Saving Grace?

Or perhaps Private Ryan? Or is it  just little old me? Let me explain.....I've always considered myself a Glass-Half-Full type of person. Others, if asked, would agree. Annoyingly so, apparently, on occasion. Least ways, I'm assuming it's only "on occasion"......I could be just common or garden annoying.....well, perhaps not "common".....I digress (too much "Cranford"!)....
So. Not an awful lot bothers me. I FIRMLY believe that you are dealt the cards you can handle. That tricky times pass. That where one door shuts, another will open. You get the idea. And I've always put that down partly to my genes, and partly my up-bringing. However, I now have doubts.
It would appear that I MIGHT be getting some SERIOUS help! I'll show you.....

Ta-Da.......

I read an article over the weekend about aromatherapy and herbal remedies, and apparently a recognised aid for that Down In The Dumps feeling is Bergamot. I drink COPIOUS amounts of Earl Grey tea. All day, every day. And the key ingredient? Apart from tea leaves. BERGAMOT! Could I secretly be a Glass Half Empty sort of person, living in a drug induced state???? The mind boggles!
Moving on.... Thought I'd give you a sneaky glimpse of the quilt I'm working on for Someone's Birthday.................

It can only be a peek I'm afraid, in case I'm being spied upon. But it is progressing nicely, and so far I'm happy with how it's looking. I do so love hand quilting; it's SSSSOOOO calming. Oh wait....no....that could be the tea.......
Thanks for popping by.....I'm off now to make another fix! xx

Twinkle Twinkle....

As some of you may know, last night was Enforced TV Football Match Viewing. Terrific. The only football I'm happy to watch is either my son's team (I'm still The Manager, so that's handy!) or The Fabulous AFC Bournemouth.
So I decided to put the time to good use, and tackle the February star in "Don't Call Me Betsy"'s Block of The Month. I was a little nervous, as this is only the second piece of Foundation Paper Piecing I've ever done, but I took it just one step at a time, and this is what I came up with.....

I'm quite pleased with it. And I actually think I've got it sussed now....It certainly made more sense this time.
Well, today was the last day that I had any Child-Free Time, in which to get "stuff" done....I had quite a few little plans ready and raring to go. You know the sort....an eensy bit of retail therapy (sewing related), lunch with The Partner, cuppas with friends, bath the dog......But as is often the way (certainly in my life, anyway!) those lovely little plans refused to behave themselves! I DID manage to get some white cotton fabric at a billy-bargain price (yay!), and also stock up on some cotton perle thread......and that was the end of things going according to.......
However, on a positive note, I put some items I need to get rid of on Ebay-double whammy....house becomes a bit tidier, and I get a few more pennies to rattle in my pocket. And then (highlight of the day) The Partner took pity on me, and ordered Chinese Take-Away for dinner! Yum. Yum. Yum.
And now I PLAN to look longingly at the kettle, and wait for The Partner to read my mind and make me a lovely cuppa........
See you soon. xx

I've Been Transported....

.....and before you go any further, I should warn you that I expect you to lower your voice, and only continue to read, if you can manage it in the softest of tones.....
I have had the most pleasant of afternoons, though no-one visited or sent their compliments. I'm not entirely sure what "sending compliments" involves, but it sounds quite nice!
Before you all think I've taken COMPLETE leave of my senses, I shall explain....
I have spent the latter part of my afternoon in the company of the ladies of Cranford. Quite delightful. The Son was out on a jolly with The Grandmother. The Partner was occupied chasing various insurance deals on Tinternet. And I had complete control over the Blu-Ray player.
So it was just me and the girls, and rather fittingly, some crochet....

This is yet another birthday make, but it's quite a long Work in Progress, so I was happy to get an hour or so to myself, and move on with it. I know that you can't tell from the photo, but the texture of it is amazing....it's like snuggling into kittens...
The trade off for an hour and a half of Cranford, is THREE hours of televised football matches......hmmmm.....something wrong there.....I feel I must retire to my rooms....
Until we meet again. xx

On A Roll....

