Jan 10, 2011

Marvelous Monday Update 1/10/11

SADNESS
Yesterday, the stitching community lost one of its members. Rene (aka Rene la Frog) had been having health problems throughout last year. Right before Christmas she was diagnosed with cancer, and had been spending the last couple weeks in hospice. She touched many lives through her position as moderator of Yahoo stitching groups, her blog (HERE) and by teaching an online Hardanger class. My condolences go out to her family. She leaves behind a beloved husband, children, and grandchildren. She will be missed.


SCHOOL
School starts today. Can you read the enthusiam? lol After this, I'll only have three more classes to go. WOO HOO! Unfortunately, they are all online classes in finance. Wish me luck.


TREASURE HUNTING
I had a bit of time on my hands last Saturday morning. Since it had been a while since I'd visited the thrift stores, I decided to give it a go. The first thing that caught my eye was this spoon holder:


Even though I had broken mine a while back and needed one, I didn't put this in my cart right away. I did go back and get it after making my journey through the entire store. When I got home, I noticed the bottom:


It's a Longeberger Woven Traditions spoon rest! I don't know how much these retail for, but I saw some completed auctions on eBay for about $10. I'd say I got a great deal at 99cents!

As I meandered my way through the store, I looked down and saw this on a bottom shelf:


It's a 7-Qt Hamilton Beach Mealmaker Slow Cooker. It's HUGE! I can put an entire chicken or ham in it. It retails for $40, and I got it for a mere $7.99! There was a lady following behind me, who later in passing asked how much it was priced for and commented what a nice crock pot it was. She practically salivated all over it, lol. When I went to pay for my two "treasures", the cashier told me they had just put the crockpot out the night before. My lucky day! :) Even my Mom wanted it when I showed it to her.


STITCHY STUFF
I received two prize packages in the mail last week. :) Carolyn from Taking One Stitch At A Time hosted a Christmas giveway. She was very generous! I thought I was just getting the Santa kit, but no... Here's what she sent me:

I love the Christmas fabric!
I can see some ornies being made with it.

Everchanging Seasons by Elsa Williams
White Christmas by D. Morgan

Both of the above kits are really pretty :)
Thank you very much, Carolyn!


Chris from Tot Hill Farm Stitches also hosted a giveaway that her DH pulled my name as the winner! She also was generous... just look what she sent:



Lots of stitchers participate in the TUSAL. I didn't participate because I didn't think I stitch that much compared to other stitchers. I was quite surprised at the pile of orts I pulled out of my ort bag that hangs on the arm of the sofa.

These are all the orts from 2010.


The only stitching I did this past week was a few hours last night while talking on the phone. Here's an update of Blossom Splendor:


I have put this away, and will be stitching on JG next... as school allows.

46 comments:

Carol's Stitching said...

Sorry to hear about Rene but you are right; we can only hope she is at peace and her family are comforted by this. I love the two give-a-ways you won and the Blossom Splendor looks gorgeous on that fabric.

Mary Ivancicts said...

very sad about Rene. Love your finds treasure hunting! I guess some people don't know what they toss!

Sunshine said...

My condolences on your friend Rene.
3 more classes is great, and them being online is even better. What an accomplishment.....
Congrats on your prize wins. I look forward to seeing your progress on your stitching.

Anonymous said...

Sorry to hear about your friend, Meari.

Lynne

GoldenAngelsWorks said...

I will miss her too Meari.

Great stash and awesome stitching!

Berly said...

I'm so sorry to hear of Rene's passing. My condolences to all her friends and family.

Kathy said...

I too was saddened to hear about Rene. :(

What fabulous giveaway prizes! Love the kits you won. Especially the seasons one.

That colorful pile of orts would look great in a glass ornament. And that would be something different to hang on your Christmas tree. :)

Good luck with your new classes.

Cynimin said...

Rene was a sweet lady. Very sad.
Good luck in school. And TWO giveaway winnings? Lucky lady you are!!
And crock pots are a working girl's best friend!

Donna said...

Add me to the list of Rene's fans who will miss her terribly.
I love your spoon rest and that crockpot is just wonderful!
The stitching is looking great.

Katrien said...

Congrats on your winnings.
Your stitchings looks great.
Rene will be missed!

Kay said...

Sorry to hear about Rene, my condolences go out to her family. What awesome finds you found! Congrats on the winnings that you got.

Anonymous said...

It’s kind of neat to go back and read her old blogs…..like a lasting diary she left behind



You should have been at the Valparaiso goodwill store….I took a LOT of stuff there during the last two weeks after my basement cleaning marathon session! Congrats on your good buys!

Christine

Annie Bee said...

I am sorry to hear about the passing of Rene. What great finds you have there and what great gifts you received.

Debbie Jo said...

I know I am going to miss Rene.

Congrats on your new stash! Nice finds at the thrift store, we sure don't have nice thrift stores here. I used to enjoy my online classes and I wish you the best of luck with yours. 3 more congrats,,great accomplishment in a short time. I know it seems like forever for you. Your stitching is looking good. Will be excited to see your progress on JG next.

Anonymous said...

I love the Crockpot too. I have one but it is not as big and pretty as yours. Congrats on the giveaways.

Tina

Mel said...

so many great goodies Meari.

Rene will indeed be missed *hugs*

Daffycat said...

