I made ten attempts at taking a photo and this brown shmush was the best that I could come up with. I've got to get a camera that doens't turn the anti shake off when I turn teh flash off, otherwise my world's gonna be full of brown shmush's for some time to come.

It doesn't look much bigger than the last brown shmush, but I've added a whole shade or red/brown and half a shade of mustard, it's all very exciting.

I was weak!

I was weak, I just couldn't resist. I saw her at a really good price last week and I ordered her (shhh, don't tell Ben!) and she arrived yesterday.

Isn't she just fabulous though, I just think it's such a lovely chart.

I do have a stitching update, but I'm afraid I haven't had a chance to take a picture yet, we've had people staying this weekend, so my normal updating pattern was broken.

We went to Malham yesterday and the boys (being boys and a little insane) decided that they wanted to climb the waterfall (see, just crazy) and convinced Kate that she wanted to as well. Carole and I decided that we most definitely didn't wish to climb the (might I add, frozen in places) waterfall and so stood at the bottom because we genuinely wanted to know that they survived the experience before walking round to meet them at the top. We watched most of this from behind our hands but despite that it still has my favourite moment of the weekend at this point. When they'd picked their ways across the rocks to the base of the waterfall Carole, looking and sounding completely exasperated suddenly went 'Yes yes, you're very brave, now come back.' I just found it so funny for some reason.

Anyway, everyone did survive and we all came back to the flat, via the chippy, for an evening of fish and chips and playing on the Wii and fun was had by all.

International Hermit & Stitch Day - a Regular thing?

What do people think? Would you be interested? Joyce has mad this suggestion on her blog, and we're wondering whether people would fancy it and get involved with us.

Pop over to her blog and leave a comment if you're interested in joining in on a regular basis, then we can see how many people want to join in.

Kim x

The beginning of Lance and Gwen

Do you ever question your own sanity? That's what I was doing when I started working on this on Wednesday night. The smallest I've ever worked on before is 18 count so 25 seemed absolutely tiny, I felt like I was going cross eyed trying to do the tiny little stitches, I'm still debating whether to invest in a magnifying glass to make my life a little easier.

I'm absolutely loving working on it though, after that initial moment of panic when I first started it and now having such fun, I love it! I know it doesn't look like muhch right now, it's the top right page, so you can see the beginning of the arch over the window, which is something.

I've had this little rant on this blog before I think, I always start on the most boring part of the chart because it means you've still got the more interesting bits to look forward to, so I'm going to work all the way down the right which is basically wall with a bit of window, then head across towards the people.

There's about 10.5 hours gone into this so far and though there isn't much there so far, it is stitching up quicker than I was expecting it to when I first started.

So, how about everyone else? Did anyone join in with International Hermit and Stitch Day, what progress did you make? About 8 hours of this were done on Saturday, so that's quite a chunk of my progress so far. I'm debating carrying this on for another week, because I have really enjoyed it so I might give it a little more time just to progress a bit. We've got a friend staying next week so I'm probably not going to be able to get much stitching done anyway, so I may as well carry on with this one.

Kim x

A cunning plan - International Hermit and Stitch Day

Joyce and I have hatched a cunning plan, and we're hoping that others will join us in it. She mentioned that she had a piece of stitching that she really wanted to work on so she was thinking of hermiting up and stitching this weekend. I'd also made a similar plan for myself due to having the flat to myself on Saturday when my other half goes to a conference so we've decided to launch International Hermit and Stitch Day.

Join us, it'll be fun. Joyce is much more organised than I am so, if you fancy joining us pop over to her blog and leave a comment on her post and we'll both pop to see what progress you've been making. We'll both be posting out progress to what we've achieve from our hermitage on Sunday or Monday so even if you've only got a couple of hours, why not join in with us?

Kim x

I took pity on her

After my truly pathetic amount of stitching update last week, I decided to give Winter's Majesty another week. Sadly it's been another pathetic amount of stitching, but I figure two little weeks almost adds up to one decent amount of stitching. A combination of Lego Harry Potter addiction and attempting to get fit is really cutting into my stitching time. Also I'm currently stitching pale blue on to pale blue, so when I do stitch you can't really see what I've done anyway. But this coming week is my start on my HAED, I'll get it all framed up and do a bit of test stitching this week to see whether I'm going cross or tent stitching and one or two strand then I'm gonna have a big stitch-a-thon this coming Saturday while Ben goes and learns about sports chiropractics.

