Birdhouses and Blue Heron

 I've done a little on my Nutcracker Christmas stocking but I have been concentrating on UFOs!  The first one is the little bird house tapestry I started in the first lockdown (that was 2020 - seems like a long time ago now).  I had bought the backing fabric and a zip to turn it into a cushion but I couldn't find the right size so eventually I bought a bigger cushion and used the sewing machine to sew two lines of stitching a 1/4" apart - a bit difficult because I had to squeeze the feathers to either end and then cut the two pieces apart.  Well I thought it was a genius solution because it actually worked!

I then set to work with the Delphine Brookes kit I bought some time ago of the Blue Heron (I took the photo last night so please excuse the artificial light!)

Putting the actual pieces of the heron together was really tricky and took me hours, but I'm really glad I took my time to get it right.

Today for slow Sunday stitching I want to get the water stitched onto the piece and then I can attach the heron and the fun stitching can begin!

Nutcracker

 We've been away in our motorhome for a week.  It was so nice to be in the van again, the weather was reasonable kind to us, and Faye bought the children to visit for lunch.  Its the first time they have been in the van and Amber especially enjoyed herself, mainly sitting in the driving seat and pretending to drive!  I did get some more cross stitches added to the Nutcracker.  Last Sunday I completed the bottom foot part of the stocking and rolled the fabric so I could carry on completing the middle section - unfortunately more gold thread was required!!

Hopefully I can put some more stitches in tomorrow for slow Sunday stitching and watch the Chinese motor racing (when we were in China in 2018 we went to watch the F1 in Shanghai - it was amazing!)

Have a lovely weekend and pop over the Kathy's blog to see what everyone is working on at the moment.

Nutcracker

 I've nearly completed the toe and foot part of the Nutcracker Christmas stocking for Joshua.  There are a few odd bits to fill in and the last candy cane on the right hand side and then I can roll the frame and carry on with the nutcracker body and head.

Hopefully tomorrow for slow Sunday stitching I will get this part done!

We are off up to London this afternoon to a party to celebrate our son and new daughter in laws marriage last December.  It will be a nice chance to dress up too!

Crochet blanket and Nutcracker cross stitch

 We've had a few days without rain and I've been able to get into the garden, which has been lovely.  One day we even sat outside to eat our lunch.  Lets hope that means that the warmer weather is on the way!!

I have completed the Attic24 crochet blanket that I started back in January.  I used the shell pattern that was on the blog and some of the colours and then substituted the ones I didn't have.  The entire blanket has been made from stash and that is always very satisfying!

I have also been working on the Nutcracker Christmas stocking from Satsuma street.  I had a break from it for a while but its really nice to pick it up again!

I am using DMC gold and silver floss at the moment and it is really horrible to use so I will hopefully put in some more stitches tomorrow for slow Sunday stitching.

Happy stitching!