Stitching under the Southern Cross

Progress

2012-01-24T19:53:00.002+13:00

I didn't make it back on Sunday as I intended with a progress photo - my walk caught up with me and boy was I tired! :-) I did get some stitching done though and progress is being made on my sampler.

Monday was a public holiday, so DH and I took a drive to the coast. The skies were blue, the water was warm (I paddled my feet in it) - but brrr, the wind was so cold. I think by the time summer truly arrives, it will be time for it to go again.

Here's a couple of photos from the drive. The island (Kapiti) in the bottom photo is a nature reserve. It is one of many islands in New Zealand that they try and keep pest-free, so the native species have a chance to flourish. I haven't been there, but hope to some day soon.

Hope your week is off to a great start!

O hai!

2012-01-21T22:40:00.002+13:00

I've been uploading photos to my online album tonight, so thought I would also stop in here and share some for those who have enjoyed my garden and New Zealand photos lately.

I'm really enjoying my wildflower gardens. Overall the look doesn't sit too well with me (it seems so 'messy') - but the individual flowers are stunning! There are still plenty of flowers which have not yet made an appearance, but that could be due to the lack of regular sunshine this summer. It seems to come in fits and spurts. Anyway, here's a wee summer garden mosaic.

Everyday from my kitchen and bedroom windows I can see Mt Climie. A week ago DH and I decided that Saturday (today) we would climb it. What fun! Even though it was two hours to get to the top and uphill all the way (the walk is described as strenuous), we knew we would get some great views that would make the huffing and puffing worth it.

From the top we could look out to the coast and see Mana Island on the Kapiti Coast (the smaller of the two islands which were in my recent post about the walk at Makara), Wellington city and harbour, and Lake Ferry in the Wairarapa. Unfortunately, the cloud rolled in (the day had started off without a cloud in the sky) and got a little hazy as it was warm so I couldn't capture those things well in photos, but it certainly gave us a birds eye view of a massive land area!

This is a photo looking over Whitemans Valley and Upper Hutt in the distance -

This is my DH on the gliding ramp, and the furthest point you can access on the ridgeline. We sat here and had our lunch and took in the view.

This is pretty Whiteman's Valley - a rural area with lots of farms and lifestyle blocks.

Once you get to the summit you can walk along the ridgeline. Just when you think there are no more uphill bits, bam! You're hit with one. Still there would have been no point going to the top if we didn't go as far along as possible. The gliding ramp was at the top of the peak you can see on the right. The flora at the summit is quite different than lower down, as it is sub-alpine up there.

Finally, I thought I would share a photo of my niece Phoebe and I. It had been a few weeks since I had seen her, so I bought her a book and dropped it in to her on my way home last night. She loves stories, and I ended up reading her three.

We had some great conversations yesterday. I thought I'd tell you about one, as for not even being three years old yet (she'll be 3 in April) she's a clever cookie.

She said to me "you've got your work shoes on". I'm like "yes, I had to go to work today". "Why?" she asked. "I had to go and earn some money". And quick as a flash she said "to buy me presents". LOL.

It is a 3 day weekend for us and it's supposed to rain for the next two days, so I hope to be back with a stitching update tomorrow. I'm still working on Growing Like a Tree and have made progress. Hope you are having a lovely weekend.

Still growing...

2012-01-15T11:51:00.003+13:00

Lee is the winner of the Tending the Blooms chart. Lee, please email me your snail mail address (my email is in my profile) and I'll get it in the post for you this week.

I have huge stitching mojo for Growing Like a Tree at the moment, and have progressed quite a bit since last weekend ~ so while I'm here, here is a pic...

Have a great week!

Rainy days (and a small giveaway)

2012-01-08T16:46:00.003+13:00

It has rained heavily all day today. Not a great way to end your summer holidays... but it has allowed me some stitching time. So I thought I would drop in with a bit of progress.

I have meant to ask in my last two blog posts if anyone is interested in the chart for Tending the Blooms. (I think there is probably enough thread left over to stitch it again too). If more than one person is interested, I'll do a draw. Just leave a comment on this post.

Have a great week!

Growing Like a Tree

2012-01-06T13:17:00.003+13:00

I decided to pick up my Growing Like a Tree WIP. I got a few stitches in last night. Here is where it is at...

The fabric is actually Antique Ivory, and not white/grey as it appears in this photo.

My wildflower garden has thrown up a few more beauties. This time some pink and purple cornflowers. It seems that the 'high country meadow' mix is what is flowering at the moment. Hopefully the others (a bee mix, delphiniums etc) will flower as summer progresses.

Finish no. 3 for 2012

2012-01-05T10:50:00.002+13:00

It is Tending the Blooms by Shepherds Bush. This was gifted to me from Cheryl last year in a Christmas exchange.

I picked it up last night and finished it off. I decided to ignore the frogs in this design (fault of the stitcher, not the designer) and left them in there.

I am back at work next week, so stitching progress will go back to normal (i.e. slow).

Weeds Make Haste

2012-01-04T15:48:00.003+13:00

Yay, I now have my second finish for 2012. It is Weeds Make Haste by Shakespeares Peddler. I love how this one turned out.

I am not quite sure what I will stitch next. I think some new stash is in order, but in the meantime I might pick another WIP/UFO and aim for finish no. 3 of 2012.

Yesterday marked the last day of my DH's Christmas/summer holidays so we decided to do something we both love to do. We climbed the hill at Makara to take in the view. It is quite a climb, but the views from the top make it very worthwhile.

You start off by walking around the coast. That in itself is a pleasant walk with some lovely scenery...

Then it is uphill through farmland and long grass, and along some dirt paths with not much separating you from a long downhill fall at times.

Once you near the top you have to climb over a stile. Then we usually walk a little further uphill to the highest of the three World War II gun emplacements. There we like to sit and dangle our feet over the edge, catch our breath, have a drink and admire the views.

Looking north in the distance are Mana and Kapiti Islands (you can just see them on the horizon, one in front of the other).

Looking south is the aptly named South Island. There really isn't much distance between the North and South Islands. You can also see one of the gun emplacements. They were never used, as New Zealand was never invaded. However, it always pays to be prepared :-) DH and I sat there for about an hour taking in the view and chatting. It was a wonderful afternoon.

I caught one of our nocturnal garden visitors on camera the other night, so thought I would share. It is a possum. Unfortunately, they are a pest in New Zealand (they come from Australia originally) - but are quite nice creatures in their own right (cute and intelligent).

My Mum had one in her garden years ago which used to hang upside down and eat the seed out of one of her bird feeders. It was funny to watch.

I think I'll go through my stash now and see if I can find something that takes my fancy. Hope you're having a great week and getting lots of stitching in.

New year ta-dah!

2012-01-02T15:42:00.002+13:00

I aimed to finish Fancey Blackett on New Year's Eve, but our guests stayed much later than anticipated. So, instead, I had my first finish of 2012 on New Year's Day.

In 2012 my aim is to 'finish finish' my stitching as I go along. So today DH and I went out and found a suitable frame for Fancey Blackett. I am going to try framing it myself (probably with a little help from my Mum who has framed a few of her own cross stitches). I will let you know how I get on.

The weather has finally cleared up after a few days of rain. Look what I found flowering in my wildflower garden - a pretty little corn flower. It is fun seeing what pops up. It is also fun thinking about what I'll do differently next year.

I hope 2012 is off to a great start for you! I'll be back soon with another finish, as 'Weeds Make Haste' is very close to being done.

Summer fun

2011-12-27T19:23:00.004+13:00

Thanks for all your comments on my last post, and your Christmas wishes. I hope everyone had a lovely day on the 25th.

Here is a PXT that my sister sent me of Phoebe and the ornament I stitched her hung on their tree. I think Phoebe looks pretty pleased with it.

Summer is in full swing here in New Zealand. We have had about a week of blue sky days and high temperatures. It has been great. It reminds me of the Christmas/summer holidays we used to get when I was a kid.

Rain is forecast though, so we have been out and about making the most of it. On Christmas Eve DH and I went to a local garden tucked away in a pretty valley near where I live and took a leisurely stroll. Not far down the garden path you come to a little bridge with this gorgeous view of the river.

On Boxing Day we did a very Kiwi thing and went to the beach for a picnic and a swim. There is also an old rope swing on some nearby trees so we all relived our childhoods and had a swinging good time!

My rabbit Tiggy got an early Christmas present this year - she got a friend! His name is Cola. He is friendly and so soft to the touch. I've had Tiggy since 2008 and have always hummed and hahhed about getting her a friend. But lately even my DH commented that Tiggy seemed bored and lonely (something I had noticed too). Well, that was enough to help me make up my mind 100%. If it doesn't work out (the first two meetings haven't gone well, but Tiggy enjoys having a neighbour) we'll try and find her a more suitable friend.

I've made quite a bit of progress on Fancey Blackett, and hope to have a finish to share with you in my next post.

Happy holidays!

Phoebe's Christmas ornament

2011-12-23T10:50:00.003+13:00

Phoebe's annual Christmas ornament is all finished and ready to hang on her tree. In the end I stitched her Up on the Rooftop by The Floss Box.

I am very, very happy with how the ornament turned out (although not so happy with photos I've tried to take of it, this is the best of a bad bunch! :-))

Anyway, another quick drive by post. DH is shutting up our shop at midday (I'm already on holiday - my last day in the office was yesterday) and then my parents are taking us out for lunch, so I must tootle!

Stitched with Love Christmas exchange

2011-12-19T17:37:00.002+13:00

Here's a quick drive by post...

I can now reveal a recent Christmas exchange I participated in.

Here is a lovely ornament and goodies I received from Lisa in Australia. Thanks so much Lisa!

I sent to Pirjo in Finland, here is what I sent her.

Carol asked for a Phoebe-fix, and I am only too happy to oblige (as I am often in need a Phoebe fix too!). This photo is hot off the press, taken just yesterday. Phoebe is now 2 years and 8 months old... my how time flies.

I gave up on Phoebe's Christmas ornament (I'm going to do that design next year), and have almost finished one that is just as cute and that has been a real pleasure to stitch. I will hopefully be back in a day or two to show you. If I don't make it, have a wonderful Christmas and enjoy the holidays!

A stitchy post (at last!)

