Bits & Bobs ~ Freebie Antique Crochet Patterns..

Just how thrilled was I to receive this lovely blog award today from Michelle one of my blog followers. This has started my week off to a much better start than I thought it would be. You can see her blog at:http://michellesstitching.blogspot.com/ . Thank you Michelle, and Hugs x.


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Mary Wigham SAL WIP

I recently decided to join the Ackworth School, Mary Wigham Sal and have after having to rip out the first motif twice the pic below is my stitching so far. I have decided to do the Sal in only four colours of DMC 779 chocolate,841 Coffee, 152 Muted Pink, Ecru, the fabric is an evenweave 28ct linen. The pattern calls for a 32ct, but I thought 28ct would be better on the eyes. I was reading on the Ackworth School site that the students back in the 18th Century used a 40 ct fabric originally. Can you imagine what their eyes were like with the lighting they had way back then.

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DH's little Finds....... when he was clearing out a house in the course of his work.

He found this little 1940's to 50's Needlekeeper with screw on thimble lid.

Another great find was some crochet edging which a lady must have made way back. When DH brought it home the edging was all discoloured and brownish. I have given it a bleaching, and a good wash in the washing machine, and it is as bright as it is ever going to be, with just two little iron stains in a couple of places there it must have been up against some metal at some time. Along with the crochet piece which is not quite finished, as is appears it was an edging for a table cloth or similar, there was also two patterns. One dated June 27th 1914...Pansy edging, and the other which could be the pattern for the edging I have shown a picture of, dated September 6th 1924. I have taken the pictures in Super Macro, so that anyone who is into doing crochet can have a go at the pattern if they so wish. I hope that if you click the picture of the pattern that the blog will allow it to enlarge.

If you would like to have a copy of either of the vintage crochet patterns please email me at:fripperiesandstitchery@googlemail.com
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The weather hasn't been very good this past week, and now the children have broken up for the school holidays, I do hope it will be fine next week. They have forecast rain for nearly every day this week its such a shame for the kids. But on another note the weather as it is is good for my vegetable garden, and everything is just producing nicely. We have had two pickings of succulent sugar snap peas, and I picked nearly half a washing basket full of broad beans last week. They were yummy. The rain is great for my courgettes too, I have been having to pick them every day. I think that I shall have to freeze some for the winter.We have tiny cherry, and plum tomatoes in the green house, and I am waiting on the large ones yet too fruit. The Khol Rabi is coming on. I can't wait to try that. Apparently you can shred it and eat it with salad. The oak leaf lettuce are doing well too, and I am waiting for the beetroot to get a little larger before I pull them. The copper ribbon seems to have worked a treat at keeping the slugs and snails from eating my purple sprouting, and they are nearly a foot high now.

I hope you have found something here to interest you, I must really go now as it is time that DH comes in from work, and I have to go and feed that man!!!

Little Alphabet Sampler......& Spring Holidays

I just loved stitching this small alphabet sampler. I have stitched it on Belfast Linen 28ct, and used DMC floss. I found it a while ago as a freebie. Its title is " Bluebirds and Daisies", and is a complimentary design from: www.blueribbondesigns.com . I found it very easy to stitch, and I thought I may incorporate the design again along with more motifs to make a larger sampler.

My latest stitching project is a birth sampler for my new little grandson, when finished I will show it on my blog.

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Spring Holiday..... Well a rest for DH anyway....

The weather was beautiful, and silly me I thought that we might go out and about for a few days, especially as it was Easter school holidays and all that. We had even talked about going up to the Fleet Air Arm Museum, and the American Museum up in Somerset, as DS wanted to go there, but no such luck, DH just wanted to rest up. I suppose I can sympathise in a way as he does have a strenuously gruelling job,but I would have driven, and all he had to do was to sit there and look at the countryside.....but no. He just wanted to stay at home. I think that he was just enjoying the fact that my eldest son had moved out the week prior to that, and he just wanted to enjoy the peace that now reigns in our house. I did manage to get DH to go into the garden, and finish digging the veggie patch that we have decided to have this year, especially as people in the UK are being encouraged to grow their own fruit and veg. We have planted Tomatoes, Courgette, Broccoli/Purple sprouting, Lettuce..various varieties, carrots, peas, broad beans,and aubergine, also a custard courgette.

We did however manage to get down to visit the newly arrived Grandson after him being born about 10 days previously. He's so cute,he weighed in at 6lb 6oz and is now gaining weight, and getting stronger every day. They are all coming to see me tomorrow, so I will get to cuddle him again. I do love tiny babes especially when they are not your own and you can hand them back when they start crying.