I've decided which one I'm going to stitch by the way, it's Lancelot and Guinevere, I decided that there were many convincing arguements for it. Thank you for all your answers and comments by the way, I think that that's the most feedback I've ever had on a post. Poor Bubbles got completely over ruled, only 3 votes bless her, but it was pretty close between Lancelot and Guinevere and Alice so it was a combination of Lancelot and Guinevere being the one that Ben preferred and the fact that, as a few people pointed out, they were my first buy so I really ought to stitch them first. Although I do have to mention Joysze who made a strangely compelling arguement for Bubbles which almost made me choose it, all she said was "BUBBLES, BUBBLES, BUBBLES!!!!!" but somehow it just tickled me and really made me want to choose it, I think because (in my head at least) she sounded really excited about the decision.

What would your 15 have been?

I poached this idea from Lindsay at Caring Stitcher because I thought it was a fabulous and fun idea. She, like myself, values her sanity to much to have started to Crazy 15 challenge, because it would only end badly, but she thought it would be fun to pick the 15 that she would have done if she could.

1. HAED – Lance & Gwen by Selena Fenech

2. HAED – Bubbles by Selena Fenech
3. HAED – Alice in Wonderland by Meredith Dillman
4. Passione Ricamo – Once up a Time (I think that’s what it’s called)
5. Ballroom Scene from Cross Stitch Collection by Sandy Littlejohn
6. King Arthur Sampler – Cross Stitcher
7. Memoirs of a Geisha - iconic shot, white face & black hair – bought it on the internet, no idea!
8. Princess Bride – Iconic Shot – designed myself
9. Susan StoHelit (fan art or a Terry Pratchett character) designed myself
10. Mighty Samurai – Dimensions Gold Collection
11. Medieval Lady – I think Cross Stitcher again
12. HAED – a Spangler design – I don’t even know which one, there’s one of a dragon on a motorbike that I saw once and it just instantly made me think of my mother for some reason, so I’d quite like to stitch that one.
13. Indian Beauty - Lanarte
14. Tea for Three – Mirabilia
15. The Kiss - Mirabilia

As you can probably see, it's a completely unrealistic list and I'd never have completed it in a year, would have lead to tears and blood shed, but they're the 15 that I really want to do (well, at the moment anyway - it changes a lot) so I'd love to have started them.

So, what would everyone elses lists have been?

Winter's Majesty - if you squint it's kinda grown

I honestly have done some stitching on it, I know it doesn't look like it but I really have. There's one complete colour been added since my last update and I'm about halfway through adding a second colour, so it's grown, just not in a very visible way. I knew that Lego Harry Potter was going to be a problem for my stitching time, especially as I then got Ben lego Batman for his birthday, which we're both equally addicted to, so I'm having to be very strict with myself and make sure that I do actually do some stitching.

Thank you everyone who's commented on which HAED I should start on next, it's looking very much like a two horse race at the moment, poor Bubbles has only got two votes bless her, so it looks like it's going to be either Alice or Lance and Gwen, but who can same, I am very easily swayed, and it's not guaranteed until I actually start stitching. On this note by the way, Louanne over at Our Friends' HAED SAL has matched me up with a buddy so that I can post my progress on my first project over there. Their spaces for posters are completely full so Susan has kindly volunteered to put my posts up for me so that I can still have posts up there. I don't currently have a link for Susan's blog, but as soon as I do I'll put that up as well. I'm sure that if your a HAED fan you'll already know about the blog, but if you don't, pop over there are some lovely pieces growing at an astounding rate over there.

