Summer Is Heating Up!

Whew!  It's 101 degrees today in Cloverdale, CA.... and we're expecting hotter weather over the next few days.  I ran my errands this morning, so I have plenty of drinks, munchies, fruits and salad fixin's for the weekend ahead.  And I'm planning to camp out under the ceiling fan and stitch and/or read most all weekend.  Sounds good, huh?

Here's one of the "work" projects I'm planning to (hopefully) finish:

One of the very first patterns I created over 20 years ago is a classic called LONE STAR.  But the black and white graphs are awkward by my standards today, so I thought it would be fun to revamp the pattern, and recreate the graph in color... and as long as I was doing that, I'd tinker with the original design and jazz it up a bit.  I'm using the same Watercolours 018 - "Peacock" that I originally used, since the blues and browns still look well with this quilt design.  I'm thinking to call this new, revised pattern "NEW LONE STAR."

I have to say, it's been really fun to go back and just do simple straight stitches and diagonal stitches... a real no-brainer project that is just the thing for watching tv in the evenings when you don't want to think about what you are doing -- know what I mean?!?

For a more summery project, I'm going to be working on a "fun" project as well; it's a Sandra Gilmore "HYDRANGEA" canvas I purchased many years ago at a local ANG's auction. 

It's one of those painted canvases I've been staring at on and off over the past few years, and I finally decided to start to work on it this summer.  I'm planning to do more tent stitching of the flowers and watering can; then maybe satin stitch the leaf sections.  Nothing too difficult, so I can stay calm and cool when the outside temperature rises!

Have you got your projects planned for the coming weekend?  Is it going to be a scorcher in your neck of the woods, too?  Well, stay cool and stay stitching!   HAPPY FRIDAY!