebygirl.com) Take a look at more: www.houseandgarden.com

MILF

I am a member of Lotta's MILF group but haven't done a post about it before.
I have been eating better but this week something clicked and I have started exercising. I have been walking with a very fit friend who has pushed me into doing way more than I thought I was capable of! I feel much better for it. I don't want to weigh myself as I am worried that it will discourage me.

This is pretty much how I look.

This is how I would like to look.

Happy Dance!!

The over one stitching is done and so is all of the regular stitching!!! *happy dance* This is my first finish of 2007. Next step is to make it into a flat fold *shudder* LOL. I have a week off from work in March but many of the days are already planned so not to sure if I can do it then...well enjoy the picture, also included are pictures of Ana. Tonight is my only night off in between my work days and I haven't slept yet so off to bed I go - if I can resist the urge to look through my stash and find my next project!

Fond Hearts - Blackbird Design
Stitched on 30ct Winter Frost by R&R Reproductions
Using all recommended WDW threads

The top two pictures are of Ana in her coat in the snow - I practically had to push her out the door to take these pictures.

This is Ana's "is she done yet?" look.

I never get a good picture of her actually sitting and looking at the camera so today after I took off her coat she decided to "pose" for me :-)

Latest Ebay Finds

After the huge purchase of the quilt my auction buys have been pretty tame the past two weeks!

This is another Josef girl for my collection. Just loved the colours of her dress.

This is a Royal Vale plate I bought to complete a trio. I need to find another plate as I have another cup and saucer in this pattern.

Another piece of my beloved Alfred Meakin "Elegance". It comes in six colours and this is my FIRST piece of green. I have them all now except lilac which is as rare as hens teeth.

Ok, i think i’m in LOVE….

With Nate Berkus. His site is so inspirational and he is ‘gorgeous’ !! Well girls, see for yourselves, he has been on many shows including Oprah. His portfolio is so amazing and every picture draws you in to want more. His style is one of my favorites! See Nate’s website: www.NateBerkus.com

Some Stuff

I had planned to stitch all day but, of course, whenever I plan something it never goes in that direction. So instead of stitching I went to cut my hair. I had to fight with the lady to cut my hair shorter than she wanted to. I don't know what's wrong with these people sometime. My hair grows back very fast and whenever I go to get it chopped off their eyes get huge like saucers and ask me why...and you know what's funny? She ended up cutting it shorter than what I wanted LOL. Right after I went to buy a bigger TV for my bedroom - I'm upgrading from a 13" to a 23" but am still contemplating IF I should just get a 32" for my bedroom, it's only $200 more but I don't know if I have the room for it. I guess once the TV comes in I'll decide. I also went coat shopping for Ana, we got Kyle a coat last week and I just don't think it's fair for him to have one and not Ana. She doesn't go out for long periods of time like Kyle and really doesn't need one but I got it for her anyway. It's red and is trimmed in silver reflector, it looks very nice on her. I also got her a new leash and collar to match - I'll take a picture of her once I get home to my camera.

The over one stitching isn't as bad as I thought. It's going much quicker than I thought it would. I did get to stitch this morning before I left the house, but last night is when I made a real dent into the wording. I know I said last picture would be the last "progress" picture but I just have to share...I think progress pictures really help me out and give me that extra push I need to finish things. Sorry for the crappy picture but I had to scan it since I'm not home.

I also made a beaded scissor fob tonight :-) Annette made me one for Christmas and I loved it so much that I wanted another one hehe. The beads I got at AC Moore and the lobster claw clasp I got off of Ebay. It's too small to go onto my Gingher Scissors (it's 16mmx8mm) so I don't know what to do with it...do I give it away or do I buy a smaller pair of scissors?? I think it would look nice on the Dovo Ladybug scissor, no? The little charms I also got at AC Moore and they say Imagine, Live, Laugh.

