November already!

Goodness me! Where does the time go? I've been meaning to take stitchy progress photos for the last couple of weeks and never quite getting round to it until today. As always, there has been a fair amount going on.

I didn't take to my new job well at all. The office was slow, poorly managed and the work was not as rewarding as I hoped. I was going into work each day feeling useless and out of place and it was really starting to get me down. Luckily, I was able to organise a transfer back to my District Nurses team, so I can safely return to my old job on Monday! I'm so pleased I've managed to erase my mistake by stepping back into my old role. It's only a temporary solution, but I'm far happier already.

Still no surgery date, so it's the same old story with my endo flare ups, my good days and my bad days. I now have two water bottles - one for home and one for work, both are extremely necessary! 

I haven't been the best with blogging, but I have been getting my stitches in. I was very kindly gifted with a subscription to CrossStitcher magazine for my birthday and as soon as the first one arrived through the door, I got started on the free kit. I've just got to add the french knot eyes to Scandi Santa and then onto the finishing.

I think it's a neat little decoration idea. I haven't decided yet if I'm going to keep him for my tree or give him another home. I guess it depends on how neat my finishing is!!

I've also been working on my two WIPs, which are coming along nicely. I think I will get Sewing Machine finished this month, as soon as I get my hands on the last thread I need. I thought I ordered everything I needed to complete it, but I seem to be one thread colour missing. A quick trip to my LNS will soon sort that out. So here is Sewing Machine . . .

And here is Cook's Measurements . . .

The next CrossStitcher mag is due in the next week or so, so I'll have another cute kit to work on, I'm sure. I don't think I'll be doing much festive stitching this year, maybe a card or two. I better get cracking!

Best wishes,

Bekca

xxx

One Finish, Two Starts

I've been having a bit of a tough time of late with endo, but the silver lining is it means more stitching time! I had a mammoth session last week and managed to finish Cocktails:

I'm going to tuck this away with the companion piece, Teacups, and keep an eye out for suitable frames in the charity shops. Then when we move, I can get them both framed up and on display in my kitchen. 

I couldn't wait to start another project, so much so that I ended up starting two! These pieces are both from the same magazine, CrossStitcher Issue 321. The first one is this gorgeous Sewing Machine project, but I'm just stitching the main top half. Here's where I'm up to so far:

And the other piece further along in the mag is called Cook's Notes. I'm going to have a kitchen covered in cross stitch by the time I'm finished! Here's my progress on that one:

I'm quite enjoying having a couple of projects on the go, I haven't done that in so long. I'm thinking I would like to start another large design again, maybe something like Farmhouse, but I haven't seen one yet that I'd be willing to spend months and months stitching on! 

I haven't got all the thread colours for my two latest starts, but my 123stitch order should be arriving this week. I'm so excited! I've got heaps of stickers coming my way for my latest scrap book idea, as well as plenty of threads and maybe a sneaky chart or two that jumped in the basket as well. 

It's my last full week with the District Nurses this week, then I start my new job on Monday. September is a busy month for me, I hope you've all got wonderful plans for the start of Autumn too.

Best wishes,

Bekca

xxx

At last, some stitching!

Thank you for bearing with me as I caught up with my own time line in the last couple of posts. It looks like I'll be writing a bit more about my travelling adventures, thank you so much for your kind comments about it.

But now I've finally got the post you (and I!) have been waiting for - a stitching update! I haven't got much I'm afraid, because I've only recently got back into stitching. But I do have a finish and a WIP to share.

First up is "A Nice Cup of Tea" which was featured in Issue 275 of CrossStitcher. I had just started it on this previous blog post, but I was finding the fabric frustrating, so when I picked it up again, I restarted the design on aida and sailed through it. I really loved completing each section, I think that's a trait of many of the designs I choose to stitch. I'm hoping to get this one framed soon.

When I was browsing through my collection of magazines, I found a companion piece to "A Nice Cup of Tea" and couldn't wait to stitch it. This is "Cocktail Hour", my current WIP, which is so close to being finished. 

Only two more drinks to stitch, and the second header piece and it will be done. I think it would be great to get matching frames for these two and then have them hanging side by side in my kitchen. 

I've so enjoyed catching up with my blog reading. I must admit, I haven't read every single post since I've been away, but I have read a couple of months back. I've found a couple of new blogs to follow, but I'm always on the look out for more, so feel free to leave your blog link in the comments and I'll be sure to check it out :)

I hope the next time I post, I'll be able to share a finish of "Cocktail Hour" and maybe a preview of what I'm hoping to stitch up next. 

Best wishes,

Bekca

xxx

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 . . .