Tag Archives: crafts

Stitching The Vineyard…

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This is my wall of Vineyard counted cross stitch projects. The Vineyard map in the upper left hand corner was the first one in 1993. Tisbury in the bottom middle was the last one in 2011. There were other non-MV projects done in between the Vineyard ones and I also did eight more of the Vineyard maps during that time too.

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These are not the only Vineyard counted cross stitches I’ve done though. The one closest to my heart is the Tabernacle designed especially for me by my daughter Deb. (please excuse the glare).

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The Tabernacle is my favorite place on the Vineyard for many reasons and so this picture means more to me than I can ever put into words.

This is my counted cross stitch masterpiece. My daughter Deb took a photograph of the Tabernacle… blew it up to an 8×10 and charted it by hand on graph paper. There might have been computer programs for that but this was the early 1990’s and she didn’t have one and I’m not sure we even had a computer!. She also bought the material and my daughter Patty bought the threads and that was my Christmas gift that year. All I had to do was sew it. People always ask how long it takes to do projects so I kept track. Over the course of 3 months I sewed a total of 138 hours… every inch of the picture is counted cross stitches… even all the blue sky… and there seemed like endless amounts of that. After it was finished we took it, along with the original 5×7 photograph and had it framed. For a couple of years I just wasn’t happy with the frame though so when I had my other MV counted cross stitches framed I gave this picture a new one. I also added a little plaque at the bottom that says The Tabernacle, Oak Bluffs – Martha’s Vineyard.

But I had said I couldn’t do it… ever… I would never be able to do counted cross stitch. Too hard. Too boring. I had too many excuses. Then my daughter Deb saw the counted cross stitch of the map of Martha’s Vineyard and the rest is history. We figured if I was ever to do counted cross stitching surely something Vineyard related would get me started. She even said that if I hated doing it she’d finish the map for me. Sounded like a good deal and so I began. One X after another… counting, counting every single stitch… but then it started looking like MV and I was pretty impressed and proud of myself.

We even got written up in the Vineyard Gazette… June 21, 1996

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ABC’s Of Martha’s Vineyard…

My creation


Weekly Photo Challenge: Dense…

The prompt is : This week, share your take on “dense” — you could focus on a natural landscape, or take the theme in a different direction, from a crowd at a rock concert or a busy avenue during rush hour to a fresh loaf of bread, waiting for someone to take the first bite.

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I was going to try and stay away from fog, trees, flowers, food, cities but you know what, that’s where all the density seems to be.  So from boats in a dense fog, to a house covered in  lilacs, to the skyline of New York City, to chocolate cake and candy, to the dense colors of freshly spun yarn, and to the density of a sunflower, , here are my choices.

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/photo-challenges/dense/


Freshly Spun Yarn…

 

This beautiful white yarn…

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…was spun from this incredibly soft roving by my daughter.

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Coloring Book Day…

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August 2nd 2016 is National Coloring Book Day

I LOVE to color, long before it was a trendy thing to do I was coloring.

I have my favorite coloring books,my favorite coloring book author is Judy Clement Wall. Here are some snippets from pictures of hers I’ve colored.

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Here’s the one I just finished…

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I use gel pens and colored pencils.  I like geometric designs, mandala and of course Judy Clement Wall:)

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Weekly Challenge: Details…

For this week’s challenge, try to look past the big picture and take a more intimate approach. Zoom in on details in unexpected places — it can be something from the natural world, or it can be human-made.

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My daughter Deb is a knitter and one of the things she enjoys knitting are shawls.  The patterns are so intricate and detailed, I am always in awe of how beautiful they are, and how talented she is:)

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https://dailypost.wordpress.com/photo-challenges/details/


New Year 2016 …

My wish for everyone for 2016

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Our Christmas Santa …

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My dad was a police officer in Newark, NJ.  For many of his years on the force he worked in the Emergency Squad division.  During the long hours between calls the guys would keep themselves busy in various ways like cooking.  Near the Christmas holidays they always came up with a special project, like candle making for instance.

In 1956 they made Santas.  I still have ours.  Santa stands about 3 and 1/2 feet tall and is made from press board. After the outline was drawn the guys cut out the Santas and my dad set to work drawing the features, clothing and bag of toys.  At that point our Santa came home and my mother and I painted him.  I’m not sure how many coats of paint we used but Santa was spread out on our kitchen table for about a week before he was completely dry.  I don’t know what kind of paint we used either but here it is 59 years later and he’s not chipped or faded.  This was the only time I ever remember the three of us doing a family project together.

I love everything about this Santa, even the buttons being on the wrong side… but the thing I love the most is that he looks like my dad… a self portrait so to speak.

My creation

Below is my daughter Patty age 2 and 1/2 in 1966…

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… and her daughter (my granddaughter) Tiffany age 2 and 1/2 in 1991

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Here’s to Christmas memories <3


Weekly Challenge: Connected…

This week, show us how two (or more) things — people, objects, places — come together.

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Two paintings connected by knitting.

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The Dingmans Ferry Bridge connecting NJ and PA.

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Nubble Lighthouse, Cape Neddick, York, Maine

Except for boat the only way this island is connected to the mainland is by this bucket/gondola on a cable of some sort … something you’d ever get me in :)

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https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_photo_challenge/connected/


Basket Weave …

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