Bad Blogger.

Apologies for my absence , I am not feeling the groove at the moment .

I had a very stressful week at the beginning of this month . I posted of a package to Love Quilts , and it decided to go missing along the way . It had five squares in , and two of them had deadlines for the end of this month , so I was faced with the possibility of having to re-stitch three squares in a very short space of time . Not a prospect I was looking forward to .
 Fortunately, they did turn up , but were held to ransom as the stamp/postage label had somehow become separated from the envelope.After a week of waiting , I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. It took me a while to come down and my stitching and blogging mojo are still not at 100 % .

 Added to that , my W key has come adrift , which makes typing a little difficult ,lol. It's amazing how often you need to press W.

Anyway , on to good things. I managed to finish another a/c square for LQUK , which was in the envelope . Quite pleased with this one.

And , I was a very lucky winner of a give away that Lisa was having , and what a gorgeous package of goodies I received.
  The lovely gifts were all parcelled up in this gorgeous fabric and ribbon , but I was too eager to see what was inside to remember to take  before picture.

                                           Amazing fabric , can't wait to find suitable projects .

                                            Floss winders and stitch bows , beads and pretties.

      Lovely threads , Christmassy DMC colours and some WDW and GAST and a spool of Kreinik .

                                     Yummy choccy which is being savoured a little bit at a time.

Fantastic charts , just to my taste .

And , last but definitely not least , the most gorgeous fob . These pictures do not do it justice , it is absolutely beautiful .

 Lisa , Thank you again so much , I love everything and can't wait to use it .

I also placed a small (yeah right , who am I kidding ?) order with Katz X Stitch with some of  my Christmas money . Stocked up on some DMC and some fabric and bobbins .

Just before Christmas , a lady offered some DMC threads on the LQ facebook page as a donation , so myself and one of the other members  said we'd pay a donation to LQ for the threads ,as usually the cash is more useful with people using their own stash to stitch the squares.
 Anyway , I received 150 skeins of DMC . They are old as have the paper tabs on , and some of them are very grubby,but I'm sure they will come in useful .  So , I have been very busy winding nearly 200 skeins of floss onto bobbins . not got a pic at the moment ,so will show that next time .

 Well, think that's all for now. Off to hopefully get some stitches in .
Thanks for dropping by ,
Cath

A couple of thank yous

I am way behind with these , though I have thanked the lovely ladies in person, it seems only fitting to do so in public too.
 First off ,I was a winner in Gaynors' giveaway . Here are my lovely goodies .

 I have to say that Gaynors' charts look really good and are very professionally finished . Thanks again Gaynor .

 And this was in a little package from the lovely Nia ( I am very impressed with myself right now as I remembered Nias' blog address for the link without looking it up )

 Lovely handmade pumpkins , with a little surprise inside the big one .

Thanks again Nia , I love them and will probably leave them out all year round. I still have the mistletoe and lavender bunny that you made on the shelf next to me .

Thanks again ladies , I love my gifts .
Cath

So much to do , not enough days in my hours .

I'm back,    I think .

My blogging mojo had taken a bit of a vacation anyway , but everything was knocked for six with Catheys' passing .
  I had been in regular contact with Cathey over the last few months , as had a lot of others and it just feels so wrong . I keep half expecting another e-mail to pop up in my box . I'm sad that I didn't get to say a proper goodbye to Cathey , but I guess the quick hellos were more of a comfort to her anyway.

 I will continue to celebrate Pumpkin Day in her memory , so to everyone else who joined in , how about making it an annual event ? Maybe next year we can do something with it to raise funds for Cancer Research?

 Anyway , in my time off ,there have been lots of things I could blog about and also some that I should ,so I guess I had better get on with catching up . I'll start with the stitching , as I still need to get some pics for other things .
 Still not got back into my HAED , but I am hopeful for next month . Meanwhile I have been busy with charity squares for Love Quilts UK .

 A cheeky Spongebob for a boy with a lovely smile.

