Santa Was Really Kind

Hope you all had a good festive season and enjoyed time with your families and friends... and hopefully managed to fit in a little crafting here and there too. ;0)

Our festive season was a little on the quiet side but that's how we prefer it... although it did get exciting one night, when the electric power cut out all over the house. We soon sussed that it wasn't a powercut but was actually caused by the breaker reacting to my switching on the washing machine.... because DS did it again, just to prove it, and all the lights went out again. The washer's element was shot and caused a problem with the earthing, which meant one dead washing machine and a trip to the January sales.... the new one has now been delivered and I've been on laundry catch-up ever since. That washing basket had been full to overflowing, so - as I flatly refused to hand wash their undies and socks because I value my health and sanity and don't love them that much - DH and DS had to pop to the main Tesco just after Christmas to get some emergency supplies. So far I haven't killed off the new machine, or the tumble drier, whilst doing the multitude of washes to catch up with the backlog! LOL

Santa was kind to me again, thanks to my forum friends and family. Here's a slideshow of the lovely handmade Christmas cards received this year:



And, as I like adding these little slideshow doohickys now I've worked out how to do them, here are the lovely goodies received:



Thank you again ladies for your kindness and generosity - hope you all had a lovely festive season and Santa was kind to you too, and that the thank you cards have arrived OK. :0)

We didn't get out and about much over the holidays, thanks to the cold weather and residual problems from all the snow we had, but did manage to get enough of a break in it to go and see MIL on New Years Day. The fluff ball kitten is now a fluff ball adolescent and looks like she'll always be petite. MIL is doing OK and spent her first solo Christmas with various friends, with lots of other invitations she didn't take up... though she did say that having Ally (the fluff ball) has been a real Blessing and says she's helped a great deal. Thank goodness for BIL and his family having the idea to do this. :0) So here's a pic of the little fluff ball:

It was taken with my phone, so not a great pic, but it captures her cuteness. She was so curious about what I was doing, which is why she was there long enough for me to take it.... because she's normally flitting around like a mad thing. LOL BTW, those are MIL's feet in the shot.

So what else have I been doing since my last blog post, apart from killing a washing machine, opening fab gifts and cards plus visiting MIL and admiring the fluff balls cuteness? Well.... I kept myself out of mischief by having a few cardmaking sessions at various times, with these results:



Sorry about some of those scans - my scanner doesn't like the 3-D bits on some of the cards, so makes them look all out of focus. Some of you may just recognise some of the cards too. LOL Yes, three slideshows in one post might seem a bit excessive... but not as excessive as posting every single pic would have been. ;0)

I also found time for a bit of stitching too. Bet you were thinking I'd never get round to that bit, weren't you? LOL Well I delved into my stash and started a kit of a polar bear, or rather its head, another one from the same range as the tiger I finished a little while ago. This is another piece stitched specifically for one of the girls in my Development Circle, as the polar bear is her Power Animal. I'd hoped to get it finished before the New Year started but there was just too much left to do...... so it became my first finish for 2011 instead.

Design: Polar Bear, kit

Designer: Roger W Reinardy, for the Janlynn Wildlife Series

Fabric: swapped the aida for 28ct white evenweave, unknown make

Threads: as supplied in the kit, unknown make

He was lovely to stitch and I'm sure he will be well received - just got to find a suitable frame..... or pluck up courage to make it into a wallhanging, as I have a fabric that would go really well with this.

As soon as that was finished I'd planned to do a fox design for another of the Circle girls... but the Seba Designs SAL blackwork piece that I started a while ago suddenly started to shout really loudly and wouldn't be ignored, so I picked that up instead - I'd almost forgotten just how lovely this was to stitch. Add in the fact that the new Seba 2011 SAL piece has been released.... well, I thought it best to get last years finished first. I put the last stitch in it last night (Sunday 16th January) and here's a bad pic taken in poor light, as the bright days are few and far between at the moment:

That's two finishes in a month! Wow! Keep going at this rate and the bellydancing CD will be worn out LOL. It sure does make a change though, after all those months of missing mojo that made 2010 a poor year for finishes - my album has a grand total of...... three pics in it. *blush*

I will now admit to hitting the January Sales for a little more than a washing machine. Yes, I got a few small stash additions:

I couldn't resist - they were real bargains. LOL Actually, I was quite restrained, considering the price the HAED charts were going for... though, admittedly, I already have plenty of those in my stash. Yes, I know, I should have thought of that before buying another one.... but it's an Angel! :0)

