STITCHY RECYCLING

Happy Friday everyone, weekend fast approaching, glorious Spring sunshine and warm temperatures, daffodils and crocus in full bloom ~ just perfect!

My sore paws have now recovered from my stitchy day out with DD last Friday and the stash levels are now fully replenished!  I had casually suggested to DD that I thought as we were visiting the Show on a Friday this year to avoid the masses that normally descend there on a Saturday we might find it a little quieter and easy-going ~ how WRONG can one get it ~ it was full to capacity and hard-going and even though we were there for 4 hours when we got home I discovered from the show guide that we had missed quite a chunk of  stalls ~ Oh dear!  DH did suggest going back on the Sunday ~ I passed on that one!!!

I'll post some pics of the new stash on my next post, this one already has picture overload!

It's amazing what you have hidden away and have completely forgotten about?

I didn't want to pillow-finish my last 2 stitches and as they were awkward sizes I had been hunting around the charity/thrift shops in the hope of finding something suitable to frame them with, no luck but when DH resumed his search in the attic last weekend for my magnifying glass for my daylight lamp, he struck gold! 

Lurking in the far corner of the attic (accompanied by the odd spider or two ~ not my scene!) there's a pile of framed pictures including old cross stitch ones, most are up there because they have a horrible orangey-pine frame to them and that just doesn't go anymore with the oak finish in the house BUT . . . .

this one which is an oak finish had a Bent Creek stitch in it ~ The Weathered Garden

which turned out perfect for . . . .

Springtime Social

To balance up the picture I added a fabric trim to the bottom and added those 4 lovely coral shell buttons I bought recently

Next up in the yucky orangey-pine frame was A Country Kitchen Sampler, a Leisure Arts leaflet, which I stitched an eternity ago and had considered selling but I had personalised it with 'Jane's Kitchen' so didn't feel anyone would want it . . . .

By rubbing down the frame which lightened the wood considerably and having a new cream mount cut it has come up a treat for . . . .

Cup cakes by The Historical Sampler Company and now hanging proudly in the Dining Room!

My charity shop hunting was not a complete waste of time though and I did find this little beauty . . . .

It's actually a Key box and when opened up it has 6 hooks inside.  What appealed to me was the colours, a washed cream with burgundy red highlights around the edge and the roses on the top plus it had an aperture to the front to add a photo cross-stitch!

Now, what to stitch to go inside that aperture . . . .

Of course, a bunny or in this case a white rabbit!  I've stitched this from La-D-Da's chart called Briar Rabbit, it should have the alphabet around it and also a border but I think this is just right as it is!

I've used Gentle Art Sampler threads and have matched the colours to the quilt cover in our bedroom.

The hooks are great for holding small bangles and bracelets and I can stack small earring boxes on the bottom shelf.

On that same shopping spree I also found this little photo cube which holds a photo on the top, 4 around the sides and revolves on a circular block on the bottom . . . .

And I knew exactly what was going in this ~ my little set of Lanarte farm animals and these were stitched even longer ago and have never seen light of day . . . .

The only problem ~ I have six animals but only five spaces!!!

Who can resist a fluffy white Spring-time sheep?

Or the sweet smell of a  little piggy?

The gentle mooing of a black and white cow?

The cute quacks from a little 'Jemima'?

And the provider of our daily eggs?

Sorry. Mr. Horse you missed out this time, I have never been a horsey person but he'll still make a nice pin cushion so won't go to waste!

And finally . . . .

Can never resist a bag of buttons and these are soft cream ones and a mixed bag of pretty purples, mauves and silver ~ 25p, well who couldn't???

Thank you for all your lovely comments on Tilly's springtime fun last post, we thoroughly enjoy reading them and are so grateful to you all for sharing a bit of your day with us.

HAPPY STITCHING

xxx

THE FIRST DAY OF SPRING . . . .

Where's Mum?  Oh yes, I remember she's suffering from over~stashing and very sore paws from her visit to London on Friday!  I've just looked at her 'Guess How Much I Love You' bunny calender and Little and Big Nutbrown Hare are saying it's the First Day of Spring ~ let me go see . . . .

'Yep, there's definitely sunshine out there and a very luscious looking spring green carpet

Hurry up Mum, my nose is twitching' . . . .

'You're telling me I can eat THIS carpet?'

'Ummmm, lovely deep pile'

'I'll try a small piece first, see if I like it' . . . .

'It's scrummy, right let me see, Mum's calender also said April showers in 6 weeks time, ummmmm! don't like the sound of them, better get started' . . . .

'and just in case Dad feels the urge to cut this carpet, my winter coat is shedding and I'm left with my own pair of scissors ~ I'll do any trimming Dad, you put your feet up'

'I'm stuffed! What a perfect day, I'm going to enjoy this thing called Spring and to top it off I get cuddles as well' . . . .

'Night, night xxx'

ONE OVER ONE = NOT MUCH FUN!

After a week of struggling with my eyesight, frogging, knots, burning the midnight oil and tearing my hair out I've come to the conclusion that for me 'one over one = not much fun'! 

Bunny Gingham is complete but I HATED stitching it and I really, really struggled!

I had never stitched' one over one' before and this turned out to be real proof that I need to go back to the Opticians for probably a stronger lens for close-up work.

I miscounted so many times and kept forgetting that the squares were 12 holes each and not 10, my single strand of GAST just kept knotting and the chart niggled at me that the individual letters were not central in each gingham square so silly me decided to centre them up causing me even more problems as I just couldn't see the holes!

