Headache

Having spent all day Sunday sewing under a very bright table lamp (since the light in my sewing machine had blown) it was hardly supprising that the migraine I had supported all of Saturday returned on Monday. Another day not only in bed sleeping but also throwing up too, so no crafty stuff at the beginning of the week. I have lots of stuff planned though, I want to make a few Tilda angels and ducks for the bathroom before starting on a quilt for the bedroom, and I have found a super pattern for a crochet cardi that I am trying to find reasonably priced yarn for, alongside a storage case for all my crochet hooks.
I have managed to finish the little book in a tin album I started with the kit Martin put in my stocking.












On Wednesday, with our share savers payout burning a hole in our bank account we spent the day at Bluewater's shopping centre intending to treat ourselves to something nice. Unfortunaltly we just couldnt think of anything we needed or really wanted with a burning desire. We wandered around a bit, had lunch in TGI Friday, wandered around a bit more, bought Martin a jumper, wandered, bought Mart another jumper (and only because the kids had accused him of wearing the same jumper the whole time) and then had all but given up when, in a desperate single bid to save the economy with the purchase of a new sewing machine bulb, we were nabbed by the guy demo'ing the nexpresso coffee making machines. Well yes of course we were hooked, but I have to say it is a great machine and we are enjoying full fat home made lattes left right and centre.
Then we took advantage, for the first time ever, of Orange Wednesday and went to see The King's Speech. We really enjoyed it and yes it definately is worth all the hype.

So that didnt work out so well

I may have been determined when I posted last but things have a habit of turning out differently dont they?

The sewing machine issue kinda resolved itself. So fed up with surfing the net for a new machine, I finally told Martin to take the old one down and get it repaired, at least until I could get my mitts on a new one. While I was at work he decided he would have a look at it, and after he changed the fuse it decided to power up.

Now dont get me wrong and think 'silly little woman didnt think of that did she?' Err yes I did, I had already changed the fuse and it hadnt worked. Obviously the fuse I changed it to must also have been dead, as I had tried it from an old plug, not knowing where Martin had stashed all the new fuses. Mind it still needs a new bulb, it was probably that blowing that blew the fuse.

Anyway whatever, at least I got some sewing done, and as my fabric had turned up from ebay I was able to make a couple of little 'boxes' for the bathroom following Tone Finnanger's pattern in Sew Pretty Homestyle.

I am quiet proud of them really as I had to combine two patterns to get the look I wanted and it took quite a bit of brain power to work it out.




They are to match the bathroom curtains which I am even more proud of as I had nothing more to go on than a picture off the web.



I had hoped to get some scrapping done too, and have all the photos printed out ready, but sadly a migraine laid me low yesterday, a proper one with tunnel vision and everything, so I spent most of the day asleep. Today Martin has gone with Ollie and Kelly to watch Tottenham v Charlton, which has allowed me the chance to sew away to my hearts content and maybe do a bit of scrapping later tonight.

Still determinded

These are not new years resolutions because I don't do those - and I am so fed up of finding Craft challenges that all start with words to that effect, but that is a whole new different moan which I wont bore everyone with here!.

No I am just determined that I will keep updating my blog more often than I have been because if I don't the only one missing out of recording what I have been up to is me, because my memory is not all it used to be.

I am determined to keep up to date with my birthday cards. My mum's birthday is in a few days time, I hope she isnt looking as I want to put this one up for a couple of challenges which end today.

One of the Challenges was for Just Magnolia but I didnt realise they had to be uploaded by 8.00pm. Just as well really then because although its a lovely Tilda, my mum isnt into stamps with no mouths and I had to draw in a smile, so maybe it wouldnt have counted anyway.

The second challenge is for this weeks Sketch Saturday - a difficult sketch which kind of threw me until I thought that maybe it could look like an envelope and then it easily matched the stamp and the idea of lots of birthday cards in the post.


The final place I want to enter this card is for Stamp Something where this week the challenge was to use plenty of glitter, and this card certainly has plenty of that, the paper is from a DCWV 'with glitter' stack Nana's Kitchen but as if it wasnt enough to use background papers encrusted with bling I have also filled all the little triangles in the circular mat with blue pee-wee glitter, and the fronds on the flowers have a dusting of glimmer dust. I dont think it is picked up in the photo, as the evening light in my scraproom is really really bad - another moan I am not going into on here.

Other bits used - Penny Duncan Nestie svg file cut on cricut: roses made from a file from Dan and again cut on the cricut; ribbon I think is American crafts and the sentiment is Stamping Up!

