Gifted Gorgeousness - December 2022

Hello Dear Readers

Just a little post before Christmas! Probably not the best time to post ….. I know we are all so very busy!

So sorry if I haven’t been able to comment on your post. Blogger changed a little while ago, and I’m not sure if my old blogging friends will all see my posts as Blogger stopped sending notification emails to followers, so I hope you will have found me via my blogging friends Blog Lists. Google now asks one to sign in on some blogs, so, as I am not very computer orientated it makes it impossible for me to comment …..

Anyway, I digress, back to the subject - Gifted Gorgeousness is where we share photos of gifts received and given. See who is joining in, and maybe you’d like to join in too, over at Serendipidous Stitching. 

Firstly, I can show you the completed alphabet letters I sent to Clare of Ametu’s Stitching for her church’s Annual Christmas Tree festival (read about the festival here).  The “B” is stitched on pale green which, sadly, is so hard to photograph, and the “E” on tea dyed fabric. (Clare’s photos are much better than mine!!!)

All of us who sent letters of the alphabet to Clare left them unfinished so she was able to finish them in one style before they went on the tree. I do hope you will pop over to see everyone’s stitching. The Trees all look magnificent. 

-ooo-

Also this month, I finished stitching a second “Bees” by Melisa - forgot to take a photo, if you need a reminder you can see the first one I stitched on this previous GG post and then gifted this month’s “bees” to a friend at my handicraft group along with the yellow check fabric I used for the first finish (as my friend wanted to make “bees” into a gift for a friend of hers). 

-ooo-

I’ve encouraged a few ladies at my handicraft group to try cross stitching this year and one of them gave me this cute card, saying she was thinking of me as she stitched it.  Thank you so much, Peggy, if you’re looking in. 

-ooo-

Another friend at Handicrafts bought in some fabrics she wasn’t going to use, and I thought they might be useful in finishing one of my Christmas decorations:

This same lady decided cross stitch isn’t for her, sadly, and so kindly gave me this kit ….. although stitching with gold is not my favourite, so I will have to see whether I will actually stitch these.  However our club has a big anniversary next March and if I don’t use it it might be a little something for the sales table.  

Anyway, I must go now. I’m off to see whose blogs I can comment on!

I’ll be back before long with my post about tea dying. Oh, and I’m going to try changing my header photo too. I might not be able to because I’m using my iPad mostly now and I’m not sure it will accept my edited photo. 

If I don’t return before Christmas do have a super one and I look forward to hearing from you and seeing your blogs too in the New Year. 

So,

Here’s wishing you a

Very Happy Christmas,

and

A Peaceful 2023

Hugs,

Barbara xxx

Gifted Gorgeousness

Hello you wonderful stitchy person! 🙋‍♀️

Today I’m joining Jo at Serendipitous Stitching for Gifted Gorgeousness which is where we show items we’ve received or given as gifts. 

This month I’ve been cross stitching and have actually had a couple of finishes!

The first was a free pattern from Melisa’s blog - Pinker ‘n Punkin Quilting & Stitching and you can look for the pattern under the name “Bees”, strangely enough😆

And this was a free pattern from Ann Woods blog - an Imperial Cat and has now been gifted

And then I’ve finally fully finished a birthday card for my mum’s 90th birthday! 

Happy Birthday mum! Yay!

Can you tell I was really pleased to finally FFO! And at the very last minute I decided it needed a couple of rows of crosses top and bottom ……… just to really finish it off! 😁 I found these patterns in World of Cross stitching …… I think! Just a shame mum can’t actually see this now as she has completely lost her sight! 😟 So sorry I took so long to finish it mum💕💕💕 xx 😘🤗

.

Well, I’m off to visit other Gifted Gorgeousness participants now!

And this is the project I’m currently working on,, once again it’s a free pattern 

from Melisa.  -  Thanks so much Melisa!

I hope to finish it for Jo’s next SAL - Halloween 

Are you playing along? Well even if you’re not don’t forget to visit here and Jo’s blog - Serendipidous Stitching 

on 31 October! 😁👍💕🙋‍♀️

See you all again soon (Blogger permitting ……. Grrrr)

Hugs,

Barbara xxx

GG - Birds and things

 Hello Dear Reader.

Hello my lovely friends, today I'm joining Jo of Serendipitous Stitching for Gifted Gorgeousness where we shoehorn in any stitching that even remotely comes under the title of "gift"!  Read all about it on Jo's blog (Serendipitous Stitching) and to see what everyone else has stitched visit Jo HERE

-oooo-

Aaaaargh! Last post I asked for help with line spacing and the lovely Jo (yes, same Jo as mentioned above) told me how to do it! And what have I done? Only forgotten to put the code before I started typing! Aaargh! Must try and remember next time!

-oooo-

It was only as I started to type this post that I realised there were a few birds involved, and I will start with this Robin!

This is the letter "E" that I tried to stitch for Jo's last Blog Hop ..... but didn't leave enough time to fully finish - now finished, although not Fully Finished Off..

