Rainy May, 2015

Welcome to the desert.  Plenty of clouds, thunder and lightening...but if you are coming, bring a kayak.  We have had such a strange, moisture-less winter, that this watery spring is both welcome and surprising.  My friends walk about outside with bath towels--although a beach towel might be a bit more festive--and all of Utah spends an inordinate amount of time staring out windows at our unexpected weather.  Yesterday, Teri and I sat in the parking lot for 15 minutes trying to muster up the courage to slosh our way into the shop.  One by one, everyone else drove up and sat in their cars looking over at us and wondering what we were doing.  Obviously, they don't have naturally curly hair.  Seriously, 18" of snow overnight will only elicit a few groans and a frantic scramble for boots, hats, and gloves.  But 5" of rain over 3 weeks and we are completely undone.  But, I will tell you, that we are a shimmering spectacle of green...the Emerald State--for this 1 brief and glorious month.  The mountains are green, the grass is green, trees and plants and bushes are green.  In fact everywhere you look is green.  You can smell it and breathe it and sneeze it.  I should definitely take a picture, because it is not going to last...

The box gardens are doing great.  Well, like the rest of us, they could actually use a bit of sunshine, but that will come.  The tomatoes and beans are growing quickly, and are almost reaching the girl scout teepees.  How exciting.  We've added a bunch of flowers, and they are bravely soldiering on through the downpours.  Only the cucumbers are attempting to turn up their toes.  Teri is quite determined that they are going to fight through this, but I am not very sure.  Luckily the grocery store has new and healthier ones beckoning from the trolly outside the front doors...and I secretly have my eye on them.  

The oddest thing of all is that while we have been busy nurturing and admiring the flora and fauna  out in the back yard, we totally failed to notice a serendipitous little garden growing out in the front yard.  In the grate under our tree we now have a lovely forest of mushrooms--ok--toadstools.  They make me laugh every time a walk past them.  I sort of vacillate between wanting buy a gnome and paint tiny red polka dots on them, or thumbtacking a skull and crossbones to the trunk of the tree.  I am a bit mystified about this unexpected crop.  Teri thinks is is tiny fairy village... but I am not convinced.  

Well, this lovely rainy weather has allowed for much fine stitching.  We have finished a few very fun pieces that I am excited to share with you now.  I think that everything is ready so I hope that they will make you want to stitch and stitch.  

Hope For Peace

kit:  $30.00

This sweet little piece is stitched on a lovely 32 count Flax Belfast linen with a gentle palette of silks and overdyed cottons.  The kit includes a packet of little buttons for a perfect finishing touch.

Crown Thy Good Pin Cushion

kit:  $20.00

This was such a fun little pin cushion to stitch.  It is worked on 32 count natural Belfast linen with a combination of silks and overdyed cottons.  Sweet little buttons crown this piece as well as hand-dyed ric rac and pearl beads.   If you would like a piece of the wool backing, let us know.  It is a beautiful Weeks Dye Works wool.  It is $4.50 a piece, just let us know we would love to send you one.  

Flag Box 

kit:  $12.00

Teri's stitched flag is a great addition to the little box top series.  You will totally love this charming piece which will be just right for those hot, patriotic days of summer.

Summer Trifles

leaflet:  $8.00

complete kit:  $70.00 

Finally, it is here!!!  Oh, sorry, Teri, that sounded rude.  I just have been very excited for her to finish these--and so is everybody else.  I think they are darling and you will just love all the fun little bits and pieces that go along with them.  Sweet blue, gold, and cloudy linens, fab ribbons that she has dyed, beads and buttons and everything you need to finish them up. A perfect beginning of summer project--actually 3 of them.  

Liberty Hill

exclusive kit:  $20.00

Jill and Teri have been having a great time working on this new exclusive kit.  Available only from Shepherd's Bush, this sweet and summery piece is stitched on 32 count linen.  The kit includes linen, threads, and buttons as well as this lovely hand-painted mat by Jill.  It will stitch up very quickly and you can enjoy it the whole summer long.  