The New Year brought a few other new things too. Firstly, Clare took the plunge and started her very own Forum: Needlecraft Haven. It's a lovely, friendly place to hang out and chat and there are a few activities to join in too, in case you haven't already got lots of stitching planned: the RR's are already off to a flying start (sorry, couldn't resist. Eheheh); the Just Nan SAL is ongoing; there's a HAED SAL (any HAED piece you are stitching and would like encouragement with - Mother Earth is demanding attention); the Carriage House Samplings SAL starts in February and some of the girls are stitching Shores, whilst others are stitching smaller designs (I'm joining in with Enchanted); there's a Quaker SAL, again you can join in with any Quaker piece you like. There's going to be an Advent Exchange later in the year and then there are the regular features: UFO Night, watched over by Julie and Mr Stick, is there to help us all get those UFO's finished; a Monthly Christmas ornie section (stitch any ornie you like) and the Monthly Challenge SAL... this months stitch is a cute cat freebie by Tralala. I'm stitching this for MIL... but I can't tell you any details until Reveal Day, sorry. 

Soooo, at some point I shall be getting back to my JN piece, Flora, as the plan is to give it to Aureen, who runs the Development Circle, once it's finished. As I haven't stitched a larger Quaker style piece and have a couple of suitable designs in my stash, I'll be joining in the Quaker SAL. This piece shouted the loudest:

This was the initial floss toss, with a Thai silk thread, but am not sure about it, so will be trying DMC 820 instead. I'll be stitching it 1 over 1. Once I've completed the Challenge piece will probably be the ideal time to start this little beauty. So that's covered quite a few of my stitching plans for this year, though they're not set in stone and could be changed at some point.... it's allowed, as I'm a woman and it's part of the job description. ;0)

As for the Development Circle - it restarted last Tuesday (11th) and it was so good to be back and see the girls again. There was only one member missing and we've got our fingers crossed that she'll be back soon too. We were all a little rusty but it was a good session anyway and we're looking forward to the next one.
Then my monthly Reiki session was on Saturday (15th) and that was lovely - such a calming session. As DH and DS were out all day I did some shopping then had my dinner afterwards, in the local Fish and Chip restaurant (though I opted for chicken, chips and salad). It's so good to be so much better that I can do this kind of thing now. :0) Though this year has seen me have my first ever Hypnotherapy session - there are a few residual issues from the old agoraphobic/panic attack days that need to be dealt with, along with my wanting help to get back on track with my weight/diet (gone off the rails since my op last year), and I felt this was the best way to go. Eventually I plan on having a Past Life regression done too, something I've been interested in for a while now. It's going to be an interesting journey in the coming months. :0)

Last week was a time of being in charge of the TV remote every single evening too, from Sunday 9th to Saturday 15th - the Panto was on at the Theatre, with Get In and Get Out at either end. DH was Stage Manager and DS was in it. I tell you, the power almost went to my head! LOL It also meant quite a bit of stitchy time too, hence that Seba blackwork piece getting finished fairly speedily. Of course, the fact that they've been doing the Panto means that the pipework job hasn't progressed, despite the slight improvement in the weather, so there's still that open trench down the side of the house. Fingers crossed that something gets done next Sunday... although that depends on how DH is, as he managed to pull a muscle or trap a nerve or something in his back yesterday (Saturday) morning and has had to rest up today. Yesterday I suggested he went to the GP but wasn't holding my breath as far as him actually doing it.... but he surprised me and went this morning. I won't know what the outcome of that was until he comes home tonight - yes, he's gone into work for what he hopes will be an office based day. Fingers crossed it's just something that a little rest and Ibuprofen will sort out... soon, as I've been having to do all the lifting and bending and it's starting to tell on me too.

I am still waaaay behind with blog reading and commenting, thanks to it being so cold in here during the bad weather - even wearing the fingerless mitts didn't help. I will gradually do a catch up in the coming week or so.... but I've now got so far behind with some blogs I may just have to give in and admit defeat and just catch up with the most recent posts. So sorry, but even my nosiness can't cope with over 150+ blog posts from one single blog on top of all the others... especially as I still want time to do other things. LOL

Thank you for all your visits and kind comments. May 2011 bring you all much happiness, good health and plenty of time to stitch. :0)

The Tiger and The Mother

Well the tiger is coming along, slowly but surely.... unfortunately a bit more slowly than planned, due to the start of a bad case of gardening fever. Yup, the warm weather finally kicked off this week making it impossible to ignore the pull of the garden. Who can resist being out there when the blackbirds are putting their hearts and souls into their songs? Not me, that's for sure. :0)

Here's where I left off the stripey one by the end of the week:

It's rather intimidating having those eyes staring right back at you whilst you're infilling the rest of the face, I can tell you. The expression seems to say: Come on woman, get on with it and get me finished.... this is totally undignified! LOL