Well I'm off to sleep for a little while. I've been having a hard time staying up at work so I'm trying to do something new with my sleep schedule so I can stay up at work again. TTYL :)

Random Post

We are feeling much better today and the kids are FINALLY back at school. Also, I identified the little toerag that passed on this hideous illness. I know that it is not the kids fault - in my opinion the parents should get their kids to wash their hands more often.
Still, I felt murder in my heart as I gazed on the one that caused me to vomit more than I did in both my pregnancies. Combined.

I moved my beloved raggy ebay quilt to the other couch. Much better as it is the first thing you see when you walk into the room! The pale green euro pillow case was also a recent ebay buy. It is made of the softest velvet with a sweet ruffle.

Another page from one of my interior decorating scrapbooks. Isn't the old kitchen dresser to die for? Same Cath Kidston mugs as mine and I would love to have that Kidston wall paper! It would make a wonderful backing for a china cabinet or dresser. Wish they sold the wallpaper by the meter.

The Josef Originals collection has a new member, the pale blue dressed blonde with the white hood on the second shelf. If you click on any of my pictures you will get a much larger view!

Still A Bollywood Chick

I love the bollywood look, my last house was very much in this style. The bright colours are gorgeous - fuchsia pink and turquoise blue were the two I mostly used. Here is a page from my scrapbook circa the mid to late nineties.

I found this oriental chintz statue which has the same pattern as the large vase next to it. Just a touch of bollywood for my shabby chic home!

Easter Inspiration

Whole family sick with gastro, a horrible weekend! I did manage to crawl into work yesterday and bought some Easter decorations at Bed, Bath & Table next door. They also had some pale green with pinkish roses tableclothes. I bought a napkin to trial it in the room, see if it works.
Anyway, still feeling nauseous so here are some pretty pictures that have inspired my Easter decorating.

Lazy Weekend

I finally got two days to myself to sit around and do nothing. I sort of enjoyed it but at the same time I got antsy, maybe I'm one of those people that need to do something. I did go to Target today to buy some things that I thought I needed but when I got there I realized I don't need anything LOL. I did return my humdifier to Bed, Bath, and Beyond, the digital one that I bought the other days was just too complicated for me so I exchanged it for a manual one which is working just fine now.

I stitched for the most part of the day, I stopped to blog a little because I'm getting to the point where all that over 1 stitching comes into play and I hate that it takes so long to do so I'm procrastinating. Here's the last progress pic I offer...after this hopefully the next picture you see is of it finished :-)

I ordered a bunch of goodies from the market and am waiting impatiently for them to come in. Thankfully I ordered from DSL so my things should be here this week. I love Amy for that reason alone hehe. Too bad Monday is a holiday :-(
My cousin is here spending my lazy Sunday with me, we've seen two movies together and now we're listening to John Mayer. I love that I'm close with my cousins! There's always someone to hang out with at times. Well I'm off to go back to my stitching.

Favorite Colour Swap

Favorite Color Swap Questionnaire

1. What are your top three favorite colors? Pink of course! Then pale green and aqua blue.

2. What crafts do you really enjoy? Art more than craft - I like to paint.

3. What products do you really covet? Anything vintage and pink for the home, particularly the kitchen. Bonus if it has roses on it!

4. What other activities do you enjoy besides your favorite crafty things? Thrift shopping and home decorating.

5. Is there anything you collect? Enesco Prayer Ladies, Josef Originals Girls, various china patterns.

6. What is your zodiac sign and/or Chinese zodiac symbol? Virgo

7.What are your favorite…

…scents/smells? Babies, coffee, cut grass, rain, money, new car.

8.…animals? Birds and cats

…places to shop? Thrift shops

…season? Spring or Autumn

9. Are you allergic to anything? No

10. Do you have any pets? What are they? One cat - Tom.

Happy (Late) Valentine's Day!

