Saturday 30 June 2007

Oh Please No More Rain!!

Well the rain is back, but as of now its not as bad as it was. Last Monday I finished work only to see this ( Top picture to the left)when I got out, luckily my car was not parked there, i didn't think it had rained that bad, but then again that what you get with working inside, i didn't get the chance to see how bad things were getting.

I got a phone call from the kids schools telling me

to pick them up as the school was beginning to flood, the roads were terrible and it took me several attempts to find a route tat was still passable.
In all a 5 minutes journey took me over an hour. I live in a area high up above, the villages. middle of nowhere really, but the only thing is living at the top, is all the water you have to try and get through to get home.

I was supposed to go to my dads, but he phoned me up as the roads were impassable. thankfully everything is back to normal, apart from the clear up and the mud thats everywhere.

In contrast to other people in this area, we came off lightly some places were flooded 10ft high and the waters are still not receding over a week later

I have been busy stitching for the exchanges that i am doing, so I cant post any pictures just yet. i have to decide what i will stitch next after I have done them, i suppose its depending on the mood i am in. I could really get on with getting back onto the HAED that i am doing. I have noticed that people grid there work. not something that i have done before, but i think that on my next one, i will definitely do this, my eyes cant take the counting stitches on 25 count lol

Sunday 24 June 2007

Friendship Card Reveal


Well here is the Friendship card that I stitched for Sue, who is in the Yahoo group I joined up. I had no idea what you put on a friendship card so knowing she liked Disney I thought I should stick to that, but what do you want to bet your supposed to put something on it lol

The design is called Watercolour Pooh, so its not using bright colours that Disney often use, and I stitched it on 25count evenweave, which I have got used to since I started my QS Motherhood ( which unfortunately has taken a back seat until I get the exchanges out of the way!)

I stitched it one over one, so this way I could make it into a card, and I am getting a bit faster at stitching now, so it didn't take as long as I thought it would.

So now that that one is done I have to get started on the Animal exchange that Lynne set up on the Cross-stitching forum. I have never stitched a realistic animal before and I found it harder to chose a design to do than any other, as it was a limited choice and the other two animals that this person wanted was even harder to find, that would not take me weeks to do.

We did get six weeks to do it in but I have been so busy with everything else I have only just got started on it, and its got to be sent off next week. It's not something I would normally stitch, so the design I chose is not a big. We can make it into anything we want , when it is finished so I didn't want to be limited in what I can to do with it.

Karen just gave me the link where I can find the Chocolate Cake Sampler, so when I get paid I'm going to get that, and hopefully Ice Cream Sampler too (money permitting lol)

Monday 18 June 2007

I Love These Samplers (I want to Stitch them now!!! lol)



I have just seen this Ice Cream Sampler on Michelle's blog and I love it this is definitely one that I am going to stitch,

Then I saw the chocolate cake sampler too, when I went on the site to see where I could get it from and I love that one as well lol .

In fact I love all of them, and theres a couple of free patterns on the website too so I might stitch them first until I can get my hands on the charts.

So now I have two ( well ok maybe more) that I want to stitch. I am going to paint my Kitchen when I am off work for the school holidays so I am going to have to stitch these .

Now I have just to find someone who sells them in this country, as these will be on the top of my stitching list after I have got all of my exchanges out of the way

( which I have just signed up for another one so thats 5 in total now, why do I do it to myself for lol)

Sunday 17 June 2007

First effort of doing My own Design


Well I finally got my Father-in-laws card finished in time, OK I did cheat a bit, since I was stitching it on a bit of old Aida, I decided not to stitch the white part of the design to save me some time, otherwise I wouldn't have finished it in time.

If I had had more time I would have done it with white and various shades of off white and very pale grey, but as it is, I don't think it looks great but since its my first effort and its not something I would have stitched normally I suppose its OK.





I did make a cock up of the name too, I asked my mum in law what the caravan was called and she said 'Patiche', but when I went to take the photo of the caravan I noticed it was called 'Pastiche', so its spelt wrong on the card, thats what you get asking her when shes had a whiskey or two!!

I didn't do my own dad one, since he wouldn't have appreciated it anyway, he still has his Xmas cards in a drawer unopened, so I learn't not to give my dad a card.( I might get the card back out and give it him again this year and I bet he wouldn't notice either lol)

Now at least I can try and crack on with the friendship card that I have to finish and get off in the post by Wednesday.

Thursday 14 June 2007

My New Blog Template and Nice Surprise!!



I was having a really bad day, you know the kind where everything goes wrong.

The alarm doesn't go off, the kids uniform has some how managed to drag itself through mud, since the kids swear they didn't do it, you find out that they have a load of letters that they forgot to give you, and there going on a school trip that I had completely forgot about and you haven't a penny in your purse and they need£5 for the gift shop, (when did it go up so much I was lucky so get 50p- showing my age now!! lol) when all they buy is crap that you put in the bin the next day, because it broke last night leaving a child that makes Linda Blair (The Exorcist) look mild mannered!!

Yep i was having one of those days my garden was a mess and all my good intentions of cutting the grass went when I saw the rain that hasn't stopped all day and night now ( thats what you get with blowing the swimming pool up and filling it with water (which took 4 hours too)

this bloody thing was pissing me off too, if you have seen it over the past few days you may have well seen it change about once every five minutes trying to find a template that I liked!!

