Has it been ...

more than two months since I've posted? How time flies when you are NOT having fun!

The move is, for the most part, completed. What an undertaking. I'm having trouble reorienting myself to a normal life right now. No boxes to pack? No boxes to upack? What????

Almost everything is in it's place and we are functioning quite well given that we only had two weeks to get this thing done. There are a few items we can't find yet but I know from experience that they will turn up eventually, a few weeks or a few years from now ... or not ... but all the little necessities and knicks and knacks are settled. One more trip up to Steamboat in August to have a garage sale and do the final cleaning and then I am ready to leave that part of my life behind and fully concentrate on this part.

And it is sooooo good to have a little free time that isn't taken up by packing or unpacking something.

This weekend I had a few spare hours to get the old Bianchi fired up and ready to go. Two nice sized panniers for the back. Was considering a front basket but someone recommended these and they will be perfect for my errands. They snap on and off the bike rack and open up into nice size shopping bags. Sturdy lock ("I don't think we're in Steamboat any more Oliver" :-) and a pump. I'm ready to roll:

Decided to try to train Mr. Twist (Oliver) to run beside the bike as there is a lovely, large park with a bike path running around a lake just a few blocks from here. A little run every evening could burn up some of that crazy excess energy that seems to pop up around 9 or 10 pm. He took to it like a champ. Beardies are bred for agility and herding and it really came out when I gave him a task to focus on that required quick thinking and concentration. Only six months old and he worked it like a pro! Never once stopped to look up at me (a big problem when you need to keep the momentum going) and never once ran in front of the bike. I was very proud of him ... especially given the lack of attention he shows in all other activities. He is definitely NOT going to be a fetcher :-) But he's going to be a great bike dog.

  

 Oliver before and after bike training :-)

So, we are both adapting to this urban life-style quite well. I spent most of my young adult life in Los Angeles and San Francisco so I'm no stranger to this. Will miss the beauty of the mountains but I know it will lessen with time ... especially when the snow starts to fly. Love the close proximity of EVERYTHING. Can walk or bike to food, shopping and entertainment not to mention the dog groomer and a really, really cool pet store :-) In fact we walked up there today to get some new "chewies". They have the sweetest kitten up for adoption (they are working with a homeless pet shelter so NOT a mill cat) named Bo ... and it was great to see that Oliver likes cats. No prey drive whatsoever ... and Bo ... well I've always wanted a puppy and kitten that could grow up together. Bo is thin, petite and long legged. A real cutie pie. Hmmmmm ... you'll have to wait and see what happens. I don't even know yet :-)

But, I digress. This blog is supposed to be about Needlework, at least some of the time.

Just before the move I received some lovely new charts from Marie Thérèse Saint-Aubin. If you're a fan, check out the designs on our web site.

At the same time I received another package from France with some stitched models. Lovely job Anne-Catherine and Evelyne! I finally got my spare bedroom (also known as the "finishing department") set up yesterday so I can finish what my friends have started. October, November and December calendar covers are being stitched now which should give me enough time to get them finished and out by the end of August. Couldn't resist another little Halloween piece which I managed to stitch when not packing or unpacking boxes. New christmas piece is being worked on in Massachusetts. Thank you Nataly for taking that one on! So, between the four of us, we should have some pretty interesting things to release in August and then again in October.

And many more on the horizon. Going back to the garden, both literally and figuratively, with a new series and working slowly and lovingly on a teaching piece as when the dust settles here, I hope to get out there and meet some of you in person. The Denver Airport is now just a 25 minute drive instead of 3.5 hours (or up to 10 when the pass was snowed under) and I have loving siblings close by to look after Oliver when I leave.

We are busily preparing for the Rocky Mountain Regional Seminar's Merchandise Night on August 5th. Hope to meet and greet many of you there so please stop by and say hello if you're attending!

RMR Seminar 2011, Denver, Colorado

Lots to look forward to.

We are busy. We are content.

Off to the park so Oliver can practice being a bike dog :-)

Then maybe walk to Parisi's for Pizza and gelato????

TTYS,

Cynthia

At last ...

Spring time in the Rockies.


I am so grateful that the glacier in my back yard has finally melted. Now of course, I have mostly mud instead of ice but there are a few little green strands coming up here and there through the muck. The Iris are just peeking out of the mulch in the flower bed and we've had three or four sunny days in a row. Though I would never discount the possibility of snow in May in Steamboat ... I'm beginning to think Spring has arrived. This has been the roughest, coldest, longest winter I remember in a long time but it gave me the extra push I needed to move without too many regrets. There are many things I will miss about this beautiful, quiet place ... but another winter is not one of them. Maybe this past year was nature's way of telling me it really IS time to move on.


