Monday, February 14, 2011

Brrrrrrr.......

I know, it's warming up.  And thank goodness it is.  Cause we woke up without heat this morning.  Brrrrr!!!  We're waiting for the service repair man to come back with a new motor for our furnace.  Going to cost a pretty penny -- it's not covered by our service contract.  Ouch!   Oh well.

Excuse my frost bitten fingers while I show off Frances Eden.  Yes, I picked her back up and started stitching away.


Her funky colors are oh so funky!  In fact, I didn't like the colors for the right hand house one bit.  But it looks fine once you step back and take in the whole thing.  Weird, huh?


I'm looking forward to getting back to the top part of the sampler where A&E are.  But for now, I'm trying to finish off the part below the grass.


I'm getting there!  (I'm using 40ct Vintage Examplar and DMC threads.)

I won a lovely prize from BeckySC and received it in the mail.  Look at the lovely Santa!


He is oh so cute and has so many wonderful little details in the finishing!  And look at the little bell too!


The fabric on the back is so pretty too!  Thank you so much, Becky!  You are a wonderful friend!

Ok, I'm too cold to post anymore.  lol!   Happy Valentine's Day, everyone!  Nothing much will happen around here to celebrate.  Just getting a furnace motor, and doing the usual chauffeuring of boy child to orchestra in the evening.  That's ok though.  Father type and I had a celebration of sorts over the weekend.  :D

Have a great week, everyone!  Thanks for stopping by and saying hi!  Stay warm!  Let's hope the groundhog is right and there's an early spring this year.  (Just ignore all the snow on the ground.  lol!)

56 comments:

Bertie said...

Sorry to hear you've got no heating, a terrible thing for stitching hands!! and still snow too!!
Love Frances, particularly the houses they are so gorgeous:))
It's lovely when you get a stitched present, must cheer you up:)
Hope the man comes soon now.

Alisa said...

Wow...Frances Eden is very colourful, I like it! Hope you warm up soon!

The French Bear said...

Oh dear, no heat is bad...hope they fix it soon!!!
Snuggle up to Mia and stay warm!
Love, love the stitching!!!!
Happy Heart Day!
Hugs,
Mags
xx

Vonna Pfeiffer said...

Your Frances Eden is just gorgeous! The colors are funky indeed, but once you take in the beauty all at once...fabulous!
Happy Valentines Day!

BrendaS said...

Hope you warm up soon!

Frances is looking good. The colors are funky but it still looks beautiful.

Happy Valentine's Day to you.

woolwoman said...

Glad to see how lovely Frances is looking - the colors are funky - I never started her b/c I was just not in the mood for those bright colors right now. Sorry to hear about your heating unit - YIKES - first the gas problem and now this. Hopefully you'll be in warmth again soon - Happy V-day to you Margaret ! mel

Annie said...

The colors look beautiful. That really looks like a fun stitch. Hope that heat comes on soon. Very hard to stitch with ice cold fingers. I know from the power outage I had in one of the winter storms!

Diana said...

I love the red house and flower pots in Frances Eden! I'll be watching your progress.
Hope you have your heat on soon.
Happy Valentines Day.!

Laurie in Iowa said...

Good grief... you are having the worst luck with your heat and hot water this year. Let's hope this is the end of your repairs.
Your Frances looks fabulous Margaret.
Congrats on your sweet giveaway win from Becky.
Are you keeping Mia warm???

barbara said...

Oh no, a new motor for your furnace?! Yikes! But of course, no heat is not an option either. Brrr!

What a fun and gorgeous sampler! I love it!!

Catherine said...

Sorry to hear about your heat. Hopefully you will find someone to fix it soon. We are supposed to have some warmer temps this week - hopefully you will too.

Love your progress! There are some funky colors there - but you're right they just work!

Lovely piece from Becky!

Isabelle said...

Oh Margaret, I am so sorry to hear you didn't have heat this morning !Your Eden Sampler is just gorgeous as every sampler you stitch : it is always a pleasure to look at them:-)
Have a nice Valentine's day

Michelle said...

So sorry to hear you are without heat! I hope the guy shows up soon!!! Frances is fabulous - I really am having to stop myself from starting her - she's just so fun!

