Quiet time

I'm giving myself a bit of quiet time these days - about 10 days ago, I just got myself so completely stressed out that I really needed to slow down. It was so bad that I felt nauseous at the thought of even doing a little stitching. So I've just had a week of no stitching at all.

Over the last weekend I made some slow but good progress on my block for Julie in the Fair and Square exchange.

I'm also looking forward to working on Cheryl's RR but the chart hasn't arrived yet, which is starting to stress me out a little - I'll have to chase it up. At least we've got long enough deadlines on the RR that I can take my time with it.

I haven't blogged over the last week as I didn't have anything I wanted to share. There is something rather big going on in my life now which is probably at the root of this, but I'm not ready to share it yet. In the mean time, I'm still feeling a bit rough and sleeping badly which doesn't help.

So just to say, my blogging may be rather intermittent - I'm not pushing myself to do anything, just trying to take things easy.

Photo Hunt - Two

DS and I had a little bit of fun last weekend with Lego and the number two! (Sounds like Seasame Street!)

A lovely few days

Yay - I've finally put in a few more stitches in on St Petersburg as I'm waiting for a LHN pattern to arrive for Cheryl's RR. It really has made for a lovely few days.

I took some pics this morning - I'm still on part 4, but this week I've completed the section along the top and am ready to start working my way down the sides.

It was wonderful to get back to the different colours, stitches and textures, and of course, all that sparkle from the beads and petite treasure braid. It's so different from everything else I've been working on recently. I'm going to keep going with it for now until the LHN design arrives, although I'm sorely tempted to work on something completely different and non-stitched!

I've been really bad this week at commenting on other people's blogs, I am reading them, but I just don't haven the energy these days to comment as I should. There are a couple of things going on in my life right now that just seem to be sapping my energy. Hopefully, I'll perk up a bit again soon and find a bit more energy and enthusiasm (hard to be enthusiastic when you're completely knackered!).

Quick update

No stitchy pics today as my stitching since the middle of last week has been on my square for Julie in the Fair and Square exchange. So no pics until she's received it.

I've also been busily planning what I'm going to stitch on Cheryl's RR and getting myself completely tied in knots over it. I know I'm worrying about this far more than I need to, but I've come to the concludion that I just won't be entirely happy with any of the ideas I've come up with so far. I've ended up today ordering a couple of new charts which I think I will be much happier with. As I said, I know I'm worrying about this far more than necessary, but it's just the way I am. Hopefully I'll be able to get started by the end of the week.

For the next few days, I might even find the time to stitch on one of my neglected WIPs. I was looking at my Chatelaines the other evening and feeling the withdrawal symptoms! So here's my chance to put in a few more stitches.

As there are no stitchy pics today, here are a few more from my holiday.




This is Tarn Hows which we walked round one day. I can just remember visiting this lake about 30 years ago, and swimming in it! On that same holiday, I also swam in Coniston. I have a feeling that at the time I was relatively new to swimming in such deep water.


My neighbour told me that Tarn Hows is one of those areas that used to belong to Beatrix Potter, before being handed over to the National Trust.

Photo Hunt - Row

I meant to post this photo on Monday for the Funky theme, but events conspired against me, and I never got round to it. Fortunately for me, I think I can get away with posting it for this weeks theme of Row.


I took this photo near Aira Force waterfall by Ullswater in the Lake District while I was on holiday. Rows and rows of copper coins embedded in a tree trunk.


I don't get it. Why?

Thoughtful Heart

I was really pleased with the progress I made on my holiday project, Thoughtful Heart from Shepherd’s Bush. So much so that I actually finished it on Sunday! I can’t believe it took me less than 2 weeks to complete it.

I’m also particularly pleased as I bought this as the chart alone (not the complete kit) on ebay and converted the threads to DMC. I think the conversion worked really well, although I did change all the yellow after I arrived back home from holiday.

