Friday, March 30, 2012

Arizona 2012

 Greetings Friends,

I officialy arrived home from Arizona last Sunday late in the evening.  I have been trying to post pics on blogger all week and finally gave up.  I thought I'd try again tonight.  I've had better luck but can't seem to get all of them to upload. 

So, here is a snapshot of my Arizona Trip 2012.

I arrived in Phoenix Arizona on Tuesday morning. 
Karen met me at the airport, we picked up Yvonne and away we went. 
We spent Tuesday bumming around and stitching at the hotel.

On Wednesday we took a trip to The Attic in Mesa Arizona.  The Attic is the "Taj Mahal" of stitching shops.  If you if ever get the chance to visit plan on hours and hours.  As you can see in the pictures, this shop has everything.  The shear pleasure of looking at the models can take hours and hours.  I also spent a great deal of time with the linen and fibers.  I know I'll be visiting again one day and will plan on spending more than one day at The Attic.  The ladies who work in the shop were great.  I think they got a little tickled at a first timer like me.  I just walked around repeating the phrases, "Holy Crap!", "Wow!" and "This is unbelievable!"
 The Attic
Mesa Arizona

 Karen

 Yvonne with her "goodie" bag.

The three of us after making our purchases.  We are worn out but happy!


On Thursday we made the trek up into the mountains to the cabin.
The scenery was amazing.
As we drove the scenery changed from cactus and rock to pine trees and snow. 

 I loved seeing all the cacti.  ;-)

The mountains were breathtaking.

 The cabin was a treat.  It was a beautiful, rustic cabin. 
Perfect for 3 stitchers to hide away. 


On Friday we headed to the Grand Canyon.
 Beautiful scenery along the way.

 Me at the Grand Canyon



On Saturday we spent the day stitching away. 

The week went by very fast.

Thank you Karen for being such a great host. 
I had a blast and can't wait to get back to your "neck of the woods."

Thanks for sharing my Arizona trip. 

Thank you for stopping by.  I so appreciate your visits and sweet comments.

Keep on stitchin'
Nan

Sunday, March 11, 2012

The Final Verdict on the Letter "A"...

Happy Sunday Morning Friends,

Thank you to all my friends who called, sent texts or emails to check on me last week.  Stitching friends are the best and the ones who know where I live know that I was very close to the tornadoes that ripped through the midwest last Friday. 
My town did not get hit but towns as close as 20 miles south were devastated.
The clean up will be long but times like this reaffirm your faith in the human race.
So many people have pitched in to help and donations are plentiful to help those affected.


Again, thank you for thinking of me and continue to pray for those affected.





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I decided to try a new local framer with the two pieces I had finished.  
  When I walked in I ran through the normal lists of question a
stitcher wants to know about their framer.  He seemed to have all the right answers.
But one question I asked seemed to make him terribly uncomfortable.  I asked him if he could tell what the picture was?  He turned a few shade of red and after a few ummms and coughs he said "Well, I wasn't going to say anything but, no."

At least he was honest....another good quality in a framer, right?
I reassured him not to feel bad as my husband couldn't tell what it was either.
So after explaining it was the letter A we spent quite a while trying to decided
on a frame for this busy piece.

I left my pieces in the hands of my new framer and was delighted when he told me
I'd only have to wait a week for him to frame my pieces. 
True to his word I got a call one week later and rushed right in to pick up my pieces.

Upon viewing my letter A...
I knew the framer had done a great job with the framing but I'm still no closer
to the love I'd hoped to have for this piece. 

And to reinforce my thoughts.....
The letter A was sideways...he had to move the hanger on the back so it was actually at the top of the frame.  *framerturnsredagain*

"A"
M Designs

So the final verdict on my letter A....
It didn't turn out the way I'd envisioned but I have a new framer
who appears to know how to frame linen.
Check out the other piece he framed.

Home is Where you Hang Your Needlework
Homespun Elegance

I love how this one turned out.

I hope that everyone is enjoying mild weather.  We've had such a mild winter here.  Daffodils are popping out of the ground, birds are singing every morning and the sun is shining.  Feels like Spring is here.  Although it has been mild I am still ready for some bone warming sunshine.  You know the kind of warmth that sinks into your skin all the way to your bones.
In a little over a week I'll be on a plane to Arizona to visit my friends Karen and Yvonne. 
Can't wait to see the Grand Canyon, visit The Attic and spend some time stitching with friends.

Thank you for stopping by and following the saga of my letter "A".
I love hearing from you and appreciate your sweet comments.
Until next time...


Keep on stitchin'
Nan