2015 Word of the Year.

My word for 2015 is RED!

I choose it as it is my favorite color, it represents to me to stay strong, to take care of my health, love and mostly to take life by it's tail and ride the wild adventure!.   I am just now starting to think of my 2016 word.   

A long overdue update.

Well Hello blog readers!   I know that I have not updated since 2014 but I hope to rectify that.  So, let's get started.


In July of 2014, I moved from Beaverton Oregon to Vancouver Washington with my boyfriend, now fiance.   I went from a 600 foot apartment to a 1100 foot apartment.  What a difference.  It feels like a cozy home now instead of an apartment..   I had set up my craft room in the spare room but found I wasn't doing my crafting in there.  Found myself working on projects in the living room and at the dining room table so we changed the arrangement where my things are in our bedroom and the spare has become the "Man-Cave".  It actually is working better then I imaged.

I still work in Beaverton so my commute is now at least an hour and the drive home has been 2 hours some days which has cut down on my crafting, but i am finding in this new apartment I am doing more then ever before.

I plan on future blog posts on update on each craft but I will touch on a bit here.

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I am still quilting and have kind of gone crazy and have found some great buys on vint
age machines and I am up to 9 sewing machines.  I am going to gather all the names, take photos  and I am going to blog about them.  I am currently waiting to hear on a pink machine i found on Craig's List.  Oh my,  10 machines..

I recently received a huge fabric haul from a sad source.  One of my best friends lost their mother in September.  He and the family offered me a chance to go through her fabric and other crafts as they were clearing out her Craft room.  On the first visit I brought home about 30 yards or more of fabric.   On the second trip I have about 6 medium totes of fabric.  I  don't know how much that is as i still want to go through and fold it up.    While there I also picked up crochet needles and a bunch of knitting needles.  I also found a really cool needlepoint with an old fashioned Singer.    Also she had a cross stitch in progress of Winnie the Pooh that i am going to finish.  It's very simple and I love it's simplicity.
I haven't really completed any quilts but i have been going though my UFO's and completing them into tops. Many on my Singer 301A.  One day i just did 44 string blocks out of 30's prints.

I have always wanted to Crochet.  I have tried on and off in the last couple of years but it has never stuck.  When i was house sitting during my friends mother's funeral i tried again with some cotton yard i found in her craft room.   It stuck.   I am now working on two blankets.  The first is a ripple quilt using Attic's 24 pattern.   I  am about 3rd of the way through it. Below is an older photo.  I am on row 24 now.   I am doing it  using Sugar 'n Cream in all colors I can find plus a few from my stash.   I have also been stuck by another pattern. I want to learn other stitches then the double or single crochet.   It is the As We Go Stripey blanket, you can find the pattern here.

Another obsession I have developed is watching YouTube videos on Knitting, Crochet and FlossTube.  Not too many quilt ones out that but I hope that changes soon but of course I am following Quilt-Cam by Bonnie Hunger and FiberCast by Lynn and the new The Stitch TV show.    I am loving all of these.   It has really inspired me.   I first started watching videos on saving money and i slowly have moved over to the craft side.     A few of my favorites craft ones  are  FreakishLemon, TurboKnitter and so many more.  Watch a few.  They are good to stitch by.

Lately i have been obsessed with Chris Stapleton who i discovered on the CMA show.  I have been listening to his Pandora channel non stop.   Something about his voice.

I haven't been reading much or even listening to books on CD.  I am not sure why but it's not holding my interest much.

Another thing that has been taking up a lot of my time is Toastmasters.  I joined through work about 4 years ago. I have worked through by first level speeches and leadership workbooks and now can add CC and CL after my name.   For the  2015/2016 year I have been appointed the 93 Area Director.  I am struggling some weeks but I am learning and I am pushing myself out of my comfort zone.  I am also working on my bronze level in Speeches and Leadership.    I recently went to visit one of my clubs that is filmed and broadcast on a local public access station.   Here is photo of the board they use.

Well till next time

Dottie!!!!

Happy New Year 2014

Hello!     Seems since forever since I posted.   I thought I would since it's the first day of the new year.  What have I been doing you ask?

     

I have been quilting the Bonnie Hunter mystery for 2013,  trying to pick up Granny Squares,  working on my needlepoint and doing a lot of reading.  

I always pick a new word for the year.  In 2014 I think I am going to use the word SAVOR.  I will post more later on my reasoning.   Still trying to decide if it feels right. Off to bro.  Till next time.  

I was going to post tonight but found out I can't post photos from my I pad with out paying money.  I was going to show my miniature doll rug I made and some of my quilts but will have to update from my laptop.  Will be posting soon.     Happy Thursday!

A little fun!

