Painting with yarn.....

I thought I would try needlepoint for a while. My fingers are still affected by the dermatitis so I thought I would give them a rest. Susan and Vickie at A Good Yarn found me some gold-plated tapestry needles so I shall give them a try. The needlepoint department of this store is wonderful. All the latest and the best so I needed to have the D4 frame and I love it (no affiliation). I figured out how raise the frame and now settle myself in my chair with the phone and my water. Once you are set up it takes a minute to "unset".

I have always loved needlework. The needlepoint koi pillow was a labor of love (that means it took a very long time!).

So now I am working on a door stop. Smaller projects seem to work better for my short attention span.

The case for my glasses was made on my embroidery machine in the hoop. I love the way the Kaffe fabric picks up the colors of the needlepoint design. My friend Sue from Naples took a class in embellishment with stitches so I have done some French knots in the center of the flowers.

I shall finish unpacking and make a pot of tea and sit and stitch. I think some music might complete the picture.

What are you going to do?

Glad to be home......

We have been on a cruise and it is good to be home. This year's cruise was not as relaxing as they have been in the past. Paying more and getting less seems to be the norm in many industries. While our accommodations were lovely, we were disappointed in some areas. And Jack became wheel chair bound after somehow twisting his knee. He was disappointed that he could not go to some of the ports and I was disappointed that he was disappointed. 

The ship was beautiful. The lighting and glass created spectacular effects. 

The color of the Caribbean is unlike any other I have ever seen.

And the food.....And we didn't have to shop for it, cook it, or clean up the kitchen.

Room service was quite wonderful when Jack was in the wheel chair.

Our favorite was the grilled Coho salmon on wasabi mashed potatoes with asparagus in a sesame ginger sauce. I shall try to recreate this very soon.

And then there is my knitting. With no chores (except pushing Jack!), there was lots of knitting time. I like the Crow's Nest on Holland America. A chair with an ottoman, my iPad, water and my knitting bag was all I needed for a lovely morning.

And the view was lovely.

As I said in the beginning, it is good to be home.