Easter and birth samplers

I was catching up on some blog-reading today and on Jo's blog she was talking about birth samplers she has completed. So here goes with some of mine. (WARNING - picture heavy post!) And I'm sorry about the quality of some of these photos - they are rather old!! And some have been scanned in from original prints as I no longer have access to them all!

 Obviously first has to be my own daughter's sampler. It was after all the one that started me on my cross stitch journey. Stitched on linen, with one strand of thread, patterns gathered from various sources to my own design. 

This was the next one I stitched - for friends of my husband. 

These next two were stitched for a friend's first two grand-children. The first is "Bluebirds for baby" and the second is from a book of Mother goose designs. 

Now this one started a whole series which I designed myself from a variety of images. I worked in a large library, and when one of the staff became pregnant I thought it would be a lovely idea to design a birth sampler for her. Several other colleagues volunteered to stitch out a motif, so it became a kind of round robin! When all the main motifs were done I took it round most of the rest of the staff, inviting them (or twisting their arms!) to put a couple of stitches in - even caretakers had a go! Then as a finishing touch I put everyone's names around the sides.

This one design spawned more and more - not just birth samplers but wedding ones too for other colleagues. I continued doing these until I retired. (More of them perhaps in another post!)

Friends too had their babies - 

 

and of course my own dear Jessica came along - my grand-daughter who is now approaching her third birthday - 

At Easter time we seem to hear of more babies being expected. But at the moment it's all quiet on that front as far as I can see. Hopefully I'll get some more of my own work done before I need to start searching out baby patterns again. But if anyone has heard of a new arrival recently, I pass along CONGRATULATIONS!

Until next time when I'll try to fit in some photos of what I've been up to recently!!

Sandie

My first time!

There's been a lot of chat recently amongst x stitch nuts stitchers on several blogs (Julie , Meari and Evalina for example) about people's first times.

Life has been fairly slow around here - I've been knitting mittens as an extra present and have put only a few stitches in Egypt. I have done 2 small penguin motifs to go on a christmas card but can't show them yet! So - as a teaser - I'll let you in on my first time! (And it will serve as a teaser for what might come soon in that new tab above when I begin to post my older finishes).

All of my life I had worked full-time. When we got married in 1975 and moved to Colchester from London, I continued to work in the school I had been librarian in. Even when I'd been spending an hour each way on the train commuting to and from work I'd never found enjoyment from doing anything other than reading. (Mind you that could have been due to the over-crowding on the trains!)

Suddenly there I was at home with a TINY person who was dependent on me for everything!! She was a baby who didn't sleep (guess that's where Jessica gets it from?); her father was driving for a job, so when she cried every night about 8 or 9 times I was the one who had to get up to her. Luckily for me, the neighbour opposite had her baby two weeks later, so we got to know and support each other. One day we sat down in a rare moment of quiet and decided that we'd both like to take up a craft. If we did the same thing, we could share our highs (and lows), so we opted to try cross stitch! I was 28, she was 27, and for a while it felt like we were the only "young" people who were interested in it. I found a magazine which had a few baby motifs in it, and decided to make a birth sampler. Nothing unusual there you might think?

But I had to get the threads and fabric myself as what I wanted to do wasn't in a kit. In fact I don't think I'd ever seen a cross stitch kit then! So I went out and bought a few colours of threads and a piece of fabric. I made up a design, added a few necessary words - like name, date etc and started to sew it. It didn't dawn on me what I'd done until I started investigating cross stitch further after I'd finished. I had stitched the entire thing in 2 strands - not a problem; but I'd used linen and stitched it over one thread! Not really a massive mistake - it still looks fine - but it kind of gave me a headache which I didn't need with a small baby. Anyway it didn't manage to put me off - now (at age 61) I have an enormous stash of kits, threads, fabric, patterns and magazines. If I live to be 200 I'll never stitch all of the things I love (and that's not including the ones I merely like). Still it keeps me off the streets and my fingers from the biscuit tin!

Oh - I'd better post a pic of Erika's birth sampler - sorry about the quality of it, but it was XX years ago!

Better go now - Egypt or Christmas cards call - lots to do and so little time to do it all!
Why don't you let us know how you started?
Until next time
Sandie

I'm cooking with gas!!

Evening all!

I've been really motoring in the last few days with my crafty bits!

My best friend's daughter had her baby on the 18th. Luckily my sampler was finished, just waiting the details, so today I bought a simple frame and finished it off myself. May I introduce Max.

