A Question, a Request and some Crafting!

Do you trust your Google STATS? I get suspicious when my stats suddenly shoot up for no apparent reason. My last post had hundreds more views than normal, mostly from the USA. It's happened once before, a couple of years ago, but that time the views were all from Russia!

I''ve recently published a Facebook page for my Thread Shed crafts and currently have 20 'likes'. If you could take a little look and 'like' it too (if you genuinely LIKE it, that is) I would be very grateful.

I know the dragon should be red but I needed a red square to finish it off. The green is a much nicer, deep shade than in the photo

A friend recently gave me a pile of red and green knitted squares that her husband knitted before he died, a couple of years ago. Not being a knitter herself, she didn't know what to do with them, but as he had originally knitted them for a charity project she wanted a charity to benefit in some way and thought of my stitching group's charitable work. I knitted up the remainder of the yarn so that I had enough to make a blanket, making a feature of one square by knitting a Welsh dragon, and crocheted them together. When I took it back to her she kept it, gave me the charity money herself, and was looking forward to showing it to her children.

This little purple bag (yes, it is a lovely purple, I must learn to use my camera properly) started as a phone cover but was working out much too big. It's made from some of the wool that was donated to our group, so will go on the stall at our next event.

I've been thinking ahead (well ahead, for me) and making some Christmas products. I made a few of these stocking, Christmas tree decorations last year and they sold well. So, after modifying the design to make them easier to construct, I  ran up a few more with the limited festive fabrics I have. They're not as big as them seem next to that cotton reel!

When I un-ran a charity shop jumper and started making granny squares I didn't have a definite end result in mind (as usual). Luckily, though, 4 of the squares fitted exactly around these bolster cushion pads (I have two pads). I looked up how to make granny circles to finish off the ends and here's the result.

We've had a busy weekend looking after daughter's and SIL's 2 dogs, while they are at their cousin's wedding in Germany. We also went to a wedding ourselves on Saturday, of two good friends. Is it just me, or are there a lot more weddings than usual taking place this year? Another friend at the wedding told me she had been invited to SIX weddings (and three christenings) this summer.

Bye for now
Teresa x

Wedding Photos!!!!!

At last I've managed to get hold of some wedding photos in a form I can post on here. I hope you like them.

This is me and the bridesmaids, taken by son K, crossing the bridge to the Pavilion where the wedding took place. 

 The  Happy Couple under a confetti shower.

 The bride and groom on their way to the reception (or, they will be after they've sat down)

 At a special photo shoot in Magic Kingdom.

The whole group, except for the bridesmaids.

Lessons Learned!

A pile of grannies!

My stitching group put a call out for unwanted crafting materials so we could make things to raise money for local causes. These granny squares above are the start of something I'm making with some of the donated yarn. I think I've made a final decision, and it's going to be a cushion.

Felt creations

These cute little cosies were made by son's girlfriend, Grace, at college, where they were also selling their crafts for charity. Being a beginner at sewing, these 2 were rejected from the stall so she put a couple of ££s in the pot and brought them home for me! I think they're very sweet, and not bad for a beginner; I've seen a lot worse for sale on craft stalls! Grace made me laugh when she told me how she and a fellow beginner kept pulling the thread completely off the needle when they were sewing, and how her friend didn't realise and kept on sewing - with no thread. I remember doing the same when I started sewing and it made me think about why I don't still do it. So, the next time I sewed I concentrated on what I was doing, and realised that I automatically held the thread between my 2 middle fingers as soon as it popped through the fabric. It made me realise how much detail I'd have to go into if I decided to teach workshops, especially if there are complete beginners present.

Some supplies I picked up at a flea market when OH and I went out for the day for my birthday.

The subject of how we learnt to knit came up at the stitching group the other week. Some said they learnt in school, with a rhyme about a rabbit and a hole that I'd never heard before. I remember sewing in school, but not knitting (my great aunt Kate taught me). As the conversation moved on to other skills learnt at school, it was clear there was quite a difference between us, with members coming from different corners of the country. One had been instructed in how to lay a fire and use a twin-tub, which surprised the rest of us!!

We held a wedding party last week for people who didn't/couldn't come to Florida for the wedding itself. The groom's mother did the food while I made the cakes. I made a big cake to display the cake topper from Disney World, and cup cakes for the guests. This is my solution to the dilemma of how to transport 70 cup cakes in a car for a 30min journey. The big cake and 3 'boxes' of cupcakes went in the boot (trunk) while the three of us in the car each held a tray with 2 boxes. Maybe I was being ultra careful, but I learnt my lesson when transporting only a quarter of this number to the Hen Party, without boxes.

Bye for now
Teresa x

P.S. My camera seems to make purple look blue. The blue in the granny squares and the felt cosies is actually a lovely deep purple.

Disney Did Us Proud!

We had an amazing time at Disney World!!! The wedding day itself was the best day of all, including perfect weather. I have to say it is not a holiday destination OH and I would have chosen for ourselves, but we enjoyed it very much and are very glad we experienced it. I was afraid the wedding would be too impersonal or, alternatively, "over-the-top", but everyone was so lovely and ensured the day went smoothly. The wedding was also streamed live via the internet so friends and family back home were able to be part of it.

