Scissor fobs

I signed up for a scissor fob exchange with the Prairie Schooler yahoo group, and yesterday my fob arrived in the mail. It was stitched by Carolyn in Texas and is really cute, with butterflies on both sides. She also attached a pair of scissors. I plan on putting these in my "commuting bag"...I almost always take a project with me on the bus/train since I have a long commute every day to work. I can usually stitch in the mornings because there is more room. In the afternoons, sometimes.....but more often I read then. Anyway, here are pictures of the front and back of the fob Carolyn sent me.
I haven't heard if she received the fob I sent, but I'm sure she did since it has been a few weeks...and I doubt that she looks at this blog... so I will take a chance and post pictures too. If I don't do it now I'll probably forget to! She likes hummingbirds, so I stitched one of the Prairie Birds designs over one for the fob.

Books...not stitching

I haven't been doing any stitching this week...I've just been too tired from work. I did start sorting through my extra stash of DMC and getting it put into boxes. Also, I've been reading..."The Winding Ways Quilt" by Jennifer Chiaverini is the latest installment of the Elm Creek Quilters series. I love this series. The characters are well written, and I love the history that is brought in through the reminiscences of Sylvia and the stories of her ancestors and their lives and how quilting always ran through it. I also read the latest of the "cofee shop" mysteries..."French Pressed". These are written by Cleo Coyle and it is a good series that I always look forward to. Now I am reading "The Cluttered Corpse", which is a mystery series featuring a professional organizer, and listening to the newest by Mary Higgins Clark..."Where Are You Now?" So far it's pretty good. As you can tell, I really love mysteries, especially those in series. But I also just recently read a non-fiction book called "A Year Without 'Made in China'" by Sara Bongiorni. I ttells the story of a family who decides to boycott all products made in China for one year and the pitfalls and successes they encounter. It was an interesting story and really makes you aware of just how many items are not made any place but China!

works in progress

I am currently working on 2 rather large pieces..."Quaker Christmas" is by ByGone Stitches and I am stitching this with a SAL group. I am using threads by Carrie's Threads and really like the colors I've chosen. So far I have finished the first page (it's a 6 page design) and I am really enjoying stitching this one! The second piece is a design by Moira Blackburn called "Three Things". I started this several years ago, again as a SAL with a group of friends ona yahoo group. Several of us who had out the piece aside have decided to try and finally finish it this year. I am stitching it on an evenweave fabric with the DMC threads called for. The colors are really pretty in this piece and it is a pleasure to stitch. So far I am at about the halfway point. I may have shown pictures of these before, but this is where I am now.