A Little Gray Hare!

It's that time of year again....Nashville Needlework Market. In a couple weeks we'll be loading up the car and traveling across 5 states (Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee) to the annual cash and carry market.

We've been working hard on some special goodies for market, and here's the first we want to share.

A Little Gray Hare Limited Edition Kit

Our friendly distributor, Norden Crafts, approached us many months ago and asked us to do a Limited Edition kit for them. What does this mean? Well, for shops it means that they can purchase this kit only from Norden Crafts. It won't be available directly from L*K. The Little Gray Hare will be MIA in the L*K market booth. 

For stitchers everywhere, just contact your favorite needlework source and request this kit!  It's "hare today, gone tomorrow!". We're only making a limited number of these this spring.

We're including all the supplies on this one (what were we thinking?). We used beautiful overdyed seafoam linen (Weeks Dye Works), 8 luscious shades of WDW thread, petite pale pink beads (on the eggs), light pink rick rack, and coordinating finishing fabric. Our finisher extraordinaire, Mona, has written complete finishing instructions, and we're enclosing an egg template. 

Here's a quick look at the evolution of A Little Gray Hare:

After I did the design on my computer, I stitched the model. While I stitch, I make notes about thread colors and amount, fabric choice, and other ideas. It looks like I originally called this "Good Hare Day" or "Happy Hare". I like "A Little Gray Hare" much better! I often make little design changes while stitching, so those are noted and corrected, too. Look closely at the 2 designs - I couldn't decide until I was stitching, and chose the right hand one!

Since it's a kit, I start calculating supplies (applying my math skills...you know the ones your high school teacher told you would be necessary for a successful adult life), and get everything ordered.

I mail the completed model to my finisher Mona, and wait for something fabulous to arrive in the return mail. Mona and I will chat about possible finishes, and she texts me photos of finishing ideas. Then we decide together what will look best (and what I can effectively "source" for supplies). 

The cones of Weeks Dye Works threads arrived first. I forgot to snap a pic when they were full, now they're almost gone...

and they've been transformed...measured, snipped and coiled into little 3" x 3" thread packs. Alan has perfected an ingenious method of pulling all 8 colors at once. Still, it's a lot of work!

The fabric finally arrived last Friday. A big, beautiful box FULL of seafoam linen.

So you know how I spent a long weekend.

Notice that I'm wearing my Klutz glove. No more accidents with me and the rotary cutter. That ER is no fun!

Here's our dining room table decor (definitely no eating occurring!). Going clockwise from upper left: pink rick rack, cut/folded/ironed seafoam linen, pretty finishing fabric (for back of egg), folded pink instructions, and egg template.

And, of course, the beautiful covers! I had so much fun designing this pretty cover and photographing A Little Gray Hare on a bed of pastel eggs.

I can't imagine how many hours have gone into this prep, but it's finally time to get our assembly line going. . OK...it really was "time" a couple weeks ago, but we'll get it finished. Maybe a little help from our friends? I've had an extraordinary offer from a group of able assemblers...will keep you posted!

Coming soon - 3 Little Words & more!

Here's the scoop we've been promising on our new 3 Little Words Flip-it series!

I'm really excited to share our new Flip-it series with all of you! I looked everywhere for little bits of inspiration...in only 3 words! After I chose my favorites (the hard part!) I graphed them in groups of 2 sayings. There are 7 different Flip-its in the series, so that's 14 little phrases. Stitch them all together, stitch them separately, or choose your favorites and create your own personalized inspirational stitchery. These little treasures are QUICK, fun and a great way to begin 2015!

• There are 7 designs. Each Flip-it has 2 sayings, so there are 14 sayings in all.
• We stitched the series on 32 ct. lambswool linen (choose your favorite light-colored fabric).
• Each 3 Little Words Flip-it will have the same embellishment pack with olive button.
• All 7 designs fit vertically. Total stitch count, including FREE border, is 95W x 388H.
• We'll post a list of FREE instructions for combining the whole series on our website. We'll include thread list, design template and extra border design.
• Stitch them all together, or mix and match your favorite inspiration designs to create your own inspirational sampler.
• Thread list: One skein each, unless otherwise indicated. Weeks Dye Works bright leaf, Madison rose, deep sea (2), chestnut (2), grits, guacamole, oscar (2), verdigris. Classic Colorworks boysenberry.

We've packed a lot of inspiration into 3 Little Words! To get all of you involved, we will be hosting an online contest to submit your favorite 3 word sayings! We'll select 10 favorites, then hold online voting. Once the winning saying is selected, we'll graph it and post it on our website for a FREE (optional) addition to our 3 Little Words series.

