Tag: Stash

Gifts TO BE FIXED, Stash

Disappointing news about Silkweaver

Anne S

Just a quick post to say how disappointed I feel about Silkweaver’s announcement that they won’t be selling plain fabrics etc any longer, but will just be selling hand-dyeds … Normally it wouldn’t worry me so much, but I had almost completed my ‘mental’ order of fabrics that I wanted to buy using Jenna’s birthday gift certificate, and they were all plain/opalescent fabrics for upcoming projects. When Country Stitch did this recently, Linda had her stock of plain fabrics at discounted prices, so you still had chance to try and get the fabrics that you needed – I knew I wouldn’t be able to get a lot of them, but you at least had a chance to quickly contact her to see what she was still holding in stock. Silkweaver have just sent an email saying that’s it, no longer available for sale 😦 I’m sure I can find some lovely hand-dyed fabbies to spend my voucher on, but I just feel a bit disappointed in the whole thing {{pouting}}. A lot of the local suppliers down under just don’t have the same range, and I can understand the business reason behind it (Linda and I discussed this at length over a few emails, and I don’t blame her for not stocking plain fabrics anymore). Thank goodness I still have Karen at Dragonfly Dreams – but geez I wish you were in my home town, as you have the best selection down under of everything!

I still can’t believe what we pay at my LNS for threads etc … to give you an example, that quite frankly shocked me senseless, and I’m tempted not to set foot in it again without taking smelling salts to help with the shock of the bill! I really, really wanted to use the right threads (well, as much as possible, anyway) for my recent Christmas ornies – but there were a few colours I didn’t have in GAST … so I called into my LNS on the way home from work, as it’s only a 5-minute detour from my route home – they had the main 3 colours I really needed, so I trotted up to the counter with them. To be honest, I expected them to be expensive, but not nearly as much as they were – I ended up paying $16.50 for 3 skeins – that’s $5.50 each skein!!! Bl**dy hell, my brain kept thinking all the way home – I was in shock! I know you have to have mark-ups on your products, and I know us down under have to pay for the shipping/customs charges in the long run, but I don’t understand that sort of mark-up whatsoever! Unfortunately for them, in the future if I’m buying locally, Dragonfly Dreams will be getting all my local business – at $3.50 a skein for GAST, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to work out why … aside from that, Karen’s service is exceptional and very personalised! (and I would have said that, even if I didn’t know you were reading my blog now, Karen! LOL) Once I get back to being confirmed as a shift worker again, I’ll be getting an order in, that’s for sure! I really needed some fabrics for some upcoming Christmas ornaments, but perhaps I just need to have a hunt through my stash and become a bit creative, or just choose a different ornament to stitch in the meantime … Geez, I’m a bit of a grizzle-guts at the moment LOL.

BUT on a much brighter note, I have to say I had a wonderful surprise in my PO Box on Wednesday, but haven’t had chance to acknowledge it online on the computer at all … my apologies for the delay in making an official acknowledgement! I had a wonderful belated birthday prezzie from my sweet angel, Tobie – thank you so much, Tobie, it was a wonderful surprise and a wonderful gift, from a wonderful friend 🙂 Thanks heaps and HEAPS!! It had a wonderful chart from my wishlist – Sun needleroll by M Designs, and a gorgeous skein of blue Anchor pearl cotton with a metallic thread through it …. it’s just gorgeous! But wait … there’s more! … there’s also a
packet of my absolute favourite needles – some #26 Piecemakers, and a packet of 14ct aida, which is absolutely perfect for my charity quilt blocks – and you’ll never believe it, but I’ve just been thinking I was going to have to buy some more ‘cos I was short of fabric for one block I’ve committed myself to stitching – talk about perfect timing!! Wow, Tobie, I was well and truly spoilt rotten!! Thank you, thank you, thank you my dear friend! :)))

During my last bit of stitching, I managed to finally watch the last DVD’s I got sent by Homescreen (they’ve only been sitting there for 2 weeks!) … and they were all dreadful – “Breaking in” with Burt Reynolds; “The Brush-Off” – an Aussie movie, and semi-watchable; and the worst one of all “The Good Girl” with Jennifer Aniston – what a load of rubbish!!! Let’s hope the 3 movies heading out my way this week are a bit better … “The Program”, “Boat Trip” and “Memories of Me” … ‘cos the ones I’ve been choosing lately have been appallingly bad! Maybe I should just start closing my eyes and pointing my mouse at the screen, and selecting whatever it falls on, ‘cos that would have to be better than the drivel I’ve been choosing myself!! On the latest stitching front, I managed to get about two more inches stitched on Marine Elegance, so I’m just around the bottom point and heading back up to the top … don’t think I’ll attempt any more today though LOL.

