Thursday, June 3, 2010

~ The Best Birthday ~

Thursday already? really?....these holiday shortened weeks always confuse me! I just wanted to do a quick post to say THANK YOU to all who wished me a Happy Birthday the other day! Thanks to facebook for letting many know it was my birthday and to a couple of very sweet bloggers, I got more birthday wishes than I've ever had before and it was fun! I heard from friends both old and new and even got a birthday wish from my high school sweetheart on facebook, how fun is that! I have never announced my birthday to anyone so it has always come and gone without any fan fare but I must say that receiving so many Happy Birthdays did indeed bring me joy! Also, I received a very special surprise in the mail! Kris gifted me with a pinkeep made by her hand!! I was really surprised!! Isn't it lovely? There was also a very nice birthday card included, Thank You ever so much Kris!! What a special special surprise!!
And my dear friend Karen from across the pond sent me gifts of lovely English chocolates, yum!!, a magazine with loads of pictures taken around where she lives which is fun to see!, a lovely birthday card with well wishes from her family, so sweet!, a wonderful rag ball she made, and a beautiful pea fowl made by her hand as well!! wow! Stunning aren't they? Thank You so very much Karen!!
I even received a gift from my boys which is quite rare as they are much like their father and don't posses the art of gift giving shall we say, LOL
They gave me the 24 scale die cast car of Dale Jr.'s # 88 NASCAR. It is one that has been missing from my Earnhardt collection. My oldest son Robert also picked out a lovely card for me. He always picks the best cards! A great card picker he is! My husband also gave me a card and the smaller version of this car so now my collection is up to date! Thank you guys!

I also wanted to share with you a picture of my very first handmade! But first I need to thank Jenny for all of her help! She is the one who encouraged me to try my hand and sent me everything I needed to begin out of the kindness of her heart! She also was so kind to answer all of my beginner type questions and basically taught me how to cross stitch through email and even a phone call so Thank You Jenny!! Yep, I did it! I started this cross stitch back in December, and was hoping to have it completed to display for Valentines Day but procrastinated. I bought an inexpensive sewing machine thinking that I might possibly start making things to sell and was so intimidated by the thing that it sat in it's box for months until last week when I finally decided that I was going to figure out the thing come hell or high water so I sat myself down with the instruction book and proceeded to successfully thread the bobbin, thread the machine, and began sewing up my first ever pinkeep! A few days prior, I experimented with some walnut ink crystals I purchased from Wendy and am pleased with how the fabrics took the stain so voila! here is my first attempt at cross stitch and a completed pinkeep!
It is rag stuffed, I bought some muslin to cut into pieces and boy let me tell you that I am amazed at how much fabric it takes to stuff something so small!! I have always loved the feel of rag stuffed handmades and now have a new appreciation for it! I still haven't figured out how the heck do some of you get things to feel so solid? As much fabric as I have stuffed in there it still feels cushy and I would like for it to feel firm like many of the handmades that I have purchased! So any and all tips would be much appreciated and welcomed!

Well so much for the quick post, LOL It turned out to be longer than I thought! Over the long weekend I accomplished putting away my spring decorations and have begun my summer decorating and I'll be sure to post when I'm done! Enjoy the rest of the week and have a great weekend!

16 comments:

Dana~HomespunTreasures said...

Janet you should be VERY proud your pinkeep is just beautiful!!! I would have never guessed it was your first time making one. I'm so glad you had a wonderful birthday!! I'm looking forward to your Summer decorating post!!

Blessings,
Dana

Loretta said...

Hi Janet I'm so glad your birthday was a happy one! What beautiful gifts you received from everyone! The pinkeep from Kris is so sweet and I have to say that you did an amazing job on yours!!! Are you hooked on xstitching now? I've stitched 5 of Jenny's patterns so far and they are so much fun to do. Start a scrap bag and don't throw away even the tiniest piece of cloth! It does take a lot of scraps to fill up a pinkeep! Hugs

ctlogcabin said...

