What's coming in 2016

It's been over a month since I blogged! What happened??? The holidays, of course!

So now I'm trying to get back to my desk, and return to the daily groove of running a cross stitch biz. I'm making lists, and even starting to cross things off. I'm trying to pull everything together for a new bunch of designs coming in early February. These designs were all stitched before Christmas, but somehow the publishing part is taking longer than usual, due to some unusual setbacks ***see details below!!

Here's what's on my desk for 2016:

175 Bras and Panties
The Big Girl Panties are back!!! Many years ago I did a kit with the saying "Pull up your big panties and deal with it!". I still remember trying to explain this saying to an Italian customer at Nashville Market. Anyway, it sold out in a couple hours and had the shortest life of an L*K kit to date. (I only made a small number because I had no idea if anyone would like this phrase...who knew?) Since then I've had numerous requests for more Big Girl Panties! I've tweaked the original design a bit, and added a second design about Bras.  Now we will have an underwear duo, both packaged as a chartpak. We're including some hand-dyed buttons in orange and pink to add to the "unmentionable" fun! Ask for #175 Bras and Panties.

***Regarding the above mentioned "unusual setbacks"....I have a really funny story to tell about the Big Girl Panties. Before Christmas, I stitched the design at home. Then it went to the L*K office to have my husband mail it to my finisher, Mona, in nearby Oklahoma. A couple days later she told me it still hadn't arrived. Panic and dismay! The Big Girl Panties had gone missing! And...long story short...they have never resurfaced. The Big Girl Panties model is now officially MIA. We can't find a record of it on the shipping log, can't find it in the L*K office or at home, the UPS man isn't confessing, and it certainly isn't at the Magic by Mona headquarters. After mourning it's loss for a few days, I realized my release deadline was approaching and I reluctantly (argh!!!) restitched the model.

Mona says the Big Girl Panties have absconded with the "Runaway Bunny" (pictured above before he went AWOL) - another model that went missing in spring 2015. We thought we might find the missing bunny model when we moved last summer, but alas, no :"wascally wabbit" resurfaced. It's a truly sad day when your panties are missing!

#174 Be Bold and Brave
Everyone keeps requesting inspirational sayings, so I've combined 2 favorites in this chartpak, plus a bonus coordinating pin cushion design. I just love both of these empowering phrases. They're great words to begin the New Year! I used a darling little Shaker pin cushion from Lone Elm Lane.

Instead of making resolutions, I have friends that select a "word" or "phrase" for the New Year, and try to live the year with intention through their selected words. Wouldn't the 2 phrases above be great for a 2016?

What else is coming in February?
I've urgently pulling together a couple more kits. I'll share pics and info on the next post. I'm really excited about both of these. Stay tuned for our next blog post - soon, I promise.

Meanwhile, keep an eye out for those missing Big Girl Panties!