So much to celebrate this weekend!

This giveaway is now closed! Thanks to all who entered! The lucky winners are Annemarie (no blog) and Tudi. Congratulations!

Hard to believe that this weekend we will be celebrating July 4th here in the USA! Where did the first half of 2010 go? It makes me very happy to look back on the last 6 months and realize that I have spent a reasonable amount of time at my sewing machine, or with knitting needles or crochet hook in hand. The ability to do that is certainly something to celebrate.

Last month, as you may have read, my husband gave us quite a scare with a bout of Group A Strep in his blood and all the associated complications of that illness. After 10 days in the hospital, 5 of those days in critical care, and a good deal of rest here at home, he will be returning to work next week. That is definitely something to celebrate!

I could list countless other blessings which are also worth celebrating, but I have a feeling you know what they are because most likely you are thankful for the same ones. Of course I'm talking about things like a loving husband, a happy marriage (27+ years!), healthy children, good friends, a safe home, and on and on!

A celebration that I completely skipped over last month is the 2nd anniversary of HookedOnNeedles which was on June 3rd! As I recall, we were all under the weather, the school year was winding down, lots of stuff going on and my husband's illness was beginning to brew. Celebrating was the last thing on my mind! So let's celebrate a month late, shall we?

How about a little giveaway or two? Here are the prizes:

The first prize will be this little sewing kit that I just made using fabric called Mama's Cottons from Connecting Threads. I love the fabric! It's the same fabric used in this super awesome tote bag I made a while ago.


It folds up into a little wallet size package to keep all your sewing notions safe and secure.


On the inside are two flat pockets and one 3 dimensional pocket to hold thread spools or other thicker items.


And this biscornu pin cushion will be the second prize. It's a poofy little pin cushion made using two squares of fabric, two yo-yos and two buttons. I made a video showing how to make a biscornu which you can view HERE if you are interested in seeing how two squares can come together to form this shape. It's pretty neat!

This is the other side of the same piece.


One of the many wonderful swap gifts I have received since starting this website was my very first handmade pin cushion made by May Kristin in Norway which you can see HERE. I had never used a pin cushion before, so I gave it a try. Now I have pin cushions everywhere and I love using them! What a difference to have the pins all standing up waiting for me, instead of digging them out of the box! So I think everyone should have a good handmade pin cushion or three hanging around the sewing room!

So who wants to win a quilted sewing kit or a fabric biscornu pin cushion, perhaps with other goodies included as well? All you have to do is follow these simple directions:

• leave a comment on this post telling everyone what you hope to accomplish this summer in the way of sewing, crocheting, knitting, or any other kind of handwork, if any, or what your biggest adventure for this summer is likely to be.
• make certain I can email you by including your email address in your comment, otherwise your entry won't count. If you don't get a reply from me within a day or two after entering, that means I could not email you!
  
• feel free to share this giveaway with friends, but you don't have to. I love it when a regular reader wins my giveaways!
  
• that's it! One entry per person!
  

I'll leave this giveaway open for one week, so sometime on Friday, July 9th, I'll close comments and announce the winners. So if you can still comment, that means the giveaway is still open!

Thanks so much to all my regular readers and all those who pop in now and then to see what I'm up to. I've met so many wonderfully generous and creative people over the past two years and have learned so much from each one of you. I have to say, this blogging thing is pretty cool and I love it!

Happy Stitching!

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