Merry Christmas.

Sorry I've not said anything this last week, but I've been away.

We went to stay with some friends in Southport, I had a wonderful few days, just relaxing and looking at the shops. I did very little shopping as I'm one of those people who has everything Christmassy done and sorted well in advance.

I treated my self to a new shirt and also spent a small fortune in Lush. I do wish someone would open one here on the island.

As Hunney and I are both working and on call on 25th, today is Christmas day here in my house, so I'm wide awake bright and early here all excited waiting for someone else to get up so that we can open prezzies!

I'm off to read some of your blogs while I wait, I should be making a start on the veg really.

Merry Christmas
eveyone, I hope you have a wonderful day.

Been Busy, busy, busy

Dear sister Moya has been busy too. Rmemeber her collection of sunflower fabrics? Well today she brought round the completed flimsey and spread it over my bed, it reached the floor on three sides and tucked up neatly against Teddy.


She has used the Turning Twenty block pattern. She's going to back it with yellow and green fleecy fabric and is unsure how to bind it, but I'll keep you posted, she shouldn't be long getting this one finished as it is to be a Christmas gift for her friend.

I finally got to my table runner, I kept it simple with only two patched blocks. I hunted around for days trying to find a block I liked, then on Sunday (9th Dec) I turned the page on my block a day calender and there it was looking at me.

It's called four patch in nine. Hunney selected the fabrics and also helped me to cut them. I wasn't fast enough with the camera, I did try to get a pic, his mum will never believe me. Not the greatest picture I know, but here's how far I got.


It's well and truly pinned waiting for me to baste and quilt it. I've used an off cut off fleece as wadding and the backing is cotton.

And last but not least, we also put our tree up yesterday and as you can see Santa is very organised and has dropped off a few items in advance.


Now I really have to do some of that school work! I'll reward myself with basting the table runner later.

The best laid plans.

Nothing has gone according to plan these last couple of days! More of that later, I still don't have the knack of getting my pictures uploaded in the right order, so I'll start with last nights dinner.

Hunney says he'd never had sausage and mash served to him like this until I did it! I'm amazed! Is it just a Manx thing? Or a British thing? LOL My boys would think I was ill if I didn't play with their food and find a fun way to serve it.

When I was little my mother served everything onto the plate as it came, no fuss and no frills, certainly no UFO sausages! Everything had to be eaten with a knife and fork, even pizza! I learned about fun food at my friends houses. I vowed my kids would have fun food. Sausage mash and onion gravy with green space balls of gas (LOL Sprouts!) just wouldn't be the same any other way! And pizza with stretchy gooey cheese just has to be eaten with your hands. Do you have special ways of serving up certain dishes?

Hunney and I have been working on this puzzle for about 3 weeks now, we finally finished it up last night. Sorry it's not the greatest picture. It's a 1000 piecer.
Now it's done we'll break it up and pass it on to number one sister, (have I told you I'm the oldest of four girls? After me is Kirsty, the puzzler, then Moya, she's crafty like us and Nerine, the baby, she's the scientist.) We have nowhere to keep it not even for a while, so today it goes back into the box.

Finally my aborted plans. On Friday I had intended to spend the morning at my studies, then the afternoon at my quilting, I'm all geared up to get to that table runner! Well, I was just going to jump in the shower when I saw that Hunney had put all the towels into the wash basket, so I went to our walk in to get some more, I've been on at Hunney for weeks now to help me turf out in there, you know whats coming don't you! The words untidy mess just don't do it. I turned the shower off, rolled up my pyjama sleeves and got stuck in. I got finished in time to have a very late lunch. I rewarded myself by stitching this little fellow before dinner. Still no study done!


He's got a rather odd expression on his face. LOL I found him at another childrens activity site

Today we're off out for dinner, Yay! I don't have to cook a roast! We're going to meet up with some friends and have a christmas dinner in Peel a town on the west coast of the island. Then later if I can get him into gear Hunney and I will re arrange the furniture and put up our tree.

More Stitcheries.

I really enjoy these little stitcheries, they are so quick to work. I've been hunting around the net looking for complimentary patterns.

I found this little guy here. Isn't he a sweetie. I'll be making him into a christmas card for my Mum, she has a little Scottie dog and will appreciate something handmade.


I haven't pressed either of these two pieces yet, as if you can't tell! I'm going to make two of these second pieces. I'll put them with the redwork bell and make a table runner.


As usual I've changed my mind, you may remember I was going to make a table runner similar to this one Julia made, using just the bell, but then I saw this and had to stitch it too. I found this one at a childrens activity site.
I remembered reading somewhere that childrens colouring books are ideal places to find stitcheries so I went looking and found a whole host of little images I'd love to stitch.

Finally, last but most certainly not least.....Hunneys Christmas card. (Edited to say, I originally thought this was a Pam Kellogg piece, however she assures me it is not. So I don't know where I found it, I'm sorry but if you have any ideas or if it's your design, please let me know so I can add the proper credit.) The pattern is actually for a piece of blackwork, but I left out all of the fancy filligree stitching, I think they look just fine as they are.



To make the stitching up into a card, I put an off cut of wadding onto a piece of card, then wrapped the critters around that, securing them at the back with double sided tape, then the whole thing was secured to the red card with more double sided tape. I added stickies and now need only write a little poem for inside.