Topsy-Turvey Is The New Normal!

Well ... 2017 just keeps throwing curve balls! It's been a bit of a topsy-turvy time again around here. My boss's sweet Mum passed away & so work has been about juggling things & filling in a bit so my boss could take some time off. As a result, all plans got a bit shuffled or rearranged, so no sewing here again. SIGH! I'm sure it will happen sometime soon. :0)

So while I don't have anything to share with you on the sewing front, I thought I'd better pop in to remind OPAMers that it's time to update sidebar lists & email tallies to Sweet Peg & I ... Hopefully you've all had better luck in the sewing room. :0)

I don't like to have a post without pics, so before I head off to put the kettle on, I'll show you one of my Mum's garden delights ...

... A gorgeous bearded iris. Ours haven't flowered this year due to the extreme dry weather, so it's been nice to share Mum's. 

Hope your weekend is off to a wonderful start. It's a long weekend here so I may even dust off my trusty Husky. But not tomorrow night ... We'll be too busy cheering on our football team ... GO COWBOYS! :0) Til next time ...

BEAR HUGS!

CHEERS!

KRIS

 

Catching Up!

Hellooooooooo to all of you out there in blogland! I hope you are all well ... & will forgive my absence from the blog. It's been a bit of a crazy few weeks with one thing & another. The first reason for me being a bit quiet was the fact that my Beloved Geek Boy & I succumbed to some leftover winter lurgies within days of each other. I was ambushed by a nasty head cold & then GB was hit by a flu bug. We're both on the mend now, but I'm pretty sure we deserve shares in the tissue company! :0)

And while GB was in the midst of dying (he doesn't get the traditional 'Man Flu' but he really was miserable!) & I was still snuffling my way through the days, the calendar rolled around to Stitchers Dream Day, our big weekend of exciting stitching hosted by the Marvellous Marion & Stupendous Steph of the Quilters Angel. Although ... We minions & friends had to muddle through most of the set up without either of our fearless leaders because Steph was in the midst of bringing the next Angel generation into the world! :0) What a way to kick off the weekend! Tee! Hee! Hee!

So ... I thought you might like to see some photos of our fun. This year's theme was "Blossom & Bloom" & the guest designers were Libby Richardson of Artsmart Cottage & the lovely Lauren of Molly & Mama. Roll the photos! :0)

As usual, my Bestest-Buddy-Since-We-Were-Nine Lynette came up to play & here she is peeking in her giftie bag.

And Julie was caught with her hand in the bag, too. :0) After the intros, it was time to get cracking ... Apparently SOME people actually STITCH at these events! Go figure!! Tee! Hee! Hee!

Here's Wendy with photographic proof that she was hard at work stitching.

And Felicity was very impressed with how much she managed to stitch.

There were also some mini workshops, with Libby sharing her simple but effective fabric painting techniques (Do you see who's standing beside Libby? Yep, Nikki Tervo came up to play! ) ...

 And here's my sewing friend Maureen concentrating hard to duplicate Libby's sample. (Maureen & I used to sew together weekly when we lived at Bongeen ... About 15 years ago! Wow! Time flies when you're having fun!)

Lauren shared her tips & techniques for English paper piecing. Although I can't see myself rushing out to start stitching hexies, Lauren's work is lovely & she specialises in small, easily achievable projects for those who want to create but don't have a lot of time.

And one of the best parts of Stitchers Dream Day (besides being thoroughly spoilt!) is time spent catching up with friends. Libby & I are both bear lovers ... & both shorties! Tee! Hee! Hee!

It was wonderful to chat to Lauren, too, & Lynette & I always enjoy our play dates. :0)

And fun to catch up with Felicity ... Who's just as crazy as me. :0) (That glow is obviously the light reflecting off our haloes! Tee! Hee! Hee!)

Oh! What about this year's special projects, I hear you ask ...

Lauren's hexies tote bag, complete with embroidered hexie key fob/scissors fob ...

Another Molly & Mama design, a glasses case featuring sweet floral embroidery ...

And matching the glasses case is a handy zippy pouch, also with sweet embroidery ...

I confess this is my favourite project this year ... Even though it's pink. :0) Libby's signature painted teddy shown off in a needle caddy ...

And last but not least, Libby's second project, an embroidered wall hanging.

