My year in projects

Happy New Year! 

 Lets hope its a good one for all.

I wanted to write a post over the Christmas period but I came down with Covid the day after my birthday then spent the next two day in bed.  It wiped me out for a couple of days, thankfully I feel better now.  The symptoms were not like I had before, I was congested with a tickly cough for a couple of days but I didn't lose my sense of taste or smell, I was however really exhausted, then by last night all my symptoms seemed to disappear, just as quick as they came.   I will test again in a couple of days to make sure I'm negative before I go anywhere near people, I know there are relaxed rules now but I still don't think it's fair to pass it on knowingly, you never know what health issues other people are dealing with do you?

My middle daughter Joanne also tested positive with the same symptoms as me although, she still has quite a cough but, surprisingly neither Mark or any of the rest of the family that were here over Christmas has had it.

Anyway, on to the makes......These are my last finishes for this year end, one pair of Christmas socks and the last stitched piece for the Stick6in2023

 I ran out of time to complete my socks to wear on Christmas Eve but I did finish them on Boxing Day, so still classed as a Christmas finish.  They are knitted in the Vintage Tinsel colourway by West Yorkshire Spinners.  This was their Christmas colourway from 2021, back then It didn't really appeal to me, then I saw someone knitting it up this year and thought It was beautiful, funny how we change our minds isn't it?

I used Amethyst, also by WYS, for the heels and toes and I love them!  You can't really see from the photo how sparkly they are, but take my word they do sparkle :-)

My Stick6in2023 piece for the months of November and December was finished just in the nick of time.  I must confess that I didn't much enjoy stitching this one, hence the amount of time It took me to finish.  Those snowflakes were a pain in the butt and I struggled to see, even with my magnifier, the 32 count fabric.  Still, It's done now and I love the way it came out.  

What you can't really tell from the photo is that the fabric I stitched on was blue and the finishing fabric is navy blue velour.

When I think of Winter by Puntini Puntini

I've really enjoyed taking part in this SAL hosted my Martina and Manuela, amazingly I managed to complete all six parts!   I'm already looking forward to joining in throughout 2024, thanks ladies for hosting.

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Now that I've shared my end of year finishes it's time for a round up of everything I made during the rest of 2023.

There were ten pairs of socks 

Three sewing finishes, 

(I made two of the bags, one for Bonnie and one for her friend)

Two baby blankets

Twelve stitched finishes

Two jumpers

One cardigan

Four forgotten projects finished off, two were baby cardigans, one was crochet blanket and of course Albert the rabbit :-)

And last but not least, because they will be the most used, Thirteen dishcloths!

Phew! 

I stitched more in 2023 than I have for a few years and I really enjoyed all my projects, well except for the last one, lol.  I'll share some plans I have for 2024 another time as this post has gone on long enough, and If you are still here at this point, thank you for reading👍   

I'll say goodnight and leave you with a photo of my Winter bowl, the idea for which I shamelessly stole from the lovely Carol over at Stitching Dreams, I hope you don't mind my friend 😉

 

-X-

My Stick6in2023 finish and our little holiday

Another two months of this year gone already and so It's time to share my forth stitched piece for the Stick6in2023 SAL hosted by Martina and Manuela 

Number one was chosen for the months of July and August, for me this corresponded to The Reindeer by Cottage Garden Samplings.  

This chart was one of my purchases from last Autumns Nimble Thimble meet up so I'm super happy that it hasn't been waiting too long for me.

I used all the recommended DMC threads, the fabric is 32 count Belfast linen and I managed to find a suitable frame from The Range.

Isn't he beautiful?  I'm really happy with how he turned out, I've put him away for now but he won't have to wait too long to be on show.

The number 6 has been drawn for our next piece and I can't wait to get started next week!

last week I had a week away with Joanne and the children to Butlins at Minehead.  If you are from the UK you will know that Butlins holiday parks are mainly designed for children, (although they do hold themed and adult weekends at different times through the year).  