New Darling Charts from our friend Paulette

George and Martha by Plum Street Samplers

Chart $10.00

Winsome Pair by Plum Street Samplers

Chart $10.00

Party Tarts by Plum Street Samplers

Chart $12.00

These make me laugh,  we do have the little tart tins for $3.00 each.  

Stars and Stripes by With Thy Needle

Chart $ 12.00

Our niece Erin stitches for us, and she just sent this back to us, it is so wonderful!  

Well, there you have it...life from Lake Ogden. We have a lot of fun new things that we haven't taken pictures of yet, but I think that we will just add them to this letter in the next day or two.  Just come back to me and scroll down to see what's new.  We have chosen very cool linens and threads to go with Plumstreet's new pieces, as well as Stars and Stripes from With Thy Needle.  And a darling new one called Santa's Hike.  So... keep in touch.  There will also be a bunch of new designs coming out this weekend so we will be ordering lots of exciting things.  Classic Colorworks is coming out with two new threads and a free pattern to go with.  With Thy Needle has 2 darling pin cushions...and there will be lots more.  I will write again next week, but if there is something you want, just let us know.

Have a great weekend and remember...don't eat the toadstools.  hugs, Tina

Late spring

Ahhh...Spring, 2015

Dear Friends,

gardening...

It's the first of May, and I think that Spring is well and truly here.  April brought its share of snow to Utah, and May might as well, but it's all good.  In fact it is all great.  Our darling, young horticulturist neighbor, Sveva, has been working with Teri on a project in the back yard of the shop.  He has a master plan for us which involves a few years of landscaping, and this is the year of the box gardens. He has worked very hard, and he and Teri have had a great time planning out the the future of these gardens.  Today is planting day #1.  So excited to see how everything grows, so I'll update you as the summer progresses.  Teri can't wait to get her tomatoes and cucumbers growing, and I can't wait to bring down my blue chair and watch.  We have always loved our little oasis out in the back and have spent a lot of time out there over the years:  dyeing fabrics and ribbons, tending the lilac bushes that our mom planted the year we opened the shop, dodging baseballs, and sometimes setting up a table and just working on a project in the quiet of the afternoon.  (Well, quiet--if the people next door at the shady motel are on their rare good behavior. ) When my boys were little, it seemed like we spent many hours out there trying to get some work done while they rode scooters and trikes.  I kind of miss those times a little.  But now we will have a new phase and I know that it will be fabulous.  A little pocket garden in the heart of the downtown.  Sometimes Teri disappears from the shop for long periods of time, and now we know where she is.  When everything starts growing, we might never see her.  

experimenting...

This week, she has been constructing tomato and cucumber cages for the box gardens.  I tried to help her a bit, but honestly it was pitch dark and freezing cold most of the time.  So far, I think they look pretty good, albeit a bit rickety.  But they are sturdier than they look, and hopefully they will work out well.  (Tina...they are not rickety, they are very strong and will be the perfect frame for our cucumbers and beans.  Our sister Sheree has ordered up some for her yard, good luck getting them home)-Teri

reading...

This has been a busy few months for all of us. with the market in March, preparing for the next Fold, and trying to get new things ready for May.  I have stitched a lot and also done a bit of sketching as I think forward in the year.  Nothing is better than a good project to come home to.  I have also been reading quite a bit, and right now I am almost finished with the most fantastic book: All the Light we cannot See by Anthony Doerr.  Bob gave me this book for my birthday, and once I had started it I just can hardly put it down.  Last week it won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction--so well deserved!  If you need a good book for summer, just go get this one.  It is lovely and thoughtful and a total page turner-- and the last couple of days I have had to have great discipline to put it down and come to work.  I am almost finished, and I just don't want it to end... but I can't slow myself down.  I am also a bit worried for all the characters.  Ugh!!!!

watching...

