Grey Clouds

These past few weeks have been particularly difficult for me in an emotional sense. I am not looking for sympathy, I am just keeping it real.
This is part of my journey.
Sometimes, I feel like I have grey clouds hanging over me and it feels like bad weather is looming. After finding out that my knee was injured again (I have re-torn the Anterior Cruciate Ligament- ACL that I had reconstructed several years ago) I have not been able to walk much, or to really get out and about. Whilst I can see the positive things, I know that things are good for me and that there are many others who are not as fortunate as I, still those grey clouds hang around and cause me to not see things clearly, to not count my blessings as often as I should.
These past six months have been the most difficult of my life and I know that I need to keep reminding myself that this too shall pass.
I am looking forward to getting back to work tomorrow, I am looking forward to being back in my usual routine and I can't wait to see my 'little people' who have the wonderful ability to make anyone forget their problems. It is easy to get caught up in their innocence and sweet outlook on life. Being 5 is the best!

Here's to sunshine and blue skies.

New Stash

This parcel arrived for me yesterday!

It was my order filled with threads and charts to 'enhance' my cross stitch stash. 

As I carefully put away my new threads, I was reminded of how many 'kits' I have waiting for me to stitch. I must not buy anymore threads or charts until  I have actually done most of what I have already. I do wish people would stop tempting me by designing so many lovely patterns though :)

I was particularly waiting for these Weeks Dye Works threads to arrive so I could start my Fernhill button of the month quilt from Lynette Anderson Designs.

Clamshell quilt

There is certainly more to making a quilt than just sitting down to stitch. Sometimes the cutting process just seems to take forever. That is certainly the case with the paper pieced clamshell quilt I started this year. I have pulled out lots of fabrics and I am slowly moving through the stack by cutting between 5 and 12 clams from each. They still need to be glued to their paper shape before stitching too. This will definitely be a long term project for me.
In these pictures you can see my stash of fabrics as well as some clams which I have already cut. Little by little the pile gets bigger.

Autumn Leaves

I took my big camera and one crutch out for a short walk today.

I have been wanting to photograph these beautiful autumn colours for ages and there is always such a short time frame in which to capture the deep, rich scarlet reds of the leaves as they change. It was quite a cool, cloudy day but so nice to be out in the fresh air this Easter Sunday.

Weekend

I've had a very quiet weekend this weekend. With my knee still out of action I haven't been able to do much except some physio and a lot of sitting around watching DVDs with a short walk on my crutches. I'm hoping I won't have to have another reconstruction which will mean more time sitting around. To keep my hands busy, I have been madly working on my vignette in stitches quilt. I'd love to get this birdhouse block finished so I can get back on with the border. Only a few more orange buds to go.

Making Travel Plans

I think that perhaps one of the most exciting things about traveling is the planning and preparation you put in before the trip. I am having a great time reading about and imagining all the places that I might visit later this year, accompanied by my numerous lists and notes! Sometimes the dream doesn't live up to the reality, but the anticipation is wonderful.

Photo A Day

This year, I am participating in Becky Higgins Project Life and for me that means taking a photo every day throughout the year. With the help of my Canon and my iphone, I have managed to take at least one photo every.single.day this year (so far). I am impressed that I have stuck with this project in to April. I wonder if I can keep it up for the rest of the year?

Here are some of my recent photos:

 Lunch time in the lovely autumn sunshine (taken with instagram app)

 The first signs of trees changing colour in our street (taken with instagram app)

 Tea cake for afternoon tea

Sewing progress on my Vignette in Stitches quilt

I love that this project is a way for me to capture the little things in my life and to remind me of all that I have to be grateful for; good food, lovely friends, beautiful weather, time to stitch, the list goes on.

Crafty Reading

These lovely books arrived in the mail last week and fortunately, I will have plenty of reading time over the Easter break to enjoy them.
I can't wait to start stitching some of the motifs from "Doodle Stitching" by Aimee Ray. The colours are just so bright and happy! The "Motif Collection" even came with a CD of all the patterns so you can easily print them out at different sizes. You can visit Aimee's website here.

I also ordered Vintage Notions; an inspirational guide to needlework, cooking, sewing, fashion and fun is a unique book filled with crafty articles and ideas for every month of the year. I love the little snippets of fabric, embroidery and fashion, making me wish I was a  glamorous and fashionable 1920's lady. Amy's website and blog is here.