Friday 31 July 2015

Tea and Stitching

Hello friends, how are you all? This is my second day off in a row from work, so I got all the boring jobs and chores done yesterday. Now I have time to blog read to my heart's content, as well as settle down to some stitching time with a film later :)

I recently went charity shop shopping with a good friend from University. We browsed the book sections but weren't having much luck. Just as we were leaving our final stop, I spotted a box filled with crafting magazines. Lo and behold, there were cross stitching ones! They were from 2014 and 2015 - who could ever donate new magazines?! There was no price tag but the assistant told us she would sell them 3 for £1. Can't argue with that!


I came home with six practically brand new magazines for £2. They were minus the free gifts that normally accompanying them, but I still think it was extremely good value. I browsed them all for hours before finally choosing a new design to start.


My mornings don't really start until I've had a cup of tea, so this piece really spoke to me. I'm stitching over one, which is quite hard going. I rushed into getting started, and to be honest, should have spent more time considering my fabric choice, but oh hum, I've started so I'll finish. If I'm able to, I'm going to make a Sew and So order soon to buy the correct threads. I'm sure a few other things will sneak into my basket too! 
I've got several pieces that are so close to be finish, but just need tricky backstitching on them. I will get round to it, but it's not as appealing as a fresh start. I'm sure you know the feeling :)
Wishing you all a lovely weekend,
 

PS The next post will be my 250th! I think it's high time I did something special. I think I better start rustling up a giveaway prize . . .


Thursday 2 July 2015

A Car Called Pond

Hello friends! Thank you for all your sweet comments on my last couple of blog posts. I'm slowly getting back into the swing of things with blogging. It will be much easier now that I have access to the Internet in my flat. It was far too expensive to purchase on my own, but now that I'm sharing bills with Lawrence, I can be back online! I cannot wait to spend my day off tomorrow browsing through all the wonderful stitching blogs. Has anyone new arrived? If you've got a new favourite, please let me know in the comments, I need to keep up with these things :)

I haven't been stitching as much as I would like to, due to a nasty case of neck pain that I've been struggling with. It's been difficult to look down, so not ideal for stitching. Still, I'm sure things will be back to normal soon :)
Here's a small finish that I completed recently, a card for my friend who recently passed her driving test. The nickname she gave her car was Pond, as it has a tendency to leak! I'm quite pleased with the simple style :)


I hope you are enjoying glorious weather wherever you are in the world. I must admit, it's been a little bit too hot for my liking, but it will pass soon enough.
Best wishes,
 



Friday 12 June 2015

Operation Church Date

One of the reasons I've been distracted from my hobbies lately was being consumed by my sister's wedding. She is my only sibling and obviously this was a big occasion for her, so she needed my support throughout the whole planning. This did mean a few early morning phone calls to discuss flower colours or dress styles, but she wasn't too "bridezilla" thankfully!

I haven't got many pictures from the day, but I thought I would share this one so you can all marvel at the gorgeous dress. It fitted like a glove and everybody agreed she looked stunning :) The groom scrubbed up well too!


They were married in front of a handful of guests at Guildford Cathedral. The day went very smoothly, and everybody had a lovely time. The newly-weds honeymooned in New York City and she even remembered to bring me back some almond M&Ms! She's the best sister and I'm so pleased she married a man who knows how wonderful she is. 

Bekca
xxx

Wednesday 10 June 2015

Posting for Posterity

Just to make a neat gap between my old stitching projects and my upcoming new ones, I thought I would post the finished Blackbird Designs sampler. It took me so long to complete this piece, not because it was particularly difficult, but because I lost my mojo for awhile. But it's done and dusted now :)


I think I would like to have it framed, but it doesn't really match the decor in the flat with this colour scheme. So for now, it will simply have to go in the drawer with the others! I should get around to finishing a few pieces really, it's such a shame to keep them hidden. Maybe I shall dedicate a future day off to a craft day, and I can make a huge mess again! Are you a messy finisher? Or is it just me?!

Bekca
xxx

Monday 8 June 2015

Back With A Bang

Hello hello! Thank you for your lovely welcoming messages on my last post, I knew there was a good reason I was missing this community. I've always found readers on blogger so friendly and I'm so pleased that hasn't changed :)

To get back into crafting and cross stitching, I decided to have a good old clear out. I needed to do this anyway, as Lawrence will be moving in to the flat next month and the poor boy will need a bit of space! I created a huge pile of glorious mess in my attempts to tidy up:


I managed to clear the box you can see above and fit in everything that was left into my craft tower. I was ruthless, donating bits where I could and chucking scraps that I no longer had use for. I even threw out a couple of WIPs that I knew I didn't have the heart to finish. It's a clean crafting slate. 
I have three old WIPs that only need backstitching done to finish them, so that will be what I'm working on over the next week or two! Then it will finally be time to go stash diving and find pretty new projects for me to get stuck into :)

Best wishes to all,

Bekca
xxx

Saturday 30 May 2015

My Friends

I have been away for far too long.

I can't believe the last time that I logged in to blog was last November. That's the longest break I have ever taken from this blog since its creation. There are many reasons why I took an unscheduled break, work load, family bereavement, illness, weddings and at one point, a distinct lack of stitching. I'm sorry for disappearing so suddenly, but I'm sure many of you can relate to the way life gets in the way sometimes!

But I looked over my stash today, in readiness for Lawrence moving in, and I thought, no, I'm not ready to give up this hobby. Stitching used to give me such pleasure and peace, there's no reason to give it up.

I cannot wait to be inspired by all the stitching activity that's been going on whilst I've been away. I've only picked up my stitching again recently, but I will hopefully have a few pictures to share soon.

Best wishes to all,

Bekca
xxx