Vintage stitchery, a bit of Cath and a helping of kindness!

Hello you lovelies!

How is life treating you all... very well I hope!

I love this time of the year, don't you? All changes.... buds bursting forth and gardens and widlife springing to life. You just can't help but to feel brighter on a spring day pregnant with hope and promise! That is the spring day being pregnant... not me! Now that would be a blooming miracle!!!!

This is one of my cross stitch designs ... my take on spring, and my own verse too I may add. Yes I know, I will never make it as a poet! Ha ha ha!

Even the country is standing at the starting line of new beginnings, changes are afoot, and no matter what our individual views on it all are, it is a very interesting time to come. A little scary perhaps, and unsure, but this last week has been a historical one in politics! I am finding all a little scary I must say! I wait with baited breath to see the future unfold..... People have been getting bees in their bonnets about it all, and we will wait and see now what is to come!

One of my stitchery designs... Think I may have put this one on before, so sorry if I have! Losing track!

I seem to have been drifting away from stitching lately and filling my blog with my drawing. There is good reason for this of course, and that is that all my stitcheries originate from my drawings and paintings, so they are close cousins!  So here are some charity shop finds for all you lovers of vintage stitching! These are not my designs, I found them in my local CS s.

Lovely spring inspiring beauties.....

I love this one, it is a table cloth, but it is badly marked in places, so it may be a job for the scissors maybe!I quite fancy using the pieces in a patchwork quilt for the bed , maybe!

I was rooting about upstairs trying to find something, when I heard some giggling coming from a box in the cupboard. Guess what? It was these two impish little girls and their cat who have been stuffed in a box in a very undignified way since we moved. I had forgotten all about my attempts at making ragdolls!

 

 

 

The top girlie has been embellished with some of my stitchery and my handmade buttons!

While I am still in the sewing theme... I am thinking of making a throw for a very tatty embarassing chair out of these fabrics and some embroidery... what do you think hey?

Ok! I can hear you! "Where is the Cath Kidston bit?".....  Oh ok! Here it is. I spotted this tote on the front of a magazine a week or two ago. My eyes nearly stood out on stalks! I actually let out a little squeal of delight right there in the middle of a crowded supermarket, much to poor George's despair! A free, yes FREE Cath Kidston tote bag! Straight to the till with that!

So cheerful, it brightens up my hallway! Off to the shops I will go! 

Before I go again, I must tell you all about a parcel that landed on my porch floor on wednesday. My lovely friend Jen at Themadhouse sent me these lovely gifts. I sometimes just can not get over the kindness of you wonderful peeps! Jen thank you soooooo much! I really must get my finger out to repay these kindnesses, as I have had a few so far, and I am going to see to it that I give some kindness back! You know who you are! So! Thank you so much Jen, you are a very kind and special person! 

A beautiful pin cushion, such a lovely fabric and a little label which says sewing! A very interesting book, which I just know I will love! Also a lovely thoughtful note, which I have partly covered to hide the address, of course!

Right then folks! Cheery bye for another week. I am off to water my seedlings and veggies now!  

Suzie xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx :)

The north wind doth blow and we shall have snow angels!

Hello everyone!

Old Man Winter is definitely taking hold this year, snow, snow and more snow! I love it of course, because it reminds me of my childhood in Canada.

 

One of my drawings, a little tatty I'm afraid!

It is beautiful, magical and does not happen too often in Lancashire, so I am enjoying it. Then again,  I do have the benefit of working from home, and so far the snow which is affecting many parts of the country badly, is not causing a great problem where I live, so luckily has not stopped me from doing anything as yet!  It just looks incredibly pretty! Jack frost has been a busy little man!

Isn't this gorgeous, I found it on the internet. It is not one of mine.... sadly!

Winter to many people is a bleak time,  the season where all seems dormant and, some may say... dead. The ground is frozen, autumns leaves lie moulding, leafless twigs and branches waver in the cold icy winds. Gardens appear so sad compared to their full and lush appearance in the summer months. Yes, it all looks a bit sad don't you think?   Nothing is happening out there at all. But wait, what is this?

Buds all over the place... waiting for the spring!

No, it is only slumbering, and as our bodies do when asleep, replenishing and preparing for the next adventure.  At each turn of a moment all is changing... ever moving, turning in endless circles, soon to be re-born again into what appears to resemble a replica of last years glory,  but yet completely different ... new leaves, fresh flowers.

A view of my home from halfway down the garden.

 Change is an inevitable and inescapable presence in all of our lives. We can not hide from it. I could sit in a room all day and refuse to come out, ignoring the world, and still change will manifest all around me and to me! Just like the seasons coming and going, just as our cells in our bodies are not the same ones that we used to have, we are constantly changing. This is scary, but fascinating at the same time.

Now, I am no spring chicken any more, and like the winter garden,  perhaps I look like I need some attention! Sometimes I am feeling quite ancient like my old Owl Tree! Wisdom to follow I hope!

