Theme-a-licious 2013 - Jumanji June

 Hard to believe it's June 1st already! Still the first of the month can only mean one thing, it's time for a new theme-a-licious theme and this month is JUMANJI JUNE.

For this months theme we are supposed to work on projects with birds or animals on them. The only thing I have on my WIP list which loosely fits the bill is the Lizzie Kate Green series which hasn't really had any love so far this year.

I may stitch up some smalls from my basket but I'm not to sure yet, lately my stitching bug has been replaced by the knitting and crochet bugs!

This month I'm also hoping to get back on the WIP Wagon & blog a bit more regularly. My little blog has fallen by the wayside these last few months and it's not on. As for the WIP's, I've not had a finish since January and I've cast on more yarn projects than I care to think about right now!!

Anyway! In other news it was my good friend Michelle's birthday last month and I was very late in sending her birthday present out but now that I know she's received it I can show you what I sent :)

Evenweave, Tilda Fabric FQ's, perle cottons, bird charms & ribbons :)

Better late than never I suppose...

 

xX Fiona Xx 

Needles Thursday (finally)

Yes I finally got to go back to my Needles & Natter Knitting group this morning!

I've had to miss the last 4 weeks or so due to work but it was so nice to get back and see everyone! One of our members, Margaret, turned 80 today so we had a lovely lemon drizzle cake to celebrate with her.

Despite it being my day off I did have to run into work for a conference call halfway through the knitting session so I don't have much to show for my efforts, I started another triangle and I almost have it finished, just trying to work out what I'm going to do with them all when I'm all triangled out! :)

Crochet hooky goodness continued after I got home as I pulled out my anything goes blanket and added a few more squares, (the 4 on the right hand side of the picture) I've decided to start the next strip of 5 round squares before making the first strip any bigger.

That's all for now, the weather is set to be sunny and warm as we head into the weekend, perfect crafting weather but sadly I shall be working so won't really be able to enjoy it!

Hope you all  have fantastic weekends whatever the weather and whatever you're doing :)

xX Fiona Xx

WIP Wednesday :)

So the weather over the weekend was lovely and sunny here in the UK, sadly I was working the entire time and by the time I had a day off on Tuesday the rain had returned.

Spent a lot of time this week listing things on eBay, made a few sales so far so fingers crossed that will continue as I have a few things to pay this month (like the car tax...)

In between listings I have managed to get some hooky time in, here's what I've been working on

 

Uber mini granny squares! Hooked up using Stylecraft Special DK in 'Lucy colours', I'm planning on making a very mini granny blanket followed by a matching proper sized blanket :)

 

Also been hooking up triangles using the granny bunting pattern Lucy @ Attic24 posted up last week,

 

not sure what to do with them yet, I'm just having fun playing with some bright summery colours, helps distract from the wet grey skies here at the minute!!

 

Hope the sun is shining where you are!!

xX Fiona Xx

Sunday Stitchings

Dear god has it really been a few weeks since I posted last? Time flies when you're not paying attention!!

Rather than try and remember why I haven't posted I shall simply update you all as to what I have been up to this week....

Super Mario finally saw a needle and thread this week in honour of Monochrome May and after a week of stitching in the evenings rather un-surprisingly I can see some decent progress!!

I've started a couple of new crochet projects, but nothing much worthwhile showing yet.

This weekend has been spent mostly listing things on Ebay. Mostly Pokémon cards, dolls and some Barbie stuff I've been meaning to list for ages now :) Going quite well but I still have lots to list!!

Hope your weekends are more craft filled than mine!

 

xX Fiona Xx

Sunday stitchings

Today I have nothing to show, mostly because I haven't picked up any sort of needle since Wednesday.

Work has been so busy the last couple of days, so much to do in so little time but in a week or so that should calm back down :)

Hoping to continue working on my blanket this week & I'm planning on taking my sock into work as it's easy to knit a couple of rounds on my lunch breaks.

For Monochrome May I have decided to try and finish the green background on Super Mario (that's most of pages 3 & 4) But god knows how long that will last!