 Pretty butterfly. This was charted monochrome , but the little girl loves pink and green so I chose some nice colours .

 My latest finish .

  Hubby was sitting over the other side of the room when I was stitching my name on this square and he commented how good it looked , and that it seemed really detailed . I held it up to give him a better view and he said "Oh, I didn't realise I was looking at the back , it's even better than I thought ."
 So here's a back view .

 This is my newest start . I have now started on the colouring in part . I have other squares to do , but thought this would be easier for this week as the kids are on half term .

 And this is a birthday card I made for my lovely friend Lainey .

Lainey and I celebrate our birthdays very close together , I also sent her some sheep for her ever growing flock .

 So , my birthday turned out to be a lovely day , in all ways. The weather was gorgeous and hubby surprised me by taking the day off work and taking me out for the day. I knew nothing about it until opening my cards.
 Kudos to the kids for keeping a few secrets. Hubby and the kids got me some new Pocket Dragons , have to get pics yet though .My big sis got me some lovely earrings and otherwise , I had money. Yay ! Lots of stash shopping , I thought . Not so .
 As hubby was taking me out , I asked to go to White Peak Embroidery. What a let down. I was so disappointed when I got there. There was absolutely nothing I wanted to buy . Now how often does that happen when you let a crafter loose in a shop ? They had no charts ! and only a few kits . The thread selection was ok , but expensive I thought, so I bought one wisper thread and we left .
  As we were on the right track anyway , we continued on to Bakewell so I could go into Wye . Another bust .I got a look at the JCS Christmas ornie mag and decided no to buy , which saved me some cash as otherwise I may just have bought it unseen , so no new stash .
 I have since gone on line and ordered some fabric and LKs Promise Me chart and a Q -snap to try , though I do really need to get some more fabric. I just ordered basic aida for my charity squares .

 I am so jealous of you in the USA with your amazing stitch shops . I want to visit a good needlework shop .

 So , my giveaway ended on my birthday. It took me a few days to get organised and make the draw.
With around 120 comments , I used the random number thingy , just didn't get a pic. The number chosen was  28 , which is   MELANIE  (Monraker Lampwerks) .
 So, Melanie , can you get in touch with your mailing details and also if you have a wish list of any crafty stuff. I do have a few things put away for the give away , but would like to send something you want too .
 Thanks to everyone who took part .

Also, I am now sorted for the Needleworker chart . Thank you . I will post about that and other things next time . This post seems very long .
 Thanks for dropping by ,
 Cath

My Blogoversary / Birthday giveaway

 Today is my fourth blogoversary , and as usual , I will have a little giveaway.

 This year will be a bit different though , as my birthday is next month , and it is a biggie . I am gaining a zero .

 Yep, I am turning 40 , so I am kind of mixing the two things together . The giveaway is open from today , until my birthday (26th September) ,and all you have to do is comment on posts between now and then . For every post commented on ,you will get one entry in the giveaway draw.

 I am not sure what I will be giving away just yet , but I do promise to try and be more organised than the last one ,lol  .

 Thanks for dropping by  ,
 Cath

Lovely give away prize .

 I was recently chosen as the very lucky winner of Chris' 5th Blogoversary give away .

 Chris ma e a lovely cushion using a design from Sub Rosa , and also included two charts ,which I am looking forward to stitching at some point .

 Just need to buy more fabric ,lol .

 Lovely parcels just waiting to be unwrapped .

  To reveal a beautiful pillow .

  Love the detail .

  Chris also included this cute pair of scissors , as a thank you , as I recently found her a charts she had been looking for. Chris had mentioned the chart on her blog ,and I knew I had it somewhere . I thought it was in a magazine from a couple of years ago , but after trolling through all the mags I had laying around , I couldn't find it .
 Digging down to the bottom of the bottom crate in my stack , turned it up , and it was from May 2005 !!!!

Still , I found it , so I was happy , and I sent it to Chris so she is happy too ,lol .

