While the wild wind blew

out and around the house..................

I stayed busy...................working with those words I posted about last week. I embroidered the words and then added the leaves on each side. With calico print fabric and card stock paper, I threw it all together and made tags. Perfect for sticking on top of gifts, tucked inside scrapbooks or inside of the latest romance novel..........don't you think?

I also finally finished different items to place in my etsy shop. I still have some things needing to be finished, but as you know.................there will always be something that needs to be finished.

I have a cross stitch rooster.............half stitched,..........waiting to be finished and hung in my rooster filled kitchen.

How about you? What UFO's do you have..............waiting?

A quilt top.............a cross stitched piece perhaps? I would love to hear!

Words..............some so small.........

 some full of verse.................I love them all.

Some motivate me..................

Some trigger something deep in my soul.................

Some make me feel that all is right with the world.........................

some touch my heart in so many ways..............

some so simple and with hardly any letters.............yet can be full of so many things and so much meaning.

These words have given me inspiration to incorporate them somehow into my embroidery..........

I will work on these.........this weekend.

How about you??

What words pull at your heart? What words get you motivated?

I would love to hear.

The days have been a mixture

of warm sunny days and then cold gray days. The warm days have made me catch spring fever, and I find myself purchasing every bright and cheerful flower that calls to me from the store nurseries.

But because of the cold days,  I know not to plant them outside............especially these pretties.

Just look at this red and yellow lady....................telling me how pretty she would be worked up into an embroidery design............don't you think?

Primrose is really not meant for the dry hot area that I live in, however, the stores display them in their bright and vibrant colors.

because they know that I will purchase them anyhow, loading them into my arms and whisking them out to my farm,  hoping that they might live a while for me to enjoy.

So far, they seem to be happy in the window by the back door.

Something new that I just had to bring home was this lovely plant. This is a

Shady Moonlight Viola.

It wasn't just the beautiful color that talked me into purchasing this............it smells heavenly!

It has the fragrance of honeysuckle or like the meadow flowers that bloom here on the grounds in spring.

If you run across this beauty.............take it home! You will be so delighted with it.

Now..............

what beauties have you spotted at your local nursery?

Primroses, or roses perhaps?

Maybe some colorful orchids?

I would love to hear!

Old pitchers and platters have

always been some of the things I search for when I go to flea markets or sales.

I bet you do as well!....... Am I right?

And as you may already know...............they are getting harder to find.

Vintage embroidered and crocheted linens, as well as cookbooks, are on the list as well.

Once in a while, I will be fortunate enough to find a piece that matches with something that I already have in my collection!

The crocheted doily is hand crocheted from an elderly friend of mine who used to run an antique shop. Bell had an arch back trunk full of these wonderful items..........all made by her! Years later, I went to visit her and this wonderful pitcher was sitting out in the weather on an old weathered table. I quickly rescued it!

( I think she placed it there for me to find, actually,...........she was sweet this way)

The platter is one that I found at a street flea market, underneath a pile of other dishes. How lucky I felt when I uncovered it!  The lady who ran the booth asked only 50 cents for it! I have had this for years now.

I have been stitching ,off and on through the months,on a set of coasters, each with a different flower for each month. I have found vintage china to be the best help when it comes to choosing color for my embroidered project. The pitcher and the platter, helped with this design.  

All in all, it has made a pretty grouping.

How about you? What colors do you like best in china?
Blue Willow perhaps..............or the charm of country roses?

Do you have a special tea pot or pitcher in your favorite design?

I would  love to hear!

I just picked up the new issue of Where Women Create.............

are you familiar with this wonderful magazine? I love taking an issue outside with me on a late sunny afternoon, sit to look through it,  and oooh and aaahh over the work places of the talented and creative women featured inside.

And it always inspires me to work on a better creative space for myself, which, I have just finished, as seen in the above photo. It might look a little country shabby..........but I like this sort of thing........sigh..........I guess I always will. I love this space because it has two over-large windows which gives wonderful light. I can also look out  into the woods while I am working.

  Lately, I usually found my creative space spread out throughout the house. My supplies were all crammed up in a corner of the bedroom,.................. my chair,is in the living room,  where I do my late night stitching and in a space where I can watch and old movie while I stitch..........(and just for the record, that space is not changing) {:  But, since I stay up into the wee hours of morning, while my husband, who works a hard steady job, is sleeping, it is not good for all of my supplies, to be in the bedroom, where I try to quietly sift through my stash, with a flash light, trying not to wake him. So this week,

instead of stitching, I spent my time looking for affordable and "quaint" storage for my stash. I chose the corner of our large living room, ( I really mean LARGE). If it was not our living room, I could have the workspace of a lifetime!!! However, I will be nice to the rest of my family, and pick just a corner for my creative bliss.

I found and old but sturdy dresser that was missing a drawer to place my paper, drawing pads, markers, and other items in.

I also found an old but well made set of cupboards out of an old kitchen, turned it around backwards to use for open shelving. I could keep it with the doors on the front, but like the open shelves better. When the weather gets warm I plan to re-paint these pieces of furniture so that they don't look so drab.

The top of the dresser gives me plenty of space so that I can easily use my vintage transfers,

and the surface is wonderful for working and drawing out designs.

 I am always interested in hearing about your work and your creative spaces, dear blogging friends.

So.................

what kind of look do you have for your space? Is it full of bright color...........or do you prefer lighter colors?

Is is modern or country in style?

What I would also like to know,......... what do you put on your walls?

 I want to put some kind of something on the wall where I can pin up images of designs and linens, and fabric and floss samples.

What works for you?

I would love to see and hear!

Can you guess what this is?

It looks like a rich tapestry...........don't you think?

Well..............no, that is not what it is. It is Jack Frost's artistic work on the hood of the car on an extremely chilly Texas morning. It's beautiful,.........isn't it? I am always in awe to see these frost paintings!

With Valentine's day approaching , you still have time to

stitch this sweet and easy heart design for your sweetie. Here is the link for the pattern and the instructions.......

http://crossstitch.about.com/od/variousholidaypatterns/ig/Be-My-Valentine-Heart/My-Valentine-Simple-Color-Sym.htm

Also, there is this yummy rich dessert, perfect for the Valentine of your heart!

Just go visit my cooking blog for the recipe here is the link.........

http://countrykitchenkat.blogspot.com

May all of you have a sweet Valentine's day!

The blue morning glories that I posted about stitching, on my last post

have already been snatched up before I got to place them in my Etsy shop. They were a set of 6 place mats, and a former customer saw just the glimpse of them and now they are being finished and sent along her way..................(thank you Liz).

However, my work basket is overflowing and I am working up another set to sell( when they are finished.)

I have one stack of finished pieces,

and an enormous stack of unfinished pieces.

I can't wait to get this design stitched. With the snow that has blanketed and frozen our area for the past 3 days, I have plenty of time to be inside........stitching.

I know that most of you are probably going through even worse cold conditions.

What are you working on?

A quilt perhaps? A mosaic piece? Have you gotten you paints and paint brushes out?

I would love to hear!

A soft white blanket of snow

is covering everything on the grounds this morning.The roaring wind blew it in through the night.  The bright red berries push their way through

and the woods lie silent and still.

 Such a cold day..........but still filled with beauty. This moisture (even in this form) is much needed in our area.

So today, I am stitching morning glories as I wait for the snow to prepare the way for them to sprout and bloom out in my garden. How about you?

Are you anticipating the spring flowers as the snow falls? What kinds and what colors are to be sprouting in your area?

I would love to hear!