Finally, and on a completely unrelated note, this amused me so I thought I'd share. This is my corner in the bedroom, my bedside table and that corner of the room. It's commonly referred to as the book mountain, it isn't at the highest it's ever been, but it's not far off, and that last time it got this high there wasn't a subsidiary heap next to it. This is the 'to read' heap, and it's growing. There's a big variety books here, the ones that are lying down on top of the bedside table, I'm part way through, also the first 5 on the top shelf of the bedside table. The bottom shelf of the bedside table is my collection of books by one of my favourite authors that happened to fit there quite nicely, which I read a lot. There's a few of my dad's books in there that I've pinched the last couple of times that I've been down to visit, there's some library books, my book group book (although that's actually one of the ones lying down), and everything else, that's just stuff that I want to read, so I've put it next to the bed so that it's one of the ones that I'll think to pick up next when I'm next choosing a book. Also, the bear is sitting on three lever arch files, those are most of my cross stitch charts, there's also a row of stitching books and some kits behind the bear. Basically, this is the corner of the house that's most relevant to this blog.

How's everyone doing on their New Years resolutions by the way?

My stitching ones are going well, most of my fitness classes start this week, but I haven't done any writing yet!

I need your help

I've said it over and over, I'm going to start a HAED this year, and I've now decided that it's going to be in the next few weeks, but I have one problem, I can't decide which one. I gave Ben all the charts that I was choosing from and asked him for his opinion, he picked three that were his favourites, I've picked two of those (I liked the third one, but didn't want to stitch it at the moment) and one other that I still really like, and I can't decide which so go for, so I need other opinions out of these three in the hope that my brain will finally kick in and help me make a decision so... in alphabetical order

Alice in Wonderland by Meredith Dillman. I do really like this one, I saw it on the site, fell in love with it and bought it, just really like the style with the sepia border and the blues and greens in the middle. I don't know, it's gut instinct, I just fell in love with it and bought it. This is the one of the three that Ben didn't pick, so I kinda feel like I shouldn't pick it and should go for one of the ones that he picked, but I like it and can't quite bring myself to rule it out somehow!



Bubbles by Selena Fenech. There's a certain aptness to this being my first HAED because, as you may have noticed, it's also my profile picture, I also have a pair of earrings with it on (well, currently I have one earring because I lost the other, but just as soon as I get round to replacing the one I lost, I'll have a pair again).

Lovely colours, once again, I have always liked my purple. Again I'm mostly working on gut instinct, it's just a really nice picture that I've always liked.

One of the ones that Ben selected, which surprised me, I thought perhaps it was a bit of a girly design, but he selected it as one of his top three.

Last, but by no means least, Lancelot and Guinevere, also by Selena Fenech. The first Heaven and Earth Design that I ever bought. I've always been obsessed with the Arthurian Legends, so I loved this as soon as I saw it, and Selena Fenech was the first artist on HAED that I really liked the work of, although I now have a much longer list of artists that I like.

I like the composition of the picture and the light coming in through the window, although I do remember thinking that his armour must be quite uncomfortable to cuddle up against.

On a practical level I have also kitted this up, I bought all the cottons when I bought the design, although the fabric doesn't count, cos it could be used for any of them.

And again, it's one of the two that Ben selected from the list.

So that's the three, what does everyone else think, come on, I'm failing to make the decision, so someone has to make it for me... please!

TUSALy goodness

My first ever TUSAL post, I'm all excited and stuff, it it's a lousy picture, and yes I am using a jam jar, but I did it, I remembered to make my first post, so proud!

Happy stitching all!

Daffycat's running the TUSAL this year, so if you fancy joining this year then pop over to her blog to join in

Okay, so this is the final post of the day

I know, I said yesterday was going to be my last post of the year, but I came to a good stopping point so I thought I'd take the picture and put it up. I've finished the top row of Little Snap Dragon, and I can definitely see the dragon now, so I'm quite excited. The top row is now finished, with a little run down on the right hand side where I was finishing cottons off because I didn't want to cut them off when I didn't have to. So, in theory, I'm now a third of the way through little snap dragon and I'm very chuffed to see the little curled wings making an appearance.



The Beautiful Shoes Have Arrived!

And this makes me happy!

This will be a very short post, due to the fact that was pretty much the only purpose of this post, to inform of their beauty. I did throw a slight strop yesterday, cos I wasn't sure if they fitted, but I've tried them on again and realised that they're not squashing any part of my foot, the bit that's a little snug is the bit that's holding them on to my foot, so that's probably meant to be a little snugger than the rest. But aren't they beautiful? Weird looking, I'm willing to accept that, but also beautiful!