I just realized I didn't wish everyone a Happy V-Day yesterday - please forgive me! Well I didn't think my gathering would have been so nice but honestly, I think everyone had a good time. We ate and played pictionary which is always fun. First guests arrived at 6pm and the last one left at midnight. I was hoping it would have been over before then but it was fun so I didn't mind. Ana had a ball! With over 15 people here to pet her she was in Ana Heaven! I have pics of course and have put them in a slide show so ENJOY! Oh here are some single pics of Ana also - accidentally she matched the tablecloth which was nice. :-)

Ana with her V-Day outfit

Ana begging for whatever it is my dad is eating. You can also see how the kitchen/dining area looks before the decorations were added.

It sounds bad out there!

I woke up to crunching noise this morning...I was hoping it didn't get too bad because I'm having a small dinner gathering at my house tonight and if the weather is bad well all that's going to be here is me, my parents, Ana, and a lot of food!

I slept all day yesterday - we were suppose to watch The Departed on DVD last night but it ended up being the guys watching it while it watched me. I was so cold last night that I had Ana lay on top of me on the couch - literally! She got tired of it though and left me twice but when we went to bed guess who wanted to snuggle? I surprised I was able to take her weight while sleeping, she likes to believe she's a little lap dog but she's about 54lbs and is so oblivious to it.

I woke up early enough to do some last minute preperations but with this weather all I want to do is stay in bed and stitch. I may just lounge here for a little while longer, we'll see.

I had to put my Roots concert tickets on Ebay this morning, I can't make the show :-( So if you're from NYC or will be in NYC on Sunday March 11th, are reading this, and like the Roots check out the auction. I put them at a discount because I really don't want to lose all the money I spent on them - a little money I don't mind :-) TTFN and stay warm and safe!

Cross your heart….

New Table Design in my collection just in time for Valentines Day- this one is simply called ‘CROSS’. Pls feel free to send me your comments and let me know what you think. Also, if you want to feature any of my tables on your BLOG pls email me. This design is currently available for purchase. Happy LOVE day!! www.MadeByGirl.com

An Update

I've been trying to stitch as much as I can, believe me I have but it seems like something always pops up. I had 4 days off last week and although I stitched I don't think I stitched enough. Yesterday was my only day off (this month's schedule sucks!) so today I'm busy running errands and then I *must* take a nap before going to work since I'm up so early. I wouldn't really need a nap if I'd be able to take my break at work but the last 2 nights they have been leaving only 2 nurses on the floor due to the census being too low and I wouldn't like to be left on the floor with 16 pts to my self so I wouldn't do it to anyone else...

Last night before I pulled out my stitching my cousin called to tell me my other cousin was in the ER so of course my stitching took a backseat and off we went to the ER. My cousin is ok - some kids tried to take his iPod and one of them punched him in the nose so they thought it was broken. I did stitch a little while in the waiting room but not as much as I would have had I been home. My plan to stitch once I got home was ruined since as soon as I got comfy in the bed to stitch I fell asleep hehe. Anyway enough of my complaining of not being able to stitch. I have to wash my hair so in that 90 minutes of waiting for it to dry enough so that I can go out I'll stitch :-) I have my next project lined up - I should stitch on Dollhouse next but this one is small enough where it won't take too much time away from DH. Did anyone see the picture of BNs new Christmas House?!?!? I think it's toooooo adorable and I really don't "do" Christmas designs.

Anyway here's my progress on BBDs Fond Hearts

Maybe I can finish it in 2 weeks...my plans for it are to make it into flatfold BUT I'm going to try to make it myself ha!

Got My Quilt!

And it is to DIE for!!!
It is big enough to use as a bedspread but I have it on my couch at the moment. As you can see, I also have a pink sari tucked around the seats as my kids are absolutely wrecking this couch!

I got the gold scrolly coffee table from a church op-shop for $15 last Tuesday.

Here are a couple of the cushions I received with the quilt. All of it was lovely, am very happy with this purchase!

Pink & Brown Swap

Here is the parcel of pink and brown goodness I got from Rebecca in our fab pink and brown swap.
Even the tissue paper and ribbons wrapping it all were pink and brown with cute polka dots!