Disney princess cup cakes that I made for J's hen party

Some of the credit has to go to J too, for the hours and hours of planning and preparation she put in. Her and A's previous experience was also a great help to us 'First Timers' at Disney, so that we were able to make the most of the time we had and do as much as possible.

We haven't had the official photos back yet but have seen one on the photographer's website and it's amazing. Someone said to me, "I bet you would go back tomorrow if you could!" I wouldn't go that far, but I would be happy to go again in the future with grandchildren, to watch them experience it.

Back to reality now, and here are a couple of recent 'finishes'.  I've knitted this baby blanket for a friend who's baby is due in May using some of my stash of recycled yarn. Underneath it is another project that is on the brink of being finished after a looooong time.

This little bag was knitted from some yarn donated to our stitching group to make things for raising money. It's lined in fabric I cut up from a charity shop shirt. It's not clear from the photo, but the yarn has a silvery thread running through it. When I took it along to the group one of them wanted to buy it for herself, but they decided to raffle it at our upcoming Craft Cafe event because they thought it was too nice for the stall! They are nice ladies!!!!

Bye for now
Teresa x

Bad News and Good News!

Bad News:  My auntie (who's house is attached to ours) was burgled last week, while we were sitting next door. It was late afternoon and she was out for less than an hour! Not much was taken but the house was a mess.

Good News: I joined a newly-formed stitching group just before Christmas, and we made it into the local paper this week as a result of our collaboration with the Church to help raise funds towards their 'Raise the Roof' Campaign. I'm sitting down, far left.

Good News: It's not much longer now until J's wedding. It seemed such a long time in the future when we started making arrangements. It's been amazing how much work J has put into the organisation, and I have helped where I can......

..... but as J and A are the experts on the venue it's mostly fallen on them.  I don't know if any of my previous mentions gave away the wedding location but the close-up of the invitation should make it clearer. J made the invitations herself, completely from scratch (I know because I asked if she bought the base card - It was that good!).

Bad News: The back boiler 'went' on our wood burner recently and we had to get a new one.
Good News: It could have 'gone' while we were away on holiday the week before and ruined the carpet and floor as well, but we were at home and able to catch the water as it emptied out (Bad News: It was 7.15 am!)

Bye for now
Teresa x

A Random Photo Collection! (and a new winner)

 Hello folks! It seems ages since we last had a chat so, despite having only this random selection of photos to show, I thought I'd pop by for a catch-up.

A bag made at the request of a friend, for her to give to her friend's daughter on her birthday

 Despite having little to show, I have been busy. The crafting I've been doing has been mainly ongoing work, on projects you've seen already. But I don't want to bore you to death with them, so that when I show the finished article it's an anti-climax.

Crops in a field on our village walk (I thought they'd have been gathered in by now!)

I've had 3 craft projects on my to-do list for the last few weeks (finish the cathedral window cushion, finish the felt bunting and make myself a new bag) but other, more pressing, matters have taken over, such as:

View back across the fields on the village walk

-  Wedding shopping and organising
-  Helping out with son's and daughter's businesses

A large (very large!) caterpillar found in our garden. More pics

- Getting used to the routine of my new job (or not, as the case may be!)
- Proofreading 2 manuscripts, a short story and a website.
- Finishing the last assignment on my proofreading course.

Fabulous full moon a couple of weeks ago

It's also been quite a feat keeping on top of the garden produce.  At one point we resorted to handing courgettes over the hedge to anyone who walked by when we were in the garden (if they wanted them, of course). Beetroot has been cooked and pickled; courgettes have been cooked, frozen, stuffed or turned into chutney; runner beans have been cooked, frozen or given away and lettuce has been eaten, given way or (I'm sorry to say) left to rot.

I've been keeping up with blog reading as much as I can, so I know you've all been keeping busy, too. I hope to have more to show for myself soon - so let's see how many of those 3 projects above I can get done by next time!!

Oh, and I nearly forgot.- Since I haven't had a reply from the original winner of the Caroline Zoob book, The Hand-Stitched Home,  I've re-drawn the giveaway and the new winner is Scarlet from The Finished Article who I've sent a message to and hope to hear from soon. Fingers crossed!

Bye for now

Teresa x

It's Started!

Two very important events have started.  First, very welcome signs of spring are appearing in the garden and countryside;  daffodils are emerging, snowdrops flowering and roses budding.  After a summer of dull, wet, dreary days followed by more of the same (only colder) in autumn and winter, we're more than ready for some decent sunshine - so here's hoping!

The second (and just as important) event that has started (meaning that the first item on DD's wedding list can be ticked off) is that  The Dress Has Been Bought!!  I'm afraid you'll have to wait for at least a year to catch a glimpse of it, but there's a little clue on DD's nail art as to what it's like.

We bought the dress when two of her 'bridesmaids' came to stay with DD for the weekend for her birthday, and I took them all, plus DS's girlfriend, for a trying-on session.  We had a lovely afternoon and it was a fun way of getting to know her friends.

I managed to finish the place mats for her birthday in time to take too, including a little addition on one corner to cover a mistake that I didn't see until too late!

Progress since last time:

Place mats finished
Zipped purse for DS's girlfriend's birthday
A couple of hours on the x-stitch lighthouse
Few more tumbling blocks put together
Tag Square Bee quilt pinned together ready for quilting

Bye for now
Teresa x