Easter Saturday, saw a big spring clean out, we had so many old books, and clutter, that we thought it was time to get rid of the excess. Doesn't it take an amazing amount of time, as if you are like me you seem to come across things that you have forgotten and than you start to look through them all particularly photos, or that little memento you had kept for posterity. Eventually we had a huge pile of books which we put on our local Freecycle.com group, www.freecycle.com and there were many takers. We still have loads to do, and get rid of before we can even start to think about decorating. I really must stop hoarding, and stashing.

On Easter Sunday there were many bootsales, and flea markets on, and it was wonderfully warm so we decided to go to one. Yet again I couldn't resist, and found some fabric to add to my stash. Not only do I like doing cross stitch, and blackwork, but from time to time when the mood takes me I do like to do patchwork. I was lucky enough to get about 4 square metres of Calico for £1, and 2 metres of really nice checked material suitable for all sorts of projects. The colours were not too dissimilar to the colours I used in the ABC sampler above.

I also added to my cross-stitch stash, as a lady was selling a piece of 14ct Aida, and all the threads to make a teddy bear sampler. I don't fancy making that up, but the threads, and aida will come in for something. I also was lucky enough to get Donna Kooler's " 555 Fabulous Cross-stitch Patterns" book for 50p. There are so many nice little motifs that I am sure I can incorporate into things that I will make, both for exchanges, and for myself.

Its amazing what people will get rid of for next to nothing. I also had the pick of whatever I wanted out of an old sewing chest. I had a powder bowl full of pins, some with nice heads on, and some buttons for covering, and a velvet press type brush. I shall be covering the little buttons with some cross stitch flowers I think.That all cost me £1 too.

My Antique Porcelain find......

I was just about to leave the bootsale/flea market when I came upon this stall that just had a load of old junk when I found this wonderful little Dresden side plate decorated with purple pansies, and hand gilded with little dots of gold on the pansies, and gilding to the scrolled edges.The age of the plate is around the 1880's-1900.

Going greener...Not only in stitching

Having had a' bit of a week' last week, it was nice to see the sunshine arrive in our little part of the world on Sunday. Although D husband had other ideas I was able to nudge him up the garden with me to clean out the greenhouse. In it we had a collection of Cacti which I had inherited from my D Daughter when she went to live in Goa, I am really not into Cacti even though some of them produced the most beautiful flowers for one day or so in the summer. I therefore had decided that they were taking up valuable space, and that they had to go in order that I could get my vegetable seeds under way, and in particular my tomatoes. This year I am going to grow them in the greenhouse, along with cucumbers, so that no matter what the British weather throws at us we will have luscious tomatoes all summer.

By the way don't be sad for the cacti all thirty odd of them. I listed them on http://freecycle.org/ and gave them away to a home, and to someone who would appreciate theThe rest of the garden is going to be redesigned this year. We have been here now for seven years this year, and after having to start my garden from scratch in the beginning as it was like a wilderness, I think it is time for a change. Not only that,but in England now the powers that be are encouraging people to try and grow their own Veggies and fruit. Well we already do that but not on a very large scale, so I have decided that the round lawn has to be moved, and the shrubs and put into either the front garden, or to be arranged somewhere else. That way where the lawn has been, and is virtually virgin soil can be my new vegetable patch.

These are some of the pics of the plants in my garden last year.

Clematis

Aquilegia

Spring.....Dutch Iris

Calla Lily

Rose: Dawn Chorus....has the most glorious scent

Voodoo Lily

Lavender

Australian Bottlebrush

Spring....everything not out yet.




Blue Angel Wings

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Still on a Green Note

I got to thinking last week apart from all that we have done to be "green with our electricity", I cast my mind back to when I was a child and thought about what my Mum used to have in her house that was different today which didn't use electricity but was so useful. Do you remember those carpet sweepers that you push along to pick up the bits? I really thought this would be a great idea to get one so that when I had finished stitching I wouldn't have to get the vacuum out just to pick up the ends of threads etc., and it would also be eco friendly. I hadn't got a great deal of money to spare this month, so I put a "Wanted" on http://freecycle.org/, and 'voila', some dear soul had one that I could have. So I am now saving money in electricity bills, and it takes less time to pick up bits.

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Stitchers Heaven Group SAL......Finished part three of Alla Turca

Stitched in French Navy DMC 311 on 28ct evenweave linen

My WIP at the moment

I have quite a few freebies stored in my stash on the PC and yesterday I wanted to do a small for me. I decided on this beautiful little Quaker Scissors Case pattern which was offered back in March of 2006 on http://www.carinne.ht.st/ for personal use only.

I have cross stitched it, and have decided to line it with some contrasting patterned silk that I had in my stash, yet to be finished, but here is the pic before finishing into the scissors case.