Teri and I have also been watching the Gilmore Girls.  I had actually never heard of it before.  I guess when you are raising boys, you don't notice a series called Gilmore Girls.  We have only watched the first 3 seasons--out of 7--and each season has about a billion episodes.  It has been so much fun.  I loved the series, Parenthood, and this seems a bit like a prequel.  Not really, but sort of because of the main character.  Anyway, just find it on Netflix and give it a try.  Last night we watched the episode where Rory goes off to college, and it just flooded me with such memories of taking my boys to the dorms.  Ahhhh....  I was just thinking about those saddest phone calls home on their first nights...when Rory called her mom.  If I had only watched it back in the day, I would have realized that it is perfectly alright to bring an extra mattress to Orientation and spend the first night on the floor next to my babies. 

cooking...

On a totally different note, I thought that I would include a recipe just to get you jump started into spring and summer.  Have you been enjoying the strawberries the past few weeks?  We certainly have.  Hey, maybe we will try growing our own in the infamous box gardens out back.  Actually, all the berries have been really good lately--perhaps because of the long winter gone by.  We have been making Panna Cotta,  a favorite dessert that goes perfectly with fresh berries--any or all.  This Italian confection is simple and creamy and decadent, and is the choice that Teri usually makes for her birthday cake.  (Not a cake at all.)  So here is a recipe that we love to make, and I hope you give it a try. Let me know what you think.  

Panna Cotta

(make the night before)

2 cups heavy creme

3/4 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 envelope unflavored gelatin

1 cup sour creme ( I love Daisy but I think a really thick, plain Greek Yoghurt would be good as well.)

Ok here goes:

1.  In a tiny bowl measure out a scant teaspoon of the gelatin.  (do not use the entire envelope!)

Pour 1 Tablespoon of cool water on top and let sit for at least 10 minutes.

2.  Place the creme and the sugar in a heavy sauce pan and heat until it is almost ready to boil.  (I stir it a lot.)

3.  Remove from heat and add 1 tsp vanilla.  Stir

4.  Add the softened gelatin to the hot creme and stir well to dissolve.  Let cool about 10-15 minutes.

5.  Add the sour creme to the mixture and mix completely.  

6.  Place in a bowl and cover well.  Leave in the fridge overnight and serve big scoops of it with fresh fruit.  

7.  Enjoy! 

Shepherd's Fold 

Part 5

$24.00

stitching...

We are totally in the process of getting the 5th part of the Fold ready to go.  It has turned out very fun, and we are getting excited to share it with you.  We have tried not to send them out too close together, because most everyone has loved having the time to get each new project finished.  

So get stitching.....And if you need us to send something with your Fold--just give us a call.  

Here is a huge bundle of silk ribbon which Cece hand dyed for us.  Doesn't it look scrumptious?  

We have all been working hard on getting this one ready to go, and we are planning to send them out sometime next week.  So watch your mail.  After this one, we only have 1 more left in this series.  Hopefully it will come out sometime in late June.  It is also going to be a very fun one.  So, if you are behind, I hope that you catch up quickly.  Happy Stitching.   

Old Glory 

by Little House Needleworks

pattern:  $6.00

Complete Kit $48.75 (includes backing fabric)

Isn't this a darling?  It is simple and sweet and just perfect for the summer that is hurtling towards us. Teri found this wonderful patriotic banding fabric for the pillow itself, and it comes with the kit.  We stitched this little piece on 10 count Tula, and that made it so much fun to do.  I'm sure that you will 

just love it as well.  

Sweet Land Of Liberty

by Heartstring Samplery

Pattern $ 10.00

Teri has also been binge stitching... maybe it is all the Gilmore Girls we have been watching...

She whipped up this wonderful patriotic piece in no time.  Isn't it great?

Sampler Lesson Two

by Plum Street Samplers

partial kit

Paulette's new BYOF (bring you own fabric) kit is on it's way to us.  It has a patriotic twist, and looks so fabulous.  We will pick the perfect fabric for it as the fabric is not included in the kit.  Give us a call if you would like one.  They should arrive Tuesday or Wednesday, and we can send it right off to you.  