At any rate, it seems petty to vetch and moan about ice and snow when so many of you in other parts of the country are dealing with much bigger issues. My heart goes out to all of you dealing with flooding, tornadoes and of course the other storms life brings. The loss of loved ones, the economy, unemployment. My prayer today is that we all find the strength and purpose to forge ahead. I was listening to the sound track from "Parenthood" recently and the words to one of my favorite Bob Dylan songs struck a chord (no pun intended) so I'm keeping it on instant replay in my head ... and in my heart:

May you build a ladder to the stars

and climb on every rung

and may you stay

forever young

It has not been all gray and snow and rain here. A very special little light came into my life in April and ... for the most part ... he is a brilliant one. The antidote to a long, cold winter. Makes me laugh. Makes me exercise. Relieves stress. Well maybe causes a little stress too. Okay, a lot of stress. No one told me that having a puppy was sort of like having an infant. Only difference seems to be mopping up instead of changing diapers. And of course babies don't jump on you, chew on your hands and then the legs of the dining room table. Nor do they try to make off with bulk skeins of Waterlilies. He bites. He chews. He barks when I put him in his crate. He drags all the mud from the back yard into the kitchen. He is also the cutest little cuddle monster I've ever seen.

Oliver Twist - 12 Weeks

Found a house to rent in Denver. A great place with plenty of room for The Drawn Thread, a fenced yard for Oliver and within walking distance of Sunflower Market and Parisi's (my favorite restaurant, deli, pizzeria, gelatoria). I'm very relieved to know I have a place and have set a moving date. July 1 - 7 will be moving week ... so fair warning. We will probably shut down operations here at the end of June ... start packing up my personal stuff and The Drawn Thread ... and hand it over to the movers on July 7. I figure it's going to take a couple of weeks for us to get everything put away so we will be closed for orders from July 1 through the 15th. I know that seems like a long time ... but to move, personally, and at the same time dismantle an entire business, move it 100 miles and then reassemble it in a new location is going to be a daunting task so please bear with us during this time and get any orders you feel you will need before the end of July in before the end of June.

Speaking of orders, in between selling a house, trying to raise a puppy and spending most of my time in Denver searching for new digs, I've only managed to come up with 3 new designs for this quarter ... and that only because of those wonderful ladies in France. I didn't want to cause anyone working on the Calendar series get behind in their project so we managed to get those out on time. You can view the photos at right. The web site will be updated shortly and we will begin shipping next week.

Wanted to also note that we will be at the Rocky Mountain Regional 2011 EGA Seminar Merchandise night - August 5th from 7-9 pm with a table full of goodies. If you are attending or are in the area, please stop by and visit. More information available at:

www.rmga.org

Many more things on the drawing board, sitting by my stitching chair and in France ... so we hope to start (or finish) August with quite a few new surprises. For those of you who just couldn't bear to put those pocket calendar covers in your purse, we are working on desk calendar covers, a stitching journal, a sampler tribute to "My Little Town" that I will soon be leaving, and many other little surprises. Stay tuned and have patience while we make this move and .....

Stay forever young,

Cynthia

It's all good ...

Good news, that is.


Thanks to the generosity of stitchers, we have begun our sponsorship of some "friends" at "Best Friends". Since it is your dollars that are providing these sponsorships, I wanted to share with you what we have been able to do with the funds from "The Menagerie" so far ... I say so far because we are hoping we will be able to continue these sponsorships with the profits from this chart.

Here are our three new "best friends":

Candy/Sandy

Gregory

And last but not least ... for all the cat fanciers that bought "The Menagerie" ...

the loveliest kitty we've seen in a long time ... just look at those eyes!

Big Snow

You can read their stories by clicking on their names ... then scroll down the page to find them.

One other special photo:

There is a litter of these little cuties being born in Loveland, Colorado on March 21 or 22 and I am trying to think of a name for mine. Any suggestions? There will be 5 to 7 puppies in this litter. The mom is a beautiful black and white beardie. The dad is brown and white. I have requested a black and white male ... for obvious reasons. I'll keep you posted.

And last, but not least, I have sold my home. Unfortunately, part of the deal is that I rent it back for six months. Okay. Nice slow move. So I will also keep you all posted as to when the move will occur and if we will have to shut down operations for a few weeks to accomplish this task.

I promised good news. I delivered :-)

My thanks to all of you for your support of "The Menagerie". You are a very generous group of people.

