Lots to report and a Happy Dance (Take 2)

Hello lovely bloggers,

Well, I have lots to report this post.

My Happy Dance (Take 2) is because I picked up Baboushka from the framers the other day.  Here she is, I am really pleased with her (please ignore the shadow on the right hand side.  I have decided to give her to my Dear Sister for Christmas.  The green matt is sueded - it looks really great in the flesh, so to speak.

I also have a couple of progress pics:

Some progress on Isabella's Garden

September TUSAL - the purple on the top is from Isabella's garden

 A new start:  Mirabilia's Christmas Courier by Nora Corbett,  now I did not buy the pattern all chewed up like this - that was my naughty cats - Milo and Furio.  I cam home from work one day and found the outer envelope and one page of the chart (luckily it was a photocopy) all shredded up!

And here are the two of them - looking like butter wouldn't melt in their mouths!

First progress on Christmas Couriers - the greens look really vibrant in real life.

 Lastly, I wanted to show off my new doona cover set - pretty isn't it?

Well, that's all for me now - off to do some stitching.

Bye for now,

Love, Kaye xoxox

P.S. I also meant to tell you about the storm that we had in Melbourne yesterday - a month's rain in one day!  The most rain in September since 1955.  All of the planes were grounded because of the thunder, lightning, rain and hail.  It is now really cold - only 9 degrees celsius - Brrrrr!!!!

K

Some Great Giveaways and the Brownlow Medal Tally

Hello lovely bloggers,

First of all I hope that your week has started well after a great stitching weekend.

Second, I would like to tell you about some great giveaways:

1. Barbara at "To Stitch or not to Stitch" is having a wonderful Halloween Giveaway.  You can check it out here.  You have until next Friday night to enter - she is giving away some gorgeous Halloweeny items - so go check it out.

     

      2. Debbie of Debbie's cross stitch is having a giveaway of a $10 voucher at 123 stitch to celebrate her first blogaversary.  Congratulations, Debbie on a year of blogging.

      3. Cyndy at Crafty Stitchers is also having a Halloween Giveaway of a very cute Raggedy Bagholder.


Lastly, I would like to share with you that I am blogging whilst watching the Brownlow Medal Count with my family.  This is basically the best player award for the great game of Aussie Rules football.  Now, DH loves watching the count - where every point awarded is read out - it takes all night!  I much prefer to watch the Blue Carpet where we get to ooh and ahh over the WAGS (Wives and Girlfriends) gowns.  Now, somehow, many footballers seem to go out with models!  Makes them look really good on the blue carpet.

Anyway, going to check out some more blogs and will post my weekend round up and stitching progress tomorrow,

Bye for now,

love Kaye xoxox

IHSW, Weekend Round Up and a great giveaway

Hello lovely Bloggers,

Well, this weekend was International Hermits Stitch Weekend and even though I did not get a lot of stitching done I can claim some progress on two of my projects: Holbein's Henry and Isabella's Garden.  Here are my pics:

Before IHSW

After IHSW - getting through that confetti!

Before IHSW

After IHSW - some good progress although I am finding this linen rather difficult to work with and the shading of the purples is a bit tricky, too.
So all in all, a satisfactory IHSW.
Now for my Weekend Roundup
This weekend, I have:
* Been to see "The Thirty-nine steps" at the Heidelberg Theatre Company (HTC) with DH and some good friends after a yummy dinner
*been shopping with DD and bought Adele's album "21"
* went lap swimming and for my weekly walk around Princes Park
*DH and I caught up with some old friends for Sunday lunch at a new restaurant at South Wharf called  Melbourne Public - very nice food and we had a lovely long lunch catching up with each other's lives
* and took part in the IHSW as shown above

All in all a pretty good weekend!

Now, last thing:

Cross Stitch Queen is having a great Giveaway to celebrate 100 followers - you can check it out if you follow the link.  It is a wonderful prize and a lovely blog to follow.

Well, that's ll for me now - time to read some more blogs and some stitching.