Summer at Cherry Hill 

by Brenda Gervais

Pattern $ 12.00

Complete kit also available

Teri and Lynnette are both working on this fabulous piece.  (I think that Teri needs to stop and work on her new Trifles pattern, but she seems a bit obsessed with this.) I love the hand dyed linen that they chose and their colors are very rich and beautiful.  Heaven knows it will be cherry time before we blink.

Leona's Sewing Box 

by Blackbird Designs

Pattern:  $9.00

Complete kit:  $49.00

Hand made box: $199.00

I love this little project! Teri couldn't decide whether to frame it or use the box, but when we got it in the box, we were very happy.  I just love the lace that Teri dyed and the little buttons that she picked out.  If you buy the kit, all of these sweet treasures will come with.  I think it is quite beautiful.  It's funny, but ever since I started the Fold, I have fallen in love with the Lone Elm boxes.  I know they seem expensive, but they are just so lovely and well crafted.  I love! love! love! my purple box.  Now I want to get one of these square boxes.  I think that it is wonderful and I also think the little shelf inside is fantastic.  Maybe it's because I am not the most organized person, and I have loved having a place to keep my stitching treasures.  

Lady Dot Beeswax Waxers

These are new for us from Lois (Lady Dot).  She has truly gotten into the beeswax, and I think her waxers are just fabulous!  I love mine just sitting on a shelf, but Teri uses hers all the time for strengthening and calming thread.  Doesn't every sewing box need one?  We have been sending the sheep out to people who have ordered them--especially for the Fold, and Teri has been packaging them in little boxes for sending.  So we have had a big basket with little boxes tied with bows.  Then on the 1 day in six months that I stayed home sick, she and Sue had the brilliant idea to package all of the new ones in the boxes as well.  Unfortunately, no one bothered to mention this bit of news to me, and I have spent 2 weeks sending a large variety of waxers all over to people who have ordered-- sheep.  Yay! 

Sweet Sheepies

$10.00

Hoot Hoot

$5.50

Buzzzzy Hive

$5.50

Filigree Bee

$5.50

Button 4

$5.50

Rose Hearts

$6.00

Stitching Bags

Large: $30.00  

Medium: $28.00 

Small: $26.00 

We always love it when we get a group of wonderful stitching bags.  It is fun to have a great variety and her fabrics are sweet!!!  

Ah...which one to choose first.

All sorts of adorable sheep bags: 

Blue Sheep- bottom

Teal leaping sheep- Top

Red and black sheep- Left

Black and white- right 

Really?  Can you ever go wrong with a great sheep bag?  Not!

Stitching fabric

This is just the most darling fabric. Soft and sort of watercolored with all sorts of sewing tools on it.  I just love this one.

Of course bee bags...for Teri

Pink bees: top

Aqua Bees: top left

Bears and Bees: top right (very limited)

Bee Border: bottom left

Green bees: Bottom right

Yellow: center bottom (medium only)

Well, I think that I am going to send this off to you before it gets any later.  That means that I can go to bed and try to finish my book.  I can 't wait to finish it, and I also don't want to, because then it is done.  Plus...I am very worried about many of the characters.  Oh...and this book has sort of inspired me to re-read 10,000 Leagues Under the Sea.  (Not in braille.)  That could be fun for summer.  So happy gardening, happy reading, happy cooking, happy eating, and most of all happy stitching.  See you next week.  hugs, T & T