And unfortunately that’s all I have time for today – I’m absolutely exhausted … it’s only 4.10pm and I can hardly keep my eyes open … only managed to get about 5 hours sleep last night ‘cos I was up all night chatting, which is not very clever on a 6am shift LOL. Tonight Rox is out to dinner, leaving me and Fraze on our own, so hopefully I can get an early night to make up for it … but I’m seriously thinking of having a kip right about now … But hopefully Fraze will get home early enough for us to go for a beach walk for an hour before dinner – that should tire me out even more LOL. Tomorrow night I’m off to dinner with Rox on our own, to have a proper catch-up and girlie night out … it’s been so wonderful to see her – I still can’t really believe she’s here in this country!!! 😀

Food, Gifts TO BE FIXED, Home & Family TO BE FIXED, Stash

Gob-smacked again – I LOVE the 40’s :)

Anne S

Today was another good day in ‘my world’ … I’ll get to the part that had me gob-smacked earlier today right until the end … but I won’t keep you too long before you can get there (unless the curiosity has got the better of you already, and you’ve left me here on my own, and already jumped to the bottom! LOL). I’m pretty tired tonight, so my apologies if I’m not too coherent. Anyway, back to business …

Yesterday was a wonderful mail day in general – in addition to Barbara’s gorgeous gift, I also received an Ebay win in the post. I have to admit that after my huge financial blow-out last year, I’ve been avoiding Ebay like the plague so I’m not tempted, but Sharon and Gina told me there was a XS book called Allura’s Australia in XS at a reasonable price – after seeing Sharon’s copy first-hand, I decided I definitely had to check this one out … so I did, and managed to win it for a sum total of AU$2.24 – daylight robbery on my part, is all I can say! I can’t believe a hardback book of 192 pages and oodles of charts could go for such a paltry sum!! I honestly do feel as though I’ve robbed the seller – with postage included it came to a total of AU$10.64 – crikey!!! Am I grinning? You betcha! Thumbs Up

The other wonderful thing to arrive is my black aida … finally!! It was supposed to arrive last week after being on backorder – but the supplier stuffed up and missed it off the back-ordered shipment, but it finally turned up yesterday. I was about to email off to the US organisers taking up an offer for them to send me some, as my Aussie supplier had fallen off the rails, but luckily it came through … and that means I can finally stitch up my block for the World Trade Center charity quilt … Cheerleader

So, that was my wonderful mail yesterday all sorted out … The other good news I had today is that I had an exam at work for another permanent Hotline role – it was supposed to be next week, but the Supervisor running it has finally got a surgery date to get her gallbladder out, in two weeks time, right when she was planning interviews … so we’ve been getting pulled in really quickly to sit the exam. And I passed, which means I’m at least over the first hurdle – 17 have applied for the job again, but I don’t know how many have got to the interview stage … but I’m now trying hard not to think about the outcome of the interview, as I’m appalling at interviews, and I wanted it too badly last time … this time I’m going to try to ‘go with the flow’ and not end up with a couple of weeks off with cluster migraines over the whole situation … what will be, will be!

OK, I’ve prattled on for long enough … on to the great mail day for today … oooh, no, before I do that, let me say I finally made the infamous Mars Bar slice today to take into work, and it went down a treat, with yet another two people wanting the recipe. Anyway, I figure it’s always such a winner with people, I’d share it here as well … if you decide to make it, your arteries will hate you for life, but your family, friends and loved ones that you share it with will love you for eternity LOL:

MARS BAR SLICE
Base:
3 x Mars Bars (approx 60g-65g each)
90g butter
3 cups rice bubbles
Topping:
200g milk chocolate
30g butter

Yup, that’s all there is in it – do you see why I said your arteries would hate you? haha.

Base: Melt together the Mars Bars and butter in a saucepan over a low heat, making sure not to let it burn – keep mixing until it’s a smooth creamy mixture (can take quite a bit of time). Mix in rice bubbles until they’re all coated, then press down into the base of a greased 19cm x 29cm lamington pan (or equivalent dish – I usually add baking paper as well, as it can be a pain to get out!). Spread with the topping, and devour! (I usually pop it in the fridge to set properly, especially when it’s roasting hot weather!)
Topping: Melt together the butter and milk chocolate over a pan of hot water (ie using a double-boiler).

