Slow Sunday Stitching

I always love a Ta Da moment! The little owl cross stitch pattern is finished.  I will find a frame for it next time I'm in Ikea but as its for my daughter and she will be living in China for the next three years there is no hurry!!  It was a nice project to do with the frequent changing of colours that I didn't have a chance to get bored.

Its been a funny week and I've struggled to settle to anything but I did make a skirt (nothing to do with hand sewing I'm afraid, I even did the hem on the machine) and I have made some 60 degree stars.

I have one more day left of red (can you believe it's the 1st August on Tuesday) and then I can do which ever colour takes my fancy!  I've amazed myself at my discipline of sticking to one colour per month!  And I'm guessing progress won't be so obvious from now on.

I'm off to watch a film (probably Cary Grant because I love him so much) along with some EPP and a coffee!

I have linked up with Kathy's blog to get some lovely hand sewing inspiration!

Shopping!

Shopping!  Isn't that a marvellous word? And combine it with fabric and it's a match made in heaven!  Since losing 1 1/2 stone I've been wanting to buy new clothes but have decided to try my hand at making them instead (hopefully that's not too ambitious). So today we headed off to Fabric land because they have a 1/2 price sale of patterns.  The one on the left isn't for me it's for my lovely daughter - not sure if I will attempt this though because it needs a fabric with drape, but as she has just moved to China (she flew out today sob sob) she should be able to get clothes made to measure fairly cheaply - well we will wait and see.  But the other two are for me! The light chambray fabric is for a dress (the stripy one on the right) and the darker heart fabric to make a skirt.  I've attempted this skirt pattern once before and it turned out beautifully and despite it slipping down my hips now I still love and wear it.  So I might start cutting it out this evening and have it finished tomorrow....hahaha!!

1 year of stitches

I've not achieved much sewing this week, but I have had my lovely daughter here before she heads off on her latest adventure to China!

I didn't neglect my 1 year of stitches though and here is a photo showing a small amount of progress for this week!

Flower border

We have just returned from a few days away in beautiful West Dorset.  It is such a lovely county and we are so close to it but its the first time in years that we have stayed there rather than just driving through!

While away I did some work on my flower border

and

of course my 1 year of stitches!

I am linking up with Kathy's BLOG for some Slow Sunday Stitching (except I don't think I will have time to stitch I've got 18 guests arriving for a BBQ any minute now)

Weekend roundup!

I've finally finished the present that Faye bought me for Christmas! It's supposed to be a weekend bag (that means make it in a weekend - they didn't take in to consideration me, who lost the ability to count!) But today I took it out on its first official outing and it was lovely - comfortable and just the right strap length to go across my body. And another bonus is I finished it before Faye comes back to the UK next week - phew!

By the way don't you just love that big friendly flower on the bag flap!!!!!

Some progress has been made on '1 year of stitches'.  It should grow a bit more now as I've replenished (OK borrowed) some reds so I have a variety to choose from!

I will try and link up to SLOW SUNDAY STITCHING tomorrow, so hop over there and see what other people are hand sewing at the moment.

And last but not least I brought myself a Tilda monkey kit.  I just could not resist these little fellas when I saw them on Sewing Quarter a UK shopping channel that I have become ever so slightly addicted to (its four hours of sewing every day - what's not to love).  There is enough Tilda fabric to make two monkeys and I justified buying it to make one for my 18 month old niece (really not sure I will be able to part with them though, so watch this space!)

Elizabethan embroidery

'Hot July brings cooling showers: strawberries and gilly-flowers' - Sara Coleridge

This months class was based on Elizabethan embroidery. We were meant to make an eight sided pin cushion with strawberries and carnations (I guess that's what gilly-flowers are?) but I have so many projects on the go I decided to embroider just one strawberry and turn it into a little needle case for my son's partners birthday.  It was a nice little project and I managed to get it finished in class (just have to make it up now)

Weekly round up!

I'm so happy I've finally got this done!  Well not quite done admittedly....I've got to add a 2.5" border of squares and then I can layer it up and start the quilting. Yay!  But good progress as it's been on the back burner for ages.

It's interesting to see this project six months on.  Yesterday I started on the red triangle.  I don't have many reds at all so I will be raiding my step mums stash in the near future!

And to celebrate red July I took a photo of the geraniums in the pots outside my house. Aren't they gorgeous (and bonus, they don't mind a bit of neglect!!)