Happy Crafting
xX Fiona Xx

WIP Wednesday

nothing much to show so far this week, Since Sunday I've finished the wording on Dandy Dreams,

 

Added a square or two to my blanket

 

& Added a couple of rounds to my sock

 

& Just for good measure, here is my ort report as of yesterday (seeing as I missed the post but took the picture) Orts from blanket & Dandy dreams

 

Hope your weeks are more productive than mine so far!!

 

xX Fiona Xx

Friday Fun

No finishes to share this Friday but I have had a wonderfully fun day I'd like to share with you.

As I mentioned yesterday, today I went to Chipping Norton with my Mum & one of our friends from Needles & Natter, Jacqui. Another of our friends, Elaine was supposed to be coming too but due to unforeseen circumstances she couldn't make it, hey ho maybe next time!

Chipping Norton is a tiny little village/market town thats not too far away from where I live, it takes a little while to get there but it's so worth it :) The reason for our trip today was a visit to the Antiques Centre and the Fibreworks wool shop.

We started at the Antiques Centre just outside the town and decided to have coffee & cake in the tearoom before having a look round. 'Coffee & Cake' became 'hot chocolate with the works & cake' but looks at how yummy!!

 

I'd almost finished my hot chocolate when I took this photo but the coffee & walnut cake was to die for!! Jacqui & Mum thought so too!!

(Jacqui on the left & Mum on the right)

 

The antiques centre had some wonderful items, I found a couple of antique needlework samplers I would have loved to have bought home but at £191 for the pair there was no way I could afford them, really wish I'd remembered to snap a photo though, I could have 'reproduced' them for myself...

 

A few things did make their way home with me, a couple of industrial wooden bobbins, they had several and I'd of liked a few more to store my ribbons/laces on but they were £8.50 each.

 

We also found this workbox/table upstairs in the centre, the dealer it belonged to informed us that he'd only just put it out this morning.

 

 

The box/table came with everything you see in the second picture, all manner of sewing patterns for toys & fabric transfers for hand embroidery (so excited, its something I've been wanting to try for a while now!) knitting patterns & even some embroidery thread! Most of the patterns are dated from the early 50's and there was a letter from a transfer company postmarked 21st June 1951 which had the unused transfers inside, it was literally like stepping back in time and it only cost £38!!

 

The lining is sadly shot to pieces so we've ripped it all out, one weekend soon we'll spend some time relinning it, maybe in some nice liberty fabric or something cath kidson-like. Either way it's going to look fab when it's finished!

 

Obviously you can't visit a town with a craft shop without popping in to have a browse....I bought more wool for my anything goes blanket & some different sized DPN's; as my cast on is too tight generally I've brought some 3.5's, the next size up to what I'm currently working on and some 2.5's the next size down as a lot of the sock patterns I have from magazines call for a 2.5 needle.

 

A quick browse round the town's charity shops after lunch in a local cafe threw up a couple of good finds too. A couple of wicker baskets from Sue Ryder (along with 3 Doctor Who books for 50p each)

 

I plan on using these as project baskets and whipping up some linings for them ala Lucy @Attic24

Then I found David Tennant's Biography in Helen & Douglas House!! After that we decided it was time to call it a day and decided to head for home when who should we spot on the other side of the road but one of Mum's best friends, Margaret! She'd spent the day in Stratford and had just got off the bus to catch the second bus home but would have to wait till 4 for the bus to arrive. She lives two doors down from us so we gave her a lift home instead :)

Got home to find that my brother had come down for the weekend as he's covering the Oxford branch of his workplace for the weekend & spent the evening catching up with him & also working out just how big I need to make my anything goes blanket & how many squares I'll need to complete it...I have my work cut out for me.... I need 49 squares that are 10 rounds big and 288(!) squares that are 5 rounds big to complete a blanket that will be just a bit bigger than a double duvet before adding a border. Makes me very glad that I'm joining-as-I-go, can't even think about sewing together all those squares at the end!!

So thats the end of my very fun day, tomorrow is the final day of my holiday before I go back to work, I am planning to return some wool to hobbycraft, I bought in 4ply instead of DK. Then I'll be carrying on with my blanket inbetween doing laundry loads and possibly continuing with my dress pattern....maybe! I might even get some stitching done!

Hope your weekends are warm and sunny where you are

 

Happy Stitching

xX Fiona Xx