The weather was kind, it only rained one day and we even managed to have a day on the beach, which we all enjoyed so much despite both myself and Joanne saying we didn't like sand we had as much fun as the kids!

It's just lovely to see children's happy smiley faces doing simple things like digging in the sand and riding on the fairground rides, Jacob does love to go on the rides and laughs the whole time.

Jacob taking in the pantomime

Bonnie meets Bonnie Bear :-)

Joanne had booked some shows to see, so we had Pepper Pig, a pantomime, which was as good if not better than any I've seen, a magic show with Steven Mulhern and a Animal versus Dinosaurs show which was excellent.

I came back feeling more rested than I thought I would considering it was an activity filled week, Bonnie declared it the best week ever, so I think It's safe to say that she had a good time too!

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That's all the fun stuff, now for an update on Molly.    Unfortunately she did end up going back to the vets last Sunday night, they put in a stitch to hold everything in place but she has only pooped once in the week and I could see she wanted to go yesterday but couldn't, so I booked her in for another visit this morning.  That's where she is now, they wanted to keep her overnight because she was still constipated and was a little dehydrated, they are going to take out the stitch and give her something to help her 'go' and give her some fluids, they will also do a blood test to make sure there is nothing else going on.  Potentially she will have to have another stitch if she prolapses again when she's 'been'.

  I've tried to call them to see how she is but they were doing a change over and will call me later.  I have everything crossed that she will be ok.  

-X-

A productive June

June went by so quickly, how can we be halfway through the year already!  It's definitely an age thing, the older you get, the faster time seems to go!   I do try and make the most of my time each day, and this month as well as the things I was working on, I've also tried to get some of those languishing  projects fully finished.

Firstly, the things I started and finished in June.

My first attempt at lace knitting in a sock.  These are the Rosie Lee socks by Twinset & Purl.

I really enjoyed knitting these, they seemed to knit up quite quickly too, probably because the lace section made knitting more interesting.

  The yarn is Lace Hankies by Lay Family Yarn

My second pair of socks for the month, I know! I was on a roll, lol. My first pair of trainer socks.

I didn't follow a pattern for these, I knit 12 rounds of ribbing and 10 rounds before doing the heel and then my normal length for the foot.

You will notice that they are not 'twins' they are not even 'sisters', more like 'cousins' 😀

I have no idea why the yarn behaved so differently on each sock!

I still love them and no one will know what's inside my trainers 😉  

The yarn is from Mr & Mrs Rabbit, who no longer dye yarn, which is a shame because they did the most beautiful colourways, unfortunately I misplaced the ball band so don't know this colourway.

My next finish is something you haven't seen in progress, It's the Trescao Jumper by Along Aven Anna

I actually finished this in April, but then realised I didn't like the garter stitch hem and cuff, so I pulled those out and re-knit them in 1x1 rib.

Obviously too warm to wear at the moment but it will do nicely for Autumn and Winter.

My last knitting finish is also something I started a while ago, it's a cardigan for Bonnie and it has been waiting for quite a while for me to sew up the sleeves and put buttons on.  Good job I made a larger size!

The yarn is James C. Brett Stonewash.

I have one sewing finish for June.  You may remember that when I took Bonnie to the craft show at the NEC in March she chose a pattern for me to make her a bag, along with the fabric, and here it is.

This came out way better than I expected, the only fiddly part was the top stitching around the top edge.  It was supposed to be a little present to go in her birthday bag but she saw it when she came round one time and wanted to take it home.   My daughter has asked if I will make another one for Bonnie's friends birthday this month, there is plenty fabric left to make another one, I just have to buy some webbing for the handle, so that will be a little project for July.

And last but not least, I had two cross stitch finishes in June.

The first one is another Autumn pillow.  Love how this turned out!  I used the called for threads with the exception of the border which should have been black and I switched to a dark grey.

Pumpkin Spice Everything by The Scarlett House

My second cross stitch finish is my Stick6in2023 piece.  