2011-12-10T12:39:00.002+13:00

First up, I have to show you this lovely gift that Suzanne sent to me. It is Summer Stars by Blackbird Designs. Hasn't she stitched and finished it beautifully? Stitchers truly are some of the kindest people. Thank you again Suzanne!

Yikes, how did Christmas get to be a little over two weeks away? Here is my niece's Christmas ornament in progress. I am not sure why, but I am not loving it at all. I'm not sure if it's the colours or the fabric, but whatever it is I keep finding other things to do to avoid stitching on it. However, I will have to crack on so she can have it on her Christmas tree in advance of the 25th!

While avoiding stitching on Santa, Tanya posted her Believe freebie. So I stitched that up in no time at all. I will make that into a tiny little ornament for my Christmas tree. (Thank you Tanya!)

Lastly, there has been some progress on Fancey Blackett. I might get it finished up over the Christmas holidays, as I am having a couple of weeks off work (can't wait).

I hope you are enjoying the run up to Christmas!

Out of office message

2011-12-04T09:48:00.003+13:00

Currently enjoying summer (and festivities), be back soon.

(This post is for those who have emailed me saying to share more pics of New Zealand. The next post will be a stitchy one!)

Have a wonderful weekend!

A river runs through it

2011-11-16T21:21:00.003+13:00

The great thing about living in New Zealand is that it is not unusual to have some stunning scenery or an entire beach all to yourself.

Tonight was a glorious evening, so I took my camera out when DH and I went for a walk. We wandered alongside the river... we enjoyed the odd assortment of flowers growing wild on the riverbank (daisies, buttercups, sweetpeas, foxgloves, periwinkles), watching the river current swirl in strange directions (helped by this mornings torrential downpour) and throwing rocks in the river to see who could make the biggest splash (some kids never grow up). And the absolute best bit was that we didn't see another soul for the hour or so we were out.

What's flowering in my garden right now...

2011-11-13T18:04:00.002+13:00

I am currently working on a Christmas exchange, so as I can't share a stitching update I thought I would pop in and show you what is flowering in my garden right now.

We have foxgloves, aquilegias, hydrangeas, bottlebrush, periwinkles, marigolds, carpet roses, lavender and honeysuckle. I love this time of year.

What's flowering in yours right now?

Finally some progress to show you

2011-11-08T17:29:00.002+13:00

Last week I coffee dyed some fabric. I did it with a new start in mind. Can you guess what it is from this photo?...

If you guessed Fancey Blackett by Pineberry Lane, you'd be right!

I really enjoyed the coffee dyeing process, it was a bit of an adventure not quite knowing how it was going to turn out. My DH was quite intrigued as to why I was making a large bowl of coffee and then baking my fabric in the oven. lol He did like the end result though and it's subtly mottled affect.

I haven't quite finished Weeds Make Haste yet, I'll have to tear myself away from Fancey Blackett at some stage to get it done. The chart is in the post to Sally. Hopefully it doesn't take the long way to England, like a recent letter to my Great Aunt in Canterbury - she told me it went via Brunei Darussalam!

So, what are you stitching on this week?

Spring garden

2011-10-17T18:42:00.003+13:00

Last night was the first evening in quite some time where I've sat down for a few hours and stitched. It was bliss! I've been doing lots of overtime lately, so there hasn't been much time for stitching or relaxing :-(

So due to lack of stitching photos, I thought I'd share a little spring garden mosaic. I am really loving our little garden at the moment. We have sown hundreds of wild flower seeds in two of our gardens... oh my, I can't wait to see what pops up. (I hope the end result matches my floral daydreams!).

Have a wonderful week!

And the winner

2011-10-09T18:57:00.002+13:00

of the Weeds Make Haste chart is... Sally. So, Sally if you could please email me your snail mail address I'll get the chart in the post to you in the next week or two. (My email address is in my profile).

Unfortunately, no stitchy photos this post as I've been very busy lately, and not much time (or inclination) for stitching. So I'll leave you with this photo of one of our new hydrangeas which we bought this morning. I think they are such a stunning colour and love the contrast with our blue pots.

Friday!

2011-09-30T19:16:00.002+13:00

Wow, the weeks are whipping by and it's Friday yet again!

I've made a little progress on Weeds Make Haste, so thought I'd share a photo.

Thank you to everyone who has stopped by lately and left a comment, including some newbies. It's always nice to hear from people out there and discover new blogs in the process. So... in honour of old and new readers I thought I'd have a little giveaway. If you'd like to win the Weeds Make Haste chart, leave a comment on this post and I'll draw a winner soon (it might encourage me to stitch faster!). :-)

It would be great

2011-09-27T17:51:00.003+13:00

if you could pop over to see Heather and offer some kind words.

I will be back with a stitching update soon, but for now I'll leave you with some spring eye-candy. :-)

Hope your week is off to a great start.

Weeds make haste

2011-09-23T19:02:00.002+12:00

I am loving the thread colours in Weeds Make Haste (by Shakespeare's Peddler). They're just so rich and visually pleasing. Is anyone out there stitching this design? I haven't seen it on any other blogs yet.

Spring has sprung around these parts. Now only if we had some consistent days of sunshine, that would be very, very nice! It is supposed to rain this weekend... boo!

I hope the weekend brings you sunshine and stitching time!

Flower power

2011-09-05T19:31:00.003+12:00

Yay, my new stash arrived a few days ago. Here is what I am starting tonight - Weeds Make Haste by Shakespeares Peddler.

I made myself finish a few things before I started my new project. So here is Just Nan's Summer humbug.

Scream Girls by Just Nan.

And Bloom a freebie by Lizzie Kate.

The photos are rather washed out by the flash, so I'll share more pics when they are in their final finished form.

Scream Girls

2011-08-22T18:18:00.003+12:00

Thanks for all your comments on my posts about recent unusual weather! :-) It is back to normal now, although we still have a little snow lying about in the shadier spots of our garden. Hard to believe now that this time last week we had to abandon our car and walk part way home.

Anyway, I thought I'd pop in with a stitching post (albeit it's a little sparse) so you don't think that has turned into a meterological blog!

Lately I have been in the mood to stitch, but nothing in my stash was calling to me. Do you ever get that annoying feeling? So, I have some stash on order ('Weeds Make Haste' by Shakespeares Peddler and the new 'Santa Claus is coming to town' by Lizzie Kate ~ to stitch for Phoebe for Christmas).

In the meantime I pulled out 'Scream Girls' - a Just Nan design. It shouldn't take long to finish up.

I hope your week is frog-free! Have a good one.

Woah, somebody hit the STOP button on the snow machine please...

2011-08-15T20:04:00.003+12:00

It is really bad here, and it is still snowing like it has never snowed before...

It's supposed to last another day or two yet. They say it is a once in a lifetime storm... I sure hope so, I don't like it now it's heavy snow and all the problems it is causing. It sure is pretty though...

The MetService didn't get it wrong...

2011-08-14T20:29:00.002+12:00

we have lots of snow! (Lots for us anyway, as mentioned in my earlier post we don't usually get any snow).

DH isn't too fussed on the snow, being from Northern Ireland he has seen it all before. He was watching a movie, so I decided to go out and make a snowman. But before I could even get started he was out there gloved up, hat and coat on rolling the first snow for a snowman for me. I left him to it and took photos instead.

There was a lot of activity in our small street, you could hear the laughs of children big and small. Us included!

Have a wonderful week!

Pretty scenery, but no stitching

2011-08-12T21:17:00.003+12:00

DH and I have been away for a few days. As so many of you seem to enjoy a few photos of New Zealand now and then, I thought I'd share a mosaic of photos I've taken over the last few days for your viewing pleasure! :-)

We drove north to Taupo (where we stayed) through Tongariro National Park, and spent most of our time in Rotorua (an area with a lot of geothermal activity). We were pretty lucky with the weather, as you can probably tell from the photos.

My DH did a bungy jump while we were away. Are there any stitchers out there who have done a bungy? It is not something I could ever do.

This weekend there is a chance of snow again. However, after seeing a lot of sunshine over the past few days I am reminded of what I really prefer!

Thanks for all your comments on my last post. It's always lovely to get comments from readers old and new! Have a lovely weekend.

You're not going to believe this....

2011-08-08T18:44:00.002+12:00

I finished a finish straight away! Well almost, I just have to find a pretty button for my biscornu (but other than that it's all done!). The design is a freebie from Tournicoton. I've had it printed for years, and was recently looking for a new start and this one caught my eye as I was flipping through my pile of charts. Isn't it pretty?

I was unwell at home recently when some funny white stuff fell from the sky. I could not believe my eyes. The hills around here get snowed on in the wintertime, but generally our climate is too warm for snow. But snow it did off and on for most of the day, and some of it even lay on the ground for a while. So pretty... I wish it would do this every winter!

The weekend that followed was a real cracker, with Spring-like sunshine and warmer temperatures. So DH and I got out around the Wellington coast and made the most of it. This view is of Wellington Harbour looking towards the Hutt Valley and Soames Island.

With the colder weather lately (we get lots of frosts at this time of year) Tiggy has been living indoors. Here's a cute photo I took of her and Tess larking about. Tess was more interested in attacking the salad than paying any attention to Tiggy.

Hope your week is off to a great start!

Rainy days

2011-07-23T14:02:00.003+12:00

I decided to have a break from my Moira Blackburn sampler, and pulled out my Just Nan summer humbug. I hope to get this finished up soon. The weather is supposed to be bad this weekend (and so far it is) so it's perfect stitching weather!

While I had my camera out Giggsy decided he wanted to say 'Hi', so here he is...

Rainy Day Crafter recently gave me a stylish blogger award. Thanks so much! She's a very talented crafter, into cross stitch, jewellery making and crochet. You should pay her a visit!

As part of the award I have to list 7 things about myself -

1. DH and I bought our first house in 2004. We have moved about a bit and have now finally found 'home' in our fourth house (which is good, because moving is such a hassle!)

2. I work at a law firm, and my DH and I have a flooring business with my BIL, SIL and a friend

3. I was overseas in 2006 and due to come home via the USA, around the time they uncovered the plots to blow up trans-atlantic flights. Needless to say, I was greatly worried... and blimmin' annoyed I couldn't buy duty free perfume because of it. lol

4. I actually have three nephews and two nieces. They are all gorgeous. I don't feature them much (if at all) on my blog as they are all (except Phoebe) in their teens now. I also feature Phoebe a lot less, as I am more concerned about privacy these days

5. The jewellers ruined my new eternity ring when they re-sized it for me (so, sorry - no photo yet Gabi and Siobhan). They are going to replace it with a brand new one

6. I lost 15 kilos with Weight Watchers last year. I have been maintaining this year, but am going to amp it up and try and lose 5 more kilos. I feel the cold a lot more now.

