Twas the week before Christmas......

...and all through the house

the rustling of paper was heard and not a lot else....

The sneaking and hiding all over the place,
Always puts a smile on my face,
And out in the kitchen all over the bench
baking is done by a weary wee wench,
(no photo's of this much too messy)

 

the tree is decorated so pretty and bright

the fairy lights twinkling a beautiful sight.

The house is festooned in garlands of green

and the room's filled with pine perfume sweet and clean...

 

 

|The stockings are hung at the ends of the beds 

and everyones resting their Christmas filled heads.

 

it doesn't  matter where you and travel and roam,

..there's nowhere like Christmas at home....

 

 The rain has gone!  the sun is OUT...the wind has GONE ...all is sunny and bright, the girls are home and lovely partner of oldest girl too...the parcels are wrapped ...we are organised I think....

so everyone have a very, very happy Christmas filled with love and laughter.

xx

 

 

 

of quilts and other things....

Not all the days this past week have been sunny and bright....

..perfect for doing a spot of sewing..

 cut out and got the top of a quilt for a cot made up, I need to quilt it and back it yet.  Most of the fabric was from my 'stash' except for a small bit I got in town and once I got it home found it was too harsh a green so stitched some old lace over it to tone it down  and it has come up quite nicely.

This week I also got a call from the lady who was quilting the larger quilts I made earlier in the year  so picked them up and now just have to trim them and bind them,

This one is entirely from stash fabrics...and is big enough to cover a queen size bed.

 

...A rose one...

 

you had to layer on each petal for the rose and snip out the fabric at the back for each piece, this quilt took quite a few hours.

 

A bird one...

 

 

 

 

I love some of the fabrics in this quilt.

In the garden this week some pretty poppies that appear every year...

 

 

A very tall lily which has not appeared for many a year decided it would adorn the front door area this Christmas...

 

..and speaking of Christmas, I have been very slow at getting the decorations up this year.

 I did get out one of the first quilts I ever made from years ago though,

 

and hung up the newly framed Strawberry Fields Xstitch I did not so long ago, and put a few twiggy decos underneath....

 

My lovely girls are flying home soon for Christmas so I have the chirpy christmas robin pillowcases I made last year on all our beds!  ...so Christmas is sneaking in slowly here...

 

'Oh bed! Oh bed! Delicious bed

 that heaven upon earth

to the weary head'

(Thomas Hood) 

 

 Have a happy week and enjoy the exciting days leading up to Christmas

xx

 

 

 

Pretty ribbons, pretty papers....

Pretty ribbons, pretty paper for you!  as the old Christmas song goes,
I have always been a bit inclined to save pretty ribbons and pretty papers for another day......
but it's so much nicer to use them!....Thrifty Fox has taught me this....

my lovely friend who has "A Little Bird Told Me" (you can find this gorgeous shop on Facebook)
sent me this lovely parcel with all these beautiful ribbons and trims..... a lot of looking and stroking of these has been going on....

...even the labels are pretty...

 

...some pretty papers I had been saving up to use 'someday'...I covered some old folders with some  and actually managed while in this reckless abandonment to cut into some of the ribbon..which matched the folders perfectly..for just the right finishing touch!  They look so much better!

Value your instinct for beauty.

Take time to look deeply into whatever nourishes you.

Create small touches of beauty

wherever you are.

Foxgloves

What a joy it is to be up and about!!!  lying in bed is just not me...however it's Monday today and I have a whole week of "wellness" to look forward to before Chemo number 7! and that will be just over the half way mark!!!

Not a lot going on with me this week, but did find in a bag some little hats that just needed to be sewn up and the finishing touches added so did achieve something!!

..also have been stitching a little on the rascally french creatures...

 

In the mail arrived the most exquisitely  stitched cube, on the finest linen from a dear friend...it must have taken hours ..it's beautiful!  Thankyou.

 

each side is different..

Last week we had a 'hatching' 4 little chicks emerged from their shells in the incubator and are doing well....

 

they don't live under this wire cover but in a box with a heat lamp,  they were not keen on a photo shoot so containment was necessary!

 

Our weather has been very changeable, lots of grey, windy, showery days...but summer is here as the Foxgloves are making an appearance.....

   The folklore that goes with these flowers I just love...and from the The Secret Language of Flowers by Samantha Gray...

 

you can read about some of these magical beliefs....guess those naughty foxes would have had to wear white foxgloves to sneak up on henhouses in the snow....

.....do the fairies handpaint their spotted throats ?....maybe they embroider them if they are also known as fairy thimbles....

 

they pop up all over the garden.but always in the perfect place....

 

It was time to get out the Foxglove china for the porch....

 

I do LOVE this china...a few years ago it was very expensive..hence a lot of mine has chips (I don't mind) ..but I think it  isn't 'in fashion' now so it appears to be getting cheaper.

 

 

 "Be faithful to your own taste

because

nothing you really like 

is ever out of style! "

(B Baldwin)

My lovely husband picked these from the garden yesterday for me.

Have a happy week.  x

 

A bit of sewing...

Have been feeling very unwell this past fortnight and today we are off to Dunedin for Chemo number 6...half way ... I think!!!  However on the few days I had feeling well this week I got on the sewing machine!  The weather is cold, wet and windy and it's supposed to be the start of summer...however perfect weather for inside creating!

..so virtuous! using 'stash fabric'!!!  made up these laundry bags, they are great for popping in your suitcase to put laundry in, or shoes or just small things like socks and undies so you don't have to search through your bag to find them.  I line them with waterproof nylon so they wash and dry very quickly...really fun to make.

Whilst rustling through the 'stash' I found some fabric I thought a friend might like so made up 2 'Library book' bags, although they are handy for most things...including unfinished knitting projects etc!!!

 

Still in this virtuous using up my stash!  so good ! mood I decided that I would use up some of the pretty fabrics I have to embellish some sheets and cot sheets to put away in my "Nanna Glory Box"!!

 

...cute wee bunnies and I added a crochet edge.

 

little fairies with lace.....

 

...towels to match....

I  have had in my stash some material I think is gorgeous and wanted to do something special with it so have sewn it on to some pillowcases and single bed sheets...I think A wee child would like it...

 

 

 

So 2 lots of sheets and pillowcases...that machine was smoking!!!!

I also came across these vintage sheets whilst rummaging around in deep piles of fabric!!!

 

...from the old days when we had lots of products made here in NZ.  These are in for some embellishments at a later date!

I have started cutting out blocks for cot quilts to go with the sheets, and even though a thorough search of 'stash' fabric was undertaken I felt I needed just a couple of pieces of material to work in with what I had.... so after some blood tests in Invercargill headed round to Kitz N Things...such a dangerous place to go..my will power deserted me and before I knew it I had purchased MORE fabric...but this is so cute !!! and will work in with the rabbit fabrics...its Beatrix Potter.... and features Hilltop Cottage, Mrs Tiggywinkle and friends...

 

...

...oh it's just tooooooo cute!!!

After this fall from the wagon!  I called in at the second hand store I used to frequent and picked up this little basket and a couple of bright doilies....

 

This fortnight I am hoping for more 'good days' !!!! cot quilts to make and if the weather improves some gardening.

Evening light is always so beautiful.

Have a happy week doing what you love!!!!

"Everyday love corners me somewhere and 

surrounds me with peace-

without having to look very far or very hard

or do something special-"

(Thomas Merton)