The prize that nobody won

It is a truth universally acknowledged that the behaviour of a male -- either human or animal -- improves after the loss a certain part (or should I say two certain parts?) of their anatomy. They mellow. That's what they told me.

It is also a truth universally acknowledged that universal truths do not apply in the life of Annemarie de Vries. In my life, said males go stark-raving berserk and leave a trail of ruin and breakage. A heart (in the human male's case), and pottery, crockery, pretty little glass lamps, Jim Shore ornies and brand new sweaters in the animal's case, all within a week (well, not the heart). When I got home from my parents' this evening, this is what I encountered:

In my absence Pantoef must have searched the internet (the laptop showed the Wikipedia entry for Interrogation Practices. Thank goodness he didn't get as far as 'Chinese water torture' or what have you). I see a pattern developing, and it's not a pattern I like.

Now, cross stitch patterns I DO like, and what do you think I did? I just went ahead and ordered them. All of them. Including the new Goode Huswife Colonial Garden Book and the Just Nan Hootzi Humbug including the pin, because obviously, nobody could ever be happy again without it. Certainly not me.

I really must apologise for that silly competition I held last week. It was not a ploy to lure you to the comment section or anything, honestly. I really did think there would be one or two of you who would guess correctly. The thing is, I do really have a finished little something lying around doing nothing. Here it is:

My Favorite Kitten by Primitive Betty', stitched on 30 count Iced Cappuccino with the recommended DMC threads. I used the blue fabric you see in the background for the back and I did primitive-looking cross stitches in coffee-dyed DMC cotton thread all around the edge. The filling consists of birch shavings and the kitty smells heavenly of wood and coffee.

Don't you just luuuurve these primitive style finishes? They're a brilliant way to disguise the fact that you're a lousy sewer, although I must admit I found it quite difficult to go all primitive and not try to be as neat as possible (I'm a bit obsessively compulsively disordered of a perfectionist when it comes to my stitches).

Howsoever that may be, this little kitty is looking for a new home, and if you want to provide her with one the only thing you have to do this time is leave a comment to this post. I will announce the winner next Thursday (October 8th). Tell you what: if you win, I'll throw in the real life kitty, too. It's either that or the vivisectionist for him.

Yours torturedly,

Annemarie.

And the winner is...

Thank you for entering the -- was it a contest? I suppose it was. Thank you for entering, also to the newbies. The winner, ladies and gents, is...

...absolutely bloody no-one. Not a single one of you guessed the project I started as soon as I was done drooling over my new stash. This is both saddening and uplifting to me: saddening because, apparently, despite all of these years of blogging in which you would hope to build up a certain bond with your reading public, not a single reader (not even my supposed best friend, who has known me for close to twenty years) knows me well enough to know the mysterious ways in which my mind works. On the other hand, if you like the glass-half-full approach (which I happen to do), you could say that I'm not as predictable as I tend to think I am.
My new start, honeybuns, is this one:

The latest BBD Loose Feathers design, called Summer Basket. Check last post's pictures: it's there. You didn't see that one coming, did you? Well, obviously not. Would you like to know what my erstwhile best friend said when I disclosed the answer on the phone earlier this week?
'You're strange'. Which is what she tells me at least once a week anyway, so that's why I thought... Oh, never mind. At least I can keep all of my stitchy things for myself :o)

The reason for my change of heart (remember I told you I didn't like the new Loose Feathers design?) remains a mystery, even to me. All I know is that the same thing happened with Rites of Spring, and you can see what that led to in my side-bar :o) I suppose that, after all of that (very yummy) dark green of Salem Remembered and the almost sinful pleasure it gave me to work on it, I just felt like working with some pastel colours. Once I saw Summer Basket's pastel colours scattered on that Baby Breath linen and exchanged a very Pink Brandy from the kit for a very Brandy Brandy from my stash, I was hooked. The picture doesn't do the colours any justice at all, nor does the picture on the cover of the chart (see, Gio, I had already figured that out!)
There's also a gift in the making (though not for any of you, strangers that you are), but obviously, I can't show that one yet. Actually, it is for someone who visits this blog and who leaves comments, too, but she was wise enough to refrain from guessing :o)