However, I sometimes feel like I am swapping my ever disappearing youth with an ever growing mind and spirit. I am nurturing my creativity and zest for life into a bursting flower. This to me, is how winter is. Underneath and behind what appears to be a faded vista,  is a hive of activity and life, busy in preparation for a new refreshed world ready to burst out in the spring. Winter is a time of hidden miracles!

Winter fills me to the brim with excitement for the year to come... planning my garden, looking forward to watching it waken slowly from its wintery sleep, getting my home decorated and sorted out, and inventing new projects to craft and sew! Cosy times at home spent next to a roaring fire eating heart-warming stews. I love the changing of the seasons, and their constant reminder for me to accept gracefully the changes that life brings each day.

Time to enjoy our homes and cosy comforts! One of my cross stitch designs.

Life is a journey and an adventure, one which should be embraced, bad times as well as good. All of our joys, trials and tribulations are what make up our Auto-biographies. Wouldn't our books make rather boring reading if every day our lives just plodded on and on? Our books are more likely to be stuffed full with the richness of life... our sadnesses, success and failure, our loves, our work, talents...laughter and tears. Each day our individual history, unique and precious is constructed. Once a page is written, it is there for all time in our book for better or for worse.

One of my Angel Angst stitcheries! Hmmm, my halo has slipped on occasions too!

We may not always hold control of  every word printed onto the pages of our life-story but we can decide whether we are the hero or the villian, whether we wish to reflect on events with bitterness or with grace. In other words, how we wish to react to each of our pages. We do have that choice at least.

So my New Years resolution for 2010 is to write a new chapter, one which has had some thought put into it!
This chapter will be about making the most of each moment, being aware of  the hidden magic that is very much there even if we forget to look for it sometimes! I intend to laugh a lot and jump in puddles much more often! Whatever life throws!  One of my favourite sayings is "Life is a tragi-comedy..... and you are the star!"

What are your New Years resolutions? Tell me!

Before I wander off for another week, go and have a look at Theresa's fantastic  January Jubilee giveaway at Faerie Moon Creations! It is well worth a look believe me, this lady is so talented!

Well until next week I wish you all to be allocated at least one snowman or lady, and I hope that the weather is not causing you any headaches. Oh and don't forget, if you get the chance.... have a snowball fight, make a snow-angel and laugh until you cry!

Love and blessings to you all!

Suzie. xxx :)

Ding Dong merrily on high!

Hello all you little christmas elves out there! Thank you to all who wished my arm well! It is a lot better now thank you! Although I do still feel a bit achey, with a sore throat, but nothing too bad!

Well, I don't know about you but I don't think that it harms sometimes to do a good spot of self mocking! It is good for the soul I think to have a darn good laugh at one's self.  For instance, a couple of weeks ago, I dyed my hair orange! Yes, you did read that right, orange! Satuma surprise! No, the hair dye wasn't called that! I have toned it down a bit now, but when will I learn to take my glasses with me when I go to the shops!?  It was supposed to be light brown, but it actually said light auburn. When I put it on, it must have reacted with my blonde highlights. (that I also self appy)

I bought these little angels (there are two!) without my glasses on too, the price tag to my Mr. Maggoo eyes read £9.99 for the pair, the price tag to eyes that can actually see read £19.99. So it was a good job that I had enough money in my purse when I plonked them on the counter!

This week I thought I would bring you all some festive cheer by sharing some of my christmas with you all.  Last weeks post hit a nerve with me and this week after years of buying a real tree I have gone and bought this artificial one. I always feel sad for the trees, and I know that they are grown specially for the purpose, but after the story I told last week I just couldn't! Silly, I know!

  

 

 

 

This tree skirt is over 40 years old and has travelled back and forwards to Canada!

Note how I have changed the fire surround by painting it cream, much better I think!

I have been so lucky and have been given these awards. The first by Tracey at Tracey's crafty scraps and Mummy mad at The Madhouse. Thank you so much to you both, you have made my week! I was so excited when I found out that You had chosen me!

The other one is from Theresa at  Faerie Moon Creations,  Thank you so much Theresa, I am really bowled over that you have given me this award!

For both awards I am to list a few things that you may not know about me, and some things I like to do.  Oh dear! Soooo.......

1. I love listening to music, any type more or less.
2. I enjoy puzzles, cross words, sudoku, etc.
3. Having a special meal with George, with candles and music, lovely
4. Being at home, all cozy toasting marshmallows by the fire.
5. I love laughing!

Things you may not know about me;

1. I can lead and cut glass.
2. I can walk for miles and miles, but not too good with hills!
3. I get full quick, but my eyes are bigger than my belly!
4. I can do a hilarious rendition of 'oh my darling clementine' on the piano, it can make dogs howl!
5. I can be a bit of a practical joker. Last weet I put cling film over the top of George's bottle of becks, and the confused look on his face when he couldn't get any beer out, just made me crack up into hysterics!
6.  I am a serial giggler, and apparently laugh at anything!
7. I could never have my own children, so all three of our children we have adopted.

