The title describes my mood today … I got up early and vacuumed most of the flat (still have to do the lounge, and that’s it), then mopped the kitchen, bathroom and toilet floors, cleaned the bath, and started a bit of a tidy-up effort in the spare bedroom – until I can afford a new bookcase and storage cabinets (my latest plan for the spare room … one day), I made use of the file boxes I freighted my last lot of books over in, and turned them into a makeshift book storage area – not very flash, but it’s a lot tidier than having them all piled up on the floor!
Today is a most glorious day in Melbourne – it’s still a bit nippy, but the sun is shining, and it feels good to be alive 🙂 After my morning housekeeping, I treated myself at lunchtime to a walk into St Kilda and a brunch of bacon, eggs, and mushrooms at a local cafe, plus a couple of lattes to wash it all down … it was glorious to sit outside in the sun, with a gas furnace heater taking the chill out of the day, and reading a book, sipping lattes without a care in the world (insert contented sigh here …) 😉
Then I took my time and strolled up the St Kilda Pier, which I’ve never done before, and dawdled off home again taking the beach route. I really do feel very much ‘at one with the world’ today – and it feels good 🙂 Catching the train this week has been very beneficial – it’s got me back into the mode of enjoying walking again, so I’ll have to keep it up … better bring your walking shoes, Mum, ‘cos you’re coming with me! haha (yeah, I know you love walking, which is a good thing!). The next photo is a street very typical of my area with elm trees lining each side of the street – they’re looking very bare at the moment, but it won’t be very long before they’re starting to sprout spring leaves again – I just love these avenues of trees, and they make me feel really peaceful to see them 🙂 (And with my flat being on the 3rd floor, I get a birds-eye view of the ones on my doorstep!)
Nothing else to report, really – just felt like blogging about what a wonderful day it is 🙂 I only managed an hour of stitching last night, so nothing new to report. I actually did 2 hours on a Christmas ornie a couple of nights ago, but decided not to post a piccie until it’s all finished … hopefully next weekend that’ll all be done (won’t have much stitching time this week due to visitors) – but then I have 2 1/2 weeks off work when Mum first arrives woohoo … just think, it’ll be stitching heaven at my place, now there are two of us stitching haha 😀 (we might be fighting over the Ott-lite, though haha).
Bordeaux Sampler
I’m supposed to post my update piccie on Fridays, along with Carol, but I’ve decided to cheat and put it up a day early, as I may be busy tomorrow. I managed to get a good night’s stitching (4 whole hours) into this last night, and I just have the over-one lettering and bottom band plus the rhodes grapes in the side borders to do, then part one is all finished yippee! 😀 I’m soooooo tempted to sit and do some more tonight, which would probably see part one finished, but I’m going to resist the temptation. For our SAL I said I’d stitch for one day/night or a total of 3 hours each week, depending what my shifts were like, so I guess I’ve already stitched my quota on it for this week … I have to admit, though, I really enjoyed stitching on it and I’m looking forward to finishing part one next week some time 😀 (mind you, I’m not a huge fan of over-one stitching, so that lettering band might be slow going).
I also have more stash to report – this is yet again from an order that was made a number of weeks ago, in a 30-75% off sale from Margaret Lee’s website … I never had confirmation of the final cost, or that the order was complete, so I totally forgot all about it … I was surprised to come home to a LARGE box with a postage cost of US$29 (ahem!!), just for a few charts, fabric and two pairs of scrollbar side frames – there was a long piece of ‘plastic bag’ stuff filled with air to fill out the box … would it not have been better to just parcel the damn stuff into a flatter box to save postage? It’s not as if a couple of charts etc are breakable! Oh well, the main reason I placed an order was because they had selected aida fabric on sale at 50-75% off, and I wanted to order some for Mum’s stitching stash, seeing as she’s still on a mad Christmas ornie stitching spree (go Mum!!). Still, that extra US$20 spent on postage costs has really marred the savings on the other items … oh well, c’est la vie! At least you have some more fabric, Mum 🙂
The charts in this haul were The Gathering Room by Little House Needleworks (not in the photo); Those Darn Accessories by Hillside Samplings; A Little Blackwork by Drawn Thread; Sitting Pretty by Valerie Pfeiffer; Birdie Holiday by Lizzie*Kate; Stitching Friends by Lizzie*Kate; Honey Bee by Elizabeth’s Designs; Life’s a Stitch by Lizzie*Kate; Bluebells and Violets by Shepherd’s Bush; and Teenie Hardanger III by The Sweetheart Tree.
