TUSAL and 52 Weeks of Happy - Week 49

Hello again!  As you may have noticed, I've not been around much the last few weeks.  I've been in a bit of a funk as far as having anything to do with the computer and so I've stayed away.

I wanted to extend my thanks for all of the kind comments I received from my IHSW progress.  I really appreciate friends stopping by and commenting especially considering how bad I've been about doing the same.

Here is my TUSAL update for November stitching.  I put in quite bit of stitching on Christmas@HRH so there were quite a few ends added during the month.  And I've also been working on Plum Street's Mary's Sampler.

As for my 52 Weeks of Happy blogging, I kept forgetting to take photos of things so I didn't have anything to share!  This week I was a bit better so here goes:

My work team had a holiday get together that was also to say goodby to some team members leaving us this month.  We gathered for dinner at a local restaurant and it was beautifully decorated for the season.  My poor photos don't do justice to the beauty of the decorations.

We also had a Yankee swap and I took home my first swap win which included a bottle of wine and some wonderful Lindt chocolates.

Next up may seem like a funny "happy thing" but it is my garage.  I've lived in the Northeast for almost 14 years now and this is the first winter where I've had a garage.  I have to say it's absolutely wonderful not to have to scrape off the car in the mornings and it's never quite as cold to get into as it would be if it had sat outside all night.  I'm loving having a garage.

And finally this morning, we had a little snow on the ground.  It's been remarkably warm for November and December and this is the first of the white stuff to really sit on the ground around my house.

 Thankfully, the sun was finally out today after a gloomy week so there was a lot of thawing as well!  That always makes me happy.

I'm amazed at how few weeks there are left to 2013.  I hope you had lots of happy things in your week and that the coming week will be filled with even more!

TUSAL and Giveaway Winners

I'm a little more timely with my TUSAL posting for September.  I had quite a few contributions in September as I had a Halloween exchange that needed stitching and I continued to stitch away on block 7 of Christmas at Hawk Run Hollow.  I really need to take a photo of my progress but it's hard to put down!

It's very gloomy here today so I took this into the kitchen and photographed it on my dining room table.  I put out my Halloween decorations yesterday and the house is looking much more seasonal!

And on to the first Sunday giveaway I posted about on Sunday, Laura and Christina are this week's winners.  I will be posting photos of the next two kits tomorrow.  Hope you have a great Sunday full of stitching.  That's what I have planned!

September WIPocolypse and TUSAL

I've really had a hard time finding time to sit down and create a post.  Hectic work days and after hours meetings and events mean I'm exhausted when I get home and I just haven't had enough interest to fire up the computer.  Hence, trying to catch up with a double post of my September TUSAL and a WIPocolypse project update.

I have only been working on Christmas at Hawk Run Hollow so that's what I will share.  Here is where I left it last month I think:

And where it is currently:

I've made some great progress but I set it aside this week to finish the stitching on a Halloween exchange that needs to be mailed out on the 7th.  I want to tackle the finishing with plenty of time to do a good job.

And here is the TUSAL jar as of the beginning of the month. Some of the threads were from my punch needle project but just ends.

August TUSAL

I did not get too much added to my TUSAL jar over the past month but there were contributions from the PS Halloween piece and a few strands of silk from my CHS Christmas at Hawk Run Hollow piece which I worked on this past Sunday.  I'm hoping to add a lot more to my jar this month.  I hope your jar is looking full these days!

April TUSAL, Snow and TGIF

So I'm a few days late but here is my TUSAL post for April.  Lots of blue at the top of the pile due to my work on my HAED Story Keeper piece.  The lighting is a bit yellow as I took it just a few minutes in the living room and my lighting is really bad in that room.  But I think you get the idea of my progress on this oh-so-easy TUSAL thing!

And as a result of the blue at the top, here is an updated photo of my HAED piece as of the completion of last night's stitching episode. I've almost completed a 2nd column and am very happy with that.  Stretch your neck to the right everyone.... and back to center!  LOL

We had snow today and it was quite depressing to see the white stuff coming down on April 12th even though it won't stay long.  But it made for a grey, cold day and a very un-spring like feeling.  I think it's the latest snow I've experienced since moving to Maine although I did see snow on May 18th one year when I lived in NH so it's not unheard of to get it this far into spring-just unfortunate.  Hope it's much warmer where you are and that you send us some of that great spring weather really soon please! TGIF

February TUSAL

I was able to put a bit more into my TUSAL jar over the past month.  There is lots of red and pink from a Valentine's exchange and quite a bit of Kreinik from working on my Nora Corbet Halloween Fairy.

I thought I'd share some photos of the exchange piece I stitched for my partner for the Valentine's exchange I was in.  I used the Trilogy 2006 Collector's Heart but chose a piece of 28ct. R&R18th Century Red fabric I had in my stash and then the called for threads. 

I found this great fabric to complement the design at Joanne Fabrics. I finished the design into a pin pillow, filling it with crushed walnuts.  I love the weight they give to a piece. 

January TUSAL

Boy, my January TUSAL photo looks kind of meager doesn't it?  I took a close up photo to be sure you could actually see that there are a few threads in there. 

Since the start of the year, I've been stitching on CHS Christmas at HRH and my HAED Story Keeper so you see a mix of colors in the bottom of the jar.  I guess it will take a while to get it looking a bit plumper than today's photo.

Okay, everyone lean to the right!  it is so frustrating when Blogger won't add your photos with the right orientation.  Here ismy progress on Christmas @ HRH.  There is a LOT of stitching on this particular square.  And I don't even want to think about the next one. 
 

I really have a yen to start a new project after looking at some of the new things coming out online.  I absolutely adore Paulette Stuart's new piece but I think I will go stash diving and pick something out that won't cost me any money.  Happy Friday!!!

TUSAL and the rest of Hermit weekend progress

Okay it's time for my TUSAL posting and I have to say it doesn't look like I added much since last month but I did add!  Some of it was frogged threads but just a small amount.

The remainder of my Hermitting weekend was devoted to finishing the second sock of this pair which will be going to the post office in a birthday package tomorrow - the receiver's actual birthday.  Just a bit of a late arrival but I'm hoping she won't mind that too much after she opens the package.

The week is racing to a close and I'm okay with that.  The weather forecasted for the weekend sounds like indoor pursuits will be best and for me that means stitching of course.  Who would mind that?  Have a great rest of the week!

My 2012 TUSAL Container

I joined the TUSAL for 2012 after seeing so many postings about it on various blogs this year.  I don't normally save my orts but my hope is by joining this SAL, I will be motivated to do a lot of stitching in 2012 so that I can fill my jar.  I found this little glass container at Michael's last week and loved the shape of it.

Now, I must empty it of its current contents before it can be used appropriately, but I don't think that will be too hard as it is filled with Dove Peppermint Bark squares - delish!

This week I hope to make a list of all the projects I plan to work on in 2012 so that I can fill this little jar full at least once during the year!