Best Ornament Ever

My friend Kathi and I exchanged needlepoint ornaments with each other this year. Kathi came to needlepoint after me and we meet often to share information on fibers, canvases or stitches. She is like a sponge in search of all the water so she can learn everything there is to know about needlepoint. I caution her it’s a life’s work.

When we decided to do an ornament for each other I never expected her to design me something that would mean the world to me. I made her a cute “Merry Christmas” round that I thought would compliment her collection. She made for me an ornament of my Food Bank’s new logo and had my Award monogramed on the back. Kathi’s was so much more thoughtful and meaningful than mine. I loved the one I made for her, if fact I think I want to stitch another one for myself, but it was nothing compared to hers.

Making a needlepoint ornament for someone else is an act of love. I really only do it for my child, and for my other stitching friends who also do it for me. When an acquaintance sees me stitching something they like, I have been asked, “Are you making that for me?” I have not quite come up with the perfect way to say, “I don’t usually give you a two hundred dollar gift that took me many hours to make .” So I have to just say no, without an explanation.

Now I think I need to step up my game in my exchange with stitching friends. It gets harder and harder to find the perfect gift for someone. I am just going to have to go the route Kathi went and design my own canvases. This does step up the stitching game quite a bit.