It's simply amazing how much I can get done, with just an hour or so, when I don't have to go out to The Day Job!
All the chore bit and pieces get done in the morning, when I'd usually be at work, and then, with The Son on yet another football course, I'm free to sew without those constant interruptions, commonly known as Living With Children!
So today's Show and Tell is a couple more finishes for that Mother and Daughter thing I'm doing in a couple of weeks......

No.1......

And No.2.....

Yay!
But now it's back to reality, and Dinner Making Duties are (loudly) being called upon.
See you soon. xx

Making Progress.....

Another sunny day! Doesn't it make a difference? Spring could be just around the corner! Don't get me wrong.....I actually love Winter, all snuggled up nice and warm, with the evenings drawing in. It's just that we do seem to have had our fair share of Just Grey Days, where it has rained from sun up to sun down. Or rather cloud up to cloud down. So it's a nice change to have a few days of crisp sunshine......I wonder what soggy sunshine looks like??
Anyway, it's been such a lovely day. I dropped The Son off at a Football Day, before popping off to have a Luxury Manicure at a local Spa, thanks to my Generous Step Daughter. And luxury it certainly was! A little slice of heaven. If money were no object (the money trees that I planted at the bottom of the garden aren't fairing so well-perhaps the sunshine will help??) I would certainly treat myself to a weekly manicure. A simple thing perhaps, but I've felt more glam all day!
Then after a quick lunch back at home, The Partner and I went out for a cuppa, which is so much more relaxing sans enfants. He then dropped me home again and went to pick up The Son on his own.
Which meant I had enough time to turn this.......

......into this......

.........another Birthday Make finished! This one is for my Lovely Auntie, and I KNOW she doesn't read my blog, so it's safe for me to show you. Making Progress indeed!
And now we're off to have tea with friends, who are visiting from Eastbourne, so a lovely end to a lovely day.
Bye. xx

From Little Acorns Do Big Oak Trees Grow....

Or more precisely....From Little Triangles Do Medium Quilt Tops Grow. You know those little triangles that you cut off when your're joining binding strips together (my non-quilting friends have either glazed over, or are now frowning at their computer screens trying to fathom out what the heck I'm talking about!)? Well, the fabulous Amanda Jean Nyberg, and her love of scraps, found a use for them! She can be found here crazymomquilts.blogspot.com and the way she uses her scraps can be found in her book "Sunday Morning Quilts". The quilt that inspired (cheats word for copy!) my quilt top is "Up, Up and Away". I've not copied it entirely, as Amanda has set hers on the diagonal, whereas I've set mine as straight blocks, and also Amanda machine quilted hers but I'm planning on hand-quilting mine. Nevertheless, I certainly think I'd be had up on some copyright charge or another, if I intended to sell my finished quilt.....so it's a jolly good job that this one is destined to be a Happy Birthday Present, in the extremely near future.
What do you think of it so far?

Not sure what the blueish square is, in the middle of the photo, as ALL of the squares are white.....flashback glare perhaps?

A bit closer....

Amazingly, so far it's come together like a dream...my unpicker is feeling quite sad and lonely! I won't show anymore photos until after The Recipient's Birthday, as I'm not sure if she reads my blog or not, and if she does, I'd like it to be a little bit of a surprise.
I've got quite a few Birthday Makes coming up over the next few weeks, and some throws to make for work too, so I'm thrilled that I'm on Half Term Week this week, and actually have a bit of free time in which to get started...Hooray!
Thanks for popping by. See you soon. xx

My Heart Goes Boom-Diddy-Boom-Diddy-Boom...

Happy Valentine's Day to one and all! It's such a nice celebration. We don't go daft about it, here in this bijou residence....but I DO love (no pun intended!) a pretty card. And a pretty card is just what I got....

