Wednesday, February 26, 2014

The "Shabby Nests" evolve~

"After you've done a thing the same way for two years, look it over carefully. After five years, look at it with suspicion.  And after ten years, throw it away and start all over again."
~ Alfred Edward Perlman, New York Times, July 1958


Every winter these little "Shabby Chic" nests 
are brought to life here in my
Sacred Yarn Room



while the concept remains the same --
the nests never are~


perhaps I dig a little deeper into the trunk
containing my Mother's collection
of vintage laces and trims~


perhaps I'll add some vintage
treasures that were purchased at my trips to the flea market
this past summer~


every artist knows that when you create--
you do it from your soul --
in the moment--
not by a set pattern
or directions


 every year,
my nests seem to change just a little~



when I look at them collectively,
(one from each year--)
I can see how over time that they have
evolved~



to me--
they are the most beautiful this year,
than ever before


and yet~
there are still more beautiful laces and trims 
waiting to be brought to life 
~
my Mother's collection of laces and trims 
is an amazing legacy that
I am sharing with you 
through
these little nests.  


I know already that next year's nests
will be both beautiful and unique
in their own special way -- 
and--
they will be different
somehow, someway~


the "Shabby Chic" nests
are not a part of my Designer nests collection.
(those designs are never repeated)
~~
these Shabby nests are made every winter
for those who are on the current
 waiting list.
~
the "Woodland" nests are also made
every winter.
~
~~In fairness to the beautiful 
"Woodland" nest --
that nest will have it's very own 
special post later this
 spring.~~


 You can read more info about the
"Shabby Chic" nest by
clicking on the "Nesting Updates" icon on my
sidebar.

~
(you may also email me for additional information)
vboster1@windstream.net

~~~~~~


In my next post -- I'll share with you a little variation of the Shabby Chic nest --
the beautiful "Shabby Treasure " nest~~ 



Just keepin' it real~
I can't stand this winter anymore.  If it snows one more time I think I may just go crazy here in this house!  If I could be here at home all day and watch the beautiful snow falling without having to worry about getting back and forth to work -- that would be wonderful.  I could totally get into a snow covered winter -- but the reality of things is that I have to leave for work at 5:30 am -- and the roads can be miserable at that hour.
 I need Spring. 
NOW!! 

xoxo
Vicki

Posted by Vicki Boster at Wednesday, February 26, 2014 33 comments
Labels:

Sunday, February 16, 2014

Itty Bitty Clothes

Tiny fingers, tiny toes,
     little itty bitty clothes~


little whimpers, little cries,
darling little sparkling eyes~


precious little fingers that reach out
for tomorrow~
always staying near to your
 heart.


a whole new meaning of love
to explore~


one of the most beautiful
miracles of
life~


a little "vintage inspired" coat~
(a baby gift for one of my friends at work)



a winter white blanket
 for the babe~


a little chenille bunny
for when those tiny fingers
begin to explore~
~
you can find the pattern for Bunny Blanket Buddy here



and a little beaded hat
to match the coat!


~a little wintery ensemble
that I began knitting in the early
summer!


Pattern details
~
a whispery soft pale pink wrap blanket --
I used a size 11 needle
(cast on 60 stitches and knitted in stockinette)
~
the "vintage inspired" coat--
Churchmouse Wee Ones

(I added a little standup collar and a few rows
 of 2x2 ribstitch around the sleeves)
~
Yarn details for the coat~
Fiesta Yarns - La Boheme
(I did some midnight shopping in my yarn stash
and this was my selection)
~
I wanted something that had a lot of texture for this style of coat.
This yarn is double stranded, with one strand being a soft kid mohair,
making this coat so soft and lovely.
I also loved the beautiful vibrant pink color of the yarn.
And -- it was in my stash --so once again---
I am stash busting! 
Woo Hoo!
The little pocket was made from a vintage handkerchief
that I purchased at the flea market. 
The hanky was beautifully embroidered - so I cut the pocket from part of the embroidered section.
A bit of vintage lace was added along the top 
along with a little pink tulle flower and beaded leaf. 
~
Pattern details for the beaded hat
Tilli Tomas flurries baby beanie
~
Yarn - Tilli Tomas Flurries beaded yarn
(also from my stash!) 
(stash busting again!!)
   
the blanket --
one of my favorite patterns by Jared Flood
Wool Leaves



yarn details for the blanket
 "I LOVE THIS YARN"
(one of my Hobby Lobby favorites!)
~
(its friendly on your pocketbook, supersoft, and knits up beautifully)


Just Keepin' it Real~
I have finished my winter nesting -- I actually finished early!  All of the Woodland nests and the Shabby Chic nests have been delivered to their new homes.  This winter the little nests traveled to Europe, Australia, and Indonesia, in addition to parts of the US and Canada. Those nests are more traveled than me!

Next in line~~
Your Vintage Spring nests -- the next in my Designer series -- are already started and moving right along --for those of you on that reserved waiting list --- you won't be disappointed!

I've been watching some great television while I'm working on all of those nests~ I've loved watching these period drama series productions- Bomb Girls, Heat of the Sun, and


My sweet husband bought me a Kindle Fire HDX ( love, love, love!!) (the Kindle and the guy!!)-- so I've enjoyed downloading and watching Downton Abby on there.  I've also loved the free books that are available with the Amazon Prime membership.  Most recently I enjoyed reading--
 She Wore Only White.

Right now  I'm reading -- The Island.
~~~

