SAL Week 8 ...

Here you are Karen, our SAL 'The Friendship Tree' after Week 8. I only finished the bottom 3 blocks and the outer border this time.

Meet Robert bunny, he was received today by Eva in the US. It's getting harder to remember what colours i've done so far, i have to look back and make sure i haven't done a certain colourway already LOL

The police did turn up last night and take statements from both me and DS, and they are hopeful a culprit might be caught. The officer raised her eyebrows when he was described so i'm wondering if she has some ideas of who it might be and if they are a regular offender??

Hope you are all having a nice weekend, the weather here has been lovely today and DH was able to be in the garden for a while. Lori-Ann i haven't forgotten about the pic of the greenhouse i will take one for you, and DH has about 9 different cactus plants - well done spotting them behind the last bunny LOL

Friday funday!

Poor Midge is feeling very sorry for himself. He was not impressed when naughty mum woke him up this morning to put him into the cat basket and bundle him into the car for a short drive to the vets for his annual check up and vaccination. The bad vet also stuffed a worming pill down his throat! He's been curled up on the big bed since he came home having a catnap LOL


When i got back postie had been and Amy had signed for a parcel for me ... it was my needleroll in the secret exchange at JA. On opening the envelope a gorgeous smell of lavendar wafted out coming from the needleroll. Many thanks to 'secret stitcher' for this lovely piece of work and also for the goodies you enclosed. Reveal is this weekend, i'll show you mine and let on where it went and of course find out who stitched this.

GOOD DEED FOR THE DAY ~ I intercepted a burglar this afternoon ... he was robbing my neighbours car, i shot out of our front door and shouted to him and he sped off on his bicycle, his friend and look-out was up the road. He was in his early 20's and obviously an opportunist thief. Unfortunately she had not locked the car as she had only nipped inside to pick something up and he did get away with her phone but lots of other stuff that was in there was OK. She's phoned the police to report it, but i don't suppose i'll be getting a visit to give a description etc. DH thinks we need to get a camera put up on the outside of the house as there has been quite a bit of vandalism in the area lately as well as thieves ...

Bunnies & Gardens

I'd like to introduce you to Marie, she arrived safely with Tracey and her daughter Erin today. Helen, i hope folks don't add them to their wish lists, i'll have made 17 i think when they are all done, i think thats quite enough for a while LOL

Tiny Rose Garden grew quite a bit last night. Tomorrow it's LHN SAL but hopefully i'll get it finished at the weekend and then a new start for next week, but i'm not sure what to choose from my stash mountain so will have a good look over the weekend and see what jumps out at me.

Apparently my cactus in the previous post is an Easter one, a little late flowering this year. I do have a Christmas one too (that is smaller and bright pink and sounds like your mums one Lori-Ann)

for stopping by ...

Grumpy stitcher ...

Bullion knots ggrrrrr .... i had never attempted these before and Part 5 of the Papillon Creations SAL had them in the butterfly at bottom left. I did all the other stitching and found a practice piece of 28ct to have a go - 1 hour later and lots of grumbling and a few naughty words and i had a reasonable one stitched. I did have to take the fabric out of the frame and hold it in hand to get them done so i could tease the thread through the wound thread on the needle but they are now finally done, not perfect but acceptable to me anyway!!! Hope you all had better luck with yours.

Another heirloom plant for you to see. This cactus is a cutting from my grandfathers house up in Dunoon Scotland. He passed away a few years ago but this was always in bloom for his birthday 14th May so i just had to have one of these. Haven't a clue what type it is but the flower measures a whopping 6" across and it's such a straggly scruffy looking leaf to the plant. There are about 9 flowers on it this year.

Yesterday was UFO night at JA, hope all you ladies did lots of stitching. Tonight i'm off to the stitchy club, guess what i'm taking with me .... shocker it's the Tiny Rose Garden, thats the only thing in the workbox right now that needs urgent attention and i did say i would get it all done before i had a new start didn't i .....

Happy Stitching

Stitch, stitch, knit ...

