Presents and a finished project (yes really !!!)

I was very lucky to win the giveaway at Amandas lovely blog - it arrived on Saturday and I was thrilled.

It is so beautiful, thank you so much Amanda - I will treasure it - I'm still trying to decide where it will be shown off to its fullest potential - I love the colours, how homely it looks and of course the beautiful message.


She was also very naughty and included some fabulous fabric, ribbon and buttons.










At last my crochet blanket is finished - I did a different edging to the pattern as I love the flower squares and I was worried that it would be "too frilly" - I think I like the red stripe, though I do keep looking at it and wondering if I should add something else.

Its quite a small blanket - almost cot size but Miss T and I have both used it over the weekend and as its so heavy it really does help keep the chill out.





We've lit the coal fire for the first time on Friday - I love how relaxed it makes me feel, I don't want to go out at all when the lounge looks so snuggly.

I probably wont be back now until Wednesday with my giveaway winner so if you haven't already entered there's still time

Dont forget to enter my giveaway

Hello - just another post to say dont forget to enter my giveaway - Can't wait to find out who wins it XX

See post below for details

100th Follower Giveaway

Here is my 100 followers giveaway celebration. A feast of red, white and blue sewing items all packed in a lovely vintage sewing box.

I think the Royal Wedding must be rubbing off on me with my patriotic colour scheme. I know I promised to be back on Sunday with my giveaway but I've felt so grotty with this bloomin lurgy that all I wanted to do was curl up on the sofa.

It gave me chance to think about what to giveaway and as I havent been out the house for over a week to the shops it involved a bit of creative thinking.

I didnt want you all to think I was just getting rid of some of my "junk" !

I decided on this vintage sewing box that I have had for a while - I do really like it but would love one of my bloggy friends to have it - I then decided to fill it with little treats.


Some are vintage bits and bobs from my collection including this toadstool darning mushroom, ric rac and embroidery stitches booklet.






Some wooden cotton reels, vintage pins, scissors and thimble.









Some lovely vintage buttons still on their cards.







I thought it would seem a bit impersonal without a little bit of "me" - I made these Union Jack sewing accessories a while back - pin cushion and needle case (with needles).


There are also a few little appliques - hearts, anchors and a few more.





I am in the process of setting up a little haberdashery business so have included some ribbons and buttons that I will be selling.



I hope you like everything that I've put together and I wish you all the best of luck.

You have until Tuesday 30th November to enter by leaving a commenton this post. I'm sorry but the sewing box is quite heavy so I will have to limit the main prize to UK only - however if you live overseas and would like to take part in the celebrations - leave me a post mentioning which country you are in and if you win I will send you lots of sewing items - ribbons buttons etc. I will still pick a UK winner for the sewing box kit.


Good Luck everyone and thanks for being a follower XX

Woop Woop

Just checked in and noticed I have 100 followers - I'm so excited - I can't believe my musings are of interest at all so to reward all of you martyrs who read it I am off to sort out a wicked giveaway. I shall be back to post details and piccys tomorrow so pop round at some point.

Thanks peeps

XX

French Christmas Crafting

We are all very grotty in this house (apart from hubby) - bad throats, heavy colds. Yesterday Miss T was on one sofa under blankets, Master T on the other sofa all snuggled up, didnt leave much room for me unfortunately.

Late afternoon the children went back up to their bedrooms so I managed to nab a place on the sofa and though I was feeling really sorry for myself I did manage to carry on with my crochet blanket.

I've finished all the squares now I just have to join them sll together - (I much prefer just making the squares)

As I havent got a "reveal" for you yet I thought I'd share another of my foreign crafting books.




This one is called "Noel Au Coin Du Feu" and is french. I do understand much more french than german so love buying french books.

The designs are a bit vintage in style and I love red and white colour schemes.




I know that this sack is designed for games but I think I would turn it into a Christmas Sack.









I love these little drawers - the structure is made up from cardboard and all the instructions are included - another project to add to the list.















This Noel sign is so simple but looks so beautiful - I was thinking to get it done quicker you could just do the letters and put them onto some coordinating fabric.

Well sorry its not a longer post but I dont want you to catch the dreaded lurgy . I'm hoping we will all feel much better tomorrow - I've got so much I want to get done.