.....it doesn't show on the photo, but some of the hearts are half cut out, and folded back on themselves. Definately worth a trip to Ikea for one of their white box frames, I think!
At the moment, I'm up to my neck in Report Writing.....which is why I'm actually posting this blog. I HATE doing Progress Reports. I HATE the fact that the Machine That Is Now England's Pre-School System, is hell bent on pushing and squeezing our tiny 2 and 3 year olds into Fulfilling Their Potential, and Stop Them Falling Through The Gaps. WHAT HAPPENED TO LETTING THEM EXPLORE THEIR LITTLE WORLDS, BRAVELY TAKING EACH NEW STEP IN A CARING AND NURTURING ENVIRONMENT?????? Am I the only one who believes we (as a nation) are getting this wrong??
Ok. Rant over. I'll step down from my soap box....well at least for this evening!
I'll show you the beginnings of a new table-runner instead.....

....I had just enough scraps left over from my Cath's Stack quilt, to make this. Hopefully, I'll get chance to get the batting and back pinned on later, ready to quilt tomorrow. The plan is to have it ready to sell at the Mother and Daughter event I'm doing in the beginning of March.
Just before I head back to The Dreaded Reports, I'd just like to say a cheeky "hello" to Geraldine over at Sophie Belle Designs (WELL worth a visit at sophiebelledesigns.blogspot.com for lots of pretty things!).....I do so hope I've been forgiven for FORCING you into trying the Chocolate Finger Straws!!
Well. That's it....I can't put off the inevitable any longer.....back to The Reports....
See you soon. xx

Old Dog....New Tricks....

A couple of months ago, I discovered a lifestyle magazine which is new to the market. Have you seen it yet?........

It's got a little bit of everything in it....homes, city show arounds, crafts, recipes and so on. I love it! It's how I aspire to live my life (I have to admit to failing miserably......there are no beautifully photographed pages of mad women racing around like headless chickens doing Muppet Impressions, within the covers of this particular publication.....Hmmmm....Perhaps I've just spotted a hole in the market??!!) Anyway, a girl can dream. And this girl likes this dream.
Now, as most of you will know by now, I have a certain penchant for chocolate (posh for "addiction to") and genuinely thought I knew it all when it came to all things cocoa based. Just how WRONG could I be?? I was reading through my magazine, and came across one of the regular articles "My Day in Cups of Tea"; another subject close to my heart....there aren't an awful lot of woes that a nice cup of Earl Grey can't sort out. So I read on.
This month's issue had Claire Campbell ( www.abigailgrey.typepad.com ) describing a typical day revolving around  a cuppa or two. All was rolling along nicely, and then the final question about whether or not Claire liked to dunk brought a life-changing moment in it's answer.
Claire is no longer a Dunker (too many soggy lumps at the bottom of a cup!) HOWEVER (pay attention now...this is THE IMPORTANT BIT!!!) she likes to nibble the ends from a chocolate finger, and then use the remaining part as a straw, sucking the tea up through it.
WHAT???? I HAVE NEVER TRIED THIS!!!! I didn't even know that it could be done. Obviously, there was nothing for it, but to conduct a scientific experiment. As luck would have it, the Lovely Emma gave me a beautiful tin, FULL of Chocolate Fingers, the very next day, for my Happy Birthday Present (Thank You, Emma!). As luck would have it even more, we were at work, so I had a ready made Testing Force, willing to try their best for my quest to discover all chocolate delights. We nibbled ends from Chocolate Fingers. We used as straws (quite hard!) in our cups of tea. We discovered Chocolate Heaven. Go try it for yourselves! It's amazing!
Now. This is my 100th Blog Post. And I can feel a celebration coming on.....so I'll leave you  and go and track down a few more (new box!) Chocolate Fingers......
xx

All Done...

A while ago, you may remember that I showed you these......

...and me saying that I didn't know what they would become? Well, this afternoon, I had a couple of hours off, (The Son had an Inset Day and managed to convince The Partner, that he-The Partner- didn't really need the afternoon nap he'd been looking forward to, and would, in fact, MUCH rather take him-The Son- up to the Rec to play football) YAY!!
And so the above became this......

....a Tablet protective, quilted (not that you can tell from the photo!) cover. I've still got to sew on a button, but other than that, the whole thing came together quite easily.
Those little squares are just over 1cm each, so lots of seam matching. Not my strongest point, and usually requires a trustworthy unpicker ready for lots of work. However, for once, those tricky seams were happy to behave themselves.....

