Birdhouse tapestry

I am super excited to say I have finished my Birdhouse tapestry!  I started this in the first lock down in 2020 and have worked on it on and off over the last three years.  This year however I was determined to complete it, which I did last night at about 10pm.

and a close up of the birds.

The colours in this make me very happy!  I think I might make this into a cushion, but that might change of course.

Like everyone else I look back on what I've achieved over the past year.

I have completed 40 projects.  Sounds like a lot but really some of them were very small like making some hand stitched birthday cards and making Amber an apron for cooking, but others were much larger.  Ambers Dino Friends quilt, Luna Lapin bunny (including a dress and coat for her) and of course lots of cross stitching.

I've also read 58 books, and listened to 12 audio books.  During that time I discovered the series of books 'Rivers of London' by Ben Aaranovitch - which I love and have converted three other family members to try them out!

We haven't travelled this year as much as we wanted to, mainly because the first time we went away in our van we were burgled.  Not a very nice experience at all, but hopefully that is behind us now and we can get out and about and explore more of the UK.  There is always somewhere new to discover even on this small island! 

I will link up with Kathy for some slow Sunday stitching maybe I can work on another of those long standing UFOs!

Wishing everyone a very Happy, Healthy and Creative 2024!

Merry Christmas

 Merry Christmas!

12 days of Christmas 

Christmas Eve Eve!

 I've been enjoying watching lots of Christmas films this week! They were all films I knew and love so I was able to carry on working my bird house tapestry.  I'm on a bit of a mission - to finish at least one long term project this year!

All that's left to do is the background top half and then outlining the birds.

Is it achievable I have no idea but I am enjoying the processing and after all that's what counts.

All that's left is for me to wish you all a very 

Merry Christmas and a Happy, Healthy and Creative New Year!

Dino Friends

I am doing a very happy dance, I finally got the binding finished on Amber's Dino Friends quilt!

 and a label!

It has been a busy week.  The highlight was my son Samuel marrying his long time girlfriend Amy.  It was a very quiet affair with a wonderful afternoon tea following the marriage service.  They chose this day to get marriage because it is exactly 15 years since there very first date.  I am so happy for them.

Well not much sewing has happened this week because not only did we have a wedding to attend, my step mum celebrated her 93 birthday and we went to Ambers nursery to watch her first Nativity.  So today for slow Sunday stitching I am really looking forward to watching a Christmas Film and definitely doing some slow Sunday stitching!

Door wreath and bunting!

 I have finished all my Christmas present shopping, but still haven't written my cards.  Im hoping to get going on those today because the last posting day is fast approaching!  That means I probably won't get much time for any slow Sunday stitching but if I do I really want to finish the binding on Ambers Dino quilt.  I have sewn two side, so I'm half way there!  

On Monday it was my craft groups Christmas shared lunch and we made Christmas door wreaths.  It was great fun and I'm so pleased with how mine turned out, considering it was made using a potato to secure the holly and ivy and other green bits!

Despite having the children a lot last week, while Faye worked I did manage to get my Merry Christmas bunting finished and hanging above our advent calendar.

Not very good photo unfortunately it is so dull today, but below are a couple of close up pictures I took outside when it was much brighter!

Thats all for now folk.  I have a dog waiting for her walk!

Dino quilt and Christmas red work

 Can you believe it?  December has arrived and Christmas is round the corner!  I'm very organised this year with all (well almost all) my gift shopping complete!  I really wanted to get Ambers Dino quilt finished this year and although I still have to cut the binding, attach binding, make a label and attach that also and then hand sew the binding down - I know lots of people enjoy that bit, but I do not!!  Despite that I think I will achieve my goal.  Here is the quilt top joined together and all the quilting done.

(note to self must draw all there faces on!)