For Mum … I also got the following aida for you – 14ct lambswool, 16ct antique ivory, and 16ct navy. This lot was all pre-Wagon spending 😉
Now it’s time to get the washing out of the machine and hang it out before settling down for the night – it’s day 6 of work today, and I feel pretty wrecked (especially as I was stitching until midnight last night oops haha), so I thought I’d give myself a good start to the weekend, by getting some housework out of the way quickly … now I’m going to be self-indulgent while watching Big Brother (sad, but true, I do enjoy it!), followed by Medium and Lost … ah, bliss! 😀
Over the hump … almost
Today is day 4 of my working week – and with any luck I’ll be allowed to take Friday off as an optional RDO (rostered day off) … if that’s the case, then I’m officially sitting on the 2/3 mark of my week … if not, I still have 3 days left. Saturday I’m heading off with a lady from work to Gippsland Art Gallery in Sale (about 3 hours drive away from Melbourne) to visit the Annemieke Mien Exhibition. This is exciting for two reasons – 1) I’ve never been to Gippsland before, and 2) Annemieke Mein’s work is absolutely stunning, and it will be fantastic to see it first-hand. I’ll take my camera with me just in case we’re allowed to take photos 🙂 Here are some links to her works: here and here (this is the exhibit I’m going to) 😀
Another quiet night tonight, but I feel really relaxed – on the 9am-5pm shifts the traffic to and from work is horrific … with no traffic it’s a 20 minute drive, but on this shift it can be 1 whole hour – I got so fed up and uptight in the traffic yesterday that I decided to leave the car at home today, and walked to the train station to take the train to work … how wonderful, I arrived at work totally unstressed, and feel the same way after coming home – I think it’s going to be a permanent arrangement on this shift yippee! (It also means I have to get my fat bottom in motion and get a bit of walking in to and from the station, so yet another positive! haha)
Today more stash arrived in my mailbox – my subscription to the Australian Inspirations magazine from Country Bumpkin (actually, my subscription must be due to expire soon hmmm) … this month has a lovely surface stitchery bag on the cover – I probably wouldn’t have the patience to stitch it myself, but it’s absolutely gorgeous! 😀 And not just that today, but my magazine arrived complements of KarenV from the UK, with the Margaret Sherry booklet I wanted – including the 12 days of Christmas charts. But there was an added treat, with some gorgeous Egyptian designs in the magazine as well – a definite added bonus! Thanks again Karen, for helping me out – your blood is worth bottling!! {{huge hugs}}
Now I’m off to do a spot of stitching for an hour before I hit the hay for the night – seeing as I didn’t get chance to get any of the Bordeaux Sampler done last week, I want to get an hour each night for the next 3 nights so I can post a progress piccie on Friday for my SAL with Carol 🙂
You’ve got mail !!
BUT it’s not stitching related … it IS related to my OTHER passion, though … welcome to the Annie household three more little treasures – compliments of the Big Brother TV show … from left to right “Outback Duck”, “Darling Duck” and “King Duck” – woohoo!!! haha 😀
It’s only a quick post, as I have a few things to do at home tonight – I am celebrating, though, as today is the first day since Friday (ie 4 days ago) that I haven’t been chewing Nurofen all day – I’ve had a splitting headache since stitching those racing cars, so no blog reading etc being done. I’ve also just received the news today that my favourite person at my old place of work in Auckland is coming here next week for two nights on business (same company), and she’s staying at my place … the spare room looks like a tornado zone, as it’s got my boxes unpacked all over the place – um, time to get it all squared up a bit sooner than I expected … hmmm. It will be wonderful to see her again – and it will be awesome to be able to show her ‘my office’ 🙂
Rightio, off to do a few chores – time to put the laundry etc away before bedtime …
Peace …
The title doesn’t mean anything profound … just that I’ve finished the Peace ornament from the 2004 JCS ornie magazine – finally one finished in line with our designer SAL on the Friends Gather BB … this month was Jeannette Douglas Designs 🙂 A HUGE thanks to Jenna for sending me the Needle Necessities overdyed braid I needed to finish this one – muchly appreciated! 😀
I’m now halfway through my smalls/ornaments/SAL rotation slot … just have to decide what to stitch in those last 5 hours – perhaps another small ornament … I’ll have to decide later, ‘cos it’s time to run off to work. Hope you’re all having a lovely weekend 🙂
(Sorry, but the scan doesn’t show up the lovely stitches very well – I might try and take a digital photo later some time.)
