Good enough to eat

I finished my Liquorice Allsorts jar for Becki, don't they look lovely? It makes me feel like eating some when I see it. Becki has a tin in her room that we have to keep topping up with allsorts ! I now need to stitch it onto her blanket.

I also dug out one of my WIPs this week - the Christmas Window one. I have been working on this 2 years now and think I ought to try to get it finished for this Christmas. Once I picked it up again I enjoyed stitching on it and aim to work on it all week. I have done more though as I have had 2 days off work, but now I go back tomorrow and therefore will have less stitching time. This is how it looked last week -

Lastly here is my Valentine's card for Stuart. I normally stitch one but didn't have time this year with all the 18th birthday cards I had to make. So I made a decoupage one instead. I was pleased with the end result.

Laura had her interview at Reading University last week and has been offered a place there too. She thinks though that Nottingham is still her favourite but will pick Reading as her "insurance" place as they require lower grades. We visit Nottingham again in a couple of weeks. Becki too has now heard from one of her Universities and has an audition at Bedford in March. This is her favourite one so let's hope the end result of this audition is more positive than the Dance School ones.

Today we have had a family portrait photo session. We will get one free family print and then will buy one of just the girls. So looking forward to seeing how they turn out.

Happy stitching

Ginnie xxx

This famous blog

While flicking through the latest issue of World of Cross Stitching I was surprised to see an article on "websites we love" that mentioned my blog. What an honour, especially as I have only just got back into blogging! I feel famous !!!

Since my last post I have just a couple of small pieces to show you. Firstly this Buzz Lightyear square is for a charity quilt. We are trying to do a Toy Story/Super heroes one for a very sick little boy. I am working on Woody now.

I am also stitching a liquorice allsorts jar for Becki who is just mad about them!! For Christmas I bought both the girls a fleece blanket and they want me to sew small cross stitch pictures on them so they can take it to University. I will show a photo of the whole blankets at some point but they barely part with them!! I should have this finished by next post. The chart is from WOCS magazine.

Lastly here is the card I have now completed that the girls gave to their friend for her 18th birthday. I believe she really liked it.

Becki has now applied for University Dance courses after getting a "no" from the Dance Schools she auditioned at. It has been a very stressful time as she has been very upset about it all but is now coming to terms with it and moving on. Least she can still pursue her love of dancing just not at such a high standard.

Laura has an interview at Reading University next week, although Nottingham is still her favourite.

Happy stitching
Ginnie xxx

An old UFO

I have dug out one of my oldest, oldest, oldest UFOs! I think I started it before the girl's were born, so 18 years ago but it could have been just after.... my memory doesn't quite recall.

It is a Dimensions kit of Noah's Ark and just before Christmas I started to take it to Stitch Club to work on as one of the other ladies was doing a Noah's Ark too.

Here is my progress:

Some of the reasons it became a UFO are it just was so big, it is on 18 count aida and it grew very slowly. So my new aim is to take it to club when I go and try to get it done by the end of 2012. As you can see I have just over 50% complete.

My small finish this week is the piece for another 18th birthday card. The girls thought the saying was apt for this friend. I will make it into a card over the weekend.

Becki is waiting to hear back from her audition on Saturday. She liked it there and thought it went well but you can never tell. One place she sent an application and payment to have just sent a letter back saying they can't offer her an audition. That's nice, they take the money still though. This Saturday she has an audition in Leeds, so fingers crossed for that one. I am getting more and more stressed as the realisation hits me that she may not get a place so will be devastated. Especially as Laura will then probably go to University in Sept and Becki may stay home. Her back up plan then will be just to apply for Dance courses at Uni, but that would be for the following year. Don't you just wish you had a magic wand to make everything right for them !

Happy stitching

Ginnie xx

First card finish of the year.

I am pleased with how quickly I stitched this Forever Friends ted. I only started him last weekend. He is out of the latest issue of WOCS magazine. The chart had the candles all different colours but I went with just the lilac. He is so cute I wish I was keeping him myself ! But he is for one of the girl's bestest friends who turns 18 in a couple of weeks. I kept the card simple so she could just remove the Happy Birthday sticker and frame the picture. I hope she does.

Because I worked on this all week I have done no more stitching on Pension Day. I want to start another small cute picture for another card soon but have just realised I need to stock up on a particular DMC colour required in the chart.

Otherwise I am still stitching squares for my charity and may start one of those instead until I get to the shop.