Frazier heard I was making Mars Bar slice today and he put his orders in straightaway for me to save him some!

OK, now on to the best bit … you see, you always have to leave the best bits until last … Today I got an additional surprise in my PO Box (I really love my PO at the moment – they’ve left some wonderful surprises in that box!) – today I received a parcel from my very best friend of all time, Vicki, in New Zealand. Vicki and I have been best friends since we were 10 years old, so exactly 3/4 of my living days to date. Anyway, she is the most creative soul I’ve ever met – everything she touches creatively, she turns to gold … she works in the scientific realm for her work, and comes home and does all sorts of crafts … and every craft she has tried, she does it to perfection! If I didn’t adore her so much, I’d hate her for being so bl**dy perfect haha. She seriously is amazing, and I’m very very blessed to count her as my best friend. I would most definitely give her both my kidneys if she ever needed them! And she really out-did herself with this little creation!!

So, what did this gorgeous creature do for my birthday? She created the most amazing tribute to our friendship – she has gotten into scrapbooking in a big way I think, and has put together a concertina book with photos from our growing up years and memorable occasions … I’ll photograph and scan the images so I can share it with you …

Above is a photo of the other gifts as well, and I adore them all – another duck for my ever-growing collection (but I’ll never ever have enough LOL) (the little duck was chosen by little Orion – boy, did he choose well!), and a lovely hand-bound book by a bookmaker (Rhonda Niven) in Motueka, Nelson. For those of you who are non-Kiwis, that’s a fantail on the cover … and of course everything is in my absolutely favourite colours (yep, turquoise is definitely my all-time favourite of all the blues). OK, on to the details of the concertina book Vicki made me … here is a scan of the cover:
And the four inside ‘pages’:

And inside each of these ‘pages’ there is a little page that pulls out – this is the most amazing part of it … I just love the contents of these!

I did say, though, that I’m glad I went to my PO Box before work and opened the gifts at work, ‘cos if I’d done it at home I would have bawled my eyes out, I am so touched and honoured by this wonderful gift. The sentiment behind this gift makes it a treasure beyond compare, and it’s something I’ll continue to treasure throughout my lifetime … Vicki, I love this gift with all my heart and then some … if someone today offered me a million dollars for it, I would turn them down. I’ve always longed to own something that Vicki’s created, and this exceeds all expectations … yep, definitely “gob-smacked” and feeling well and truly blessed! As stitchers we all know how much time and effort goes into making something, so this is truly a labour of love … and worth more than gold itself to me!

Stash, Works in Progress

Good mail day!

Anne S

It was a semi-decent stitching day for me today – the temperature dropped to about 25C during the day and was fantastic for sleeping last night. I actually woke up feeling human today, and couldn’t wait to pick up a needle again! I managed to catch up with assignment 3 of the Apricot Elegance SAL from the Stitching Smalls Yahoo group … I was surprised, though, with the colour of the pearl cotton I’m using – on the skein it looks quite turquoisey, but when you stitch it up on that fabric the mint/pale green shows up more. I had my heart set on using a brightish turquoise for my filling stitches etc, but now I’m a bit stumped, as the colours just won’t go! Oh well, it means we’re off to the LNS tomorrow to try to find a colour that will substitute. Even though it wasn’t my ‘perfect’ choice of colour, I have to admit that I really like it … it now reminds me of Monet’s waterlily paintings, which I adore 🙂 It just means I might not be able to finish this week’s assignment yet, until I decide on colours.

Usually on my days off, I don’t go anywhere near my PO Box, as it’s a 1/2 hour drive away … but I knew I was expecting some parcels, so curiosity got the better of me today and we took a trip out for a couple of hours to grocery shop and collect mail. And what a wonderful lot of surprises were awaiting me! I had some fabric from Country Stitch from their sales, as Linda is selling off all her plain colour linens etc and will just be selling hand-dyeds from now on – the two stash expenses I haven’t given up yet have been my FOTM clubs with both Country Stitch and Silkweaver. Anyway, my last FOTM of plain linens arrived from Linda late last week, but my mail today was ‘extra’. I also received my December FOTM from Silkweaver last week, a lovely colour called “Desert Sky” – a very nice neutral colour 🙂