Mums birthday gift is finished. This chart has been in my stash since 2006 and was a complimentary design called 'Darling Buds' from Carol Tinson of Heirloom Embroideries. It was a printed chart that came with an order i received. I saw a mirror finish recently that Chris had received in an exchange and decided it would be a good idea to give that a try, it turned out OK i think.

Week 7 of the LHN SAL with Karen

The border of the last 2 boxes at the bottom were stitched and i filled in the first 4. It looks quite different now with a bit more colour added. Not a bad week this time and no sign of a frog to spoil it. I dont usually wish time to fly by, but stitching this is so nice i am doing just that LOL

This little lady is Emily. She was sent to the US at the beginning of May to Lynne. She's arrived safely and is having a fun time snuggled up amongst Lynne's collection of Pine Mountain Pillows that she loves to stitch.

Today i made up the next 2, so they will be off in the post on Tuesday and also another special little baby one that will go to a young lady who has a birthday later this week so her mum can have hers back ... any guesses who that is?? Only 6 more to make ....

Hope you're having a nice weekend

Friendship, Flight & Finish

FRIENDSHIP
A birthday present for my friend/neighbour 12 years ago was a rose bush named 'friendship' and it's become a tradition that she comes over to give me the very first flower of the year. Here it is this year and i'd like to share it with all you wonderful friendly visitors to my blog and thank you for taking time to stop by, read my ramblings, look what i've been doing and leave a comment. Thank you for your friendship.

FLIGHT
Our nesting box on the side of the garage has been inhabited by a family of tits this year, you can just see something peeking out between the ivy leaves (pic taken last week). Dad came out earlier this week followed by a ball of fluff on a short flight from the ivy to the fencing (you can see the ivy top left of the 2nd pic and the little fluffball). Dad flew off and the fluffball did a funny little dance but stayed on the fencing so dad returned gave him a little meal to give him some dutch courage, chirruped and flew down the garden to my pear tree and fluffball followed - so my baby has flown the nest. We've not seen any more little ones so perhaps he was an only child!

FINISH
Happy Birthday Kathy ..... this is the little surprise i was making last week and had to get in the post quickly. I decided to make a bobbin holder. It's backed with the same fabric and i stitched the date there.
Chart - Just Nan Ornamental Letters
Fabric 28ct lavendar/purple? (not sure what)
Threads - DMC and gutterman gold fine braid
I've stitched this design a few times before but never tire of it, and with it having all 26 letters of the alphabet on it was a very worthwhile purchase and great value for money - publicity bit over LOL

In the UK we have an extra days holiday this weekend although they are predicting yet another wet one! I hope you all have a lovely weekend and some fun times with your families and may the stitching frog be non-existant at your house. My little friend went to pastures new this week at the club on Wednesday, so hopefully i'll have a productive weekend.
Happy Stitching

Panic!!!!!!

Daughter on the loose ....
Amy has used all her savings and bought herself a secondhand car, we collected it this morning. She's chosen a KA2 in panther black. Dad and I went with her and she drove me home. I was very impressed. She's been out with a friend for an hour and now gone off to work, her first solo trip. She's rang me to say she got there safely so i dont worry (like that will stop me). At least now i can take the 'mums taxi' sign out of my car and maybe i can be driven around like a lady LOL

Happy and safe driving Amy xx

LHN SAL Week 6

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14, yes i can count to 14 with no mistakes! Why then, when i came to take an update pic of this did it look wonky ... 4 squares at the bottom only had 13 stitches in them!!! It must be the work of the visiting froggie, he looks mighty smug and pleased with himself this afternoon. Today i've put right the mistake ready for next Friday, hope you had a better week than me Karen LOL

Needleroll reveal ...

Fast post from the UK to the US (5 days only) and i can reveal the needleroll i stitched for Katrina in the exchange at TS. I think Royal Mail must have heard me ranting about their bad service and done something about it LOL

Design - Just Nan old freebie 'Dragonfly Summer'
Fabric - Wichelt 28ct linen 'waterlily'
Thread - DMC & Mill Hill beads
I did use a different charm than the one it asks for, you can see what should have been on if you scroll down the page here

Royal Mail gets it right!