I was really good at the start of last week and brought Mother Earth out again. Well, I'd spent that long under the naughty chair I was in danger of taking root there! I didn't do a great deal (just about enough to make an update pic worth posting) but it felt good to be working on Her again. Here's where I left off:

In case you're not sure where I was working: a start was made on infilling the last section of the trees on this page. I forgot to zoom in on the pic so you get to see just how disgustingly grubby the material has got along the edges. * Hangs head in shame* Still, this piece has been on the go for several years..... but I'm not fessing up as to how long or my head will be hanging even lower! LOL

So what have I been up to this time around? The usual Development Circle session on Tuesday night - this week we did psychometry. I like doing this, especially as I seem to do reasonably well at it.... though do better on personal objects that have been worn, rather than not so personal items. Then there's my weekly acupuncture session..... those little needles are wonder workers where my arthritic aches and pains are concerned and I highly recommend it. Then I had my monthly Reiki session on Saturday.... always a guaranteed chill out, and this session has made me realise that I want to pursue this avenue but from the other side - I want to take this up as part of my development towards doing healing work. I hope that Aureen, my Reiki practitioner, will be willing to teach me..... or be able to recommend someone, if she's unable to do so. I also bought a couple of plants from a local shop and planted them up in the evening, when it had gone cooler. DS had also brought back another five strawberry plants from the market so I planted those up in a large container - we should have a good crop very soon. :0)

Then I've been out in the garden quite a bit. As DH and DS were busy for much of the weekend, what with the local farmer's market and the theatre Get In for this weeks performance of Blackadder II, I had a trip out in my car to one of the local garden centres........ unfortunately a big proportion of the local population had also decided it would be good to do this too. To say it was heaving would be an understatement.... but the Angel of Parking Spaces was with me and someone pulled out of a slot opposite the doors just as I drove through the gates. Thank you Angel! LOL I had planned on staying for dinner but the busy-ness of the place soon made me change that plan.... too many rude, impatient and ignorant people around, it just wouldn't have been enjoyable. So I grabbed a barrow (the last one by the doors - thank you again, Angel!) and started the rounds of the plants and into the barrow went: a lovely Lavendula; five assorted alpine plants and two Osteospernum (sp?). I couldn't find the decorative wall planter (menopausal brain fart moment) so I found a very obliging female member of staff who took me to where they were.... and she was also good enough to show me a selection of plants that would do well on a north facing wall, for which I thanked her. I wouldn't have had a clue, otherwise! LOL So into the barrow went the wall planter, three trailing plants and two flowering plants...... but please don't ask me what they're called because I can't remember. The Angel was still with me because, when I got to the tills, the large queue that had been there when I arrived had totally gone (thank you, again), so I paid, loaded up the car, put the barrow back by the door for the next customer and exited so the patiently waiting chap could have my parking spot. I guess his Angel was looking out for him too. LOL It was a very hot day on Sunday so, once I'd unloaded everything from the car, I had a cold drink and a sit down before doing much of anything else. Later in the day, when it had cooled off some, I planted up some of that days buys. I'll post pics in another post once the planter is up on the wall.

I've also had a cardmaking session. Nothing too taxing, just making up some kiddies cards from a kit I bought from Tesco a while ago.

Don't you just love those goggle eyes?

Very quick and easy to make.... and a lot of fun. All I had to provide was the foam pads and glue dots. I shall add numbers to the cards when I send them out. Am hoping that this will kickstart the cardmaking mojo, as it's been sadly lacking this year.

The sorting and moving things into the craft room has stalled again..... the garden can take the blame for that. LOL Oh, and I'm now waiting for my new specs to arrive, to complete the new look - hopefully they won't be too much longer.

Many thanks for all the lovely comments on my new look.... hopefully it hasn't scared too many of you. LOL Hope life is being kind and you're all having a good week. :0)

The Wanderer Returns

Yes folks, I'm back home again after having a lovely time over at my DSis's, though I've since been busy playing catch-up with house jobs. Amazing how my two know how the washing machine works but didn't manage to use it while I was gone!

