Sunny Sunday

All at once I saw a host, a crowd of golden daffodils:
Hello all of you out there in the land of blogging, it is a beautiful day here in the South of England ,birds are singing , and you get the feeling spring has sprung.
Today we visited the garden centre to get a couple of new roses (Anniversary present from the MIL). Whilst there I couldn't resist grabbing the camera, the smell of these was divine and I brought a couple home ,just for the smell.

This is the time of year for new beginings and that is what I will be showing you -my new beginnings this week.

This is my new start last Monday with Sally and Colleen, thankyou all by the way for your comments on The Journey , I have it wrapped up awaiting what to do with it. Perhaps I will just bring it out when we have a guest for their room. Anyway this is Lucky the Shepherds bush kit I received for my birthday from Colleen, I just could not face a really large one, he/she is just so sweet and well sheepie. Thankyou Sally and Colleen for allowing me to continue my Journey with Lucky and you.

The next one was my TSG and Jane new start on a Wednesday night over on Needlecraft Haven ,this time I am in the kitchen with Jane. It is a quote taken from one of Janes letters to Cassandra and I am loving the colours.

I have had this kitted up for some time and it called to me from the evergrowing pile that it really needed to be next!Of course when Tanya informed us she was having a TSG sale this week ,I REALLY should not admit to this but just couldn't resist getting these on pdf. I can blame the friendship one on one of the Ladies on NH SAL as she is stitching it-also it has a white furry creature on it lol.

The next one , oh I know you are all shouting 3 new starts this week! but I HAD to stitch this one as it spoke to me as soon as I saw it in my new Stitchers Journey book from Blackbird Designs. Lots of lovely designs in it but thought one start from there would be enough!!

It is being stitched over one on Sassys Fabric and I am adapting the 'special stitches'. I did start it as the chart but decided it would be too big so hope it will still do the design justice.
So there are my 3 new starts - cannot count either as there is another sitting beside me and I cannot say what it is or show you as it is a giftie .
This week Martin and I celebrated our 44th wedding anniversary, just to say the romance is still there .

On that day it was also Red Nose Day for Comic Relief and to do something funny for money Caitlin our grandaughter decided she would sit in the sea. BRRRRR it was a foul day on Friday and quite cold but the sea was just a tad cold. Just to prove she did it-

Did that make you feel chilly-I think she did too. She raised £70 so she did well.

Martin also had a finish this week he made me a kite for my window.

My thanks go to all of you who continue to leave me comments , I must learn how to send you an answer via your comment post. Life is a steep learning curve for me these days lol.
Well I am not writing reams this time, I do love reading what you think of my little offerings though and I have one more to go to get to the century in my followers.
So I shall leave you with another springy pic and wish you a happy and sunny stitchy week.

Hugs n stuff
Barb x

200 years

In 1811 Jane Austen wrote Sense and Sensibility -which was then designed by Tanya of the Sampler Girl into this piece- that has been finished by me and now has to be framed.
Tracey gifted me the chart and thankyou so much as I loved stitching it. The years are 1811 and stitched date 2011 exactly 200 years. I have a Sampler Girl thing and love her designs ,so on Needlecraft Haven I have a Wednesday SAL night devoted to Jane Austen and or The Sampler Girl designs. If you want to join us you would be more than welcome.
I have had my 2 new charts come and for now I am calling it a day until I catch up on some of the ones I have. It will be buying threads now I expect ! Well that is the plan anyway.lol


I just had to give in to these as they have sheepies on.

Well I have not a lot of news to tell you ,but we did go to our friends 60th party on Saturday held at an upmarket hotel in Poole.On our way there I espied some little baa lambsies in the fields but we were on a dual carriageway and we couldn't stop for a picture so that is why you have not got a sheep pic to drool over lol. I did take some piccies of the outside of the Hotel, you may even get a glimpse of me ,which in itself is a rare event.
Here is the outside of the hotel.


The Hotel overlooks Poole Harbour and Sandbanks, an affulent place on the South Coast with homes here fetching millions of pounds.
Apparently twice a day the ferry to France goes by the Hotel and Celia said it almost looks as if the ship is coming into your room it seems so close.
Well this is just a little catch up as I said not much news.
I am stitching (hopefully) grandchildren allowing ,on the SAL with Colleen and Sally. I think we have decided to have a week at home this week on account of me having to take 4 grandchildren with me. So is it to be The Earth Gatherers or Lucky hmmm still have not decided.
This is where I have got to on Autumn ,N almost finished.

Last -shall I post this - well I did tell you I was pooh bear shaped !!!


