First Friday Freebie # 16

If you’ve stopped by here recently, you know that the unpacking from our recent move is at a standstill until we have some renovation/construction work completed in our house and as a result, my creative juices seem to be flowing uphill…or perhaps I should say not flowing quite as freely as usual.  As I mentioned in my last post, I managed to commit a few designs to paper but because I still haven’t been able to locate some of my supplies in the as yet unpacked boxes, that is where the designs still remain…on paper.  However, I am determined to locate my threads and floss by the end of the weekend as I am definitely experiencing withdrawal symptoms …besides, I really like my latest winter-themed line drawing!  *wink*

I did manage to get the photos taken and the instructions written for this month’s FFF  (First Friday Freebie).  Some time ago I gave you a preview of my Wool Crazy Sampler Pincushion and what better time than now to present you with the instruction packet. 

Please click HERE to download the PDF file consisting of the photo, instructions and line drawing.

Here are a couple of photos that I took of our backyard yesterday afternoon around 4:30 p.m. when Mac and I went for a ‘little walk’.

It is so pretty and peaceful and the deer come to visit every night to eat the windfall apples that are still on the ground as well as the carrots that we now leave out for them.

This next photo is the view from our front yard overlooking the Annapolis Basin across the road.  This is sure a pretty part of the country, with so much natural, untamed beauty.

I’d like to take this opportunity to thank you all for your kind words of support and encouragement during my time of transition.  Never in a million years did I think that this move would be so stressful and exhausting.  However, now that things seem to be moving ahead rather than standing still, I find myself in much better spirits and my frame of mind has improved tremendously.  I’m counting the days til when I unpack that last box.  It won’t come soon enough!

You guys R-O-C-K!

Kaaren ♥

Update–Part II

I kinda knew I was in a funk but I also know that I was trying to talk myself out of it until the visit from Jody the contractor last Friday.  Maybe it’s a sign of age or perhaps the immensity of this move that finally got to me but I knew something was not right when I just couldn’t bring myself to start anything.  I am a very take-charge person and the word ‘procrastinate’ has never been a part of my vocabulary and when it reared it’s ugly head in CAPITAL letters over the past four weeks, I was having a hard time dealing with it.

No more!!! 

After meeting with Jody, he set our minds and hearts at ease by understanding not only what we would like to have him do in our house but he also took the time to explain how, when and where he would accomplish our ideas and in the most economical and efficient way.  We had set a budget for this initial work and the price he quoted us came in lower than we anticipated which will allow us to have him paint almost the entire house as well.  I know I am on cloud nine and I think Mr. Painted Quilt is too…even though he would never admit it.  *wink*  Jody has two other jobs to finish and then he and his wife are going on vacation for a week but he assured us that he would start on ours no later than the middle of February and if things went according to plan, he could very possibly be finished by then.  Woo hoo!  The light at the proverbial end of the tunnel is shining a little bit brighter these days! 

So, after finding out this good news, I happily unpacked a few more of my studio boxes and rearranged some furniture.  I still cannot locate the box containing all my different threads and flosses so even though I’ve come up with some new FFF (First Friday Freebie) designs, I haven’t been able to make the samples.  Now I can kick myself for not labeling the boxes more thoroughly when I initially packed them.   *sigh*

On Friday I received two wonderful parcels that I’d like to share with you.  The first one is from Mai who lives in Holland and we met as swap partners over a year ago and have kept in touch ever since.  She also knows that I LOVE pincushions and here’s what she sent me…my very own Christmas pudding…with no calories!  Thank you so much, Mai!

Friday must have been my lucky day because in addition to the wonderful news from our contractor and Mai’s gift, I also received this nine patch pincushion from Julie.  Not only have Julie and I done a personal swap but she just recently hosted a nine patch swap which I also participated in.

Thanks, Julie.  I love it!  My pincushion collection is growing by leaps and bounds!

And slowly but surely, my hooked rug is coming along.  I’ve unhooked and rehooked many areas that I wasn’t happy with so my progress has been slow.  But I love doing it as I knew I would.