WoW Janet ... You Go Girl!! Great Pin Keep, Congrats !! You learned how to Cross Stitch & use a Sewing Machine, your well on your Way. I have always dreaded the sewing part...the machine just gets the Best of Me. :-) Maybe you can stuff with saw dust, next time Don makes you something keep the left overs....I love the feel of that in pin keeps.
Sweet gift from your Guys, glad you got your collection up to date.
Hugs ~~ Connie xox

Sheila said...

Happy belated birthday Janet! I always forget to check in with the APP forum and see who's having a b-day! Ours must be close as mine was the 28th!
Sounds like you had a great one.
Take care.
Blessings,
Sheila

Faye Henry said...

Hi Janet..so glad you had a lovely birthday and I love all your gifts. Having a husband, 2 sons and 5 grandsons who are race car fans I see yours have the same things on their minds...lol
Except it is Jeff Gordon all the way with the Henry family..sorry!.. lol
You are doing a great job at stitching, too.
Blessings..

Anonymous said...

Janet,
I'm so glad to hear that you had a wonderful birthday. Happy Birthday a little late. I've been on a trip to Tennessee and have missed being in blogland and on the forums.
Love your pinkeep...you did a great job! It is wonderful!!
Can't wait to see your summer decorations.
~Cindy~

basketsnprims said...

Janet,
So very glad you had such a wonderful birthday. I love how your pinkeep turned out ~ what an awesome job you did. I would never know it was your first one.
hugs,
Pam

Lee Hill Primitives said...

Happy Birthday to you! Your new goodies are awesome and you did a nice job in your pinkeep. Hugs and blessings, Evelyn

My Colonial Home said...

WELL I'M ONE WHO DIDN'T WISH YOU A HAPPY BIRTHDAY AND I'M SORRY...SO HAPPY BIRTHDAY JANET...I'VE BEEN MISSING BEING ON THE INTERNET LATELY.

You certainly had a great birthday from the sounds of it.

Karen

Christine said...

I missed your birthday too! Happy Belated Birthday! Your pinkeep is beautiful and yes, it seems like when you are stuffing it, the stuffing goes in and disappears! lol I'm so happy for you that you took the leap and tried both cross stitch AND sewing! One tip that I read years ago and I always use said to dampen the item before you stuff it. Fabric seems to shrink just a tad when it dries, so if you stuff it while it is damp, it kind of 'gives' a little while you are stuffing (just keep packing it in like nobody's business!), and then 'shrinks' a little when it dries. While it doesn't seem like a remarkable difference, it does seem to help some. Hope that helps on your NEXT one! lol

Rabbit Hill ~ Handmades by Jenn Tavoletti said...

Hi Janet!! I'm so glad you had a nice birthday, it sounded wonderful. I love your pinkeep...its beautiful ~ you should feel very proud! I have friends that give me bags of rags...old clothes and things that are no good for wearing anymore. Just get the word out and you'd be surprised how many people have stuff like that they want to get rid of without throwing it away. Storing it is another thing though :) Have a great weekend!! Hugs and blessings ~ Jenn

Hillcresthome Prims said...

That pinkeep is beautiful! I wish I could make something like that!!!!

I am so glad you had a wonderful Birthday, remember it is just a number, I always say that and I am 42, LOL!!
Have a great week,
Hugs,
Tricia

Sandy said...

Well, Happy Birthday!
You received some really nice gifts :) Such kind ladies!

You did a wonderful job on your first cross stitch. I have a bunch of patterns and really want to make some. But it seems I have soooo many things I would like to get done...LOL.

I also wanted to let you know that I LOVE my tobacco cloth curtains. Now I can't wait to get them up. You really have very fast service. Thanks a BUNCH!

Loafer Mountain Primitives said...

Great Pin Keep! Would have never guessed it was your first attenpt.
Glad you had a great B-Day!
Tisha

A Primitive Homestead said...

Your pin keep is wonderful. Glad you had such a nice birthday. All your goodies are nice. Happy Birthday a bit late.

The Farmers Oldest Daughter said...

Belated happy birthday and also congratulations on winning Kath's giveaway. You lucky girl. It will look wonderful in your home.

Your first stitchery is great. It is amazing how much it takes to stuff an item.

Blessings, Maxine