I love red work and Christmas red work especially.  I've been working on this little Merry Christmas red work banner for some time.  The last time i posted a picture of my progress was December 2022.  It was a free pattern from Mandy Shaw some years ago and truthfully its taken me a couple of years to complete.  The pattern suggests cutting each piece to size and then sewing binding to the top, but I want to finish mine off a bit more, so have some red fabric to back each piece before adding the binding.  Watch this space!  We are looking after the children this weekend while Mum and Dad visit friends in Germany for the weekend, so it's going to be a tiring time but I am looking forward to having them!

Cross stitch bags

 Is it just me or does time speed by even faster as we approach December?  This week I've been concentrating on making up the cross stitch bags for my friends and then decided I wanted to make one for my soon to be daughter in law!

I've added the wedding date also.  Here they are all made up and ready to be filled!

I'm really pleased with how they turned out.  I've also done some work on Ambers Dino Friends quilt.

All ready to be joined together and attached to the six other blocks!

I will link up with Kathy for some slow Sunday stitching but in the meantime I hope everyone celebrating Thanksgiving has had a wonderful time!

Dino quilt and cross stitch

 I really love this cross stitch pattern from Satsuma Street!  One of the suggestions is to stitch each flower in a long row and I'm absolutely going to do that, once I've finished my Christmas gifts and Christmas stitching!  In the mean time I've completed the last two flowers.

The instructions use bias binding for the drawstring but I think I might line them to cover my messy back stitches (I've never been one to make my cross stitches as neat on the back as they are on the front - seems a bit of a waste of time and effort).

I also found time to add the bottom two dinosaurs to Ambers quilt.  I found this quite tricky, mainly because the quilt, although not big, was quite heavy.  But I am pleased with how it is turning out.  I now have to make up the last three blocks and quilt them and then join them to the side.  If it was tricky attaching two blocks it will be harder doing the last three.  But I will cross that bridge when I come to it!

Yesterday was my grandsons first birthday, and today his parents are hosting a party for him in the village hall!  They did the same for Amber but she wasn't crawling much when she turned one but Joshua is like lightening so it will be fun I'm sure!!  Tomorrow I will link up to Kathy's blog for some slow Sunday stitching so hop on over and take a look.

Dino, cross stitch and armistice

 I saw this post box topper yesterday and couldn't help but admire the detail of work involved and as it is 11th November today I really wanted to share!

I've been cracking on with Ambers Dino quilt and now have four dinosaurs together. 

and another two quilted and ready to attach, so that will be my aim next week.

I've also been working on the folk flowers that I want to gift to my girl friends for Christmas.

Two down, two to go!

Tomorrow will hopefully be a quiet day so I should be able to sit and have some time joining in with slow Sunday stitching!  Hop on over and take a look at what everyone has been working on this week!

Dino quilt and cross stitch

 The foul weather and still not feeling 100% has again allowed me another week of time spent in my sewing room.  I successfully joined the first two dinosaur blocks together using the quilt as you go technique and yes it is soooo much easier! 

I've cut out the shapes of four more dino's and have one more to do.

I've worked on the two middle blocks and have them quilted and ready to join together.

Stripey Brontosaurus has a little blue flower added at her neck because somehow I managed to get a mark on the fabric that when I tried to remove it, just made it worse!  She can carry a flower ok I think!

I hadn't quite realised how much more fabric I needed using the quilt as you go method, so had to order another metre for this block (the smallest one) and in the process the mint fabric jumped into my basket, because it is so cute!

It suddenly hit me that we are in November and I should start thinking about starting my Christmas projects.  With that in mind I cross stitched this little tulip onto some linen which will eventually become a small bag holding some hand cream for a girl friend.  The pattern was bought at the beginning of the year from Jodie at Satsuma Street.

Only another three to embroider!  My plan is to work on the next one tomorrow for slow Sunday stitching.

Dino quilt and birdhouses

 The weather has been dreadful here, and we've both had dreadful colds and coughs together with  poor old Lola ripping a claw out (down to the quick - ouch) which has meant she hasn't been properly walked for quite a few days, and means I have spent time in my work room!  

I cut out some of the 2.5" squares and four dinosaur shapes some time ago but got round to attaching them to the backing fabric and joining some squares together.

