Stitching: A. Lincoln


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All my life I’ve loved handwriting.  As a child I practiced mine constantly and have always loved studying penmanship and lettering styles.  Combine this with a tremendous regard for Abraham Lincoln and I suppose it’s no surprise that I would love his signature.  Some time ago I decided to enlarge it and see how it would look embroidered.  I began this months ago but finished it up on the 4th of July and am so happy with the results!

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I’ve never stitched something like this before, all in a satin stitch.  I love the raised effect of the stitching.

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The piece is approximately 10 inches long and 3 inches tall.  I think it will become part of a pillow…

What have you finished lately?
Jennifer

Flags

The 4th of July has always been a favorite holiday of mine.  I have a deep appreciation for the Revolutionary generation and the singularity of what they accomplished.  Add to that a love of history (particularly biography) and a life long weakness for the colors red, white and blue and well, I suppose it’s no surprise.

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As our family grows and gets busier all the time, I find myself wanting to decorate for holidays but having only a few minutes to do it.  Every summer I look to my vintage tablecloth collection and my flags to bring a happy, patriotic feeling to our home but try to find a new way to use them.  This year I put a flag holder in my scalloped bowl and surrounded it with the vintage paper flags that I scored a few years ago.

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It got me thinking about decorating for a holiday.  More and more I seem to prefer using everyday objects, grouped in new ways, over hauling a box out of the storage room to unpack.  And every year there’s a DIY project or two that I’d like to try, thanks to pinterest, blogs, and now instagram.   I’m also trending toward less decorating in general as I try to keep our daily lives running smoothly.  Now I’m curious:  what is your approach?  Do you do any decorating for Independence Day?

Mason Jar Star Lids



A friend brought me the cutest gift recently, and we put it to good use on the 4th of July.

I have no idea where she found these mason jar lids with stars cut out on the top, but I’m totally in love with them.


The lids took a basic jar with red punch and a blue & white straw from predictable to adorable.  I love the way the straws sit at all different angles in the points of the stars.


She gave me both silver and white lids, but we only used the white for our dinner.

I’m so happy to have these on hand; we’ll use them again and again!


All sorts of potential here.  Baby showers, birthdays, graduations, or just for fun.


Best of all, they’ll serve as a reminder of a dear friend.  My heart is thankful.

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