KarenV said...

Brrr indeed! Hope you get your heating fixed soon.

Frances is looking excellent :) I love the colours and all the different motifs - some of those remind me of MND Heaven Above a little bit.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Love to Stitch said...

Oh no-- without heat sucks! Hope it gets repaired quickly!! Frances is GORGEOUS, yes, the colors are something unusual for us sampler lovers, but she will be a colorful addition to the wall-- Classic in her own way :)

Nancy said...

Your sampler is looking beautiful! I love those funky colors. A beautiful Santa you received!

BeckySC said...

I'm droooooooolong over your beautiful stitching!! WOW!!
(((hugs my friend)))

Liz said...

Oh, you must be so cold..? I love the colours in your new stitching, funky is a good description...
Lizzie
xxx

Marjo said...

Love your stitching. The houses are so wonderful. Hope you get heat quickly.

Melanie said...

Looking sooooo good!!!
Happy Valentine's Day! :)

Jan said...

Happy Valentine's Day, dear Margaret! I do so hope that your heat is back on! I feel for you...

Lovely, just lovely is your progress on Frances Eden, she is so colorful!!

Becky has one of the largest hearts on earth, such special things she makes for all of us!! I know you will treasure it!

Cathy Lloyd said...

Oh I hate it when the furnace goes out! Gosh DARN! You and Siobhan are enabling me to do Jane Atkinson..I had to go waayy back in your blog to see pictures and read all about your exodus with her... I'm going to cave and at least get the chart. Love your current project. The colors are funky but I think it is lovely! Enjoy your day!

Kellie said...

Hope your heat is back on. :) Frances is beautiful! You are such a speedy stitcher. :)

Katrina said...

Bummer on the heat! Love Frances though, hope you are toasty and warm and stitching away :-).

samplerlover said...

Yes, I agree with everybody else Frances Eden is a beautiful sampler. I think the bright colours make her a little bit different from all the rest.
Hope your fingers and toes have thawed out by now. Nothing worse than being really really cold. - Sandra.

Loraine said...

Nothing worse than having replace appliances! I'm sorry to hear about your furnace. Hope you get one soon so you can stay warm!
Love your sampler. Very nice job. The colors are different, but I really like how it is turning out.
Hugs.

valerie said...

Frances Eden is gorgeous!The colors are funky but all together it's brilliant! Cute giftie from Becky. Sorry to hear about the heat. Hope it gets fixed soon.

Littlebit said...

Not the right time of year for the heat to go out! We just had to have our entire a/c, heater, everything replaced this past fall, but I'm glad we did..omg, has it been c..c..cold!
Your Frances is beautiful, Margaret. I think Paulette has that one in the works..I was shocked at the colors, but seeing it in person, it's wonderful!! So...will you have that done by the weekend? LOL!

DonnaSews said...

Frances is beautiful. Yes, the colors are bright, but they work together. Enjoy and stay warm!!

Karen said...

Hope you are warm now! Love your sampler and the funky colors!

Happy Valentine's day...

marylin said...

Hello my friend! I'm still in love with your stitching! but where do you find these designers how do you find all these models?? They are all so wonderful ....
And your speed embroidery my gods it's huge!
sincere congratulations to you!

Giovanna said...

I hope you've got your heating problem sorted out - it's no fun to have a cold house! Frances Eden is looking gorgeous!

Sherry said...

Frances is looking beautiful! The colors are so much fun. I hope you get heat back soon. We are having warming days for now but I doubt they last much longer.

Carol said...

Oh, I can't imagine not having heat during this frigid winter weather, Margaret--hope it is all fixed up today! I can't believe you could do any stitching at all with cold hands...

I think the colors in your latest sampler are just perfect for the last few gray weeks of winter!

Cari said...

Oh my gosh...no heat....I couldn't make it. I'd have to go to Starbucks until furnace was fixed!! You take care and get those smokin' needles smokin'. Frances is BEAUTIFUL...looks like even though she's huge...she's a fun stitch!! WARM HUGS

The Scarlett House said...