Had a tiring weekend, not because I went out but because the girls have had late nights out and I tend to wait up for them (or have to pick them up late !) I suppose that is the joys of having 17 year old daughters. Next Saturday we are going to London again as Becki has an audition at London Contemporary Dance School, I hope she gets a good outcome from this as we all liked this school when we visited in October. So fingers crossed !!

Hope you have all had a good week.

Ginnie xx

Good Start !

The first day of 2012 and I am blogging... what a good start !

We had a good Christmas but then after Boxing Day I got a cold and cough and felt pretty rough. Still not 100% now. Stuart not feeling fab today either so hope I haven't passed my germs his way. Spent New Year's Eve with my mum and dad, girls went out (first NYE with out them). Back to work on Tuesday !

Luckily I managed to get some stitching done while I wasn't feeling too well. I started a while back a new picture for mum and dad called Pension Day. It is from an old WOCS magazine. It has lots of colours in it though so I put it away for a while. Over Christmas I sorted several of the colours onto my thread organiser and that really helped.

Here is what it will eventually look like -

And this is my progress so far. I made a slight mistake early on too so I have that to make some parts up as I go along ! Lots of browns.... oh well !

This year I also want to stitch this -

Hopefully if Becki gets into a Dance School she will leave her local dance school where she now teaches too and has been attending since she was 5. So she wants me to stitch a special piece for her teacher Rachel. I intend to stitch the dance school name instead of just her name.

Before I start this I have a couple of 18th birthday cards to do for 2 of the girls friends. I have started a Forever Friends bear already for one of them and will update next time with a photo.

Hope everyone has a happy and healthy 2012.

Ginnie xx

New Year Resolution

I have been away from my blog for far too long and I have started to miss it.

So I am determined to try and blog more again in 2012.

Since my last post in July I have stitching only small things, a few of which are below. I don't seem to have as much time as I did as in October I increased my hours at work. I have also lost some motivation to stitch.. I hope I can get back into the swing of things more agin in 2012.

The girls have kept me busy too, especially Becki. We have been down to London (and Leeds)several times to view Dance schools and in December she has had 2 auditions. Sadly she had a straight rejection from the one school but the other has put her on a reserve list... which is a little more promising. In January she has 2 more auditions, so lets hope one of them is a "yes".

Laura has had offers from both Nottingham and Birmingham University to study Ancient History and Archeology in Sept '12. She wants to go to Nottingham as long as she gets the grades.

So here are a few of my pieces from the last couple of months. Firstly these are the cards I made the girls this year for Christmas. Becki's is London... in the hope she ends up at a Dance School there and Laura's is Rome as she hopes to visit Rome when she is studying Ancient History. They were stitched with metallic thread !

This is a Forever Friends one I just fancied stitching for myself. I haven't actually done anything with it yet.


Lastly this is my Christmas Angel, she is very pretty. I have just made her into an ornament but haven't taken a new photo yet.



Hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas and see you in 2012.

Ginnie xx

Henry is finally finished

I don't know where time has gone too, I didn't think it was that long since I blogged but it was the end of May.... oh dear. Must admit my stitchy bug has had it's ups and downs, there used to be rarely a day that I didn't stitch but I know recently I can go for days without picking my needle up.

Never the less I have 2 finishes to show, one of which is Henry VIII and his wives. I finally put the last stitch in it this morning making it around a 19 month project. So pleased to see it all finished at last, it looks great, and here it is -

The photo is a little dark but it has been a dull day here ! Now to save up to get it framed.

I also finished the Ballerina for Becki recently. I really enjoyed this even with all the similar colours. She loves it too...... and other one to frame !!

Been a busy few weeks for us as a family too. We have visited a few universities now and have another few to visit in September. But at the moment Laura especially loved Nottingham Uni.... which is set in lovely park like grounds and they are having a brand new Humanities building this year where she would then be based. Becki still wants to get into a Dance School in London, but if that doesn't work out she visited Bedford Uni (still to do Dance) and liked that as a second choice. They have to start applying around the middle of September. I really hope they get what they want but I am going to miss them so much next year when they leave home... all part of growing up I suppose.

Talking of growing up we have also had a "first" boyfriend on the scene. Becki started seeing this lad called George..... but it lasted less than 2 weeks when she realised they had little in common etc etc...... was an emotional time for all of us, I never realised how involved I would get with all this....... and I suppose I have more to come. Now the 2 of them are spending most of their summer over at friends houses !

Good job I have new stitching lined up for the lonely times ahead !! I am about to start one for my mum and dad called Pension Day which was in a magazine a few years ago and also fancy doing another Forever Friends one for me. Will update you on these next time.

Until then Happy Stitching

Ginnie xx