Lego Harry Potter is seriously cutting into my stitching time, but I'm working on it (the stitching and Harry Potter)!

Oh yeah, and what New Years Resolutions are you all making, I listed all my stitching stuff a while ago, but I'm also going down the get fit and get some more writing done route. Don't quite know how I'm going to achieve the writing, but I'm somehow signed myself up for Zumba twice a week, Badminton once a week and Belly Dancing once a week, so I'll be fit, or dead, that's how it's gonna go I think.

This'll probably be my last post to 2010, so Happy New Year everyone!

A blatant plug

Good afternoon ladies and gents, I hope you've all had a glorious Christmas and are looking forward to New Year.

We spent Christmas was my dad and his fiance and had a lovely, albeit rather quiet Christmas, and of course all got completely spoilt. Dad and Shirl have given us the money to go to a local ski ramp, get me a couple of lessons and then a couple of hours skiing for the both of us. Ben really wants to go skiing but I refused to go on a skiing holiday without having a chance to try it first, so this is what we agreed to do.

Apart for from that, I got a couple of games for the Wii, Ben and I are now completely addicted to Lego Harry Potter, which is seriously going to cut into my stitching time if I'm not careful. Anyway, hope you all had a good Christmas and got whatever you asked father Christmas for.

Have you been shopping in the sales? We went today, but I didn't really  find anything, changed a jumper that I was given due to not being able to get my giant bum into the one I'd been given (too much Christmas chocolate methinks - and you should see how much is left), but didn't get anything else. Have a little money with which to treat myself, and am now debating what to spend it one. Indian Beauty Cross Stitch kit? Troll Beads bracelet? Yet more beautiful shoes? I'll have to have a think.

And now for the blatant plug. I have a new follower and am in return following her, and the lady in question is my dad's fiance, and I said that I'd give her a bit of a plug. If you're interested in paper craft then she's well worth a follow, so please pop over and give her a visit. Designs on Craft. There's some really lovely stuff over there. She does some amazing stuff, completely out of my skill level.

Have a look at the pictures, these are our Christmas card off her and my dad, the left one is the card flat as it first came out of the envelope, and the right is it all set up when it's all open. It's an easel card which are apparently very in this year. You make the easel card then need something at the front to prop the easel against. The front bit on ours pulls out, you can see the little ribbon on the right, it's a drawer that pulls out, and they'd put the money for our lessons in there.

Anyway, I said I'd give her a bit of a blatant plug, so pop over and see what you think.

I bought beautiful shoes!

Well, it's true I did! I haven't got them yet, I ordered them online yesterday. Apparently they've already been dispatched, but it seems unlikely that I'll get them before next Wednesday, the next working day. I'll post a picture when I get them because they really are beautiful. I didn't used to (awful grammar) have the 'traditional' shoe obsession, but it's developed in the last couple of years, then I discovered Irregular Choice and it's become a full blown obsession, although this is the first pair that I've bought cos they're quite expensive, but there was a lovely sale at Schuh, so it's all good.

Anyway, I'll stop obsessing about the beautiful shoes, and go back to stitching, which is what this is meant to (mostly) be about. Here's the latest update on In Love, I was hoping to get this page finished this week, but as you can see, it hasn't quite happened, it's definitely a lot more identifiable as people now, I think that that's the first that I've been able to say that. Haven't got as much as I hoped done as it's been a busy week (and who hasn't this week?). I was ushering the panto at teh local theatre one night, and out with the folks from work another, plus packing cos we go away to spend some time with family over Christmas, but it's made a jump forward, and I'm hoping to get quite a bit of stitching done over the Christmas break, seeing as I've got some time off when Ben's in work.

And finally, I hope everyone has a lovely Christmas, and if I don't get back on here before, also a lovely New Year, good luck with all those New Year challenges everyone. My first one's looking quite good already seeing as it was finish In Love. Good luck everyone.

Winter's Majesty and a bit more snow

We woke up to snow this morning, albeit only a little bit, which, because I'm still a big kid, I'm very excited about. The strange thing is we got back late last night (it was Ben's work's do) and there was nothing, not even a sign that it might, then woke up this morning to our tiny amount of snow!