The other exciting mail was some fabric from Dawn, that she dyed herself – and it is the most scrummy colour turquoise … serious drool material! Thanks Dawn, for a fantastic trade – Dawn got a Mirabilia chart, and I got the fabric … me thinks I got the better deal! LOL. Thanks again Dawn! 😀 And then last, but certainly not least, I received a chart from Karen – Quaker Huswif by Sampler Cove, that was on my wishlist … Karen, you’re a sweetheart – thanks again so much! I won’t be starting this one for a while yet, so I have plenty of time to drool over it in the meantime – and there are week-by-week SAL instructions on the Legacy BB, which will come in mighty handy when I do start it 🙂

I forgot to mention that I also had a nice surprise at work about two weeks ago – one of the guys that I’ve only just recently started working with on the Hotline, was watching me XS at work on the late shifts a couple of times, and mentioned that his Mum had left some stitching ‘bits and pieces’ after she’d passed away, and he’d try and find them for me. So, a few days later he trotted into work and gave me a few packets of needles and DMC threads, plus a piece of natural linen, and some beige/tan aida and hardanger fabric. Also a magnetic chart holder, and two charts – one of them is a chart full of alphabets, which is going t0 be oh so useful – how wonderful! I have to admit that I probably won’t use the beige/tan aida as it is, but I’m thinking of practising my dyeing on it. I felt very very touched that he thought of me – as he said, he’d rather it went to someone who would appreciate it, than just throwing it out … thanks Craig! 🙂

Rightio, off to watch the some more of my mail … “The Notebook” on DVD from Homescreen – what a dreadful night we have instore for us again … a bottle of chilled Marsanne wine, stitching and DVD’s – just awful! 😀

Finishes, Stash

First small finish for 2006

Anne S


Just a really quick post as I’m feeling pretty wrecked today … pulled a 10-hour shift last night (9pm-7am), and energy levels are a bit lacking … oh well, 1 shift down, 2 to go, then next week I only work 3 days before having a 2 day break again (which I’ll need!).

Managed to finally get my Love needleroll ornament finished – so it’s now gracing my smalls basket along with Jenna’s Peace ornament 🙂 Will get one more ornament stitched this month as part of an ornament RR – wonder which one it will be?

Other news is that I splurged again – the final part of my Christmas money has gone … I replaced my copy of Janice Love’s “Basics and Beyond” hardanger book – an old work colleague stole my original copy along with over $200 of other books (embroidery ones and Lonely Planets) … she borrowed them and never returned them, even after many requests, then left work never to be heard from again boohoo. Oh well, I’m glad to have this book back in my library again – it’s the best hardanger book around for beginners, and I really want to pick up hardanger again this year.

That’s it for me – hopefully I’ll be back blogging soon … I can just imagine all the lovely projects you’ve been stitching while I’ve been gone – it’s gonna take me a full week to catch up! I’ve tried loading up Newsgator to try and help to keep on top of blogs, but for some reason it’ll only pick up about 1/3-1/2 of your blogs with the RSS feeds – and I don’t know why as most people use Blogger … not my area of expertise, that’s for sure!

Stash

Stash haul arrived!

Anne S

Woohoo, my stash from my shopping splurge of moooooonths ago has finally turned up today … and even though I feel bad about breaking the bank (literally) with these babies, it’s hard to feel bad for long as they’re just gorgeous 😉 It’s hard to see what everything is in the photos, so I’ve posted a list underneath.

  • Tulip Accessories by Beardie Designs (want to change the colours, though)
  • In the Dark needleroll & scissors fob by Lena Rose
  • Wildberry Petals needlebook by Lena Rose (again, I’ll change the colours)
  • Bunnies in the Garden by With My Needle (for a 2006 SAL)
  • Summer at the Ocean by Jeannette Douglas (dying to stitch this as a needleroll!)
  • The French Garden by The Drawn Thread
  • Boo! Scissors Fob & Purse by The Drawn Thread
  • The Golden Garden ‘Sweet Bag’ by FMNIS
  • Silken Roses fob Teenie Tweenie by The Sweetheart Tree
  • Cherry Blossoms fob Teenie Tweenie by The Sweetheart Tree
  • Christmas Ornaments by Judy Odell/Just a Thought (bit disappointed with this on first glance)
  • 32ct lambswool linen by Wichelt
  • 32ct black Belfast linen (for Strawberries So Faire SAL)
  • Poinsettia Gloriana silk (for Strawberries So Faire SAL)
  • City of Bristol Brown overdyed floss by Olde Willow Stitchery (for Bunnies in the Garden SAL)
  • Remaining back-ordered little bulb buttons by JABC
  • MH leaf treasures for Summer into Autumn by The Drawn Thread

I’m not sure why SB&B sent me 6 each of the last 3 colours I was waiting for in the little bulb buttons, as I only needed 2 of each … but I’ve let them know by email. Maybe it was their way of saying thank you for waiting for soooooo long to receive them? – more likely just a simple error. I must say, though, I’m glad it’s finally arrived!

