Small SALs June Update...

...  Hallowe'en Ornie SAL June update and Weekend Round Up.

So, first up, here is Haunted Love by T.A. Smith (Free design on Pumpkin Seed Stitchers Facebook group).  This fits into both the Smalls SAL and the Hallowe'en Ornie SAL (this month was a free choice).

Stitched on 28ct Almond linen using 310, WDW Fiesta (for the pumpkin - my go-to thread for pumpkins and moons in Halloween stitching) and GAST Oatmeal (for the ghosts).

I also had a Happy Dance for my third ombre cowl scarf - this one is for my friend, Shirley (who is a work colleague - she chose the colourway)

On Saturday night I made this "Almost Shepherdless Pie" from Rachel Khoo's Kitchen notebook - it was absolutely delicious!

Lastly, DS2 was down from Sydney for the weekend again (he lucked on a cheap airline ticket), so on Sunday afternoon we all went for a late lunch at Crabapple Kitchen in Hawthorn.  TraderVic and I both had the oh so delicious buttermilk pancakes with ricotta, maple syrup and bacon. (Sorry, no photo this time).

So, back to some stitching for me and to watch a bit of The Voice.

Love to you all and hugs, 

P.S. Visit these links if you want to visit the Smalls SAL or the Hallowe'en Ornie SAL.

Gorgeous Gorgeousness Galore and May FNSI...

Hi lovely, stitchy, bloggy friends,

It is time for my Gifted Gorgeousness SAL update for May.  For those of you who are not sure what I am talking about.....

The Gifted Gorgeousness SAL is run by the wonderful Jo from Serendipitous Stitching.  The idea is that every month we link to Jo's GG blog post to show off whatever we are stitching that is Gift-related.  It can be something we are making for someone special or a chart or threads with which we have been gifted or basically anything else we can shoehorn into the basic premise.

It is such a good idea, as we all have something we are doing in at least one of those categories, don't we?

I have quite a few things to show you, so, here is my May update:

First off, when I got home from work last night, I found a surprise package waiting for me, from my dear SSF, Kim from Wisdom with Needle and Thread. I have been a bit down lately, 2015 has been a very emotional year for me so far, starting on a high with DS1's wedding (which we planned and executed in less than two months), then the unexpected death of my DFIL only six days later after having lived with us for over sixteen years, finishing with all three of our children moving out/interstate within less than a month of the wedding, my dear Dad is going blind (which is a great worry, naturally) and there have been some unsettling and disappointing things happening at work - so, I have not been sleeping well and, overall, I have not been my usual, cheery self. In fact, I feel that I have lost my natural resilience and I do not know how to get it back. (Any ideas, anyone?)

 Well, Kim picked up on all of this and decided to send me a "cheer up" package.

Well, cheer me up, she certainly did!  Sending me gifts that reflect two of my great passions:  Kitty cats and the Tudors!  Do you want to see?

Look, a Henry Viii and his six wives mini cushion kit (love it, love it, love it)

A kitty cat purse (how adorable):

... and inside it a decorated Tudor tin.

.. and inside that a sweet tiny needle minder cushion.

Inside of the tin:

Tudor fabric on the back of the needle minder....

Some Tudor cards....

Kim, I cannot express how special a friend you are to me and how much this surprise gift meant to me!  All I can say is thank you, thank you, thank you, my dear SSF.

Now, for some more kindness, this time from some neighbours.  These neighbours live diagonally across from our back fence and we do not see them that often, just out in the street occasionally.  Well, TraderVic ran into Theresa last week after quite a long time, she asked after my DFIL and TraderVic had to tell her that he had passed away in January.  Well, she was quite shocked and saddened to hear this news and last night she dropped by with these gorgeous flowers for us - aren't they lovely? And so thoughtful of our neighbours.

Well, I did create some Gifted Gorgeousness of my own. This is another Ombre Cowl scarf (in quite a different colour way to mine) I knitted for my dear friend Marita's birthday.  She wears a lot of these strong colours, so it will match a lot of her wardrobe.

She was delighted with it, as you can see by the big smile on her face as she models it for you all.

Lastly, here is my FNSI from last night, which also fits into GG as I am stitching it as a baby gift for a friend. The design is called American Baby, I am probably about one-third of way through it now.

Anyway, that is all from me for now, I am off to check out everyone else's FNSI and GG.

Love to you all, 

hugs, 

Weekend Round up......

Oh, I think I ate too much this weekend!  It was all delicious, though!

It began on Friday lunchtime when I was able to have an unexpected lunch with DS2, who was down from Sydney and was working in the building opposite mine in Docklands!

So, I took him to a hidden gem of an Italian cafe in Docklands, called Caffe Bambino, very authentic Italian food and coffee.

Then, Friday night, we went to the HTC's production of The Three Sisters.  Extremely well done.  Beforehand our theatre group always goes to a Greek restaurant nearby called Byzantine, where I had the most delicious lamb dish.

Saturday night saw us at Madame Sousou again (we had been there a few months ago to celebrate my dear friend Marie's clean bill of health from her cancer), for a delicious French dinner to celebrate my very dearest friend, Kim's birthday.  She and I shared Chateaubriand and it was out of this world - the beef literally melted in your mouth.

Sunday morning was brunch with our daughter (poached eggs with aparagus wrapped in prosciutto).  Needless to say, TraderVic and I gave up eating for the rest of the weekend after all of this delicious food - lol!

However, there was some crafting going on, too.

I stitched a bit on my Pink version of "Counting" but I need really good light to stitch this one at the moment.  I also started Day 10 of my PS SAL with Linda, Santa's 12 Days of Christmas but there will be pics of those next time.

However, I did have a Happy Dance, I finished my ombre scarf!  

I am so thrilled with it!  It is bitterly cold here this morning and I am about to set off for work, so I will be toasty and warm this morning on the train platform!

Okay, have to dash, 

love 

I blame it on Margaret...

... for me taking up knitting again.

Now, in my teens and over my twenties, I was an avid knitter.  I used to knit so much of an evening that when I went to bed my fingers would ache!  So much so, that TraderVic was very worried that I would get arthritis in them when I was old (so far so good). So, in the end, as life got busier with the children and work and as patchwork and quilting and cross stitch was kinder on the fingers, knitting somehow got left behind.


I used to knit quite intricate garments such as this christening gown (with matching bootees and cap) which all of my children wore to their christenings.  It was knitted in very fine 2ply and a row was hundreds of stitches (it was knitted in the round).

Anyway, my dear friend, Margaret from Days of a Sampler Lover, has been knitting like crazy the last several months.  Her great progress pics have been whetting my appetite.

I especially love this scarf, called the Walking Tour scarf, which she knitted. I adore Fair Isle knitting.

Isn't it gorgeous?  You can buy the pattern from The Feral Knitter via  Ravelry.

So, while I haven't quite committed to starting this as a project yet (it requires 36 colours!), I did visit Morris and Sons  and bought some gorgeous wool to knit an ombre cowl scarf.

I am about halfway through and I only started last Monday evening.  I am really enjoying knitting again. It is a bit like riding a bike - it has all come back to me.

Anyway, enjoy your Sunday everyone.  It is a wet, miserable morning so far here in Eaglemont so a good day to stay in and stitch and knit away!

love from me to all of you,

hugs,

P.S. Margaret, I don't really blame you - I am actually very thankful for you giving me back my knitting mojo!  Love to you xoxoxo