DMC on sale for Aussies
Just a quick public announcement in case you’re interested (for my fellow Aussies) … I happened by chance to pop into my local “Riot” art & craft store near work while I killed time in my lunch break, and found they had DMC on sale until the end of July for 59c each – time to drag out the floss bags and see what I’m running short of 🙂
The other news is that as of 10 minutes ago, my latest charity quilt block was finished … I really didn’t enjoy the deadline for this one (my own fault, though) so I’ve decided once the next block is finished (which is due 15 August) I’m not signing up for any more deadlines months in advance. I’ve got a charity block rotation slot, and the week that I come to it, I’ll check the website to see what blocks are required, then I’ll sit and stitch it straightaway … that way I’m not governed by timeframes too much, but I still continue to contribute to the quilts. I’ve decided deadlines just don’t suit me. I may also pull out of the SBEBB for the same reason – I love the whole idea of exchanges etc, but I’ve found the deadlines too stressful … perhaps because I had so many things on the go at the same time. I’ll see how I feel after the redwork exchange is completed …
So, with no further do, here is my racing car block ready to jump in the mail.
SBQ
I’m hitting the floor running this morning … I’ve just fallen out of bed, checked my emails very briefly, and now I’m heading straight over to my stitching corner to get cracking on that 2nd NASCAR – won’t be moving much over the next 48 hours as the deadline is upon me and I only have 1 square inch stitched of the 2nd car yet hmmm. Lack of sleep severely threw out my stitching plans over the last couple of days … b*gger!
But before I do, here’s the latest SBQ which suggested by Carol and is:
“Since you started blogging, have you noticed any difference in your stitching habits? Tell us about them.”
The answer is “definitely” … I’ve bought more stitching items than I have in years (you enablers, you), and I’ve found my tastes changing in that I’ll drool over someone else’s finish then want to stitch it too – it’s definitely broadening my horizon stitching-wise. I also notice that I’m stitching more regularly, as it’s nice to see the WIP piccies in progress – it’s also nice to get encouragement from my fellow stitching bloggers when I hit the wall, as well as being nice to cheer them on too through their own blogs. Thanks ladies, you’re all an inspiration to me! 😀 It’s great to see some pieces getting finished for a change … blogging rocks!!
Here Kitty Kitty!!!
Did I do any stitching yesterday? Nope … nil … nada … zip … zilch! I kept active as long as I could – and as soon as I sat down my eyes drooped big time, so I just kept doing a few things around the place like putting my last load of washing away etc and general tidying around my computer area – I fell into bed early at 7pm, but had a really rough night’s sleep compliments of shocking high winds making a racket … I think tonight is the first night where I’m going to succumb to taking 1/2 a sleeping tablet, as I feel almost dizzy from the lack of sleep (aside from looking like Frankenstein’s bride!). I’m taking the risk tonight in taking a tablet, as I don’t start work until 9am, so it’s OK if I sleep in a bit. Then it’s my two days off (Thu/Fri), before working 7 days straight.