Bye for now,
love Kaye xoxoxo

Hello lovely bloggers,

DH and I and some friends have just been to see the Heidelberg Theatre Company's production of "The 39 Steps"

What a hoot - we had a ball.  The play was so much fun!

Bye for now, 

love Kaye xoxox

Mary Wigham update plus Baboushka pattern moving on

Hello lovely bloggers,

I thought that I would show you the progress of my Mary Wigham (Ackworth School) Sampler:

I am really pleased with the way the variegated threads are working out.  However, after working feverishly on Mary for about 3 weeks now, I have decided this week to get back to my HAED project, Holbein's Henry and maybe a bit on Isabella's garden.

Now, you might remember that a couple of posts ago, I said that I wanted to pass the Baboushka pattern on  plus the threads that were left.  Well, the lucky person who will get to stitch Baboushka is:

Gracie from Needles, pins and dragonflies.  You can find her blog here

Gracie, please email me your snail mail address and I will send you the pattern and the threads.  My email address is KayeDeP@gmail.com

I hope that you enjoy stitching her as much as I did.

Well, bye for now, everyone,

love Kaye xoxox

Weekend Round Up and another Happy Dance for a quick finish.

Hello Lovely Bloggers,

This weekend I have:

• had Sat morning brunch with DH
• been totally relaxed by having a facial and a pedicure (courtesy of DD and DS#2 - Mother's Day present) 
• celebrated a good friend's birthday with pizza and beer,
• gone for my Sunday walk around Princes Park with my dear friend, Marie 
• made yummy Scones and Pea and Ham soup
• bought three cross stitch magazines
• done some stitching whilst watching episodes of  Downton Abbey
• lastly, done a Happy Dance as I finished a sweet little butterfly for a notebook cover - which was a freebie in Cross Stitch Crazy, here is a pic of it.

Have a good week, everyone, 

bye for now, 

Kaye xoxox

Great Giveaway

Hello lovely bloggers,

I just wanted to let you know about Jo at Serendipitious Stitching.  She is celebrating her 100th follower.

You can check out her fabulous Giveaway here

I would also like to welcome my latest followers.  Hi to you all, I hope that you enjoy my blog.  I know that I enjoy exploring your blogs.

Happy Stitching to all this weekend,

Bye for now,

love Kaye xoxox

Baboushka Happy Dance

Hello lovely bloggers,

Well, I have finally had a finish for 2011!  Now, the reason that I don't finish much is that I am absolutely enamoured of big projects and that I also love to start projects and lastly, that I jump from project to project as my fancy takes me.  But anyway, Baboushka absolutely enchanted me and she turned out to be a quick finish.  So, here she is:

Sorry, the photo is a little fuzzy and for some reasons the colour is a little washed out (a photographer I am not!)

I am off to the framers at lunchtime to have her framed and I already have chosen a spot on the wall for her.

Now, I loved stitching Baboushka so much that I thought that I would like to pass the pattern on plus there is still quite a bit of thread left.  

If you would like me to pass the pattern on to you (I will post anywhere) just let me know by saying if you are interested on this post.  If I get a lot of takers I will pull a name out a hat or bowl as the case maybe.  If enough stitchers are interested maybe she could become a travelling pattern.

Have a lovely day, everyone,

Bye for now, Kaye xoxox

P.S. I have just got back from Lazy Daisy and I have chosen the most gorgeous dark green suede matting with a burgundy matte underneath and a lovely gilt frame - she is going to be beautiful.  I will get her back in two weeks and will post a picture of her then.

K xoxox

P.P.S.  and I bought another design (sigh!).  When I have taken a photo of the pattern I will post about it.

K xoxox

Weekend Roundup and Mary Wigham

This weekend I have:

• been out to dinner at a local RSL (Returned Servicemen's League) and seen some great old Ausssie rockers perform - Jimmy Keays, Russell Morris and Daryl Cotton
• been lap swimming and for a long walk with a DF around Princes Park
• had my legs and eye brows waxed
• visited my Dad for Father's Day
• done lots of stitching whilst I 
• caught up with my TV watching:
• Stargate Universe
• The Wire
• The Borgias
• out to our local Thai restaurant with DH, DS#1, DS#2 and DD and her BF to celebrate Father's Day

So, a good weekend.