2 more bunnies have arrived with their new mummy's. Peggy (blue) arrived in the US with Karen on her birthday, perfect timing Royal Mail for a change! Irene (yellow) arrived with Brenda in the US on the same day. There is still another one out there not arrived yet and 2 more knitted in my workbasket ready to be made up this weekend - are you fed up seeing them yet LOL

DD went to the city post office to collect the letter for me. It was from my mum, she had won a Good Neighbour award and there was a pic in her local paper showing her receiving it, she wanted me to see a copy of it. She had it weighed at the post office so goodness knows who made a mistake there.

Enjoy your weekend, it's supposed to be a wet one here so guess what i'll be doing?

Rippit Rippit ...

I was stitching away like mad at the club last night then suddenly realised that i was one stitch out, i tried to undo it secretly but that didn't happen, i was spotted and awarded the 'club frog' for the week - it's given to the person who has done the most frogging in the previous week or at the club that night!! He's now at home on my citrus candle bucket in the conservatory for the next week and he better behave as i dont want any more frogging visits! I'm pleased to say the front of the surprise is all stitched, i just need to do the back and make it up so not really too much of a disaster more like a little ripple in the pond.

Postie brought me a nice surprise today, a cheque for £5 which i won in the local hospice lottery last week (so yes last week did get even better lol). He also brought me a card from Royal Mail that tells me i need to pay £1.06 for a letter that has been sent to me with 6p too little in stamps on it, and they are charging £1 for admin charges, wonder who sent that??

Midweek ramblings ...

Green fingered DH has a collection of cactus in our conservatory. Look whats happened with all the lovely sunshine we've been having just lately, it's the first time this has ever flowered, isn't it pretty.

Tonight i'm off to the stitchy club, no birthdays this week so no cake :-( It's a shame as i could just eat a nice slice of carrot cake LOL

This month is whizzing past and i'm going to be in trouble again. I just realised that next month is June and Mum has a birthday at the beginning of it. She loves to receive a small stitched gift so it looks as if the Tiny Rose will have to be put on hold for even longer. Need to try and remember what she's had in the past and find something different. I should have been more organised and got something done already shouldn't i. I better take the gift for a friend with me tonight (keep my mouth shut and concentrate on stitching and just listen to others conversations) and then i can set too with mums pressie and hopefully all will get done in time and disaster will be averted.

Happy Stitching

Harriets Babies ...

Knitting bunnies and keeping secrets about them is so exciting and fun. Here are the babies i sent to Karen. She named them April and May. April (the grey one) has been sent on to her new adoptive mummy Rachael complete with adoption certificate and has been up to such fun already. I hope she behaves for you Rachael and you're not disappointed at having a baby instead of an adult one.

On the stitching front i have completed my needleroll for the exchange at JA so that can go in the post when i am next in the village. BUT i did say i wasn't going to start anything till i'd done the tiny rose garden didn't i ... well i am doing a little birthday project for an online friend as i need to get that in the post ASAP so i fibbed LOL

It's really nice that the JA stitch & stash forum is back up and running again, i really did miss all that goes on there, and of course Mr Stick is back again today as it's UFO night and he'll be checking progress pics to see who has been stitching.

Take care, {hugs} to you all

Sunny Sunday ...

WOW what a scorcher it's been these last few days 75C/24F. Although it's nice to see the lovely sunshine, i much prefer a nice cool day, i am so typically British and moan about all the weather we have and am never satisfied LOL

Friday was Week 5SAL night with Karen, but i didn't stitch on Friday, had a really nasty headache so gave the stitching a miss. I had a nice evening last night and got carried away whilst DH was watching some sort of motor racing on the TV and it was gone midnight when i finally put it away. It's a lovely project to stitch and i'm really enjoying it, i hope you are too Karen.