The first 3 titles will be shipping to shops everywhere on February 10:

F148 Be Kind Always

F149 Forgive Move On

F150 You've Got This!

And that's not all that's coming soon! If you need any of these goodies, let your favorite needlework shop know so they can preorder.

K75 A Little Luck

Remember when we asked for ideas for more "Little" kits? We're using them! This quickie project is perfect for St. Patrick's stitching. A Little Luck comes with 32 ct. lambswool linen, and golden horseshoe charm and beads.  A bit 'o luck included for FREE!

S117 Be Silly Flora McSample Snippet

Our little sampler girl, Flora, is doing a series of Snippets this year. Each design has vintage motifs and a sampler feel...and they're sweet, quick and CUTE (just like Flora!). This is a classic saying from Ralph Waldo Emerson, and we think it's perfect for right NOW

K76 ABCs of Faith

We're pleased to bring you another ABC kit. This design has beautiful colors and is kitted with Weeks Dye Works threads and DMC for some of the small bits. We worked really hard to create the ABCs of Faith text (prayer was involved!). We hope this stitchery is a blessing to you as you stitch and enjoy later. 

We're busy assembling all of theses new goodies in our NEW office! After a hectic long weekend, we've almost completed the move to the new office space. What a change to be working from a different place!

Here's the new, improved, larger shipping area. There's a bit of every L*K product there - easy to reach, package and ship.

This is the boring back room with big boxes of chartpaks, Snippets and Flip-its in their original boxes from the printer. My desk is not ready for the camera! 

Have a great stitch-y week, everyone!

Things Unseen Mystery Sampler REVEALED!

Part 3 of the Things Unseen Mystery Sampler shipped last week. I realized everyone else was busy sharing the "big reveal" photo, so I had better get with it!

Above is the whole Things Unseen Mystery Sampler! You can see all 3 parts put together, and also the fun embellishments. If you're stitching along with us, don't forget to check the L*K website for some small corrections we have posted on our Boo Boo page.

Here's the Part 3 cover. I had fun designing this vintage looking cover for our "big reveal".

I wanted to share my finished BONUS project with you! It looks so pretty all framed and complete. Check out the embellishment on this pic, too.

Finally, I've put this little "double bonus" pin pillow project to work on my busy (cluttered) desk. This project was included with Things Unseen Part 2 (along with the rick rack). It brings a little smile to my face every day. The embellishment pack also includes the goodies (pink mother-of-pearl heart button and beads) for this pin pillow.

What's next at L*K?

*We have a bunch of new goodies coming soon! Scroll back 2 posts to see all the pics and info. We're planning to ship these to shops around Feb. 10. Just waiting on our printer to deliver a couple things and we'll get to work with assembly.

*A Little Luck (coming in Feb.) is already assembled and waiting for it's turn with the shipping department (that's Alan and I). 

* On my next post, I'll share a bunch of details about the new 3 Little Words Flip-it series. We're really excited to get this one going. We're preparing a Blog Contest so you can contribute you own favorite 3 Little Words of inspiration.

* I'm also working on 4 new kits for our upcoming Nashville Needlework Market. I've got the models stitched, and I'm busy pulling together all the supplies. 

* Oh yea, we're in the middle of moving the L*K office (previous posts). Every day we make lists and transfer stuff back and forth, as needed. Alas, we're losing our quick 25 step commute to work, and replacing it with a 5 minutes drive. Sure hope to conclude the move soon...bring on the needlework elves!

Happy Week, everyone!

L*K move - Part One

duh, duh.....duh, duh, duh, duh.....duh, duh...repeat

What is this? It's the Mission Impossible theme song, of course. I remember it from back in the day (the 60s and 70s), and it still sounds so fresh and energetic in the newer Mission Impossible movies. Here's a link below to the classic Mission Impossible song.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JtyByefOvgQ

Last weekend we took the first step on our own Mission Impossible-style mission. We began moving the L*K office into it's new little home! This is the "back room" of our current home office. It's where we keep the big boxes of inventory - fresh from the printer. Many of these designs need to have charms attached before they move into our shipping area. We don't need this stuff everyday, so it was a good place to begin our historic move.

Saturday was the "warmest" day of the week, so that seemed like the logical choice. It was 17 degrees when a crew of friends from our Sunday School class at First Church showed up to help. It was sunny, but unfortunately also windy - so a windchill of 3 (above zero, not below!).  Brrrr....but we stayed busy.

Thankfully, Alan pulled our rented U-Haul right up to the office door. L*K inventory boxes were disappearing quickly from the shelves until...the U-Haul was full. Then we made a trip to our nearby office space, unloaded, and returned to do another half load.

Yikes...the bright sun and a nearby tree made our full trailer look like a scary Halloween scene!

