Sunday 31 December 2023

Two End Of Year Finishes.

 Here we are at the very last day of the year! were did it go, it doesn't seem like a whole year since I was saying the very same thing. 

I hope you all had a lovely Christmas, mine was spent with family but it was a very tense time as my daughters neighbours house had a partially collapsed wall with the bricks all banging against my daughters home in the gale force winds and causing damage to her property, she was told that her eaves could collapse too and as you can imagine it cast a huge shadow over Christmas.  She has spent the week having workmen come to see if her property was in danger and the mixed response is unreal, one said yes her eaves were in danger of falling and it would cost £5000 to repair, another said there was no immediate danger but it needed repairing and would cost £2700 and the third has said there is nothing wrong and needs no intervention! who to believe? certainly not the first that's for sure. She is waiting for another workman to come as we speak.  

The Christmas Throw ta daaa.... 

I managed to complete my daughters throw just two days before we travelled to Qatar and gifted to her before we went, she loved it...


I embroidered this on the back

I loved making this throw it's Sonia's Holiday Mosaic by Rosina Plane, I did omit the Angels which were the last pattern on the throw as I though they looked a little scary and replaced them with the gifts tied in a bow instead.

I didn't manage to complete the other Christmas throw I was making but it doesn't matter as it will be ready in plenty of time to be gifted to a charity for next Christmas

 The Year of Doodles stitchery

I actually completed this just last night, I can't tell you how much fun I have had making this...


I am waiting for a flexi hoop to arrive and then I'll frame it properly.

I'm already getting exited to get start some new projects for 2024, my daughter-in law has asked me to make an all in one suit for her baby due in February, she loved the one I made for baby Julian here so I may make another for grandson number three. 

A male friend has asked me to make him some red and green striped socks! It's been a while since I made any, he is still wearing the ones I made him back here reading that post I don't know what I'm letting myself in for but it's good to see that he is still wearing them since 2015. At least the colours will be easier to work with, watch this space they may or may not materialise. 😂

I am eager to start another mosaic throw but I'm saying nothing more on that subject until it's actually finished I have the yarn and pattern and I'm itching to start.

I'm going to be sewing the new stitch-along by StitchDoodles 

 


I have ordered the pre printed fabric and I can't wait for it to arrive. 😊

So along with some charity projects it looks like I'm going to be busy.
What about all of you lovely people did you manage to finish everything you had planned for 2023 and what are your crafting plans for 2024?.

I always spend Christmas Eve quietly and am usually in bed long before midnight but my grandson Mikey and his mummy and daddy are coming later this afternoon so I'm looking forward to that.

Wishing you all a very Happy New Year and I hope that 2024 will be a good one for all of us, 😘😘



Linking with
Wednesday Link Party  oombawka design crochet





Sunday 24 December 2023

Happy Christmas.

 I have just returned from visiting my son and lovely daughter-in-law in Qatar and am quite shattered after having a lovely but extremely busy time with them. More about that another time but for now I just want to wish you all a very happy and peaceful Christmas.

 




Sunday 3 December 2023

Happy December!


My garden on the first of December what a lovely festive start to the month our first snowfall.

 I seem to be spending most of my time trying to keep up with the mosaic blanket CALs I'm busy with but I'm really enjoying the process, I could quite happily sit crocheting all day but life does tend to get in the way, wouldn't it be lovely if we could just sit with our hobbies and do nothing else.   I do tend to get carried away and it has to be said I am a messy worker especially when sewing. 

I have a few little sewing projects on the go at the minute most of them Christmas orientated. It's the decoration of things that cause the trouble I can never make up my mind, there is so much christmas bling to choose from and it's invariably the bling that makes the biggest mess, it usually ends up spread all over the place with the floor bearing the biggest brunt.  Then a friend will text is it ok if I pop round for coffee?  I know what you are thinking well if she/he is a real friend  they won't mind the mess! well, there is mess and then there is MESS. When this happens you see me hastily stuffing bits and pieces into bags and thrusting them out of the way into cupboards and then later I can't find anything.

I need to get a control of my life I know, take a deep breath and have a huge tidy up, put things in an allotted place then I'll always know where to find them, my intentions are good and I do that sometimes but strangely those items don't seem to stay in their allotted place for long I do believe that they are alive and come out to play at night. 

Anyway this is what is it I have been playing with.. 

Hearts

I'm not a great sewer, I do like to try, but sewing straight lines and getting perfectly curving edges are beyond my capabilities this wreath did test me somewhat, trying to get the hearts evenly spaced to make the circle seemed to take me forever but I think I managed it.


It doesn't need any bling because the fabric is very busy so I just added the bows and a tiny christmas tree shaped button in the center

Tree

The hardest part about making this tree was getting the stuffing right up to the top, I found that a knitting needle helped a lot. I can't decide whether to put a star on the top, what do you think?


Little Trees
These were fun to make and quite easy, in fact I may make more, they are lovely to gift and to hang all over the place really, I'm thinking about making a garland with them...



All of the above were started at my u3a sewing group, a great bunch of ladies but it has to be said there's usually more chatting than actual sewing taking place.  You can find out how to make all of the above online, in fact there is so much lovely Christmas stuff out there you are spoilt for choice.
The little trees above are similar to these here, but I stuffed mine and added a cinnamon stick for the trunk,

and finally my embroidery..

Almost there! I'm looking forward to sewing the December segment, I want to use traditional colours I'm busy sorting them as we speak.

I have lots of other things on the go but I'll leave them for another time.

The last month of the year already, how quickly this year has flown! How are your Christmas preparations going? do you put your decorations up early or wait to nearer to Christmas.  As I get older the time seems to pass more quickly and because of that I have started putting mine up earlier, it takes a lot of time and effort and so it makes more sense to me to have them up that bit longer. I don't put that many up now just a few of the things I have made over the years and if my youngest son isn't coming home with his wife for Christmas I don't even bother with the tree. Myself and my daughter are going to Qatar to spend the week before Christmas with him this year so I'm really looking forward to that.😊

I hope you all have a great week 😘

 Linking with the ladies at Slow Stitching Sunday