Moving address!

It's been such a long time since I said hello. Over 4 years has passed and life has been turned upside down since I last posted. So I've finally decided to start over and hopefully you'll hear a bit more from me at my new place. 

Find me here at These Messy Moments Join me for my unique mix of life, faith, stitchiness and all the other random stuff I throw in! :-)

My new found love!

Funnily enough, even though I've been horrendously rubbish at updating my blog gone lately, I do spend a vast amount of time on the internet/laptop in general. Which is also why I've no cross stitching news to speak of at the moment! My main occupation on Facebook is one game in particular which I have a slight addiction to. However my latest love is Pinterest. I have found so many fabulous ideas and so much inspiration! 

Now I thought, I just need to cut down the time I spend online and actually get some of the things I pin done... so here's my first Pinterest project! I saw this school supplies cake tutorial and thought it was pretty cool. We don't usually do this kind of thing in the UK but I still thought it would be a pretty cool 'thank you teacher' gift. After some help from my best bud who is a teacher, and a lot of shopping I eventually came up with this. The hardest bit was getting the right proportions on each tier.

I know the photo is really poor. The tissue paper and tulle flower was another Pinterest find. Check out this brilliant tutorial. This was for a nursery class teacher so it included all together:-

• Stickers
• Pencils and biro pens
• Highlighters
• Anti bacterial hand wipes
• Smarties, small boxes of Roses 
• Options flavoured hot chocolate sachets

I wish I had remembered to get a final photo. I took it to a florist and had it wrapped in cellophane and a ribbon bow to finish it off. I was a bit nervous about how it would be received but I did get a very nice call from the teacher who was over the moon with it because it was so personal and unique. So I was relieved and happy she liked it!

My next Pinterest project in progress is this menu planner. So watch this space!

A finish framed at last!

I finally got this finish back from the framer today and she has done a fabulous job! 

Shame I couldn't put the other one in to frame. I realised after my last blog post that it didn't look quite right and after comparing it to the pictures of this one, realised I'd made a mistake. Now I have to frog and re stitch all the bottom part. The worst thing is I'm sure I put all the colours I used away and have no record of them. What a disaster! :(

A long catch up!

So I got a little behind with everything and I am only now getting to update so this may be a little long but lots of pics so hang in there ;)

First the Lizzie Kate exchange. Here's what I eventually sent...

...and Vicky sent me this gorgeous plaque which is now hanging in my living room. 

Thank you!

I haven't been to pick up the finish I left at the framers but I have finished the next one I wanted to frame the same. What does everyone think? I wasn't too sure when I first changed the colours to red but I think it's turned out okay...

I started on Sophie's sampler too which is the matching one to the framing dilemma one.

I haven't got a whole lot done really but it's better than nothing. I've got some sewing projects to fit in as well. Altering school trousers since Seren is starting school in September and I could only get smallest age 3 and I need to take about 4 inches off them! I bought her some new bedroom furniture to make her room a bit more grown up and I got lined curtains half price too. They were too small but I've taken one curtain apart and intend to make a roman blind with it and the other one I'm going to make some cushions and bunting. Sounds fab but I am a novice so watch this space for the eventual finishes if I get that far LOL!

Happy stitching everyone :)

A new plan of action

Since I got my stitching bug back I've been trying to juggle quite a few projects. On Friday I finally gave in and went back to the same framer I used before to get a project framed that's been around the house for over a year. Since she is going on holidays and I was in no rush anyway I've got 5 weeks before I pick it up. Then I thought if I finish the others I want done before then all the better. So I sat down and made a list of priority projects which went something like this...

• Feathers & Friends (5 blocks a week)
• Baby Boy Sunshine Line
• Birth sampler - Poppy
• Birth sampler - Sophie
• Find 2 more birth samplers for Francesca and Daisy

I decided to try and finish Feathers & Friends for my parents wedding anniversary but at 5 blocks a week it might not happen though I have been working on it.

Baby Boy Sunshine Line is for my nephew who is already over a year old. I've done a little on this too.

I started the sampler for Poppy, well the papercraft part of it anyway when she was born. I wasn't sure about doing it but while we were on holiday I actually got to meet Poppy and her mum and now know it will be appreciated so I have done quite a bit of the stitching since. It is the same pattern as the one I am having framed so I'm hoping to finish it in the 5 weeks then if the framed one looks good then I'll have that done too. I changed the colours from pinks to reds for Poppy and am hoping it looks okay!

The sampler for Sophie is the matching one to the finished one I was having the framing dilemma over. I've decided I'm going to lace them up to the foam core myself and take them down with the frames and get the framer to cut a narrow mount for them. Possibly. :D

As for Francesca and Daisy...I already done this beautiful project for Francesca's older sister...

and just can't find something as nice and unique for her. The project currently at the framers is for Daisy's older sister and looks something like this...

and I can't decide whether to do a matching one for her (maybe in pale yellows instead?) or a different one.

So there's my plan of action LOL!