Soon the office shelves were looking like this...

and the new office was looking like this.

We rewarded our moving friends with a trip to Braum's - local ice cream shop near our house. Because, of course, ice cream sounds good on a day like this. Actually, everyone stayed warm as they toted boxes to and fro.

So...now that corner of our office looks like this - missing shelves and boxes. See those boxes piled against the wall? We use tons of those in the L*K office. They hold all sorts of L*K inventory in our shipping area, and we deploy them for lots of other tasks, like kitting and accumulating inventory before a new product release. These boxes could tell a lot of stories, that's for sure!

Now we're contemplating Step 2 of the Mission Impossible office move. Before we can move our shipping area, we need to get phones/computer/other boring stuff set up and running properly.

Mission Impossible - Part 1 - accomplished!

2015 Lizzie*Kate SNEAK PEEK!

Before I get to the 2015 sneak peeks, wanted to share that the Jingle All the Way kit is almost sold out. It's almost jingled out!! If you need a little jingle, for years to come (Christmas comes every year, you know), let your local needlework shop know to order. When the darling finishing fabric is gone, this little kit is retiring and will jingle no more!

COMING SOON IN 2015!

K75 A Little Luck Kit

Remember my blog request for some "Little" ideas? You sent so many fabulous ideas and I'm working on several. St. Patrick's Day was a favorite idea, and it's that time or year, so I got to work. There's a tiny leprechaun, and lots of other green goodies. Kit includes 32 ct. lambswool linen, golden horseshoe charm and some antique golden beads. Luck to ye!

K76 ABCs of Faith Kit

It's been a long time since we've released an ABC kit, so we're happy to bring you another addition to the ABC family. We worked hard on these ABC phrases - prayer was involved! The beautiful muted colors make this kit a real heirloom. ABCs of Faith kit includes 8 skeins of Weeks Dye Works overdyed threads and pattern. You supply your favorite neutral colored linen. 

3 Little Words Flip-its!

 We're really excited to share our new Flip-it series! I was thinking about the New Year, and thought a little inspiration (not to be confused with resolutions!) would be perfect. I researched and looked everywhere for little bits of inspiration...in 3 little words!

After I chose my favorites (the hard part!) I graphed them in groups of 2 sayings. There are 7 different Flip-its in the series, so that's 14 little phrases. Stitch them all together, stitch them separately, or choose your favorites and create your own personalized inspirational stitchery!

More pics and details of individual designs soon (I just finished stitching the models). I'm also planning an online contest for stitchers (that's YOU!) to submit their own favorite 3 word inspiration sayings! Once the winning saying is selected (we'll vote), I'll  graph it and post on our website for a FREE (optional) addition to our 3 Little Words series.

Flora McSample's Snippets
Who's Flora? She's our little (fictional) sampler girl, created for a market promotion several years ago. We were encouraged to submit a design in a sampler style, and "name" our sampler stitcher. Since then, Flora has made several appearances with sampler-ish designs. Most recently, she designed Flora McSample's Christmas Ornaments (#168)
http://lizziekate.com/lizzie-168-FloraMcSamples2014Stockings.html

Anyway, (long story short), this year Flora will be doing a series of small sampler inspired designs, similar to the BONUS projects that come with every Inspiration Boxer. You can frame these little gems, make them into pin pillows, little cushions (the word our UK friends use for "pillows"), whatever you like. They will be charming, quick little vintage projects.

What did you do on New Year's Day? My husband had a terrible cold and I was trying to avoid spending time with him. Yes, I cooked him soup and all that, but I tried to stay as far as possible from his germs. So I stitched this little model (hiding in my home office). It's a lovely saying from Ralph Waldo Emerson. Flora and I spent some quality time together! Look for more small Flora McSample Snippets in 2015.

I wish all of you a very Happy New Year! I hope you have time for lots of stitching, and spending time with those you love. Which reminds me a saying that I'm currently graphing..."Collect moments, not things".

***We're beginning to move the L*K office later this week to it's new little office space. Stay tuned for pictures of the historic move (weather pending!).

A Little Snow

Yes, I know I haven't blogged for almost a month. Not intentionally, of course...the holidays just got in the way.

I've really enjoyed "staying in touch" with many of you on the I Love Stitching Lizzie*Kate Facebook page. It's so fun to see what you're stitching, and all the creative finishes. A kind shopowner oversees this sight, and we're so thankful for Wilma and all the people who share on this FB page.

Here's the official "gather around the tree" photo this year. Our adult kids weren't home (see previous post!) but we had a wonderful time with my Mom and brother's fam here in Wichita. From left: Alan (husband and L*K biz partner), me, my Mom, brother John (sporting new "Santa" beard), sis-in-law Donna (super cook and all around awesome SIL).

