MY FAVORITE

This was my favorite of the new Maggie/ Lisa Krause collaborations.
It's not on the web site yet as I don't have a price.
It says "Lawyer's Riding to Work."

Tisha

A NEW TOTE

Pam & I were trudging around TNNA weighed down by sacks full of literature when we came across these gems.  It was love at first sight.  It helped that Pam already owned a medium size Tutto bag which holds her sewing machine when she goes to quilting class.  We purchased a small one on the spot.  We put our coats & purses in the center compartment.  Price lists went in one of the many side pockets, my camera in another.  These bags are so easy to pull.  They have 4 wheels which enables finger tip control with no tipping.  They will fit under an airline seat or in the overhead.  Best of all, they fold to 3" when not in use.  The fiber glass frame is covered with ballistic Nylon in luscious colors.  I went by on Sunday to buy a second bag but they were sold out already.  It's on order and will arrive soon.

Tisha

NEW ITEMS FROM TNNA

Rainbow Acrylic  Laying Tool
Acrylic handle, metal tip, screw on acrylic protective cap
Available in 5 georgous    colors

Acrylic Needle Case by DJ Designs
Acrylic case with screw on top & ring
Will be available in 3 color combinations

HOME AGAIN

This was the entrance &  resting area to the exhibit hall.  The hall was located on the thrid floor of the convention center.  At the Sample it event, there was a woman in full  Indian dress who served as a greeter.  Her dress was white buckskin with lots of white fringe & beads.  Another Indian man drummed & played the flute in the reception area.

We stopped in Quartside on the way home.  Every road off the freeway was bumper to bumper, stop & go traffic.  We finally found a place to park in a wash, near the freeway overpass & a homeless camp.  We wandered around a flea market type area.  There was even a place to have your dog's teeth cleaned!
There were various flea market areas, roadside vendors & a huge tent with an RV show.  We only stayed about an hour as rain & high winds were predicted for later in the afternoon.  One doesn't park in a wash during the rain nor drive thru a sand strom.  It started to rain as I dropped Pam at home.

I was going to show some of the new products.  My web site hosting company has changed their log in procedure and locked me out of my web site.   Maybe tomorrow.

Tisha

DAY 3 TNNA

Todaey was our buying day - and we did! I took lots of pictures so, things should be available on the web site within a week. We bought acrylic laying tools for ribbon & needlepoint as well as an acrylic needle case. We will have June Mcknight's book on Bling as well as the Stitch Landscape book by Little Shoppe Canvas Company. This little gem contains almost 400 stitches. There are new Needle Nanny's by Puffin. I found The Tekobari Jananese lYing tool. The Bohin tapestry & beading needles will be back in stock as well as new scissors & needle Threaders. WE stayed until 4 PM. On the way back to the hotel, we stopped off at the gift shop at the Herd Indian Museum. More goodies.

we head home tomorrow with a stop in Quartsite which is 20 miles east of the California boarder. Quartzite is desolate desert with a few services. In January & February, 2000 vendors of rocks, gems, minerals & everything else imaginable gather. The town claims it has a million visitors. On the trip over, there were Rv's all over the desert for as far as we could see. There are no accommodations in Quartsite. Carl's Jr. & Berger King are the 2 restaurants. Should be interesting.

Tisha

SATURDAY TNNA

On Saturday, we walk the Market trying to asorbe it all. We order on Sunday after we've had time to digest and budget it all. We blew that right away when we found a fabulous
Rolling case by Tutto. It has all sorts of pockets around a central storage area. We bought one on the spot so we had a space to stash our jackets, water, cameras, and all the paper work we acquired. They come in several sizes & bright fashion colors. Best of all, they fold for storage.

We will also be carrying the I-Pad & E-Book covers by Lee, beautiful silk needle cases & ort bags by Lantern Moon & the Hug Me Bags. There are other exciting items in the works. June McKnight has a new book on Bling.

There were 20 isles of exhibitors. We got thru 18 today. We came back to the hotel exhausted. Pam had to go spend the evening with her triplet grandsons. Phoenix has a light rail system thru the center of the downtown area. We are able to take the train from the hotel to the convention center. There seems to be a lot of concern over lack of attendees.
Maybe it's just the huge hall. Food at the Convention Center offers more variety & is better than Long Beach.

Until tomorrow,
Tisha

PHOENIX - Day 1

In my haste to get to Phoenix, I got a speeding ticket. he clocked me at 92-ops! Nice cop only wrote me up for 80 mph. That's my first ticket in 30 years & I always drive too fast.
We finally arrived at Needlers Nest. The owner of Needlers Nest is the woman who buys the expensive auction pieces at Seminar. It was fun to see them displayed. The store has a huge variety of threads. They even carry a lot of rayon for Brizalian Embroidery. Didn't waste any time at that display. I will post photos when I return.

We continued on to Be Stitched. Map Quest got us off the freeway way too early so we wasted 20 minutes. I purchased the blank canvas for The ANG SOTM. Instead of taping the canvas, they zigzag on black & white Checked bias tape. The canvases displayed on the walls have the same treatment. It was frustrating as we ran out of time.

We got to the convention center 10 minutes before the doors to Sample it opened. I couldn't believe the line waiting to enter. There are a lot of people here. They only allowed 2 people from each shop to enter. I continued to stimulate the needlepoint economy. I purchased the new Namaste backpack in red. I thought it was pricey. I unpacked it when I got back to the hotel. It contained a red buddy, skinny Mini, name badge, & 7 mesh bags.
On the other side of the large room was food along with the displays of what's new.
We got to gaze upon Jane's warrior (can't spell that Japanese word). It's a large piece. Leigh said that she stitched it in a month!

AMAZING GRAY'S, ETC.

The Amazing Gray's class was wonderful.  There were two finished samples which I photographed.  My camera mal functioned.  What you see is the result of 14 hours of stitching.  It's all beaded except for the white basket woven squares which get stars or hearts.  There was a woman in the class with a service dog.
The dog can alert her an hour before she has a life threatening asthma attack!  We stitched in the hotel on Saturday evening.  We were rewarded with a Chocolate Martini & recipe.

My friend Pamela & I leave for Phoenix tomorrow.  It's a 4 hour drive.  We plan to spend the afternoon shop hopping.  We are both in need of fibers.  There are 5 needlepoint stores that encircle Phoenix.  Good reason to retire in Phoenix.

Tisha
Needlepoint Tool Time

Amazing Grays

I have finished the pre-stitching on Nancy Cucci's Amazing Grays.  The class is next weekend.  I went thru 3 spools of Kreinik do stitch the outlines.  Might have used less if I'd counted correctly.

Thanks to all of you, my sale has been wildly successful!  I even have an empty shelf & have had to reorder inventory.  There will be room for new items found at TNNA.  I will run the sale thru next Friday, January 13th.

I'm off to LA to celebrate Mom's 91st birthday.  My sister is in from Houston & sister-in-law from central California.  I will take the two grandaughters so they can create havoic with their male cousins.  We are looking forward to the visit and the night in the hotel.

Keep on Stitching,
Tisha

PS It's been in the high 70's for two weeks.  The locals are whinning as it is too hot for this time of year.