Anyway, I have to put the record straight with my latest spoils … the only things I went ‘off the wagon’ for was my Ebay win from Ashleigh – everything else was from previously … which is what prompted me to get back on the wagon haha. Admittedly, that money could have gone towards a new lounge suite, or my holiday, or a new feline companion, but I really enjoyed spending it that way, and have no guilty feelings this time whatsoever 😀
Talking of which, I think I’ve made a decision to go ahead with the feline companion … I just need to get a few items that are essential first, ie scratching post, litter tray, kitty litter, ping pong balls etc. I’ve also been checking out the RSPCA adoption website, and I absolutely adore these three critters … especially the black and white one, as he’s the spitting image of our last cat Rio 🙂 Second runner-up is the grey tabby, but I really love the look of all three of these … I can’t do anything about it until after we come back from Hong Kong, but I have to admit it would be perfect timing to get one then, as I’ll be at home for about another 1-2 weeks on holiday, so it would be a great chance to get a cat settled in and house trained etc then … I’ll take a trip out to Burwood when we get back, and have a look, I think … mind you, it depends if I still have any money left over, as the cat itself is $110 plus all of the essentials I’ll need. I really need to buy some glasses, which is probably more essential at the moment for me, so we’ll see … but the seed has definitely been set … 🙂
Age: 7 months; Sex: Male (N); Colour: Black Tabby & White
Name: “Molly”; Age: 4 years; Sex: Female (S); Colour: Grey Torti
Age: 4 years; Sex: Female; Colour: Tabby
Itchy stitcher fingers
I’ve decided to answer an archival Stitching Meme, because it’s relevant for the first time today …
“Do you have a case of startitis?What projects are you dying to start? Which would you start today if you “allowed” yourself?”
Um, the answer is well and truly “yes” … today I received my latest Mystery Bits from SB&B, and they included threads for three projects that are very high on my “wanna start it now” wishlist – both the Golden Garden Sweet Bag and Never Enough Berries by Forget-Me-Knots in Stitches, and the Summer at the Ocean needleroll by Jeannette Douglas Designs … I am seriously itching to start the sweet bag and the needleroll BIG TIME! I’ve had to keep putting them to one side until I had all the threads, but now I’ve got everything for the needleroll, and just missing 2 Soie d’Alger silks for the sweet bag … I can barely contain my excitement!! 😀 I also just need one Waterlilies silk for the berries set, but I don’t have all the fabric for that one, so a slightly longer wait … but I have plenty to keep me out of trouble in the meantime haha. The needleroll will get started during the next SAL … and I might just have to find a spot for the sweet bag in my rotation … 😉 Mind you, it’s quite a ‘varied’ chart and the FMNIS charts are never that easy to follow, so it may become an ongoing project and push my rotation a bit out the window … time will tell … 😉
Today I’m feeling very jaded, and my eyes are like little slits at only 3pm – I came off a 6pm finish last night, onto a 5am start today, and I never sleep that well doing that – after the previous bad sleep due to the rugby, it’s definitely caught up with me. I’ve just put a load of washing in the machine, and trying to keep active to keep me awake … in a short while I’ll sit down and try to stitch some more on the NASCARs piece, but I think I’ll be in bed at about 6pm tonight as it’s a 5am start again tomorrow yuk!
Go All Blacks!!!
I may regret it tomorrow, but last night I stayed up to watch the first game of the All Blacks vs Wallabies (ie New Zealand vs Australia in Rugby Union for those of you not in the know) … and I’m pleased to say the ALL BLACKS WON!!! I have to admit to not being a sports fan, but the All Blacks are the only team I follow … I get a ribbing at work for being a Kiwi all the time, and today I intend wearing my All Black scarf and T-shirt just to wind one of the guys up 😉
I have to admit, I love living in Aussie, and the majority of the people I’ve met and dealt with are wonderful people, and I feel at home here … but sometimes the sports commentating here is very one-eyed and rude. I was really shocked to hear a commentator last night, while the camera was on a toddler being held up by its parents covered in All Blacks face paint – the commentator said “look at that poor kid – it’s amazing what parents will do to you these days … it’s unfortunate enough that it’s a New Zealander without doing that to it as well” – now is that really necessary??? I can take a joke as much as the next person, but that’s really inappropriate, and it really got my ire up last night for a short time hmmm. There is a friendly rivalry between the two nations, and a zillion of Kiwi vs Aussie jokes etc, and I can handle that easily … but that public comment made me angry 😦
So partly because of that attitude last night, I was SUPER happy that we trounced the Aussies 32-12 (sorry Aussie pals), and my neighbours got a taste of their own medicine after midnight as I was cheering my team on loudly (they did the same last week or so watching the soccer until the early hours haha). Of course, the game is still not over as such – there are still two games to be played for the Bledisloe Cup … go Kiwis!!! 😉
Feather Stitching 