So what did the pair of us get up to? Well Wednesday we had a catch up natter, then DH went back home in the evening; Thursday we had a trip to the huge Tesco and did a bit of shopping in the daytime, then went to visit with our Aunty S and Uncle T in the evening. Uncle T is our Mum's DBro and he and Aunty S have my DSis over to visit regularly but I don't get to see them very often, so it was lovely to have a catch up. Plus Aunty is a superb cook and the meal we had was very tasty! :0) On Friday we went to visit friends of the family in the morning and in the afternoon our SIL picked us up and took us back to her and our DBro's house: lots of chat and laughter, I got to see my niece and nephew and we all had a lovely meal as a celebration for our nephew's 8th birthday. I made a card for him to take with me:

Unfortunately I chose a Power Rangers theme and it's actually Transformers that are all the rage now. Now my DS is all growed up I'm afraid I just don't keep up with these things anymore. LOL My DH drove over to us and he drove the three of us back to DSis's house, where we stayed for another night. On Saturday the three of us went shopping to the Outlet, so DH actually helped me spend his money as well. LOL Among the haul were: undies, socks, shoelaces, a Jensen Button book and a replacement powertool blade for DH; thermal vests, a nightie, slippers, FlyFlot socks and a pair of dressy shoes for me; healthy foodstuffs from Julian Graves; some herbal teas from Whittards, as well as a fab Sugar Container (I never met a calorie I didn't like, on the side LOL) which I bought for my DSis as part of her birthday gift; Lock'n'Lock boxes for our kitchen; a pop-up tidy bag and a wheeled storage container with a seat for the garden (can store a trowel and hand fork, tie backs etc, so I'll have them all to hand and be able to sit whilst working, when I can get out there again); and I treated myself to a beautiful dragonfly brooch from Past Times (and paid less than that too!) and some books. Well, I couldn't go to the Outlet and not go in the bookshop, could I? ROFL  Here's what I succumbed to: 

Can you see a bit of a theme developing there? LOL And these as well:

Even better: all those plus DH's book for a little over £20 - not a bad bargain at all! LOL We had a break for dinner part way through the day and took my DSis to the pub for a belated birthday meal - another tasty one. DSis also took time to pop into work to see everyone and they were delighted to see her and told her they were looking forward to her going back the following Monday. Another positive that has come out of all this recent business: my DSis now knows how much she's thought of by everyone she works with. :0)

DH and I travelled home late Saturday night. Whilst at my DSis's we'd had a belated Christmas gift giving (I wasn't able to go over beforehand due to my op) so, as well as all the shopping and our overnight bags, there were our gifts to bring back too. Here is my gift from our Aunty D and Uncle W:

Both books just perfect for me. Now all I need is an extra couple of hours in the day to fit in all this extra reading I need to do. LOL This was part of my gift from my DSis and isn't she gorgeous?

She's the Healing Crystal Angel and is destined to go in my Craft Room until the sun lounge is decorated and I can set up a proper Angel Altar in there. :0) DH was very happy with his bottles of whisky, which will keep him going with tots for some time. LOL

On Sunday DH carried on with the Craft Room flooring (Guinness Book of Records here he comes - I reckon he's trying for the Longest Ever DIY job LOL) and I started sorting the first of three laundry loads. It was also time for posting a Mother Earth update on the 2010 Weekly SAL Blog. Here's where I left off this time round:

Tattoos fully infilled, the area to the right of Her arm partially filled and a little more done to the dress. Not huge progress but, bearing in mind I'd not been feeling well and also had a break over at my DSis's, better than what I thought I'd manage....... and a little progress is better than none. :0)

I also made another card, before I went off on the visit, which I sent to Julie. Thought I'd share:

I also need to make a couple of birthday cards this month, so the cardmaking stash will be coming out to play again soon. :0)

Unfortunately, despite taking two stitching projects away with me, I didn't manage to put a single stitch into either of them, so no pics of them to show. Still, it was fun getting out and about so I'm not complaining...... I'll just have to make up for the lack of stitching now I'm back! LOL   

This week I've had a trip to the Clinic for my first ever acupuncture session. She only used six needles but it did give me an inkling in to what pincushions must feel like..... and from now on I shall be much more gentle with the poor, abused things! LOL I shall do a write up about it on my other blog at some point.

In case you're getting bored with seeing the same old projects every time you come to visit: take heart, I will have something different to show you next time around. There's a new piece started that I can now post a pic for and, if it ever stays in the drive long enough in the daytime for me to take a pic of it, my DS's new pride and joy to show you all.

Thank you for all the lovely comments, especially the well wishes my DSis - they all mean a great deal. Hope you are all staying safe and warm and enjoying lots of stitchy time. :0)

Cards Galore and Stitching Progress

Before the festivities I managed to have a bit of a cardmaking fest, spread over a few days as the stamina was only up for so much standing around. I made four Christmas Cards, some of which were sent out to Forum/Blogging friends. This one I sent to Lynn:

This one to Barb: 

This one to Sally:

This one to Karen, I think (sorry, brain fart moments are coming thick and fast, thanks to the menopause!):

Then there were a couple of birthday's too. Our friend Alex's birthday was on Christmas Eve, so I made a card for her and had great fun using one of my Celtic style stamps, embossing powder and peel-offs:

I made this card a while ago and the colours immediately made me think of Karen, so that's where it went off to earlier this month:

Unfortunately I forgot to take a pic of the birthday card I sent to Sally but you can see a pic here (scroll down a little).