Early Spring

Early Spring, 2015

pansy baskets

 outside the front door of the shop

I truly think that Spring may finally be here--at least in Utah.  Clear skies, brilliant sunshine, and the promise of spring flowers soon to come:  plenty of pansies in pots, dozens of dazzling daffodils, and tulips trying to tease us in taking their time.  Still a bit chilly, however.  Teri invited me to stitch outside this afternoon and it felt so good--in a freezing sort of way.  Could the winter have gone by already and we, back at our outdoor stitching spot?  Unfortunately, after this past week of glorious weather, I have found myself waging a private war with nature.  And I don't just mean allergies.  I seem to have an explosion of box elder bugs somewhere outside in my yard, and their only purpose in life is to get inside my house and torment me.  I hate them!  It's not that I'm scared of them like I am of spiders.  I just find them so irritating the way they slowly walk around my windows and walls and ceilings.  Just annoyingly ambling along asking me to attack.  They appear to enjoy the ivy outside my bathroom window and outside Christian's room.  How they work their way in is not exactly clear to me, but they are quite adept at it.  I have spent 2 days stalking them and hunting them down with a vengeance, and finally I have resorted to the vacuum which I am just leaving in Christian's room at the ready.  (He was so thrilled--until he went back to school.) Do you think that they suffocate inside the vacuum?  Oh well, their previous fate was the toilet.  Bob tried spraying them with either soapy water or windex outside this afternoon, so here's hoping.  I am also wondering what their collective life span could possibly be.  And...are they the creatures that eventually turn into little green worms?  Surely not!!!

Life is busy at the Bush this week.  The hotel across the street tore half of itself down a couple of days ago and that has been both surprising and entertaining.  I just kept wishing that one of my boys was still three so I would have an excuse to site out on the front step and watch.  Plus, I promised myself--and everyone else at work--that after market I would clean up my first desk/table.  I have to say first because a few years ago I had to move across the room to my second desk/table when the first one got a bit crowded.  I imagined it was a good goal to work on straightening it up a bit--well actually excavating it--so I thought I would do it after market.  Well, here we are.  Hmm...I wonder if I could hire someone who is working on that hotel across the street. Good thought.  Seriously, I can't battle desks/tables and box elder bugs at the same time.  Actually, I think I will finish this letter and then just stitch. Isn't that the best cure for everything?  Well, read on Macduff and I shall guide you through some very fun things we have going on at the shop...

Beeswax sheep 

$10.00

by Lady Dot

Aren't these little sheep the most adorable things you can imagine?  Our great friend, Lois, has been working on these for a while, and we just received a lovely little flock.  The fresh beeswax has the most glorious smell of earth and honey and the beautiful richness of something very special.  The great thing is that you not only have a lovely treasure for your sewing box, but you can also run a length of thread carefully through the wool to strengthen it for beading.  They come to you in a sweet little box and bow.

Ever since we came back from Nashville, everyone at the shop has been busy stitching on a new market project.  Nobody really planned it that way, but everyone started on something different, and we have had such a great time comparing our progress and cheering each other on.  So...I thought it would be fun to show you what we have all been working on through this letter.  Yay!  Lucky you. Anyway it might inspire you to share what you are working on with someone.  So enjoy...

A Year in Chalk 

by Hands On Designs

$5.00 each design

Chalkboard frames:  $30.00

Nancy's choice

This new series is so much fun!  Everyone at the shop is having a great time with them, and this is the one that Nancy has been working on.  Teri came up with a brilliant idea for framing, and she has had a great time getting it organized.  Jill has made an assortment of sweet--mostly white-- frames of all different moldings, and we have a basket brimming full of them here at the shop.  So...choose your frame and then stitch your monthly chalkboard designs and just swap them out with each month. Just give us a quick call and we will let you know what type of frames we have ready for you.  Each frame comes with a piece of foam core for mounting, and each month's design will look fabulous in it.  We even have the pieces of 30 count specially dyed R & R linen cut and ready to be stitched with Sampler Thread: Chalk.  

Here are two of the designs, March and April, and one of the little boards that is shown on the pattern.  We have 1 of them left if you would prefer finishing it that way.  The first 4 designs are available now, and we are looking forward to May and June soon.  This will give you a chance to stitch the first few months.   

Spring Greetings Bouquet 

by Brenda Gervais

leaflet:  $9.00

Teri's choice

This darling little piece was the one that Teri chose to stitch on first.  She is always so speedy that it took her almost no time at all to get it finished up and isn't it just perfect for Easter week?  I think she was going to finish it as a pin cushion, but she couldn't resist one of Jill's new little frames.  

