A Simple Christmas Giveaway 🎄🎈💗

Greetings lovely friends & readers

Every year as Christmas approaches I plan to do a Giveaway & then time slips away on me.  So this year I have decided to do it now (early) - so that I can allow time to post it anywhere in the world & it will arrive (hopefully) before Christmas.

I really enjoy my blog & the friendships I have made through this little corner of my world.  I appreciate all of you that take the time to read my waffle ramblings, & especially those that leave me a comment.  I have found nothing but kindness through all the folk I have "met" through this platform.  So this simple little festive Giveaway is my way of saying Thank You to all of you ... if I could I would send you each a little parcel. 

 

I have put together a small selection of festive bits & bobs, mostly handcrafted by me but some are purchased items.  These will be posted to you beautifully giftwrapped & tied up with a tag.  

I will post anywhere in the world - anyone may enter.

Here is what will be included in the parcel . . . . . .

A handmade Christmas Cracker (Tilda fabrics of course) filled with some gourmet choccies.  This cracker can be untied & re-used for another gift, not thrown away like the store bought paper & plastic ones. 

Two of my handknitted organic cotton washcloths & a knitted scrubbie in Christmas colours.

A gorgeous fragrant soap in a Tilda bag tied with a velvet ribbon & a snowflake charm

A rustic hanging (or sitting) wooden Christmas sign.

A set of 3 different sizes of my handmade wooden christmas tags.

A cotton towelling tea-towel or handtowel with a festive design.

I solemnly promise to remove any Ginger Cat hairs before posting the package & No Willie, I cannot include said Ginger Cat in the parcel when posting !! 😉

Please enter by leaving me a comment below.  If you have any trouble getting your comment to publish then just email me at stitchedbyjulie@hotmail.com with your comment & I can copy & paste it. 

Anyone may enter - I will post worldwide.

If you feel inclined, please tell me one thing you love about Christmas, but you don't have to share this - I am just nosey curious like that !

If your comment comes through as anonymous please remember to leave me your first name & country - eg ... Julie from New Zealand as I often get many anonymous comments. 

 The Mr will draw a name out of the teapot on Friday 22nd November so it gives me a month for the package to arrive at it's destination.

 

Last week I finished sewing 20 lined Christmas Stockings for my local Patchwork Store.  She fills them with chocolates & donates to the Foodbank who put them in the boxes of families with children at Christmas time.  I have another 10 cut out so am hoping I manage to finish these before the cut-off date on the 20th November.  The store owner is hoping to reach 300 stockings again this year.

Some Christmas decorating began last week here at Threadbear HQ.  I like to pull out the containers & unpack things into the lids as it helps to sort what-goes-where.  It didn't take long for a certain ginger fairy to find the containers - a girl gets tired overseeing these things & has to have a nap along the way.

And some furry family members are just downright unhelpful !!! 😐

That's all for today dear friends - I have lots to share so I may do a series of catch up posts.

Wishing you all a wonderful rest-of-the-week,

With much love & friendship to you all,

A Revamped Rocking Cradle for Juno & Sadie

Greetings lovely friends & readers

Back in June I spotted this old wooden rocking cradle, tucked down on a bottom shelf in my local Habitat For Humanity Op-Shop ... only $20, which I thought was reasonable.

I went home & thought about it for 2 days - certain that upon my return, it would be long gone.  But No - there it was waiting for me to bring it home.  I'd thought it would be wonderful to revamp it for my step Grandaughters Juno & Sadie, who are now 2 & 4.

It appeared to be a sturdy piece - someone had tipped it upside down & written on it with black felt pen ... I think it says "Ashley's Caning Room? and ef I wot"  - but I'm not certain. 

 

I very lightly sanded the pen markings & gave it a good clean.  To be truthful, it was a horrid thing to paint ... all those skinny dowel pieces seemed to take forever.  I actually put it away after I'd done half of it & it sat for another month before I bought it out again & finished it off.  I used chalk paint in the colour Vintage White.  It seemed to take alot of coats to get a decent coverage.

I prefer to spray varnish anything for the little ones, rather than wax.  I find it more durable & hard wearing, & seems to be much more wipeable.  After I'd painted it I noticed a definate "bow" in the top railing on one side - this was not noticeable until I painted it - you could see someone had leaned really hard & bent the railing, almost breaking it.   The Mr was able to screw it tightly together & then I filled the hole & touched it up.  It made it more sturdier.

I wanted to use only fabrics already in my stash for this & luckily I was able to.  I found some sweet Winnie the Pooh fabric for the mattress, then this cute little girl fabric was perfect for the pillow & sheet.  