There is some good news - I've won 2 giveaways this week and I really dont enter many at all !! Cant wait to share with you when they arrive. The dishwasher (touch wood) has started working again - the boiler that I told you was fixed on Saturdays post - started spurting water out just as I had finished telling you all that it was fixed, but the plumber came back out at 9am on Sunday and finally sorted it and the bedroom renovation project is still moving forward - my built in wardrobe is all constructed just ready for painting.

I'm still not sure it will be fully finished for Christmas but at least its getting there.

Christmas Craft Book

Here is my new Christmas crafting book (one of them ssshhhhh).

I love foreign crafting books - I'm not bothered if I can't understand them as long as the pictures are inspirational.

If there is part of the project that I need to understand I just type it into Google translate.












This one is German. I use Amazon Germany and look in there craft section - once you have managed to find one craft book - it recommends others underneath (fatal !!!!)

I love this image - I just need to get hubby to build me a porch.













This wreath with its buttons on is amazing - it looks really easy to attempt so I may have a go.

















This table setting is beautiful especially with my current toadstool addiction - I love red and white polka dots and normally use a red colour scheme at Christmas, so i may have a go.
There are loads more wonderful projects in it and if I don't make anything from it (which is more than likely with my 300 current projects on the go) I shall enjoy looking through it and feeling Christmassy.


On the home front - the boiler has just been fixed (yeah), we just paid the plumber (boo), the dishwasher that we thought had packed up this morning now seems to be ok (fingers crossed) and tonight I've got Chilli, crochet, Strictly, X factor and Take That to look forward to so all is good. XXX

Have a great Saturday night everyone

Thought I'd mention that if you did want to buy this book you can go onto Amazon UK and put the title in the search box and it then finds it for you- you can then order and still get super saver free delivery !!! I just go onto Amazon Germany to look through the German books to see which one I might like to order but if you order through that site you pay delivery.

Crochet Blanket

I have almost completed enough squares for my blanket - I can't remember when I started it but I think it was around March - I was going to have it done in a month or at least by September to take on holiday with us - Holland in a caravan can be a little chilly in the mornings.



I have loved doing my little flowery squares - the hardest bit has been choosing the colour combinations and trying to make them look completely random. I suppose I wont really know if I have succeeded until they are all joined together.

There are two types of flower square - the rose ...........



and the daisy .........




The daisy squares have been quicker to do but I think I prefer the roses.

The pattern is in this brilliant book by Melody Griffiths - Crocheted Throws & Wraps.

There are 25 amazing designs and I am itching to get started on the next one.




I quite fancy doing this gingham blanket - I thought maybe red and white would make it a bit Christmassy (who am I kidding - it wont be finished until July !!!)




I really love the colours in this flower garden throw - though I do find it a little bit wierd to have uneven edges.



Well, I had better go and carry on - need to decide what to cook for tea, probably need to go out and buy what I need to cook for tea !!!, have a load of washing to put in, want to take some photos of our bedroom which we are in the process of renovating (we have been for 3 years) and then hopefully I'll get to do some crochet tonight in front of the TV - I have 18 squares left to complete but the first two rounds are completed on all of them so it shouldnt take too long.

I may do a couple of rose squares again as I've used a really bright green in them and it seems to be sticking out like a sore thumb when I place them all together - think I must have chose the wool in the electric light - or in the dark !!!

Life, dogs, health

I have never had a dog before getting Scruffy in May. I had always wanted a dog when I was little but by the time I was born (14 years after my sister) I think my mom and dad had already had enough of pets and kids !!!

Then when we first got married we were both out at work full time, first baby takes up enough time, second baby within two years, moved house and so on ..........

Wanting a dog had got pushed so far back I had forgotten how much I wanted one - until February.

Its been a bit of a year, in February I found a lump - a huge lump, the GP rushed me through the system to a hospital appointment the next week. A week that felt like 6 months, the good news - the lump was a large cyst that was drained - the bad news was that during the mammogram and ultrasound they found another small lump that concerned them .

A biopsy was arranged, attended and 6 weeks after finding the lump the all clear was given - phew !!!

That six weeks was such an intense time of thoughts and fears, hope and strength. Most of the time I was confident that I would be fine but other times (especially in the dark in the early hours of the morning) the world seemed very very scary.

I've always had lots of plans and ideas for the future, things I want to do, places I want to go but none of these even crossed my mind when i thought of the future.