I am not going to pass this award on at the moment, as a lot of the people who I would like to give it to, have just got one the same, so in the new year I will make one and give some out to all my lovely friends that I have made here in blogland!
I am going to have a blogging break over Christmas as I feel a little frazzled and I have friends and family visiting, and visits to be made. You know, the usual Christmas activities. So I won't be blogging or commenting until January now, (if I can resist the urge to peek, that is!).  I don't want any of my lovely blogging pals to think that I am ignoring them, but I have to have a complete break from the computer, work and sewing! Then again, next friday, posting day is actually christmas day, so I wouldn't be posting then anyway would I!?  Hmmmmmm!

Ralphus  Le- puff  Macduff  (Ralph)  says Merry Christmas!

Archibald Peabody Smythe (Archie) says Jolly merry festitvities! More like Bah humbug! Don't you think he looks more like scrooge? He has got the saddest face I have ever seen on a dog. Probably just can't take another one of my jokes!

Bertram Butterbean Barker (Bertie to his friends) says Happy New Year!

So I will be off now until the new year and I wish you all a wonderful, laughter filled christmas and a very Happy new year. New decade that is!!!

May fairy dust land on the tips of your noses and make you giggle out loud!

Love Suzie. xxx

Party time!!! Show us your Cath!

Well, here it is, the Cath Kidston party! Go to Lissy lou's blog to see who is taking part.
http://lissylouandthe2littleboys.blogspot.com

I have visited many blogs lately which have shown the latest Cath Kidston book 'Sew', and people who have bought it saying how good it is.

Well, a couple of weeks ago, after drooling over said book each time I saw it, I looked at it on Amazon, thinking I will just have a little look. It doesn't mean that I will buy it I convinced myself!  So, I read a couple of reviews, and ummmed and awhhed. Was just about to leave it, when I noticed that not only did it include patterns for many lovely makes, but it also included all you need to make a very pretty handbag! Gosh, I thought, this is a bargain which can't be ignored. What strong resolve I have! NOT!!!

I had the book for about a week before I got stuck in and made the bag. I decided to line it with red gingham and put a button I had covered on to the front. Having never made a bag before, I was really chuffed! I got the big giddy girl syndrome!

 

 

 

When Lissy Lou suggested this party, I got to thinking about why I and so many others love Cath Kidston so much. What is it that makes us fill up with excitement when we see her fabrics, colours, homeware, etc? What is the secret ingredient that beckons?

Is it that we are reminded of cosy times, perhaps of childhood, Enid Blyton and Ladybird books and nostalgic imaginings? With bright fresh and whimsical florals, polka dots and stripes, can it be awakening something within us that makes us feel warm and safe. I feel that Cath kidston conjures up feelings and images of baking in a country kitchen, vintage homes, fresh bread and being surrounded by gorgeous colour and pattern. It is a feel good thing!

 

I love the cheerfulness and also quirkiness of  the overall look of mixing florals together with polka dots, stripes and cute patterns, quite often in soft pinks, blues and splashes of red, with fresh greens. I think it is hard to explain the feeling that it all gives me, but I am sure anyone reading this, with the same love of anything vintage will know what feeling I refer to. It actually gives me a buzz of sorts! I just love it!

If I woke up one morning and found myself surrounded by all things Cath Kidston or the like, I would think I had died and gone to heaven!

It doesn't surprise me at all that I like Cath Kidston so much, as I do some Laura Ashley........................

 

Monsoon....................

 

and Bridgewater too,

 

After all I do so love all those old Doris Day films which give such a rosey cosy picture of home!

Love the film Don't eat the daisys!!!

I would like one of these!

I would also love :

 And look at this gorgeous pin tin!!!

Just look at these knitted cupcakes I found on the internet for more inspiration!

Now here are a few of my own Cath Kidston and CK inspired goodies that are dotted about my home!

A Ck carrier bag bag, one to actually want out instead of hiding it away under the stairs!

The dotty jug is Laura Ashley, as is the enamel cake stand, the heart I made and the little cup is Ck!

I love mixing florals with checks, Here is what I have on my bed at the moment! Rosebud and pink gingham pillow, with a sequin edged top pillow, floral duvet and patchwork bedspread in green gingham and pink florals with tiny splashes of red.

A spotty dotty holdall hanging next to my much adored monsoon handbag.

A bright red polka dot enamel tin from Primark (!) sits on a lovely vintage linen embroidered tray cloth, which in turn lays on a Laura Ashley tea towel (too nice to be used as a tea towel) with Laura Ashley daisy coasters bought in a sale!

I love this little enamel bucket, it is so cute! I have a few enamel buckets now, for some reason!

This peg bag makes hanging out the laundry so much nicer. It is bright and cheerful and I love it!

Finally! Here are a few of some lovely squares made up out of a mix of CK and Laura Ashley fabrics, all ready and waiting to be made up into a patchwork creation of some sort!

Well everybody, I hope you enjoyed my CK party. I am off out now, into blogland to go to all the other wonderful parties going on out there today! Can't wait!

So until next week, enjoy the parties and have a fabulous weekend!

Lots of love and hugs Suzie. :) xxx