Pattern from CrossStitcher Magazine

( Issue 351 Dec 2019 )

Stitched on: tea dyed aida

And, just because I love the Robin here's a close-up

This is included in Gifted Georgeousness because I am going to send it to Claire of Aimetu's Stitching for the Annual Christmas tree she displays in her church, although it won't be leaving me just yet as I want to stitch a second letter.to accompany it!

-oooo-

Secondly - oh no! I've just realised the photo doesn't show the little bird very well! But anyway the pattern for this was one of the very generous freebies from the lovely Melisa of Pinker & Punkin Quilting.

"A Basket of Spring"

Tea Dyed Aida

Pattern : Melisa of Pinker & Punkin Quilting

At the time of writing this post we had a beautiful pheasant visiting us and I kept trying to take a photo but every time is saw me in the window it flew off!!!!

As you can see, this time was no different!

-oooo-

And lastly, and only because this shows a bird, - here is my "current stitching". coming along slowly.

Oh, and here is another visit from that elusive bird, but why does he have to stand with one foot in the water bowl?????? Funny critta!

And here we are - hiding again!

Oops, and "just because" another project I've been working on lately - until I found I've run out of one of the colours!!!! 

Right, I'm off to visit a few blogs now, and maybe stitch a few stitches later!

Hope you are having a lovely weekend!

Hugs,

Barbara xxx

Gifted Gorgeousness - December 2020

Crikey ..... not the best day to write a blog post! 

It is Christmas Day as I write these words, and I think everyone in the world must be on-line as my computer is reacting so slowly!!

I hope you will stop and have a little read here today as I join Jo of Serendipitous Stitching for Gifted Gorgeousness.  If you don't know what it is all about do pop over to Jo's blog to read all about GG HERE.

(Not my stitching, this is Jo's
badge for the SAL0

There are a few gifts to mention this month ;

The only cross stitch to show this month is a page of a calendar from CrossStitcher magazine - January 2021 -   Issue 365 - a Free Gift to be exact, and therefore qualifying for Gifted Gorgeousness. 

I stitched the January picture really fast, to send in to the magazine as part of a competition to see who can stitch this picture first. (Only the picture with the blue edges - the pink edged one is February).

Then I stitched this mask and pouch for a blogging friend:

And, yes I've been really busy this month, also finished and gifted this bag I'd started waaay back at the begining of lockdown, for a non-blogging friend:

Oh, and we received these very tasty little biscuits from our neighbour's children with our  Christmas card  the result of a baking session with her young daughters:

Clare has now fully finished the flower (see photo below) I sent her back in August. You will no doubt have seen all the completed flowers on her web-site HERE. 

What a shame Covid stopped people seeing the tree of flowers in person at the church as Clare had planned, still hopefully they will be able to show them next Christmas!

Thank you so much for visiting, and I do hope you are having a Very Happy Christmas!

Roll on 2021 .....  it has to be better than this year surely! Look forward to seeing you again then!

Hugs,

Barbara xxx

Gifted Gorgeousness - October - Halloween Preparations

Hello my friends, new and old!      

Thank you for all your comments on my last post! It was lovely to catch up with everyone and see what you are all doing.  

It’s been a funny old year, what with COVID! I’ve been a real coward and haven’t been out shopping at all! I don’t know how everyone copes with wearing masks? DH and I have been out walking with a friend on a nearby common and my friend has asthma and is very scared about catching COVID. So we wear masks even though we can distance from each other safely. Maybe it’s because we are walking uphill and talking but I keep finding I can’t breathe with a mask on!

                                                                                                                                Contd/...

Gifted Gorgeousness - August 2020

Hello my lovely blogging friends!

I hope you are all keeping safe and well in these strange times! 

I meant to write last month, but we had a big storm here on 13 August.  That day I stood in our kitchen looking out of the window talking to the cat when lightening forked down towards our house! I suddenly wondered what I was doing standing there when I heard a small "pop" ..... that was the lightening hitting the telepjone lines leading to our house. We had no internet for three weeks while the repairs went on! 

Still, we have our connection again now and so today I’m joining Jo’s Gifted Gorgeousness, where we share gifts given and received over the month. Read all about it on Jo's  blog hhttps://serendipitousstitching.blogspot.com/2020/09/september-gifted-gorgeousness-link-up.htmlere - 

Darn, it's like starting at school all over again!!

This is a gift I received soon after “Lock down”, from one of my handicraft friends:
It is made in the method of EPP (English Paper Piecing) - i.e. lots of tiny pieces of material stitched together with teeny tiny stitches! You can just see the tiny stitches in the third photo.

NOT MY WORK

A tiny finish for Gifted Gorgeousness - July 2020

A big “Hello” to all my blogging friends!

This month I actually have a tiny cross stitch finish to share. 

I’m linking to Jo’s Gifted Gorgeousness and as I don’t often have small finishes I am  taking the opportunity to link to  Mary’s “Small Finishes” also!