As far as stitching’s concerned, I managed to design the back of my gift piece last night (which I hadn’t got around to deciding on previously) – that took me an hour or two playing around with my XS software (while chatting to Mum on the phone), but I also managed to get about an hour’s stitching in it as well. I haven’t been commenting on many blogs at the moment, as I’m just trying really hard to get this piece finished and in the mail – hopefully by the end of the week I’ll be able to get back to blogging properly again 🙂 I miss seeing what everyone is up to!

Stash

Stash report & WIP

Anne S

OK, here’s the stash report from my Nordic Needle haul … have to admit, I wasn’t as thrilled as I thought I’d be when I opened it – I think I’ve just been waiting so long for it to arrive, it almost feels like an anti-climax … weird, I know – I’m such a strange creature! 😉 The one piece that kept taking my eye all night, though, was Thea’s “Close at Heart” chart – too beautiful!! Anyway, here’s the piccie, as well as a list of the charts:

  • Onyx – Blackwork Beginnings Series by Paw Printings
  • Orca Whales – Peter Underhill’s Marine Creatures
  • Butterfly Garden Sampler by The Victoria Sampler
  • Close At Heart by The Victoria Sampler
  • Bruce (the Spruce) & Friends by Full Circle Designs
  • Sapphire Star (canvaswork) by Laura J Perin Designs
  • Spring Needle Roll kit by Lorri Birmingham
  • Butterflies & Hearts Needle Roll kit by Lorri Birmingham
  • Teddy Bear Santa mini stocking kit by Lorri Birmingham
  • 18ct mono canvas in eggshell for Sapphire Star
  • Piecemaker tapestry needles (2 x #26; 1 x #28)

And here’s today’s progress piccie for Summer into Autumn – thanks for everyone’s lovely comments on my progress so far … greatly appreciated :)) I had to frog stitch one strand of the overdyed silk due to a blonde stitching moment from reading the chart wrong … and I’m also thinking of unpicking the tree foliage, as I think I’d prefer to confetti stitch it, so it doesn’t have the really distinct lines. I’m a bit annoyed that the kit contents stated the MH glass treasure in the shape of a maple leaf was supposed to be included … it’s not to be seen! I mentioned this as soon as I received it to Stitching Bits & Bobs, and they’re going to send me one as part of my back-order when it comes in.

Stash

Nearly the weekend!

Anne S

For me, I only have one more working day left tomorrow (Saturday), then I have two days off, and can’t wait! Been a so-so day today … didn’t get a great night’s sleep, which is mainly to do with me feeling a bit flat and very over-tired – we had yet another big thunderstorm during the night, so I had a pretty broken sleep. Mind you, I was still up at 7.30am and straight into work stitching on the Dratteds to make me feel more human – and loved it! Managed to get 2 hours stitching done on it … isn’t it amazing how much more quickly the needle flies when you’re really enjoying the stitching? Will be interesting to see if the enthusiasm continues for the next 8 hours of my rotation LOL. I’m now about to leave the ‘main’ dolphin behind, and head over to the right-hand side of the fabric – I want to finish all the top half of the chart before winding up the scroll bars, as I’ve got the sides laced, and I hate re-lacing them.

On a positive note I received the first of my long-overdue backorders today – from Wyndham Needleworks. I was very very disappointed to find out, though, that the 2001 JCS Christmas Ornament issue had sold out … wish I’d known that weeks ago when I ordered it – I was really disappointed when I opened the envelope, especially when no mention had been made of it in emails 😦 Oh well, the other charts etc were ones I needed for SAL’s etc, and the 2002 JCS Christmas ornie issue was there, and I have to say I love quite a few ornies in the 2002 one 🙂 The other charts I received were Strawberries So Faire and Quaker Needlework Treasures by With My Needle, and Quaker Swan Case by Fancy Work.
I also forgot to post I received my back-order from The Silver Needle at the start of the week too … I’d actually forgotten about my back order from them (!) – plus my back-ordered 32ct natural Belfast linen from Silkweaver, which also arrived earlier. Have to admit, I really love the colour of that linen … very very nice! The Silver Needle was just one JABC button for an ornament plus some MH crystal treasures and Kreinik braids for two projects I’m really keen to stitch – it now means I have everything in place for my MH stand-up Christmas tree woohoo!!!