Perhaps life would have been easier if my hunt for my magnifying glass that attaches to my floor-standing daylight lamp had been successful but it seems to have hidden itself somewhere up in the attic resulting in me having to stitch with one hand and hold a tiny brass magnifying glass with the other  . . . . .

OK, so the finished piece is quite cute and yes! OK I do quite like it but a stripey bunny???????

Tilly's not too impressed either, me staying up until gone midnight frogging disturbed sleepy time in bunny land and I think she was worried that a lack of sleep might turn her stripey too!!!

 I really admire all of you that stitch such tiny count projects, well done you, but for me it's back to normal (and sanity) and 2 over 2 on 28count please!

BIG day on Friday, don't know how I had missed it or not remembered before but it's the big stitching and craft show up in London and as DD has a free day on Friday we're heading up to fill our boots!  Wish me luck, if it's anything like last year I shall be trodden on, bashed into with handbags, even trollies, and

look like I've been 10 rounds in the fighting ring.

Tilly and I both thank you for your lovely comments on our last post and so happy to hear you liked our video

KEEP WELL AND HAPPY STITCHING

xxx

WARNING : A BUNNY INFESTED POST!

Hi everyone from a sunny, yes sunny, I repeat sunny South of England and about time too!

A very big Thank You to all who of you who left such lovely comments on my last post, 26 of you, and they were all very much appreciated and very inspiring.

So, you have been warned this is a bunny infested post and first up is a completion of the start I showed you last post and of which no-one guessed correctly what the little fellow was up to . . . .

and you can see why! 

How often do you seen a cute bunny riding a rooster collecting eggs in a knapsack on his back?

  I fell in love with the design when I first saw it last year and stitching it was a real pleasure, it's called Springtime Social and is by With thy Needle & Thread Cross Stitch Designs by Brenda Gervais.

I've stitched it on 28-count linen in the recommended DMC threads.

I just cannot decide how I want to finish this one, I did think maybe a frame but I do love a pillow finish so DH took me to my local patchwork fabric shop on Saturday so I could choose a suitable fabric and maybe some new buttons (the other 500+ in the button jar are not the right ones!!!!) and instead of one fabric I came home with 7 plus buttons . . . . .

The top three are all polka-dot designs in different shades of green, all match the leaves in the design but I cannot decide which one, perhaps all three????  The middle one is a Beatrix Potter fabric so no problem putting that to future use and the bottom three are a pretty 'sewing' design, small green checkered hearts and finally a springtime zingy bird pattern.  The four buttons are gorgeous and are made from shell, in a coral colour and change shades in different lights, these will match the flower and buds in the design ~ I WILL make a decision eventually and post a pic in my next post.

Kitted up and ready to go next is . . . . . .

Bunny Gingham from Twisted Threads which has been in the box of stash for some time.  I didn't realise until I studied the pattern that it's stitched 1 over 1 on the 28-count fabric so this will be a test on both me and my eyes as I've never tackled anything this small before.

DH has been spoiling me silly recently and he knows all the right things to make me go gooey!

This gorgeous bunny is made of wire, it looks like raffia or twine from the picture but it is a brown wire and has been sculptured beautifully, I'm waiting for the decorators to return next month to finish the landing, stairs and hallway and I have the perfect place for this beauty when they have been and gone.

Last week DH had to attend a meeting near Hampton Court in London (home of Henry VIII, the Tudor King who had 6 wives and NO rabbits!) and he found a little courtyard of shops/boutiques and in one of the windows was . . . . . .

How sweet???  A hand-embroidered brown bunny on a cream duck-filled cushion cover and the reverse side . . . . . .

Lots and lots of bunnies with three burgundy buttons.

The design is called Belle & Boo, the little girl being Belle and her bunny called Boo, it's adorable and just perfect for a nursery my bedroom, even the washing instructions are cute with a hand-drawn row of washing on a line . . . . .

And if that wasn't enough, he also bought me the matching picture which comes with a certificate saying:

 Belle & Boo are coming home with you

 Thankyou for having us come & stay

Thankyou for letting us dream and play

Apparently there was a matching frame to go with the picture but it was just a plain cream and DH wasn't sure, I think he's right and that an oak finish will be better and match the background colour of the bunny.

I've been very spoilt haven't I ????

And finally the real thing  . . . . .

I have ummmed and ahhhhed for some time as to whether to try Tilly out on a lead in the garden, yes I know it sounds bizarre ~ a rabbit on a lead ~ but they do exist!  It's a harness really, not a lead, and supports their upper body and not just the neck, I had mentioned it to the vets on our last visit and she had favoured them as long as they were used correctly and not used if the rabbit was unhappy.

So I bought one last week, I just kept thinking we're lucky to have a large garden with lots of nooks and crannies and how Tilly would love to explore it (we also have an unwanted regular visitor ~ a fox ~ so this is the only safe way she can explore!)

I tried it on her indoors first so she could get used to it and literally 5 minutes later she was ready and willing to go ~ oh! what fun . . . . . .

She's a fast mover and already knows which way to go to find the mint patch and the old veggie plot, good exercise for us both I think and DD had a hard job keeping up with us to film her!!!

Thank you for stopping by, sorry for all the bunny talk, I guess it doesn't appeal to everyone?

I stopped talking about her a few posts back as I had lost a couple of followers and did wonder if my rabbit ramblings might be the reason why but after messages asking after her and a request from Barb for a 'Tilly fix' I decided NO! she's part of my life and here she is to stay and hey presto! 5 new followers since.

Keep well everyone, enjoy the sunshine if you have some and

HAPPY STITCHING

xxx