7. I have lots of big dreams - a couple of them are: I want to walk the Tongariro crossing and the Milford Track - which are both areas of extraordinary natural beauty here in New Zealand and I want to see the mountain gorillas in Uganda (how cool would that be!).

The other part of the award is that I have to nominate 15 other bloggers. I love all of the blogs I read, so if you want to list seven things about yourself let me know and I'll come to your blog and read. It's good to know more about the non-stitching side of blogger friends.

Enjoy your weekend!

Another stitchy post!

2011-07-02T18:10:00.003+12:00

Sandra let me know she has received my exchange for her. This is a Little House Needleworks chart which was in an old issue of the Gift of Stitching. I went for a more basic finish with this pillow as I was having sewing machine issues. (A change of needle seemed to help things along though).

I am feeling very spoilt today. My DH bought me a beautiful eternity ring for my upcoming birthday. He told me he had been thinking about it for a while and had been doing a bit of research about when to get them etc. I love that so much thought has gone into it. So we went out and I managed to find a diamond and emerald dazzler in the first store we visited. I'll be wearing it on the opposite hand to my wedding and engagement rings, as my engagement ring was bought in an antique shop in Northern Ireland and is quite an unusual shape - so hard to get rings that sit up against it nicely.

For those of you who want to share - do you wear an eternity ring? If so, how long had you been married when you got yours and what prompted your DH to get it at that time (anniversary? first baby)? And is it a traditional eternity ring consisting of a continuous line of diamonds - or non-traditional like mine?

It's a little chilly here again, so the fire is going well and I'm about to get my stitching out. Enjoy whatever you are doing this weekend.

Happy Canada day and happy 4th of July to my Canadian and American friends!

Lovely jubbly...

2011-07-01T19:52:00.003+12:00

Today my exchange from Ann
arrived. Ann knitted me this gorgeous little zippered pouch, and made a beautiful scissor fob. What a gorgeous colour explosion at this dreary time of year (it's winter down here in the southern hemisphere).

I think my gorgeous quilted needlebook from Sandra deserved a bit more air time. Just her second attempt at making one. Amazing! I think she might have tapped into a hidden talent - what do you think? Here is a closer look...

And as mentioned in my last post, I have been cracking on with my Moira Blackburn sampler. I am so loving this at the moment.

Well, it's Friday again... have a great weekend folks!

Exchanges

2011-06-29T18:49:00.002+12:00

Yesterday I received not one, but two squishy packages in the post. Any day a squishy package arrives with my name on it is a very good day!

The first was some Siesta bars from Ann. I am looking forward to trying a different kind of device to keep my fabric taut while I stitch. Thanks again Ann!

Next up was an exchange from Sandra. Sandra went above and beyond with her exchange. Not only did she stitch me a gorgeous Blackbird Designs pillow, she also made me this amazing quilted needlebook - wow!! Seriously, my exchange to her sucks in comparison! Sandra also included some lovely extras - some threads and a sweet pair of scissors, and a gorgeous card of Swansea Bay (beautiful!). Thank you again Sandra!

Ann also let me know that she has received my exchange to her. I stitched N is for Needle by Carriage House Samplings.

Back soon with a sampler update. I have made a fair bit of progress since I last posted.

Another weekend blog post

2011-06-17T16:09:00.006+12:00

We have been lucky this year, Winter hasn't really made itself felt too much... until today. I decided to take an annual leave day today to relax, and I've spent most of it up and down stoking the fire. Brrr.

Tiggy is indoors due to the chilly weather. I hate couping her up in her smaller, indoor cage (she has a big run outside) but I would rather she is warm. Anyway, she wanted to say hi :-) and to ask for any ideas on beating bunny boredom (indoors and outdoors). Thanks in advance.

We have a kitty-patient at the moment. Tess hasn't been herself and has noticeably lost weight in the past 5 days. The vet gave her a few jabs on Tuesday, and here we are on Friday and she's still not perked up a great deal. She modelled my Elizabeth sampler for me, and then went off to lie on my bed. :-(

I think I'm going to consider Elizabeth finished, and not add anything to the space at the top. Unless anyone out there in blogland has ideas?

I've also been working away on my Moira Blackburn sampler. As you can see, I've branched out to the right. I actually wish there were a few more critters in this sampler, that squirrel by the tree is too cute!

Ann and Sanda - I've held off posting my stitching exchanges to you this week. Postage and flights are grounded due to the ash cloud currently hanging around over New Zealand. I'll let you know once they are in the mail.

If anyone is posting a nice summery blog post this weekend, do let me know and I'll pop on over to your blog for a summer fix!

Weekend update

2011-06-11T18:50:00.002+12:00

Do the seasons affect your stitching? I find myself stitching more in the winter time. Maybe it is because the evenings seem longer when it gets dark earlier.

I've pulled out my Moira Blackburn sampler and have been loving stitching on it. I had to go back to using an embroidery hoop due to the size of this piece, something I haven't done in a long time. There was too much fabric flapping about stitching in hand (which I prefer to do) and boy my Q-snaps were starting to feel very heavy. What is your preferred method?

I haven't quite decided what to do with the empty space on my Elizabeth piece in my previous post, so no photo of that yet.

However, here's a small finish I can share with you. This is an exchange FAIL. I sewed it up and then realised the ribbon hanger was well off centre. There was no way I could send this out. It's not stuffed yet, as I haven't decided whether I'll unpick it or leave it as is yet.

Ann commented that Giggsy looked very serious in my last post. Indeed he did, but moments later he revealed his true self...

I hope you are having a lovely weekend, wherever in the world you might be.

Weekend update

2011-05-28T11:29:00.004+12:00

For those curious about the design I'm stitching - (the 'Emma Elizabeth Blackwood' sampler by Carriage House Samplings) it was published in the June 2005 Just Cross Stitch magazine.

The eagle eyed folks out there will notice I've changed the date. I'm going to make this piece a little memorial to my Great Grandmother (whose name was also Elizabeth). 1889 was the year of her birth. Now I just have to chart out her surname and figure out what I'll do with the space leftover at the top.

Right, now I am off to 'finish, finish' my two exhanges. Scarey stuff... means I have to use my sewing machine. lol

Have a great weekend everyone!

Two finishes and a new start

2011-05-22T16:19:00.003+12:00

I've been a busy stitcher since I last posted. I've had two finishes (which I can't reveal yet, as they are for exchanges) and a new start which I can share. It is Emma Elizabeth Blackwood by Carriage House Samplings. I only started this late last night but have been enjoying it so much I've made quite a bit of progress.

What are you stitching on this weekend?

Sew a Brown Bunny

2011-05-04T18:53:00.002+12:00

I have now finished Sew a Brown Bunny. What a lovely fun stitch that was!

Over Easter we headed away for a break to Napier. We were very lucky with the weather. We visited historic Napier prison (the only two good bits were Basil the resident cat and being allowed out lol), visited two gardens, took a scenic drive to Te Mata Peak, took a boat/bus ride in an amphibious vehicle, played football on the beach, discovered starfish in the rockpools and generally had a great time with my family.

This last weekend we took my nephew to the Zoo. What a wonderful time we had. We managed to get close to lots of animals (which always makes it more fun). Here's a few pics of some of the residents. The sleeping kangaroo was my favourite, along with the meerkat who scratched on the enclosure door like there was no tomorrow because he knew there was a zoo keeper on the other side. lol

Hope you're having a great week!

Royal wedding commemorative piece

2011-04-29T14:55:00.002+12:00

Well folks, today is the big day for excited Royalists all around the world...

Here is my commemorative piece all stitched up.

It is a combination of two charts - The Queen's Crowns by Paulette at Plum Street Samplers and the wording is from Asenath Whitcomb by Carriage House Samplings.

So you don't have to work it out for yourself - MMXI is Roman numerals for 2011.

If you're interested in other excited Royalist stitchers, pop on over and see Tanya (the Sampler Girl)... she's verrrry excited. lol

A stitchy post

2011-04-17T15:16:00.002+12:00

Thanks to those who left comments for Phoebe and pointing me in the direction of online alphabets. I have now decided on my alphabet and spent some of yesterday afternoon charting it out. I have started stitching the wording yet, but here is how the rest of the sampler is looking so far.

I wasn't going to start anything else until I finished up a few things (I'm sure we've all said that before! lol), but I found the perfect piece of linen in my stitching drawers for Sew a Brown Bunny - so made a start on it on Friday night. I am using WDW Havana and DMC 469.

I also thought I would share a photo of my own bunny - Tiggy - which I took last weekend when the weather was stunning. I still remember the lady at Animal Rescue saying to me 'she'll probably only last six months'... and here we are 3 years later!

Thanks Ann and Sandra for offering to do an exchange with me. I am looking forward to it, and hopefully it'll crank my general stitching mojo up a notch or two! :-)

Two years ago today...

2011-04-14T20:43:00.002+12:00

My niece Phoebe was born! I am not sure where the time went, but it sure has been lovely having her in the family. Here she is at her birthday party last weekend.

Does anyone know of any cross stitch alphabet generators on the internet, that might be suitable for samplers? I've finished all the stitching on the Queen's Crowns but now just want to add some wording. I've had a look myself, but can't find anything suitable. Any pointers would be most welcome. Thanks!

Finally, does anyone fancy doing a pin pillow or small cushion exchange? My only request is that you have a blog yourself (after a failed Christmas exchange with a non-blogger last year). I need something to get me stitching-motivated. If there are lots of people interested I am happy to pair people up.

The Queen's Crowns

2011-03-24T18:16:00.002+13:00

I thought I would pop in and share some stitching progress. I am working on The Queen's Crowns by Plum Street Samplers. I am going to change it a little and make it into a commemorative sampler for the upcoming wedding of Wills and Kate. I am sure Paulette won't mind since she is a royalist herself! :-)

This is such a fun stitch. Even if I don't get much stitching time in, I still feel a sense of satisfaction because the individual crowns don't take long to stitch.