For the months of May and June the number 3 was generated, and for me that happened to be the number I had allocated to another Autumn chart, Pumpkin Hollow by Little House Needleworks

I chose to only stitch the top half of the chart because I wanted it to fit onto this wooden pumpkin blanc I bought from Hobbycraft a couple of years ago.  I dry brushed the blanc with some paint from a match pot and I think It came out cute!

That's all my finishes for June, not too bad considering It's been a busy month.

The weather has been mostly good and everything in the garden has shot up, it's been keeping me busy watering, dead heading and generally keeping it tidy.  The roses have been lovely, the first blooms have just about gone now but there are some second ones appearing and, I had my first poppy, just one, lol.  I've had this poppy plant for about three years and this is the first flower it's produced, I've left the seed head hoping that I can harvest the seeds to plant more

We also finished decorating our bedroom this month,  it took a while because Mark only has the weekends to do anything.  Mark panelled one wall and put in wall lights and we had a guy come and spray our wardrobe and bedside tables.  We also had new carpet and blinds and I'm over the moon with the result, It's so light and airy I can't wait to go to bed at night, lol.

I've taken the boys out a couple of times for tea and went strawberry picking with Joanne and these two rascals.

I think the ate their fill of strawberries while we were picking! I made jam with my haul and for a first attempt it came out pretty good, so I've been told.

I've continued my weight loss through June, I'm now 18lb's down, still jotting down everything I eat through the day and keeping track of calories, it's just become something I do now, and It's working.  I haven't eaten any cake, chocolate or sweets since April and I have to say I haven't missed any of those things at all, I eat almost everything else, just count the calories, calorie deficit works, who knew! 

My plans for July - The number 1 has been generated by Martina for Stick6in2023, this will be our project to work on during the months of July and August, I made a start on my choice on Saturday.

I'll pick another stitching project to work on and rotate them each week, that worked for me in the past so I need to get back to doing it that way.

More decorating is on the agenda, we are re-doing the smallest bedroom

there's not so much work to do in there, the radiator has to be changed but as far as decorating goes it's just a matter of painting, so should be a quicker process.

If July is as busy as June was I probably won't post again until the end of the month but hopefully there will be more finishes to share 😁

Have a great month!

-X-

Stick6in2023 - March and April

I hope your May Bank Holiday went well, however you chose to spend it.   It's been a busy one for us, nothing very exciting but something that has been in the planning for a while.  This morning we emptied and dismantling the wardrobes ready for the next stage of the bedroom decoration, and this afternoon was spent in the garden.  Everything is growing at a rate now, I really noticed the difference after a week away when I came back on Saturday.  We didn't sit down until after 6pm, hence the lateness of my post but, as it's the 1st of May I wanted to share my finish for the Stick6in2023 hosted by Martina and Manuela.

  I am choosing to take part in the easier option of  choosing six charts for the year and allocating each of them a number, 1-6.   The number 2 was chosen for March and April and this was my chart with that number allocated.

Oct 31 by Cottage Garden Samplings 

I stitched it on 36 count linen, 1 over 2.  I used the recommend threads with the exception of the black used in the raven, for that I used DMC 310 in place of overdyed called for.

I was drawn to the pumpkin on this chart, although I do think the raven is mighty fine too. 

And here it is all framed.

(Apologies for the poor photo It was getting dark when I took it and this was the best of a bad bunch)

I ended up ordering a frame from Amazon after trawling around various shops looking for something suitable.  I know a lot of you mention buying frames at charity shops for finishing, I do look but never seem to get lucky.

The number 3 has been pulled for May and June and have everything ready and looking forward to make a start at the weekend.

Part two of my day in Conwy 

The walls around Conwy were built between 1283 and 1287 as part of the defence system alongside Conwy Castle.  It takes around three quarters of an hour to walk and they can be accessed from three gateways at different sections.  Again, amazing views of the small town and in the distance the castle.  Some parts are quite steep and there is only a two bar railing on the one side, so not somewhere you would take children for sure!