So my mood was cheered up no end when I received this in the post from Janien. To be honest I didn't expect it as I had signed up for a bookmark exchange and I thought that it had all fallen through since there had been some people who were behaving stupid and childish.

I have never got anything so nice in the post before!! I love all the detail that has gone into the envelope alone,and never seen one done before, and I am amazed that it actually got here!!

So thanks Janien even the hubby loves it and he normally doesn't make comments on any stitching( if it doesn't involve anything to do with fishing then hes not interested lol)

On my stitching front i am doing my father in laws card but it looked crap so I have frogged it and started again, if it still looks bad its going in the bin!!

On my blog now is a theme that I have designed myself, since I couldn't find one that I liked. the only problem is that I have AOL( which I think is crap but I am stuck with them till August) and then I use Firefox, which is so much better.
The only problem is that on AOL my writing doesnt appear till half way down the page but on Firefox it doesn't happen. If this happens on any body else's could they let me know on here or u can email me, so I can try and sort it out, still learning and it will probably be something so simple but when I asked AOL they said I have to see if its my pc or others too.

all I know is that its really bugging me now!!

Monday 11 June 2007

Having a Moan!

I have just spoke to my sister and after listening to her rabbit on for half an hour I asked her if she had got her card, as she had still got to pick up some stuff from my mums house since she helped her bring things back home.

'Yeah why?' Now maybe I am being slighly over the top like, but she didnt even say thanks. i just replied that I wanted to make sure she had got it, when she replied that there was no money inside though.

WELL NO!!!! I'm not on loads of money a week !!

OK i know that she didn't have to grovel but a thanks it was nice of you to make it for me would have been nice, ARGHHH family!!!

Oh and after reading Sallys blog and saw that she had changed it( like the design you chose too) i stupidly clicked on the link now i have been sat looking for a new design, ( I get bored easily and since I cant change my man might as well change the look of this, so you have been warned it will change a bit over the months lol)

Not too sure of it but this template take widgets so I might have a go at it( then again it might be back to how it was yesterday in a bit lol)

Sunday 10 June 2007

Engagement Card Finished (in two nights)


This is the card I made for my sisters engagement, I made a cock up of it when you look at the glass at the back you can see that the top of the glass is too wide but since I made it with an hour to spare before her party and I still had to get ready I had no choice but to leave it.

She hasn't opened any of her cards yet, so no idea of she likes it or not, she had better do though, as I still haven't started on any Fathers Day cards yet and when I went to Asda today it was only when I noticed the date that I realised that its next weekend, I thought I had another fortnight to go. So yet again everything that I am stitching at the moment has to go on hold to get everything done!!

Going to get all my ironing done now and then clean the swimming pool out ready for the anticipated hot weather we were told we would get today, just been outside though and its bloody cold and not a sign of the sun, theres no way I'm going in the pool if its cold outside. Mind you it takes about 4 hours to fill it up, so it might warm up then.

Hopefully then if I get everything done today I can sit down and catch up with reading the blogs and answering email to everyone in the morning.

Friday 8 June 2007

Coaster Exchange Reveal


Well I can finally reveal the coaster exchange pics.

On the coaster that I did to send to Nicola I used Margaret Sherry's Dandelion Clock pattern, then put Nicola's initial on.

I was a bit worried as my hubby posted it for me and just used ordinary post instead of recorded. Its like talking to a brick wall I don't know ho many times I told him, should have done it myself, bloody men!!

On Wednesday I got my coaster from Cassie. Its the first exchange that I have done so it was really nice to get something in the post, that was not a bill.




So thanks Cassie I love it. I have now signed up for another one of Cassie's exchanges and two more besides. think I will have to get these done now before I am stitching 24/7 to get everything done! lol

Monday 4 June 2007

Back from the Holiday and so much to do



Well I have just come back from a weeks holiday and I have so much washing and ironing to do its unbelievable, How can you go through so many clothes in one week!!??!!
To make matters worse the bloody washing machine has broke down, so I am having to take my washing to my mum-in-laws, no big deal since i live next door to her ( yes I know what your thinking as i keep thinking it myself!! lol), but i have to do it in between her own washing and she has also been on holiday and i can only do it when there in, so at this rate i will get it all done by the end of next week!!

The holiday was great, crap weather, until it was time to come home, like it normally is, and we didn't really do anything, went to see the local tourist spots, went to to see Pirates of the Caribbean , At World End, swooned at Johnny Depp( which he looks so much better in the film than he does in real life), and did some stitching.

First I Stitched the Lickle Ted chart that you got free with The World Of Cross Stitching magazine, for my daughters friend. She has just come over here to live from Thailand so even though shes not having a party Nicole thought it would be nice to give her something.

Then I started my motherhood QS, can just make out the womans face now, but unfortunately that will have to take a back seat for now since I have a Friendship card to make ( what the hell do i stitch for that?) and my sisters engagement card to do for this Friday, yes I know I left it a bit late, so hopefully I will get back on track with it by the end of next week ( ok probably not know i have said that lol)

God I hate coming back form holiday its just so hard work lol