A finish! No two!

Poor lighting in this picky but here's my finished Tania Sneesby workshop piece -

Now, what do I do with it lol

 

I also made this dolls cot cover up for Evie to play with.

 

 

 

I am exchanging some Christmas fabric scraps with Susan

(http://desertskyquilts.wordpress.com)

 

 who told me that she's been making up 2.5" nine patches in Christmas fabrics. Having bundled a bag of scraps together for her, I thought I'd have a go at some nine patches myself and see what they looked like.

 

Cute enough for me to feel the need to do something with them,

so the cot quilt sprang to mind, though I had to buy the green background fabric and the red fleece for the back dam it lol

( Any excuse ~) 

Do go see her wonderful sock monkeys here.

 

http://desertskyquilts.wordpress.com/2014/11/25/army-navy-sock-puppet-ornaments/comment-page-1/#comment-5570

Lynda Monk tutorial, how she made those lovely hexis!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uFNYPRIjI50

Did I mention I have a stash problem?
Like way too much and in need of systematic reorganisation?
This is just the one small area lol which has cat climbing appeal as you can see - little pest!
That's a travel cot mattress he's sat on lol

It's a hard life for cats, Tania Sneesby and an assortment of other things : )

 

You can see how hard the cats have it here ~

 

I foolishly went on our stitchy clubs coach trip last Saturday to the Harrogate Knitting & Stitching show. The ribs were still tender so sitting in the coach wasn't comfy and then walking round, body tense, trying to avoid being jostled, meant I didn't enjoy it as much as I would normally.

The only hexis really worth photographing were these super paper ones, made by Lynda Monk on the Art Van Go stand.

See how Lynda makes these fabulous shapes here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uFNYPRIjI50

The Quilters Guild had set up tables for anyone who felt inclined, to make up hexis - I didn't lol since I have enough of my own on the go at home!

I thought these fabric, tactile dominoes were great - made by
Sunken Treasures of Sunk Island, here near Hull.
www.sunkentreasures.co.uk

I bought a pattern and some taupe fine needlecord to make one up for Evie - somewhen before she outgrows the pattern sizing!

and some wool for crocheting

and a big ball of end of line, mill fabric, to use in rag rugging.

I insisted on going on the coach trip because I'd booked on to a hour long, mini workshop with Tania Sneesby and that I did enjoy.
This is the pack we all got, although every pack had different fabric selections in, which was rather nice, so every ones was that little bit different.

This is what Tania made up as the sample guide - and her little Red Riding Hood is strung from tree to tree, so you can move her along from right to left.

This is as far as I have got for now. As usual, I opted for making it a little different and I will stitch my little Red in place, rather than have her as a moveable feature I think.

There were 2 little girls on the workshop, with their Nan and here's what they did - I thought they did really well!

Oh BLOGGER!! It wont allow the correct picture to load in - argghh.

I guess that means its time for a G&T !

Christmas fabric log cabin banner with Harveys help - again!

Had more help this afternoon - sigh -

 

Just run through that again Mum ~

                           Oh yes, that's the whizzy bit, just there ~

                              and the thread goes that way - got it!
                       
                           I  managed to very simply, quilt these scrappy
                                             banners, despite Harvey's help

                      I'd hand stitched the scraps together log cabin style
                        then machined the backing on each of them.

 

 

 

Is it finished then?

 

'Cos I'm getting tired now ~

 

Today I had a little - er - help .............

 

okay let me see how this reckons to work first..

           hey, there's a cobweb up there Mum ..

 

so this round gadget whizzes round here, right ..

                         Oh okay, okay, I got it now, will sit this side then ..

                           ( So I hand stitched instead lol )

Finished hexi garland and a Ruth Brown digital workshop

There's not much to it but I reckon it will look pretty around a Christmas tree and there is a different fabric on each side, to add to the twisty twirly look - and it's a finish!
Though I'm going to make another now : )

I had paid £40 to attend a Ruth Brown Digital Imagery on Fabric workshop and it was today. Ruth lives close to Hull and since it was to be a largely ( sat down) laptop involved workshop, I decided to taxi through and attend it.
Besides if I didn't go, I'd have lost the £40!

So I Ibuprofen-ed myself up to the gills and attended and am glad I did, because it was pleasant company and informative too.
I had played previously with all but one of the techniques but it is so different when someone talks you through the process, rather than going it alone after reading about something.
Though I left an hour or so early, by which time the pain relief was failing lol

I bought Ruth's digital book, which she offers at a reduced price to folks on her workshops and I had previously loaned it from our stitchy clubs library, so knew how good and informative it is anyway.
I printed off my own photos of a hogweed and some snowdrops and also a couple of Ruth's own photo stock on fabric.

I have used freezer paper before to slide fabric through the printer but as Ruth said, it often starts to curl on itself when it comes out.
So she recommends using those whole, A4 sized self adhesive labels you can get in Staples or other stationery suppliers.
Well, how much easier they are to use for goodness sake!
And, you get several applications from each label so its economical too.
Far simpler and faster should you need to make lots of prints on fabric, nice one Ruth, thank you!

We also printed onto fabric using fabric medium and brayer, then transparency photocopies using the orangey Citra Solve to transfer images from paper photocopies.

I bought some Citra Solve some time ago but hadn't gotten round to using it and have long since misplaced the instructions Id copied out,
so this was great for me - I will know how to use it for sure now I have watched it done.

