Beautiful Button Box

It is a lovely sunny day here in central Iowa and I am getting ready to do a long walk in the sweet sunshine....by the time I finish this quick post, it should be about 40 degrees and I am ready for some fresh air! Yesterday I walked 6.5 miles in 30 degrees and that was a bit chilly - I had some very rosy cheeks....but today we are supposed to hit 47 degrees and I am excited to do a 10 mile training walk outdoors. I want to do a special thank you to those of you who have made a donation supporting my Komen 3-Day (60 mile) walk in  November - I am almost to $900.00, which is AMAZING (15% of my goal) - and I truly appreciate your support! This is such an important cause and I thank you for your encouragement and very generous hearts...

Today I have a couple fun tings to share with you - I received a lovely birthday package from my dear friend Terri - inside was a gorgeous Shaker button box (and you all know how much I love and treasure my Shaker items). This beautiful button box was filled with tiny wrapped presents (shown top right) - including a wonderful embroidered wool pincushion and some very fancy scissors (which I have never seen before!). I have already started filling the button box with various vintage buttons and trims and have it sitting in a place of prominence in my stitching nook. Terri also included a lovely scarf she knitted herself - isn't it great?! I do not do any knitting or crocheting to speak of, so I feel very blessed to have friends that are so talented and gift their yarn creations to me (again, I'm a very lucky girl)!

Also to share today - I managed to get quite a bit of sewing done over the last few days - finishing up some fun St. Patrick's Day items! I have been working on wool applique pincushions and several L.U.C.K. pillow sets. These have all been listed in my Etsy shop. I also cut up several yards of special sampler fabrics and I am working on new needlebooks, stitch starter sleeves, and stitching pockets....so look for those to be posted in the next week or so...

For now, I am off to do my lengthy walk...enjoy the rest of your weekend...I hope you have a chance to get outside and/or be creative!

Smiles and Surprises

I'm feeling quite inspired after a long lunch with my dear friend Lorrie yesterday. We met at a local cafe and chatted for several hours over salads and raspberry iced tea - it was the perfect pick-me-up...we were having such a great chat, we completely lost track of time and when we finally checked our watches, it was 3 1/2 hours later...terrible for my work to-do list, but wonderful for my spirit - I departed feeling happy, refreshed, and full of inspiration.

Lorrie totally surprised me with a gift bag full of birthday pressies - the theme was "her favorite things", which was totally awesome, as I really admire her taste and sense of style. Included in the lovely wrapped treasures: a stack of fat quarters she picked up at a quilt shop on her trip to California (aren't they FABULOUS!); a large vintage wooden spool - which are all the rage - and after reading about some she found on a trip to the antique store and seeing some fun finishing ideas in "blogland", I had mentioned I really wanted (thanks for sharing Lorrie!); and two adorable snack mats (mug rugs) that she made herself - I LOVE THESE!

Some of the other fun "favorite things" she included were several OPI Avojuice lotions (which are so smooth and smell "out of this world"...a jar of Red Chile Jelly and a jar of hot habanero salsa - YUM-O! She also made me a soft beautiful black scarf (in my opinion, a girl can never have too many scarfs). Finally, there was a Flameless LED Battery Pillar Candle (Night Light w/Timer) featuring iron heart images - this candle is actually really unique - it even smells like vanilla and the light flickers. It is from the "Where Sisters Gather" Etsy shop - and there is even one available with a needlework sampler design (I may just have to order another!).

It was such a treat spending a couple hours with Lorrie - catching up, talking about our creative endeavors, and sharing about our lives. Suddenly all the stress I was feeling melted away and I couldn't remove the smile from my face - her friendship truly enhances my life....Lorrie, thank you for the special afternoon!

Tomorrow I am meeting my dear friends Merry and Kimber for lunch and (hopefully) a visit to Valley Junction and the cupcake shop - we planned this months ago and I am super excited to see them both...so you know I will have more to share in the next couple days!