Happy 50th to The Pill

Today celebrates the 50th birthday of The Pill. Though it has gone through many formula changes over the past half-century, its purpose remains the same: to give women the CHOICE. Mothers no longer had to choose between celibacy or having a reality-show-worthy brood of children. Single women could now have a sex life without fear of an unwanted pregnancy (though it should be noted that it was extremely difficult for unmarried women to obtain a prescription until 1972).
I cannot think of any other single invention that opened up so many possibilities for humans born with a uterus and ovaries.

So, Pill, in honor of your contributions to the advancement of gender equality, I leave you with this song written and performed by Ms Loretta Lynn (quite a controversial song in its day)

Embroidery Pattern Poll!

I am thrilled with the response my Crafty Goddess free hand embroidery pattern has received. I have to thank Denise at CraftGossip for featuring my pattern on their needlework thread.
My blog traffic reports show a sudden and LARGE influx of visitors from France. I welcome my French friends! I had to find out where they were coming from. As it would happen, Crafty Goddess was posted on Cathy16's blog and the Friendstitch blog. Thanks for the mention, mes amis!

I am trying to decide which free embroidery pattern to post next. I have put up a poll on the top right of my sidebar. Please take a second and vote for your favorite theme. I will post the "winning" pattern at the end of the week.

OWOH 2010 Winner!

I want to thank all of you who participated and visited during the One World One Heart blog event.
I had such a great time meeting so many of you, and I made it around to ALMOST all of the blogs (no easy task with over 1100 of you!).

Entries for my giveaway closed at midnight last night, and I have already contacted the winner.
So without further adieu, the winner is.....
drumroll please.....

Paula of On A Rainy Night



Paula, I hope you enjoy your new embroidered art.

hugs,
Heidi

Crafty Goddess - Free Embroidery Pattern

I have always enjoyed doodling, so it was only natural that I incorporate that love into embroidery design.
I have been working on several original hand embroidery patterns which I will be sharing with my bloggy friends.
This first pattern is one of my favorites.
Crafty Goddess was created when I could not find anything similar online. I love goddess imagery, and I am a crafty girl :)

To Download this pattern, click THIS LINK to go to the Flickr page where you can select All Sizes and download the Large version. Save to your computer and print!



My fabulously crafty friend Deana (aka Always Inspired) stitched her up for her partner in the Hoop Up! embroidered quilt square swap on Flickr. She used her partner's choice of colors, and I think it turned out beautifully for her partner's theme of sewing. The metallic threads used for the scissors and needle just pop!



I would love to see your versions of Crafty Goddess, so if you stitch her up, leave a comment or send me a message on Flickr or Craftster.

Crafty Goddess is a free design, but I do ask that you use my patterns for personal use only (that includes for swaps and gifts), and not to sell items made with this pattern, or to offer the pattern for sale in paper or digital format.

If the response to this pattern is positive, I will be posting more hand embroidery designs in the coming weeks, including a Geisha and a Frida Kahlo doll.

One World One Heart 2010 CLOSED! winner will be announced Feb 15th

Welcome to my stop on the One World One Heart 2010 blog event!
Roll up your magic carpet and have a cup of chai.

I would love to thank Lisa for hosting OWOH for a fourth year. I first hopped on board last year and I had a wonderful time visiting ALL 911 participating blogs.
For those who would like more info, you can find out more about OWOH and its simple goal of global fun and friendship on Lisa's blog, A Whimsical Bohemian

Each blog on the magic carpet route will be hosting a giveaway for some kind of treasure, but you do NOT need to be a participating blogger to enter.

I will be giving away this hand embroidered & embellished original art piece.
The Key to the Future (lies in the past) is a piece I embroidered last autumn. She was the second piece of embroidery I had ever done.
Sadly, she hid in a drawer filled with other stitched pieces, vintage fabrics, and assorted treasures until now.



OWOH seemed like the perfect occasion to bring this wistful sepia-tone maiden out of her confines. The piece is finished with antique Venice lace (scored at a local church basement sale!), vintage doily lace and buttons, aged key, hand-rouched fabrics, and a sweet felted heart. Finished piece measures approx 8x10 inches (20 x 25cm) excluding hanging loops (for dowel or even a cool stick!) and heart. I do hope you like her. She was a joy to stitch up, and I will miss seeing her in my treasure drawer.




My giveaway will begin today, and close February 15th at 12:01am, with the winner(s) names announced later that same day. Giveaway open to everyone worldwide
All you need to do is leave a comment on THIS post. I would love to know where you are visiting from. Please do not forget to leave some kind of contact info in case you are the winner (email, twitter or craftster name will be great, or just let me know that your contact info is on your blog if you are using Blogger).
Winner(s) will have 48 hrs to reply to me using their chosen form of communication. If a reply is not received, a new winner will be chosen. All winners will be selected using Random.org, my favorite random number generator.

Hugs and love to all of my lovely guests on this wonderful magic carpet ride!
Now enjoy your journey along this route of fantastic blogs.