Lady Rachel Ruth 

by Scattered Seeds

leaflet:  $13.00

Reeta's choice

You can just see how happy she is to have it all framed and ready to hang up in her home.  It has been a joy to watch her progress on this piece and didn't it turn out so beautiful.  

His Eye is on the Sparrow

by Heartstring Samplery

leaflet:  $15.00

Reeta's other (ongoing) choice

This sampler that Reeta is working on is very inspiring for me.  It is just beautiful since her stitching is perfect and it seems that each week she has 1 or 2 new motifs finished up  I love each one and I love seeing the border gradually come to life.  I have no idea how long it will take, but we are all enjoying sharing Reeta's progress.

The Potting Shed 

by Brenda Gervais (With Thy Needle)

leaflet:  $12.00

Lynnette's choice

in progress...

Lynnette has stitched this new piece so quickly!  Isn't it just darling?  The colors are sweet, and each little area comes to life as she works on it.  

Fracture Girls 

by Shakespeare's Peddler

leaflet:  $15.00

Tina's choice

I just loved these odd girls when I saw them at Market.  I have stitched quite constantly since then, and they have been so much fun to do.  I didn't want to stitch on gauze like the original picture--too small for me--so I chose a dark 36 count linen, and I like it a lot.  They are a lot of stitching, but they are coming along quite well.  Now, however, I have had to put them down for a bit while I finish up the next Fold piece and work on a couple of other things for work.  But  I will return to them as soon as I can.  I love doing the dresses most of all.  I'll share my progress as I go along.  

Garden Blooms 

by Chessie and Me

leaflet:  $12.00  

Nancy's next choice

I'm not sure if this was Nancy's choice or Teri's choice for her.  Either way, it is quite darling.  Nancy has been on a stitching marathon.  She just finished this sweet piece for us.  Flowers, a beehive, a house and a kitty... what else could you want? (well maybe sheep...a button perhaps)

Things Unseen

by Lizzie Kate

 $ 27.00- set of 3 leaflets

Nancy finished this great sampler a couple of weeks ago.  It was a 3-part mystery sampler by Lizzie Kate.  The colors are very soft and beautiful, and there are even handmade buttons designed to match. The quote by Helen Keller is certainly heartfelt.  I think it would be just beautiful in a bedroom--perhaps because it is very restful.  You can purchase this as just the patterns, or as a complete kit.  I think the kit is $97.00.  I will post another photo when we get it back from Jill, our wonderful framer.

Rabbit Hill

by Little House Needleworks

pattern and threads:  $15.00

This is a brand new pattern from Little House Needleworks.  It is such a sweet spring pattern.  This pattern is comes with the  5 threads Classic Colorworks threads.  I have cut up some soft gray fabric in 28 count ..... we haven't coerced Nancy into stitching it yet.  Geez...she is so slow.  Maybe for next year.  

Bird's Eye View 

by Kathy Barrick

Leaflet:  $9.00

Our darling friend, Debbie has been avidly stitching on this fun market piece. We have all been excited to see it come to life.  We changed it into cotton overdyed threads, and isn't it fabulous. 

Needle Bottles

by The Purple Needle/ Sharon Verbos

kit: $5.00 

Sue has taken a break from stitching stockings for her family, to stitch one of these sweet needle bottles.  She said it was fun and easy.  I think it is darling. 

Photo courtesy of Sharon Verbos- thanks Sharon

We just received a new shipment of these adorable needle bottles, and they are so dear.  We sold out of the group we brought back from Nashville, and our friend, Sharon, was kind enough to make us another emergency group.  Everything comes packed in the tiny bottles to stitch the band, but you will have to choose which of the 3 patterns to stitch for your bottle.  

Well I have to get back to my stitching, and Teri is making us watch a marathon of the Gilmore Girls. Somehow we both missed this series, and at market Alma mentioned she was watching and enjoying it.  We are up to season 2, and we are both getting lots of stitching done.  So... have a perfect spring week.  fondly, Tina

PS  follow us on instagram as shepherdsbush  We will be posting fun photos of the things we see at the shop, and other crazy things.