Saturday, 30 July 2011
How Long?
Whilst clearing out the under stairs cupboard the other day, I found an unfinished piece that actually pre-dates my eighteen year old son. I don't even think I was pregnant when I started it, so it must be nineteen maybe even twenty years old. It was a birthday present from one of my friends and was a complete kit. I reckon it is about 80% completed, but sadly I no longer have the pattern or any of the silks. It needs a little wash and I'll post a pic tomorrow in case anyone passing by my blog might recognise it. In the meantime here's always Google!
Merry Spring
Yes I know it's Summertime, but I am very excited to have actually finished a small cross stitch project. It is the Very Merry Spring pattern that I was gifted by Lisa at Lisa's Stitching Addiction. I used a variegated thread in shades of cream through to cherry and it looks lovely. I managed it over three evenings, if my hands were not so painful it would have taken less, but I am delighted with it. xI will be off to the local gallery next week to find a nice frame for it. Will post a pic later.
Thursday, 7 July 2011
I Got RAK'D :-)
The most lovely thing happened to me yesterday. I got a small envelope in the post with handwriting that I didn't recognise and from an area with which I have no connections. In a sea of bills, circulars and pizza shop flyers, this was a welcome change.
Inside was a cross stitch chart that I was in the process of purchasing from another Blogger. I had got as far as providing my address details and had enquired about sending payment. But here in the envelope was the chart! I spotted a little card that said 'You've been RAK'd . Enjoy!" For anyone who doesn't know, this stands for Random Act of Kindness.
The lovely Lisa over at 'Lisa’s Stitching Addiction' blog http://lisasstitchingaddiction.blogspot.com/ had popped it in the post for me. How nice is that?! :-) Thank you so much Lisa, that was very kind of you indeed.
I am really looking forward to stitching it and when it is done and hanging on my wall, I can look at it and be reminded of when someone I know only through the exchange of a few posts on a shared hobby, did something really nice for me. :-)
Inside was a cross stitch chart that I was in the process of purchasing from another Blogger. I had got as far as providing my address details and had enquired about sending payment. But here in the envelope was the chart! I spotted a little card that said 'You've been RAK'd . Enjoy!" For anyone who doesn't know, this stands for Random Act of Kindness.
The lovely Lisa over at 'Lisa’s Stitching Addiction' blog http://lisasstitchingaddiction.blogspot.com/ had popped it in the post for me. How nice is that?! :-) Thank you so much Lisa, that was very kind of you indeed.
I am really looking forward to stitching it and when it is done and hanging on my wall, I can look at it and be reminded of when someone I know only through the exchange of a few posts on a shared hobby, did something really nice for me. :-)
Friday, 24 June 2011
RA It's Back
The problem with steroid injections, is that they eventually wear off. Actually the bigger problem is that they fool you into forgetting that you ever had a problem in the first place.
After enjoying several months of pain-free mobility, my RA has returned with a vengeance. I had a couple of twinges a week or two ago, one big flare up hat casued me to take time off work, but this week has been six days of pure agony. My wrists and fingers have been swollen and sore, I have been unable to move so much as a little finger with excruciating, burning pains shooting up my arms. My poor Hubby feels powerless since he can't do anything to make this better. He worries about my health and does try to keep me thinking positively.
So the last thing I have wanted to do this week has been to pick up a needle. Of all the things that RA has stopped me or prevented me from doing, I think that taking away my ability to create has been the hardest to rationalise.
Today however, RA is taking a break. I am able to get around, type, hold a cup of coffee without looking like I am using penguins flippers, so it's all good! Just in time for the weekend, when I am set up for decorating the dining room! I might give some stitching a go tonight :-)
After enjoying several months of pain-free mobility, my RA has returned with a vengeance. I had a couple of twinges a week or two ago, one big flare up hat casued me to take time off work, but this week has been six days of pure agony. My wrists and fingers have been swollen and sore, I have been unable to move so much as a little finger with excruciating, burning pains shooting up my arms. My poor Hubby feels powerless since he can't do anything to make this better. He worries about my health and does try to keep me thinking positively.
So the last thing I have wanted to do this week has been to pick up a needle. Of all the things that RA has stopped me or prevented me from doing, I think that taking away my ability to create has been the hardest to rationalise.