In case you were wondering, Pantoef is doing fine. The information that he is now bollock-less hasn't reached his brains yet and he still terrorises the household with his wild and wicked ways, only now he has added climbing and simultaneously eating my plants to his repertoire and he takes even more delight in climbing my legs (either clothed or bare). I've given up on the no-cats-on-the-kitchen-counter rule, because I work from home and I can't afford to get up every two seconds to wield the plant spray only to be rewarded with a scornful look and something that I can only describe as a defiant grin.

In the almost words of the great Spinster Stitcher: Damn cat.

Yours unpredictably,
Annemarie.

At last!

Well, honeybuns, how have you been? I hope you've been doing better than I have, but we're not going to discuss that either here or now. Or ever, really. So if you have an inquiring mind, you're in the wrong place. Unless of course your inquiries are stitch or cat-related, in which case you have come to the perfect (or possibly purrfect) place.

First of all -- and I know this will come as a complete shock to you -- I have made some progress on Noah. *Gasp*. I know.
Before:

After:
It's quite possible that Noah will have to live with only half a coat for the rest of this stocking's life, because I can't even bear to look at the colour 832 anymore. Therefore, I've decided to finish his arm and mitten and the peacocks, and then move on to the stocking's nether regions, where the fun starts with all the beasties.

Dear reader, look away now if you have a feeble constitution and there's only a limited amount of excitement you can handle, for I have two finishes to share. Behold:

Salem Remembered by The Primitive Needle, stitched with the Silk 'n' Colors the design called for, on 40 count pfprrrrrrplplpl linen (sorry. I can't recall the name)

AND:
The Second Angel Sampler by Kathy Barrick -Dieter, stitched on 28 count coffee-dyed and microwave-baked white linen, with the required DMC threads.

Both of these gorgeous, gorgeous pieces are at the framer's even as we write and read. Oh, they were such a joy to stitch. Would you believe it took me longer to finish the wee angel than that huge, 100 x 341 Salem sampler? I'm so into anything Lisa from The Primitive Needle designs. Have you seen her latest? Aren't they all to die for? This is going to be one hell of an expensive year for stitchers like me, with the Goode Huswife Colonial Garden book coming out, and Bent Creek coming up with all of these cute new designs after a couple of years of the blahs (IMHO), and now these lovelies by The Primitive Needle.

Speaking of stitchy goodness, I got some stash:

All of the BBD stockings are an absolute must-have for me, so I'm thrilled with these. I wasn't so happy with the latest Loose Feathers, though.

Hurray, hurray, my newest Primitive Needle! I adore it.

So, what do you think I did right after I was done fondling these new charts? The first person to guess correctly gets a hand-stitched gift from me. Shouldn't be too difficult if you know me, so hurry and take a guess. If there is a lucky winner, I will announce said winner next Thursday, October 1st, on this here blog.

***

Pelle is at school, and doing well. Pantoef, on the other hand, isn't enjoying life so much right now, poor thing. On Saturday, he learnt that you can't go about trying to catch just any insect you take a fancy to. Those mean, yellow and black striped zoomie creatures STING. Poor Pantoef never jumped so high in his life. Thankfully, after a couple of hours of feeling very sorry for himself, he was back to his old very active and playful self. Sunday wasn't much better though, because necessity compelled me to leave him alone all day, and when I got back I gave him a bath (yes, I do wash my cat, and no, I don't mind cat owners who think that's an insult to our feline companions. I just like it when he's so soft and shiny and smells like almond oil). And who could resist this slightly miffed looking creature looking up at them?