Been sewing up a frenzy.  I need to update this blog more. I do think of many blog posts but it always goes to the bottom of the list.    Found a new app.  This is my first collage.  Retaping my current cross stitch project.   This is the third time but I think I figured it out.

A pot full of flowers

I stopped by Trader Joe's today and bought some flowers.   I usually buy pink one but was ready for a change.  As you can see I picked out red and purple.  I love them.   When I got home I pulled my aunts  cool pitcher out of the pantry and filled it up.  Had to resort to a knife to cut the stalks to the stock .  You should have seen me sawing through the thick stems.     I took it in the living room and put it on a pretty little dish I picked up at a garage sale.   I am in love.

Toile, ticking, English roses and tartan

What an idea for a quilt.   That would be so lovely. 
The idea came from a comment on a post from this blog  Pretty By Hand. I love her blog and get so much inspiration. 

Shopping in someone else's closet.

This is the way to shop!!

A couple of weeks ago my friend Steve called and said that he was over at a friends house and she was going through her closet and giving away her clothes.  Before she gave them to Goodwill he was wondering if I wanted to go through them.  I thought that would be cool.  He brought over three large garbage bags.  That week I invited over my coworker Stephanie and we went through the clothes.   This is what we got.

My stack.

• 2 coats
• 1 sweater
• 7 shirts
• 2 long shorts
• 2 pairs of jeans  ( a size too small but going to the gym so they will fit soon)

 

Stephanie's Stack.

• Vest
• Hoodie
• 2 coats
• 2 pairs of jeans
• 4 short pants
• 5 sweaters
• 5 blouses.

 

Steph did find more than me but I already have a full closet so I was trying to get pieces I really liked.   I now seem to own a lot of black shirts.  lol

When all was said and done we still had two bags left to take to Goodwill where someone else will find treasures. 

2013 word : Follow-Through

I can't believe it's been over a month since i last posted and it was the 1st day of the year before that.   I will get to the photo above in a minute. 

I had a wonderful 2012.  I didn't post very much but I have been busy.    I am doing fantastic in my job and worked a lot of overtime the first half of the year.  I also have been doing multiple house sitting jobs.  It has brought in extra money that allowed me to make a big change I 

moved out.  I can't believe it.  I finally was ready to make the move both financially, emotionally and logically.  It took me over a year to get to that point but I knew i would love it once i did.    I will leave the details for another post.
I also have met someone new.  We had our first date on the anniversary of the death of my former boyfriend.  He is a widow and we both feel we had a little "help" in our meeting.  We moved slowly and we are in a wonderful space right now.    The future looks good. 

I have been enjoying my own apartment.  It took me six months to go through all of my stuff that had been in storage for the 6 or so years and stuff i have collected in my hope chest.  I have made many many trips to Goodwill and have finally found the balance I need with all my belongings.  I am sure i will weed out a bit more but now it's comfy cozy.   I am only 3 blocks from work but this winter has been hard on me again.   It gets dark so soon and we have had a lot of gray days in Jan and Feb.  It gets harder and harder on me every year.   But the sun was out yesterday all day and peeked out today.  

I wrote in my post on 1/1 that I had picked out a word for the year.  Well i wasn't quite telling the truth- I had multiple possibilities but had not yet found one that fit.  Then I found it:  Follow-through.  My word for 2012 was Intentions  and 2011 was Encompassing.  The last two years was finding myself.  I now want to follow  through on those discoveries.   I also have some projects going that i want to finish and thought that having this as my word of the year would help keep me on track.  I thought it would even keep me on track with this blog.  It can either be known as one word or two words but it fits what I want to accomplish this year.  2013 is going to be a year of projects.

I want to also update my blog with all my interests.  That will be my goal.  I will also be updating my pages.  So keep in touch. 


Till next time. 
Dottie.




     

Back at my house for a night.

  I love the extra money I make house-sitting but sure miss my house.  I have not taken my computer with me so I have not posted since the 1st day of 2013.  Will do a longer post when I return. Here is a photo of my towels.  I love flowers..  Posting from my recently new android phone.  Lots to learn.  Lol

Happy New Year!

Happy 2013 to everyone.

Based on the theory that what ever you do on New Years Day you will do the rest of your year I am trying to have a full day. I have sewed, done embroidery, shopped, spent time with my boyfriend, spent time with friends and enjoyed my comfy red chair in my own apartment. The only things I wish I wasn't doing is putting oil in the car and coming down with a cold. Hope everyone has a wonderful year!!!!

Another thing I want to do in 2013 is update my blog. I want to document my life and show what I have done. I have had enormous changes in my life in the last year including getting my own apartment.  I now have all of my things around me.
I have decided on my new word  for the year and I will be following up with that. 
Off to do more “things” on the first day of this brand new Year.