 Not too many dull moments here in the Sacred Yarn Room!  The nests are constantly changing as they evolve in the making each year.  Up next -- I'll share with you the beautiful new look for this year's Shabby Chic nests.

Can I just say this~~ I am so sick of this winter!  ENOUGH already!!!! 

xoxo,
Vicki

Posted by Vicki Boster at Sunday, February 16, 2014 51 comments
Labels: , ,

Wednesday, February 5, 2014

Prayerful Stitches

Every stitch a prayer~



a dear and precious friend 
fighting for his life~



a wife who carries the weight
of worry and the unknown
on her shoulders~


~anxious hearts filled with prayers
for this dear husband, father, grandfather,
friend


comfort for my dear girlfriend
as she braves herself for her husband's
battle against this mighty
foe~


a bit of warmth against
the bitter winds of winter--
and worry~


no names spoken--
but 
God knows~


yarn details~
 Berroco Kodiak
~~
(I loved this yarn -- maybe as much or more than any yarn I have ever knitted with --but the downside to the yarn is that it is rather costly.
The yarn is discounted, however, when you order from
this website.)
~~
this yarn is light as a feather -- I used 8 skeins and when the wrap was finished
it was light as air -- but SO incredibly warm
~
if you have travel plans and need to pack lightly --
THIS is the yarn to travel with - 
it weighs NOTHING!




pattern details~
"Navarra"
you can find the free pattern here


Knitting prayers of 
hope and comfort and faith
into every stitch~


hours and hours of quiet, contemplative knitting--
every second, every stitch
filled with prayers
 for our dear friend
and his family


"because he bends 
down to listen,
I will pray as long as I have
breath~"
Psalms 116:2
(new living translation)


   
my Mother's Bible
 is tattered and worn--
but the words inside are ever  
constant, strong and true~


your prayers for our dear, dear friend
are requested and so very 
appreciated~
xoxo
Vicki



my heartfelt gratitude to you all
who sent emails to me filled with appreciation for my 
recent Grow Your Blog party.
I received literally hundreds of emails, and
I just could not possibly answer them all.
Please do not feel slighted if I did not answer your email --
in most cases (when I am not so overwhelmed) I DO answer every single email
that I receive. 
~
Now that things have slowed down a bit --
if you wish me to email you regarding a concern or question --
please send me an email me again.
I promise to answer you.
~~

To those of  you who left comments and emails
asking to be added in after the party had started --
I am so sorry, but I just could not do that.
I spent hours and hours adding in blogs to meet the deadline --
over 600 blogs,
and at some point, I just had to be finished. 
I hope you understand.
~
Please watch my blog sometime in the late fall,
most likely October,
when I will start to talk about next year's party details.
~
If you are looking for the 
Grow Your Blog party post --
you can find it here.

Posted by Vicki Boster at Wednesday, February 05, 2014 56 comments
Labels:

Saturday, January 25, 2014

Welcome to "Grow Your Blog" 2014

Welcome to each of you who are here to visit, make new friends and to grow your own blogs! We have almost 500 blogs participating in this second international blogging event.  I am so very excited to once again host this "party" and to provide you all with the opportunity to help make your blogging experiences more rewarding~

For those of you who do not know me~~

Photo taken at the Montreal Botanical Gardens
"Chinese Lantern Festival"
I'm a lover of yarn -- actually it's an obsession. Well,let's just say that if there was a 12 step program for yarn addictions, I would have to be there!  The colors and textures fascinate me. My husband and I have been blessed to be able to travel the world -- and for me that includes visiting yarn shops everywhere we go~

