Wednesday 21 March 2012

OMG I got an award!


I am in shock.....I've gone through life as a person who is pretty unnoticed.  I was never picked first in sports and have always been very average, so for someone to pick my little blog and deem it award-worthy came completely out of blue!  Now that I've stopped jumping around the living room and have calmed down a little I guess I'd better tell you more.



Nikki from Nikki's Stitching was kind enough to award me with a Liebster Award, these are the details and the requirements that are attached to it:

Liebster is a German word, meaning favorite, dearest or beloved, and the Liebster is awarded by bloggers to other, newer bloggers who have fewer than 200 followers, to spread the word and help the new(er)bies gain wider recognition. The award comes with four conditions that each recipient must satisfy when accepting:

1. Choose five up-and-coming blogs (with fewer than 200 followers) to award the Liebster to.

2. Show your thanks to the blogger who gave you the award by linking back to them.

3. Post the award on your blog. List the bloggers you are giving the award to with links to their sites. Leave comments on their blogs so they know about the award.

4. Share five random facts about yourself that people don't know about you.

It's very difficult to narrow down all the blogs that I read on a regular basis and pick 5 that I want to award a Liebster Award to in return, so I apologise if I haven't picked your blog.

1. Robindefender's blog called Threads of Memory.  She was my first followers and always has nice and supportive comments to give whether things are going right or wrong!  She's a beautiful stitcher and her blog is really well worth a look at.

2. Beth of Beth's Blog.  She stitches lovely and bright designs and it's always lovely to read her blog.  She leaves thoughtful and supportive comments.

3. Next up is Pull the Other Thread.  This lady makes stunning cards as well as being a beautiful stitcher.  Whilst I've only recently come across her blog, I've spent time having a look through her posts and love the range of projects that she tackles.

4. Cindy from Home of a Floss Junkie. I love seeing Cindy's posts each week and not only have I been following the stitching progress of those naughty little Spangler Dragonlings but I've been keeping a keen eye on her hubby's Lego Death Star!

5. Last and by no means least.....Dana from Dana's Blog.  She's had a bit of a rough time health wise but always has kind words and encouragement for others and I wanted her to know that it doesn't go unnoticed.  I love seeing her foodie posts as much as her stitching posts!  Can't wait to see the progress pictures when she starts her first HAED chart.

Now for the 5 facts about myself that people don't know:

1. I am a trashy action movie junkie.  If it has bad acting and lots of fight scenes then I love it! Can't beat anything with Jean-Claude Van Damme and Steven Seagal.

2. Last year our dog accidentally broke my nose whilst I was asleep.  He got cold in the middle of the night and jumped on the bed and fell asleep between my boyfriend and I.  He woke with a start, headbutted my face and broke my nose!  I wondered what on earth was going on when I woke up with my nose hurting and my eyes streaming.  It's still slightly wonky!

3. I met my boyfriend whilst playing an online computer game!  We became friends and chatted by e-mail as well as online, then on the phone and finally in person.  3 months after we met in person, we moved in together and we are getting married later this year after 8 happy years.

4. I have had a working human heart in my hands.  I was a Cardiology nurse and during a night shift I was involved in an emergency where the patient had recent bypass surgery.  I had to assist a surgeon until the rest of his surgical team (who were dealing with another emergency) could arrive.  The patient survived and recovered without further complication.

5. I bought my house when I was 21.  Not a very interesting fact, but something that people don't know!  It's the same house I live in now, it's not very big but it's ok for the 2 of us and our dog.

Thanks for reading!  

Tuesday 20 March 2012

Oops!

Not sure how I managed to do it but I completed forgot about International Hermit and Stitch Weekend.  I did do some stitching over the weekend whilst I was having my sporting fix, it was the final weekend of the 6 Nations Rugby Tournament and also the first weekend of the F1 motor racing season.

As I'm getting closer to finishing Henry VIII, I've been debating which project should be next on the list to fit into that slot in my stitching rotation.  Previously I had decided on Mirabilia's Winter Queen:



However after seeing some lovely fabric from Crafty Kitten, I decided to splash out on the fabric and go for Joan Elliott's Celtic Fanciful Fairy from an old CrossStitcher magazine (Issue 227):


It's been on my to-do list for sometime and I've been determined to start a Joan Elliott design this year as I'm a HUGE fan of her work and I've yet to stitch one.  The fabric I've seen is a hand-dyed colour called Dawn Blush and I ordered the 28ct Jazlyn version as it has a lovely sheen to it:


I think it'll work really well as the colours really complement the colours on the chart.  I spent some of the weekend gridding the fabric, I know it's not really needed on a chart this small but I find it much easier to work on evenweave when it's gridded, it also means that it's easier to pick up mistakes....and I'm bound to make a few!

Even though this is supposed to be my reward for finishing Henry VIII, I probably would have started it already but I'm waiting on some of the threads I'm missing!

Thursday 8 March 2012

WIPocalypse - March

First off, I'd just like to say a huge thank you to those people that left comments on my last post.  You have no idea how much it meant to me and I feel so lucky to be a part of a community that is so supportive.

Secondly, Happy International Women's Day!  You all inspire me with your beautiful works of art!

Now to my WIPocalypse update pictures.  As I did last month, I'll post the last month's WIP picture alongside the current picture so you can see how much (or how little) progress has been made.

First up, TT Violet Sometimes - Jasmine Becket Griffith.  This is a HAED chart but a very small one, stitched on 18ct cream Aida.  I have to say, I'm loving stitching this and can't wait to see it come to life.

February













March























Next up, SK Blue Moon - Linda Ravencroft.  Another HAED piece, this is for the Freebie SAL from the Bulletin Board.  If you've read my other post, you'll know I had a little flip out over this one after I decided to take out some of the stitching.  The first picture will be one taken after I had to take out the stitching rather than last month's picture.

February - Post frog
March



















There isn't much progress on this, but I'm happy that I've put in any stitches at all.  It's all a step in the right direction.  The first picture was taken with my phone, so sorry it's not too clear, but should give some idea of where I was at.

Now to Henry VIII, one that I am really keen to finish soon so that I can start my next non-HAED project!

February













March
















Lastly, a small picture that I've stitched to make into a card for an online friend who has been diagnosed with breast cancer.  




That's it for WIPocalypse March,  thanks for taking the time to look at my work and read my post.  Please feel free to leave a comment if you wish!