Halloween Finishing Spree Day One

Hi, stitching friends!

If you're like me, you've got a bin or a drawer full of finished-but-not-finished projects. And if you've been reading my blog, you know that "finishing" is a four-letter word in my book. I don't usually enjoy it. But thanks to some inspiration from all of you, I've been on a finishing spree.

"Moon Over Blackbird," a freebie from Lizzie*Kate, was in my to-do pile. I stitched this in 2018 and featured it on the blog in this post. It is stitched on 32-count coffee/tea-dyed linen. I used colors I had on hand, as well as some of the called-for colors.

I laced the stitch onto foam core and added a fabric-covered chipboard backing. Then I joined the two together and pinned two layers of ribbon to the outside.

Both ribbons were from my stash of old Stampin' Up supplies. I used the orange chevron ribbon for the hanger, and then folded it in half to go around the outside. Then I layered a ruffled ribbon over that, picking up the light and dark oranges in the pumpkin. A sweet, simple little finish to help kick off fall and Halloween!

Hello, Green Tomatoes!

Last night, our local weather forecaster said, "Freeze warning for Boise tonight. Better get out and harvest what you can now. The growing season is OVER." Ugghhhh.

Winter is coming.....

My husband spent the weekend at his family ranch in central Idaho, and he had to brush four inches of snow off the car before driving home.

When he got home, we spent a good two hours out in the garden picking green and mostly green tomatoes. I estimated that we had 100 pounds out there, and I think I may be right. We've had to do this in the past, and while it does take time, they do eventually turn red.

I looked up "how to make green tomatoes turn red" and a YouTube video showed this lady wrapping each little tomato in tissue paper. I nearly laughed myself to death. Can you imagine? Another had a guy putting them in a paper sack with a banana (which gives off a gas that speeds the ripening process). I'm going to try that this year (with lots of paper sacks and lots of bananas). Hopefully it will speed up the process. In any case, we will have tomatoes well into fall and early winter.

See you again tomorrow, friends. I'll have another fall/Halloween finish to show you. Until then, I hope you have lots of time to stitch!

Autumn Is Here

Hi, stitching friends!

Autumn is officially here. We are enjoying the perfectly warm 72 degrees of late summer here in Boise, but cooler days are not far ahead.

I'm welcoming fall with a cute finish called "Autumn is Here," a freebie from Maja at The Snowflower Diaries. You can get the free chart here and you can visit Maja's Etsy shop here.

I stitched Autumn is Here on 32-count "Fog" linen by Picture This Plus, using my own color combination: DMC 310, DMC B5200, Weeks Dye Works (WDW) Molasses, WDW Clockwork, WDW Crimson, Colour & Cotton (C&C) Primitive Vines and C&C Bumblebee.

I found the metal flowery pumpkin at Hobby Lobby. I laced the stitching onto chipboard covered with a piece of batting, then mounted that on another piece of chipboard covered in gingham fabric.

I found the perfect little spot in my kitchen to hang this. Welcome, autumn!

I hope you have many warm (not too hot, not too cold) days ahead, and lots of time to stitch. Thanks for stopping by!

Goodbye Summer, Hello Football!

Hi, stitching friends!

Can you believe that tomorrow is the first day of fall? When you think of fall, what comes to mind?

Cool weather. Pumpkins. Turning leaves. Sweaters, maybe. Definitely football.

On Friday, my husband's aunt took us and two of our friends to the Boise State University versus Air Force game. We are all BSU alumni, and our friends are season-ticket holders, but my husband and I haven't been to a game since we were students! And that was a loooong time ago.

We couldn't believe how much the university has changed in the years since we lived on campus. We've been to BSU for various reasons over the years, but driving through to the stadium, we saw that so much has changed. If I were a student there now, I would be so lost.

My husband's aunt has her own suite at the stadium, and the view of Boise was great! No wonder Boise, or "Les Bois," means "City of Trees."

The game was great! BSU won 30-19. Always so much more fun when YOUR team wins, isn't it? And the suite was wonderful. The whole front window opened so we felt like we were really part of the crowd, but when it got cold we could close it and stay warm. Definitely a treat. The view of the Blue Turf was unbeatable.

A Good Weekend

Saturday we went to see the new Downton Abbey movie. Have you seen it yet? We loved it. I love the music, the clothes, the drama, the cinematography... everything about it. I just wish the series didn't end. Do you get attached to characters in TV shows and books like I do? When they end, it's like saying goodbye to friends.

Today I have Whole30 Classic Chili ( <--- clickable link for the recipe) going in the slow cooker, and we've been watching football all day. I didn't used to like (or understand) football, but when I was pregnant with my son, my husband and I would cuddle in our big overstuffed living room chair and watch the games. Once I understood what a first down was (ha!), it started to click. Now I love it.

Do you have a favorite team? Believe it or not, I don't! When I was very young, I adored the Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders and I wanted to be one, but I didn't know or care about football. Now that I watch it, I like the Seahawks (my mother-in-law's favorite team), and I enjoy watching Patrick Mahomes with the Chiefs. I used to not enjoy the New England Patriots (because they always won), but I decided that if I started cheering for them, maybe watching them would be more fun. I was right. Go Patriots! (Ahem... this does not mean I have a team yet.)

And the winner of the "Farm Fresh" chart is...

Congratulations to Catherine (diamondc), who won the giveaway for the "Farm Fresh" chart by Country Cottage Needleworks.

You can visit Catherine's blog, "I Love to Stitch," at diamondc-diamondc.blogspot.com.

Until next time! Be well, and I hope you have lots of time to stitch.