May

Here we are at the end of May and Autumn - my favourite season..... though, with Winter just around the corner - and the weather having turned rather chilly - this beautiful tree is still wrapped in it's Autumn coat as I pass it on my way to work each morning! 

Along with May came Mothers' Day and another family gathering in Sydney....unfortunately my sister Linda couldn't make it this year due to a bad back which a 4 hour drive would not have helped.....but.... Hayley flew down from Queensland for the weekend..... I knew she was coming but it was a surprise for Mum & Dad with Mum saying it was the best "Grandmother's" Day present she could have had!  A few snapshots of another memorable day....

Afternoon tea on the verandah - everyone's favourite spot at Mum & Dads

Mum, Hayley and myself....

....and being entertained by my sister Vivien who has taught herself to play the harp - purchased only about 5 months ago! ...... she made it look very easy!

We all shared "Face-Time" (I think that's what it's called) with Megan in England and she followed up with one of her "custom made"  Mothers' Day signs for me..... this time not from some interesting travel destination but from the kitchen of the restaurant where she works.....

A little bit of stitching has been done over the past  month..... a very slow start to "Gossip in the Garden" quilt ..... and a few more stitcheries from "Stitch Therapy 365" completed....

A crochet blanket - which only seems to be worked on during the cooler months and hence seems to be taking forever to finish - has re-surfaced and am slowly making further progress on it.... will it be ready this Winter? I somehow doubt it! .......

One of my regular "haunts" on a Saturday morning is an op-shop called "Rally for Recovery" where you never know what you will find........like an old sewing basket for $2!

A bit of reading has been done over the past month..... an interesting story.... one critic describes it as "funny, touching and unpredictable" which just about sums it up....... 

And that brings me up to date with May...... we could get some showers over the weekend which may lead to more "creativity" happening or a new book being started.... we'll see...

Winter is closing in so time will be spent being cosy inside! 

Happy Stitching till next time....

Asta

The End of March

A rather brisk morning for the last day of March!! An early morning hot cup of tea and Dora seeking out a sunny lap.....

....not much room for stitching there but a little reading was being done..... 

Unfortunately not a lot to report on for my Stitch Therapy 365 .... since I joined I should be up to day 56 (!) and have only completed 4.... but did find another sunny spot later in the morning and managed to get a bit further (the gap in the middle is an applique which is nearly ready to be added) 

Knitting though does seem to be moving along with one sleeve finished and the second nearly half way!.... 

The show I'm stage managing is now under way.... we had 4 shows this weekend and next weekend another 4.... then after a couple of months of rehearsals and the actual show finished I will have my weekends back and perhaps I'll whizz through my Stitch Therapy 365 (should be calling it "Slow Stitching"!)..... get my garden into order, etc, etc....maybe even look through my many "to do" projects and start something else? 

I'll finish off with a photo taken this morning...... bulbs which usually appear in Spring! Even the plants seem to be a bit confused with the weather!

Happy Stitching

Asta

A Bit of This and That

Time for an update......not that there has been a lot happening!......Megan received her knitted scarf and told me it will definitely get worn as their Winter days are still quite cool ..... and her, and her partner, are shortly off to Scotland for a couple of weeks where it is even colder!! 

Meanwhile..... I am stage managing another show for the theatre which has a wonderful cast of only 10 aged from 14 to around 30 something.....we are still in rehearsal mode but does involve "homework" as I work out how back stage will run  smoothly.....

Spare moments have been found to finish reading another book........was OK but had quite   a few characters with similar names and jumped back and forth from 1911 to 2010 and must say I did at times get confused with who was who!

There have been some cooler nights so last year's knitting project re-surfaced and the sleeves for the jumper (for myself) were started - back and front having being finished last year.... a finish for this Winter?... Perhaps! (Not quite as blue as this photo shows it to be!)

And..... over a month ago I joined up with "Hugs & Kisses" project "Stitch Therapy 365" - doing one embroidery a day on a pre-printed panel. Well.....first I procrastinated on whether to use the stabiliser I had purchased, sought advice, decided to use another one, then lost my enthusiasm (mojo?) to start....So... theoretically I should be on Day 39 (from when I joined) but realistically I'm just starting on Day 1!! 

So..... time to have a cup of tea and find a new book to read? ... Perhaps a few rows of knitting?  Or catch up with some stitching?..... Decisions, decisions!!

Happy Stitching!

Asta