Love and peace,

Cynthia 

... but the show must go on

And so today I am releasing 8 new designs. I hope you enjoy them. You can click on the photos at right which will take you to their respective pages on our web site.

I did want to note this special release:

The Menagerie

In Sami's memory I am donating profits from the sale of this chart to Best Friends Animal Sanctuary in Kanab, Utah. They have a wonderful program where you can sponsor an animal, or many animals, so Sami is going to sponsor as many friends as he can, to make sure they also have a chance for a quality life and a "forever" home.

Best Friends Animal Sanctuary

I thank you so much for your continued support of our efforts and hope to be back here soon ... with happier chit chat and/or better news.

Cynthia

Thank You

I want to thank all of you for expressing your sympathy and support. My Sam was a blessing ... and a gift. He never held a grudge, never regretted the past and did not fear the future. He was never mean or spiteful, never felt sorry for himself and forgave quickly. He never passed judgement. He just noted what worked and what didn't and then moved on. His mind was unencumbered by hate, prejudice or stereotype. His heart was open to the potentials and possibilities of each person, place or thing he encountered (a porcupine encounter comes to mind here :-). Each day was a gift to him. He was just as happy to respond to an invitation to play a bit of catch or take a long hike along Fish Creek as he was to sleep beside my chair for hours while I stitched.


Though I miss his physical presence every day, following his example by living life happily in the moment and loving unconditionally will keep his spirit alive and serve to honor his memory more than tears and grieving. That was my promise to him as we parted and I will do my best to keep it. I'm sure I will never be as good at it as he was.


Thank you all for your beautiful words. Hug your pet today. If you don't have one, think about going out and rescuing one. You'll be amazed at what they bring into your life ... literally and figuratively :-)

Cynthia and Sam

Iamsamiam

1996 - 2011

Loyal friend and faithful companion.

You will be missed.

Thanks and Giving

I hope everyone had a lovely Thanksgiving. It is one of my favorite holidays ... made up of two of my favorite words. This year I witnessed an amazing demonstration of the second word, "giving", as I watched a young chef spend an entire day in the kitchen making a dinner for a group of us that I won't soon forget. Amazing meal that took weeks to plan and prep and then an entire day to prepare and serve. That was the "giving". Since I have been the "giver" of the meal for more than 20 years, I was grateful to be able to sit back, relax and watch someone else prepare it. That was the "thanks". Watching and feeling grateful for the effort made by our chef was my only job. How nice to be given an opportunity to be truly grateful. Thanks and Giving. Two things we should probably make an effort to practice more than once a year.


And what a year. Rough year ... for many of us. And yet, I find if I take the time and open my eyes and search my heart, I can always find things to be thankful for, even in the toughest times. So after a bad day, or a stressful week, or a few dark hours, I always try to spend a few moments in the evening doing a little gratitude meditation so I don't get carried away by troubles and tribulations and end up going to bed with them (yuck! Who wants to sleep with those guys :-) It's amazing what a little "gratitude" meditation can do for your mood.


Not to mention your sleep :-)


Meanwhile, more thanks are in order. I want to thank my friend Evelyne Kaczmarek for the beautiful job she did stitching the model for "Alphabets" which is due to start shipping .... let's see ... tomorrow! A few new projects to help ring in the New Year. You can see the photos at right and of course, please visit the web site for more details. This was not an easy piece to stitch and Evelyne did an amazing job. I was so impressed that I did as many "close-up" photos as I could but they still don't really do it justice. Thank you my friend for a spectacular job ... on a difficult piece. Your help and support are worth more than you'll ever know.


After running out of wall space, I have been giving a lot of thought to designing things that are a bit more useful ... common, day to day items that can be made beautiful with a touch of embroidery. Why not show off our needlework on the little everyday objects in our lives and make them as "personal" and "special" as we can? The little calendar covers are the first of this group. They are made to cover the small, inexpensive promotional calendars given out by many companies this time of year. I've always carried one in my purse, but never liked the plastic covers that came with them and so, voila, something a little more attractive without too much work involved.


Am working on a cover for my large weekly desk calendar, for my journal, for note pads, shopping lists, coupon organizers, etc. etc. We also have another large sampler stitched (thank you Anne-Catherine) and almost ready to go and many other little objects and projects in the works. Some being stitched, some still on the drawing board and some still in my head. So, keep watching to see what turns up.


Meanwhile, it's late. Been a very long day. I need to go do some of that "gratitude" meditation so I can fall into bed and sleep like a grateful baby.

See you soon, ci vediamo a presto, à tout à l'heure, gauw tot ziens,

Cynthia