A Christening Gift

It’s Alice’s christening today. I’ve made this little piece to commemorate the event for Bill, Melanie and Alice. I must be out of practice because it seemed to take me a really long time although watching The Great British Bake Off at the same time probably didn’t help!

Little Princes

14th January - I’ve just finished a couple of birth samplers for the brand new and ever so gorgeous Prince twins. I still need to frame them but here are the stitched pieces…

I completed these whilst watching Button Moon and The Raggy Dolls Series 1! I wasn’t particularly keeping note of the time but I think they took a couple of hours each. I need to remember to use a larger font in future though, this size 22 is slightly too fiddly.

19th January – I’ve had a bit of trouble finding frames for these. I thought that the frames I usually use were A5 but it turns out that I was mistaken. I headed into Loughton for some this afternoon only to find that I couldn’t buy anything from Max Speilmann due to a power-cut so in desperation I went across to a card and party shop over the road. This was a drop of luck in the end as they had a fantastic array of frames in the size that I needed at very reasonable prices. I’ll definitely use them again. Here are the framed pieces:

  

Use of a different framer…

My laptop has returned so I’m feeling inclined to blog again. Whilst David’s been away I’ve done a few more hours of kiting but that’s not what I’m going to share today. I was up in Wales this weekend and finally saw the results of the cross-stitch that I’d taken up there to be framed for Archie. Up until this piece I’ve had everything framed at Frames in Loughton. I do find their service very good but they are a little expensive so I thought I’d try somewhere different.

Mum had spotted a new framers open up in Chirk (actually moved from elsewhere I think) so we popped in. I was really impressed with the framer, Michael Hill, who was very professional and knowledgeable. He had a huge range of frames and other options, including some amazing artists glass. I opted for conservation glass (high UV protection) for this piece, which kept the costs just below Frames. I was tempted by the expensive stuff but it’s so amazing that a tiny mark of highlighter pen on the canvas shone like a beacon! I’ll definitely opt for it when I finally get my red kite framed.

The colours aren’t wonderful in my photo but the frame was a perfect match for one of the reds in the cross-stitch. He did such a good job that I wanted to share his work and highly recommend him. He’s certainly earned my return custom. See what you think…

Thanks to Katryn for holding it up for me!

Should you have anything that needs framing and are within reach of Chirk in North Wales give him a try. He’s open 9am to 5pm Tuesday to Saturday…

Compton Framers, 10 Station Avenue, Chirk. LL14 5LS.

Birth Samplers (with corrections)

Rebecca and I took a trip to Cardiff earlier this week to meet Arthur and Megan. They were totally adorable, very good for cuddles and even allowed their Mothers to have the night off to enjoy tapas and cocktails in town. It was a lovely day.
Unfortunately, I’d got Arthur’s birthday wrong (big fat whoops) so I had to bring it home and redo it. Now that I’ve completely redone the sampler, this time adding a googly eye, I can share them…

One little project complete

I guess I work best when I have a deadline but poor David had to cook his own dinner tonight so that I could get this one finished before I head up North after school tomorrow. This is the finished stitched piece. I’ll put it into a fairly plain A4 frame for the special little lady who is 2 tomorrow. As a guide, I think this one has taken me about six hours to complete…

Alternative to a birth sampler

Last month we headed up to Leek for the naming ceremony and birthday party of a very special little lady. I made this to commemorate her birth…

Sorry about the flash!

Cross-stitch and Batik printing

My first post of 2011. I’m really hoping to get a few more cards made this year so hopefully I’ll be able to post more frequently this year. I spent six days of my Christmas holidays stitching and as well as starting my next project I have now finished the sampler for my nephew…

I’ve also realised that I haven’t shared the piece of crafting that I did on expedition in Ghana last summer. We all had a lesson in Batik printing and each made a small sample using the stamps made by local Art students by cutting into chunks of foam. The villagers were really impressed with my lightness of touch, apparently I have the skill required!

Cross-stitch projects

Here are some of my favourite cross-stitch projects to date...

To celebrate the birth of my extra special niece in 2005.


This one was for Bert, the first child that I am a moral guardian for. I'm currently working on a piece for the second, his little sister Iris.


This Barn Owl hangs proudly in our entrance hall. This took me years to complete but I absolutely love it!