The return of the mojo? and June GG post

Dancing on the ceiling?  mmm not quite, but it does deserve a hearty drink and a pat on the back!

Finally the crafting fairy has waved her magic wand and given me a nudge.  A little knitting has been taking place and i have a finish.

You've seen a few of these before, I think I've knitted 5 school cardigans so far.  This ones much bigger and will be saved till the new term in September.

 

As it is a gift for my granddaughter, it will fit the bill for this months GG post with Jo over at Serendipitous Stitching..... yippee, another thing caught up with and ticked off the June list. 

 

A few little cross stitch x's put into a project as well.  The meet up exchange is complete, enveloped up and sent out and I have received my parcel ready for opening day next week.   Just the monthly challenge that needs to be done before Saturday - not a hope of that, but never mind, Christine is quite forgiving!

 

 

 

Love and blessings to you all

 

Julie

Not much of anything really

 

It's been a bit Alice in Wonderland here recently ....

 

 

White rabbit - I'm late, I'm late ... with the monthly challenge design finish. That should have been finished at the end of May.  You were right Jo, it was a snowman with a wooden leg, a pirate snowman!   Thanks to Christine for choosing our monthly design, this one came from Aliolka.

I cannot take credit for finishing this one.  I stitched it but a lady at my craft club did the actual finishing - a new challenge for her she said - I think she did a great job.

 

 

 

Cheshire cat - smiling from ear to ear when DH harvested the first cucumber of the season for us to eat at the weekend.

 

 

 

Dormouse - aahhhh it's tiring doing nothing, i've been very lazy with my stitching.  Just a little progress on Four Seasons, a frog came along on the over one lettering.  I have been putting a few little crosses into an exchange piece that needs to be finished soon as well.

 

 

The Queen of Hearts - a little time spent with DH at the community allotment project and harvesting of some delicious strawberries that made beautiful jam.

 

Mad Hatter - A sale at Wool Warehouse of sock wool, too good to miss when they send you a little note telling you ..... but i must be mad if i think i will get it knitted up in the near future.  Free postage if you spent a certain amount so it was a good saving.  It'll just have to hide away in the cupboard for a while.

 

Tweedledee and Tweedledum - squabble, squabble, who is right?  After some discussion we found out that it is in fact a blackbirds nest that has fallen out of our tree.  They had fledged and in the recent high wind last week it was blown onto the driveway.  My granddaughter has taken it to school to 'show and tell'

 

 

Alice - I think i must be taking the shrink me pills as the days seem to be shorter and there is so much to do that doesn't get done these days.  There have been changes at work and home and I'm still battling health issues that are slowing me down and making me rest so much more.  I keep smiling and just do what has to be done, crafting things will get done when i have five minutes or perhaps my book will get a little more attention.  Of course, there is always something nice to look at out of the window when the birds come to the feeders and that wastes a bit more time......

 

Love and blessings

 

Julie

 

Gifted Gorgeousness - May

Just in case you don't know what Gifted Gorgeousness is all about -

It is a chance for us bloggers to show off gifts we have received.  It could be yarn, a thread, a piece of fabric or something that's not for crafting but was sent/given to brighten your day.  Have you made or given a gift, that counts too as does a free chart you have found and have used, given by the designer.  Did you previously receive stash that you have finally got round to using? 

You can read more about 'GG' here.  It's the brainchild of Jo at Serendipitous Stitching


Gifts come along in lots of different shapes and forms. Not always in an envelope that drops through the letterbox or wrapped up in nice paper and hand given for you to open.  

Since my last GG post, I've had a lovely gift.  The chance to use a friend of DH's holiday bungalow at the coast for a few days rest, relaxation and convalescence after a prolonged time of being under the weather (as the old saying goes).  I'm just not firing on all cylinders and still undergoing further and ongoing hospital stuff - the joys of the NHS.

Nestled in fields as far as the eye can see from the kitchen window and a five minute walk away out of the back garden gate, a deserted out of season beach.

 

Peace, tranquillity and quiet contemplation... perfect!

 

Time spent in the garden listening to the waves, a little stitching on this month challenge.  A gifted free online chart chosen by Christine.  Here's a quick teaser of the design I finished stitching.  Reveal of the finish as usual will be the last Sunday of the month. 

 

 

 

A little knitting - another school cardigan gift for my granddaughter.  She's growing like a weed and will celebrate her 6th birthday later this month.

