OPAM 2020

Here we go again! 😜 Yes, OPAM (One Project A Month for the uninitiated!) is back for another year of encouraging we creative types to ... Well ... CREATE! 😁 And hopefully get some of the projects on our "To Do" list crossed off & added to our "Finishes" list. OPAM is all about taking some time out of busy schedules to recharge our creative batteries by playing with fabric, threads, wools, cottons & needles of all sorts. The goal is to finish at least one project per month for the year, which will give us a minimum of 12 finishes by the time we next sing "Auld Lang Syne" ... Or we will have made significant progress on some longer-term projects.

For a new year of OPAM, we need a new logo button ...

Thanks to my Beloved Geek Boy, we've got one. 😁 And do you see that rather large number on the badge? That's how many projects have been recorded by OPAMers since we started! Over 51,000 finishes! WOWSERS!! Are you ready to add some more to the tally by playing along? Let's keep it simple ... 

HOW DO I JOIN OPAM 2020?

1. Send me an email to tell me you'd like to play along. Please make sure you include: Your NAME, your BLOG ADDRESS, your EMAIL ADDRESS. My email address is: kris@tagalongteddies.com.au

2. Right click on the new OPAM logo & "save as" to your files. Add it to your blog sidebar with a link back to my blog ... In case others who visit your blog would like to play along.

3. Under the OPAM badge on your sidebar, add a list of  2020 FINISHES which shows your finishes each month. You can add this as a blog page if you prefer ... As long as it's clear which finishes you've added each month.

4. At the end of each month, update your list of finishes (a blog post with photos is great to share & encourage others, too) AND email me your final tally for the month. Each month I'll choose a random prize winner who will receive a PDF copy of a Tag Along Teddies pattern I've designed as a fun, quick project.

5. Projects must be COMPLETELY FINISHED before being added to your tally ... Quilts have to be quilted & bound, cross stitcheries have to be framed or made into a project etc. if you aren't sure whether your project counts ... Email me & ask. 😁

6. Tallies should only include soft crafts ... Sewing, quilting, embroidery, cross/long stitch, crochet, knitting ... Again, if you're uncertain, email to check.

7. HAVE FUN CREATING!

There won't be a cut off date this year for sign up, people can just keep joining the fun as we go along. 😁 After a few weeks, I'll add a list of this year's OPAMers to my sidebar so you can hop around visiting & encouraging each other. It means we'll all have a world-wide cheer squad. 😁 (I didn't get around to doing this last year but will try to remember this year.) And remember this is a LOW STRESS challenge, so if you have a month(or two or three!!) where life gets in the way or you're working on long term projects & don't have a finish to record ... IT'S OK! 😁

I think that covers the basics ... If questions come up as we go, I'll share them in a blog post. Other than that, I hope you all enjoy playing along with me again this year ... It's a nice, low key nudge for us all (me included, since I should set a good example, right?! 😜 ) to create & finish projects. Some of us are SERIAL STARTERS! Tee! Hee! Hee! 

Right now, though, I have to go & get ready for a Christmas gathering with the in laws ... So ... We're running late! 😂 Have a fantastic week! Til next time ...

BEAR HUGS!

CHEERS!

Dropping In Quickly!

Hello all! I hope your week is off to a fantastic start. Mine didn't start too badly ... For a week that DIDN'T involve me winning lotto over the weekend! 😝 But ... Almost as good as winning lotto was listening to some lovely rain falling on our roof ... WOO! HOO! Over the last four days, so far ( ... She says optimistically! 😜) we've had 62mm & could happily accept twice that again without blinking. Other areas close by have had a LOT more rain, but others have had less, so we accept it gratefully ... & keep praying & rain dancing to bring more. 😜

And the showery weekend weather meant it was the perfect weather to curl up with some stitching ... Which saw me complete the hand stitching part of my BOM design-in-progress ... WOO! HOO! Now I need to add some sashing, borders, write instructions, work out the requirements list ... SIGH! So ... Still a bit of work to go! 😜

While GB & I were enjoying some rainy day movies (The Mummy, The Mummy Returns, Goldeneye, Tomorrow Never Dies, The World Is Not Enough, Dante's Peak ... No chick-flicks for this chick! 😝) we heard an ominous grunting/roaring noise that sounded like a restless demon from the depths had moved just outside our back door! EEP! NAH!! 😜

... Just our resident male koala! 😂 We call him "Keith" after a character in a children's tv series & our neighbours call him "Spot" ... As in "spot the koala in the tree". 😜 This photo was taken from our back deck ...

... But he let us get quite close without fussing ... We just got that disdainful look as though to say, "What are you hoomans doing in my dining room?!" 😜 We usually hear Keith at night or spot him in the late afternoon, but he announced himself around lunchtime & stayed in this small tree all day, munching on leaves & snoozing ... When he wasn't doing his demon-from-the-depths mating call ... I sure hope female koalas find the noise sexy! 😂 We feel pretty blessed to have Keith & his fluffy kin in our 'backyard' .

And speaking of backyards ... Some people's 'backyards' have been in drought for several years & when you add in the devastation of recent fires, there are a lot of people around Australia who are doing it tough. An initiative that I stumbled across a little while ago on Facebook is giving a helping hand to lots of rural-based businesses. Buy From The Bush works along the lines of, "give a man a fish & you'll feed him for a day; teach him how to fish & you'll feed him for a lifetime ", by setting up a network to promote businesses based in rural areas, some of which have been set up to provide an alternative income to traditional farming in drought affected areas. There are all sorts of products, services & even unique accomodation destinations being promoted by this fantastic enterprise & after stalking ... Er! ... Following 😜 a few of these on FB for a while, I decided to treat myself to a little something ...

