Beautiful Bavaria!

DH and I had the opportunity a couple of weeks ago to go on a motorcycle tour in Bavaria and the Czech Republic.  It was organized by a couple of the guys he works with, and they found a small company that specializes in motorcycle tours in this region.  We stayed in a B&B in the tiny village of Barnzell, which is near the small town of Zwiesel, and each day we rode out and back.  I thought I'd share a few pictures.

 This was our ride, a BMW something.  R1150, I think.  DH would know.  It wasn't the most comfortable ride, but it was great for the mountain roads.  We rode it for 1500 kilometers, or around 800 miles.  No wonder my butt was tired by the end of the week!

 Mounted up and ready to go!

The view from the pillion seat.

Our first day of riding took us to Passau, near the German-Austrian border.  We didn't actually go into the town, but we got this terrific view from a café where we had lunch.

 Always a challenge, what to do with the helmets at the restaurant.  This solution worked for us.  These are all the helmets of our group.  There were 7 of us -- 3 couples and a single -- plus our guide.

 The second day's riding took us to Klatovy, in the Czech Republic.  We toured the catacombs in a local church.  There is also a museum in the church that gives information about the history of the Jesuits.  I was a bad girl and took pictures of these two pieces of needlework.  The top one is a chalice cover, and the other is a close-up of the detail on an alb from, if I recall correctly, the 18th century.  The handwork on both of these is just stunning, and the chalice cover is edged with lace made from gold thread and that looks like it's tatted.  Wow!

 

 Day 3 was also in the Czech Republic.  We stopped for coffee at this café in the town of Horni Plana.  The rough translation is Café of the Three Cats.

 No real cats, alas, but this logo on the wall.

 

On the road in the Czech Republic.  This is one of the few pictures I took from the bike.  Zipping along at 70 mph isn't really conducive to taking good pictures.  But most of all, taking pictures also required letting go with at least one hand.  So, not many pictures.

 These are two of the many pictures I took of Cesky Krumlov, a restored medieval town in the Czech Republic.  It's a major tourist attraction and we had an excellent lunch here.

 

More beauty in the Czech Republic.

 We went to Velhartice, an old castle in the Czech Republic.  A wedding was in progress in the chapel.  I don't know if the groom (or maybe bride?) was a police officer or if this was an escort car, but I liked the top hat!

 A family band at a folk music festival in Regen, Germany.  They were very good!

We had a great time on this vacation.  Normally we don't travel with groups but these were people we knew, so it was a lot of fun.  Plus it's a beautiful corner of the world!

Long Overdue

Greetings all!  I know this is a long overdue post, but here it is at last.  I thought it was time to share some stitchy updates.

 

First of all, here is my progress on the Broderie bird.  I don't know what happened with the picture; the quality is pretty bad.  I think you can still get an idea of where it is compared to a couple of posts ago.  I really don't have too much more to do.

I had an irresistible attack of startitis about a month ago.  I had all the supplies gathered for Days of Advent, so I sat down and started putting stitches in it.  I started on the "Abram and Sarai" day and this is all the further that I have got:

 I'm using DMC threads and 40-ct. linen from Lakeside.

I also started on Chatelaine's Desert Garden Mandela.  I'm stitching it on 32-ct. also from Lakeside; I think I'm using "bisque".  I'm using the called-for fibers on this one.  I haven't made a lot of progress on it, either :-)

I've been considering starting an afghan.  I've wanted to stitch something on the Lady Elizabeth afghan fabric (Charles Craft?) for a number of years but have just never done it.  I've also been thinking about a series of floral designs by Maureen Appleton that was in one of the cross stitch magazines several years ago.  They were charted for DMC flower thread (yep, it's been that long ago!) and were meant for an afghan.  My first problem is remembering what magazine they were in, and, if I manage that, my second will be finding them -- assuming that I still have them.  ::sigh::  Oh well, it's all about the journey, isn't it.

Wishing everyone a good week -- happy stitching!

Stitchy Dreams

Do you have stitchy dreams?  Not dreams in your sleep, but dreams about stitching-related things that you'd really like to do?  I do.  Here's a hint:  "We are the international centre for embroidery teaching based at Hampton Court Palace in south-west London."  And another one:  "We run a varied programme of classes throughout the year at weekends and during the school holidays at Hampton Court Palace".  I would love, love, love to take a class at the Royal School of Needlework!  I think it would be so much fun and so very interesting.  The RSN is headquartered at Hampton Court Palace west of London; many of their classes are held there, so you can't beat the location!  Hampton Court was one of Henry VIII's palaces ("given" to him, if I remember my English history, by Cardinal Wolsey) and I believe was later added on to by William and Mary.  I've enjoyed the needlework classes I've taken over the years but a class at the RSN would be the ultimate stitchy dream for me.  How about you?  What's  your stitchy dream?

 

I've been doing okay with my stitching from my stash, although I did break down and buy a fat half cut of 40ct. "Bisque" from Lakeside Linens.  I want stitch Mary Beale's "Days of Advent" but I want to stitch it on 40ct. and didn't have a piece of fabric that was large enough in a color that I wanted to use.  I did have a piece of "Pearled Barley" that was the right size, but, much as I like Pearled Barley, I just didn't think it worked with the colors in Days of Advent.  So I bought the Bisque.