Anyway, here's the latest update on Winter's Majesty. I was thinking that there wasn't muhc progress since the last picture, but I've just looked back and it looks much better than I expected. I'm loving how the red makes the snow flake stand out cos it was really annoying me that I couldn't see the snowflake when it had been such a pain to stitch! It's lovely glossy thread, but I really don't enjoy stitching with it for some reason.

Quite excited that it's Christmas next week (I told you I was a big kid), we're going to see my dad and his fiance in South Wales, as long as the weather is all right. Ben and I have to go shopping today for a final shopping trip, so it's going to be chaos, but I need to get something for Ben's stocking. We only decided about a week ago that we were going to do stockings this year so I've had a bit of a last minute panic shop, especially as we're on a very strict budget, £7.50 to fill the stocking. I've cheated slightly, I got a 3 for 2 while buying a couple of last minute presents yesterday, so I've used the free 3rd one for his stocking, a real cheat, I know. But it's devious in a generous way, so I don't feel to guilty about it.

Don't know if I'll get another post in in the next week, so I hope everyone has a lovely Christmas!

Oh dear!

She's my latest obsession (as well as all the HAED, obviously). I'm definitely going to have to get her in the new year. Saw her in the window of a shop in town and jus think that she's absolutely beautiful. She's 40 by 50cm, and done on evenweave, generally about £50, so I'd better get saving.

Anyway, that is all, just felt that I had to share.

Costume Chronicles and New Year

Another mid week post, what's going on?

Have you heard of Costume Chronicles? It's an online magazine released four times a year (I think) that's about costume dramas, with a theme each magazine, the current one (and the next one) being Austen. It's completely free and written and produced by people who do it for fun. I recommend it, cos it's really interesting. If I'm honest, this edition I'm recommending it even more than usual cos they've taken an article of mine for the current edition, which I'm very excited about. But I recommend it for anyone who finds anything costume dramay interesting.

And secondly, what are everyone's New Year targets? I haven't taken up the Crazy 2011 challenge (I think that's what it's called), because I value my sanity and that could only end badly. In fact I'm not joining in any of the obvious challenges for the year, I'm just setting myself some targets.

So, what targets should I set?

1. Finish In Love (easy, should be able to do that quite happily)

2. Finish Little Snap Dragon (again, should be pretty easy, should be able to manage that without any real stress)

3. Finish Winter's Majesty (possibly, but I don't know, it's taken me about a year to do a page and a half, leaving four and a half pages for the next year. I'll give it a shot, but who knows)

4. Start and finish another birth sampler, we've got friends who I suspect are going to get Pregnant this year, and to stop the rush finish of the horrible Tatty Ted earlier this year I'm thinking that this time I should just start one and work on it in a leisurely fashion - I've found a really nice Newton's Law one, so I think I'll go down that route, or possibly a County Companions one cos I've always loved those.

5. Start my first HAED - I'm not going to lie to myself and say that I'm going to finish it, because we all know that that's not going to happen. But I do want to make a start on my first one, first question, which one should it be? I currently have Titania, Lance and Gwen & Bubbles (Selena Fenech) Iris, Alice in Wonderland, Queen of the Night (Meredith Dillman) and Mask of Colours (Linda Ravenscroft). Decisions decisions. I think it's either going to be Lance and Gwen, Bubbles or Alice in Wonderland because they're my favourites of the ones I own, but then I could end up being weak and buying another one between now and then.

6. Oh yeah, and I've joined Daffycat's TUSAL, although there isn't much there yet.

I'm going to cheat slightly, (on the targets, no on the TUSAL) cos I've got some time off for Christmas & New Year (ie my last day is the 23rd and I go back on the 4th - the time off was enforced, we all have to take it, and weren't massively happy about it at the time, but now I'm facing nearly two weeks off and that's quite a nice feeling) so hopefully I'll get some stitching done before the New Year, especially as Ben's got three half days between Xmas and New Year.

What does everyone think, any thoughts on if I can do it all, or which HAED I should do?

What challenges are everyone else setting themselves for the New Year?

A mid week post!

