Wednesday, August 18, 2010

CANNOT BELIEVE I WON SOMETHING

I was in shock when Wawanna P. from http://www.silverthreadsgoldenneedle.blogspot.com/ sent me an e-mail, saying that I had won, YES I WON something at last, wow I could not believe it!!!!! I sent her my address and this is the beautiful chatelaine I received, it is just so beautiful and believe me when I say that,the picture does not do justice to it. I had to sit down and open the box she sent me and just look at it from every angle and the beautiful work she did with the colors of beads she picked for it. Wawanna please know that I will always treasure this heirloom piece and all the other extra gifts you sent me, I know you did them from your heart and I will always think of you when I use them. God bless you, you are a wonderful and unique lady. hugs, hugs and more hugs and many blessings.
Wawanna also included extra gifts with the chatelaine, this beautiful scissor fob and a bead counter with a needle threader, she did them with the same beads she used in the chatelaine and they both can be clasped to it. Every time I opened a gift box, there was another treasure, I felt like a little girl opening gifts after gift. I really know Wawanna put a lot of love in all these heirloom treasures.
This is a "Laying tool" wow what a beauty it is. It is used primarily in needlepoint where one "lays" the threads so that they look evenly placed. In cross stitch, if there are any fancy stitches one could use it the same way. In using the the laying tool the stitcher can separate several strands of threads, silk, cotton, rayon, etc, just how many depends on the size of the canvas she is working on and the type of stitch you are executing, then you put them back together and in the tapestry needle, secures the thread on the back of the canvas and begin stitching. You lay the threads that is using the tip of the "laying tool" to smooth out the threads so that they ae all lined up and then carefully execute the stitch. That way you get a perfect alignment of the threads which gives a smooth appearance and therefore the most shine from the threads. Also in cross stitch if a stitcher is so careful she wants her threads perfectly linen up for each cross stitch, you can use this instead of the needle for railroading.

Wawanna explained to me that it takes 32 steps to create a "laying tool" and several weeks to make one. She includes 2-3 layers of a primer, 2-4 layers of a paticular color of professional artist paint, 2-3 coats of a special effects like"angel dust"glitters and then 12 layers of a hardening gloss (with sanding in between each layer) so that the laying tool is slick and smooth as possible.There should be nothing there to snag your precious threads.A couple of beads are added to the one end with epoxy glue and it's all ready! your "laying tool"has a special effect and it is pearlized. As with all her products each and every one is individual and unique. Sorry this is so long, but I wanted to explain to you all as she explained it to me since this is something new to me and I will use it and try it out. To me this is a most precious gift and I know Wawanna went out of her way to do everything in the same color to match the chatelaine.  She also sent me 24 square diamond shape thread holders, beautifully decorated by her, plus a beautiful card. So not only did I received the chatelaine, but all these other precious heirloom pieces that I will allways treasure from the bottom of my heart from a most wonderful and blessed friend.

Sunday, August 15, 2010

ALEX'S LITTLE BIRTHDAY PARTY

Summer has been super busy in our lives, vacations and more vacations. This week I was able to put together a little birthday party at my house for my grandson Alex, who turned 10 years old (unbelievable how fast our grandchildren are growing) since his mother will do his big birthday party with all his cousin's and friends. His real birthday is August 18, but we wanted to do a little something for him at our house. Also he goes back to school on August the 16 (he really is not ready to go back yet) since he has been enjoying his summer so much.

So here are some pictures I took to share with you all his little birthday party with just us. We had a lot of fun and I fixed him his favorite foods and snacks, but then that is what grandparents do. I had to do everything the night before  because he was being very nosey in what we were doing and he loves the Star War theme and I did not want him to see anything until they came over the next day in the evening. So yes I did surprise him and he was surprised.

Many blessings, Vilma