It’s 38F degrees and raining here in the Annapolis Valley of Nova Scotia and my life is full of sunshine once again.

Kaaren ♥

Update

Finally, we have found a reputable contractor who has agreed to undertake some of the immediate work that needs to be done to our ‘new’ old home before we can really start to settle in.   He was recommended to us by a local primitive shop owner and we’re thrilled to know that things will finally start to come together.

One of the downfalls of older homes is the dire lack of closets.  For the past month, Mr. Painted Quilt and I have essentially been living out of boxes because there is no where to hang our clothes.  Of course we were aware of this before we bought the house and the two bedrooms where we want to add the closets are large enough to accommodate them without detracting from the general appearance, size and ambiance of the rooms.  And an added bonus is that our contractor specializes in older houses so he knows what to recommend and how to go about it!  He’s coming over tomorrow to finalize plans and to give us a start date…and if the price is right, we might also give him some of the painting to do as well. 

Now I’m really getting excited! 

Because we want to paint the house from top to bottom, we decided not to unpack anything except for the necessities and the kitchen and bathroom stuff.  As a result, there are still mountains of boxes stacked in the sun porch and  spare bedroom.

One side of the sun porch…

And the other side.  You don’t want to see the spare bedroom…really.

The one exception we made to the unpacking rule was my studio.  I couldn’t live without my stuff and was experiencing severe withdrawal symptoms…honestly!  Even though this room is destined to be painted as well, it is ‘liveable’ as is so I went ahead and unpacked and found a home for about two-thirds of my stuff.  Keep in mind that these are VERY preliminary pictures and things will certainly change as soon as I become more comfortable with my new surroundings.

Although all my ‘stuff’ is familiar,  it is going to take me a while to get used to things.  The ugly office chair will be replaced with a comfortable wing chair as soon as I find the ‘perfect’ one.  This is my designated hooking and stitching area.

The physical size of the room is smaller than my last studio but I have the added advantage of two storage spaces under the dormers on either side of the room.  Notice the door?

Here is what’s behind it…

The storage area extends approximately 6” on either side of the opening and on both sides of the room.

I would like to add a custom storage cabinet or two sometime in the future specifically for my fabric stash but I have to keep on reminding myself that Rome wasn’t built in a day.  *sigh*

As you can see, I’m still trying to find places for everything and much more tweaking and rearranging will take place over the next little while.

There are still several more boxes to be unpacked but I think I’ll leave them for now until I get a better feel for my new space.

I wish you all a very happy, healthy and prosperous New Year, and one with many finishes too!

See you in 2011!

Kaaren ♥

In Keeping With The Season…

I’d like to take this opportunity to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a happy, healthy and prosperous New Year.

This year has certainly been a busy one in the Painted Quilt household, especially now as we slowly settle into our new home.  Thank you all for your support, encouragement and friendship. 

And in the true spirit of friendship…together, let us keep our creative fires burning!

Kaaren ♥

Tuesday Hook-In

Every Tuesday is an open hooking day at the Moose River Rug Hooking Studio.  I went over late this morning to join in and to try to absorb whatever information I could glean from the very talented hookers in our area.  All the gals were so helpful and very giving of their knowledge and information.

Many of the gals bring baked goodies and there is always fresh coffee and tea served.

I’m thoroughly enjoying myself as I knew I would.  This is Diane and she designs as she goes.  If you like the scrappy style, you’d L-O-V-E this rug!  Notice her basket of precut strips on the floor beside her?  That’s all she uses when she makes her rugs.

Bette is a wonderful hooker and has been so helpful and encouraging.  Her work is exquisite.  Look at the gradation of shading on the leaves.

How cool is this Santa?

And here’s what I’ve done so far.

I’m starting out slowly and the design I’m working on is a relatively simple one but I’m learning and loving it!  Now I only wish that there were more hours in a day in order to accomplish everything that I want and would like to do.

Kaaren ♥