Today the weathers been hot again and i've been trying to sit in the shade in the garden (whilst watching DH and making sure he was gardening properly!). I made up the needleroll for the exchange at TS and also finished the stitching for the one at JA, so they will be in the mail in plenty of time before the deadline of end of May. I'll be able to reveal the TS one when thats received but the JA one will have to remain a mystery till the end of May as it's a secret exchange.

Hope you all had a really nice weekend

A surprise for me!

A padded envelope arrived on my doormat at lunchtime today and i was puzzled, the return address on the back gave a clue to who had sent it. I have now joined the elite owners club of a Karan creation card, she also stitched me the Blue Ribbon Designs Alphabet Tree and made it into a page marker, but there was more inside as well, the gorgeous JBW chart Our Family. Thank you so much Karan for your kindness. Stitchers make the bestest friends and know how to bring a smile to your face. Can this week get any better LOL

CONGRATS AMY ...

The phrase proud mum does not do justice to how i'm feeling. Amy, my daughter, passed her driving test first time this afternoon, with only 3 minor faults. The examiner said it was a fabulous test and congratulated her on her driving skills. She's busy scanning the local newspaper for a secondhand car now, so looks like dads mechanic skills will be put to the test vetting one for her over the next few days. This is just what was needed to give her a boost as she's had some really rough days recently. Her final work for her ceramics exam cannot be found at the college (somehow it has got lost or taken!) so she has to do another piece urgently and another of her items has got broken somehow so that needs to be replaced as well. She's also doing her photography exams and her fine art ones too so there's alot of girlie stress going round in this house right now.

Do i need a straightjacket?

When i knit bunny pieces, i try to make each one different so no two will be the same. As i start to sew them together and stuff them they develop little personalities all of their own and this one was no different. I'd like to introduce you to George. He seemed to look so knowledgeable and grown up for a bunny and i was really pleased he decided to go and live with Carol, she works at a University so he'll certainly not be short of books there LOL
Another one left the UK last Thursday and i've got 2 more in the workbasket to stuff and send this week hopefully, i seem to have done more knitting than stitching this past week

I bet you all think i'm mad as a hatter

Message board down ...

at Jayne's Attic and she has asked that the following message be put out so as many members read it as possible to know what is happening ....

Jayne's Attic forum Stitch and stash has a few technical problems at
the moment changing server has caused a huge headache for Jayne the
forum is down but Jayne has been assured all data is safe and we will
be back up and running soon -- keep everything crossed. Jayne is away
on holiday on Monday - Friday 5th - 10th May and will not have net access
all orders placed on Jayne's Attic will be processed on her return
Please let any other forum members know that you know I have not
deleted forum or any members it is a change in server gone wrong and
I have my webmaster working on it.

Please suggest using the back up forum located here
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/StitchingandStash/
until regular one is back

Sorry about this hope to be back to normal asap.
Thanks, Jayne x

LHN SAL ...

Friday yesterday and that means it was Week 4 of the LHN SAL with Karen. I now have a little kitty cat and a bit more fence and made a start on the border. For those of you who thought she was standing under a lampost i added a couple of leaves to make it look more like a tree and next week i'll add the leaves to the left hand branch LOL

Happy May Day!

7.30am this morning at Old John monument, Bradgate Park, Newtown Linford, Leicestershire and this is what was happening!!

Lori-Ann - this tells you all about it Morris Dancing Tradition

What did i accomplish in April?
FINISHES
TS April mini mystery - pen
TS Colouring Book Page - easter egg pincushion
Indigo Rose - 4 Little Hearts - tin finish
JA Monthly Challenge - The Drawn Thread/Caron Keeper
Harriet Bunny
Bookmark birthday gift
More bunnies!!
WIP'S
Papillon Creations SAL - Part 4
Chatelaine - Tiny Rose Garden - small progress
LHN Friendship Tree SAL started - 3 weeks progress
Needleroll for Exch @ TS - just needs making up
Needelroll for Exch @ JA - started ...

Not too bad this month then, of course i also spent a whole day with the sewing machine out sewing and not stitching, does that count as well LOL