I received some lovely handmade festive cards from family and friends too:

The large blue one was made by my DSis, the fairy card by my PenPal Maggie, Let it Snow card by Helen, the stitched card by Jayne (no blog) and the snow wording card at the front by our friend Alex. Aren't they all fab? BTW, you are getting a sneak peek of my new computer table in that pic. LOL

Next up is the promised update of the progress made on Mother Earth. This pic is where I got up to by last Sunday (3rd), ready for posting on the 2010 Weekly SAL Blog:

I've been stitching on her again since, so there's even more progress and, as I've already posted the update on the SAL Blog, I'll post another pic here too:

When I'm stitching this it can seem like there's not been much progress made..... then I look at the pics together like this and see the noticeable difference. As the Most Haunted Live 7-Night Special started last night (Saturday) it means I shall be parked in my armchair from 9pm every night to watch it..... which guarantees plenty of time to stitch some more on this and my other SAL pieces. :0) The timing of this Special is perfect, as DH and DS are going to be out most nights, as they are involved with the Pantomime production that starts at the theatre this week. Normally I'd have to listen to DS moaning about it being on...... now I won't. LOL

I made a start on the Bouquet for Cheryl SAL earlier in the week but I can't post an update yet, as the first posting date for that isn't until next month.... plenty of time to get a bit more done. In case you haven't had a mosey over there and seen a pic of  my choices for this already, I thought I'd post one here too:

Initially I was just going to use the top thread for this but once I got the chart printed out I changed my mind (it's allowed - I'm a woman! LOL). I've broken some stitching rules with this piece, as the top thread is a Thai silk and the lower one is a Carrie's cotton but the design immediately made me think of contrasts and I wanted the thread to reflect this. I'm doing this 1 over 1 on a 28ct fabric - unfortunately I'm not sure what fabric it is, as the label has disappeared. I'm really pleased with how it's stitching up so far.

I have yet to make a start on the Just Nan SAL piece but will get around to that soon. The Sew and So order I was waiting for (Floss-Away bags and some DMC) has arrived, so I can carry on with my thread sorting and make a start on the JA/S&S Challenge piece...... or at least I can if I can suss out the colour only chart enough to work out which thread I'm supposed to use for which bit, as my printer has made some of the colours much too similar!

I've had my trip to see my Herbalist and now have some new tablets and potion, though the diet is staying much the same. There's a more detailed post on that on my other blog, if you're interested. I was pleased to find that, despite my thinking otherwise, I hadn't put any weight on since my op, despite not being able to move around as much as usual, but had stayed the same. :0) Once this cold snap ends I shall start making a better effort towards getting to my next goal. Fingers and everything else crossed! :0)

If I haven't visited your blog recently I will be doing, as I'm slowly catching up. Some of you have been very chatty, as there were over 400 posts in my Bloglines! I've got down to around 300... but you can see there's a ways to go yet. LOL

Many thanks for visiting and taking the time to leave your lovely comments. Hope you are all staying safe and warm and getting lots of stitching done. :0)

No Stitching But.....

that hasn't stopped me acquiring stash, although those acquisitions have been over a couple of months - I've just been really slack at blogging enough to share them before now.

First up is an eBay bargain 99p chart:


I love the version with the wording. The logo of the Alternative Therapy Clinic I go to is a sunflower and I plan on stitching the version with the wording for Jan, my Herbalist, as a thank you for all the help she has given me.... and all the help she will continue to give once I've had my op. She has helped me in more ways than she knows and helped to open up a whole new world for me (I write about that on my other blog), so it is such an appropriate piece. :0)

On the same day I also spotted this gorgeous fabric bargain too:


A large piece of opalescent fabric for under £4.00 and free P&P. Who could resist that? Certainly not me. ROFL I don't have any specific plans for it at the moment but just the right design is bound to turn up at some point.

Another day I was bored and browsing on the same good old auction site, following links to see where they'd take me, when I came across someone selling craft goodies for children...... only when I investigated there weren't just the pipe cleaner type stems but also some sparkly trims that were sold by the metre, ideal for Christmas ornies thought I.


As you can see I succumbed to a few of them. Those yellow stems were a freebie - I couldn't think what I could use them for (so did not fancy making that many Easter Chick legs! LOL) so gave them to my friend Alex, for her children.