I will be sorting out and getting rid of a lot of my magazines , so if anyone is looking for a chart or design , please get in touch , I may just be able to help .

Thanks for dropping by ,

 Cath 

Finally .

 I finally got myself organised and sent my giveaway prizes to Julie and Cucki  . Better late than never .

 Here is what I sent out .

To Julie

To Cucki

 I made a scarf and scissor fob for both ladies ,and added ribbon , beads , a button box , bookmark and a frog to keep the other kind away ,lol .

 For my next giveaway , I will try to be more organised ,lol .

Thanks for looking ,

Cath x

A Give away

Just a quickie Marsha is having a fab giveaway of Prairie Schooler charts and threads ,and is trying to get to 100 followers.
 So , nip on over there and sign up , and tell her that I sent you X
Cath.

Giveaway winner.

Hi everyone, sorry for the delay ,we have had a busy week , so without further ado :
 I put all the names in a box and asked my daughter to pick one out , and she chose.....
 
     CUCKI  ,

  and as anyone with kids knows , if one is doing something ,then the other one has to , so my son was also asked to choose a name . So the second winner is ...

JULIE 

So , ladies , if you could please drop me a line with your postal details , a few ideas of your likes/dislikes , favourite colours / designers etc. , and any ideas if you would like something themed to a season or holiday , or just a surprise , that would be great . Thanks to everyone who entered , and welcome to my new followers .

 Now for a quick update. Not much stitching going on over the last few weeks . I have had a lot on my mind and find it difficult to concentrate , so mostly I have been knitting.
  My MIL goes to a group where someone was giving away yarn , so she grabbed it for me. My daughter immediately nabbed it , and requested a snuggly scarf with hand warmer pockets , so this kept me busy for a few days .

 And of course , then the boy wanted one too . This was finished just last night . The pics don't show the true colours, but I can't get it right with the grey weather we've got at the moment.

On Saturday , I finally felt like doing some stitching , so pulled out this chart .

Finished it on Sunday , and then started this which I got for my birthday last year from Bekca .

I didn't have the called for threads for either of them , so just used DMC variegated to suit . Not sure about the chick , but I'm really happy with the LK one .

 Still not quite ready to go back to Butterflies ,so you may well see a few more smalls .
 Thanks for dropping by ,
 Cath

GIVE AWAY !!!!!

Thanks to everyone who voted in my poll. It seems that people would prefer to receive something hand made , closely followed by stash , so that is what I am going to offer up .

 So , if you would like to receive something made by me , and a little stash to go with it ,here's what you have to do ;
  1) Leave a comment on this post only stating that you want to enter the giveaway.
  2) If you have a blog and post about the giveaway on it , let me know and you will be entered a second time .
 To be fair , if you do not have a blog, tell me something about your favourite thing to stitch , and you will be entered a second time too.
 You must be a follower to enter (ie ,listed on my followers) , though new followers are very welcome to join in .
 I don't know what the giveaway will include yet , as I will try to suit the winner , and obviously for something hand made , it will take time to be sorted .
 Closing date will be midnight (British time) on the 18th March , and I'll let you know the winner sometime after that .

 Now , a shout out for someone who is trying to get to 100 followers , when she will have a giveaway. Please visit Karens' blog and join up, and don't forget to tell her I sent you ,lol .

 Take care , and have a good week,
 Cath x

A little bit late

But better late than never , isn't that what they say.

 I got around to drawing the winners of the magnetic bookmarks/needle minders ,so without further ado , they are :   BARB and BERNADETT .
 I have Bernadetts' address , but Barb , if you could e-mail me yours please , that would be great. I was sure I had it somewhere , but can't find it in my little green book ,lol .

 Sorry it has taken me a few days to get here ,had a lot on. Watching fireworks on Friday night. Then on Saturday I took my Daughter to a special presentation. She completed the summer reading challenge at the local library and was nominated by the librarian to represent the library at the County presentation, where she received a back pack and another certificate. We were also treated to a show by two poets , Paul Cookson and David Harmer. I have to say , they were brilliant , very funny and entertaining and got everyone joining in. This was followed by drinks and biscuits and cake. We ended up buying two books by the poets , and they both signed both of them for her , so a very good afternoon .

