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September 2, 2014

Harvest Thread Pack!

Fall is my favorite time of year.  I love the smell of the air the southern sun, the cooler temps......and PUMPKINS!!!

This new thread pack fits right into the coming season.  It's available exclusively through Classic Colorworks and comes with the chart and four skeins of hand dyed thread....two of which are new colors. . . . . Glazed Carrots and Caramel.  Good enough to eat!


Happy Stitching,
Diane

August 15, 2014

August Releases

I have waited a year to release this pattern!  It was originally scheduled to come out in September last year but instead we found ourselves dealing with Ron's cancer.

It's Route 66!  

It's complete with the states the route travels through, the dash line in the highway, and a little camper trailer and vintage car to give it a retro feel.


The map is made of of half crosses which makes stitching this design much easier.

I think I'll finish mine into a tote but wouldn't it make a great scrapbook or photo album cover for your travels?

Also this month we are releasing the September Calendar Girl.  It's apple picking time!


Next month's girl could very well be my favorite.........it's my birthday month so I may have favored it slightly while designing.  :)  

Are you stitching all twelve girls individually?  Do you have any creative ideas for showcasing them?

Happy Stitching,
Diane

July 15, 2014

July Releases!

Please don't tell me it's too early for pumpkins!  Is it ever too early?

The Old Red Barn

I am crazy about fall and all of the colors.  Right about now I'm ready for it.....living in the desert is a challenge in the summer.  :)

Our eighth Calendar Girl, August, has her books ready for school which for some kids, is just a hop, skip and jump away!

August Calendar Girl

These designs will be in shops closer to the end of the month.  
We ship to our distributors on July 17th.

Happy Stitching!

Diane



July 7, 2014

Luke and Gracie......

I haven't posted a picture of the dynamic duo in a while.

This photo was taken on July 4th.

Where is Gracie's leg? (It's there....this is her cozy position).


They are two peas in a pod but in photos like that one they don't even look like litter mates!

Happy Stitching,
Diane


June 27, 2014

June Releases

Better late than never as the saying goes!

Old Glory

July Calendar Girl

Robin's Song

These three releases are in shops or getting close to being in shops.  

Next month we feature the August Calendar Girl.  

Some of you are very good at guessing the upcoming themes.  
Anyone want to try guessing what September will be about?

Next month we have one full sized design . . . . "The Old Red Barn."  


I think it will be a favorite of many stitchers!

Stay cool and stitch!
Diane



May 28, 2014

News on the fund raiser . . . . . .

First let me say THANK YOU to all of you who participated in the purchase of the dog and cat charts from Shakespeare's Peddler and Little House.  It was such a huge success.

My group was/is, the Southern Arizona Golden Retriever Rescue.  Joyce, who is the president there sent this video to me this morning of "Snoopy".  This sweet girl has been through quite an ordeal.  Some of the monies raised went to help her get the treatment she needed.  It is believe she swallowed a chemical thereby causing neurological problems.  When they first took her in she couldn't walk and had to be helped around with a towel to lift her off of the ground.  And you can see she is quite a different dog today!

Snoopy is the girl at the main focus of the video and is up for adoption.
Email Joyce at azjoyce@comcast.net if you think you are the right person/family to help with her needs and provide a forever home to this sweet baby.  



http://southern-az-golden-retriever-rescue.org/

Thank you again!

Diane

May 27, 2014

Summer Stitching

Start the summer with these free charts from Little House.  

Call your local shop to order the recommended threads and they will send you the chart at no cost.


The bookmark would be a great starter project for a young stitcher!

Happy Stitching,
Diane

May 22, 2014

May Releases

I love Americana designs and have quite a few in the LHN pattern inventory.  This month's "Freedom House" is in keeping with a style I started ten years ago whereby two saltbox houses face one another.  You may remember Two Red Houses, Two Blue Houses, Two White Houses and lastly, Two Yellow Houses.

Freedom House
Next is a really fun pieces called "Louise and Henry," designed to compliment "Bessie" who is the milk cow released last year.  (She's a favorite of mine.)

Louise and Henry
Louise is the sheep and Henry is the crow.  Or at least that's how I see them.

Last this month is the Calendar Girl, June.

June Calendar Girl
May brought the flowers that attracted the June bees!  
July is right around the corner.  Growing up, there was a saying about July that stuck in my head while I was designing that girl.  Can you guess what it was?  Not sure how many people read blogs these days vs. Facebook so we'll see if there are any responses.

Vonna sent me photos of the last four Calendar Girls.  All I can say is F-A-V-O-R-I-T-E-S!  I guess in my opinion it's saving the best for last!  
Of course I hope you like them all but there is something special about those four girls!

A friend helped me figure out how to add a search box onto the LHN web site.  Go check it out when you are there the next time!

I will be stitching this weekend....I hope you will be too!

Diane


May 2, 2014

Sun, Moon and Stars!

It's been a really long time since we released a thread pack!  

This is a three part set distributed by Classic Colorworks that begins with "Over the Moon" and is followed by "Beneath the Stars" and "Under the Sun."  

Stitch them as one or individually.  The choice is yours!

It's available now so call your local shop to order!

Over the Moon - Distributed by Classic Colorworks.
Happy Stitching,
Diane

April 25, 2014

April releases!

Three releases this month.....and one of them is a new favorite of mine!

Pretty in Perle - Needle Lady Pocket

The Needle Lady Pocket is stitched with perle cotton from Classic Colorworks. It's big, chunky, and so much fun to stitch (and practical for storing needle packets!).  But if perle isn't your "thing," use the cotton embroidery floss with the same names.  This was my first perle project and I had so much fun with it.  So much so that there will be another coming soon!  

Next is the Hometown Holiday release.