On a completely different note, last weekend we went to a hot air balloon festival. It was held on a beautiful, clear night (although a little nippy... autumn is definitely here). It took a while to get going, but wow it was worth it when all the balloons were up and illuminated. So pretty!

I am sure Cathey will spot the huge creme egg on the right and wish (like I do) that creme eggs came in that size! lol

It's nearly the weekend. I am so glad, it's been a tough week.

Update

2011-03-11T18:55:00.003+13:00

Now that summer is starting to fade, I am finding my stitching mojo on the increase. I have picked up Curly Q Ewe and have started working on her for a little bit most evenings. She's coming along slowly but surely.

Thanks to all those who emailed or left a comment after the recent Christchurch earthquake. It is still very hard to believe such a beautiful city has been devastated and so many people have been killed, injured, displaced and traumatised (my relatives were all OK).

Hundreds of stories have come out of the disaster that bring tears to your eyes for so many different reasons. There have been stories of great sadness but also of courage, bravery, people helping others, foreign assistance and phenomenal amounts of money being fundraised in the wake of the disaster.

You might recall from my last post that the day of the earthquake I had just returned from up north. It didn't seem right to share photos of my holiday at the time, but I have made a little mosaic to share with you now. Hope you like them.

(The photos are of Taupo, Orakei Korako geothermal area, Waitomo caves and Tongariro National Park).

Have a great weekend.

Thank you

2011-02-23T19:53:00.002+13:00

I have started to receive quite a few emails enquiring if I am OK after the huge earthquake which hit Christchurch yesterday.

I really appreciate the concern, and yes I am fine thank you (I am in the North Island, and Christchurch is in the South Island).

My DH and I had just returned from an awesome few days away celebrating our wedding anniversary, when my SIL showed up and told us the bad news.

We do have some relatives in Christchurch who we have not yet been able to make contact with, and although it is worrying we do understand that there are communication problems and I am sure we will hear from them as soon as they are able.

If you want to do something to help (such as making a donation), I suggest you seek out a charity you trust. There is an article here about charities and scammers.

Thanks again for your concern, it is very touching.

Just hanging around

2011-01-26T12:45:00.002+13:00

I don't have any stitching to share. I have worked a little more on Curly Q Ewe, but there's not enough progress to warrant a photo.

I took an annual leave day today, and I'm currently just hanging around waiting for my 3pm doctors appointment. So I thought I'd share with you something we did on the weekend. My sister and I took her friend's daughter and my nephew to the zoo for a close up encounter with Red Pandas. It was raining, but it was still a lot of fun and a great experience. They climbed on our laps, took food from our hands and generally just left us in awe at their cuteness!

A funny story to share... while we were waiting for our meeting with the Red Pandas, we took a stroll and were looking at the chimpanzees in their indoor enclosure. There was one very large male standing on the roof of the entry way for the zoo keepers. It started banging on the roof, and I thought he was trying to get the attention of the two keepers who were standing underneath chatting. The male chimpanzee then started banging louder with both hands and getting quite vocal, it seemed to be getting quite agitated. Next thing it launches itself off the roof and comes flying through the air directly towards us. It grabbed some ropes to break the fall and then banged on the window at us. It is odd - we were all terrified, but none of us actually moved! Then we noticed the zoo keepers had disappeared - I reckon they went away to wet themselves laughing. Our faces must have been a picture!

As we walked away my 12 year old nephew (who is quite small for his age) said to me 'it is just as well that glass was there, or I would have taken that chimp down'. LOL. Quite the comedian.

Thanks for all your get well wishes for Tess. Unfortunately, due to the stress of being sick it has made her cat flu return. She had it very badly last year, and apparently stress can cause a recurrence of it (even though she's vaccinated and already on antibiotics). So maybe in a week she'll be back to 100%. She's currently perched behind me on the couch making snuffly noises in my ear!

Oh well, enough gas bagging. I should go and do something productive!

Hope your week is going great!

Curly-Q Ewe

2011-01-19T20:01:00.002+13:00

Thanks for all your kind comments on my Lady Leona finish.

I'm still 'in the zone' for finishing my WIPs, so I'm working away on Little House Needleworks 'Curly Q Ewe'. I really want the new Rosey design by LHN, but I think I ought to at least finish this one up before adding another to my stash.

Hopefully the next time I take a photo of this, the colours will be more true to life.

Also, I remember now why this one got chucked to the side - the linen is rather horrible to stitch on. I'm an evenweave girl! I like my stitches not too wonky and all similar in size.

One of my kitty cats (Tess) has been ill this week. On Sunday we had visitors and she was all over them like a rash, lapping up all the extra attention. On Monday morning she was vomiting blood. DH took her to the vet pronto. We think it was something she ate (possibly a chicken tidbit I gave her from my dinner plate which may have had paprika on it). She's a little better now, but nowhere near her usual self. Here's a photo of her from Christmas Day when she was socialising and feeling grand! :-)

Hope your week is going better than Tess'.

A late night finish

2011-01-15T22:30:00.002+13:00

I'm so glad Nicky decided to make a list of her WIPs, it inspired me to do the same and now I have finished my oldest UFO (I think I started it in 2005!). Thanks Nicky :-)

Now to decide which UFO is next to be tackled (while I'm still in the mood!).

WIP progress

2011-01-14T19:46:00.002+13:00

I have actually made some progress on one of my WIPs. This is so close to finished now... I am going to continue until it is done. I think I started this in 2005... so now is the time to get it finished up. There is actually a smaller design that gets stitched separately beneath Lady Leona, but I want her beautiful face to be the focus of the piece and can picture this framed in a nice silvery frame (with none of the printed fabric showing).

My younger sister has gone bead mad, and has been making necklaces, earrings and bracelets galore. One day last week I popped in for a visit and had a go myself... here's what I put together. A brightly coloured, summery bracelet. I really enjoyed making it.

Hope your weekend is off to a great start!

UFO sightings

2011-01-07T13:12:00.003+13:00

Nicky posted on her blog recently that she had 30 WIPs. This inspired me to have a tidy up and see just how many UFOs (I couldn't call mine WIPs since many haven't seen the light of day for years) I had hiding around the place. I was pleasantly surprised to only find 10!

They are -
* Lady Leona - Dimensions
* Damask Roses - Mirabilia
* Woodland Santa - The Prairie Schooler
* Dance by the Light of the Moon - The Stitcher's Habit
* Frost on the Pumpkins - Just Nan
* Live Simply - Papillon Creations
* Sparkling Shamrocks - The Sweetheart Tree
* Curly Q Ewe - Little House Needleworks
* Growing Like a Tree - Moira Blackburn
* Paddy the Wanderer - Strand

If I really put my mind to it, I could probably get many of these finished up in 2011. Frost on the Pumpkins only needs the beads sewn on (crazy, you'd think I'd just get it done!).

I do have one problem that maybe someone out there could help me out with. My Live Simply by Papillon Creations cannot be finished because I cannot locate any 'Antique Red' thread by Victorian Motto Sampler. I check their Ebay store now and then but haven't come across any listed for sale to date. Also, I put out a request on my blog some time ago and someone kindly offered but the thread never materialised. So if anyone has some they don't mind parting with, I could pay you by Paypal or send some threads and a wee gift in return. I would be very grateful.

Nicky also reminded me about my unfinished finishes pile (you know, the 90 or so I have that need to be framed or made into something)... I guess I could easily spend 2011 not buying any new stuff and working on this mountain too. lol

Have a great weekend.

Happy new year

2011-01-04T13:43:00.002+13:00

I hope 2011 has got off to a good start for you all.

I currently have two projects on the go. The first one is the Spring Frills Just Nan humbug. I love the bright colours in this piece.

I also started Tending the Blooms by Shepherds Bush, which Cheryl kindly sent me for our Christmas exchange. Unfortunately, the frogs have visited and I need to remove the flower (which is one stitch too far to the right) if I want to stitch the bands and have it all even up. Naughty frogs!

When I haven't been stitching over the break, DH and I have been out gallavanting - mostly to the coast. We are lucky in that we are close to lots of beaches. We even paddled about in the water on Sunday - the water was very refreshing. We didn't want to leave but eventually had to force ourselves as we had a BBQ to go to.

I took this photo of Petal yesterday, so thought I would share (since I think it's rather cute). My pets don't feature as much on my blog as they used to, so I'll have to remedy that from time to time.

I see on blogs I have been reading that many of you are back at work tomorrow. Isn't it always hard going back after a break? I'll have that chore next Monday morning - so I can commiserate! :-) My DH goes back tomorrow too (but he's his own boss, so it's his own silly fault. lol).

Have a great week!

Not one, but two finishes (my mojo is in full swing!)

2010-12-28T10:45:00.003+13:00

I hope everyone had a lovely Christmas. Hard to believe it has been and gone already.

Today I was up early as I was supposed to be off to the zoo to have a close encounter with their Red Pandas. However, the weather is so frightful it has been put off for several weeks. The rain has been torrential overnight and the winds are so strong about 10 minutes ago we saw our outdoor table and chairs go sliding across our deck towards the edge (so we had to coat up and go move it all, lucky us!). Today is without doubt going to be a stitchy/movie/internet/lazy day!

You may recall that before I started on my Christmas ornament frenzy I was stitching Just Nan's Summer humbug. Well the night before last I got all the stitching and beading finished up. I wish you could see just how pretty this really is, the photo is gloomy because of the weather. Hopefully when I 'finish finish' it, the sun will be shining again and I'll get a better pic.

My other finish is My Everything by The Sampler Girl. Tania was recently having a special, and I ordered the e-chart for US$1 (NZ$1.40). I have wanted to stitch this chart for ages and the deal was too good to pass up. It was a quick fun stitch.

Phoebe seemed to have a wonderful Christmas (apart from when she fell off my deck and hit her mouth on her new trike which my parents had given her). As well as all her new toys she also had fun playing with my nephew (on my DH's side) and enjoyed getting her hands wet in our water feature.

I hope you are all enjoying the rest of your holidays.

Mad rush

2010-12-21T20:10:00.002+13:00

My sister-in-law was visiting on Sunday afternoon and commented on all the cross stitch ornaments on my Christmas tree. She seemed quite taken with them.