Once again a huge THANK YOU! To Marion & Steph for a fantastic weekend of friendship & stitching. (Steph took care of most of the planning & had lists & notes for us minions to follow just in case she went into labour ... Good planning pays off!!) Thank you to Libby & Lauren for their gorgeous projects & to all the sewing enthusiasts who came along to play.

Of course ... A big CONGRATS! To Steph & her partner Peter on the arrival of Zoe Maree ... You can imagine how chuffed Marion & her Sweetie Col are to be grandparents. :0) By the way ... Little Zoe obviously takes after her super organised Mum ... She arrived on her due date! :0)

Right ... That explains why I've been missing in action for a bit ... I promise to try to get back here soon with some pics of what I've been sewing, but right now, I hear the kettle calling my name, so ... Til next time ...

BEAR HUGS!

CHEERS!

KRIS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thankful For My Dad!

It's Fathers' Day here in Australia & although I am fortunate enough to see my Dad (& Mum!) at least a few times most weeks, it's a reminder that I am very thankful for my Dad. He's got a warped sense of humour, is incredibly politically-incorrect, is likely to start singing some random song based on something you say, is an expert at pressing all the wrong buttons on computers & remote controls (& sometimes his offspring!) & moves at the combined speed of ten turtles unless he feels like moving faster ... I'm sure his motto in life is, "Don't rush me, don't rush me!" :0)

But he's also been the quiet rock our family is built on. He drove my brother & I miles during our growing up years to attend youth camps & sporting carnivals, he taught us not to backchat Mum (his leather thong around our butts reinforced that!), he showed great patience in teaching us to drive, he helped us move house more times than I can remember & even though he has never been one for emotional speeches, we've never doubted that he loves us.

As you can see from these two photos we look nothing alike & I was clearly left on their doorstep by faeries! :0P

Dad gives great bear hugs, happily adopts my friends & I just love him to bits! Happy Fathers' Day, William Ronald! :0)

BEAR HUGS!

CHEERS!

KRIS

 

Spring Has Sprung!

YAY! Spring has finally arrived ... Though the weather man tells me our overnight temperatures will continue to be below five degrees for the next week or so. But I've been waiting for winter to finish, so today was a good excuse to celebrate September first with a girly lunch date.

You may remember my Mum's Partner-In-Crime Marg from some of our previous adventures. Well, Mum had arranged to take Marg on a bus trip as a birthday gift ... & it was canceled! So we decided it was a great excuse for a girly lunch road trip. We headed off to Spring Bluff historical railway station 15 minutes north of Toowoomba. Good decision! :0)

This pretty railway station is well worth a visit if you're in the area ... And with the annual Carnival Of Flowers just two weeks away, the gardens are looking so pretty.

This little garden pocket is surrounded by fabulous big trees & quite protected from some of the frosts & freezes we experience on top of our 'hill'.

We had a great chat with chief flower whisperer Owen who was happy to answer questions, identify plants & share his lovely workplace with us. He said our peculiar warm/cold/warm winter weather has caused him a few headaches, with some plants flowering earlier than usual, so he was madly replacing spent plants ready for Carnival judging next week. All of that chatting about garden work made us hungry, so we climbed the steep stairs to ...

The Pancake Cottage. Don't these two look like naughty school girls ready to get into mischief?! :0) we soon found a nice spot on the verandah for lunch ...

MMMMMMMMMMMMMMM! Pancakes! :0) Absolutely SCRUMPTIOUS!! 

A savoury chicken & mushroom in white sauce for starters ...

And a traditional Dutch pancake that had sultanas in it, topped with apple compote & whipped cream for seconds. We shared two servings between the three of us ... And were still so full at the end that we decided to go for a waddle around the garden to settle it all. :0)

We were treated to the songs & colourful antics of many varieties of birds, including this little cutie that none of us could identify. Maybe a finch? Will ask GB the bird enthusiast when he comes home. :0)

All in all, it was the perfect way to celebrate the first day of Spring ... & I topped it off by popping in to visit Marion at the Quilters Angel where they were celebrating their 13th shop birthday with a fantastic 30% off sale. I was pretty well behaved ... Just some backing fabric & some mix-n-match spots. 

Whatever you've been up to today as you've welcomed the first day of Spring ... Or Autumn if you're north of the equator ... I hope you've enjoyed some time with people who make you smile. :0) OPAMers ... Have you updated your sidebar lists & emailed your tally to me or Sweet Peg? You'd better hop to it! Til next time ...

BEAR HUGS!

CHEERS!

KRIS