Then another nosey around revealed these rather useful pieces of fabric at a bargain price and I was lucky enough to win the bids:


A 32ct fabric in Mocha and a 28ct in French Latte. Another couple of neutral colours that are especially useful as my stash seems to have a large bias towards hand dyes in pretty colours. Much as I like those pretty colours they aren't always suitable for some designs.

When I got fed-up of bargain hunting on eBay I had a wander over to Thread Bear for a nosey as I needed some different coloured backing fabrics. Whilst I was there I couldn't resist the sparkly felts they'd just got in stock...... and the chart was in the Sale section and goes with one from the same range that's already in my stash.


The 28ct is a piece of Lakeside Linens fabric and was bought specifically to stitch the Plum Pudding Salem Sisters piece on. Yes, I had all good intentions of starting this piece for Halloween........... but it just didn't happen. Yup, that mojo packed its bag and disappeared into the wild blue yonder....... again! The current happenings haven't exactly helped either.

Just so you're not left thinking that the Craft Bug had totally disappeared:


Yes, last week my cardmaking goodies came out of their boxes long enough for me to make a card for my DH's birthday. Though they did go straight back in again and haven't been touched since, as I've been busy with other things.

So, what has been happening to keep me busy? Well, I went for my pre-op checks on Tuesday morning and that took way more time than either of us expected. So the questions were asked and the forms were filled in by a very nice Staff Nurse called Gail; blood pressure and blood oxygen levels checked and noted; height and weight checked and noted (and I don't like their scales 'cos they have me 4lbs heavier than Jan's!); then various questions asked and answered - though not too many details wanted or needed about the op itself because I'm a firm believer that ignorance is bliss with that kind of thing as I really don't want nightmares beforehand, thanks; all the consents signed and a parting gift of a cup of pee, for testing. Finally there was a trip down to see the hospital vampires again so they could take four lots of my best red for various tests. Staff Nurse Gail reckoned I looked and sounded fit enough and the checks she did were fine, so - unless the test on the blood or pee turn anything up - it's all systems go, in the best Thunderbirds tradition. LOL

Meantime, I've been keeping up with the laundry and other dreaded H word jobs, trying to keep on top of things before the enforced break happens...... you know men, they aren't going to class things like that as a priority, are they? And I am not going to burst my stitches trying to keep things straight when I come home, so I'm getting it sorted now in the hopes that it won't begin to look like a mess for a while. Yeah, right - not with these two! LOL

Then there's making sure that the clothes I want to take in with me are clean, ironed and packed and the other bits I need are to hand (things have a nasty habit of disappearing into that Safe Place just when you want them). Shopping for enough soya milk and cornflakes to take in with me because the hospital don't have anything I am allowed to eat at breakfast time - plus enough for after I get out, as DH won't have the time to go into town for more. And that the cupboards, fridge and freezer are well stocked beforehand too........... because there isn't a snowball's chance in h*ll of me being able to help do that after the op. Plus I've been making sure my other blog is fully up-to-date (got more posts saved to draft) and doing my best to catch up with all the blogs on my blogger list because who knows how long it'll be before I'll be able to sit up to the computer - I've already been warned that I'll be left wondering if I'll ever be able to walk up straight ever again, due to it being an ordinary incision op with stitches. Thanks for that! LOL

I guess it's probably a good thing the mojo has gone on holiday again because, at this point, I'd probably end up having to frog it all anyways. LOL :0)

Thank you taking the time to stop by and for all the lovely comments you leave. Hope you all have a good weekend...... and all those in the UK stay safe and flood-free. :0)

Trades, a Card and the Garden

I'm getting on with the finishing on the charity ornies: got one fully completed over the weekend and the other just needs the rest of its trim attaching, then I can take pics to show you and send them off to Donna. Until then I thought I'd show you a few pics of some more acquisitions - though this time through trades - a recent card make and of a little more progress in the garden.

First up are the nice range of DMC threads I received in exchange for an Avid Lancaster Bomber chart:


They are now happily residing in my stash, until they're needed for a project. Next was the fabulous chart I received in exchange for some magazines:


Yes, it's Papillon Creations Mary Queen of Scots. This little stunner has been on my Wish List for some time - I never actually expected to receive it as a Wish and had only put it on there as a reminder that it was there..... and one day I'd get around to buying it. Was I Happy Dancing when it was offered in trade. :0)

A trade for some plastic canvas booklets saw this gorgeous Sugar Maple opalescent fabric added to my stash:



It shouts mermaid, fairy and Angel to me........ am so torn as to which would suit more. It's going to be a whole lot of fun deciding. Once again many thanks to the ladies I traded with - it was a pleasure. :0)

