Incoherent Scribblings

I decided it was time for a new scissor fob. Here is “Schoolgirl Lessons” by Little House Needleworks modified into a scissor fob.

Schoolgirl Lessons
by Little House Needleworks
May 26, 2009-May 30, 2009
28 ct Antique White Cashel Linen
Stitch Time: 11 hours
Gloriana “Bell Flower” Silk, Stitched over One

Hail Storm
Originally uploaded by blondelibrarian

We had more interesting weather today in West Texas Town. About 4:00 it began to rain… and then hail (again)!

The pea-sized hailstones came down for about 20 minutes and turned the ground outside so white that if I wouldn’t have known better I would have thought I was seeing snow outside the library at the end of May!

And just to prove it, the photo on the left is an exceedingly bad picture taken with my phone’s camera.

Crazy, eh?!

Desert Rainbow
Originally uploaded by blondelibrarian

It rained here in West Texas Town this evening. Pretty hard too. We had hail for a while and I worried that it might ding my car. (Note to self: Need to double check that in the morning.) Once the rain stopped and it was getting near sunset I noticed that funky after-the-storm light peeping through the curtains. I got up to look and, lo and behold, I saw my first desert rainbow.

The colors were gorgeous and I think for once the camera actually did them some justice. I just wish that all the ugly power lines weren’t in the picture too. But I live in the middle of town and with rainbows if you try and jump in your car to find a good spot to take that perfect picture, well, chances are the rainbow will be gone before you know it.

So Friday was my birthday and this year I decided to celebrate by going to San Antonio. While I stayed in an awesome hotel downtown near the Riverwalk called the Fairmount Hotel and I ate, drank, and drank some more, the main reason I decided to go to San Antonio for my birthday this year was to visit two LNSs there that I had seen advertised in Cross-Stitch and Needlework.

The first shop is called Stitches from the Heart and I dropped by late Thursday afternoon as soon as I got into town. It had been a long time since I had been in an LNS of such caliber and I was in heaven! As soon as I walked in I noticed a long table with four or five ladies stitching and I practically drooled as I looked at all the charts, beads, buttons, threads, frames, fabric, etc., etc.

Part of the reason I stopped at this shop first was because it is open until 7:30 on Thursday nights. Well, it didn’t take long for me to realize that the reason that they are open late on Thursdays is because it is their stitch-in. I started chatting with the ladies and before you can say cross stitch I had gone out to my car and retrieved “Fairy Flora,” “Celtic Spring,” “Passing Admirers,” and “Catch the Wind” and was showing them off! (I had brought those pieces with me to inquire about framing.) The ladies “oohed and ahhed” over all my pieces and made funny little comments like “Oh, I see we have a novice stitcher on our hands.”

I also just so happened to have “Castle Sampler” with me and they invited me to sit and stitch a while. As much as I wanted to, I ended up not stitching because I started talking with their framer and spent most of the time I was there deciding on a frame for Flo. I wanted to frame all four, but the lady encouraged me to just do one piece and if I am happy with her work to bring the rest back later. The shop is even going to ship Flo to me (insured of course) when she is ready.

I also bought some stash (of course!) and the ladies invited me to their fall retreat (the summer one is full). I had such a nice time visiting that shop that I definitely foresee more trips to San Antonio in the future to shop, stitch, and bitch. If you are ever in San Antonio, I definitely recommend a visit to Stitches from the Heart! (By the way, Stitches from the Heart’s website is still under construction, but they told me they will ship things. All I need to do is contact them with what I want.)

But wait, there’s more!

On Friday around noon, I visited the second shop, Cross Stitch Plus. It was a very nice shop as well. In fact, I think they had a better selection of fabric… which would be great if I didn’t already have Silkweaver FOM coming out the wazoo! The ladies there were very nice too, but they weren’t having a stitch-in (theirs is on Friday night) so it was a much quieter experience. I bought plenty of stash there and will go back next time I am San Antonio.

However, in all honesty, the best thing about Cross Stitch Plus was that it is in a shopping center that just so happens to have an Indian restaurant next door. So, I went there and had my birthday lunch. I didn’t have super high hopes for the restaurant because I didn’t remember coming across it when I was scoping out Indian restaurants in San Antonio online, but I was pleasantly surprised with a nice meal and dining experience.

On Saturday, I went to the San Antonio Zoo and got rained on, but was there long enough that it made me tired. After I ate dinner on the Riverwalk, I went back to my hotel room and tried to stitch, but the light in my room was terrible so I cursed the fact that I didn’t buy the portable Ott light that I looked at on Friday at Cross Stitch Plus and just watched a movie.

* Stash Report – Back Row: The Best of Teresa Wentzler Fantasy Collection Volume 2, Witchy-Washy (Raise the Roof), Halloween Eve (The Cricket Collection); Middle Row: Sew Many Memories (Sue Hillis Designs), Jack in the Patch (Cherry Wood Design Studios), Yesteryear (LHN), Summer Retreats (CCN); Front Row: Ladybug, Ladybug (LHN), French Country III – Apple (JBW Designs), Curiosity and Washing Up (Serendipity Designs); Not Pictured: Piecemakers, size 26; 4 packs Mill Hill Magnifica beads. *

…and part of a hat! Here is this weekend’s SAT progress on my SAL with Dawn.

I really had quite a Stitch-a-Thon yesterday as I spent all day locked in my house stitching and catching up on all my Netflix movies. It was a nice day with some much needed rest. I went to three graduation parties over the weekend and I was sorely in need of some me time.

In other news, I found out this afternoon that I got an A in my creative writing class. I was so excited that I shared the news with a friend at work when I found out and she said, “Did you expect any less?” Well, no… but still…