This Peter Rabbit fabric was a lightweight cotton drill, so it was ideal for making a simple frilled Quilt for the cot.

And I didn't even have to iron it because Miss Pippi very kindly did that for me by laying on it!!!

 

I think this vintage Crochet Granny Blanket came from my friend Sally ... It fit the cot perfectly so that got tucked in as well.  

By fossicking through my leftover transfers I found enough to decorate one end of the cradle - it was wonderful to keep with the rabbit theme. 🐰🐇  I am thrilled with this now it is all done ... I plan to buy the girls a doll each & give them the cradle as a joint christmas gift ... I am not sure how their sharing capabilities go but I guess we'll soon find out.

Last week I noticed my stunning Cherry Blossom Tree in full bloom (Prunus Shimidsu Shakura).  This was the tree that the Plumber said to us "that'll have to go", when our new septic tank fields were put in.  I just adore this tree & am so thankful that The Mr said to him "like hell it is" & stood his ground.  It did not need to be removed at all, there was plenty of room.  

I had to go to the city this week for a Specialist appointment & on my way home I called at the Red Cross Op-shop in Hamilton East & found this stunning blue plate for $10.  I put a plate hanger disc on the back & it looks wonderful on my blue plate wall out on my covered deck area.

These next 3 pictures are especially for Elderberry Rob Betty who frequently asks after farm life here at Threadbear HQ.

The contractors have been making the most of the fine weather lately & there was silage making going on in the house paddock this week.  They cut one day, turn it the next & then on the 3rd day they row it up & then the silage wrapper comes along & bales it.

It is a fascinating process to watch these big balers in action.  They turn the roll like a huge cling film wrapper & when it's covered it pops it out like a giant egg & the machine goes on to the next one.

I meant to take some photos of all the "eggs" sitting in the paddock but the tractor came & picked them all up while I was away getting Sid from school. 

Thank you as always dear friends, for your welcome visits here today,

Wishing you a wonderful weekend - it's a long one here in New Zealand with Monday being Labour Day,

With much love & friendship to you all,

A Slow Stitched Piece, A Quilt Show & A (mini) Magazine Feature

Greetings lovely friends & readers

For my friend Sally's birthday last month I decided I wanted to make her a slow stitched piece incorporating her favorite things ... Books, Vintage, Flowers & Cats.  She actually loves other things but these were what came to mind when I thought about Sally 💗

It was very much a case of make-it-up-as-you-go-along & I worked on it for a couple of weeks just adding in bits as ideas came to me.  I didn't want it to be too large & in the end decided to sew it into a small wall hanging which Sally could just tuck in anywhere.

 

I pulled out some of my treasured Tilda scraps to make the small hexie flower.

 

 Sally has the cutest little white cat called Georgie so I painted this tiny red wooden button white - while I had the chalk paint out painting the scroll hanger.

I knew Sally loved Tilda fabrics so I used a small floral print to back the piece & typed out a label which I attached with some vintage lace.

As Sally works in a Bookstore selling a huge variety of cards I decided to get something a bit different for her birthday card.

  I have followed Maxine's lovely blog for awhile & always admired the cards she creates so I asked her to please make a card that showed Sally's love of cats & books.  I love what Maxine created & Sally was delighted when she opened both the card AND the gift 💛

 

It was the annual 2024 Quilt Symposium for the first week of October & this year it was held in Cambridge, just 20 minutes down the road from where I live - I had to go!!  This stall above just made me swoon ... filled to the brim with Tilda fabrics & kits & patterns & all the things that I love ................ 

I'll take one of each item Thank You Very Much !!!!  No I was very restrained dear friends, as I remembered the rather large container of Tilda fabrics I already had in the cupboard at home  😔

 

This flour sack quilt above left caught my eye because I have some of these vintage flour sacks myself

Above right was a tree filled with hand sewn pears & apples, all beaded exquisitely - stunning 💙

 

There were some absolutely stunning quilts on display & my photos really do not do justice to the talent that was showcased here.  I only snapped a very few photos as I walked around.

 

These were my only purchases above - as I said, I was very restrained. But I really enjoyed my outing together with my friends Shirley & Bev.  And afterwards we went to a wonderful Garden Centre Cafe for lunch - it was just the change of scenery that I needed. 

 

I had a minuscule feature in a magazine article last week.   No dear friends, it was Not for my fashion & beauty tips!  Remember back in * this post * when I won the Resene Voucher as a Runner Up in the Garden Glow Up Competition?  Well they did a feature in the latest Habitat Magazine which is a free issue that comes out twice yearly.  I was delighted & offered my family members free signed copies but for some reason they did not take me up on my very kind offer 😉

We are getting sunny but chilly days - typical spring weather.  