~when you are obsessed with yarns and your craft room is overflowing -- you need to find a project. My love for yarns is more than just the textures,~ I am in love with the knots and tangles-- for me it is the way the colors mesh together so beautifully and the way each fiber seems to tell it's own special and unique story. When I am not knitting -- this is what I do with my beautiful yarns~ 

(you can read more about my nests on the sidebar of my blog)

or sometimes I do THIS~




yarn shopping in Montreal, Canada



Blogging has changed my life. When I first started blogging, I had no idea that I would meet people from all over the world and that we would form friendships that are so very special to me. I remember when I first started my blog and I had NO followers.  I desperately wanted to reach out and bring people to my blog -- but I did not know how.  Some wonderful bloggers went out of their way to help me~ their efforts rewarding me in so many ways, that still, to this day, I am so very grateful for their help. Thank you again dear Lynn and Dawn~xoxo

This party is my way of giving back to the world of blogging. I will never forget what it was like to go for almost a year with 3 Followers.  In most cases it is not "cool" to say "please follow my blog"-- but this party is THE exception. This is your unique opportunity to Meet and to FOLLOW and to GROW your blogs.

~~ 

Some notes in reference to the blogs that are participating~

1. the blogs are listed in categories based on the number of Google Followers that are shown on their blogs. (If you do not have Follower gadget then I used the number that you gave me when you signed up.) I have made small (random) divisions in each catagory so that it will be easier for you to keep your place on the list as you visit the blogs.

2. if you are participating in this party and there is an issue with your own blog that needs to be corrected -- I am here all day.  Just send me an email and I will correct it ASAP.  Don't panic -- just email me~~ You can email me at
vboster1@windstream.net

3. This post will stay up indefinitely -- after a while I will place a link to this post on my sidebar.  So don't feel as though you need to quickly make it through all of these blogs -- you can take as long as you wish -- last year's party post is still on my sidebar and continues to get visits. To this date the 2013 Grow Your Blog party post is my all time most visited post -- those blogs are continuing to get new readers and followers:)

4.  If you find blogs that have "forgotten" to participate properly in the party --- don't worry.  I have a wonderful group of volunteers who will be helping me to visit every blog the first day. I will delete those blogs who are not properly participating -- so please allow me 24 hours to make that right. 

5. Those of  you who are hosting a giveaway on your blogs -- please remember to make the drawing on February 15.  There should be no requirements of any kind to win the giveaway -- and the contest must be open to everyone regardless of where they live.   ~My own giveaway will be shown at the end of this post~

 6. In loading in these blogs I noticed that many of you still do NOT have a Follower gadget, or email sign up -- or any way for folks to sign up to follow you.  If you are one of these folks -- I would urge you to add something to your blogs so that your new friends can sign up to continue to follow you. Without that availability on your blogs -- this may be a disappointing party for you. (and we want everyone to have fun!!)  

7. and lastly~~ please try to remember what it was like to be a new blogger.  Please show support to those blogs who have only a few followers and if possible offer inspiration and advice if asked to do so.   Those of you who are listed in the  "LESS THAN 50 FOLLOWERS" category -- this party is truly FOR YOU!!  (because I will always remember how hard it was to struggle for Followers -- and my desire is to help you get a better start with your blogs.  It's just no fun if you think no one is out there for you!)  Perhaps you might try to show great support to each other within this catagory so that you can more quickly
Grow your blogs~


A loving THANK YOU to my friend 
for the unending support and encouragement
that she gives to me - always~
and for creating this beautiful badge for the party!
(without her help -- I'm just a fool sitting in front of a computer!)
xoxo

Grow your Blog 2014 participants
~~


Less than 50 Followers

1.
Musings of the Puppet Lady
my meller
Needle Arts on Paper
Nonnie's Observations
One Creative Cat
Patching Pixies
Piece*Love*Quilt
Peg's Place
Pepsi Max addict

 ***************
8.
Petite Armoire
Pickles Quilting
Pieces of My Heart
Pinnylea Creations
Pookledo
Plum Hollow
Purrfect Lady Muses
Purple Cobwebs
Putting the Pieces Together
Quilt Paradigm
Quilted Chocolate
Quilter's Playhouse

 ***************
9.
Rai Rai's Stitches
Ramblings of a quilter
Rambling Prose
Reconstructed Fabulousness
Red Door Quilts
Scene by Minerva
Scrappy Pieces
Seams To Be Sew
Sew Knit Create