 

 

Who gives germs as a gift?  I awoke mid week to a cold, not a gift I really wanted!  Quietly sitting in the sun room reading passed the time with tissue box on hand.   A couple of nice books.  Daughters of Castle Deverill is very good, the second part of a trilogy, the first being Songs of Love and War which I read last month.  The third and final part is due out later this summer.   Black Rabbit Hall, nice story with a few twists and turns that were unexpected - I'd been recommended this one last year.

 

 

 

The gift of laughter - we did giggle at these goats munching away up the cliff with the sea in the background.  You don't expect a sight like that at the seaside!

 

 

I gave the gift of some of my lunch to this chap!

 

 

And just so I don't get the wagging finger and a telling off from Jo that this post is not quite shoehorned into GG here's the sock wool - that was a proper gift at Christmas from DH and before I went away the second sock was completed to make my pair in the hollyberry colourway from West Yorkshire Spinners.

 

 

and an update on the winter block of My Four Seasons, the chart being a gift quite some time ago.

 

 

 

With being away I'm behind on blog reading so will be stopping by your blog to see your GG post as I catch up on what else you have been doing.

 

Love and blessings

 

Julie

 

 

April's challenge and a gift

April came and went... a few nice things happened and a few infuriatingly stressful times too, but you don't want to hear about those.

Being the last weekend of the month means its reveal time for the monthly challenge over at Needlecraft Haven chosen by Christine.

I used the lovely silken threads I showed you in my Gifted Gorgeousness post.  They stitched up really nicely using 2 strands on 22ct golden aida. I went for a traditional red/green combination.  

I have a person in mind for this as a Christmas gift so decided to put it into a little frame and add the wording ribbon along the bottom.   The frame only cost £1 from a well known supermarket so a bargain gift.

Sunday, April 30th is also the birthday of a family member.  When sorting out I came across Royal Blossoms 2007 by Just Nan.  The charm was stapled to the chart - when did I do that?  I decided that would make the perfect small gift and use up more of my forgotten about stash.

Stitched on a piece of 28ct jobelan from a Polstitches grab bag using the asked for threads it turned out well and fitted into a 4" x 4" frame perfectly.  This frame has a double mount so the depth of the bee doesn't matter.

Such a detailed Queen Bee charm?

1st May is May day so we have an extra days holiday, time for plenty of stitching, reading, gardening or are you out and about having fun doing other things.

Thanks for taking time to visit

Love and blessings to you all

Julie 

Fun with friends



 Yesterday I took a little drive to meet up with a few friends from Needlecraft Haven. 

Clare organises our meet ups but due to her recent accident we met at her home.

I took a small spring planter arrangement with me as a get well gift.

 

We each brought our needlecases we had made in the meet-up exchange after the autumn meet up.  A great collection and all so different. 

 

The fronts -

 

 

and the backs -

 

 

There was a book exchange....

 

 

I received from Angi - not an author I have read before

 

Gill went home with my book

 

 

The theme for the goody bag this time was 'My Favourite Place'  -

 

I came home with Angi's and what a 'beach bag' filled with delights it was.  Thank you Angi

 

 

Unfortunately, I forgot to take a picture of the bag I made up.  It went to Clare's mum.   I didn't choose an actual place, thinking outside the box this time, I decided my favourite place was 'Anywhere I can have a little hygge time i enjoy' and put into my parcel a book about hygge, a large candle, fabric and threads, a sponge for a nice bubble bath, a mug with hot chocolate sachet and a well known chocolate cake mix (I decided not to add a cake itself as some ladies venture to us on the train and I thought it might not survive their journey home).

 

I gave a little RAK gift to Justine.  She's named her Hyacinth as there was a lovely bunch in a vase and Justine has been smelling them all day and the pink and blue colourway reminded her of the flowers. 

 

 

There was the usual show and tell.  I had a little Prairie Schooler spring finish from the Gift of Stitching magazine (Brigitte, this was one of the charts I had printed out and found in the sort out!)  

 

I'm going to do the others in the Seasons SAL this year.  Summer next then. 

 

One sock completed.  Gill had a read through Christine's lovely sock book, so maybe we might have another sock knitter in future.

 

 

We had a lovely day and it was good to see Clare in person and how she was in herself.  She took a pic of us in her garden bedroom (that's a double bed in the conservatory to you and me lol) and you can see us on her blog post together with the other gifts the ladies brought and her more detailed write up of the day and the exchanges and swaps.

 

I hope you have all enjoyed a lovely weekend

 

Love and Blessings

 

Julie