I haven’t been shopping since the lockdown began here in March and suddenly realised it was our friends anniversary coming up. So out came all my old cross stitch magazines while I searched for ideas. I was going to stitch a wine bottle with a white blank label but hubby said that no bottle would have a blank label, so I added a backstitched pattern on it.  Then there were patterns for champagne flutes but nothing with red wine so I drafted my own glasses, shorter and wider. 

I know it’s only a small piece but still a lot of love went into it!

Excuse the hasty photos. Once the stitching was finished and attached to the card I had to race to catch the post (well hubby did actually!) for it to arrive in good time. 

So now I’m looking for something similar to whet my appetite for more cross stitching!

I do hope everyone is keeping safe and well, and getting lots of stitching done!!!!

Hugs,

Barbara xxx

Gifted Gorgeousness - June 2020

Hi all,

Gifted Gorgeousness - run by Jo of Serendipitous Stitching - is our chance to show off stitched gifts (primarily cross stitch) we have given or received during the month. The sign up date is 15th, closing at the end of that month.  Visit Jo HERE to read all about it, and maybe "sign up" too?  And go here to see who else joined in this month. 

This picture is the button provided by Jo to show we are joining her.

I only have one gift to show you this month.

Over on Instagram  Zoe Mayson (@zoemayson) offered her lovely scraps to make a hexie pincushion, and I was one of the lucky ones who won some of them, and since finishing it I fell in love with making hexagons again!

After the pincushion one thing led to another and I found this lovely pattern for a hexagon needle book by Emma of Vintage Sewing Box. I have finished but I don’t think I have a photo of the actual finished item!

Since "lock down" started I’ve been stitching more of my Cocoa Sampler, (from Cross Stitcher magazine) and it’s getting pretty close to a finish now!

A reminder of how it was looking. 

Now I've added the white stitches and the Owl is
finished except for the dreaded backstitch! 

 also finished the green and blue chequerboard pattern!

Stitched most of the white in the heading and now I need to decide what to do with the sheep - its too high up and some of the pattern won't fit in ..... its a matter of how to frog it!

I really like cross stitch but I only have two projects on the go. I want to stitch more but can't find anything suitable. I'm going to stitch a flower for Claire (Aimetu's Stitching) but I haven't found one yet. So there will be a few more cross stitch projects in the pipe-line.

If you are passing by on Instagram you can find me as @flashinscissors.

Hugs,

Barbara xxx

March Gifted Gorgeousness

Hi everyone,

It feels a bit strange, blogging at the moment, but I'm sure we are all trying to carry on with normal life  wherever possible, so here goes ......


It's time for Gifted Gorgeousness, and, once again, I'm a little late!

For those that are new here: 

Gifted Gorgeousness - run by Jo of Serendipitous Stitching - is our chance to show off stitched gifts (primarily cross stitch) we have given or received during the month. The sign up date is 15th, closing at the end of that month.  Visit Jo HERE to read all about it, and maybe "sign up" too?  And go here to see who else joined in this month. 

This picture is the button provided by Jo to show we are joining her.

(Yay! Those of you who visit me regularly might have noticed I don't usually add any photos from other blogs ..... (I'm not very technically minded) but, hey. today I managed it!!!! Whoop, whoop!!)

Received this month:

My dear friend Grace very kindly gave me this really pretty pouch she bought on holiday in India. Grace is very careful where she buys things in India, ensuring that the item has been ethically/fair trade produced.

It is hand embroidered and there are tiny Shisha mirrors in the centre of each flower. You were so right Grace, it’s right up my street ..... I absolutely love Shisha mirrors! 

Which led to me making the little pouch that you might have seen in the Secret Stitching Sweetheart Blog Hop for Grace.

There's only one handle, intentionally, ..... I thought the pouch would be just right to hold wool for knitting or crochet ..... with only one handle making it easier to remove the ball of wool if needed while knitting. And Grace says she will use the pocket for her row counter!

just a little close up on the hand quilting

Found this cute label to add inside:

Received:

Little pewter owl needle minder from my friend Suzie

That's the needle cushion on its back. 

Received:

Bag for lace bobbins from my sister 

And these pretty bobbins were a kind gift from another lace maker, 

And, don’t faint, I have a tiny cross stitch finish.

This was a gift from CrossStitcher, issue 329.

It was stitched using 2 strands. My instinct said to use 3, and I wish I had, but then it could have been too tight getting the needle through the holes.

I must apologise for not being here recently. 

I mentioned last time that I had joined Instagram and I can only say it's actually worse than looking at Pinterest, if you know what I mean! There is just so much to see there!

I've been joining in with a couple of SAL's. I'll share some photos on my next blog post. If you are on Instagram you can visit me there as @flashinscissors. I've been making bags and stitching hexies, and I think I'm totally hooked on EPP.



Well, now I'm off to visit my blogging friends to catch up on what I've been missing here.





Hugs,
Barbara xxx