And now it’s time to head off to bed again, after only being home an hour – want to try to wind down early, as they’ve just started up a party next door … at least my bedroom is on the opposite side of the apartment to the party … phew!

Stash

What a beautiful day in Melbourne

Anne S

The weather today is stunning – beautiful blue skies, warm temperatures, and only a gentle breeze … it feels good to be alive today 🙂 I do feel very positive today. Only spent a couple of minutes talking to friends last night about the work situation – felt good to get it off my chest. The reason I’ve been taking it hard is that I used to be a Supervisor in the Auckland office for the same airline. When I moved to Melbourne, I had to resign and apply again, and accepted going back on the phones as a ‘normal’ consultant again – after 2 1/2 years, I’ve hit the wall as I just get so incredibly bored/braindead – the Hotline role is more a troubleshooting/coaching/challenging role. I received a ‘stock standard’ letter saying literally the person who got the job had more qualifications and experience (I wasn’t the only person angry about that!), and on top of that I was told about not getting the secondment in the middle of the office at my desk yesterday … very unprofessional. It’s just very hard at times being ‘back at the start’ again, when I’ve already done the same job plus a lot more – I worked hard to get there in the first place, and it’s frustrating being back at the start again – even though they know my history, I sometimes still feel like the ‘new kid on the block’ in the pecking order. BUT, the good thing about being away from work, is that I’m chilling out about it again … I love working for the company on the whole, and I love the industry – I just have to grin and bear it, and bide my time … and I really do feel OK about it all today :))

OK, that’s the last I’ll mention it – time to move on. One of my friends last night has just split up with her boyfriend of 5 months, and it was quite nice to have something ‘different’ to focus on. It was so nice to have a girlie night out for a few hours – very soothing for the soul 🙂 Gal pals are great!!

Before I forget – an answer to a couple of comments …
Nicola – I’m up for a rousing rendition of Ten Guitars if you are – that really IS a Kiwi tradition, isn’t it? haha.
Carol – you’re wonderful … never thought of the Dark Tan linen for Angel of Love – I grabbed my chart out double quick when I read your comment and I think you could be right! It would be so lovely to get this stitched, seeing as I have most of the beads already 🙂 I wonder if I could squeeze yet another space into my rotation to fit her in … LOL. Actually, a beaded piece could be a nice break from the other big stitching – yeah, OK, I can find a valid excuse in anything! LOL.

Well today I’m looking longingly at the dratted’s, but I’m not allowed to touch it until I’ve done my housework … friends from Geelong are coming to stay for the weekend, arriving tomorrow lunchtime, and staying in the spare bedroom – which currently has the bed etc piled high with unpacking that I never finished … so, I’ve got a lot to do today hmmm. Oh well, it needed to be done anyway – I’ve just always found an excuse not to do it … I’d usually prefer to be stitching haha.

I received my FOTM from Silkweaver yesterday – yuk, is all I’ll say … I’m so used to their beautiful hand-dyed fabrics, I was very disappointed with my selection – very very drab. Mind you, they’ll be easily used in projects because of their neutrality, I guess. I think I chose the wrong fabric selection, so I went online and changed it last night to the Expressions one instead. This FOTM and another one from Country Stitch are the only spending I’m doing now – fabric is the one thing I don’t have much of, so I figure this’ll help, even if I just do it for a couple of months then pull out. Anyway, we’ll see what fabbies arrive into the new year, then I’ll make that decision. The fabrics I got this time are:

  • Ghostly Grey 28ct cashel linen (13″x18″)
  • Maritime 32ct Lakeside Vintage linen (13″x18″)
  • River Willow 28ct Lakeside Vintage linen (9″x13″)
Stash

One day survived back at work…

Anne S

…and it was quite nice in some ways to be back – I was put in charge of the ‘queues’ area today, so I didn’t feel under pressure on the phones etc. Queues are basically different messages generated in the computer reservations system, and has a huge range of jobs – including flight timing changes, credit card rejects for internet bookings, misquotes, other airlines sending confirmations etc etc … and I get to do the same thing tomorrow – it’s a nice way to ease back into work after my health issues, and boy it’s nice to both leave home and come back again in daylight!!

