And we have a finish!

I have finished! Boy, it feels great to be able to say that! With the ginormous projects I tend to gravitate toward, I don't get too many finishes very often.

But, without further ado, here is my FINISHED Pirate's Creed!

I still need to wash, press, and frame him, but he looks so amazing!  *happy dance*

I forgot!

Yes, I know I forgot my Friday update!
I thought about it on Saturday. I would have posted then, but I realized that not only did I forget to post, but I also forgot to take a picture of the progress on the pirate, so I had nothing to post.

So, here it is; 2 posts combined into one.
First, my should-have been-on-Friday post:

I have gotten more completed on the pirate. I did the blackened teeth and the backstitch around all the teeth. I even have most of the bandanna finished. I just need to finish up the bandanna and do the backstitching work and I am done!

Second, Saturday SAL:

I got some more letters completed, and I switched to work a little on the border. I needed some more color other than red!

Last, my giveaway:

I have mailed off the items to my giveaway winner, Jenilee! I'm not going to post any pictures, though, until she receives them!

I want to thank everyone who entered. This was my first giveaway, and I have learned things from it to help make the next one go smoother (for me) and more fun (for all of you). 
Happy stitching!
 

Giveaway Time!

I bet you thought I had forgotten! OK, maybe I sortof did. I was going to do the drawing last night, but it slipped my mind as soon as I got home. So, I'm doing it now!

Looks like I have 5 entries. Numbering them 1-5 by when the comment was left, then entering those parameters into an RNG online, we get our winning number. That number is...

Drumroll please

Number 4! 

Number 4 is Jenilee!

Jenilee, email me your address. Once I go through all those patterns, I will send out your winnings! 

Once they are delivered, I'll make a post to let everyone know what she got!

I enjoyed this giveaway, and I will definitely have to have another one in the future.

Saturday SAL and IHSW

This weekend was IHSW! Yay! I went ahead and combined this with my new Saturday SAL, and here is where I am on Candy Cane Christmas:

OK, so the lighting isn't so great. I snapped a quick picture before I left for work this morning. This one is coming along nicely, though!
I didn't get any stitching done on Sunday (I got sucked into video games instead). This is the only progress made this weekend, which is why I combined it with IHSW.

Pirates and Christmas

Here is the weekly progress of my Pirate. So close!

Also! I have joined a SAL! I have never done one of these before, so it will be neat. I am joining the Saturday SAL with Linda from Stitchin with my Furbabies and Miamina from Miamina's Musings. This SAL is one that Linda had been planning on doing with Debbie before we lost her, so rather than let her work on it alone, we have joined in!
I'm a little behind. I only just got some fabric for it yesterday. To catch up a little, I started it last night. I didn't get too far, I discovered that the color I had been wanting to use first was at work with my Pirate kit, so I started with another. Here is my tiny bit of catch-up work:

I will definitely start working on this more on Saturday for both the SAL and IHSW, so more updates to come!

I want to have a giveaway!

 Surprise Pattern Giveaway

So, I see lots of people having a giveaway for birthdays, blogiversary, etc. I want to have a giveaway, too! I don't have any particular reason, I just want to give away something and possibly make some more crafty friends in the process.
I don't have many finished items to use for this giveaway (I'll have to check my finished item stash to be sure), but something I do have a lot of is patterns! I recently combined all my leaflets, booklets, and magazines into one box, and I nearly filled the thing. See below:

There are no kits in this box, it's all patterns. This isn't even counting all the digital patterns I have saved up. I have cross stitch, crochet, and plastic canvas patterns all over! I even have some beading patterns and a couple quilting magazines, as well. So, I want to have a surprise pattern giveaway. The winner will receive a few patterns from my stash, picked by me, based on your preferences (see below).

Here's what to do:

1.  Follow my blog!
1. That's it, just click on the Join This Site or Follow button on the right-hand side!
2. Add a comment to this post, and let me know what crafts you like!
• Whether it be plastic canvas, cross stitch, crochet (I may even have some needlepoint)
• Also, anything specific: such as flowers, landscapes, people, holiday, animals, etc.
• Be as vague or specific as you want
• Disclaimer: I cannot guarantee I will have something in the specific style you like, but I will try to get close!
•  Or, just say "surprise me", and I will pick some things on my own!
3. (optional) Promote my giveaway on your blog or website
• I put this as optional, as I realize not everyone has their own blog or website. It isn't necessary, but I would greatly appreciate it!

Bonus: Earn a bonus entry by referring your friends! Have your friends post that you referred them, and you will receive an extra entry into the drawing!  

 Drawing will be held next Monday, 10/20/2014, and I will announce the winner(s).
(Yes, there may be more than one winner!)

Another Friday down

I was getting a little excited for this weekend coming up. I thought it was IHSW, and I was looking forward to participating since I have been out of town during IHSW the past 2 months. Then I looked at the calendar. Yeah, apparently I can't calendar well. IHSW is next weekend.
I still plan on participating, but I have to wait another week!

Here is the progress on my at-work project. I got all the words finished!

 This one is going so quickly, it won't be long until I'm back to working on the Peacock Tapestry at work again.

Paperclips?

I have discovered a very fast and easy and cheap crafty item to make. It is an angel ornament!
I had all the items at work with me, so I just started working on them while I was working. They were easy enough that I could do both at the same time.

I love these, they are so cute! I am planning on getting more ribbon colors and making a bunch more. Here is my first batch:

Very sad today.

Unfortunately, I did not win that fabric that I was so excited about finding on eBay. In the last few hours of the auction, a couple more people decided they would outbid each other, and before you know it, the price got much higher than I was wanting to spend.
I'm off to continue the hunt for fabric. If anyone happens to come across Wichelt Imports' Home Sweet Home Afghan 18ct Wheat Color Fabric, please let me know. I need it!

Success!

I took my exam last Thursday, and I passed! Woohoo! I am now Security+ certified. I'm moving on in my studies to the next certification for the day job.


And now, on to the real post, my craftiness! I picked up San Francisco to work on some more. It was screaming at me to work on it. I haven't had a lot of time to stitch, but here is where I am so far:

I have also worked ever so slightly on my Pirate's Creed. I have only gotten a few more letters in, but I like the obvious progress on this one vs all my other huge projects.

Also! I have finally finally finally found someone on eBay selling some fabric that I have been looking for for months. I am confident that I will win this auction, and if I do, I will be able to start another project that I have had on hold! I'm sooo excited, I hope I win or I will probably cry.
Back in February, I acquired some old cross stitch magazines. In one of them is the beginnings of the Town Square Afghan. Unfortunately, this is one of those designs that they release piece by piece over the course of a year's issues. I have managed to track down all but 2 of the 7 issues containing parts, and I have a lead on getting those last 2. Once I have the fabric, I can start even if I don't have those 2 yet, as I have plenty to work on from the other issues in the mean time.

Here is a picture of what it will look like once completed:

This isn't the best picture of what it will look like, but there are not many pictures I could find! You can sortof get an idea from the left of the picture. Once I'm able to get the fabric, I will post  progress pics, as well.