The Princess Has Her Crowns

Hello!

My Princess and The Pea doll has her crowns! It has taken me a long time to get this posted but now I can finally share the beautiful crowns that my brother Richard has created for her! She now sits on her own shelf in all her glory wearing one of her crowns- with the second one ready for a change. 

The first crown is a beautiful creation of five points with tiny rubies. This wirework is so delicate - the Princess wears this crown for everyday. It is her Princess crown.

The second beautiful crown has a extended point in front with a single ruby front and center. The wirework again is so detailed and lovely. This is her Royal Occasion crown.

The crowns arrived in their own little boxes . . . 

and with them was a tiny scroll! What would it say?

It was such a wonderful surprise! My father came to the U.S. from Denmark as a child and my brother created this wonderful scroll for the Princess using his family crest (Nielsen on top and Denmark at the bottom) and giving her name in Danish. It says . . . .

Created Exclusively For:

Prinsessen pa AErten

(Danish for Princess and The Pea)

Created this Fifteenth Day of May, Two Thousand Fourteen

Created by: Richard Juel Nielsen, Danish Crown Artist

How cool is that! To think that my brother took so much time and effort to make this so special touched my heart and made me so happy! Thank you Richard - your kindness means so much to me!

So now the Princess sits proudly on her bed, wearing one of her beautiful crowns and feeling so majestic!

I had to move this doll and small dollhouse/studio to exchange places with the Princess - so now they sit by my workdesk. More wonders to come as my brother had agreed to make a new wooden bed for the Princess - the one I made for her is out of core board so not very sturdy as two of the legs have already bent. I can't wait - it will be the same dimensions to fit the mattresses and dust ruffle and it will be so beautiful I know!

You can see my next project sitting on the table - I hope to finish it soon.

It has been so hot and humid here in this part of WI - hate this heavy air and although we have had rain it has only added to the humidity. Thunderstorms are in the forecast so hopefully they might bring some relief. Wishing you a happy Sunday!

Hugs,

Barbara Diane

Baby Quilt for Sophia

Hello!

Those of you who follow my blog know that my oldest son lives in a Adult Family Home with a young couple who have a 1 year old daughter who's name is Sophia. I just finished this quilt for her using a panel as the top and then machine quilting around all of the figures - elephant, giraffe, owls, butterflies, flowers, etc.  

The quilt is also stitched all around on the edge and again on the dark pink border all around in addition to across and down on the individual blocks.

Her parents were very happy with the quilt - as was Sophia - and her mother asked me if I could make something for the walls to match the quilt as Sophia will now be moving into her own room. My friend Kristie had also purchased a kit with this panel and she graciously agreed to let me have it  - and brought it to me yesterday. So now I have it to create some wall hangings of the individual figures to match the quilt. I will keep you posted!

What a difference a few months makes when you are a kitten. This is February 19th . . . .

This is June 18th. Jimbo is becoming a very large cat and now even his markings are changing! I have been taking photos to watch this as it is believed that he has some Maine Coon in him because of the tail and pointed/tufted ears and toes and round eyes and square chin. Whatever his genes, he is a sweetheart!

We have had so much rain here in this part of WI but today it is sunny and clear skies! The humidity has been so heavy - yesterday it was intense. I am happy for the cool breezes today and much less humid weather! Wishing you a happy Sunday!

Hugs,

Barbara Diane

It's WOYW? Wednesday Again!

Hello!

I can't believe another week has past since I posted - but is it Wednesday again and time for "What's On Your Workdesk?" I made this thank you card using Graphic 45 papers and I was very happy with the finished card. The papers are so beautiful that creating with them is so easy!

I edged all the papers with ink and then added Sickles to the flowers and butterflies for a little extra bling. Go to Julia's blog http://stamping-ground.blogspot.com/ to see what everyone is creating!

Remember when Jimbo was this small? It wasn't that long ago - this was taken January 23, the second day after bringing him home. He was about 6 weeks old. 

So small - he barely took up any room on my computer desk.

This was taken yesterday - June 17 - and he no longer fits on my computer desk, although he tries, and prefers to sleep on the small table next to the desk. He is no longer small. :<).

Here he is waking up from a nap. Yes, he does sleep this way.

The sweet expression on his face is still the same.

We have had much severe weather here in this part of WI. It is tornado season and Monday night was very scary with storms and tornado touch downs very close by to where I live. This morning another bad storm with torrential rains and wind - tornado warnings were all around again and we lost electricity in much of the area and we have more bad weather forecast for today and tomorrow. It is still very dark outside.

Wishing you a safe and happy day where you are.

Hugs,

Barbara Diane

My Applique Completed and Cat Attacks Laundry

Hello,

Finally, my first applique is completed and mailed to my friend Anna. I have wanted to make something for her for a long time to show my appreciation for her friendship and support of so many years. I love how it turned out - the colors are so bright and happy. She has received it and I am happy that she liked it and is going to hang it in her new studio. So cool!

I learned so much making this project. In addition to learning how to applique, this was my first time in hand quilting (including creating a quilting pattern on the piece) and I also learned how to create and finish with a binding  . . . . .

and I did stitching "in the ditch" quilting which meant also quilting around all of the appliqued pieces . . . . 

and made a sleeve on the back for hanging the project.

It was great fun and now I have a wall hanging in mind to make for myself - but I think it will be a winter project of many months! I have the patterns and ideas - it will be all kinds of birds and flower using many patterned fabrics in primary colors on a white background.

Of course I can't leave my post today without photos of the Jimbo-guy. He is so funny! This is what he does when he finds some of Jim's socks in the laundry when I am sorting. They are very soft and cuddly and he loves them! Look at the tail on this cat - I think he must have some Maine Coon in him! Jim call s it Jimbo's 'raccoon tail' and it is amazing!

What?

Good news here - my 'Princess and the Pea' doll now has her royal crown! Not one - but TWO crowns! My wonderful artist brother has made her two beautiful crowns of wirework and gems. It was a most awesome surprise to open the package and see what all was inside! I will be posting photos soon! Wishing you a happy Sunday!

Hugs,

Barbara Diane