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Mary Corbet

writer and founder

 

I learned to embroider when I was a kid, when everyone was really into cross stitch (remember the '80s?). Eventually, I migrated to surface embroidery, teaching myself with whatever I could get my hands on...read more

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I’ve Been Eclipsed – to Your Advantage!

 

Amazon Books

I’m almost embarrassed to say
What I’m doing today.
With all the hype around here
(‘Cuz the sun’ll disappear)
The topic is almost cliché!

It’s true. I’m eclipse watching today. I contemplated packing along some needlework, because I’ll be stuck away from home for about seven hours while the sun and moon are not really doing anything too different from what they normally do…

…except for that 2 minutes and 38 seconds of daylight darkness!

But the dirt, the humidity, the sunscreen and the sweat that coincide with the Midwest in August – coupled with crowds of Celestially Enthusiastic People, the chance of thunderstorms, and no real bathrooms – isn’t all that conducive to embroidery. I’m leaving the stitching behind.

Sheep on a Sunny Hill in an Eclipse - Embroidered Little Things

Thing is, between you and me, I would have settled for 98% right here at my house. My air-conditioned house. My clean, non-humid, air-conditioned house. The one with real bathrooms and running water. But my sister and her family from Wisconsin came down for the event, and after that kind of drive, they deserve to see the Whole Thing.

Therefore, I’ve decided to be social and get into the spirit of it! (Except for Moon Pies – I stalwartly refuse to eat Moon Pies, despite the marketing pressure).

And I’m excited to see the eclipse! While I’ve seen a couple annular eclipses, a total eclipse will be a totally new experience.

How to Mark the Event…

If I were a Pinterest-perfect stitcher, I probably would’ve come up with some sort of Space-Themed, Sun-Themed embroidery design that I would’ve finished months ago, and that would now be featured in some Pinterest-perfect picture right here.

I would have prepared free patterns. I would have photographed them with sun-and-moon themed food (like round pieces of pepperoni?) and I probably would have even given away free eclipse viewing glasses, since that’s what everyone else does.

But alas, I didn’t really put any thought into the the whole thing until about the middle of last week, when I realized company was looming.

My life is one of stark reality, it seems!

But you know, everyone else seems to be marking (and marketing!) the event somehow. And gee, I wouldn’t want to be left out!

A Short-Lived but Stellar Sale!

So I decided to have a little sale on all my e-books.

I tried to figure out a catchy way to sell them. Maybe the use of some significant number that made some kind of eclipse sense – something clever, you know.

But alas…!

So the best I can do is to give you a whopping 17% off any e-book you purchase today. (The sheep needlebook above, incidentally, is from Lavender Honey & Other Little Things.) The sale starts now and ends tonight at midnight, when it will be the Normal Dark.

You can find all my e-books here:

Needle ‘n Thread Online Shop

If you’ve had any on your wish list, since the heavens are now aligned, it’s a good time to get them!

Enjoy your day – I’ll let you know how mine goes…!

 
 

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(15) Comments

  1. I was going to say I say the 1999 solar eclipse in the UK, but I only caught a glimps of it when the clouds briefly parted, but I did experience it and it is an event I will never forget. 98% is not enought; totallity is 1000% more awesome. I hope the sides are clear so that you can enjoy the cosmic spectacle!

    1
  2. Dear Mary

    I hope you have a great Eclipse day and the experience is really exciting (what are moon pies?). Thanks for the sale of your e-books that great news. Thanks for sharing with us the sale of 17% of your e-books and for sharing your eclipse experience with us.

    Regards Anita Simmance

    2
  3. Alternatively to having an eclipse pattern all stitched up, you could design something inspired by the eclipse and then maybe we could all have it finished in 7 years for the next US eclipse…

    Have a wonderful time. Our eclipse here will only be partial, but I did see a total eclipse a few decades ago and wish I could be seeing this one. Since the crowds will be dreadful at our nearest viewing sites and it’s a days drive, we decided to stay home.

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  4. Hooray! Looks like you saw it!
    I watched via a NASA site. Must’ve been exhilarating.

    Psst, thanks for the discount

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    1. Hi, Linda – Incidentally, due to cloud coverage and whatnot, we only saw bits and pieces of the progress as the clouds broke. During totality, we had about a 5-second window (of 2:36) where we saw totality. It was pretty neat! And the horizons were quite dramatic because of the weather. But all in all – between the drive, the early hour to beat traffic and get a spot to set up “camp,” the unpacking and then packing up again during the rain…and unpacking…and then packing up again during more rain… I began to wonder if it it was all worth it! But I have to say, that brief five seconds was pretty amazing. Incidentally, about 15 minutes into the drive home, the skies cleared and the sun stayed out and bright all the way home! LOL!

  5. Hi Mary
    Coral Seas is right. The 1999 eclipse was a very special experience. Those who did not get to the west country really missed a surreal experience.

    7
  6. Hi Mary,

    What a pity you got just 5 seconds – totality is one of the most beautiful of sights and it is addictive – once you’ve seen it, a partial eclipse (even 98%) is just not quite as exciting again. However, the weather is ALWAYS a risk – a single cloud can spoil it. I’ve traveled from Scotland twice now in the hope of seeing totality and it is always a gamble – but it was 2 mins & 26 seconds of sheer perfection in Wyoming yesterday 🙂

    However, it is definitely not a place to take your embroidery. The dusty field I watched from would have made quite a mess of anything I’d tried to work on and I think the breeze would have blown my threads away.

    The good news is there will be another US eclipse relatively soon – April 2024. Just leave the embroidery safely at home.

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  7. I saw totality with perfectly clear skies in Oregon – I hope you got the same experience! It was completely surreal.

    9
  8. I’ve recently decided I need to learn to embroidery (because I don’t have enough hobbies yet). I spent a lot of time googling and reading online articles and adding books to my shopping cart. And then I found your blog. What an amazing resource! I’ve found so much to learn in one place, and your instructions are clear, detailed, and easy to follow. Thank you so much for all the work you’ve put into this site. It’s very much appreciated.

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