 Can't remember what happened yesterday , oh yeah , lots of washing ,and more today , with more to do ,lol.

 So ,hope to be back soon with a stitching pic or two .

 Thanks for dropping by ,
 Cath

More gifts .

Lynn has now received her giveaway package , so I can show what I sent her .

  I also sent this little pillow to my lovely friend Jane . Jane has had a rough few months with family worries ,and I wanted to let her know that I was thinking of her . Jane loves her bunnies ,and also liked her pillow. ;D

  It was my dear friend Laineys' birthday in September too , and I sent her a variety of ornies that I'd made over a few months .

  I also sent some other little sheepies , but you can see them on Laineys' blog .

 And , here is what Lainey sent me . I was very excited to get two lovely parcels from the postman .

  Inside the big flat one was this lovely cat print. My daughter has tried to snaffle it up to go in her bedroom , at the moment it is at the side of my seat in the living room.

  A lovely picture that Lainey stitched for me .

  A gorgeous kit , I love this so much I am on the look out for the others in the series .

 And lots of other lovely goodies .

 Well ,that's about it for now , I'll  be back soon .
 Thanks for dropping by ,
 Cath

PS, don't forget , there is still time to enter my giveaway for he magnetic bookmarks/needle holders . just scroll down for the chance to enter and leave me a comment on the relevant post.

Show and tell . (Lots)

Well ,after not much at all to blog about , I now have lots to catch up on ,lol .
 First off, I received a lovely e-mail from Marilyn , to let me know that she had received her giveaway package , and she likes it , thankfully . Then , Sharon posted on her blog that she had received hers , so just waiting for Lynns' to arrive and we're all sorted.
 This is what I sent to Marilyn :

 And this one was for Sharon .

I had to order the charts and wait for them to arrive , so it took a wee while .
 I will show what I sent to Lynn  when she has received it.

 Secondly , it was my birthday a couple of weeks ago , and the lovely Bekca of the Stitching Lion had chosen me to receive her birthday RAK for September . Look at the lovely goodies she sent me .

 There were also a couple of packets of sweets. but they disappeared with my Daughter ,lol .
I also got a new kit for my birthday from my lovely hubby .

 It is much prettier than this photo shows, I can't seem to get the colours right at the moment. I mostly got money for my birthday , hence the debate on the lap stand. I'm still undecided ,lol .

 And , this is what I was up to most of yesterday .
 My Daughters' friend asked me ages ago to stitch her a Pokemon , and this is the one she chose. I finally got round to making it into a little pillow for her ,and as it was her birthday yesterday, wrapped it up and gave it to her .

 I'm quite pleased with it , and my hidden closing seams are getting better .

  Also made up the cushion covers for my two . They chose the fabrics themselves , but didn't know I was doing them yesterday , so got a nice surprise this morning . It took me ages last night to sew on the closing snaps.

Almost lastly, progress on Calm Seas .

 I have almost finished this cliff , only two more and the beach to go ,lol .

 Notice my needle minder in the top right corner ? I was browsing around wilkos and spotted these .
 I wouldn't use them for bookmarks , but they are perfect for needle minders .

They hold the needle really well ,

and are strong enough to hold scissors too.

 I like them so much , I went back and bought some more to share , so I'm going to have a little competition .

 If you would like the chance to win some of these fab little magnets, leave me a comment on this post only, telling me how many projects you have on the go right now. I mean projects that you are actually working on , not just things lying around .
 This is open to followers only ,though new ones are welcome to join in too . I'll leave it open until the end of the month , so feel free to comment until the 31st October , and I'll let you know who wins sometime after that .
 If you are still reading , thank you , it's a very long post ,lol .

 Thanks for dropping by ,
 Cath