 

I've been subscribing to the e-newsletter from Broderie for quite a while now.  It's published weekly and I pretty much can't read a word of it because it's in French, but each issue has a freebie in it.  The freebies are often stylized animal designs and the one for this past week was a bird.  The design is only 86 x 86, so it should be a fairly quick stitch.  I found a piece of 32ct Bisque in my stash and decided on an old skein of Needle Necessities floss (color #154, I think).  I started it yesterday evening and this is my progress so far:

The color is lighter than it looks in the picture; it's more of a peach or salmon color and not quite so orange.  I had originally chosen a piece of "vintage" fabric, but when I unfolded it, I thought it looked not so much vintage as it did just dirty.  I considered trying to wash it, but I'm afraid that would make it look worse, so I'll just save it and use it for a piece that's more solidly stitched.

Here's wishing everyone a good week -- happy stitching!

A Visitor

This little guy was grazing in the yard when I came home from work this afternoon.  He was up next to the driveway but instead of haring off for parts unknown, he just hopped down into the longer grass next to the culvert and kept on munching.  I went inside and got my camera then ran back out and he was still there.  He was quite the intrepid little fellow, letting me get close (not quite this close; I did use the zoom) enough to get a decent picture.  I love bunnies!

 

Another Country Heard From

I've been working on England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales this weekend.  Ireland is done, England almost.  This piece is a nice, easy stitch, and stitching it on 26ct. makes it go pretty quickly.  I like it!

He ain't heavy, he's my pillow.

Friday Night Happy Dance

I sat down this evening to work on Isabella with the thought that I would stitch two or three of the leaves in the lower left corner of the border, then put her aside and maybe finish her on Monday.  But then I realized that I really didn't have a whole lot more to do, so by golly I just kept going and finished her.  Woohoo!

 

 1854 Isabella Johnstone Sampler

Reproduced by Vickie LoPiccolo Jennet and Christy Schmitz in the Summer 2010 issue of SANQ

Stitched on 40ct. "Pearled Barley" from Lakeside Linens with DMC floss

I still like the cow!

Sweet Violets, and Other Thursday Thoughts

DH and I visited my parents last weekend, and this is a picture of their back yard:

You may have to click on the picture and enlarge it to get a better look, but all that purple is violets.  I love violets.  My parents' yard is full of them; their neighbors' yards are full of them.  Our yard, alas, is not.  Actually, I'm not sure I've seen a single violet in this whole area.  There are dandelions and wild onions a-plenty, as well as a plethora of other plants that I don't know the names of but that I know are considered weeds, but no violets.  DH treats patches of the yard with skunky beer from time to time and it does seem to help the grass, but so far it hasn't produced violets.  ::sigh::  Next time we go home, I'll dig up a clump and bring back with me.  We need violets!

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Pet Peeve #1
This:

 Do you know what it is?  Okay, I'll tell you.  It's the remains of a Styrofoam peanut.  I hate those things!  I did a spot of garage-cleaning a couple of weeks ago and was breaking down boxes when I came across a box full of these _____ things (fill in the blank with your expletive of choice).  It was a box that something had been shipped in and the volume of the peanuts probably exceeded the volume of whatever was packed in the box.  How is one supposed to dispose of these things???  Biodegradable?  I doubt it.  Recyclable?  Not on the list.  Take 'em back to a shipping company?  Seriously?  Would you want a box full of Styro peanuts that had been in someone else's garage for who knows how long?  And the darn things are like Tribbles; once you start messing around with them, they go everywhere.  Have I mentioned that I hate them?

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Pet Peeve #2
So the other day I was at Petco, buying the ridiculously expensive cat litter that I use so Mimi will pee in the box instead of in other random areas of her choosing, and I handed the cashier my twenty-dollar bill.  She was a pleasant enough young girl, not rude, and she handed me my change (it's not that expensive) and then immediately turned to the customer behind me and started waiting on her.  Geez Louise, maybe you could let me at least shove my money in my pocket and pick up my purchases and get away from the counter!  Am I being too petty here?  It's bad enough that cashiers hand you your change in a wad -- coins, bills, receipts, coupons "printed just for you" -- since counting change back to the customer seems to be a thing of the past (except at the bank), but can't they at least let you get clear of the counter?  I dunno, maybe I am being petty.  But it just rubbed me the wrong way.

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Stitchy update:  I'm coming down the home stretch with Isabella!  I just have a bit of the bottom left corner to finish, and she will be done.  I'm trying to decide what to focus on next, whether to pull something else out of the WIP basket or to start something new.  I've got Selina Dunwoody kitted up; everything was out of the stash except one skein of DMC that I didn't have and picked up at A.C. Moore last week.  I hope to get Isabella finished this weekend, so I'll post a pic when I do.

Wishing everyone a very happy holiday this weekend, whichever one you celebrate.  Happy stitching!