More Flooring

So now that Dave is safely back in Iraq, it has been up to me to complete the grand flooring project. I completed the back bedroom and am now over halfway finished with the small side bedroom. Yay!

I hope to finish this room by Wednesday so that I can then close off this half of the house and seal the floor that I have been able to complete. this has been quite the project but I am very proud of the work we have been able to complete.

Valentine Fairy

I have been working on a new fairy from Nora Corbet's special collection of holiday fairies for my cousin Lee's shop (Unique Lee Yours in Grants Pass, OR). She is coming along nicely and I hope to be able to mail her off by Valentine's Day.

These fairies have been so fun to work on and turn out so beautifully! The added bonus is they work up very quickly. The main reason is that they are done in stunning hand dyed threads so there are few color changes. Ms. Corbet has been able to keep the style and grace of her designs but has made them approachable for the busiest of stitcher or even someone just starting out.

This is an in progress picture of this lovely and fun piece.

I have also completed the Halloween fairy which can be seen in

a previous post.

Man in a kilt

While in Scotland this past summer we dined at a lovely resturant owned by a beautiful Canadian woman and her husband.

We had the opportunity to ask her a bit about herself and how she came to settle in Scotland. She shared with us that she had been on break from college and was traveling all over Europe when she came to Ediburgh. We asked her what made her stay in Scotland...she smiled a wry smile and said, "a man in a kilt".

Now I understand what she was thinking and feeling. There just isn't anything quite as attractive as a man in a kilt.

While in Scotland Dave decided to have a kilt made for himself and am so glad he did. You should have seen the looks that we got when we went to dinner and out for drinks with our friend Libby while Dave was here on holiday. It was so much fun and I thought he looked really handsome in
this beautiful custom made kilt and jacket.

Cork...not just for wine anymore!

Now that we have arrived back at home from playing in Steamboat it is time to continue to tackle the much awaited flooring. We began before leaving for Steamboat by laying the flooring for the hall and perhaps half of the living room. The cats were very helpful with this process as was Jackson.

So, now on to the hard part. Unlike many rooms the living room has a very difficult area with a bay window that will try all amount of skill and patience we may have as do it youselfers. Not only does the space have angles it also has two heating vents to confound our poor amatuer brains.

But it looks like we found our way to lay a beautiful cork floor. We completed the living room and hall about half of the back bedroom before Dave left.

Now the rest is up to me...Whee!

More Steamboat fun

Today we spent a leisurely day at the spectacularly beautiful Strawberry Park Hot Springs. The hot springs is located approximately 6 miles outside of downtown Steamboat Springs on a road that can be questionable for even a four wheel drive vehicle. The main reason for this is the road is quiet narrow in spots and if you do happen to get stuck it will cost you the amount to tow you out and a huge fine imposed by the city due to the fact the road is the only access to the area.

For these reasons we decided to take the shuttle provided by Sweetpea Tours. This service takes you door to door to and from the hot springs safely and comfortably. Our driver, Dan was excellent and very knowledgable about the area.

Once at the hot springs we jumped into our suits and into the very comfortable 105 degree hot pool where most of the adults were relaxing. The younger set started in the cooler pool that is about 101 degrees. As the afternoon progressed we ventured into the cooler pool as well as taking a plunge in the very brisk river which is about 35 degress or so and then quickly returned to the hot water.

Strawberry Park is without a doubt my favorite hot springs and completely worth the trip to Steamboat. This is our second trip here and I could get very used to coming more often.

Steamboat fun

I am writing this as I prepare to go to the oustanding Strawberry Park Hot Springs in beautiful Steamboat, Colorado. More on that later....

Yesterday, while Dave snowboarded, I watched a Steamboat tradition...the cowboy downhill. Real cowboys from all over the world decend on Steamboat Springs every year for this fun competition, in which they ski down a course dressed in full cowboy dress, complete with chaps and Stetsons. Once at the bottom of the course each cowboy or cowgirl must rope a cowgirl and saddle a horse. A few of the cowboys were embarrassingly confused as to which was which though. Some of the cowboys were impressively adept at completing the course in 30 seconds and under but many of them wound up on their Wranglers all the way down the mountain. A few even have the misfortune of traveling down the mountain switching between their Wranglers and their Stetsons, rolling down the mountain at an alarming speed.

I am so glad the cowboys came to town to entertain me on my non-ski day!

I have finally gotten some pics of some of my finishes. This first is a mermaid that I did over a year ago that has been hanging in my cousin's shop (Unique Lee Yours). I loved working on her and her tail is a sight to behold with tons of metallics and beads.

I worked on this piece for about 9 months and she was so worth it.

I have fallen in love with these limited addition Nora Corbett kits. They are fast to stitch and the Cresent Colour (hand dyed threads) are phenominal to work with. I am currently working on the Valentine Fairy to accompany my Halloween Fairy to my cousin's shop for display.

Next I will do the Christmas Fairy who is charming!

Last this piece is one that I did a long time ago but just now finished into a pillow for my fiancee's grandmother who is 99 for Christmas. I loved the way it worked so well with the satin and it feels wonderful. I hope she likes it as much as I enjoyed working on it.

Well, more stitching and house work calls.

Cheers!