I am determined to keep scrapping - and to that effect I have nearly finished the little book-in-a-tin kit that Martin bought me for Christmas

I am determined that I will keep on sewing - and I did start a new project. I bought some lovely fabric in the Hobbycraft sale, found the online pattern I had saved, and started to make my sewing machine a beautiful and pretty new cover. Only a third of the way through though my sewing machine (which is about 10 years old now, and in my mind very young for a sewing machine) gave up the ghost. No idea what is wrong with it, it just wont power up. Its not worth getting repaired, it only cost £99 all those years ago, and since the last service (shamefully about 5 years ago) cost me £30 I am guessing it will cost more to repair than its face value.

Bottom line, I determined to buy a shiny new machine. I was bought up with a Singer Treadle, and I know Singer machines are built to last. I was talked into buying a Janome but have never been all that happy with it, the guy in the shop told me Singer had been taken over by Janome but I know now he told me blatant lies. After a bit of research I discovered the Singer Confident range, affordable computerised embroidery machines and in my price range. I liked what I saw, and set out to buy one. Err ... who pinched all the sewing machine shops? Where the heck do you buy a Singer sewing machine nowadays? I don't really want to buy online without a test drive, but there are only about 10 shops in the whole of Kent with the authority to sell Singers now, and of the few holding stock only 2 have the one I want and neither of those are withing a 40 mile radius of where I live. In fact the nearest I can find is over 70 miles away!!

Still determined I ventured online, Coopers being the company I remembered as being good, until I discovered tell of the Trading Standards watching them closely for poor service. Oh dear! Then I found that they also have several web sites under different names. Loosing faith, I stopped there, flummoxed because how could I tell which web sites were good and which not? I have not given up though, I am not going to settle for a machine I don't like and I am going to keep on looking for the one I want. Watch this space as I have a ton of fabric on order from ebay, and I definitely am not hand sewing it all!!

Sad

I hate January and February! I cant get into all these new starts and fresh beginnings, I dont do resolutions and really cant find much to look forward to in the next two months. I think its probably a bit of S.A.D. as I wont really be happy until March when I can get back out into my greenhouse and start planning for the new veggie patch.

And I have to go back to work tomorrow :(

Worst still, today I went out to Westward Cross and the Hobbycraft Sale where I bought 3 adventure games for the PC, a new book on crochet (Chicks with Sticks Crochet book, which seems really good) some fabric to make a cover for my sewing machine, and I ordered some more fabric to have a go at some of the projects in the book Santa bought me, Sew Pretty Homestyle bt Tone Finnanger. Now I have plenty to play with, including all the new scrappy stash I got for Christmas, and no time to play :( Boo Hoo!!

My baby Kelly will be feeling much the same as after a day clothes shopping in the sales with me, she went down with flu and has been in bed eversince. She starts her brand new job tomorrow and will be coughing over all her new comrades, so good luck Kez! And so sad you didnt get to play with all your new stash toys either while you were off.

To try and cheer myself up a bit, I am keeping an eye on a few challenges, the links are in the side bar. There doesnt seem to be that many about this year, but I will make another attempt at Project 12 this year (failed abismally last year) and want to have a go at the A-Z of photography.

The A-Z of photography is a follow up to the UKScrappers challenge, 52 Walks with my Camera (I did about 7 last year) but they are doing rather random words for each letter. I want my photos to reflect more on my family and family life so I have compiled my own list which is a bit more personal and am hoping that once a fortnight I will be able to take a photo or two to cover each letter.

Watch this space

Happy New Year

I have been a little lax of late in keeping up my blog, but I am going to try really hard to do better this year. So to start off on the first morning of the first day of 2011 let me first wish everyone a

Happy New Year

Then I want to share some fantastic news that I have been sitting on for 8 long weeks and one of the reasons I havnt been blogging that much, scared I may let the cat out of the bag.

Martin and I are going to be grandparents !!!!

Laura and Wayne are expecting their first baby on July 11th!!!

They didnt want to tell the public until the scan and the first trimester was pasted, but yesterday the scan showed everything going well so its time to tell the world!!!

We saw the New Year in last night, in their company as the Golf Club abandoned their usual posh black-tie-charge-you-a-month's-morgage-repayment-for-ticket dinner and dance in the marquee for a more quieter and cheaper smart/casual buffet and dance in the clubhouse.

I say buffet because soon after the tickets went on sale, they changed it to rice, chilli or vegetarian curry with chips and nuggets for the kids. Then they discouraged all the kids from coming and took the nuggets off the menu, leaving me with little choice than cheese salad as I dont do spices.

Since the dance floor area took up so much space in the bar, they put all the chairs and tables in the snug and trophy room, meaning no one could see the dance floor so no one got up and danced. Still Wayne, who is looking for a new sport since giving up cricket, got to see inside the clubhouse, meet a few members and we all had a pleasant chat and quiet drink together.