The Magic of Backstitching

I’ve finally finished a small cross-stitch of Benjamin Bunny that I will take up to Chirk to be framed this week. I used an Anchor kit but neatened up the edges using half and three-quarter cross-stitches that were full stitches on the pattern. I’m not a fan of scruffy edges. Anyway, what I wanted to highlight on this post is the magic of backstitching. The first picture shows the cross-stitch alone while the second photo shows the finished project brought to life with backstitching and a single french knot on the eye. It never ceases to amaze me just how much of a difference it makes, definitely worth ever painstaking half stitch!

    

More Name Bunting

I bought the patterned fabric to make these name buntings when I visited Cambridge months ago but have only just managed to find the time to make them. Alice and Betty have older siblings that I made stitched name samplers for (see post here) back in 2011. Alice is already nearly 1 so she’s had to wait a long time for this while Betty is just a little younger than Jess. I can’t decide whether I prefer the triangular or rectangular pennants. What do you think?!

  

  

Father’s Day 2014

This time I let Jessica loose on the highlighters and split her beautiful artwork up to make Father’s Day cards for her Daddy and two Grandads.

     

Happy Father’s Day to all the Dads out there but especially those, like David, who are enjoying their very first.

Cushion to match curtains

I needed 10 minutes of stress relief at some point last week and had ordered four cushion pads from Amazon so I decided to knock up a cushion for Jessica’s room to match her curtains. I give her at least one feed a day in her bedroom at the moment so we have an armchair in the room that was crying out for something like this. It genuinely only took me 10 minutes because of the wonder of the KAM snap pliers. They really are brilliant!

Start Them Young

It has begun. Jessica has started crafting! Happy birthday for Thursday Bert and today Auntie Ruth…

    

Jess at 20 weeks

At 20 weeks old today, lots of things have changed for me and I’m beginning to realise that I live in a big and exciting world. I weigh over a stone now and I’m taking everything in. I still love visiting friends and family. I sleep in my very own bedroom now and I love the blackout blinds that Mum made me (and so does she because I’m always still asleep when Daddy goes to work!). I don’t use the carry cot on my buggy anymore because there’s so much more to see from the buggy (when I’m awake!)…

    

I’ve been on my first holiday. We went to the Isles of Scilly so I got to go on lots of boats…

    

I got to go on the beach too…

I’ve been practising watching the football with Daddy because he’s going to make me watch a whole lot more during the World Cup soon. I went to Brazil in Mummy’s tummy you know!

Best of all, I have a new favourite thing to do and that’s to bounce like tigger! What fun!