With my stitching I did do a bit of a rotation but I ended up working mainly on my latest new design (Oh why? Oh why? do I keep starting new projects?) which is the Mary Wigham (Ackworth School) Sampler.  You can read all about Mary Wigham here on the Needleprint website.  If you scroll down the right hand sidebar you will find various links about Mary Wigham.

Anyway, despite two false starts and lots of frogging, I have finally made some progress on her today.  I have chosen to do something quite different and quite out of my comfort zone.  I am using variegated threads - the wonderful Cottage Garden hand-dyed threads, these are the ones which I used in my 20 Follower Giveaway.  I am really pleased with how it is shaping up.  Here are my progress photos:

This is as far as I have got

The variegated red part is the stitching I have now done three times

Two different sections using different colours - here it looks a little all over the place but in reality it is looking really good (even if I say so myself!)

Well, that is all for me today, I am going to do some more blogging than it is out for yummy Thai food with the family.

Bye for now, love Kaye xoxox

P.S.  I also want to say welcome to all of my new followers.  Lovely to meet you.  K

My Spring Daybook

FOR TODAY
Outside my window...

I am thinking...

I am thankful... for a late start to work today as I worked very late last night.

From the learning rooms... I have learnt a lot on the latest project I have been working upon.

In the kitchen... crusty bread and blueberry jam

I am wearing... leggings and a spring top

I am creating... a wonderful History book and an antique sampler

I am going...to see Darryl Cotton sing tonight

I am wondering... where the year has gone?

I am reading... several books at once: Shadowplay, Elizabeth's Women, Mr Rosenblum's list and New York.

I am hoping... to get lots of stitching done this weekend

I am looking forward to... my swim tomorrow

I am hearing... cats miaowing for attention

Around the house... all is peaceful as I am the only one home at the moment

I am pondering... if I will live to 92 like my Dad who just had his birthday last week

One of my favorite things... blogging! (new found love)

A few plans for the rest of the week: stitching, catching up with friends, watching old episodes of Stargate Universe whilst I stitch and read - bliss!

Here is picture for thought I am sharing..

A magpie outside my bedroom window

Please everyone, visit The Simple Woman's Daybook here

Thank you Peggy, 

Bye for now, everyone, it is off to work I go.

love Kaye xoxox

My Dad's 92nd Birthday Party

Hello Lovely Bloggers,

Firstly,  I would like to say hello and welcome to all my recent followers. It is lovely to meet you and I hope that you enjoy my blog, my craft and the little snippets of  my life in Eaglemont, Melbourne, Australia.  I am fairly new to blogging but I am loving it.  The sense of community amongst crafty bloggers is just amazing and the opportunity to find out about the lives of others all around the world is so fascinating to me.  Everyone's works are so clever and gorgeous and everyone is so friendly.

Anyway, today, I wanted to share with you my Dad's 92nd birthday party.  Last Sunday, my dad turned 92!  Amazing, isn't it?  What is even more amazing is that my Dad was actually a POW for 3 and 1/2 years in Changi, Singapore during WWII.  He survived that and has lived a happy, long life since then.  He and my Mum (who will be 90 next February) still live independently in their own home.  Whilst life is pretty low-key for them now, they still love watching their "Inspector" DVDs and catch a taxi nearly every day to go to the shops to do their errands.

The party was held at my home and we all had a lovely time.  So, here are some pics of the happy event:

Firstly, here is the funny card which I gave him - he thought it was a hoot!

Mum, Dad and DD

Back Row: Me, Dear Younger Sister, Dear Older Sister
Front Row: Mum and Dad

The Cakes
Front: Black Magic with Cherries
Back: Spice Cake with Lemon icing

Singing Happy Birthday

Dad with the cake

Well, that is my Dad's birthday.  I just want to say that I love my Dad very much, he has been a wonderful father and I am so proud to be his daughter.

That's all from me tonight, 

Bye for now,

love Kaye xoxox