Stylish Blogger Award & A Monthly Make

Yippee, the dogs and I are celebrating, we have just won the Stylish Blogger Award all the way from Pam in Chile. Thank you Pam, you can find her blog here

With this award I should share seven random things about myself, so here goes:

1. I always wear heels - I do not feel right wearing flats. I own one pair of flats (walking boots) bought for walking the dogs but I can count on one hand the number of times I have worn them.

2. I have over 7,000 books in my house - We are both obsessed with books: buying, selling, reading and collecting them. They are slowly taking over the house!

3. I am a Londoner - Although I live in the middle of the Norfolk countryside now, I was born and grew up in Greater London. I always wanted to move to the countryside and now I have, I would never go back.

4. I am very indecisive - I take ages to make up my mind about absolutely everything from where to go on holiday to which clothes to buy and then still wonder if I should have taken the other option, LOL.

5. I have always been untidy - I just can't help making a mess wherever I go. John is just as untidy as me so when visitors are due we go into a mad frenzy of cleaning, tidying and vacuuming.

6. I am a rubbish cook - I will sometimes see a recipe in a magazine and it will turn out o.k. but on a day to day basis I just can't be bothered. I once put two Quorn fillets in the microwave and they came out like shoe leather. Even the dogs would not touch them.

7. I am obsessed with crafts - I have tried almost every craft going and those I haven't, I have probably got the equipment for, waiting to be used sometime in the future. I wish I could stick to just one craft but find it is impossible.

I should nominate other bloggers to receive this award but I just cannot choose any particular blogs, well I did say I was indecisive, so I am giving it to every one of my followers who have supported and given me encouragement since I started my blog. You all deserve an award.

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Now for my monthly make. Just this afternoon I have put the finishing touches to this heart cushion.

I drew a heart shape onto a piece of linen, reinforced the shape on the back where the buttons would be with iron on interfacing and spent an evening stitching them all on.
I already had piping cord which I covered with toning fabric and some backing fabric into which I inserted a lapped zip, instead of the button closings I usually use, then sewed the whole thing together. The only thing I had to buy was a bag of Woodware buttons from ebay as I didn't have enough red ones in my stash.

Thank you The Felt Fairy for hosting A Monthly Make as I don't think I would have finished this by the end of the month otherwise.

Work in Progress and Vintage Knits

My sunflower design has ground to a halt as I have run out of thread. It is my own fault because I changed the stitch to one that I thought covered the canvas better. It is the first time I have used stranded cotton on canvas and worked with 6 strands, each skein does not go far. I won't be able to get to the shop until Friday so in the meantime I am working some small kits in my stash.

This Snatch the Dog design came with an issue of Cross Stitcher ages ago and I have made it up into a card.

I got an email advertising this knitting book, Vintage Modern Knits the other day and remembered that I had knitted a similar sweater to the cover design a while back. After rummaging around on top of the wardrobes last night I found it, tried it on and it fits and looks o.k. I cannot remember if I have ever worn it and if so, only once or twice, so I may start to wear it now while the weather is still chilly.

Before you think I knitted that lovely fair isle yoke, I have to fess up - it came from a vintage knitting "instant fair isle" kit. I think it is from the 50's or 60's and still in it's original packaging when I bought it for 3.00 GB pounds at a car boot sale. It just goes to show, if you keep things long enough they will come back in style, LOL.

I don't make many cards these days unless they are stitched ones but made an effort for my other half today. The image was a free download from the Create: website and I found an appropriate verse online too:

Roses are red, violets are blue

I made this card just for you

It's not the neatest, it wouldn't pass a test

But it's made with love - that makes it best.

Happy Valentines Day all,

Shirley

And the winner is........

We have now drawn the winners of the blogiversary giveaways. Everyone's name was put onto equal sized pieces on papers and entered into the draws they specified. Some people entered one and others both and then John drew the winners out of the boxes for me. The stitching prize was drawn first and that went to... VINTAGE SEA MUSE.


Then the doggy prize was drawn and that one goes to ...KATHY.

Congratulations, if the winners will please email me their addresses via my profile page I will put your prizes in the post.

I wish I could send a prize to everyone but even if you didn't win (or if you did) Kttycat is having a great Valentines giveaway on her blog here. Why not hop over and check it out.

Have a great weekend,

Shirley