Hometown Holiday - Town Church
This design presented a challenge when I chose to design a nativity in miniature.  
One stitch here, one stitch there, and there it is.  So tiny!

And last in the releases is the fifth Calendar Girl.

Calendar Girl - May
April showers bring May flowers.  Then for June......May flowers bring.......
I'll let you guess a while.

Ron reached the six-month anniversary of his last cancer treatment this month.  All is well!  Thank you for your continued support.  There will be more scans, doctor visits, lab work, etc in the months and years ahead so we have learned very quickly to take life one day at a time and be thankful for all of these cancer-free reports!

Gracie

Our backyard blooms!!




Happy Stitches,
Diane



March 2, 2014

For the fur babies. . . . . . .

Have you seen these new charts from Shakespeare's Peddler and Little House?

By Theresa - Cats in the Garden

By Diane - Neighborhood Friends

Kitties, puppies, dogs, cats. . . . . . woof, woof, meow, meow.  Our fur friends need your help so we came together to raise funds for a few rescues and shelters.  

This idea came from Valerie Morrell who approached me last year on the idea.  I have known Valerie for a long time and know she is very active in fostering and the rescue of dogs.  :)

In planning, I started thinking. . . . . who better to help with this project than Theresa Venette . . . . after all, she is one of the best spokespersons when it comes to helping domestic animals.  So I called her and this is the fruit of that phone call.  She jumped right in and came up with some great problem solving ideas, including her Etsy site to sell the patterns!  Perfect!

The way this works is you can buy one pattern for $10 or two for $15.  When you make your purchase you get to nominate a shelter of your choice in the United States that will enter into a drawing that takes place in two months. At that time three entries will be drawn to receive a portion of the money raised.  Three other organizations have already been chosen by Valerie, Theresa and myself.  
You can read about them here: CLICK

To Purchase
If you buy both you get two nominations for a shelter or rescue!

I know you all love to hear the back stories on my charts (when I have one).  This is the story of "Neighborhood Friends". . . . . . 

Remember my Molly Girl?  


She and I were the best of buddies.  When she went in to have the first of two surgeries to remove her tumor I was a wreck.  I clock watched and designed this pattern.  Well, kinda.  It was a little different than the one up above. . . it said Neighborhood Dog Show and had little blue ribbons here and there.  

Molly died a few months later and I just couldn't release this design.  It was special. . . just between the two of us. . . . . .until now.  I decided to release it and dedicate it to her as a lasting remembrance of difficult times but to re-purpose it for animals in need.

Molly came to us after our Lab/Shepherd mix, Katie passed away.    My dad bought her for us from a pet store, not knowing anything about puppy mills and poor breeding.  We nicknamed our girl,  Million Dollar Molly not because she was one in a million (though she was!), but she drained our pockets!  She suffered from so many genetic problems that when I would call the vet to take her in I would just say, "this is Diane" and they knew immediately who I was.  She was a regular.  The vet once told us she was lucky to have Ron and I as owners and so many other people would have discarded her. 

So I chose as my rescue, the Golden Retriever Rescue of Southern Arizona.  They take in the unloved, unwanted, sick and aged Goldens that no one else wants or can afford.  They are like my Molly Girl.

Help the helpless and buy a chart. . . give it away to someone, stitch it, donate the stitching to a shelter. . . . .help us help them.  Share our FB posts, link back to our blogs. . . spread the word!  There will be a full disclosure of money raised and where it is sent.

During the two months of fund raising we will keep you guessing as to what's next in our bag of tricks and surprises.  You can't win if you don't participate!

Using Etsy made it possible to donate 100% of the proceeds.  How is that for a fund raiser??

Thank you from the bottom of my heart. And Theresa's heart.  And Valerie's.  And alllllll of the puppies and kitties that will benefit from your generosity.

Diane


February 17, 2014

March Calendar Girl!

The third girl in our Calendar Girl line is coming to shops soon!


I know many of you are really enjoying this series. . . . stitching
them on one piece of fabric, making them as headers for calendars or
finishing them to frame or make in flat folds like Vonna did.

They would also make wonderful birthday cards for special friends who
don't stitch!

Can anyone guess the theme of the April girl? 

I also have a new release in our Tumbleweed line.  You can see it here:
http://tumbleweedsbylhn.blogspot.com/

Happy Stitching,
Diane

January 13, 2014

January Releases. . . . . .

New for 2014!  The patterns will head to our distributors later this week.  

First up is our sweet heart (pun intended), the February Calendar Girl. 
She is dressed in wintry pinks. . . .doesn't she look "lovely?"  

Can you guess what the coloring of the March Calendar Girl will be?


Next is "Hands to Work" which comes from a saying I see on Vonna's blog all of the time, "Hands to Work, Hearts to God."  I believe from a little research that the saying is attributed to the Shaker's.  

My rendition looks a little like Bo Beep I guess.  Tiny sheep are precious.  For those of you going through Little Sheep Virtue withdrawals, this is for you!


The third design is in our new line of designs, Tumbleweeds.  You can see it here:  THE JOURNEY

I will be updating the web site this week and sharing the supply lists with you then.

I am excited to begin a new year, setting aside the difficulties of the past and only looking forward.  Thank you all again for hanging in there with us as we climbed the mountains of the latter half of the year!

Happy Stitching!
Diane

January 1, 2014

Happy New Year!

Wishing you all a Happy & Healthy New Year!

We are looking forward to a year filled with fun designs for everyone.  Our first Tumbleweed pattern will be out soon along with a Calendar Girl and Hands to Work.  

I am stitching a large design for later in the year and have model stitchers working too.  

So many designs. . . . and only 12 months in the year to stitch in!  

Happy Stitching!

Diane