But Pantoef's day today is even less fun than Saturday and Sunday combined, because at this very moment, Pantoef is at the vet's having his balls cut off. I don't think he's going to be very pleased when he gets home (he should've listened to my father, who told him that any man coming near me loses his balls at some point) (which is complete bollocks, of course, because unless there's something he hasn't shared with me, I can't recall anything dreadful happening to his, or my brother's, or Pelle's).

Good grief, how did we get from talking about stitchy goodness to discussing a certain part of the male anatomy? I shall ponder this question whilst enjoying my coffee and my new stitchy start. Don't forget the contest, now!

Yours ponderingly,
Annemarie.

*Edited to add: thank you for the ladies who have taken a guess already. You are all right. I was actually hoping you could be a bit more specific? Like: which design do you think I started? You have to do a bit of work if you want to win something, you know :o))

The Colour Ouch

It's been exactly one week since my previous post, and boy, what a week it was. Pelle has been very ill, with the same sort of creepy crawly infection that landed him in the hospital at the start of this year. Thankfully, I remembered the symptoms all too well, so this time it was nipped in the bud before it could do too much damage. After that, of course, it was Mama's turn. I came down with an infection which makes my face look like a botox experiment gone horribly wrong and which gives my right leg a shade of colour GAST and Weeks Dye have yet to come up with (I was thinking something along the lines of Pimplepurple with Green Dots). But at least the 40 degree C/104 degree F is now only a faint memory, and I think, this evening, I will finally be able to get back to this baby:

As you see, I'm really enjoying this sampler...

Noah, not so much.

And since I have nothing further to tell you, I'm going to show you a smidgen of a birthday gift I made for someone. She knows who she is (I was actually going to give it to her last week, but then all these unforeseen circumstances happened, so I couldn't), I haven't mailed it to her yet (unforeseen circumstances) and it was a complete pest to put together (unforeseen circumstances in the way of me having no sewing skills. What. So. Ever.). It's crooked and lop-sided, but hey. It's primitive, so what? Right?

Hope you like it, B. At least it was made with a lot of love and with you in my heart and mind.

Yours pimplepurpley,

Annemarie

Preparing for Fall

My blogging holiday lasted a little longer than my real life holiday due to some serious cocooning. Really, I've cocooned my socks off, hoping that when I crawled out of my cocoon the world would be covered in a deep layer of red and brown autumn leaves. In spite of my best efforts I now have to face up to the fact that this small country is preparing for another scorcher. Sigh. Twenty two more days until Fall. And this is how we're preparing:

Pantoef practicing to become a witchy cat. I think his efforts are paying off.

Wicked, a freebie by Primitive Betty's, stitched on 28 count Week's Dye grey/straw fabric with CC Hickory Sticks and GA Maple (because I ran out of Hickory). I stuffed the pillow with birch shavings, which gives it a heavenly smell.

I'm also enjoying an ardent love affair with Salem Remembered by The Primitive Needle. This is the work of two weeks, and I'm picking up speed, so maybe I will actually get this done before Halloween (of this year!):

Some of you commented on the absence of Pelle pictures. Have no fear, I haven't forgotten about him now that Pantoef runs this household. Here's the Pel enjoying a gluten-free pancake, looking cheerful and sweet and not at all wicked:

Yours cocooningly,

Annemarie.

Last post

No need to run to your box of Kleenex or secret supply of chocolate (or sherry), because this isn't really my last post. But unless something earth shattering happens (like an unforeseen finish within the next 48 hours), this will be my last post for at least two weeks, because I'm going away on vacation next Monday. My parents rented a cottage in the north of the country, and Pelle, Pantoef and I will head that way as soon as Pelle returns from his stay with the ex (on Pelle's birthday. Picture me sobbing). We will celebrate Pelle's birthday on Monday, along with my parents and my brother, my SIL and my (very probably) niece-to-be. During my vacation I'm also hoping to pay Annemiek's Handwerk Boetiek a visit, because I discovered it's virtually around the corner from where I will be staying. Hooray!