I'm away this week, so I won't be able to post, so, as it's Winter's Majesty that I'm working on this week I'm cheating and am going to work on it for two weeks instead and update the weekend after. (Any excuse to spend more time on Winter's Majesty).
As such, so tha tI can post something this week I have pinched this from somewhere... I'm feeling really guilty cos I can't remember who, so if you think it was you, let me know, and I'll give you credit.

A - Age: 27 - heading towards 30 much faster than I'm happy with

B - Bed size: Double
C - Chore you hate: All of them, I hate housework, probably cleaning the bathroom most though
D - Dog's name: No dog, so there's no name
E - Essential start your day item(s): Breakfast, can't cope without it, and a shower, cos I'm a real cow if I don't feel clean
F - Favorite color: Purple
G - Gold or Silver: Silver
H - Height: 5' 4" ish
I - Instruments you play: Recorder, very badly, but I quite fancy the mandolin
J - Job: Recruitment admin, but I'm contemplating a move towards events, sales and marketing
K - Kids: Nope, just the two fo us
L - Living Arrangements: Still just the two of us, in quite a wee flat.
M - Music you love: David Bowie, Beatles, Fairport Convention, Christian Kane, and then it starts getting quite obscure, Save Ferris, Letters to Cleo, Tangelfoot, Mundy-Turner
N - Nicknames: At the moment, not really anything, in the past, Kimby, Kimetha, Burly (as in Kim-Burly), Daria
O - Overnight hospital stay other than birth: Yup, couple of years ago, pulminary embolism, or two, or four, it was very exciting in a very brief way, much to everyone's horror I found it very amusing from start to finish
P - Pet Peeve: Rudeness and bad manners.
Q - Quote from a movie: There's two 'As you Wish' from Princess Bride (and if Ben was reading over my shoulder he'd be yelling 'Hello, my name is Inigo Montoya, you killed my father, prepare to die - same film) and 'Just smile and wave boys, smile and wave' from Madagascar
R - Right or left handed: Left
S - Siblings: Nope, I'm an original, and obviously put my parents off having anymore.
T - Time you wake up: 7.15 on a week day, as late as possible on the weekend.
U - Underwear: Well, year, I own some, actually looking for new stuff, I have the La Senza site open even as I type this.
V - Vegetable you dislike: Sprouts and mushrooms, evil!
W - Workout Style: Where it can be witnessed by as few people as possible, although I do play badminton, and am starting Zumba next week.
X - rays you've had: Chest, see previous story
Y - Yummy food you make: Brownies, if I say so myself, I'm a good baker.
Z - The best place to visit: Dont quite get it, really want to visit Japan.

Look, look, look, a dragon!

I have the hiccups! That's completely unrelated to anything that I'm about to write, but it's annoying me, so I thought that I'd share!

Another progress on Little Snap Dragon! I haven't done as much as I hoped to this week, just couldn't quite settle into it really. Was hoping to get this page finished this week, but that hasn't happened. However, I think the next time this gets a weeks worth of stitching I should finish the top row of pages, cos there isn't much to do on the third page.

Also, look look! The dragon is appearing, those two little lighter curls at the bottom right of the page are the beginning of his wings (I was half way through this page before I realised that) so I'm well chuffed to see him start appearing.

Ben's got a boys afternoon/night tonight so I get sole control of teh remote control, and hopefully the return of my stitching mojo, and I'll settle and get some done, possibly the return of Winter's Majesty!

In Love & Snow!

It's Saturday morning, Ben's at work, it must be time for me to update here!

Another weeks progress on In Love is here, and it's actually starting to look like something, it's about time it does have to be said! It's another Vervaco and I am rather enjoying it because it's a really easy stitch but, because about 80% of it is scenery and background, it's spent a lot of time not looking like very much, but you can just see my people starting to emerge in the middle now.

In many ways I'm a bit odd when it comes to stitching like this, because there is part of me that likes to stitch round the edge first, then concentrate on the picture in the centre, especially if, like this, there's a lot of background and scenery around the central focus point. I think the thing is, I like to see that central picture growing, and lets be honest, most of us find the background a bit boring, so I find, if (using this one as an example) I'd stitched the people first I'd have completed the focal point then got really board stitching the back ground around it, it looks finished and you're just adding extra bits round the edge, (although you know that it'll look better when the background's done). My way, it's not finished and could never be judged as finished until I've finished that central point. I know it's all a bit odd, but there is method in my madness starting on the edge and working in. I think I'm going to do it when I start my HAED projects as well, do the 'border' pages first then work in.