I'm really pleased with it - hope the family like it too! I've also knitted one of my favourite soft toys - a blanket bunny (Pattern came from Lion Brand where they have a crochet version too I think). It's knitted with one ball of a chenille type yarn, so is really quick to make.

Next I've just made a dress from a onesie for Jessica. I saw a picture on a blog (can't remember which one - OOPS!), and got some FREE lace from another blog giveaway (WholePort). I added a fat quarter of fabric, a small bit of narrow ribbon and a 9-12 month onesie I bought from a local supermarket. I really like this!

And looking forward to Jessica's first birthday in August I've finished her birthday card. I bought a zebra rocker card kit from Kanban at a recent show and cut out a picture of Jess to pop on it. Again I hope her mum likes it - I know Jess is a bit young to appreciate it, but I hope my daughter will keep it for her to see when she's a bit bigger.

I also made some party invites for her mum to send out to her friends - I've posted those and forgotten to take a photo before I sent them - so maybe I'll get an invite in the post - in which case I'll post it then!

Anyway - dinner time calls - then a bit more work on Beatrix Potter. I THINK I might be able to get it finished before Jess's birthday now as it's the main one I'm concentrating on.

Life throws you a curve ball

Today we met up with some friends for lunch who we haven't seen since February. When we phoned to make the arrangements to meet up, we discovered that the husband (who is four years younger than me) has been diagnosed with cancer of the oesophagus. It has spread too far to be operable, so he is having to have chemo to try and manage it. I have been complaining about my ankle not healing after spraining it in Edinburgh, I now realise how little I have to complain about - LIFE SUCKS SOMETIMES!! Although he has lost two stone in weight in the last six weeks, he is actually looking quite well after his first chemo session, so we just have to hope and pray for him.

I completed the Somebunny sampler - as much as I'm going to do anyway. All I need now is the baby! Then I can finish it off!

I also completed another dress for next time we see Jessica - refashioned from a smocked dress which Erika didn't like. I had a scrappy bit of the cream fabric left over from a blouse I made for myself, and finished it off with a daisy which I'd bought in Munich last year.

And now I'm furiously trying to stitch the Beatrix Potter sampler so that I can pass it over. It's not something that I would have chosen myself to stitch, so I'll be glad when it's out of the way.

Hope your weekend has been productive and I look forward to chatting to you all again soon. XX Sandie

A month gone by? Surely not?

So much has been going on since the last post I don't know where to begin!

Having just got back from South Africa, we were looking round for something like a short city break to fit in before our holiday in September. We started to look at a few days in Dublin, but then we spotted a Northern Europe cruise going cheap - leaving on 8th June for 10 days. We visited Amsterdam, Hamburg, Copenhagen, Oslo, Edinburgh and Le Havre before sailing back to Dover. The ship - Costa Magica - would probably not be one we'd choose to go on again, but for a last-minute price it was good. The only snag was while walking down Princes Street in Edinburgh I managed to fall into a pot-hole and sprained my ankle! I had to hobble to the nearest chemists (with my husband's help) where I bought a support bandage. Needless to say it put a bit of a dampener on the proceedings; and it's still swollen and sore when I walk on it for too long.

I've been quite busy though on the creative front. But I haven't got round to the photos yet - so I'll post them in a couple of days.

I've almost finished the Somebunny birth sampler - which is just as well as the baby is due within the next 2 weeks. I've decided to do just two corners in the border which will leave room for the baby's details in the other 2 corners.
I took the Potter sampler on the cruise, so I was able to do quite a bit - this will become the main focus of my sewing once the birth sampler is finished. I want to try and finish it for Jessica's birthday in August.
I've been doing a few more pages for Jessica's first year scrapbook to give to her parents on her birthday.
Some of those clothes that my daughter gave me to refashion for Jessica have been altered and I've been scouring the Internet for baby sized patterns which I can download. Here's a pinafore top and shorts which I made.

The latest pattern I found is how to make a dress out of a cheap onesie, so I'm trying those next, along with some bunting that can be hung out of their window for her birthday party!
Anyway I'd better sign off for now - Got to go and hunt up the camera so I can take some pics to show you all. 

A FINISH!!!

Afternoon all (or whenever you are reading this!)

I've finally finished the first side of my christmas stocking! YEH!!!

(Snoopy happy dance - but off-screen!)

Looking good eh? I'm really pleased with how it's come out. The penguin bellies are done in ordinary white, but I've used the Sparkle white from DMC for the snow - gives it a bit of extra oomph!