 ***************
10.
Sew Much and More
Sew we go
Sewing After Seven
Shabby Royale
Shauna's World
shhdesigns
Shroo's World
Slightly Off Quilter
Smelly Nelly
Spices up your Life!
Spruce It Up Quilting


***************
11.
Steam Fairie Craft
Stitches and Seeds
Stitchings of a Raving Lunatic
Susan's Scrappy Domain
Susan Studio Arts
Susie's World
Tangle Street Studio
Tanya Quilts in CO
Tasty Textiles
Teacups and Toadstools

 ***************
12.
thebeautifulmatters
The Baul Crochet and Loom
The Country Witch's Cottage
The Crafthopper
the east coast desi
The Drowsy Bee
The Invisible Piper
The 7 Pillars Home
The Phantom Zucchini
The Polka Dot Chicken
The Ravell'd Sleave of Care
The Writer's Pipe
This Country Life
Through a Glass, Darkly

 ***************
13.
Tidbits and Treasures
Time 4 Tea and Cake
Todolwen (new blog)
Tosty's Quilting Tidbits
Val's Quilting Studio
View From the Teapot
Viv's Crazy Quilting Journey
Walk The Wheel
Wendy's Quilts and More
Wired Nan



Kathy In Ozarks Pages 
Katie's Salt Marsh Path
Kluless
Knitalatte
Silver Nik Nats


201-500 Followers



A huge thank you to my "party helpers"
who have assisted me in reading all of your blogs,
(checking that your links all work, and that everyone is participating properly --
making this the best of experiences for everyone.)

 Last year's event was huge -- but this years party -- is even bigger! 
There is NO way that in this first day I can possible visit almost 500 blogs --
(I work full time, have a busy life, play with my Grandbabies, and 
I'm in the middle of nesting season!)
~~
I will be by to visit each and everyone of you - but please understand
 that it might actually take me a couple of months! 
~~
These wonderful folks will be visiting you all this morning on my behalf --
they are all listed above in their respective catagories --
but you can meet them all again- here in this space~

 Maureen -- (Victorian Studio)
Elizabeth --(Sew in Love)
Kathy--(Kathy in Ozarks Pages)
Loreena -- (my way of...)
Shanna -- (Sparrow in Flight)
Shirley-- (Shirley Stitches)
Karen-- (Todolwen)
Karen -- (Cotton Spice)
Kristen -- (Meadowbrook) 
Marjorie-- (Marjorie's Busy Corner)
Beth -- (E Lizard Breath Speaks)
Lorraine-- (Colour Complements)
Pat -- (Life in the Scrapatch)
Shannon --(Around the Homestead)
Patty--(My Mountain Blessings)
Melody-- (The House on the Side of the Hill)
Marcheterre--(Comptonia)
Linda-- (Crafty Gardener)
Andrea --(My Everything Corner)
Monique-- (A Half Baked Notion)
Valerie - (Val's Quilting Studio)
Tanya -- (Bead and Needle)
Silke - (Metamorphosis)
Angie -- (A Quilting Reader's Garden)
Marti -- Aunt Marti and 52 Quilts 
Suzy --(Suziqusthreadworks)
Sandra -- (Thistle Cove farm)

 My Giveaways for the party~


This year's giveaway prize allows me to support my friend and Author Karen Gass.  Karen (who is also participating in this event) has written a series of books that will touch your heart.  Everyday people -- faced with everyday challenges -- a series of books that bring faith and encouragement into the lives of each of us who read her beautiful stories.  Karen is donating 2 autographed sets of her Morningshine series books. You can find Karen at her blog
 Cotton Spice-- and you can read more about her books here. 


and---


once again I am sharing some wonderful sweet treats from my favorite lady bakers -- these cookies will be shipped freshly baked to the home of one of my lucky blog readers.  These are one of my very favorite cookies and I wanted to share them with you~
~~~
the drawing for prizes
will be held on February 15~
the winners names will be announced 
on that date
HERE.
~~

 UPDATE FEBRUARY 15-
1. the winner of the cookie selection is
Nicole from My Garden Diaries. 

 2.  the winners of the books written by my friend Karen Gass
are Bird from Bird's Earthly Spirit
and also

This contest is now CLOSED.



Thank you for visiting here and participating in this year's
 Grow Your Blog party~~
~~
a most heartfelt welcome
to those of you who have signed on as Followers
and wish to spend a little more time with me
here at my blog
2 Bags Full~ 
xoxo
Vicki


If you would like to follow me on my Facebook page ~
you can find me here~
Posted by Vicki Boster at Saturday, January 25, 2014 225 comments
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)