When DH and DS saw stash arriving in packages again they started chuntering away on that same old theme: supposed to be getting rid of things, not adding more. Well I soon pointed out that: the threads replace a chart and they probably won't be in my stash for long because I use DMC all the time; that one Papillon chart replaces six magazines, so it takes up a lot less space and, once stitched, I don't hang onto the chart and the fabric replaces four booklets - shelf space is freed up and less space is taken up by the fabric, which I fully intend stitching something pretty on it so it'll then hang on the wall. Therefore much more has gone than has come back in says I......... very carefully not reminding them about the e**Y stash bargains received the week before. ;0) LOL Just to make sure they were totally convinced my next words were: Oh, and it gave me an incentive to have another root round my stash and add a few more bits to my Trade Album too. Yup, not only did they stop chuntering but that gained me some serious Brownie points........ and was left wondering just when I became that crafty! LOL

I haven't been solely concentrating on stash acquisition though. The cardmaking goodies that Lynn very kindly sent were put to good use to make a card for Clare. Now her birthday has been and gone I can show you what I made:


It was good to finally do something creative, after what seemed like an age. I now have another two cards to make for FIL and an Uncle so I need to get my thinking cap on for those soon.

As for the garden. Well, remember how it looked at the end of the last tidying session:


The blue metal panels gone from against the privet hedge but still with those others leaning on the side of the shed and the one between us and the neighbours? We had another session out there after DH decided all the panels had to go and this is how it looks now:


No more blue metal panels. Yay! Doesn't it look bigger? By the way, those black plastic downpipes are there temporarily, to make a bit of an obstacle course should any scumbag from the local criminal fraternity fancy trying their chances - although now our neighbours have put up a good fence between them and the neighbour the other side there's much less chance of that happening. They seem happy enough with our plans for that end of the garden and may well not bother putting up a fence panel until after we've taken out the old shed and put the new summer house in its place.

The bonfire heap is still there - DH has been very restrained - so I may well suggest that we leave it until the impending Autumn Equinox and have it then. :0)

As for the garden bed along the side of the new fence.... well Mother Nature did her thing while we were on holiday and all kinds of things have sprouted....... and boy, have they flippin' well sprouted! We have no idea where most of it has come from either. This was one of the biggest surprises:



We think it must have been a stray sunflower seed from one of the bird feeders. There were a few more but DH got brutal and pulled a fair few out. That pink flowered thing in the background is so rife it's definitely at weed proportions. That'll teach DH: he's been threatening to do the weed killing session since the new fence went up and still hasn't gotten around to it, now it's twice the job it would have been. Men! On the other hand, the Pete's next door are really motoring on in their garden: in the last two weeks a new back fence has been put up, the old wooden workshop demolished and all the wood burnt, the area flattened and a new concrete base laid and the wood framework for the new one built and put up. The weekend has seen the roof area be boarded and insulated, the outer roof boards added and a start made on the waterproof covering. These guys really graft...... they have got to be on three Shredded Wheat! ROFL

Saturday we had a day at my DSis's....... we decided it was a bit to soon after her motorway detour to suggest that she came over here for the day. Sunday DH made a small start on replacing some of the damaged floorboards in the little bedroom before going to the Festival of the Plough. I didn't fancy it so had a quiet afternoon watching Stargate Atlantis re-runs and doing the ornie finishing instead. We both enjoyed ourselves in our own ways. :0)

Right I'd best be off to finish the last ornie so I'll finally have something stitchy related to show you in my next post, otherwise you'll be wondering if this really is a stitching blog! LOL

Hope you all had a good weekend. Thank you for taking the time to visit and for all your lovely comments. :0)

Guess Whooooo?

No I haven't fallen off the planet.... not due to the shock of turning 48 or any other reason LOL, I just got busy getting things organised for our holiday, which didn't leave me much time for other things...... especially when my two feel it's perfectly OK to just chuck everything into the case or the back of the car at the very last minute. I was well ready for that holiday by the time the packing was done, let me tell you.