I've been working on my other 2 main pieces as well - really cooking with gas this week! That's what you get when the weather's bad eh?

The Somebunny Birth Sampler seems to be coming on ok. Now that I see more of it, I think it will be right for either boy or girl. The recipient doesn't know what she's expecting, but I will wait until the birth, then I can spruce it up with writing in either pink or blue which should help to make it male or female. Not sure yet if I'll do the blocks all around the border - maybe just some corner ones? That will frame the picture without being too much extra work.

My little Rose fairy is also beginning to take shape. The work is so fine that I can only work on it during the day. The actual size of her so far is about 3" square, so you can understand why it's taking me a while!

We went up to see our daughter and granddaughter last week. While I was there my daughter gave me some clothes that she had been given (second-hand ones not new). They are all "labels" but some of them are not to her taste, but the fabric of them is good. So I've brought them home to try and make something out of them that she feels happy to put Jessica in. I made a cute pair of dungarees for her the other week. There's no reason why ALL dungarees have to be made from denim eh?

Well I'm off to make cards now - Erika's third anniversary is on June 12th and there's a couple of birthdays for good friends, so I'd better put my thinking cap on.
Til next time - KEEP CRAFTING!
Sandie

Mother's Day musings - photo heavy!

Well, another year gone by, and this time my own dear daughter is a mum herself. Although it's not a really good picture of her, I had to include this one we took when they visited us last. I nicknamed it my paparazzi picture! Next is a slightly better one of Erika with Jessica.

I've started to make up a scrapbook for Jessica, which I'll give to her mum and dad on her first birthday. One of my favourite pages is this one - 

It reminds me just how fragile she was when born at 4lbs 10ozs. Even smaller than Erika who was 5lbs 2 ozs. And look how she's grown up now! The one thing I never dared to imagine for my daughter was that she'd be a mum herself! She was always the tomboy - she joined Army Cadets because the Guides were boring. Although she played netball, she preferred playing football and indeed spent some time playing with Colchester United ladies team - until some other girl took her out with a really dodgy tackle and she suffered cruciate ligament damage. But since she maried Tony and is now a mum herself I can see so much of me in her! All the good things I hope I passed on. The best compliment she gave me was when she went out on her Hen Afternoon with her friends before she got married - she insisted that her Mum went too "as you're my best friend".

I've been doing a fair amount of stitching over the last couple of weeks too. I started out by gardening a bit in the mornings when the sun was round the front of our house. After a day I realised that I shouldn't have neglected that last winter tidy-up before Christmas! (Before the snow hit us that is!) The weeds had taken over our small area, and so after a couple of hours on my hands and knees, my back was complaining - so I gave up and sewed instead!

My Egyptian piece has come to the end of its 2 week rotation and I am now over halfway up the mask in the centre. Maybe another 2 weeks would see that part finished, but I have to move on! (Sorry about the frame marks, but I haven't had time to flatten it out since I took it out of the frame!)



I realised that this year was flying by, so I decided that I had to do a bit on some other projects - something that I wasn't going to do when I started this blog, but I didn't realise how quickly time was going to fly past me! I've made a bit more progress on the Somebunny birth sampler.

I'm still a bit worried about it looking too blue - but I'll just have to keep going for now. I have a Disney kit packed away, so if it looks wrong when I get a bit more of the sleep suit done, then I'll start that instead. Although if I finish it, and she does have a boy - I'll be laughing!

I also started and finished a small project which will make the front of a card for a 6 year old - I'm going to try and make it like a tunnel card with the embroidery at the back of a stage. If it works I'll post a pic next time. (That's my second 2011 finish!)

While I was working on my scrapbook I thought that I ought to make a start on the Beatrix Potter kit which Erika's mother-in-law bought for her. I hope it will be finished for Jessica's birthday, then I can give it back to the mother-in-law, and suggest that she frames it! I don't mind doing the sewing, but I'm not up for subbing her framing costs! So far all I've done is the alphabet in the middle -

I thought that I might be able to take this with me when we go off on our travels in May. (I'll post more in another day about that!) It should be fairly easy as all the colours are already on thread sorter cards and as they are individual motifs I need only take a small hoop to do each one. I never go away without some form of sewing with me!

And last - but definitely NOT least - I've started another new project! I told you my new year resolutions went completely out of the window!