My biggest fear was obviously leaving hubby and not seeing the kids grow up - something I know a lot of people have to face but for me - too painful to even contemplate - but the only other thing that kept coming into my head was "I've always wanted a dog and I've never got to have one." I didnt realise how important to me it was, I must have buried the longing so deep that I had forgotten it.

I decided that "when" I was given the all clear it would be a priority. The kids were thrilled when we chose our puppy - a tibetan terrier. I'd met one at a cricket match and fell in love so I knew that if I did ever have a dog it would be one of these.

I love my doggy so much and cant believe he is nearly seven months old - when we contacted the breeder about the puppies we found out that they had been born on March 15th - the day before my birthday ! So we are both pisces (Do dogs have astological signs ???)


We have had our moments with him and we are still learning every day, but hes now such a big part of all our lives I wouldnt want to live without him.

I hope you dont mind me whittering on, I find it cathartic to write things down and I've been bottling things up - most of the family dont even know about it - I know I am so so lucky to have not had the dreaded C and I do feel blessed but I think that anything we experience thats so intense , even for such a short time, changes a part of us for ever.

I look at Scruffy and I see that we should all have and do what we want without delaying - we never know what is round the corner and we might be very very lucky like me or we might not ......

So today my bloggy buddies think of one thing that you have been putting off and take steps to make it happen - book that holiday, theatre tickets, flying lesson , cordon bleu cookery course . . .

I'm going to look for a holiday cottage to rent in the north east - I've always wanted to see Scarborough , Whitby etc so next March here we come (fingers crossed)

XX

Winner - Forties Giveaway

November 5th already and the day to draw my giveaway. I stopped blogging for a year and seem to have lost a lot of my followers and lovely people that I used to share my comings and goings with.

Hopefully I will start to get my "friends" back soon and so decided to do a giveaway for you lovely people who are still around.

Miss T and I placed all the names into a little bowl .

















With eyes closed she dipped in.




































And pulled out a winner - Well Done Crafty Helen !!! I will parcel up the book and a few other bits and pieces and get them in the post for Monday. If you can get in touch please as I'm not sure how to get your details.







I will be sorting out another giveaway for Monday - so pop back - I really do need to create some space and I know lots of you love the same things as me so I cant think of better people to pass them on to.

Not sure what we are up tonight - think Miss and Master are off out with friends to bonfires, so looks like I'll be comforting the cats and dog whilst watching Emmerdale !! Might have a jacket potato - just so I feel like I'm joining in .

XX

Skip Diving

I was reading the lovely Mels blog today and she was asking who had been skip diving ? The well known past time of rescuing someone elses rubbish and reusing.

We have so many things that others had thrown away - I do dread when hubby goes to the local tip because he has been known to come back with more than he took!!

One of our best bargains was from the scrap man - he was trundling down our crescent blowing his trumpet when Mr T looked out the window , turned to me and said "Quick !!! he has a great bed on there .

To cut a long story short we tracked him down a few streets away and after parting with £5 left with our new double bed - currently in Miss T's bedroom.

Please excuse the photo - not taken from a great angle as our bedrooms are not massive - I stood on the window seat with my bottom pressed up against the window to try and get far enough away to get the whole bed in the shot ! (luckily the bedroom faces onto the back garden ).



If you look carefully you can see one of the little end pieces missing off the frame - I havent quite worked out what to do about it yet.


I would love to hear of any bargains that you've had - Hubby did once bring me a teddy back that he had found on a car park - it was dirty , had a torn tummy and its head was half hanging off (by the way I think its important that I mention it was Valentines Day and he said this could be my present) - so hes not always brilliant at spotting stuff.............................

I wont repeat what I said to him as the children read my blog sometimes

XX

The Forties Giveaway

I bought this book a while ago and have really enjoyed looking through it - however I have been having a bit of a book buying frenzy lately and need some room on my groaning shelves.

I know a lot of my bloggy friends absolutely love this era so I have decided to give it away.



Everyone who leaves a comment will be entered into the drawer on Bonfire Night and I will be throwing in lots of lovely surprises - Overseas bloggy buddies are more than welcome to enter.



I've only added a few images so as not to spoil the surprise but it really is a picture heavy vintage feast.

Got butternut squash soup planned for tonight so better get a wriggle on - speak soon and good luck XX