Sooo... not long after she went home I got busy, found a design, stitched it up and made it into an ornament for her Christmas tree. I am going to give it to her tomorrow night when we catch up to do a tiki tour around my city's Christmas lights.

It is JBW Designs 'Star' from the 2010 JCS ornament magazine. I used the thread 'Turkish Red' by Weeks Dye Works which the lovely Cheryl gifted to me in our recent exchange.

My sewing skills still need a lot of practice (especially the hand stitching)... but I've had so much fun making ornaments, I'll probably continue and hopefully practice will make perfect.

Thank you for all your comments which you have left recently. It's nice to receive your encouragement and to know there are so many like-minded souls out there who gain so much pleasure from fabric and thread :-)

Hope you are enjoying the festive season. Not too many sleeps until Santa now! :-)

I am working on a non-Christmas design which I'm getting close to finishing, so I'm sure I'll be back soon.

Lots to share...

2010-12-18T19:36:00.002+13:00

I have more Christmas stitching to share!

Today I received a wonderful package from Cheryl. Once again I was rather spoilt. Cheryl stitched this gorgeous 'Chilly Frillys' design. Cheryl thought I might want to leave displaying it until Winter (since it is Summer here in New Zealand) - but it is far too lovely for that. So I have it on display with our Christmas cards next to the Christmas tree.

Cheryl also included this lovely Shepherd's Bush kit (I'm planning on stitching it over the Christmas break), a JBW chart (with a gorgeous little love heart charm), some threads and a Christmas card.

What a great exchange! Thank you so much Cheryl.

Katrina emailed me to let me know that she had received my exchange for her. I stitched her Waiting for Santa by Bent Creek.

And last up, Julie (no blog) let me know that she received the package I sent to her. I stitched up Joy from one of the JCS ornament issues.

A big thank you all the ladies who have exchanged with me. It has certainly got me in the mood for Christmas over the last couple of months. It was also a lot of fun choosing what to stitch for everyone and putting together goodies that I thought they might like.

If I don't post again this week, I wish you all a wonderful Christmas and all the best for 2011!

A night of finishing

2010-12-16T19:18:00.003+13:00

The night before last I got my sewing machine out and decided to 'finish finish' a few Christmas ornaments.

The first one came out a bit wonky.

Next up I finished Phoebe's ornament. This came out very much to my liking. I was happy with the sewing, the corners and the overall appearance. Phoebe seemed interested too for a bit. I asked her if she was taking it home to put on her tree and she said 'Yes'! :-) When I left today she blew me a wee kiss too. So sweet!

Then I had a few problems with my sewing machine. I got thread stuck under the 'teeth' of it. Heck... I didn't know what to do, I'm a novice! I managed to get it out but it was still making funny noises, so I just got some scrap fabric and sewed lines for a bit and that seemed to fix it. lol

So I managed to get this one sewn up as well! I am fairly pleased with this one also.

I then hand stitched my recent Noel finish. I love how this one looks. It really stands out on the tree.

I might try and finish finish a few more of my cross stitches over the Christmas break. I am going to be off work for just over two weeks, and I can't wait! Roll on next Thursday which is my last day of work before the holidays.

Hope you're all having a great week!

Christmas is coming...

2010-12-12T16:27:00.002+13:00

My DH and I put our Christmas tree up last night, so I thought I would show you the lovely exchange ornaments I have received from Katrina, Chris and Kathy hanging on the tree. They look even more beautiful in their rightful place!

I also decided on Phoebe's ornament and am half way there with it, it is 'Britty Christmas Kitty' from the 2005 JCS ornament issue. Phoebe is already an animal lover (trust me, coming from my family, this was inevitable... lol), so the Christmas kitty is probably a good choice.

Hope you're all having a wonderful weekend!

An exchange, a finish and some new stash

2010-12-09T18:20:00.002+13:00

I got three pieces of mail yesterday. I haven't had that much mail in one day in ages! What fun.

First up I got a lovely Christmas card from Ann in Scotland. Thanks Ann! I hope you are thawing out over there :-)

Then there was a squishy package from Katrina for our Christmas exchange. Talk about spoilt! I received this lovely mitten ornament. It's a combination of cross stitch, felting and a little beaded hanger. Exquisite! My photo doesn't do it justice at all. I also received some Christmas fabric, a Christmas chart and some DMC 115 (perfect for Christmas stitching!). Thanks again Katrina!

I dropped my parcel for Katrina off at the Post Office today so that should be with her shortly (since she is not too far north of here).

The other squishy package was some stash I ordered from the USA. It is The Queen's Crowns by Plum Street Samplers and the crown needleminder from Kelmscott Designs. I have been a royalist since I was about 7 years old, and despite other memorabilia I haven't ever stitched anything with a royal connection. But I will be soon with my lovely new chart. Is anyone else looking forward to the royal wedding next year? I sure am!

I also finished up my version of First Snow by the Drawn Thread. You can find the chart here along with lots of other lovely freebies.

Now that I have finished my commitment stitching, I need to choose a design to make my little niece Phoebe a Christmas ornament. Last year I stitched her Blitzen Glistens, but I'm having difficulty finding something I like as much for her second Christmas. I had better hurry up... Christmas is getting verrrry close! Are you ready for it!?

Thanks for reading and your comments! :-)

Exchange for Kathy

2010-12-08T19:20:00.003+13:00

I didn't think I would be posting again quite so soon, but I have just received an email from Kathy to say that she has also received her exchange. Yay!

For Kathy I stitched Just Nan's Christmas Wishes. I actually got my sewing machine out for this one and backed it with some Christmas fabric.

Kathy seemed pleased with it, so... so far so good with all my Christmas exchanges!

Exchange for Cheryl

2010-12-08T18:31:00.003+13:00

My exchange for Cheryl has been received, so I can now share what I sent.

The cute reindeer is a freebie called 'Pendouille Sapin Renne', and can be found here. It was a fun stitch and I enjoyed jazzing him up a little with a bell and a red nose!

I am glad Cheryl liked what I sent! (And that it made it through all that snow she has been getting!).

I'll be back soon as I have more to share!

Exchange for Chris

2010-12-04T18:13:00.002+13:00

I see that Chris has received the ornament I stitched for her in our Christmas exchange, so I can now share it with you.

It is La D Da's 'Tis Green' - only in red ;-) - from the JCS preview issue (if I remember correctly). I added a little bell to the bottom to make it a little more Christmassy.

I am no great finisher, but my ever supportive DH has been cheering me on saying everyone has to start somewhere!

While many of you have been experiencing a harsh start to winter, down here in New Zealand we are experiencing a very early summer. I don't know if it is going to continue this way all summer, but we are making the most of it! Today we have been out and about and Wellington Harbour was looking rather stunning, so I thought I'd share a photo.

Hope you are having a great weekend!

Happy birthday Dad

2010-11-30T20:44:00.001+13:00

For those of you in need of a summer fix

2010-11-28T18:16:00.002+13:00

Summer definitely seems to have arrived in my corner of the world. Today DH and I headed to Cape Palliser to make the most of a sunny Sunday.

So I thought I would share some photos in the form of a mosaic for those of you who have been enjoying my summer flower photos and may be in need of another summer fix! :-)

I haven't adjusted the colour of these photos - the sky and the sea really were that blue. DH and I couldn't stop commenting on it, even though we have been there numerous times before and it is always like this.

It has been a terribly sad week for New Zealand with the loss of 29 miners. My thoughts are with those who have been affected by this terrible disaster.

Just how beautiful is this...

2010-11-27T19:10:00.002+13:00

Late this afternoon my DH brought in some mail and there was another squishy package for me. This time it was my Christmas ornament exchange from Chris.

Wow, spoilt again. Feast your eyes on this gorgeous little beauty...

It is the Drawn Thread's First Snow. Now a funny little story... I have loved this freebie design for many years, and the other day I decided to finally pull it out and get stitching on it. LOL. I'll still finish my version, but then I'll probably give it away as a gift.

Thanks again Chris - I love it! You chose so well :-)

While I'm here I may as well post another photo or two. Some more ornaments in the making...

And this little angel who surely must have fallen from heaven, with those cherubic looks and curls!

Finally since a few of you liked the photo of the pink lupin, here's a purple one.

It has been really hot here today (my car read the temperature at 24.5 degrees Celsius at 11am this morning, and it seemed to get hotter after that). I think summer has arrived! Hope you are all having a wonderful weekend.

Christmas exchange received from Kathy

2010-11-27T12:06:00.003+13:00

I was very spoilt and love everything! Thank you again Kathy!!

I've never had a beaded scissor fob before, and it's beautiful. My DH was insistent that it goes on my scissors straight away... he gets tired of hearing 'I've lost my ginghers'. :-) So the gift made us both very happy. lol

I can't wait to get the Christmas tree up and hang my Britty Kitty ornament on it. Isn't it so cute?

I'm on a roll with my stitching at the moment, so will be back soon to share it.

Daybook journal

2010-11-21T18:25:00.005+13:00

Outside my window ..... the bottlebrush tree is in bloom with it's beautiful red flowers, the pink and purple lupins are also flowering, the sky is blue (but the sun isn't shining brightly at this time of night) and my water feature which sits on our deck is trickling away

I am thinking .... it's not a bad life!

I am thankful for ...... a great family BBQ we had at our place last night. The weather was dry and very warm, and cute little Phoebe came along and provided the entertainment :-)

I am wearing ..... dark blue jeans, a pink hooded sweatshirt, purple socks and my favourite moccasin slippers

I am loving .... my DH, who works hard at our family business and does so much around the house that I really feel quite spoilt (I haven't done housework or grocery shopping in about four weeks!)

I am stitching .... Christmas ornaments (and finishing them too for the exchanges I'm participating in and some for my tree. I am running a little later than anticipated but the overseas ones are going out in the mail this week!)

I am hoping .... that an appointment I have at the beginning of next month brings promising news

I am drooling over .... Siobhan's lovely blog post with loads of past stitchy finishes. Real eye candy!

I am sorely tempted by ...... Just Nan's Sheep ornament pocket. Too cute!

I am hearing ...... birds. We live on the outskirts of town and next to an area of bush which is teeming with birds (Tuis, ducks, wood pigeons, fantails, the occasional Rosella and all sorts of birds - they start early in the morning with a dawn chorus and the Moreporks (owl) take over with their call at night

I am reading ..... blogs, as always!

