A Happy Dance and Stash Empire Building

  

I would firstly like to say a big Aussie hello to my new followers - Welcome to my blog, I hope that your enjoy visiting me here in Eaglemont, Victoria.  It is so lovely to make new stitchy friends from around the world.  

I am getting excited - only 8 days to my first Blogoversary - who would have thought that I would still be going strong nearly a year later! Please don't forget to enter my Giveaway - I would love for you all to have a chance to win!

I have had a pretty good stitchy week this past week and long weekend (it was the Queen's Birthday Public holiday today).  I have a HAPPY DANCE.  I finished my second version of "here lie my needles".  I am really pleased with it - the variegated thread has turned out well, I think.  Sorry, the fabric is actually a dusty pink but it hasn't quite turned out like that -  not sure why.

"here lie my needles"
The Sampler Girl free pattern
28 count Dusty Pink Linen
Threads:
Cottage Garden Threads: Raisin
Olde Willow Stitcher Quaker Colours: Medallion Black

On Saturday, I went to visit my LNS, Lazy Daisy and, of course, I had to engage in some Stash Empire Building:

1. A kit for an Australian cushion  - I am going to do the Home Sweet Home version.  I do not normally like AIDA but on the stitched sample in the shop it looked fantastic.
                                      

                                         

2. Then I saw this sweet little French birth sampler - I couldn't resist as one of my friends at work is having a baby in about a month.  I am stitching it on 28 count Natural Quaker Cloth, which is gorgeous to stitch on, using Weeks Dye Works Garnet. It is stitching up really quickly, as you can see from the last photo in this set.  This is only three days stitching:

                                      

3. I had ordered this great design from Diane Arthurs, which I am going to stitch using Waterlilies variegated threads.

 4. I also picked up a Little House Needleworks Christmas Ornament and a Cottage Garden Needleworks May Cottage of the Month.

5. Then I couldn't resist this Needle book and Scissor Keep from the Stitching Girl - I am going to use the soft pastel colours.

6. This is the reason I went in the first place:  to kit up this cute design from a magazine - I have been planning to kit this up for ages.

 I have chosen a soft lilac fabric (sorry, I just do not seem to be able to get the fabric colours to show up right) and here is the floss toss.

7. Another impulse buy:  a kitty cat key ring to stitch.

8. Couldn't resist these cute scissors - a steal at $5.00!

9. Lastly, I bought some more Cottage Garden Threads - some for me and some to send to my stitchy friend Shirlee.

Noah's Ark is beckoning, so have a good evening everyone,

hugs,

A Naughty kitty cat!

Now, much as I love Furio he can be a naughty kitty cat.  Here he is sleeping peacefully on my knee whilst  I do some blogging and stitching. 

A few minutes later I got up to make a cup of tea and I dropped my skein of Cottage Garden Thread on the floor.  One minute later I found it looking like this:

Furio thought it was for him to play with!  It should look nice and neat like this one:  

Who could have thought that this sweet little kitty cat could be such a devil??

 The thread which Furio messed up I am using to make a special gift for someone (can't say who, it is a secret!).  I am stitching "here lie my needles" using hand-dyed Cottage Garden Threads  in Raisin.  The colour shading moves from a salmony-pink to a grey-purple. It is being stitched on the same dusky pink fabric which I stitched my Giveaway piece on.  I have also changed the year from 1692 to 2012.  I would love some input on how you all think this looks.  Do you think the shading works?

Have a nice day everyone.

hugs,