I particularly loved the speciality stitches, they are my best thing – I love them, kiss kiss (sorry, too much Little Wolf). I really like the texture added by those areas of Ukranian Whitework.


I was initially also a bit sceptical at first about only using one strand of thread, but now I really appreciate the delicate effect.

The conversion I used is as follows:

Colour Description	Soie ’Alger colour	DMC colour
Pale Rose	4147	225
Middle Rose	4632	778
Deep Rose	4634	316
Plum	4635	902
Pale Purple	3332	211
Middle Purple	5113	3041
Deep Purple	5114	3740
Pale Butter	F1	3823
Pale Green	3721	369
Middle Green	3713	3052
Deep Green	3715	3051
Gold	4235	436
Deep Grey (Kreinik, Silk Mori)	8055	646
Pale Grey	3421	3024
Crème	F2	Ecru
Butter	F19	745

I used some online sources to convert as many colours as I could and then did a bit of a floss toss to fill in the gaps and make sure all the colours fitted together in the overall palette.

The online sources I used include:

http://www.hand-dyedfibers.com/oscnuked/modules.php?name=DaDaBik
http://www.thesophisticatedstitcher.com/fibers/dmc2alger.php
http://www.willowfabrics.com/Convert_DMC_Soie_d_alger.html

Catbells

I was going to share my holiday stitching with you today, but I've managed to leave some notes on what I wanted to say at home, so that will have to wait until tomorrow.

For today, I'll just let you see some of my holiday photos. We had my parents staying with us when we were at the Lake District and they're really into hill walking, so we did a fair bit of that sort of thing in the Lake District. Thankfully, DS has always been a good walker.

On the Tuesday of our week there, we climbed Catbells, a hill beside Derwent Water, near Keswick. The fun bit of this walk, particularly for DS, was that we drove to Keswick where we took a launch round Derwent Water to our starting point, climbed the hill and down the other side to where we picked up another launch to take us back to Keswick. This was one of the sunniest days of the week and we all came away with a bit of a tan.

The path on Catbells

View across Derwent Water

Catbells from Keswick

It was interesting to see Griff Rhys Jones on Sunday night climbing Catbells on his Mountain programme, although it did not show the hill especially well.

Back again!

Here I am back again after a lovely couple of weeks holiday. Work is a bit chaotic as it always is when you start back, and I'm trying to decipher what other people have been doing and pick up the important things that are waiting for me.

And I'm trying to catch up a bit on my blog reading.

I was so surprised and chuffed to see that I won Cheryl's competition to suggest a new name for her blog! Cheryl, I'm so pleased that you liked my suggestion! I do like it when blog names say a little about the blogger and not just the subject of the blog.

I'm also looking forward to receiving Cheryl's RR in the post (postal strikes permitting) and really need to get thinking what to stitch. I can't believe that Donna has almost decided what to stitch for most of us. I don't think I could plan that far in advance. I'd rather see the fabric and what other people have been stitching before I decide something that fits. Edgar's RR is looking beautiful too (pics on our RR's blog here).



It really was lovely to have a whole 2 weeks away from work and I thoroughly enjoyed my weeks in the Lake District and Scotland. We had some wonderful days out and the weather was kind to us. I have lots of photos and will post a selection soon.

Of course, I got hold of my copy of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows and thoroughly enjoyed every page. I even managed not to get completely obsessed with it and maintain 'normal life' while reading it lol! I'm already planning my first re-read

I was surprised too how much progress I made on my holiday stitching project and will post photos of that soon too.

For now, here's a photo taken from the top of Tinto last Tuesday, you can just about make out the River Clyde in the background.


The following two photos are of the Cobbler, a hill near Arrochar on Loch Long. We walked up to the "Narnain boulders" in the valley between the Cobbler and Ben Narnain. My parents then went on up the Cobbler, but we went back down as it would have been too much for DS.

This particular day was finished off with a gorgeous meal at Loch Fyne Oysters.