That's it! You need to move to AZ! Aren't you sick to death of cold and snow? I'm sorry about your heat situation.
As for Frances, I really loved the design, but those colors stop me in my tracks when I think about stitching her. I have to admit, that I like it when I see it. I agree...weird.

Lois said...

I can't even begin to imagine how cold you're feeling with no heat in the house! I hope everything is fixed by now. Lovely progress on Frances. I'm loving the funky colours!

Joy said...

Love your "funky" colors. Hope you're all warm and cozy now!

Jackie's Stitches said...

I hope that by now your heating issue is resolved and you're all warm and cozy. It's a bad time of year for heating problems but I'm not sure there ever is a good time for it.

I like the house on the right. I think all the bright colors work well together. My favorite motif of those that you have stitched so far is the apple tree. Cute!

Deb said...

It's spectacular Margaret - the colours photograph beautifully. True maybe not traditional but I love it.
Hope you don't get too chilly.

sheri said...

Great progress on your sampler and the prize you won is soooo cute!!!

Hope your nice and warm now. We had a nice day yesterday and lots of ice melted but today it's freezing again! Can't imagine no heat today, brrrr!!!

Sylvia said...

Oh dear, I hope your heat is back on and that you are toasty warm and just happily stitching away.

Yes, those colors on Frances are a bit of shock when you do a a floss toss, but it seems to work well and she is such a cool sampler. Yours is looking wonderful

Deb said...

Wow, first no hot water and now no heat!! Yowsers! I hope they've been out and it's fixed. We had ours go about a year ago. Ouch on the bill is right!!

Frances looks wonderful and I know exactly what you're saying about the colors - they're weird, but work so well together when you step away from it!! You're going to be done in no time!!

Natalia said...

Margaret, make sure you stay warm !!! I can't imagine the heat breaking in my home !! Brrrrrrr.... is right !!
I actually love the colors of your sampler... they are bright and fun, almost summery :-) I love the little ornament you got also.

t said...

Oh, it looks so cool, I've never seen Frances Eden Sampler before. As for your gift, congratulations, Becky has lovely hands so I'm sure you're delighted with it. Happy stitching.

Anonymous said...

Love your Frances Eden. Love all the little motifs. Sorry about the heat. In Chicago we are finally having some warmer weather. Hope it's coming your way soon...but hope it doesn't cause too much flooding with all that snow of yours.

TeresaB said...

Hopefully by now your heat is fixed and keeping you all snuggly warm.

Frances E. looks a-maze-ing! I can just see a little girl picking out all those great colors as she learns to stitch, can't you?

Nicole said...

Frances Eden is looking beautiful Margaret! I love the funky colors! :)

Great gift from Becky too! Lucky you! :)

Donna said...

so sorry to hear about your heat. I have seen this sampler done on some one elses blog just the other day. It is gorgeous.

Dona said...

Margaret, I'm with you - the colors of the house on the right look very good together. In fact, I'm loving all the different colors in this one.

I missed the Isabella Johnstone post!So pretty! You finished that in a flash!

Karoline said...

Hope you've got your heating back now.

Francis is looking stunning, great progress

Siobhán said...

Fantastic progress on Frances!! Great job. I just love the colors in it. I hope you've sufficiently warmed up by now! After an unbelievably cold December in a house that wasn't built with proper insulation, I can relate. If I knew how to knit, I'd knit myself those hand warmer things. ;) Have a great weekend!

Paulette said...

Wow, Margaret! Your Frances is coming along splendidly! I'm at the opposite point you are.. almost finished with the top and the bottom left is done (thanks to Kwilty Kim!), and I've got the bottom right to do. It's been very enjoyable! Crazy colors and all!

Good luck with your heater.. oh my my my.. I'm thinking of you all!

Paulette

Hazel said...

Oh wow I love your Frances Eden. The colours look great. I love the colour of the lettering. There are so many beautiful ones out there. I am hopefully going to put an order into Em-Lis soon. x

Roberta said...

I know I am a week late in commenting, sorry - life is getting in the way.

Hope you all are warm now.

Frances Eden is looking great.

Have a wonderful week.

Sue said...

Frances Eden looks awesome and what a beautiful gift you received.