And my floss reorganising this week had an added bonus – now I don’t have my floss bobbins in the special little ‘box’, I now have a new container for all my different teas … so cute! OK, so it’s not as flash as those poofey wooden ones in hotels, but I love it 🙂

And I’ll finish for the night with photos of my fabric haul, seeing as my camera batteries are fully charged up again – and the latest version of my current UFO in progress at the end of the rotation … doesn’t seem to have too much to show for it after 8 hours, but them’s the breaks – every few stitches is a step closer to finally finishing the bl**dy thing! (This is one of the very very first pieces I started stitching, and my first effort on evenweave/linen after using aida, and boy can I tell!! LOL.

Silkweaver Fabrics:
Country Stitch Fabrics:

Stitching Bits & Bobs Fabrics:

Also, KarenV, hopefully you are reading … with your Drawn Thread Summer Into Autumn, did you use the threads exactly as shown in the kit? I seem to think your colours were a lot softer/autumny, which is what made me fall in love with it – the kit when it’s arrived seems a lot darker, but I could be wrong! If you’re reading, I’d love to know if you substituted any of the colours, as I’m quite tempted to do that …

Stash

The mailbox runneth over… VERY long post!

Anne S

Not one parcel today … but four! Oh crikey, that’s what happens when you stay at home crook and don’t clear the mail! I have to say that today I really REALLY love my stash arrivals – this was the main (& biggest overall) order I placed from Stitching Bits & Bobs, as well as my Silkweaver and Country Stitch orders … and it’s all just too wonderful for words – I think it also helps that my health is coming back under control, and I had a good day out today too … really perked me up! My best friend here had really disappointed me and let me down a couple of weeks ago (3 things in a row), which probably didn’t help with the migraines on top of everything else – but last night he phoned and we chatted a little bit … turns out he’s had some health issues he’s been dealing with, and he’s finally come out with it – unfortunately it gave me the impression earlier that he was blowing me off a bit, which hurt and angered me at the time. He was supportive to me when I had my gallbladder removed earlier in the year, so now it’s my turn to return the favour – he’s just come back from having an ultrasound done – looks like a fatty liver, which thankfully isn’t too serious, and will likely be improved by a change of diet and cutting out the alcohol, which he’s prone to binge on a bit (which has worried me on occasion, but that’s another story). He’s had to drop urine samples and have blood tests, and then they find out if a biopsy is in order. Anyway, I drove out to meet up with him today on my last day off, seeing he was off work too, and his Mum drove from Mooroolbark (which they joke is Aboriginal for “Where the hell are we, we’re lost?” LOL) – and we had a lovely lunch at a favourite haunt of ours at Box Hill (Vietnamese restaurant), then we forced him to spend his $400 David Jones vouchers he’d won at his last job – trying to get him to walk into a shop and spend money is like trying to get blood out of a stone!! We ended up getting him an iPod (which means I score and get his old mp3 player – I told him to keep it and wrap it up for me for Xmas so he doesn’t have to buy anything) – and then had a lovely day wandering round Myer and David Jones department stores just to see their Christmas decorations, followed by a coffee and wine/port tasting at Chadstone shopping centre.

And on the way to picking them up early this afternoon, I called quickly into the Embroiderers Guild and grabbed a couple of SANQ magazines to drool over for the next couple of weeks before they’re due back, and picked up some Piecemakers #26 tapestry needles from the LNS (The Needlepoint, ex-Bustle & Bows) … and I did NOT even look at a chart or thread – just went straight to the needles, picked up 3 packets, walked to the counter, and straight out again … woohoo!!! Mind you, considering how much stash was sitting in my PO Box, I don’t need to buy anything for the next 20 years chart-wise etc LOL 🙂So, my anti-inflammatories and $40 nasal spray (!) seem to be doing the trick – I still have my headache, but it’s not as bad, and it’s back to work again tomorrow – it’s a 7-day week this week for me, but at least they’re ‘normal’ shifts, so I should be OK. Now, back to fondle the stash a bit, seeing as I didn’t have time to look properly when I picked it up …

Unfortunately my camera batteries have just packed up – probably ‘cos it knew I was going to make it work real hard – so I’ll just list my stash haul … I have to admit, this is the happiest I’ve been with all my arrivals of late – they’re the charts etc that I wanted the most, and I certainly wasn’t disappointed! So, here goes the entire list (it’s pretty lengthy, so you might want to grab a cup of coffee or something before you start LOL):