In between updating the packing list, washing and drying a mountain of clothes (they will insist on getting stuff dirty!), sorting a stack of ironing for DH (bless him, that's one chore he likes to do that I don't - it literally gives me a pain in the neck), unearthing all the walking gear from various places and other suchlike jobs I did manage to do a little stitching. Well, actually, I managed it a few weeks prior to going away, on UFO Tuesday, and didn't get around to posting an update. So here's where the handsome fella got to before the holiday packing got underway:


I decided to fill in the other corner so it would define the working area and give a definite goal to work towards. He didn't make it out of the bag again but Mr Stick didn't chase me, as I had permission to go awol due to some perfectly valid excuses: it was mine and DH's 25th Wedding Anniversary on the 14th, followed by our 2 week holiday. Yes 25 years and another milestone event in our lives. Whoda thunk we'd make it this far,eh? LOL We didn't do much, just had a take-out curry, as we decided to go out for a special meal to celebrate whilst on our holiday. :0)

Our anniversary may have been a bit of a damp squib but my birthday excitement continued a little longer when I received another rather pretty package, this one from Clare:


Here's what was inside the envelope and packages:


One of Clare's lovely handmade decoupage cards and an amethyst bead fob (my favourite gemstone) and some perle threads and Silkweaver fabric in the prettiest colours. Thank you again Clare for the lovely card and gifts - I love them and shall enjoy using everything. :0)

Then a second envelope from Clare revealed these fab cross stitch charts:


Plus some blackwork charts:


I do love wildlife and nature and blackwork and the charts made her think of me. How nice is that? Thank you again for your generosity Clare. :0)

Yet more nice post arrived.... this time from Julie, in the form of a book that she very kindly sent on to me:


Thanks again Julie. :0) It went straight from the envelope into my bag for my holiday read. I'd decided taking a Barbara Erskine with me was a bad idea when we were going to be staying in an old cottage - far too spooky! Good decision, as it was a really good book........ so good it didn't last out the fortnight! LOL You can find out more in my side bar or over at The Reading Corner blog, if you're interested.

I also squeezed in a little more stitching before going away and managed to complete the first part of the JA/S&S Forum's Hardanger Bookmark SAL that is being run by Clare. Here's the pic to prove it:


That's one of the very few deadlines I actually managed to beat during July. Yay! The second part is now out, so I need to extract my digit and start applying a needle to this soon so I get to meet an August deadline too.

My niece's birthday was due while we were going to be away so the cardmaking goodies came out. Yes, I got all super-efficient and made a card and posted it early. Here's what I made for her this year:


She's definitely a pink girl so she should have liked it. There was also another birthday girl who's day was due during our holiday: Julie, and here's the card I made for her:

Another one I was really pleased with and enjoyed making. I also stitched a little something..... but I shall put that in another post. :0)

We then went off on our two-weeks holiday to the Lake District, where we stayed in a lovely cottage in Chapel Stile village in the Great Langdale Valley. As this is already a long post I shall do a separate post about that too.

Thank you for visiting and for all the lovely comments. I shall be having a catch up with you all in the coming week. :0)

Challenge for a Finish - May

I've been having a bit of a catch up session this weekend and it's now paying off....... which means I have something new to show you at last. :0)

This is most definitely a tad late for the May deadline over at Challenge for a Finish but I was determined to go ahead and finish it anyway as this was yet another first for me: to make a needleroll, any design. So here it is:

Design: A Different Halloween kit

Designer: Karin Kersten - Beardie Designs

Fabric: 32ct Belfast Linen - White

Threads: Gloriana Ltd Ed silks and ribbon

Finish: a needleroll

It has some speciality stitches in those bands but they were easy ones to do. Here's a slightly different view:



The bonus from stitching this piece is that it's one of the items from my Not Another Year basket, so it's one goal down from that too. :0)


This was another learning curve and I will adapt the way I finish future needlerolls..... yes, these are waaay simpler to finish than I thought and are quite addictive, so there will be more made at a future date. I can think of at least four more charts waiting in my stash. ROFL

I heard from Barb (no blog) that my card arrived so I can also show you that now too:

This was one of those cards that just came together - love it when that happens. Am glad to say that Barb liked it. :0)

I also dug out my Christmas ornie from April yesterday - the one that I had a bit of a mishap with and had to think of a way to hide the problem areas. Well I added some ribbon to the problem areas last night, which doesn't look bad (if I do say so myself), and today's job is to get the rest of the finishing done...... then there's just May and June's to go and I'll be caught up with that SAL. There'll be a bit of cheating going on there though: I've dug out a couple of pieces that were stitched a while back and will finish those off for those two month's. Yup, the finishing mood has kicked in so am taking full advantage of it while it lasts...... and not having to stitch ornies from scratch will save me some time, so I can go on and start the Christmas Wishes SAL.

Still haven't done the biscornu for last month's JA/S&S Challenge but if there's time I'll be stitching that too....... though I have pulled fabric and thread for this month's Challenge - and that piece will be a twobirds, one stone piece to save me more time. So, if there's going to be any more progress made, I'd best shift my butt from in front of this computer and go make a start on things. LOL

Thank you for all the kind comments and for taking the time to stop by. Hope you're all having a happy, fun-filled weekend. :0)