snowdrop fairy

Cross Stitch Gold 107 is out today and in it you can see the snowdrop fairy, designed by Durene Jones, that I stitched a few months ago. And if you check the `coming up in next month`s issue` section, there`s the LOVE cushion, also designed by Durene, that was also stitched by yours truly. Moreover, if you look closely at the Framing Tips section, you can see (and might remember) the Indian designs I stitched ages ago - these were, surprisingly, designed by Durene Jones as well.

So, in other words, this issue is full of my stuff - Gregory, bless him, asked me when I showed him the pictures if this meant that his mum was famous now but I had to disappoint him. I guess it`s pretty hard for an 8-year-old to understand that even if my name actually appeared under my work, that still wouldn`t mean instant world fame... I just hope he won`t send me on the X Factor or a similar show just so that he can brag about me at school! :)

I am stitching some cards at the moment and I thoroughly enjoy the respite of smaller projects between the larger ones - they`re ideal for this time of year, at least I can do my Christmas shopping and concentrate on some handmade presents (pictures of which I can`t share just now, for obvious reasons). Instead, I`ll show you a collection of photos I found on the Internet, while looking for something completely different. It`s a sort of montage of Christmas trees - enjoy!

I bet Hubby wouldn`t mind a tree like this ;)

This is what would happen if we had a cat :)

My ideal space-saver Christmas tree!

Whereas Gregory would probably want something THIS size...

And what we`ll probably end up with... :)

Gregory`s gloves

Boy, am I on fire - second post today! It is quite a surprise to me as well, I never expected to finish my second project in one day, especially as I`ve never knitted gloves before! :) /I found the pattern here/.

Yesterday morning the Wee Man complained that his hands were cold and that was all his doting mother needed: within 36 hours, here`s the first pair of (probably, many?) mittens to keep those cute wee fingers toasty. And, you won`t believe this, but he actually likes them! Mostly because he can give the thumbs up in them...

Oh, dear, another `flashy` photo... anyway, they`re supposed to be blue.
I think the 10-row thumbs could`ve been just 8 rows but hey,
at least the child can grow into them, right?
(Provided he only grows his thumbs and not the rest of his hands...)

cross stitch clock - finished!

It`s been a while since I found this clock in a charity shop (for £2.99, if my memory serves me right), so I don`t blame you if you can`t remember it. Here`s a close-up picture of the cover to remind you:

Please note the nice and airy foliage and that greyish streak that looks like a bubbling brook sprouting from the wall of the cottage (weird or what?). Alas, if I could only have followed this computer-generated image on a blank (plastic) canvas! But no, unfortunately, the pattern was printed on the white plastic with some icky brown paint that could probably only be removed by an atomic blast (I tried to scratch it off with my nails and other various implements, to no avail). 

So, as a consequence, I spent twice as much time and thread trying to cover these brown lines, and (after taking a Double Strength `Soditol`), I ended up making the pattern up as I went along. But the main thing is that it`s finished and I know my mummy-in-law will love it - now there`s only one question left: does the clock mechanism that came with the kit actually work? Maybe I should`ve checked before I started stitching...?

hubby`s hat - finished!

Since my last post I have finished and posted two commission stitches, so I thought I`d celebrate with a little knitting before I start the next one (on which my deadline is the FOURTH OF DECEMBER - I mean, c`mon, what would you do? Of course you`d knit too!). Anyway, I just finished it this afternoon - hours ago, actually, but the Wee Man`s been hogging my laptop with his Jurassic Park game - and I`m happy to report that DH loves it (i.e. the hat, not the Jurassic Park game) so much that I had to literally tear it off of him before dinner, otherwise he`d have worn it at the table too (shocking, I know). So here it is - nothing spectacular but `just the one he wanted`. Apologies for the poor photo, but for obvious wintry reasons I had to use the flash and thus the hat looks almost navy blue, whereas the yarn is, in fact, closer to dark indigo. And now onto my next project, the cross stitch clock I started over a year ago for MIL - happy stitching, everyone!

the fabled green hat

And here it is! The green hat I always wanted! (For `always` please read `for the past 3 or 4 weeks, ever since I first saw the pattern`). And if I`m absolutely honest, it`s not even like my dream hat because the yarn turned out to be stripy rather than speckled but it doesn`t matter, the main thing is that Teacosy #2 is finished and it IS really cosy, as I verified it this morning when I gave it a trial run whilst wandering around town, Christmas shopping. It was really frosty first thing so I was glad I had my new hat on, but by the time I was coming home, carrying 5 big bags, I didn`t need it (nor the scarf, the jacket, the big woolly jumper, etc.). I think I managed to grab the true meaning of Christmas this year again: I bought myself some sweeties, 5 pairs of socks, a giant mug for my green tea, 4 balls of wool... Just kidding! Some of that wool is for DH who, seeing my new hat last night, looked at me with puppy eyes and declared that he has never, ever, EVER had a hat that was knitted just for him... So guess what I`m doing tonight? And, of course, the other 4 bags were full of prezzies for others so I`m not as naughty as that (in case Santa reads this...?). Now I`m off to wrap and hide them before the Wee Man comes home from school, then try to stay in the Christmas mood with a nice cup of tea in my brand new big mug and carrying on with my stitching - of an Easter bunny!