A few changes...

I'm making a few changes. I have created my own website! I wanted to bring all my different profiles together on one landing page. I have included links to this blog, my flickr photo stream and my etsy shop.

You may have noticed that the name of my blog has changed too.  While I have loved having everything named "big B" after this big sweetie:


Berit

it turns out this has been more than a little confusing!  When I first started blogging, the name big B was already taken in every form possible, so I went with bigbgsd (German Shepherd Dog).  Bigbgsd as a name doesn't really make sense, so to clear up the confusion, I'm just going with my own name!  Since it already has the word "yes" in it, I think it is a positive change :) 

Make sure to visit the new site - I would love to hear what you think!

Baby Shower WIP

We are having another baby boy born into our family and that means another baby shower! For this shower gift, I have what I hope will turn out to be a great idea :)   It involves this shadow box picture frame.  This is an 8" x 8" frame:

I am going to take this baby blue checkered fabric:

Transfer this "Sweet dreams" motif onto the fabric:

and stitch it up using a variety of my newly learned stitches in some or all of these colors:

Then I will add the backing and put it inside the shadow box and add some trim - either inside the shadow box - sort of framing it, or maybe tied around the outside? 

I will post some pictures of my progress and of course some pictures of the final result!
I have two pictures I took a few days ago in during our sunny weather. This is Berit:

and this is Rego.  I used a tennis ball as a distraction in each of these pictures so they would sit still -they don't like to take time for pictures! 

Snow days and a quilt update

We have had almost a week of snow!

We get snow most winters but not usually this much and it usually doesn't stay this long.

I love the gray sky:

and how beautiful the landscape looks

covered in white:

Rego and Berit LOVE the snow and everything about it!

Chasing snowballs, eating snow...

it's all good!

Speaking of snow, do you remember my snow quilt project?

I have made some progress with stitching motifs in the small plain fabric squares:

and I have decided to use the open cretan stitch for all the borders around the blocks:

I like this stitch, It is quick to do and suits the patchwork-y look of this quilt. So far so good - I will keep you updated on my progress.

Some odds and ends

I have some random odds and ends to post... First, I finished a wip:

This is a little octopus, some waves and sea grasses from the Seashells and Seahorses pattern packet.  I think it makes a really sweet picture. I stitched double lines of back stitch in two blues for the waves:

 

and I combined these two greens to highlight the sea grasses:

Second, some I took some really interesting garden pictures.  How fuzzy is this bumble bee?  I am growing oregano and I have let a lot of it go to flower - the bees love it!

This is a picture of the beautiful berries on an oregon grape bush:

I have quite a few sunflowers blooming:

Here are a couple of blooms from my "Queen Elizabeth" rose bush that is

always fun to photograph!

and a bloom from "Chrysler Imperial"

And the best for last - Berit and Rego!  Here they are relaxing in the shade:

and here is Berit - wishing I would come out of the weedy herb garden!

some beautiful autumn pictures

We have had several days of unbelievably beautiful warm weather. Tomorrow we are expecting rain so I took advantage of the clear blue skies and took some pictures. First this orange zinnia: such a pretty color - I started these from seeds and this is the only flower that was orange!
I had pink, red, a sort of violet color and this beautiful yellow:
next, some mushrooms in my yard - they look like little parasols
now, Berit and Rego relaxing in the nice weather...
and Berit enjoying watching Rego - who is enjoying chewing a tennis ball!
the incredible blue sky and autumn colored leaves:
and finally, a cosmos just starting to bloom:
:) beautiful autumn days!

which colors work on this wip?

Apparently not these that I am already taking back out! I think this fire-y orange floss is just too intense a color for this image of a sweet sleeping lion. I have stitched this before all in a pale, dreamy blue (dmc #3761) and I loved the way it turned out! Now I am trying to stitch it in a more lion like color but still have it look suitable for a baby.
I have two new sets of floss, these beautiful colors:
And these gorgeous perle cotton variegated colors! It seems like the variegated colors will make a softer look. I think I will use one of these for the mane!
or maybe one for the mane and tail and another one for the body? Any suggestions for color combinations would be appreciated!
According to my color wheel, my new floss is in analogous colors - or those that lie adjacent to one another on the wheel. That would cover all the red, brown, orange, tan and yellow. Perfect!
Speaking of yellow, I also wanted to post some pictures of these beautiful crackerjack marigolds. I started these from seeds - this variety can sometimes grow over 3' high. They are one of my favorites!

I also wanted to post this picture of Rego and Berit. I love their expressions - they are both hoping I will stop taking pictures and throw their current toy - on this day their toy was this piece of a tree root!