Stitching plans :)

Good afternoon. It's been a quiet weekend here especially after our week of rain from the tropical storm that swept through the Gulf Coast. I think the majority of the coast had forgotten about tropical storms and hurricanes since we have been lucky enough to not have any major storms for the last couple of years.

I know I had forgotten how boring and mentally draining the rain can be, at least with tropical storms/depressions. For some reason, there is rarely any thunder or lightning with those systems.....I don't know why. It makes the storms a bit unnatural.....at least for those of us in the south because we are used to summer storms with thunder and lightning. To not experience it with tropical weather is bizarre.

It was raining just a tiny bit yesterday, but I still managed to get my errands done. I dropped off books at the library (in the book slot instead of waiting for them to open....which would mean checking out books instead of reading what I had at home O-o"), went by the post office to mail off a tiny envelope package to Amanda, and then headed off to Hobby Lobby.

After all these years of having a Hobby Lobby, it still cracks me up that they start putting their fall stuff up in June/July and by July/August, they have their Christmas things up as well. (I won't complain about the fall things because it's my favorite time of year and it makes me think of pleasant weather....even when it's 90+ outside and humid.

While browsing through their fall section, I noticed these adorable turkey buttons. I ended up taking a photo and sending it to my friend Kristina because their little picket signs are hilarious! I think it would be cute to make a cross stitch design with a few fall motifs with the lettering 'Presidential Turkey Pardon' and then put those buttons underneath the lettering.

Makes you wonder if Trump will do the turkey pardon this year. He doesn't seem to care for tradition in the White House so who knows if he'll do it or not?!

Since it's almost July, it got me thinking about my stitching plans for after the end of July when I'll be free of crocheting for the convention my sister and I are attending in New Orleans.

The first item on my agenda is finishing Afternoon in London by Country Cottage Needleworks. (I apologize for the horrible photos.....my cell camera doesn't like overhead lighting....and I've got shadows all over the place!)

I left off with the buildings finished in the pattern. I need to work on the double deckers and other motifs in the pattern and then move on to the lettering. I love working on that pattern....it's very soothing, but it makes me miss living in England.

Another pattern I would love to start and finish this year is the Cinderella Sampler by Willow Hill Samplings. I had bought this pattern on eBay earlier this year...............prior to stumbling across their Etsy shop. The owner of the company got rid of her website and as far as I know doesn't sell hard copy patterns in needlework shops anymore; and moved onto Etsy instead where she sells digital patterns and a few hard copies.

She has a few other fairy tale patterns which I will definitely buy....my second favorite is her Little Mermaid pattern. Loreta at All the Beautiful Things blog had stitched the mermaid pattern a few years ago and I fell in love with it.

This is another pattern I would love to continue to stitch. I have already finished the Neapolitan girl, the strawberry girl, and the green tea girl. I really want to finish stitching the last two girls in the series.

I love Soda Stitch designs. They are super cute, full of vibrant colors, and the backstitching involved adds a lovely dimension to each design as it's completed.

I am hoping I can find some cute frames for the designs. I would love to frame them in either an oval or circular Rococo/Baroque filigree sort of frame. I have seen a few such frames at Hobby Lobby, but they aren't big enough for the designs. I might have to search on the Internet until I can find something :)

The last pattern I'd like to continue stitching on is the Cottage Cakes by Country Cottage Needleworks. I have finished the blueberry cake and the cherry cake....I would love to finish the other cakes in the series :)

In other related stitching news, I've been watching a bunch of Flosstube videos.....mainly Floss Candy, msleftwich, CoffeeStitcher, and A Delcat Stitches. Since I'm trying to crochet amigurumis during my down time from work, I can't watch their videos all the time.....I mostly wait until after dinner before watching a few videos.

I love seeing what everyone is working on. A Delcat Stitches makes me want to buy more Soda Stitch patterns. She has some seriously cute designs that she has stitched.......but I gotta resist the temptation to go out and buy a bunch of patterns since I have some I'd like to finish first :)

In non-stitching news, work is just work.....I don't like my assistant. She's nice, but there's something about her that I don't like and I can't put my finger on why. We started our main project this week and on the second day she started mentioning interns. I tried to calm her down and tell her that we weren't even a week into our project and that if we were going to do it the way we were told to do it, it was going to take time. So we shall see what happens.

I need a break......so I'm actually happy for the end of July when my sister and I go to New Orleans even though it will be hectic like all conventions are, but at least it isn't real work......which has caused me to have a serious burnout....which isn't good because I need to stay in my field for another 8 years to pay off student loans.................the loan gods are cruel.

On that note, I hope everyone has a great week. Remember to Stay Calm and Carry On! (I'll try to keep that in mind as well!)

Until next time ^____^