Done and part done

Spring flowers from my garden.

This morning I went to Fabric-A-Brac for the first time.   Anticipating a massive selection of fabrics to tempt me beyond endurance I gaily sallied forth, found a car park way up the top of a steep hill and eagerly bounded down.   My what a crowd!   Round and round and round I went looking at the selection of goods available.   Wallet had obviously listened well to my stern instructions and didn't even open her mouth!   So I climbed back up the steep hill, empty handed but happy to have been a part of this and who knows maybe my raffle ticket will come out tops and I will win the hand quilted bed cover??

Today we have half a happy dance;-) The Fabric Bomb bag is completed.  This is what I received and how I used (or not used them)

2 one yard pieces of Japanese Yukata fabric - the inside and outside of the bag
2 cotton fat quarters -  the kimono and part of the obi
1 small piece Japanese silk -  part of the obi
1 vintage whitework handkerchief -  the white neck of the lady
1 packet John James Twin point needles - uh uh
Petite Frosty Rays -  all of these threads were braided together for the obidome
DMC Perle cotton #3 colour 798
DMC Perle cotton #5 colour 334
Needle Necessities Spring II colour 358
Quilters Yardage Card -  uh uh 
2 Star Buttons -  the hair decoration
One yard of lace trim - uh uh
3 pieces ribbon -  the sky stripes
Mill Hill Beads colour 62034 -  the sky stripes
Embroiderers Guild of America Charm -  I'm keeping this for myself!!

Please excuse the dark photograph,  it's the best I can do this time of night.   I added the handles from stash.   What do you think?   I have done a happy dance.

Another Christmas ornament is finished and tonight I hope to construct this into a flat padded ornament tonight.   I was impressed that my LNS had the necessary small gold star.   I like this cute ornament..
And now I must go and undo the mistakes in the HD3QBEM's knitting.   She has some necessary mending out for me to do too.   Oops -  another busy night!

Half a roof, half a cottage and a whole fairy.

This week has been full of interruptions and plans gone awry.  At least the HD3QBEM is feeling better and now able to wash and dry the breakfast dishes so I am not late for work of a morning!

The Needlebook is finished and I even fond a tiny pair of scissors to put into it.
My Cottage has half a roof.  I used my new Clover Awl to make a hole for the eyelet and was so happy when it worked well.   Scrabbling through my fabric stash I found some gorgeous cream silk duponi which will make an excellent lining for this cottage.   My that does sound luxurious -  stitched in silk and lined in silk!  Hopefully over the weekend I am going to get the Cottage itself constructed and then I can check the fit of the roof.

Christmas is coming so I took time to iron on Giggle Cloth to these printed squares.   I have plans for these and if all the ingredients are ready then construction will be simple....I hope.   Note, these are not technically a new start just a preparation.

Some time ago, Kris sent me a stitched Fairy.   Last night I finished her into a small Christmas Tree ornament.   She is cute and will look good on the top of my tree.   Thank you once again.

Next is the Naxos for which I have all the ingredients.

So busy week it may have been but some small progress has been made.

Progress!

Today the HD3QBEM became the proud owner of a new vehicle.   Do you like it?  She does :-)
Fortunately for her, our apartment is built with wide doorways and passage ways so she can drive with ease which is a good thing considering she has never had a drivers licence!

And progress for me too.... I completed these small Christmas ornaments.

The JOY ambigrams turned out much smaller than I expected but were fun to do and used up odds and ends from stash.

HOPE was also stitched completely from stash.   The plain red silk backing doesn't exactly match the wine red ribbon but this will only be on a Christmas Tree for a short period so I can live with the colour variance.

O Come Emmanuel was also stitched from fabric and floss in the stash cupboard.   The rectangle at the bottom was supposed to have three initials but I never use my middle name if I can possibly avoid it so changed that to the two you can see.  The white tassel came with a gift at some stage and seemed to suit this ornament.   I like this one and it will go on my tree.   The others all go to different home.
Ornament construction over and I now move on to Needlebook and Cottage.   Another update tomorrow.