You may remember a while back I mentioned the flower fairy quilt that I'd started for Jessica? Well, looking at the number of panels (25) I realised that in the attic window layout I was going to have a "spare" space at the end! So I hunted round and found the Rose fairy. (She's not in the printed panels and Jessica's middle name is Rose, so it just seemed right that she should be included). But in order to fit the pattern into the same size piece I've had to do it on 22ct over 1 thread! You can see from the photo that I decided to grid it 10 x 10; and as I stitch it, I'm just going to do the fairy and the main rose flower stem. I've just made a start on the very edge of the fairy wing right on the far right of the picture. Then (hopefully) I should have enough to put some kind of wording in the corner saying who made it, the recipient and the date etc.

Well, I'd better sign off, and make a start on some dinner - roast chicken tonight!

I hope all the mums out there have a fabulous day, either surrounded by your families, or at least surrounded by their loving thoughts.

Until next time

Sandie



A Good weekend

Hi all
we had a nice weekend - apart from the weather that is!
Yesterday my daughter, her husband and grand daughter came down to see us. The five-year old daughter of a friend of hers had invited Jessica to her birthday party, which was in Clacton-on-Sea, so as I was going too (I'm friends with the 5 year old's grandma), we all went together. We had a good time with all the kids, and then they came back to ours for dinner before heading home. We got some pics of Jessica on my rag quilt too!

Jessica on my first quilt

The mum of the 5 year old is the one who's expecting in July so I thought I'd better make a start on her birth sampler - just in case! So I spent a couple of evenings making a start and it's going quite well. I just hope that the colours don't look TOO blue when it's done? They are the sort of violet blue shades, but I hope it doesn't look too boyish when it's done.

 


Erika didn't see my flower fairy quilt that I'm making - I'm trying to keep it as a complete surprise for her until it's finished, but I'm so pleased with how it's turning out! I've managed to complete 2 rows of the fairy panels now, so here it is. She hasn't got internet access at the moment so there's no chance of her seeing this in advance! But don't tell her if you see her will you?

The edges look a little off-square, but I think that's just my photography! I've been doing a bit on the stocking too, but as my camera battery just died on me (all those photos of Jessica yesterday!) I'll have to post that later on. I'm going to rotate back to my Egypt piece this week as I feel the need to get it moving again after all the frogging I did last time I picked it up!

A month gone by

Hi all, January's nearly finished, the weather is cold and nasty, and all I want to do is curl up somewhere warm with a nice cup of tea and a good read. I've got some great books from the library recently, so I've been spending a load of time doing just that. Of course my Egyptian piece has suffered because of it but I can always spend another week on that. I've just read Paul O'Grady's second part of his biography - "The Devil rides out"; "The Dancing Years", part 33 of the Morland Dynasty series by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles; and both the latest Kathy Reichs and Patricia Cornwell. Not bad going for a week eh?
As a result I haven't photographed my progress (or lack of it), so instead I'll include a couple of older pieces which are hanging on my walls.

These two pieces are hanging in our bedroom. The clarinet represents my husband - he plays clarinet, sax, guitar, banjo and ukelele!

The accordian is my daughter. We once went on holiday to Austria when she was about 7 and she came back adamant that she wanted to play; so we bought her one and she still plays today!

The next 2 pieces are just things I liked and wanted to do!

The Lion Above - I completed this but never got round to framing or deciding how to finish it off - now I look at it I think - maybe a cushion?

The Praying Hands took me ages with all those sepia tones, but I think it was worth it. It remains one of my favourite pieces to date.

Over the next few weeks I'll put other pieces up here that I've worked on, but here's the piece that started it all - Erika's birth sampler. At the time I didn't know better - I sewed it all over one thread, using motifs that I picked up from a variety of magazines and things.
I never did frame it - I have it hanging with those plastic frame clips which we used to hang poster prints with. Last Christmas I was given some proper bell-pull ends, so maybe I'll get round to putting it on those!




Anyway my pile of books calls for today and tomorrow I'm off to see my daughter and grand daughter. (By the way - thanks to everyone for all the best wishes for Jessica's recovery - she got home late last Saturday night and seems to be none the worse for wear).
Bye
Sandie

Good news!

I heard today that one of my pictures is going to be posted in Cross Stitch Crazy magazine in one of the forthcoming issues!
I created a birth sampler for Jessica - a mixture of Tatty Ted (from a kit) and some Little Teds who had been in various magazines.

Jessica's sampler

I'll let you know when they tell me which issue it's going to be in! This will be the second time I've been "published" - the first time they told the story of how I got everyone at work involved in cross stitching samplers for weddings and births - even down to the caretakers!
Sandie