Here is what I bought. 😜 Can't guess? (Cute packaging, though, hey! 😝)

Ta da! I LOOOOOOVE a nice scented candle to add ambience to the lounge room when we're relaxing at night. 😜 Boc & Co makes high quality scented soy candles, room sprays, reed diffusers etc with a range of scents with something for every shnozz to enjoy. Boc & Co  is based in the South Burnett region of QLD, just a few hours from where I grew up & I was impressed with the speedy, efficient delivery of my candles, as well as the quality of them. My candle scent choices were "Lemon Myrtle" & "Australian Bush" & while I love them both, the Aussie Bush scent is my fave, because it smells like a bushwalk after rain has fallen ... Without the blisters & bugs! Tee! Hee! Hee! I would highly recommend Boc & Co & encourage you to take a look at the many interesting & innovative businesses that are being brought to our attention by the Buy From The Bush initiative. You'll end up with unique purchases & help battling bush businesses keep on keeping on. (No ... I wasn't paid to promote either of these ... Just sharin' the love! 😁)

That's it from me today, I'm off to start putting sashing on my BOM blocks. 😁 Oh ... Just a heads up for those who are starting to ask ... OPAM sign up opens on SUNDAY JANUARY 26 ... Australia Day seemed like a good kick-off date. 😜 So stay tuned for sign up deets & the new badge designed by GB. 😁 Til next time ...

(KOALA!) BEAR HUGS!

CHEERS!

KRIS

Beginning With A BANG!

Well ... So much for 2020 being a quieter, calmer year!! 😳 My Beloved Geek Boy & I were back to our grown up jobs this week & hit the ground running to keep up! GB has spent the week coordinating LOTS of AV jobs that need to suddenly be finished YESTERDAY 😜 & my boss has spent the week in hospital, so I was holding the fort in the office amidst the usual start of year avalanche of phone calls & office drop-ins ... Nice to know I'm missed, right?! 😝 

Add to that craziness that my recurring niggly back has decided to seize up & you can see why I'm REALLY glad it's now the weekend. 😜 If you're looking for me during the next few days, you won't have to look far ... I'll be ensconced on the lounge with cold packs, hot packs, movies & stitching. 😜 I just have to remember to crawl off the lounge from time to time (NOT an easy or pretty feat! 🙄) to stretch & move to try to release my pinched nerve. SIGH! And I'm not even FIFTY yet!! 😂

The highlight of my week was a fun stitching play date yesterday afternoon, after I finished my grown up work week, with the Fabulous Fiona & Sweet Kim from our Friday Night Nutters group. Isn't it lovely just to spend time with some low-stress friends & stitching to relax! 😊 Thanks for lending your lounge room Fiona  😁 I did a bit more stitching on the final block of my BOM design-in-progress ... Which will continue to keep my mind off my niggly back for the weekend. 😜 I don't have a pic of that block, but thought I'd share the recently finished block with you so you know I really have been stitching. 😉 

I think this is my favourite block! 😍 Although ... GB pointed out that I've said that about EVERY block! Tee! Hee! Hee! I'm so looking forward to sharing this block of the month quilt pattern with you all! My goal is to have it ready for mid-March, so stay tuned! Fiona continues to be my Jimminy Cricket ... The voice of my conscience nudging me along. 😜 Since I'm the Queen of Procrastination ... I NEED IT! 😂

Many of you lovely OPAMers, however, seem to be much better organised & productive than me, with ...

228 FINISHES!

... recorded for December! WOW! Well done everyone! And well done to all of you that are like me & persevering with longer-term projects ... Just keep stitching! 😁 And the winner of the December random draw is ...

BRITTA!!

Congrats Britta! Drop me an email & I will send you a copy of the prize PDF pattern. If there is anyone else who has been a monthly draw winner who hasn't received their prize pattern, please drop me an email & I'll send it to you. I can only send it from my laptop, which I don't switch on very often, so I may have missed someone.

So ... I've had a few lovelies ask if I'll run OPAM again this year. After a bit of thought, I've decided ... YES! I WILL run OPAM 2020! 😁 I know there are less people signing up for the fun, with some people leaving blogging, or just not having as much time to create, but some of you have played along with me since the beginning & have told me you find it helpful to give you a bit of encouragement to finish projects ... And I confess I do too. 😜 So ... I'll be sweet-talking GB into designing a new OPAM badge for us & will open sign up towards the end of January ... To give GB time to do the badge & set up a new spreadsheet for me ... What would I do without him! 😝😍 so keep an eye on my blog here to catch the sign up for OPAM 2020. 😉 

But right now, I need to get up for a stretch & find a cold pack for my dodgy back, so I'll sign off. Hope you all have a relaxing weekend. Til next time ...

BEAR HUGS!

CHEERS!

KRIS

Holiday Bliss!

Cricket on the tele ... Cold drink on one side (only iced water, I promise! 😜)  ... My Sweetie on the couch beside me on the other side ... French doors open to reveal the entertaining show of the local bird life visiting our feeders & birdbaths ... Ceiling fans revolving to keep us cool ... Stitching in hand. My definition of Holiday Bliss! 😊

BEAR HUGS!

CHEERS!

KRIS