Presents sent and a surprise received and I was an angel!

Two of my dear friends had birthdays in December so not only did they receive birthday gifts but also Christmas gifts at the same time! First up...........

Carol R. in the U.K. I stitched Carol a design by Pine Mountain Designs called "Friendship is the Sweetest Flower". I found some fabric in my stash that I really liked and changed the colors the chart called for to coordinate with the fabric and finished it into a pinkeep. I also sent Carol some of her favorite chocolate. She mentioned in one of our chats that she loves midnight milky ways so I sent those. Here's a pic of her birthday package:


For her Christmas gift I choose a CCN design from this year's JCS ornament issue and finished it as a pinkeep. I also sent a fat quarter and a scissor sack. (I meant to also take a picture of the back of the pinkeep as I put my initials and Carol's and the year 2008 with snowflakes, but I forgot.) Here is a pic of her Christmas package:


Kath in New Zealand loves Shepherd's Bush! So I just had to stitch her something SB for her birthday. I wasn't sure if Kath already had this pattern but even if she did I didn't think she had it as a floss tag and knew she'd be tickled (which she was). I stitched "Keep a Happy Heart" for her. I attached some crescent colors as well, another favorite of Kath's and some of my favorite soap from Bath and Body Works called Cherry Blossom. Here are some pics:



For Christmas, I stitched up "Noel" by Trail Creek Farms and finished it as a pinkeep. I sent along a fat quarter and some of my favorite candy..Andes peppermint thins..absolutely scrumptious! Here is a pic:


Both Carol and Kath loved their packages and I was so happy they arrived safe and sound and they are so pleased...I enjoyed stitching those treasures for them!

Then I was very happily surprised by the mailman on Christmas Eve. I got a lovely parcel from Irmeli in Finland, who I meant when I stitched for her in the HoE Christmas exchange. I was so surprised to receive a lovely sewn red heart and Finnish chocolate! The heart is on our Christmas tree and will then be kept out since Valentine's Day is right around the corner. The chocolate was absolutely delicious! Irmeli also sent a lovely postcard with a picture of her hometown and it is so beautiful...an absolutely gorgeous place..I was ready to hop a plane! LOL

Here are some pics: (The wording on the chocolate is kinda hard to read but it is in Finnish and means Merry Christmas in English.)






Thanks so much Irmeli. You are such a sweetheart!

I was an angel stitcher on the HoE blog for the Christmas ornament exchange. Gwen's partner has mailed her ornament to Gwen but it hasn't surfaced yet..it is somewhere in the mail system so I stepped in and stitched up a LK design from the Tiny Tidings XIII leaflet. I sent Gwen some overdyed threads, a fat quarter and some yummy Peppermint Joys that I found this winter that I just love! Here are some pics:



I am so glad you like your package Gwen..enjoy!

Christmas Round on F&S

Karen D. and I were exchange partners for the Christmas Round on the Fair & Square Blog. Karen stitched me Heartfelt Harvey by Imaginating, Inc. from Just Cross Stitch's 2008 ornament issue. I love snowmen so Karen stitched the perfect square for me! Thanks so much Karen!

Here's a pic:


I stitched Karen Jolly Holiday from Lizzie Kate's Tiny Tidings XIII. Here is a pic:

PIF (Paying It Forward)

I signed up on Carol's blog for her PIF (paying if forward) so now I need to stitch for 3 people.

If you are unfamiliar on how the PIF works..here are the rules:

1. If you want to sign up, just leave a comment here telling me you want to sign up.

2. I will send you something stitched/handmade within the year of 2009.

3. You will need to post a note similar to this on your blog and recruit three members to also send gifts to - thus, it is PIF (Pay It Forward).. if you sign up, you have to post on your blog and take sign ups.

Let the fun begin!