December GG ~ The Last

Hello there, everyone! Are you all doing well with your Christmas preparations?  I feel like I've reached the "Yep, Good Enough" stage hah.  Things are going a little slower for me this year as shortly after Thanksgiving, I wound up doing something to my shoulder.  I was moving one of my potted plants (a small jalapeno) to position it better under the grow light.  When I lifted the pot, the most horrible grinding and then a sharp POP happened.  How I didn't drop the planter, I'll never know.  I toughed it out for a week, but as it was still quite painful, I made a doctor's appointment... which couldn't happen for another 1.5 weeks eep.  I finally got in this week.

Luckily, it's not serious and is healing nicely~  At first there were fears of a partial dislocation or a torn rotator cuff.  Instead, it seems to be tendinitis.  I got my first x-rays ever which was kinda neat.  There are no chips in the bone, and in fact, I apparently have excellent bone density hah.  I guess loving milk helps.  In my case, the fact that I work out has highly mitigated the damage.  My husband and I do P90X every evening, 5-6 days a week.  I am still able to (and the doctor encouraged continuing to) exercise, though at a slower pace and lighter weights. I'm on prescription-strength painkillers for a while which have made me very groggy.  My husband has already told me no driving and I'm listening to him.  I also have a few stretches to do to help get the full range of movement back.

One silly thing about all this whole adventure was that I discovered my husband had no idea that such a thing as a hot water bottle exists!  You know, these things?  He thought I was imagining up some impossible to find thing (to be fair, I do have some wild ideas sometimes) and I thought he was surely joking with me because it's a hot water bottle!  We poked around the store trying to find this Mystical Item to no avail, and he was growing more and more convinced I dreamed up this thing ahaha.  I finally asked an employee who thankfully proved my sanity LOL.  It feels wonderful on my shoulder and my husband enjoys it warming up the foot of the bed when I set it there after I'm done for the evening.

But enough about my Gardening-in-Winter Mishaps, this is Gifted Gorgeousness, the last of 2018!

click for more info

First up, we have a winner of the giveaway mentioned in the previous GG post.  The Prairie Schooler chart, Starry Night, goes to: Carol from Stitching Dreams!  Yay, congratulations! She already has many (many, many!) PS charts but miraculously not this one. We've already been in contact so the chart is currently on its way to its new home~

before

after

As for my stitching, I give to you The Final Side! The tail took a bit longer than I would've liked but I am just not fond of working with grey.  I like how his tail turned out though.  While stitching, the greys seemed awfully similar and I worried it would be hard to see the details.  It turned out okay in the end as things tend to do.

Technical Details

• "Ceadeus" glyph from Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate, pattern charted by me.
• 2 over 1 on 20-count light tan jobelan fabric.
• Finished size: 3.50 x 3.50" (9 x 9 cm).
• Started: August ??, 2018, Finished: December 7, 2018, unknown hours.  

death from land, sea, and sky

I have thought up how this will be finished and am currently in the process of doing just that.  So I will have another object for January's GG!  I've never sewn anything up like this so hopefully it will turn out like I'm imagining!

Also in the spirit of GG, I have been making my Christmas cookies.  With my derpy shoulder, I am SO glad for the stand mixer this year!  I will try to keep track this year of how many I wind up making.  We send them out to friends and family (mostly in Hawaii) that we don't get to see during the season.  Plus I make more for the friends and family we do get to see, but these are usually the more delicate cookies that wouldn't survive the mail.  It's a very cozy way to spend a few days!  Plus the house smells delicious hah.

★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★

envelopes

Because this post is a little bit sparse this month due to being secretive, I will show you some things I've been gifted.  As you may remember, I went back to my grandmother's house in October.  She asked me to get down a box that was high up in her closet and we had a great time going through it.  It was various sewing and crafting supplies of all ages.  This magical Christmas tin provided me hours of entertainment, and her hours of amusement at my entertainment.  What is in it?  Buttons!!  They are mostly white.  But in the same box was a large bag with envelopes.  She had more buttons separated by color family.  This isn't even all the envelopes!  I'm the type to keep buttons all jumbled together but having her writing on the envelopes is pretty awesome so I'll probably keep these as-is.

Did you know I love buttons?  My mother also has a huge tin of them at her house and I can remember going through them several times as a kid (and as not a kid).

buttons and hooks

Here are a few of my favorites from the collection.  I love that little aqua flower and sparkly four-leafed clover!  The white one is an older mother-of-pearl, which I found a neat trick for determining.  A mother-of-pearl button is super cold when held up to your cheek.  The difference is very obvious when compared to a similar-looking plastic one!  A MoP is like ice!  The little red one reminds me of a raspberry; doesn't it just look so ripe and delicious? (No buttons were eaten in the making of this post).  The small round, metal one is a field of very tiny flowers.

Also, the white hooks on the right are bone, though not necessarily super old since they have the price engraved on them - 10¢!  The one on the left is a bit of a mystery.  It's very plain and slightly warped with use.  It's either bone or ivory (I suspect bone).  I'm not sure that I will use these hooks because I know I do my work too tight.  I would be afraid of snapping them.

Okay, have I talked you to death yet?  This was a very rambling post!  I'd blame the painkillers but I've rambled a lot before.  No excuses. ;)  My next posts will probably be recap posts for 2018 (egads).  I hope you all have a Wonderful Christmas and a Happy New Year!