....which is more than can be said for the darn photos!! Goodness knows why the first one wanted to put in a guest appearance!
I even lined it....

.....All in all, I'm quite pleased with it. Not that I possess a Tablet, but that's a minor point!!
Well, the football has just started on TV; something about a friendly match between England and Brazil. So I think I'll head back to the sewing machine, and see what else comes to light....
xx

Birthday Boxing Day!

I can't claim this as an original thought, but a friend came up with this today, and I love it! Today is my Birthday Boxing Day! And in spite of it being a work day....or perhaps because of it.....I've had another lovely day.
Just look at what my talented friend Jane made for me.....

......and this is the birds-eye view without the candles lit.......

......Isn't she clever?
And yet more presents, from friends who know me SSSOOOO well (Thank you Annabel and Lucy!!)

At this moment in time, and I'm now typing this in my whispering voice, I should confess that I was given some more chocolate by the lovely Charlotte, and her family......but I've not admitted this to The Partner, as it's safely tucked away in my secret Chocolate Stash Place....
Work was fun, Baby Ballet went well, and the sun shone while I walked my dog-who could ask for anything more? Of course for the day to have been PERFECT, Daughter No. 2 would have secretly flown back from Chicago overnight, and there would have been time for some sewing.....but after I've finished here, I'm going to make a cuppa and consume vast amounts of Birthday Boxing Day presents (I'll leave you to guess which ones!) so all in all, another Happy Ending.
See you soon. xx

It's Today!!

Happy Birthday to me, Happy Birthday to me, Happy Birthday to me-eeeee......Happy Birthday to me!

As you may have seen the other day, I LOVE my Happy Birthday! And I LOVE that my birthday is in February. And as promised (also the other day!), I'll explain why....
Firstly, I love my birthday because it's MY day. I'm not generally a selfish person, but my birthday is mine. All the other celebration days (that I love too) I share with other people. Mothers Day I get to share with my own mother...Valentine's Day I obviously share with The Partner.....Christmas Day I share with thousands.......but not my birthday....it's mine ALL mine. And it's not even that I want lots of pressies, or flashy meals.....I'm more than happy just to be able to pop into shops for a browse, and nobody with me can chivvy me to get a move on.....BECAUSE IT'S MY BIRTHDAY. I don't have to be the one to get up to answer the phone....BECAUSE IT'S MY BIRTHDAY. I get cups of tea made for me....BECAUSE IT'S MY BIRTHDAY. You get the gist.
As for being thrilled that I was born in February, it's because it's SUCH a special month! It's the ONLY month with 28 days, and that consequently gets a Leap Year every 4 years. It has Valentine's Day in it. It has Pancake Day in it. Such lovely celebrations. Ok. I realise I'm starting (!!) to sound a little odd now. But I promised you an explaination.....and so now you know...
I've had such a lovely day too. The Son had a football match first thing (flippin typical....no matches for weeks because of waterlogged pitches and today of all days we get to play) and as his team's manager I got to squelch along a soggy sideline for almost an hour. Well that wasn't so special, but the fact that he scored a hat-trick, and that we had chocolate birthday cake after the match, helped considerably.
I was treated to a cup of tea and slice of cake, in true Worzel Gummidge and Aunt Sally style (make mine a cream scone, please!) this afternoon, in one of my favourite local coffe shops. I got to browse in my favourite gift shop (lots of Cath available!) followed by a nice meal and yet MORE chocolate Happy Birthday Cake, with my family.
And Daughter No 2 and I had a lovely Skype chat for nearly an hour, which was obviously wonderful.
There were some lovely pressies....I was well and truly spoiled. There are those among you who will find these slightly odd.......some of you will understand completely!

.....so I can now do this, without the fabric puckering.....

.....the book is lovely, and one I haven't got; the ruler replaces one I lost and have been muddling by without ever since; the lamp will help my poor eyes actually see the work I hand sew late into the evenings!
So all in all another perfectly happy Happy Birthday.
See you soon. xx