Interestingly I found out that the castle when built was not the colour it is now, it was white, It would have been so much more visible then against the blue of the sea and the green of the fields behind it.

The wall finishes at the harbour, I loved how the little boats were all lined up along the shore, so pretty.

As I'd started my walk in the middle I re-traced my steps and then continued the rest of the walk.

I thoroughly enjoyed my day out in Conwy, although it's definitely a town for sight seeing, you would be disappointed if you went for the shopping experience.  

I promised myself that when I visited Llandudno again I would walk around the Great Orme.  It's five miles along Marine Drive, there are some sections with quite an incline but that was ok, I could stop and have a rest while taking in the wonderful views, I was in no rush.  

I didn't take many photos this time but there are plenty to see on a previous post, Driving The Great Orme.

Down on a section of beach I was lucky enough to see some seals too.  The beach wasn't really accessible so they were quite safe there. 

I can highly recommend a solo break, I've definitely come back more relaxed than when I went and wouldn't hesitate in doing it again sometime.

-X-

Going into April

I have a few projects that are almost finished, a baby cardigan that needs buttons, a cardigan for Bonnie that needs the button bands picking up and knitting and a pair of socks that are at the point of doing the toe decreases.  All so close yet not fully finished.   Is it just me, or does anyone else get something almost done and then sort of looses momentum?  

Last week was a busy one, I was on nanny duty for four days and two visits to the vets with Millie and Molly, they were due jabs and a check-up, all ok with Molly, Millie, not so good, we are waiting for thyroid blood test results, hopefully they will be back sometime this week and I will give you an update next time.  So, not much time for stitching or knitting this past week, just the odd hour here and there.  I'm still working on my stick6in23 piece and loving it, I'm on track to get this one finished perhaps this coming weekend.  

And, talking of Stick6in23, I collected my first finish for this SAL from the framers on Saturday.

Finished as another box frame. I love how it came out.  I used my local needlework shop again, Betty Stitch Kit in Quarry Bank. 

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The weather was mostly wet all last week so I didn't manage to get out for a decent walk, other than when I was collecting the kids, but I managed to persuade Mark to come walking along another section of the Stourbridge canal with me last Saturday.  Our starting point was a ten minute drive away at Stourton, walking back towards where I'd started out from on my last walk.

The weather was quite nice we did have a little bit of rain along the way, but it lasted a few minutes, not enough to put us off

If anyone is up for a challenge this wreck is up for sale, £250, serious offers only, so the notice said

🤣🤣

Loved these houses backing onto the canal, I would love to sit out there in the Summer

After an hour we were back at the bridge where the canal splits again, ahead to Amblecote, and to the right Stourbridge and the Bonded Warehouse, (where I started last time).  We had been walking for about an hour to this point so decided to turn and walk back to where we had left the car.  I'm really enjoying discovering these local canal walks, I find it strange that you can't really work out where you are, it feels like you are in the middle of the countryside, yet you know that a town or a main road it not very far away.  As we drove home we tried to work out where we had walked in relation to the road and even though at one point you could see across the fields you would never have known there was such a lovely peaceful walk to be had.

Mark doesn't really see the point in walking for the sake of it but he must have enjoyed it because he suggested taking the other route towards Wolverhampton this Saturday, we weren't able to do it though because I had plans to take these two rascals on an easter trail with Joanne

We did find the Easter Bunny at the end, but Jacob refused to have his photo taken with him, lol

I've not long got home from my aqua class, I'm really enjoying these classes, at first I wasn't sure I would but they have now become something that I do twice a week, and I feel better for getting out of the house, having some routine and of course the exercise.  As it's another beautiful day today my afternoon job is to clean out the summer house and perhaps even sit in there for a while later.  It gets really warm in there late afternoon so I may take my stitching and have an hour later.

If I don't pop back before next weekend I hope you have a lovely Easter!

-X-