Of course, I'm no longer sure where I put the Citra Solve of course ..

There was a Cat Protection League, cat rehoming event going on in the same building today and it was sad, because the organiser - who I know well from all our years in cat rescue - told me all 6 of the cats had spent more of their short lives living in cages, than living in caring homes.

It took a lot of discipline not to come home with one to play with Harvey, since Hilly cat is determined not to 'play' with him.
She's the Duchess to his Charlie Chaplin, she oozes dignity and he's got none lol

Hexi Christmas garland

Well it is broken rib/s, although they don't xray as a general rule now, because they no longer 'treat' broken ribs, so I'm off work for a week or so.
Hopefully once I can move about easier and the pain reduces when doing so, I can go back!
Sneezing, coughing and blowing your nose is not advised with broken rubs let me just tell you, it's very painful lol
They have given me Tramadol but so far I haven't dared use it, since others I know had such bizarre and scary effects when they did!

Anyway the most I've felt able to do some little Christmassy 1" hexis, to join together in a garland - not my idea I hasten to add,

the original tutorial is here
http://hexagonalley.blogspot.co.uk/2014/11/great-hexagon-garland-tutorial.html   click on the tutorial link at top of the page : )

Bloggers playing up and wont let me upload pics but see my next post!

Fallen again and a box I couldn't leave behind ~

I must have cleaned the bath and not pressed down the bath mat properly - so that the suckers would stick in position.
So my short shower this morning came to an undignified ending with the mat slipping away and me crashing onto the bath edge lol
So relieved the kids haven't put CCTV in to monitor my ageing safety!!
I managed to land, ribs to bath edge and trust me the bath edge is pretty solid dam it.
Now Jack Baur ( from the 24 series) can be tortured, have broken ribs and still hurtle about and drive like a F1 hero, but this old biddy isn't quite so able.
I reckon I may have cracked a rib judging by the pain, but am holding off till tomorrow before I go to A&E - again!
Happily, Evie can go elsewhere tomorrow lol what a dippy mare I am.

Above is a lady wearing her newly purchased 'Head Hugger', one of the things I was selling yesterday on a stall at the Hull friends of the Earth annual Green Fair.
Her friend behind her also bought one and is wearing hers too.
It's a really nice fair to do, not least because volunteer ( good!) musicians come along and play fiddle, violin, guitar or whatever kind of instrument they play in the background.
Mostly foot tapping folk music which is lively to listen to. 
I hadn't made such a great deal with injuring my wrist but did have a good stash of fingerless gloves made up and a small batch of hand knitted head huggers, all different and everything made from recycled materials.
In fact I only had one Dream Tree that I had made up, but it didn't sell.

I did really well must admit for such a small scale fair so now have a very reasonable fund to spend at the Harrogate Knitting & Stitches show next weekend - assuming I am able to manage the coach journey day out! Then the Chinese meal the kids are taking me out for that evening, for my 65th birthday.

Anyway just to prove how bloody silly I can be, having hauled myself up out of the shower I went and drove to the car boot for free range eggs and fresh veggies.
It wasn't a clever idea and the journey back was really fraught with pain - thankfully it's very close !
But I did manage to find this for £3 and thought it would be lovely for next years salad leaves. However already unable to carry my bag on my left shoulder as I would normally, it was a bother getting it back to the car, because it's actually very heavy!
So far both cats have sat in it and seem impressed by it - cat approval is obviously very important lol

Adapted my poppy and tears for the falling poppies and lost lives

I've been meaning to do this for years and finally done it.
I pay at least a fiver for my poppy but it falls off within a day or two and I end up paying for another one, or two!
So this year I paid more but adapted it, so I stood chance of keeping it till Remembrance Day.
Am glad I did, its been successful!
I used the central black button and the paper petal too at the centre and stitched a broach fastener on the back.

Being ex RAF I'm torn between tears and pride when I watch on tv the 'Royal British Legion Festival of Remembrance' programme which takes place in the Royal Albert Hall.
It's been on tv tonight and this year had 2 of those incredible life sized, horse puppets, from War Horse taking part.
It's a remarkable, religiously underpinned, event to watch, so touching.

Whilst I would love to experience it there, I'd be inconsolable I know.
The Squadron once sent me and others to Banbury in Oxfordshire to march on to, and stand on a stage in the village hall there, for their Remembrance Service.
All was well until they dropped bloody poppies from above on us and the Last Post was played - and I broke my heart, there on stage tears streaming down my face, hoping my mascara was waterproof but actually, too upset to really care!
they didn't send me again thank fully lol

How lovely, they have had a young German lad read a eulogy in german as well as an English lass read in english.
There was little difference between all those lost lives.
Death levels us all doesn't it.
Oh ------------- poppies falling ---------

I watched this week on tv a short series called 'The Passing Bells' and was in tears at the end of that too.
It was poignant and it cleverly but simply brought home, the fact that lads and men chased off into WW1, from both sides of the North Sea and beyond, but were in exactly the same desolate position when it came down to it.
Their families too, harboured the very same fears for their loved ones safety and it showed how absurd the situation was for everyone involved.
Did any of you watch it too, if so what did you think to it?
It was less about waving British flags and far more about impartially  commemorating ALL those lost lives.

The last scene of the last episode was remarkable, bringing all those lost lads from the trenches together in such a beautiful way. If only ~