Left to right Martin love of my life,Celia our friend who is 60 today and you would not think she is defying the specialists by being alive ,her daughter is the "girl" at 33 who has just had a heart attack, Norman her hubby and last but not least the me on the right. I am so sorry to inflict that on you! I was in pain there and having a problem standing upright and no it was not the alchohol.
On that note I shall leave you and after the shock of actually showing you a photo of me I will probably be away a while lol.
Take care you all and I will if I may join with you in saying a prayer for all those in Japan, it is unimaginable what they must be having to deal with and I really feel for them. An overwhelming disaster on such a tremendous scale in more ways than one.
Nature can be so cruel.
Bye for now
hugs n stuff
Barb.

Have you got your dancing shoes with you

Well hello on a fine spring day and doesn't it make you feel sunshiney inside and out. I had a wander down the garden this morning the Hazel has catkins on about 3" long ,I have 2 contorted ones and was tempted to cut a twig or two but Martin is not a lover of the pollen they are full of.So instead I took a pic of the camillia.

Anyway the title was have you got your dancing shoes ,you may dance along with me because here are the finishes I have to show you, as you know I have been stitching with Sally and Colleen my Journey with Shepherds Bush,and this week I am happy dancing. In fact the girls and I danced so hard on Monday,I have had to have the feet up all day yesterday. Mind you the soothing lavender had me nodding off. As you can see I have finished it into a lavender pillow(can you smell it).

I am not sure what will be next as I had a birthday present from Colleen and this is what she sent .
So do I stitch "Lucky" or do I do a biggie hmmmm decisions.
I also had a gift for Janes birthday that I had stitched, it is a Blue Ribbon design and I also filled this with lavender ,got a thing about lavender. Do you like lavender may I ask.I also sent her a Fobbles gift voucher so I am looking forward to seeing what she is going to choose.


Talking of birthdays - Jane did send me a gift voucher from Mary Kathryns Handicrafts and I chose these, and on Janes birthday! they arrived here ,thankyou so much Jane I got these for my birdie wall.



As most of you have seen Julies blog, and the baby box I sent for Amy and baby, well I popped into Weymouth this morning to meet my friend Jean and when I got back I saw propped up on the doorstep a long green box. Inside were these:-

12 pink carnations ,gyp and fern. Such a sweet thought and totally unexpected. Thankyou Amy they are beautiful and you really shouldnt have done that. You need your pennies for the pink!!!!
I also had another suprise this week (goodness me) this came from Hazel (quietly stitching) ,bet you cannot guesswhat it is .it begins with an S , and here it is.


I had a bit of a deciding moment! should I put my crocheted sheep on my scissors or keys ,as you can see the scissors won. I did wonder if Hazel had been busy with her hook, but she mentioned in her note that she saw it and had to get it for me. I do not know what I have done to deserve such generous and sweet friends from the stitching blogging world ,but I am so touched when an unexpected comes in the post.

These next few goodies were ordered by me, and ohhh I also have another couple coming (bad girl ,bad girl) The Stitchers Journey book from Blackbird designs ordered from Down Sunshine Lane -Amy is brilliant. Just have to stitch this one that is in the book,as I live by the sea.


From Thread Bear I ordered these and want these done Now too !!



I am hoping that these designers will let me catch up before they show me anymore temptation! I seem forever to be playing catch up.
Of course I could always ask Kate dd if she wants any more to do. As you know I like to try and run one theme into another and talking of Kate here is her progress on Celtic Autumn (changed colours) ,she has not done loads and was a bit concerned I was taking a pic to show you. Silly girl -you are such nice people!

So one more finish to show you ,Jean my old school friend bought me the cream lanterny thing and I said I knew exactly what I wanted to stitch to go in or out of it.This is what I did.

A closer view,

I stitched this over one on 28count slightly spring Sparklies fabby. It measures about 2inches square. Lark by JBW designs and the "Lark" words I put on the back.
On Saturday we are off to a friends 60th birthday party, hope I may have some pics to show you as it is being held at lunchtime in a rather up market hotel . You may remember that I told you a while ago that she had major heart surgery ,she is being put on the transplant list at the end of the year. She did not think she would live to be this old,sad but she is so positive. Anyway she had a call from her son in law her daughter has had a heart attack and will have to have a bypass and is also suffering form unstable angina she is 32 with an 18month old toddler. Life is so unfair at times. So if you are reading this and suffering I do wish you well and hope that you know folks do care and from one here in particular "if you need a hug,you got it".
Well now off to re read this in case I have written a load of rubbish ,well why change the habit of a lifetime . I should finish S&S tonight on the Jane /Sampler Girl SAL on Needlecraft Haven. So another finish coming up and maybe next time i write I will have the other 2 charts I have ordered -now where did I put that needle.
Take care sweeties
Hugs n stuff
Barb x