Then I caught the end of a demonstration on quilt as you go on a shopping channel called sewing street and had a light bulb moment!  I have always thought quilt as you go would be fiddly/difficult/much to much like hard work!  But the demonstration made it look so easy I decided this would be an ideal quilt to try the technique out.  The only thing I was missing was a suitable backing fabric.  I have plenty of large pieces of fabric bought for stash backing but not fabric with a small design or nondirectional.  So after ordering 2.5 metres of fabric (part of it dictated because it was in the sale) I set to work!

My first block nearly completed.  I will quilt around the border but because I need 1.5" free of quilting to join to the next block that will have to wait.  But I really enjoyed quilting this little Miss (not sure you can see the grass at her feet or the cloud above her back).  The next block will be slightly more tricky because it won't have the top and bottom border on it and then of course I've got to actually join the two blocks together.  I'm going to have a go this afternoon.  So fingers crossed I will have two blocks to show!

In between times I've been working on my birdhouse tapestry and good progress has been made!

Hop over to Kathy's blog for more slow Sunday stitching

SAL

 I'm so happy to be able to show a finish!!!  Yay definitely doing a happy dance.  The SAL with Faby Reilly has been a lovely project and it's hard to believe I started it several months ago.  I must admit making the stitching wallet up was hard work and took hours.  I think I can probably put it down to my not great eyesight (despite using my lamp with a magnifier)  But absolutely worth the effort.

It's goes well with the needle case, a past SAL with Faby.

I don't think I will get time to do any slow Sunday stitching today, I have my son and his partner (soon to be wife) staying for the weekend and today I am cooking a Sunday roast - Faye and the children will be over also. So a busy day!

Bird house tapestry and SAL

 It has been a very busy week so I am really looking forward to a day or rest and relaxation! 

Some work has been achieved on my bird house tapestry and the far left hand corner is now complete and I'm ready to roll the canvas down (I think that calls for a round of applause!)

This picture looks exactly the same as last weeks but I promise you the bottom 1/3rd is finished!

I have added the little pocket below the sea horses and the button on the felt shell.  I'm sure it will look much better once I have given it a good iron!  I am just waiting for some silver organza ribbon to arrive so I can add the scissor keeper and then assemble it.

I also had time to order this years Christmas red work heart.  I shall save this to start at Novembers craft class.

For slow Sunday stitching I might do some more work on my tapestry, although I really do have several projects to choose from (don't we all!!)  Hop on over to Kathy's blog and see what other people have been working on.

Slow Sunday stitching

 I've just returned from spending a gorgeous week in very sunny Dorset.  Dorset is only the next county up from me so not very far away but I had a wonderful relaxing time.  Lots of walks with the dog, lots of coffee and cake and LOTS of stitching time!

I managed to finish the little Benjamin bunny hug cross stitch, which I vowed I wasn't going to stitch in the first place because of all the outline stitches but this time round I really enjoyed working on it.

And with the one I made earlier in the year.

I've also made great progress on my birdhouse tapestry!

I hope for slow Sunday stitching to be able to finish off the lower left hand corner and then I will be able to roll the canvas.  Its quite difficult to see in the photo but I have completed 3/4 of the lower section.  I'm very happy with my progress on this although the last part of the Faby Reilly SAL was published last Monday so it would be nice to get that finished too!!  Maybe I will have time to work on both this week.

Hop on over to Kathy's blog for more slow Sunday stitching

Wedding Sampler and SAL

 I assembled Jack and Parker's wedding sampler just in the nick of time.  I'm pleased with how it turned out.  I learnt that the national flower for Kansas is a sunflower and if I had known that before I would have added one in somewhere!  Still too late now!

On Monday the last part of the Faby Reilly SAL was published and because I have been so busy I hadn't finished the previous part so spent a lot of time this week completing the mermaids upper body and adding the stitches to the spine of the needle case.  Unfortunately I've realised I should have done that part with two strands and I really don't want to take it out.  So I am thinking about what to do at the moment.  I've another week before the assembling part is issued - plenty of time!!

Now to complete part eight!