Today however, RA is taking a break. I am able to get around, type, hold a cup of coffee without looking like I am using penguins flippers, so it's all good! Just in time for the weekend, when I am set up for decorating the dining room! I might give some stitching a go tonight :-)
Thursday, 19 May 2011
So Many Others
Have spent a very pleasant hour mooching around various cross stitch blogs, seeing others' work in progress. It has been truly inspiring to see what people end up doing with their finished projects. I only ever put mine into frames although sometimes, when the design allows, I leave them in the hoop, put lace around it and simply add a hanging loop.
Also, I find it hard to keep hold of any embroidery for long. I always seem to be giving it away! I started a spring sampler that had lovely flowers, butterflies and bees on it, intending it to hang in my hallway. But then a friend had a birthday coming up, so I changed the verse from being about spring, to: "A friend is like a flower in the garden of lfe" and it became her present. Another time my Mum ended up with a 'Home is Where the Heart Is' picture, because everytime she came to my house, she would say how lovely it would look in her kitchen. I finally caved and put it in her bag one night when she was leaving. The really funny thing is, while my Brother and I were clearing her house, I thought to myself that I should take the picture home and put it back in my hallway, when he asked if he could have it!! I told him that I would stitch him one of his own, but I think as a surprise, I will give him the other one too!
But now I see that embroideries can become cushions, needlebooks, etc I shall certainly be broadening my horizons.
Also, I find it hard to keep hold of any embroidery for long. I always seem to be giving it away! I started a spring sampler that had lovely flowers, butterflies and bees on it, intending it to hang in my hallway. But then a friend had a birthday coming up, so I changed the verse from being about spring, to: "A friend is like a flower in the garden of lfe" and it became her present. Another time my Mum ended up with a 'Home is Where the Heart Is' picture, because everytime she came to my house, she would say how lovely it would look in her kitchen. I finally caved and put it in her bag one night when she was leaving. The really funny thing is, while my Brother and I were clearing her house, I thought to myself that I should take the picture home and put it back in my hallway, when he asked if he could have it!! I told him that I would stitch him one of his own, but I think as a surprise, I will give him the other one too!
But now I see that embroideries can become cushions, needlebooks, etc I shall certainly be broadening my horizons.
Thursday, 5 May 2011
Crafty Update
Been quiet for a while. Well not exactly quiet inasmuch as my life is concerned, just haven't been blogging. There's quite a lot going on right now: decorating, work worries, health matters, preparing Mum's house for sale and somewhere in the midst of it all, our gorgeous son turned eighteen. Now I thought that once he reached that age that my worries for him would subside. I have found instead, that they are simply replaced by other, bigger, worries. I guess I will worry about him always.
I managed to get a nice pic of the embroidery that I started for my Brother and his wife, but had to put aside owing to crook fingers. The steroid injection definitely helped and I feel ready to pick it up again this week and crack on. Here is what I have done so far:
Just a smidge over halfway :-) And below is the pattern I am using. The sharp of eye of you who also embroider, will no doubt recognise the pattern as one of Jo Verso's. I have simply changed the colour of the flowers so that they represent daisies (for why this is significant, see earlier post) and put a heart in the middle instead of 'September'.
And that's not all I have been up to! I got inspired by Mum's old button box. This is an old biscuit tin where Mum kept all sorts of odd buttons. Before any article of clothing was thrown away, it was stripped of it's buttons which were then squirrelled away in the tin. I'm sure that Mum's of a certain age up and down the country have similar tins stashed away. Occasionally Mum would buy new buttons, for she was quite a prolific knitter and these were added to the tin also. Every now and then she would rummage through the tin, extract a handful of buttons and apply them to whatever item she was knitting. Usually a cardigan for me. But mostly the buttons would keep me occupied for hours. So many ways in which to sort them: colour, size, prettiness ... OK, you probably need to know that I was brought up in the late 60's/early 70's when we didn't have Xboxes, computers etc and the TV had three channels which didn't even go on air until around 5pm!
Anyway, Mum's button box is one of the things I decided to keep when we were clearing her house. Now I think I am a little old now to play sorting games with the contents, but I thought that I should do something with them. So I decided to sew them onto a bag. You're probably thinking this is a crazy idea. My husband would agree with you. But I liked the idea of having something unique which was also a reminder of Mum and of happy, more carefree times.