Silly! It isn't how MANY ORTs you get it's only the NEW Moon photo that counts. You should have joined us ~ we would have loved it!

Sue said...

I am sorry to hear of Rene's passing, even though I did not know this lady; I am sure she was well liked by all her stitching friends.

YOU are the luckiest person alive! LOL.....you find the best bargains and win the most giveaways of anyone I know LOL...good for you!

Your stitching is coming along nicely; love the pink fabric.

Hugs,
Sue

Carol R said...

I was sorry to hear of Rene's passing. My thoughts go out to her family.

Great giveaways you won and I just love your thrift shop bargains especially that lovely spoon rest!

Nancy M said...

I am so very glad that we are working together to help Rene's family out in their time of need.
And I've always said you win almost everything you enter! A couple more good finds in your thrift stores. I need to go somewhere else besides Goodwill.

Cindy in MA said...

I will also miss Rene alot.
Just a thought Meari. On another group I belong to they have a tribute SAL for the deceased owner of the group. I think this would be a wonderful idea to have Rene's
Tribute SAL one day a month(maybe on a Sunday). It should be separate from the Virtual Stitchin.

Anonymous said...

Congrats on your wins and your treasures.

HuGS,
Dee in TN

Emily in NC said...

It is so very sad about Rene, at least for the ones left behind, she is at peace and no longer in pain or sick. Great wins on giveaways and great finds at the thrift store.

Danielle said...

what great finds at the thrift store!

Anonymous said...

I'm sorry to hear about that Meari. Hugs and prayers to all who knew her.

--Mary G. in Iowa

Anonymous said...

Congratulations on all the things you found in the thrift store and your winnings, they are beautiful.

Marl

Gabi said...

It's such a sad thing that Rene isn't among us anymore. She will be sorely missed. :(
Congrats on your finds. Your stitchy stuff looks good too.

Shari said...

great finds at the store....that crock looks brand new.....I would be lost without mine....I use it ALL THE TIME!!!!!!!
your stitching looks wonderful.....
best of luck with this semester....

JessB said...

I love, love, love my crockpot. Couldn't live without it. You got some pretty new patterns to stitch too.

Vikki Gable said...

I'm also going to miss Rene very much. I was so sad yesterday.

Good luck with school...I know you can do it.

And great Thrift Store Finds! love them both.

Carol said...

I'm sure you will miss your friend very much, Meari--I just took a look at her blog and she sounded like a wonderful person...

I want to take you shopping with me next time I go--what great deals you found! And your prize winnings are wonderful, too.

I'm sure your new semester will be as successful for you as always--hope you get a good teacher :)

Anonymous said...

I'm so sorry to read about Rene. I always enjoyed reading her blog posts, and feel I got to know her a little bit. She will be missed by family and friends alike.

hugs & happy stitching,
lynda

Anonymous said...

Rene will be missed by so many. Such a dear lady.

Aren't you the lucky one...what great prizes!

I have the same crockpot and have loved using it for years!!!

Enjoy each day,

Nancy V

Anonymous said...

Meari

You have received beautiful fabric and chart and your stitching looks beautiful too

Tinna

Sad to hear abour Rene , her family are in my thoughts

Akila said...

Very sorry to hear about Rene. May her soul rest in peace.
Congrats on such awesome gifts.
You really are lucky when it comes to thrifts :)

Anonymous said...

You did great with your Thrift shopping. Those were great finds. Your win packages are wonderful. Looking forward to seeing those pieces stitched up. Good luck with your classes this semester. Your WIP is coming along great. Thanks for sharing.

Betty in AZ

Rachel S-H said...

I am very sorry about Rene. Praying for her family. You got some great goodies thrifting! WTG!

Debra said...

I really like Everchanging seasons. Nice winnings and great finds.

Sandy P said...

Hi Meari,
I didn't know Rene but i'm sorry we lost a stitching sister.
Your finds at the thrift store always amaze me, lucky you.
I'm happy for your 2 wins, nice stash. I can't think of a better person to win.
Your Blossom Splendor looks beautiful already. the fabric highlights the colors great.
Sandy P.

Linda K's Stitching Corner said...

Meari....

I just love reading your Blog...and I love seeing all of your stitching progress too on your stitchin projects.

I love your WIP's that you are going to be stitching on this year. They are so very pretty.

Take care & Happy Stitching
Hugs :) from Cold Snowy Northern Indiana
Linda K, Railroad

Carol said...

Lots of lovely treasures.

Sorry to hear about Rene. Wonderful lady, generous soul. I rejoined ILCS just a few days before she died.

Linda said...

It just makes me want to visit every thrift store in the area and pay attention to the things I see. You always find such great deals.
Love the blog!

Linda said...

I love to read your blog. Great finds from the thrift stores!

Nancy in IL said...

You should consider writing for a living, Meari! I sold Longaberger in the 90's and I can tell you that .99 was a terrific bargain! I need to go with you on your thrift store quests. You can sniff out a bargain, LOL!

too_busy_to_stitch said...

Good luck with school - I sort of miss it already!

chrisstitches said...

Love the 2 kits you got from Carolyn. Also, thread is always nice.
happy stitching....my semi is almost done for son & hubby & son both want different equipment, but I want Cherished Teddies & finished fabric painting shirts with antique cars for son.....