Charts/Books:
* The Flat-Fold instruction booklet – “Just a Thought”/Judy Odell (with plenty of step-by-step pictures … just what a finishing-phobe like me needs!!)
* Wanted! – Santa ’02 – Lizzie*Kate Snippet
* Here Comes Santa Claus – Santa ’05 – Lizzie*Kate Snippet
* Sweet Valentines Teenie Tweenie – The Sweetheart Tree
* Apricot Elegance – Cindy Valentine Designs (for a SAL early in the New Year – except mine will be “Blue Elegance” LOL)
* Bee Keeper – Cindy Valentine Designs
* Thistles Needleroll/Pinkeep/Scissor Minder – Calico Crossroads (just stunning!)
* Star Spangled Scissor Finder – Calico Crossroads
* Stitching Treasures Collection 2 – Twisted Oaks Designs
* French Monogram Collection III – Twisted Oaks Designs
* Lavender Thistles Collection – Twisted Oaks Designs
* Nightcap Pincushion – The Elizabethan Costume Collection – The Nostalgic Needle
* The Flame Stitch Huswif – Sampler Cove
* Summer Into Autumn kit – The Drawn Thread
* Raphael’s Raspberries – Forget-Me-Not-In-Stitches
* Priceless – Glory Bee

Fabrics: (will try to put photos up later)
Silkweaver:
* Solo Minis – 5 x hand-dyed 9″x13″ 28ct Cashel linens – purply/blue; aqua; vintage/rust; rose pink/lilac; blue/lilac.
* 2005 JCS Ornament cuts – 24ct white congress cloth (for Scot’s Bonnet); 40ct R&R antique cotton linen (for Christmas Heart – to be honest, don’t like the look of this fabric, it reminds me of muslin/cheesecloth); 28ct jubilee in Christmas Red (for The Gift of the Season).
* Spooktacular Sale – 32ct Belfast in both Bo-Peep Pink and Cream (9″x13″ I think); 28ct hand-dyed Cashel in Dark Tan (18″x26″ – will be VERY useful); 28ct hand-dyed Opalescent Lugana in Abracadabra (lilac colours); 32ct hand-dyed Jobelan in Jubilation (13″x18″ mint/seafoam greeny).
Stitching Bits & Bobs:
* 28ct hand-dyed Jobelan in Blueberry (fat 1/4)
* 28ct hand-dyed Jobelan in Thyme (fat 1/4)
* 28ct hand-dyed Jobelan in Bluebell (fat 1/4)
Country Stitch:
* Kiwi Illusions Grab-bag – a bit hard to describe the colours of these, but smaller (approx 9″x13″ pieces in a baby blue lugana; burgundy/olive green (reminds me of camouflage colours LOL); baby pink/blue; tan – plus 2 larger pieces of both a white/green mottled lugana (have no idea what I’ll use this for), and a stunning opalescent lugana blue/purple – very pretty!).
* Kiwi Pearls 32ct lugana in sage green sort of colour.
* My Fabric of the Month selection (all approx 9″x13″) – this month a nice mix of colours – Cashel 28ct linen in Ice Blue (although I’d actually ordered this in a larger piece for my Secret Garden SAL in the New Year – at least it’s BLUE so I’ll get plenty of use out of it LOL), and Lilac; Quaker 28ct linen in Light Mocha; Lugana 28ct in Miracle Mint; and Belfast 32ct in Platinum.
* Cashel 28ct in Ice Blue 50cm x 70cm.

Miscellaneous:
* 6 of the 12 ordered Xmas bulb buttons from Just Another Button Company – still waiting on 3 of the colours to arrive, so I can finish my Humbug ornament.
* Rajmahal art silk skein in black (freebie from Stitching Bits & Bobs)

Phew, that’s the entire haul – the other parcel contained my Casulguidi class booklet from the EGA.

Crikey, I’m just sitting here gob-smacked – I feel like I’ve died and gone to heaven!!! Hmmm, might have to add in another segment into my rotation, and have two segments for stitching ‘smalls’ – I can’t wait to get started on some of these! Well, two more orders waiting to arrive – the remainder from Stitching Bits & Bobs, and from Nordic Needle, then I don’t leave the house for the next 12 months – and I am officially on The Wagon (yes, there is a Bulletin Board for just that, and I’m now officially a member!! LOL). I think I’m going to be grinning in my sleep all night – I feel shell-shocked, but in a nice way! :)))