On my mind ..... Christmas. I'm looking forward to Christmas and a couple of weeks off work!

From my picture journal.... a pretty lupin growing in my garden

If anyone else does the daybook journal this time, let me know and I'll come and visit your blog.

Just popping in to say hello

2010-11-07T16:55:00.002+13:00

I still don't have any stitching I can share, so I thought I would post some non-stitching photos so my blog doesn't become neglected.

Today has been a beautiful day, so DH and I were outside for four or five hours tidying up the garden. We are going to have a go at growing our own vegies, and I am quite excited at the prospect. So here is my gardening mosaic...

Two weeks ago we had a long weekend, so we made the most of it and hired a cottage far out in the Wairarapa countryside. It was very remote and very picturesque. We were also very lucky to have some gorgeous weather (as one day here it rains, and the next it is like summer!). So here is my farm holiday mosaic...

If you want to see the larger images, feel free to check out my Flickr album (link on the left hand side of my blog).

I hope you are all having a lovely weekend!

Just checking in....

2010-10-20T19:24:00.002+13:00

... so that my exchange partners don't think I've vanished into thin air. I've been busy stitching Christmas ornies and hope to get back to more regular blogging when they are finished.

As I don't have any other stitching to share, I will leave you with a photo of my niece Phoebe.

Just Nan's Summer Wings

2010-09-04T13:23:00.002+12:00

Today is a beautiful spring day. The sky is blue, the sun is out, my mini-daffodils are blooming... I love spring! I even sat outside for a while in the sunshine.

My Just Nan Summer Wings isn't too far away from being finished. A little more stitching, a little beading and then made up into it's final form (a humbug).

Once that is finished I will get cracking on my Christmas ornament exchanges. I have six to make. I have had out all my JCS Christmas magazines and other Christmas charts out deciding what to stitch. I am looking forward to it.

Hope you are having a lovely weekend wherever you might be.

Thanks... and a new blog

2010-08-24T21:01:00.005+12:00

Thanks for the interest in the exchanges ladies. I'm already thinking about what to stitch for you all :-) And don't worry, I will 'finish finish' them. lol

Also, my last post has lead to finding a new blogger - Ann in Scotland. It would be great if you could pop on over and say hello. She has some lovely photos of her stitching, jewellery-making and Scotland.

Bringing Christmas back ~ Updated

2010-08-23T20:08:00.005+12:00

Would anyone be interested in doing any of the following with me -

* cross stitch Christmas ornament swap - CLOSED (I can try and pair up any others who are interested though)
* hand-made Christmas card swap - OPEN
* store-bought Christmas card swap - OPEN

I'm also happy to organise a group exchange if there is enough interest. Just let me know what you are keen for by leaving a comment on this post or by dropping me an email (my email is in my profile).

Once I know if anyone is interested, I'll work out the finer details - but I would think posting would be around early November.

88

2010-08-21T10:31:00.002+12:00

Thanks for all your comments on my last post.

Many of you asked about my plan of attack. Here is what I have been thinking about -

Step 1 - Don't stress, it is just cross stitch and not crucial to survival :-)
Step 2 - Work out which ones I would really like framed by a professional and start getting them done
Step 3 - Work out which ones DH and I could frame by ourselves (His idea after I showed him the photos. He said I should measure them and then we can start looking for frames)
Step 4 - Work out which of the smaller ones I want to "finish, finish" and start working on them as the mood takes me

Although, I did get a giggle out of Nicky's comment about stitching a few more and going for a century! :-)

That century may be closer than I realise. Since I posted yesterday the number has increased to 88. I finished Mr and Mrs Abbott's Daughters last night, and while I was pulling threads for my next project I found another finish hiding in the recesses of my stitching basket. I suspect there may be one or two others hiding in other places.

My next project is Just Nan's Summer Humbug. I definitely intend to make this up as soon as I finish the stitching. Such pretty colours.

Hope you are having a lovely weekend wherever in the world you might be.

Woah nelly...

2010-08-20T11:46:00.003+12:00

Carol recently wrote on her blog that she has 82 unfinished finishes. This prompted me to get out my unfinished finishes and count them.

I guessed I had around 50, but I was mistaken.... I have 86!!!

I decided I may as well lay them out on my dining table and photograph them since I had them out anyway. Here they are.... it certainly doesn't look like 86 to me.

Is anyone else brave enough to count and/or photograph their unfinished finishes? If so, let me know and I will come and visit your blog!

Where for art thou Spring?

2010-08-14T12:03:00.004+12:00

I haven't seen any signs of spring around these parts yet (like lambs or daffodils), but the weather is certainly milder than it has been and the days are getting noticeably longer. Yay.

But... today is still dull weatherwise, so I thought it was a good opportunity to check in again with a bit more progress on Mr and Mrs Abbott's Daughters.

I looked back to see how many WIP pics I've shown on my blog for this smallish design - phew, this is only the third. I didn't want to highlight too much my slow rate of stitching.

For me, the rest of the weekend will be spent entertaining, going to Zumba and hopefully I might even get Mr & Mrs Abbott's Daughters finished up.

Hope you're having a great weekend!

Sewing

2010-08-07T22:22:00.002+12:00

My family bought me a sewing machine for my birthday 3 years ago and it is hardly used. This often makes me feel bad, so I bought this book last week with some birthday money from my Mum and Dad. It has a good range of easy to more difficult projects.

So last night DH headed out for a drink, my sister came around with her sewing machine and we made a bird each. (Mine still needs eyes). Far from perfect, but I learnt quite a bit more about my machine through having my sister here (her machine and mine are identical).

My sister stayed the night and we searched the internet for something else to make this morning. We came across these little chickens (found here) and after a few glitches managed to get these done this afternoon.

Another thing I learnt this weekend is that I am a stitcher, and it is unlikely I will ever be a sewer!

Day book journal

2010-08-02T21:50:00.004+12:00

I saw Fiona's day book journal on her blog. I really enjoyed reading it and thought I would give it a go myself.

Outside my window ..... it is dark. Living on the outskirts of town, it really is very dark

I am thinking .... about daffodils. Perhaps if I had planted my spring bulbs earlier in the year they might be peeking through the ground by now

I am thankful for ...... discovering Zumba classes. They are so much fun – and what better way to exercise than dancing and laughing your way through it

I am wearing ..... trackpants, a hooded fleece and my favourite moccasin slippers

I am loving …. The heat coming off the fire. It has been a cold winter this year

I am stitching .... Mr and Mrs Abbott’s Daughters by Carriage House Samplings. It is probably about ¾ done

I am hoping .... that I have a loss on the scales at Weight Watchers tomorrow night. Despite the piece of raspberry and white chocolate sponge cake I had on Sunday, it has been a good week

I am drooling over .... my new perfume that my sister gave me for my birthday. Circus by Britney Spears. Mmmm…

I am sorely tempted by ...... Marchioness by Jarden Prive. I don’t need anything more to stitch but it is rather pretty…

I am hearing ...... a war programme on the TV that my husband is watching (Generation Kill)

I am reading ..... blogs, of course!

On my mind .....Babies. Sigh… they are so lovely. Especially my little niece Phoebe!

From my picture journal…. This is our grocery alarm. We know we need to do the shopping when the cats start sitting in the fruit bowl

If anyone else decides to follow Fiona's lead and does the day book journal, let me know and I'll come and visit!

Me again...

2010-07-24T12:28:00.003+12:00

I thought I would drop in again to show a little progress I have made on CHS Mr and Mrs Abbott's Daughters. I think if I wait until I have finishes, my blogging will become even more sporadic than it is now. :-) (As you can see I have not yet frogged the yellow, but it is definitely coming out).

I am glad so many of you enjoyed my New Zealand photos in my last post. The scenery blew me away, and I couldn't believe that we found a frozen waterfall (I didn't realise it could be that cold in the mountainous areas).

Hope you are having a great weekend with lots of stitching time!

Aotearoa / New Zealand

2010-07-19T19:48:00.002+12:00

I turned another year older on Sunday, so DH and I planned a trip away.

We drove north and stayed at the historic Chateau Tongariro for three nights. The weather was glorious for mid-Winter and made for some great photos. On the day it rained we still managed to find some interesting stuff to do... including finding this frozen waterfall (second photo down on the right).

I hope you enjoyed these non-stitchy photos :-)

Wintery weekend witterings

2010-07-10T11:45:00.005+12:00

Thought I would pop in to say hello and show you what I have been working on since the last time I posted.

First up is Mr and Mrs Abbott and Daughters by Carriage House Samplings. I started this earlier in the week while I was off work with a cold. That yellow has to come out though - although it is the recommended colour, it is far too yellow for my liking (judging by the chart picture it should be more earthen coloured). I am going to stitch the two patterns side by side.

And here is Paddy the Wanderer, my first go at needlepoint. I am sure it will look a lot better when it is finished!

The sun has just come out here, but it's still cold. I think I'll just sit here right next to the fire and do some stitching. Have a lovely weekend!

Some more finishes for the unfinished finishes mountain!

2010-06-12T12:22:00.004+12:00

I may not have blogged lately, but I do have some of my stitchy mojo back!

First up is Clara's Christmas Dance by The Sampler Girl. I adore this sweet little pattern. It doesn't quite match the original pattern thanks to a visit from the frogs. However, the thought of ripping out so much to put it right would have been enough to turn my mojo back on it's heels, so I decided to carry on and work around it.

Next up is a French peacock freebie I found online. I purposely diverted from the original on this one, and left out some extra stitching on the inside of the heart which would have made it a bit too fussy for my liking.

I decided to have a go at tea and coffee dyeing a strip of fabric a month or so ago. I was hoping for a more mottled affect, but I did like the end result. So I stitched these Twilight freebies from Paulette at Plum Street Samplers.

I have two new projects on the go - Mr and Mrs Abbott's Daughters by Carriage House Samplings, and a needlework kit (I'm a needlework first timer) 'Paddy the Wanderer'. Paddy is a dog and a piece of Wellington's history. I will share the story of him when I post my finished piece (warning - your eyes may involuntarily water when you read the story!).

I've also been enhancing my stash here and there, so hopefully there'll be plenty to keep my mojo intact :-)

Carol recently mentioned she would like a Phoebe-fix. Unfortunately, this is the most recent photo I have (taken in April). Phoebe is walking well and doing some talking (she said 'Hi' when I saw her the other night, and then said 'Hello' to my other sister). She seems to like music and jiggles about to the TV or Nanna or Grandad singing. We all love her to pieces!

