Friday, June 25, 2010

3D Decoupage

Babys cot cover in crosstitch

INSPIRING WORDS

"A successful person is one who can lay a firm foundation with the bricks that others throw at him." - David Brink -

"Keep that which is good and decent in your life. Let go the rest." - Author unknown -

"You can accomplish anything in life, provided that you do not mind who gets the credit." - Harry S. Truman

"I you love what you do, you will never work another day in your life." - Confucius

"Believe nothing, no matter where you read it, or who said it, no matter if I have said it, unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense." - Buddha

"Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishments." - Jim Rohn

"Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication." - Steve Jobs

"People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel." - Maya Angelou -

"Be civil to all, sociable to many, familiar with few, friend to one, enemy to none." - Benjamin Franklin

"Traditional education will make you a living, self-education will make you a fortune." - Jim Rohn


Dalai Lama's 19 instructions for life


1. Take into account that great love and great achievements involve great risk.
2. When you lose, don't lose the lesson.
3. Follow the three Rs: respect for self, respect for others and responsibility for all your actions.
4. Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck.
5. Learn the rules so you know how to break them properly.
6. Don't let a little dispute injure a great friendship.
7. When you realize you've made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.
8. Spend some time alone every day.
9. Open your arms to change, but don't let go of your values.
10. Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.
11. Live a good, honorable life. Then when you get older and think back, you'll be able to enjoy it a second time
12. A loving atmosphere in your home is the foundation for your life.
13. In disagreements with loved ones, deal only with the current situation. Don't bring up the past.
14. Share your knowledge. It's a way to achieve immortality.
15. Be gentle with the earth.
16. Once a year, go someplace you've never been before.
17. Remember that the best relationship is one in which your love for each other exceeds your need for each other.
18. Judge your success by what you had to give up in order to get it.
19. Approach love and cooking with reckless abandon.

- Dalai Lama -

Monday, June 14, 2010

Flower Basket Crosstitch Graph





Healthy Rusks Recipe

Healthy Rusks

1 Kilo self saising flour
10ml salt
10ml baking powder
500ml muesli
250ml sunflower seeds
100g coconut
2 tsp sesame seeds
500ml bran flakes
350g brown sugar
2 eggs
250ml olive oil
250ml milk
500ml fruity yougurt

Mix all the dry ingeredients together adding the liqiuds last.
Spread into tray. Bake at 180 degrees for 45-60 minutes.
Remove from pan, cut into fingers while hot. Separate and leave in oven at 100 degrees until rusks have dried out.

Crosstitch Bedspread


This beadspread I made of crosstitch. I used a crosstitch iron on transfere.


Candlewicking

This bedspread or comforter is made of candlewicking. Candlewicking is a traditional form of embroidery based on the colonial knot.

To get started with your Candlewicking, you will need:

Unbleached cotton muslin (heavier weight) My squares are 40X40cm
Candlewicking thread (substitute ecru six-strand embroidery floss or perle cotton)
A size 22 or 24 chenille needle or a large sharp embroidery needle
Washable fabric marker
Straight pins
A pattern

      How to do candlewicking

Cut a piece of the muslin large enough to accommodate your selected design.


Lay the muslin on top of the pattern. If you have a light-box to put under this to facilitate tracing, do so. If not, make sure you are under a strong light or darken the pattern beforehand.


Secure the fabric to the pattern with pins to keep it from sliding as you trace the pattern.


Use the washable marker to make small dots to indicate the placement of the colonial knots and any other embroidery stitches used in the design.


Check carefully that you have transferred the entire Candlewicking pattern to the muslin.


Check again to ensure that you have transferred the entire Candlewicking pattern to the muslin, then remove the pins and set the pattern aside.


Place the fabric in an embroidery hoop.


Thread the needle with 4 strands of Candlewicking thread or 6-12 strands of embroidery floss or perle cotton floss. The amount of floss you use depends on how large you want your colonial knots to be.


Tie a knot in the thread or floss and stitch your first colonial knot. If this is your first Candlewicking design, practice making colonial knots on a small piece of muslin before you begin. Practice makes perfect!


Work the design in a systematic method from left-to-right and top-to-bottom or however you choose. As you stitch, be sure to leave plenty of thread or floss to secure under the backs of stitches when you need to change threads or strands of floss.


When the design is complete, launder it to remove the marker residue. (Some shrinking may occur.) Lay the piece face down on a clean, prewashed white towel and iron. You may want to place an extra piece of muslin on top to use as a pressing cloth. Use an up- and-down motion when ironing to avoid damaging the colonial knots.









THE SERENITY PRAYER

GOD GRANT ME THE SERENITY
TO ACCEPT THE THINGS I CANNOT CHANGE;
COURAGE TO CHANGE THE THINGS I CAN;
AND WISDOM TO KNOW THE DIFFERENCE.

LIVING ONE DAY AT A TIME;
ENJOYING ONE MOMENT AT A TIME;
ACCEPTING HARDSHIPS AS THE PATHWAY TO PEACE;
TAKING, AS HE DID, THIS SINFUL WORLD
AS IT IS, NOT AS I WOULD HAVE IT;
TRUSTING THAT HE WILL MAKE ALL THINGS RIGHT
IF I SURRENDER TO HIS WILL;
THAT I MAY BE REASONABLY HAPPY IN THIS LIFE
AND SUPREMELY HAPPY WITH HIM
FOREVER IN THE NEXT.
AMEN.

--REINHOLD NIEBUHR