It cost me five years of my life, but I managed to unpack all the boxes between Sunday evening and Tuesday morning, just before my stitchy company arrived in the form of Harmien, Heidi and Margaret.

(Part of) the living room:

The hallway (which will host my tombstone/Halloween/Angel wall once I finish something along that vein)

Unfortunately, Barbara couldn't make it because she was so busy packing for her family's long awaited trip to Maine. We had a lot of fun, though. All the ladies had plenty of time to admire Pantoef in all his glory, which he underwent gladly, before he settled on Harmien's lap for the remainder of the day (defector that he is).

All the ladies came bearing gifts of the most fabulous kinds, for all of us. Feast your eyes on this:

The Halloween pillow came from the nimble hands of Margaret; the pin cushion was - of course - crafted by Heidi; and Harmien managed to remember that this lovely design by Primrose Needleworks was on my wish list. Thank you all so very much, girls, for your gifts and for your company. I can't wait for our next get-together.

While we were busy showing each other the things we had been/are working on, and chatting about stitching, Margaret and Heidi commented that Harmien and I have a tendency to start an awful lot of new things. They looked on in amazement as I emptied my, admittedly rather large, WIP drawers, and they decided they needed to change their own ways (which involve sticking to one or two, maybe three WIPs at most) (very sensible, I should think). They now want to have regular 'HarmAn' days, which means they will start a new project every first day and every fifteenth day of the month. Now it is true that Harmien and I suffer from indecent and incurable (and I fear inoperable) forms of startitis, with the exception that Harmien actually finishes the projects she starts and I... don't. So I thought, if Heidi and Margaret can have HarmAn days, couldn't I have HeiMar days? You know. Picking up a WIP and actually sticking with it until it's finished? There's a thought, I thought. And here's the result of my thinking:

I don't know if this super lovely design by Sampler Girl Tanya ever made an appearance on this new blog, but believe me when I say that I've been working on this one since it came out in 2006. The great stumbling block for me (and please don't ask me why because it is a mystery to me as well), was the wee house. HarHeiMar urged me to finish this house while they cheered me on and once I did, I just couldn't stop! Hooray again! Tomorrow (it being the first day of the month) I will pick up another WIP/UFO and try to do a decent amount of work on it. Now if only I can keep myself from having a HarmAn day as well as an HeiMar day, because that would undo the effect of the former, wouldn't it?

Should you wonder what happened to Noah, have no fear, the first half of his coat is now completely finished. It wouldn't make a very exciting picture, though, because it was only ten more rows of the same dreary brown. Yaaaawn.

As of last Tuesday I'm really enjoying my vacation, which involves a lot of sleeping and reading and not so much stitching, but an awful lot of relaxing. Very nice. I hope you are all enjoying your socks off, too. See you in two weeks!

Yours relaxedly,
Annemarie.

Noah and the Amazing Unicolour Nightmare Coat

Alright. Enough is enough. Noah's coat needs to be finished, because otherwise he will disappear into the drawer with the label 'WNEEGF' (Will Never Ever Ever Get Finished) on it for all eternity. One half of said coat is nearly done.
Before:

After:

Here's progress on my angel, plus the info some of you requested.

It's quite an old Kathy Barrick Dieter design, from 1998, and I've never seen the other angels from the series. It's lovely, isn't it? Is it a real tombie angel, though?

More material for my Primitive/Angels/Tombstone/Halloween wall (or alternatively, my WNEEGF drawer):

Hooray. Now for some balm or potion that will have me stitching like the dickens, and I will be a very happy bunny. Oh, and I would be an even happier bunny if sodding Ikea would finally send me the bolts and screws needed to build up my book cases. All the boxes you saw in the pictures of my previous post? They're still there, in exactly the same place and they're filled, not with stitchy goodies but with books. I cannot WAIT till they're back where they belong, i.e. on my book shelves, because that is when this lovely cottage will finally become my home.

Yours unorganizedly,
Annemarie.