Some Things to Play With

I told you I'd be back soon!

Today is a pyjama day for Pelle and me. He had trouble breathing yesterday and throughout the night. He seems to be a little better today and maybe he could have gone to school, but I wouldn't want to have the teachers make him take his asthma medication. It's difficult enough for me to get it in there, but he can forgive me. Not so sure he would be willing to forgive people he has only known for a couple of weeks :o) So, as the title of this post suggests I will be blogging about things to play with. Apart from playing with Pelle, I've been playing with something else today. Behold, my new floor stand:

Purchased at the craft fair in Rotterdam last Friday, which I visited with Harmien. Thankfully, my parents remembered my visit there was a birthday gift from them to me, so I actually had some cash to spend, which makes shopping at a craft fair SO much more enjoyable. I specifically went to look for a floor stand, and just when I had given up hope of finding anything stitch-related at the fair (it was mostly knitting and quilt shops), I found this marvellous wooden floor stand. Girls, guys, dudes, honeybuns, this floor stand is just what the doctor ordered!!! I've gone from being a devout in-hand stitcher to an even more devout floor stand stitcher in a nano second. It's perfect. I can use both hands to stitch, without my fabric flopping all around my arms and without having to find ways to hold yards of fabric in one hand whilst trying to steer my needle in the direction of a tiny hole. Bliss, bliss, bliss. I love it. I'm in love. As you can see, Fruitful Clusters was still in the Q-snap at the time of picture taking, but you will be pleased to know, no doubt, that I finished that little sampler last evening. Pictures in my next post.

Of course, with a new floor stand comes a new frame to hold my larger pieces. I only possess this one, small Q-snap, so I thought a scroll frame would be in order to make my happiness complete. And here it is:

As you can see, the next project that needs to be finished (apart from Katrina's RR) is my gift for my parents' 40th wedding anniversary. I've given myself until the end of this year to finish it. It should have been finished in May, but... Well. You know me. And so do my parents. Their hopes aren't high.

Here's a pic of some of the things I got at the fair.

Notice the oversized pincushion (aka 'make do'), which I love. And please allow me to introduce you to another furry creature you haven't met before: Mr. Bean. He's been my loyal, warm and comforting companion for about eighteen years and he's called Mr. Bean because of his slouchy posture, reminiscent of the goofy character played by Rowan Atkinson. Plus, his tummy is filled with beans. I think he makes a very nice pincushion model.

Another thing I've been playing with is my ideas for my Me, Myself & I Neighbourhood. My original plan was to build a woodsy neighbourhood, but lately I've come across so many fabulous, non-woodsy (and, perhaps more worryingly, non-neighbourhoodly) charts, that my woodland fantasy has been replaced by dreams of a La-La-Land neighbourhood, featuring a lot of happy words, lots of big flowers and smiling people, and a pancake restaurant in the shape of a windmill. That's pretty much as far as I got, or will ever get until I actually put needle to fabric somewhere around December 31st. I can hardly wait!

My next post will feature some stitchy finishes, so stay tuned. In the meantime, I hope you find plenty of time to stitch and read and laugh and enjoy your families. In short, I hope you find yourself in La-La-Land.