I spotted this bag in a charity shop in York. It's basic, but I liked the shape and since it is made of thin material it will be easy to stich on:
And here is the start of the 'buttoning':
I managed to get a nice pic of the embroidery that I started for my Brother and his wife, but had to put aside owing to crook fingers. The steroid injection definitely helped and I feel ready to pick it up again this week and crack on. Here is what I have done so far:
Just a smidge over halfway :-) And below is the pattern I am using. The sharp of eye of you who also embroider, will no doubt recognise the pattern as one of Jo Verso's. I have simply changed the colour of the flowers so that they represent daisies (for why this is significant, see earlier post) and put a heart in the middle instead of 'September'.
And that's not all I have been up to! I got inspired by Mum's old button box. This is an old biscuit tin where Mum kept all sorts of odd buttons. Before any article of clothing was thrown away, it was stripped of it's buttons which were then squirrelled away in the tin. I'm sure that Mum's of a certain age up and down the country have similar tins stashed away. Occasionally Mum would buy new buttons, for she was quite a prolific knitter and these were added to the tin also. Every now and then she would rummage through the tin, extract a handful of buttons and apply them to whatever item she was knitting. Usually a cardigan for me. But mostly the buttons would keep me occupied for hours. So many ways in which to sort them: colour, size, prettiness ... OK, you probably need to know that I was brought up in the late 60's/early 70's when we didn't have Xboxes, computers etc and the TV had three channels which didn't even go on air until around 5pm!
Anyway, Mum's button box is one of the things I decided to keep when we were clearing her house. Now I think I am a little old now to play sorting games with the contents, but I thought that I should do something with them. So I decided to sew them onto a bag. You're probably thinking this is a crazy idea. My husband would agree with you. But I liked the idea of having something unique which was also a reminder of Mum and of happy, more carefree times.
I spotted this bag in a charity shop in York. It's basic, but I liked the shape and since it is made of thin material it will be easy to stich on:
And here is the start of the 'buttoning':
Thursday, 24 March 2011
Tunnels and Light
So I went to see my specialist at the hospital the other week (I have Rheumatoid Arthritis). Medication increased, the usual stuff about keping healthy and a shot of steroid. Boy did that hurt! Worth it though becuase I know I will get a good couple of months relatively pain-free as a result.
And thank heavens for that, because I have been going to Zumba classes for the last few weeks, trying to regain some level of fitness. I used to compete in ballroom and latin dancing and I love latin music, so I figured that this would be a great way to get some exercise in without it feeling like exercise.
My first class was murder!
It was an hour of frenetic shimmying, mambo-ing, wriggling and lots of other things ending in -ing. I gave in to the music, shook and shimmied my way through, then discovered that I could barely walk home. the next day was even worse. And the one after that. I walked like a zombie for about four days! It's a lot easier now, mostly because I am now going to a class at a proper dance school that has a properly sprung floor and the pace of the class is right for me.
My only problem now is that whilst I think I look good grooving about, the lady in the mirror bears absolutely no relation to the image of me I have in my head! Ah well, at some point this year I hope this will change!
The pinched nerves turned out to be the ones running through the carpal tunnel in both wrists. My specialist expects that the increase in medication will take the swellings down. I must say though that a week on from the steroid injection, I can hold a needle with less discomfort. Still only able to embroider in short bursts but it's progress.
In any case, as I watch events in Japan unfold, I find that I can't moan about anything really. I have family, a home, safe food and water. These are the things that are really important.
And thank heavens for that, because I have been going to Zumba classes for the last few weeks, trying to regain some level of fitness. I used to compete in ballroom and latin dancing and I love latin music, so I figured that this would be a great way to get some exercise in without it feeling like exercise.
My first class was murder!
It was an hour of frenetic shimmying, mambo-ing, wriggling and lots of other things ending in -ing. I gave in to the music, shook and shimmied my way through, then discovered that I could barely walk home. the next day was even worse. And the one after that. I walked like a zombie for about four days! It's a lot easier now, mostly because I am now going to a class at a proper dance school that has a properly sprung floor and the pace of the class is right for me.
My only problem now is that whilst I think I look good grooving about, the lady in the mirror bears absolutely no relation to the image of me I have in my head! Ah well, at some point this year I hope this will change!
The pinched nerves turned out to be the ones running through the carpal tunnel in both wrists. My specialist expects that the increase in medication will take the swellings down. I must say though that a week on from the steroid injection, I can hold a needle with less discomfort. Still only able to embroider in short bursts but it's progress.
In any case, as I watch events in Japan unfold, I find that I can't moan about anything really. I have family, a home, safe food and water. These are the things that are really important.
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