BLEEP!

A while back (as in October!) I did a personal swap with csjoyeuxnoel on swapbot.  It's occurred to me that I never showed you the loot.

She requested a woodland themed piece with dark colors, so I made her this-

I used a Sew Lovely Embroidery pattern on muslin.  I tinted it with colored pencils, didn't do so well on the dark color part, but she like it just the same.  Phew!  The sky is my favorite part!  I promise, the border isn't really crooked.  It just looks that way with my sloppy photo- whoopsy!

For the trees, I used a few browns.  Not sure if it makes a big difference, but it seemed like a good idea at the time.

 In return, csjoyeuxnoel made me this!!! Awwwww yeah- a great one-liner from one of my favorite movies, Casino.  I told her to surprise me and mentioned that movies are kind of my thing.  She did great- thanks, Courtney!

Sorry about the edit, I'm trying to keep it clean.  You know, for those folks who are reading this at the office when they're supposed to be working....you know who you are.  I would hate for you guys to miss out on lovely, crafty distractions on account of my potty mouth.  To be honest, I'm surprised I've managed to maintain a profanity free blog for this long.  Considering the fact that I cuss like a sailor in real life.

That being said, here's the scene that this awesome stitchy piece is referencing.  It is most definitely not safe for work, unless you work someplace pretty cool.  Please don't tune in if you dislike cinematic violence, gangsters, blood, Joe Pesci, the F word, and/or tools such as, ice picks and vices.  You have been warned, thank you.

Hope everyone is having a great day.  Aside from feeding an addiction to Words with Friends, I'm getting a lot done.  Some stitching, some painting, some sewing.  And a little bit later I'm going to get busy in the kitchen making my famous lasagna....  I love busy days!

I love Strumpets Crumpets!!

I'm not sure if I've mentioned this or not, but I <3 Strumpet's Crumpets!

(Click on the photo for the source, Becky's Flickr!)

Becky has the cutest blog!   It's jam packed with crafty goodness, plus pictures of her sweet little dog, Mickey.  What's not to love?!  Please, go check out her blog!  From embroideries to afghans, paper crafts to aprons, she really does it all.  And fabulously, I must say.

I mean, just look at these invites.  Printing black on black...genius.

(Click on the photo for the source, Becky's Flickr)

Remember a few weeks ago, I mentioned her crafting supplies swap?  Well, so far it's been a raging success for me.  I was able to send some supplies to loving homes where they will come to good use.  I'm sure that I will be able to come up with lots more to giveaway when I deep clean the crafty closet.

And Miss Strumpet's Crumpets herself sent me a whole pile of wonderful!  Thanks, Becky!

Yay!  Business cards!  Exactly the kind I was planning on buying, since I'm making my own.  I love it when things work out that way.  Now for a little stamp carving.

A few days later, I found another little surprise in my mailbox.

What a sweetie!  And with perfect timing, how did she know that I needed all of these bookmarks?

I had just gone on a library binge the day before.

 Again, just funny how things work out.  Don't you think?

Well, off to craft a bit.  And clean a bit- meh.  Having a job again is making me super conscious of time, so I'm cramming in as much as possible.  Yay, for super productive days! 

I'll be back later today though.  I have lots of happy mail to share with you, I've been such a lucky girl lately.  Hope you are having a super productive day too!  See you soon.

Mama Mia!!

Switchin Stitches sent to Mafiasgirl
Originally uploaded by quiltinkimmie

So, I'm not sure if I mentioned it or not but I'm a part of a group on flickr called, "Switchin' Stitches." I was surprised to get an invite to this group but I'm oh so glad that I did.

I was paired up with the group's founder, Quiltikimmie, a nice lady with all sorts of stitching talent. And like me, she's a huge fan of swapping! Check out her photostream, it's chock full of goodies she's made. (You can link to it by clicking on the picture, I borrowed one from her for this post.)

Right now we're in Round 1 of swaps, and this is what I received from Kimmie. I picked movies as my theme and she ran with it. Awesome, right?! Not only is it my favorite movie but she also managed to incorporate my love of quotes. I love it! I can't wait to get it framed and up onto the wall. (I'm planning on making space for the Wall of 'Broideries this weekend.)

She said that now she'll probably never stitch on black fabric again. I feel terrible about contributing to that, but happy that she had the patience to stick it out for this amazing piece.

Accckkk, I'm so excited about all of these goodies that have been coming my way. I'm wondering what I did to be so lucky!

Very soon, I'll show you my piece to her. She picked a crafty theme with an emphasis on black, red and white.

A HUGE thank you to Kimmie for making me this wonderful embroidery.

Thanks for looking, have a craftastic day.

p.s. With the Phat Quarter Movie Swap coming up, there are movie stitches galore 'round these parts.

Free Form Fun!!

Free form
Originally uploaded by Giggly Mama & Fam

Check out what I got in the mail right before I went to Michigan. An awesome, one of a kind, free form embroidery piece!! Sent to me from the lovely and talented, Shannon aka Giggly Mama. Not only was I super thankful to receive this piece, I was humbled by the Mama's stitching skills. Just check out that Satin Stitch, holy cow. This lady is AMAZING!!!

When asked about the straight lines running across the design, she explained that it illustrates, "Feeling a little trapped in my mind. *showing my crazy*" I thought it was so fitting that this piece went to me, as that is how I feel a majority of the time. Stitching really does help to keep me sane.

Since she already knows what she's getting from me, I guess it wouldn't be spoiling the surprise if I let you guys in on it. Shannon requested a piece featuring Jesus Quintana. That's right, The Jesus, from The Big Lebowski. (I have a feeling I'm going to be stitching that movie for a long time.) That's fine by me though since it's pretty darned great. I'll have a sneak peek of the progress later in the week.

Thanks for looking, I hope you have a creative day!