'MUM! WE'RE GOING' . . . .

Thank you to everyone who responded to my last Post and has sent me back pieces of my missing mojo!!!

I think I'm basically just a bit down in the dumps at the moment with too many worrying things going on around me but that doesn't make a good post to read does it?  so here goes with my progress on 'Deck The Halls' snowman trio and it's really coming on rather well . . .

As you can see I'm still missing the final 'La' but will make a start on that this evening and then it will just need the wording underneath so a Happy Dance in sight I think!

Last weekend was the Knitting & Stitching Show at The Alexandra Place in London and not having been before I had been counting the days down on the calendar and itching to get there and have a nosy!

My mojo and self-esteem on a bit of a downer I went to bed the night before and thought I just can't be bothered and I get so fed up that I don't have any stitchy friends to go with, I'll go next time!

Well, that was until DS (aka Twin II) woke me up and said 'Mum, WE'RE going, get yourself ready, our train leaves in 1 hour and we're take a picnic!'

Bless him, how could I refuse?

The Palace and park grounds were beautiful (annoyingly I forgot to take my camera with me) but the goodies inside were even more beautiful and in the 4 hours we spent there we only got round half of the exhibitors!

'Hand-dyed' was the order of the day for me ~ when you have no needlecraft shop in existence around you and you have to order on-line the whole time, it's so difficult to choose hand-dyed fabrics and threads so this really was heaven for me . . . .  OK I'm rambling . . . . here's the stash . . . . 

100gsm hand-dyed cotton thread

Hand-dyed 28-count fabrics in Midnight ~ the one on the left is Brittney with silver flecks and the one on the right is Lugana ~ it's amazing how different the same dye looks on two different fabrics!

More hand-dyed sample pieces ~ perfect size for small ornaments

Hand-dyed felt squares in Autumn shades, 2 rustic FQs and ric-rac

Christmas Fat Quarters ~ I think the brown heart one will go well with the snowmen I'm stitching?

And because DS insisted ~ Augustus the Tortoise who comes as a kit and has rather a lot of buttons to sew on his shell when finished!!!

So all in all a lovely, lovely day and all down to my kind and very caring DS.

Thank you DS, I know it was a hard choice ~ needlecraft or football (not!) and we could count the number of men who were there on one hand and you were so outnumbered that we were even using the Men's Toilets BUT it was a special day for me and I've marked it on next year's calendar already so you don't forget !!!! xxx

Sunny days here in the UK but very chilly . . . 

Guess it's okay when you can snuggle up like this!

Thanks for stopping by ~ enjoy your weekend

HAPPY STITCHING

x x x

IT IS AN OWL, HONESTLY!

Well it was nice whilst it was here but now it's gone!

Our mini, mini heatwave has moved on and now we have much chillier days with autumn sunshine and winds blowing all the leaves off the trees ~ just how it should be :)

A mini, mini Happy Dance to share with you . . .

'Night Watch' by Heart in Hand

stitched on 28-count Barely Bronzed Linen with my choice of Sampler Threads

It is quite a cute little finish but my family all struggled to realise that it actually was an owl sitting in front of a pumpkin and suggestions of both a cat and a dog were offered???  I do agree it does look a bit of a mash-up of animals and the fact it looks as though it's wearing a neckerchief and a lot of lipstick doesn't seem to help.  I thought if I finished it with a pumpkin fabric it might help give it some identity, what do you think?

I think my mojo is on the downward slope at the moment and as much as I sit going through all my stash nothing seems to appeal BUT I thought I might tackle one of the charts I purchased last year in America . . .

This is a Charmed Flakes design by Hinzeit called 'Deck The Halls' and although it's a little early for snowmen it seems to be quite an easy design and I do have all the right ingredients to make a start!

If any of you seem to have had a sudden surge of mojo, please check whether it belongs to me and kindly SEND IT BACK ASAP :)

Thanks for stopping by

HAPPY STITCHING

xxx

I'M CONFUSED . . . .

I turned the calendar yesterday . . .

and Big Nutbrown Hare definitely said it was October?


I looked out into our back garden . . .

and there were definitely leaves and conkers dropping from our Horsechestnut Tree?


SO  . . .


Why when I listened to the late news last night did they say the UK had had its hottest day on record for the 1st October ~ 29.5 degrees?


Why when I went down the bottom of the garden this afternoon and heard rustling from one of the shrubs . . .

did this little fellow appear?


YEP, I'm confused ~ we have Autumn, Summer and Winter all rolled into one, how's that meant to help a cross-stitcher choose their next project?

Ooooooh well ~ sunshine and Autumn ~ what a wonderful combination!

 I don't think any Artist's pallet could ever portray the natural beauty of this time of year but perhaps this little Happy Dance can have a good try . . .

I did have a frame for this one, the right size as well, but I also had many fabrics that so complimented the thread colours that it seemed a shame not to use them so this is the final finished Happy Dance . . .

'Gather a Harvest' by Lizzie*Kate stitched on 28-count 'Barely Bronzed' linen with my choice of hand-dyed threads finished as a pillow with matching fabrics & leaf buttons


OK now my admission to my guilty pleasure .....
NO, NO, NO now behave you lot!
I'm talking  S T A S H,  ahhh! see, you all know that word!


My long awaited on-line orders have started to arrive and whilst they are going to give me sooooooo much pleasure, OMG! do I feel guilty as well!

I chose some charts for different times of the year ~ 'Nightwatch' for Autumn, 'Sixteen Gobbles' for Thanksgiving, 'Birdie Holiday' for Christmas, 'Red Snowman' kit for Christmas, 'Ah 'tis Spring' for (no guesses here) . . . Spring! and 'I Thee Wed' to commemorate our 25th Wedding Anniversary (but could be 26th, time I get round to doing it!)

Hand-dyed linen to try and suit the charts above!


Naughty aren't I?? But they were all in Sales and desperately needed (well that's a whopper Jane, if ever you told one!)


SO what shall I stitch first and on which gorgeous fabric . . .


Well, you'll have to come back and see!!!
(or to be honest, I've now over~indulged so much, I can't make my mind up!!!)


Thanks for stopping by
HAPPY STITCHING
xxx

AUTUMN GIVEAWAY WINNER . . .

I have been amazed at the number of comments my Autumn giveaway received, the kind words each and every one of you left have meant the world to me ~ thank you to everyone!

So without further ado the winner is . . .

CAROL from Stitching Dreams
http://stitchingdream.blogspot.com/

Carol, please send me your address details and I will send the goodies on their way!

(I estimate that if I start stitching now for next year's Autumn giveaway I may well have made enough pincushions to send to everyone!!!)

I want to say a BIG HELLO and welcome to all my new followers, it's lovely to meet you all and over the next few weeks I intend to pop over to all your blogs and find out more about you.

It's going to be a quiet'ish weekend here at home and the weather forecast is very good so I'm hoping it will be a relaxing but productive weekend with a Happy Dance to share with you all very soon.

Thanks for stopping by
HAPPY STITCHING
xxx