Miss Pippi is lying in the afternoon sun down in the hospital corner of my lounge, where I put any house-plants that need extra care. How I wish I could lie down here myself & someone would lavish extra care on me!

Wishing you a wonderful rest-of-the-week dear friends,

Thank you for your ever-welcome visits here today,

With much love & friendship to you all,

 

Gardening . . . . . . With Vintage China

Greetings lovely friends & readers

Thank you all so very much for your kind & encouraging comments on my last post.  Not one of you told me to get over it & get on with it (like The Mr did) & I do appreciate your kindness with all my heart. You are right dear friends, nature is resourceful & I am sure it will all return to its former glory again given time.

I have been continuing on with my mantra of tackle one small corner at a time ... so it all doesn't feel so overwhelming.

Captured last week - the Magnolia tree in full bloom & look at that wonderful blue sky  💙

 

I pulled this old red cupboard out of the woodshed - I'd not used it for a couple of years & it was looking tatty & unloved.  I gave it a good scrub as I wanted to change the colour. 

You can read a bit about this cupboard in * this post *.

The green block of wood in matching colour is to ensure the enamel sink sits straight, not on a slant

 

I painted it with my (Resene) Green Paddock paint & then gave it the same stencil treatment as before.  I love this soft sage green colour.

The old vintage enamel sink had been languishing behind my garden, overgrown for a number of years - I used to have it planted with succulents.  I hauled it out & scrubbed it thoroughly.  

This whole vintage china idea came about because my friend Joyce had cleaned out her china cabinet & given me a box of china oddments, some of them chipped or cracked, but still beautiful.

I planted the enamel basin with a punnet of blue & white Lobelia & then I tucked some of the chipped china cups & plates into this.

 I also lined the drawer with a black rubbish bag & planted blue Lobelia in this.

I planted a small thrifted soup tureen with succulent cuttings from around my garden, to sit in the middle shelf.

I'd already washed the walls of my house so I changed out the vintage plates I'd previously hung there in pink, green & red colours ...... & instead hung Joyce's blue china plates - I liked the change of colour way & the soft green & blue palette.

 

Once the pansies in my big square planter finish, I'll plant blue & white Lobelia in here too.  

 

I'm really liking the softer colours out here.  Note to self - give the wooden chest of drawers a good wax (!!) 😉

 

I had a couple of Lobelia leftover so I planted an old cast iron kettle & a hanging wall pot that my friend Jane gifted me last year.

 

All the while that I worked out on my deck Blackie slept on an old trunk that I was trying to in the process of carting over to my Cottage for storage.  Though it looks like Little One is sleeping beside him, he is actually down on the deck but is pretending that he is asleep beside "his friend Blackie". 

 

I have been trying to clean up the mess close to the house & trying not to look at the mess further down the section. I filled in a large trench with top soil & sprinkled some grass seed over it.  You can see in the photo top left that it rained heavily & all my grass seed washed down onto the driveway & left big channels.  I found an old piece of downpipe & shoved that up into the guttering pipe & this redirected the water directly onto the driveway.  You can just see my 2nd lot of grass seed coming through in the top right pic.  (this would grow a lot faster if a certain large black cat stopped lying on top of it!!)

 

I cleaned out my worm farm & filled 15 bottles with worm tea, I gifted some to friends & neigbors as this is prime feeding time for plants.  I snapped a photo of a Tui in my maple tree which is yet to get any leaves on it.  I love all the birdlife in my garden. 

 

To say Thank You to Joyce for the china, I made her an apricot & coconut fudge slice as I knew this was her favorite.  It's school holidays here in New Zealand so I made Chocolate Fudge, & Rice Bubble Crisp for my Grandsons last week. 

 

The Mr milked for 4 days last week & when he'd finished he dumped his stinky cow mucky overalls on the deck for the cleaning fairy that lives here to wash & clean again (!!) 😉  Within 5 minutes Madam Pippi had come along ... sniff, sniff, oh yes how wonderful ... rolling round in it & then falling asleep - absolutely no class at all that ginger girl !!! 😲

 

We have computer issues dear friends  - it has taken me 3 days & lots of chocolate to manage to write this post going between my computer & The Mr's laptop.  I am not sure when this will be resolved & I am also having trouble commenting on some of your posts, but I will keep trying & hopefully eldest son can come & fix it for me (tho' it was not sounding positive by his last phone call).

Thank you as always, for your ever welcome visits here today,

Wishing you all a wonderful week ahead,

With much love & friendship to you all,