Have a great weekend!

Are you ready for a cute overload?

2010-04-18T16:02:00.005+12:00

First up, I had a cute little finish. This is a freebie from CarolR at iStitch. Thanks Carol. It was a really enjoyable stitch. Just what a girl needs when her stitching mojo has been away for a while.

My niece turned one this month, and she had a little birthday party. Phoebe seemed to have a great time with plenty of new toys and lots of playmates (young and old) around all at once.

I have also been fostering some kittens for Animal Rescue. I think I had forgotten the true extent of how much energy kittens have and how much havoc they can wreak. Here we have Isabella, ET and Sweetie.

This is Xena, she was found separately but is about the same age. So I offered to take her on as well, and she has settled in well with the other kittens.

Despite the chaos, and the near fatal heart attack one of them gave me (by finding a hole in the wall and getting in... we didn't know we had a hole in the wall in our laundry) I think I will be sad to see these little cuties go in a week or so.

Have a great and stitchy week.

Happy belated Easter

2010-04-06T10:53:00.004+12:00

I hope everyone had a lovely Easter.

We headed away to Napier and the Hawkes Bay for the break and had a really wonderful time (even the weather was amazing!).

While you've been out stash shopping, has your husband or partner ever had a rude comment from the shop you've been in? I went stash shopping on Saturday in Napier, and to cut a long story short my husband had been with me, gone away and come back in to find me and one of the two ladies said in a rude manner to him 'Do you think there is something hidden in here?'. In other words - what are you doing in here? They must get husbands in there all the time, and if I had known I wouldn't have bothered parting with my money. It made me very annoyed!

Anyway, here's the stash I bought - Japanese Montage by Art Stitch, Thinking in the Rain (this is a kit, I'm not sure what you'd call it exactly - embroidery?? It uses back stitch, french knots etc but no cross stitch), Ellen Chester by With My Needle and Stag's Leap by Kingsland.

On our way home yesterday we took a different route and spent about three hours travelling through some very remote countryside (even the farmers we saw waved at us as we went by, a sure sign of how remote it was). We only passed through one very small town called Poranghau. The reason we took this way home was to see the place with the longest name in the world. My nephew counted the letters for us and there are 85! Oh, and the name is in Maori in case you are trying to read it. I can pronounce some of it, but it's just knowing where to stop and take a breath. :-)

Have a great week! (I'm hoping this week is the week my stitching mojo returns!)

WOW!!! Get a load of this....

2010-03-30T18:35:00.003+13:00

Thank you so much Nicky for the gorgeous pin pillow. I love the design, the colours, the fabric... it's beautiful! Even the finishing is perfect. I only recently found Nicky's lovely blog, so was super surprised to find she was my partner in Becky's pin pillow exchange. :-) Nicky is a fellow Kiwi, and if you haven't been to her blog yet pop on over - it is well worth a visit! :-)

I have been in a bit of a stitching funk lately - nothing appeals and nothing can keep my attention. I made a start on Dancing in the Moonlight by the Stitcher's Habit, but I'm already bored with all that white. Oh woah is me. LOL.

I did manage to start and finish Rabbit by JBW Designs though. I'll probably make this into another little cushion for my smalls collection.

I haven't shared any photos of Phoebe in a while. I realised recently while looking through my Flickr album that I had not actually taken any photos of her for 3 whole months. So I remedied that last Friday. Here she is helping my Mother unpack her new vacuum cleaner. Phoebe is very curious, rearing to go and into everything! :-)

Not long until Easter, I am looking forward to the break and hope to get some stitching in and some stash purchased :-)

Enjoy the rest of your week!

Pin pillow exchange

2010-03-19T22:42:00.004+13:00

Lisa has let me know that she has received the pin pillow I stitched for her in Becky's pin pillow exchange.

I stitched part of Plum Street Samplers 'Rubie Owl'. I wanted to personalise it for Lisa, so I stitched two dogs to represent her two pooches, and our initials. It was a pleasure to stitch it for you Lisa and I am glad you like it.

I hope to be back to blogging and stitching more soon.

WIP busting and a gift

2010-03-06T18:02:00.005+13:00

This week I received a lovely gift in the mail from Steph. It's a gorgeous cross stitch book with lots of sampler patterns in it. Thank you so much Steph! Steph doesn't cross stitch, but she's creative and amazing with lots of other crafts.

I don't know what posessed me, but I picked up a very old WIP and made progress on it this week. It is The Drawn Thread's 'Lily of the Valley' (started in 2005). It's a small sampler, but some of the specialty stitches were a bit difficult and it ended up in the too hard basket. Five years later I'm biting the bullet and am just going to finish it anyway I can.

My little niece Phoebe surprised me on Thursday. She crawled over to me and stood herself up (she loves my necklace and always makes a beeline for it), and after a little while I realised she wasn't touching me at all and was standing there all on her own!! She will be a year old next month. Time flies!

Have a great weekend!

Update

2010-02-28T18:33:00.005+13:00

Thank you for all the lovely comments on my last post. It is hard to believe that a year went by that fast. We had a quiet-ish day and then took the family out
for a meal at The White Swan in Greytown. Oh my, it was delicious!!

I'll start this post with this gorgeous mattress pincushion which I won on Andrea's blog. It arrived from the UK in four days (posted on the 20th and arrived on the 24th), how about that? It is beautiful and is now on display in my craft room. Thank you again Andrea!

Here's a little progress on my Moira Blackburn Sampler. Not a great deal, but some progress nonetheless.

Last year I signed up for a year of Just Nan humbugs. The Winter one arrived recently, it is gorgeous. I can't wait to get Hootzi and this one stitched up. I think they'll look lovely all displayed together at the end of the year. You cannot see it in the photo, but the fabric has a very pretty sparkle to it.

Finally, I have at last unpacked my craft boxes from the house move. Part of the delay was because there is not a lot of storage in our new home. So on Valentine's Day my DH and I went out and he bought me this lovely tallboy for my craft room. It was a sort of 'Valentine Day-wedding anniversary-really need some storage' kind of present :-) He's pretty good to me, I think I'll keep him on. lol

Well the next two weeks are pretty big for me work-wise. The project I have been working on for nearly 3 years is going live. It is definitely anxiety-inducing and stressful, so I am looking forward to post-go-live when things settle down a bit. I have been doing some overtime, so I may have a little splurge and order some of the many lovely new Nashville releases in the coming weeks. There are lots of lovely Just Nan, Plum Street Samplers, Blackbird Designs and Bent Creek releases I have my greedy eyes on.

Hope you all have a great week!

This is what I was doing one year ago today...

2010-02-21T11:50:00.002+13:00

Grow old with me, the best is yet to be - Robert Browning

Back soon with a stitching and stash update :-)

A little progress to share

2010-02-01T17:22:00.003+13:00

I haven't been stitching much lately, but I do have progress since my last stitching update.

Not much chitter chatter here. Still loving our new home. STILL haven't unpacked my craft boxes (lol). Weather is a little crazy - 30 degrees Celsius plus on Saturday, and about 13 degrees on Sunday - talk about erratic.

Have a great week!

Settling in to our new house

2010-01-24T20:57:00.004+13:00

We our loving our new house on the outskirts of town. We have been here just over a week.

The house is very homely. There is a stream at the bottom of our section (at some stage we hope to build steps down to it), and lots of native bush. It is mostly peaceful. We have folding doors which open out onto a deck, which is wonderful (we missed having indoor/outdoor flow) and a vegetable garden to look after (it has peas, carrots, tomatoes, spring onions etc in it!)

There are Moreporks (native owls) which call after dark (their call sounds like 'more pork' which is how they got their English name), and there is a bird which sings a very sweet tune in the mornings when I get up for work. I have never heard it before, and am very intrigued to find out what it is. I guess living on the outskirts of town has it's perks for nature lovers.

My cats have settled in well. Petal is still a little freaked out but will hopefully stop jumping at every sound soon.

This is a pic of Tess in the new garden. She was originally a stray, which I think is responsible for a lot of her personality traits (such as settling in quickly, jumping on the dinner table etc).

The house is pretty much in order, although we still have lots of boxes to unpack. Correction - I have lots of boxes to unpack. They are all labelled 'Craft Room'. lol

I haven't done any stitching this week, but I do have some progress I can share in my next post.

P.S. If you have my old address please discard it :-) Feel free to let me know if you would like the new one at all.

Grow Like a Tree - Moira Blackburn sampler

2010-01-05T17:29:00.004+13:00

Here's how the new sampler is going...

And here is someone else who is growing like a tree. Well not quite, but she can crawl, sit up and stand herself up now. I'm sure it won't be long until she's walking!

Hope you have a great week!

Happy New Year

2009-12-31T20:15:00.004+13:00

There are only a few hours left of 2009 here in New Zealand, so I thought I would pop in and wish everyone all the best for 2010. I hope whatever you are doing that you enjoy it! DH and I went out for an Indian meal, and that is the height of our New Year celebrations.

Today I noticed a parcel sitting at our front door. I didn't want to get excited as I thought it might be for DH. But I picked it up and saw it was for me (yay!!) from Kathy. Thank you so much Kathy!

Kathy included a Canadian oven glove, Christmas pencils and erasers, some Christmas fabric and a beautiful zippered pouch which she made herself.

How funny that I was just recently thinking that once we move house I need to gather together all my scissors, needles, needleminder etc in one place so I can find them more easily - and now I have a zippered bag to do just that!

Of course, while I loved everything Kathy sent the most lovely thing was the thought behind it. Thanks Kathy, for ending my year on a high! :-)

This year has been full of highs - getting married in February, catching up with relatives at the wedding (some from overseas), my niece being born in April, lots of awesome day trips to beautiful places nearby, a break in relaxing Fiji, making friends through blogging and Flickr, catching up with old friends via Facebook, attending Ronnie's cousins wedding in October, catching up with our estranged niece and nephews at the wedding, adopting Petal (our disfigured, but beautiful cat), catching up with friends from Northern Ireland while they were out in May, seeing shows - Ed Byrne (comedian) and the Rhythms of Ireland, joining the gym and finding out I really enjoy it, buying the house we are moving to in two weeks time... and finishing my Long Dog Mystery Sampler (of course!). LOL. Sometimes it is easy to forget the good stuff until you start listing it!