I'm working on a BIG blog post with upcoming stuff for 2015. Look for that early next week in 2015!

Meanwhile, sitting in my upstairs L*K office and watching a "little snow" outside my window, I'm reminded of our A Little Snow kit. Our helper, Carmen, just restocked this one and it's a favorite.

Is it snowing at your house? What's your favorite thing to do when it's snowy outside? Does it involve a cozy chair and stitchery (and maybe a pet) in your lap or an outdoor activity with your warm clothes? 

We have this silly tradition of always venturing out to eat when the weather is the worst. My husband loves this (he's already mentioned it this morning)! Everyone else is heeding the weatherman's warnings and staying in and he longs to drive in whatever wintry mix is falling!

Happy Wintry Day!

Check back next week for the 2015 PREVIEW!

Thanks-mas @ 2901 Oriole

Q. What is Thanks-mas?

A. It's the very important holiday you celebrate when your adult children can come home for Thanksgiving, and not Christmas. 

Q. How do you celebrate Thanks-mas?

A. Choose your favorite parts of Thanksgiving and Christmas, and have FUN together!

Sure, it's a little sad when your grown kids can't make the trip home for Christmas, but you smile and adjust (and remember that next year will be different!).

Once everyone gathered, we began the great pie caper...pecan, pumpkin, and 2 apple pies were on the list. Ali (right) is a pro food blogger and insists on homemade crusts. I typically use the refrigerated ones you roll out...

but I did learn a lot about crusts after making 4 of them, under her supervision. She has a couple tutorials on her blog that are helpful. I guess you're never too old to learn something new?

http://www.gimmesomeoven.com/how-to-make-a-pie-crust-recipe/

http://www.gimmesomeoven.com/how-to-keep-pie-crust-from-shrinking/

Alas, I was too busy helping Alan with dishes to participate in the lattice top. Four cooks in the kitchen sure makes a mess...in a hurry!

Clearly, I was too distracted to take enough pictures, but we delivered 3 beautiful pies to a friend later that evening, and kept this apple beauty for ourselves. I also made some homemade caramel sauce for the pie. Oh my...once I discovered this delish microwave caramel sauce, I never buy the jarred stuff. It's kinda magical when you make it in the microwave - no candy thermometer required - and it's SO yummy!

http://www.gimmesomeoven.com/microwave-caramel-sauce/

On to the star of the Thanksgiving feast...the turkey! Our son-in-law Jeff decided to spatchcock the bird this year...YIKES! Basically, a little surgery flattens the bird out (looks like he got run over). He sits nicely in the pan and cooks evenly in less time.

And our bird was suspiciously GREEN before he went in the oven. Jeff had the gobbler resting on a bed of veggies and coated with herbs.

Apart from a quick photo op, I stayed out of the kitchen during the turkey process. EEWWWWW!!!! I don't want to deal with the bird until he is cooked and resting on my plate.

And speaking of plates...here's our Thanks-mas table setting. I used some pretty green hedgeballs from the yard and funky Dollar Tree black crows for a centerpiece.

On Friday morning we opened Thank-mas presents! Conveniently, my Christmas cactus started to bloom that day. It's always a little off-schedule, so blooming at Thanks-mas was perfect.

One highlight of our time together was our Annual Ebright Talks. They're loosely based on TED talks - short, informative talks on a variety of topics. We initiated the Ebright talks last year, and they were so fabulous, we did them again.

NOTE: After last year we were so psyched and all purposed to work on our talks during the year. But procrastination rules, and we were all "cramming" for our talks a few hours beforehand.

We each prepared a little informative talk on a subject that interests us. Many of us had visual aids, and used the TV to show computer power point slides. It was a fabulous evening full of fun facts, snacks, wine, and hilarity!

Here's our talk topics on photo above, going clockwise from upper left

Ali: healthy multitasking using Barre 3-inspired toothbrushing workouts

Dr. Erin (honorary 3rd daughter): Flu shot mythbusters

Sarah: Similarity in world religions as seen in art and architecture (she teaches AP Art History)

Alan: Innovations in geothermal heating (we're using this in our new house)

Me: WWII history of Bletchley Park code-breakers in England, breaking the German Enigma codes

(can't wait to see the new movie, The Imitation Game)

Jeff: Beer Tasting 101 - including tasting! (I still don't like beer, but now I know more about it)

Alas, Thanks-mas...the party mix is gone, and the leftover turkey is in the freezer (after some awesome turkey hash the next day - thanks, Jeff and Sarah). 

Now it's back to the office and shipping Part 2 of the Things Unseen Mystery Sampler and more new L*K designs. Check back soon for photos!

Happy Thanks-mas!