The HD3QBEM and I have just been to the thermal wonderland of Rotorua for a long weekend.  The hotel was lovely and warm - heated by the thermal waters and the restaurant produced delicious meals so I didn't have to cook :-)

Both of us enjoyed the break away and were delighted that the weather was fine.   The HD3QBEM added to her stash of wool (with some degree of moderation) and I managed to keep the mouth of my wallet closed while in the store.   I was rather taken with a class they were advertising (see here) but at 2 hours travel time this is a little far for me to go!

We found another quilting shop and the owner graciously allowed me to take a photo of her hexagon Christmas Tree.   Don't you think this is a wonderful idea?   I am thinking I might try and make one for Christmas this year - BUT (Note to self) not until I have completed the three stitched pieces which require construction!!

She had also made a great bag from hexagons too.   I particularly liked the way she had done the handles and can see that I might try and imitate this one too.

I took my iPad and read a couple of books as well as stitched  some Christmas Ornaments.   Fun indeed!

Three are the same and already the HD3QBEM has begged for one of the JOY ambigram ornaments to take to the sale of work at her Probus Club.  I want one for my tree and the other will go to the sale table at our Embroiderers' Guild sale table in September.

I managed to complete another two small medallions on Ring O Roses so am about half way through the fourth page.   However this will be put back to sleep for a while as I keep to my resolutions.
So it is now back to washing, cooking, dishes and work tomorrow.

I'm fine ... or is that fined?

What a week this has been and what can I say except "I am glad February is over".
There just weren't enough hours in my days this week and my 'forget-ery' was on overdrive so there were several repeats in the mix.   However I made it to Friday and for that we shall be truly grateful.
My February ornament is a mouse - not as small as I had imagined the mouse to be so perhaps more a rat than a mouse, but none the less he/she is finished.
So here we are front and back

I never know how to lace irregular shapes such as this so decided to stitch both sides together like a small pillow, fill with a little dacron wadding and then iron flat under a pressing cloth.   Only then did the beads go on.   Relatively successful I think.
Despite the dismal start to this post I am fine.   But this week for the first time in my life I was fined at the local library.   Can you imagine my horror -  two books overdue and I had to pay a total of $1.20   How embarrassing is that?   I had not even started either book despite having them in my pile for a month.   Shall I show you the pile and then you can see why?

And come to think of it there are two more books in my car (lunch time reading) and another two eBooks from said Library on my iPad and a couple sporting a "New" banner on my Kindle.   Oops.... perhaps my needle needs a sabbatical.  
Anyway I'm off to bed now but not to sleep...to read and finish the current Kindle book and perhaps make a start on one of those wretched "overdue" books which the kind librarian renewed for me - after having relieved me of the money :-)
Good night.

The year begins with HOPE

My To-Do list for 2014 is not long or complicated.  Only 15 items.  I pat myself on the back for showing such restraint!

Logically speaking if I list "Stitch five ornaments" and then complete six or seven or eight I can count that as a roaring success n'est pas?
But let's not get carried away -only the first of the five is completed.

 From JCS Ornament issue 2013 - stitched with DMC floss substitutions on 32 count linen of unknown origins.   I intend to stitch this orphan linen full of ornaments and in October have a mammoth construction session.

 Do you think this piece of fabric might fit more than the planned five?
Last night television here in New Zealand had a much delayed screening of the Downton Abbey Christmas Special.  Lovely,  but so many unanswered questions.  Does Edith find Michael again?   Is there a future for Miss Bunting?   Will Mary choose Tony or Charles or neither?  Does Carson find love or is that a red herring?    So many questions and so long to wait until Season Five reaches the Antipodes.   I wish this series was actually based on a book because then I could read ahead and satisfy my curiosity! I  love the costumes.  Edith had some beautiful dresses and I envy not only those fabrics but her porcelain skin!

I need to finish the Hardanger Sewing Pod before starting anything else.   So I'm off to do so.