Anyway, enough babbling. This is what I am starting tonight as my new project for 2010 (it's a Moira Blackburn sampler). If it takes as long as Long Dog, you can expect to see a happy dance in 2013!

Before I finish up, I thought I would let you all know that I really enjoyed seeing 'New Moon' at the movies last night. The same can't be said for Ronnie. After about half an hour or so he adopted his bored pose, looked at his watch and huffed and puffed a lot. My sister and I were quite excitable, have both moved to Team Jacob and are already talking about going to see Eclipse when it reaches New Zealand.

Thanks for all your comments recently, and Happy New Year 2010!

Last finish for 2009

2009-12-30T14:14:00.002+13:00

I imagine this is my last finish for the year, it is 'His Heart Belongs to Me' by Carriage House Samplings. (Ballymena is my DH's hometown in Northern Ireland).

I'm off to the movies tonight to see New Moon. My DH suggested we go. He tells me he quite enjoyed Twilight (cue surprised look). From memory he was surfing the net at the time I was watching it, and isn't it really for teenage girls (or your inner teenage girl)??? Still, I won't let on. lol

Hope you're all still enjoying the holidays!

It's a mystery no more!

2009-12-28T17:13:00.004+13:00

Hooray, I finally finished my Long Dog Mystery Sampler. It was nearly three years in the making!! I started on 20 January 2007, and finished it nearing midnight on 27 December 2009. Spurred on in determination by cheeky comments from my DH about when it might eventually get finished!

I hope everyone had a lovely Christmas. Ours started off a little differently than other years with a trip to Te Papa to see the 'A Day in Pompeii' exhibition. I highly recommend it if you live locally (or are visiting Wellington between now and April). We mostly had the exhibition to ourselves (which was the plan by going on Christmas Day), so it was great to look around at our leisure.

Then it was lunch and dinner at my sister's house. Phoebe got lots of lovely pressies and stayed up late (she obviously didn't want to miss the party!). Here's my favourite photo from Christmas Day of Phoebe getting a Christmas kiss from Grandma(my Mum).

Ronnie is back to work tomorrow for a couple of days before New Year, but I don't go back until next Tuesday. I plan on doing some more stitching, hitting the gym, watching some movies and packing some more boxes in preparation for the house move on the 15th.

Hope you are all enjoying the holidays!

Merry Christmas

2009-12-24T19:29:00.003+13:00

I thought I would do another post before Christmas, so I can wish all my friends and readers a very Merry Christmas. I hope you all have a wonderful day!

I have been busy stitching. I have finished Just Nan's Christmas Wishes. I'm going to make this into a small cushion for next Christmas.

I have also been busy getting a WIP closer to being finished. Not long to go for my Long Dog Mystery Sampler. I know it would not be to everybody's taste, but I love all the colours in it. I started it on 20 January 2007, and it WILL be finished by 20 January 2010. It will, it will... lol

I forgot to share some nice mail I have received in recent weeks. I won the marking pins on MaryKathryn's Facebook page, and the threads are a gift from Judy. Thank you so much ladies!

It is already Christmas Eve here. My DH shut up shop yesterday, so today we took a long drive to Cape Palliser. It is one of our favourite destinations. The views are pretty...

... and the wildlife is cute and laid-back!

More photos in my Flickr album for anyone who is interested.

I will finish up this post with a picture of my niece, who is having her first Christmas tomorrow :-) She'll be in bed by the time we have the main event, but we're going to see her earlier in the day. I can't wait!

Have a wonderful Christmas everyone!

Little while, no blog...

2009-12-07T18:16:00.004+13:00

Paula left a comment noting that I'd been rather quiet lately. Hmmm, it has been over a month since I posted to my blog so it is about time I did an update :-)

The only stitching finish I have to report is Just Nan's Blitzen Glistens, which I made into an ornament for my niece Phoebe's first Christmas. I chickened out of doing a beaded edging, but found a little hanger in my stash for it.

I thought I would share this Christmas card from my sister too (using Phoebe's photo). I thought it was very cute, and a neat idea.

In other news I joined the gym (and am really enjoying it) and we are no longer searching for a section to build on, because we found a house we love and are moving in on 15 January. We managed to sell our house within 4 days of it being on the market, and it was all tied up within 8 days. I think it was just meant to be!

That's all for now, off to find something to stitch on!

Back from Fiji

2009-11-05T15:55:00.004+13:00

We had a wonderful time on our short break to Fiji. We didn't do a great deal, we just tried to relax as much as possible.

We did however go on a jungle cruise, a champagne sunset cruise on a 35ft catamaran, sea kayaking, paddle boating, a shopping trip into Nadi, lots of walking along the beach and around the resort, watching the evening entertainment and we had a trip to the Garden of the Sleeping Giant (beautiful).

Ronnie (my DH) has had his own business for two years, and in that time he has been reluctant to take a day off, let alone go on holiday. However, much to my wandering feet's pleasure he is already talking about future travel. I think Fiji has reignited his wandering feet too! Thank you Fiji!!

And what better way to end a holiday? I came home and there was some new stash waiting for me!! (I know, I know... I am supposed to be destashing!)

Happy stitching!

I am being a good girl...

2009-10-19T18:01:00.003+13:00

Instead of a new start, I decided to dip into the UFO/WIP pile and have made some small progress on the Long Dog mystery sampler which I started in 2007.

There really aren't too many bands to go, so I'm hoping it will encourage me to just get on with finishing it!

My DH and I are currently looking for a section to build a house on, so I have been destashing and thinking about getting old projects finished up. When we moved house in March, there were many, many boxes labelled 'craft room'. I'd like to decrease that considerably for when we do find that elusive section!

Have a great week!

Progress halted

2009-10-18T16:53:00.003+13:00

A big thank you to Gayle for coming to the rescue with my thread request. Progress has come to a halt now as I'm all out of thread.

If anyone else has this chart in their stash waiting to be stitched, I think it well underestimates the amount of thread needed. It was supposed to take 12 yards on 32 count, but I have already been through 20 yards. Make sure you have plenty of extra thread before you start, especially if your thread is not easy to lay your hands on.

Happy stitching!

Does anyone have...

2009-10-14T19:25:00.003+13:00

...leftovers/half/a whole skein of Antique Red Victorian Motto Sampler Shoppe thread they would like to swap for some threads/charts?

My niece is SIX months old today. Where did that time go? She also went for her first swimming lesson...

I am not sure that the novelty of posting cute photos of her will ever wear off, so readers and friends... you may have to bear with me :-)

Although I will have some travel photos to share soon. DH and I are off to Fiji in a few weeks. I can't wait to get away from all this wet and windy October weather.

Happy stitching!

New stash to counteract the destashing

2009-10-12T17:46:00.003+13:00

I am doing a lot of destashing at the moment, but I couldn't resist Hootzi Humbug by Just Nan. I have long admired Just Nan's pretty pins... and I can say I am definitely not disappointed with my first!

There is not really a lot of progress on Live Simply, so I'll save the update photo for when there is something more substantial to show.

Thanks for those who shared their opinions on my last post about the OOP chart, they were much appreciated.

I see I have some new followers and commenters, I hope to pay a return visit to you all soon.

Hope your week is off to a great start!

Opinions please

2009-09-30T22:12:00.003+13:00

****************************************

What do you think is a fair price to pay for an out of print limited edition cross stitch chart?

What someone originally paid for it? Double? More? Put it on Ebay/Trade Me and let the buyers determine the price?

****************************************

So this is not a completely boring, photo-less, stitching-less post I've added another photo of Phoebe for baby photo lovers. Definitely my favourite photo I have taken of her so far.

I am distracted from my stitching at the moment (due to good things), but hope to get back into the swing of stitchy things soon!

Although I am having a little lull AND a serious destash at the moment, I did order something today - how cute is Hootzi Humbug from Just Nan?. I figured that even I, the non-finishy stitcher, could probably make a humbug. Hope I'm not wrong... 'cos I signed up for next year's four releases as well!

Stickability

2009-09-23T17:22:00.003+12:00

I am so loving stitching this, as you can probably tell by the progress!

We love getting out and about, and most Sundays we usually take a day trip somewhere. Last Sunday we drove out to Castlepoint, which is a very remote township about two hours north of where I live. It was a gorgeous spring day, and the walk up to the lighthouse and beyond rewarded us with these amazing views!

On the way back we stopped at our favourite Wairarapa haunt 'The Big Apple' a fruit and vege stall. Not for fruit and vegies though, for real fruit ice cream. YUM!!!

As my beloved Great Aunt says 'it's not a bad life, is it?' :-)

A new start

2009-09-08T17:56:00.003+12:00

I am all over the show with my stitching at the moment, so a new start it is!

This is Live Simply by Papillon Creations. I think I might stick with this one a while. I am using Victorian Motto Sampler Shoppe thread in Antique Red, which I received in an awesome exchange from Nela a year or so ago. It is such a gorgeous colour.

Thanks for your nice comments on my last post, on my stitching and Phoebe.

My DH was high-fiving Phoebe on Sunday, and it looked several times like she was high-fiving him back. It turns out my sister has been trying to teach her to do this! It may well be sinking in.

Hope your week is going well!

Stitchie Witchie and an update

2009-09-05T22:08:00.005+12:00

I recently saw Cathey's Stitchie Witchie finish, and fell in love. It has been a while since I stitched so enthusiastically, but I just loved the colours and cuteness of it!

I have also been working on Curly-Q Ewe now and then. I've had this kit for a while so it is about time I did something with it!

Next up is Whale House by Bent Creek. I stitched it a year or two ago, but decided to make it into a little cushion for my smalls basket last week... I think it turned out cute!

I also got my sewing machine out recently for a play. I haven't quite got Souvenir de Paris finished, the opening is only pinned shut and the charm (which I mentioned in an earlier post) needs to be attached. I winged the construction - it turned out OK-ish but I need to work on those corners (they're not very pointy).

I also finished Popcorn the bear into a little door knob hanger. Not that I will hang it on a door knob... with four cats around I don't think it would last long. LOL :-)

I'll finish off with another photo of my niece in her Jolly Jumper, just because she is so cute and I love her.

Hope you are having a wonderful weekend!