I think with this project, if I really worked on it in the next few weeks I could get it finished by the end of the year, quite comfortably, but only at the loss of my other projects, and as I don't even have a date for the deadline for this yet (gonna be at least another two years - they haven't gone to Australia for the ashes/honeymoon this year, so it's going to be a two year wait now, I think) then there's no point hurrying for the sake of it.

And as to the other part of my title, snow! Those of you in the UK will have seen the news (and probably the snow as well) and if you've seen the news you'll know that everyone in Yorkshire is six feet under snow, except, apparently us. The entire North East has apparently been under snow for the last couple of days according to the news, but I was starting to believe that Harrogate wasn't in Yorkshire as I'd previously been lead to believe, because we didn't have any. But, I woke up this morning to a beautiful snowy view out of our living room window, so I'm quite childishly excited about it.

Hmmm, just seen Nigella cooking lemon polenta cake and it looks good, now there's tempting!

I Couldn't Stay Away for Long

The pull of Winter's Majesty was just to strong and I had to go back to her and I've got quite a bit done, even if it has gone back to being a whole sea of blue again! I'm enjoying her though, this page isn't frustrating me anywhere near as much as last page did, you can already see this page starting to building up.

I started on the red to give a central streak to work around but I've then tried to start on some of the more fiddly colours so that I don't end up finishing with all the fiddly stuff like I did on the last page, having said that, I'm sure this is a lot less fiddly than the last page was. I (hopefully) seem to have been right, that I did the most difficult page first, meaning that the rest of it should seem like an absolute walk in the park. Some of the pale stuff isn't showing brilliantly against the blue material, but there are little cream dots across the bottom (4 half stitches in each dot, and there are two different colours in that, you can see why it's fiddly).

It was Children in Need last night (for non Brits - it's a massive telathon that's run every year, to raise money for Children in the UK be they living in poverty, have some sort of illness or disability, living with bereavement, pretty much anything that a child might be in need over) so I did a bit of stitching on and off while watching that. And I was good and gave a donation, it was only a little donation, but I figure if every person who watched gave a little bit then they'd make loads so at least I gave something.

I might get a little more stitching done this weekend yet, we've got a pretty quiet weekend planned after a few busy weeks and with the Christmas run coming up so we're making the most of not having to do much this week, but I had some half decent light an an opportunity to get my blog done while Ben's at work so I thought I'd do my update now.

A bit of randomness

I stole this off Stitchandie and thought I'd give it a go myself.

1. What are you stitching at the moment?
In Love by Vervaco, Winter's Majesty by Maia and Little Snap Dragon by Kustom Krafts2. How many finishes have you had this year? Small? Medium? Large? Extra Large?
2, 1 medium (Tatty Ted Christening Sampler) and 1 large (Tenderness by Vervaco)3. Do you think you will finish any more in the next month and a half before the end of the year?
It seems unlikely, I'm still quite early into all three.4. If you could buy 1 thing for yourself what would it be? (Doesn't have to be stitching)
Hmmm, frivilous or practical? Practical (ish) - a house. Frivilous - A Troll Bead bracelet, ooh or tickets to a (currently) non existant David Bowie gig, would love to see him live!5. What is the best thing you have ever stitched?
Toss up between Jewels of the Orient which is a Dimensions Gold, or Sea of Science (Beatles) which a kindly soul designed for me when I couldn't find a chart I liked - and I'm feeling really guilty because I can't remember her name or her site!6. Do you like making lists?
Used to, no so much now.7. Do you stitch in rotation (how does it work?) or OAAT?
Technically it's rotation, but there's no real logic to it, I work on which ever one I feel like at the time, unless I'm frantically stitching to a deadline. I only started rotation a couple of years ago when I was doing a present for my other half and needed something to work on when he was about!8. What is the next thing you plan to stitch?
It's definitely going to be a HEAD, but I'm not certain which one yet, Alice in Wonderland - Meredith Dillman, Bubbles - Selena Fenech, Lance & Gwen - Selena Fenech, Queen of the Night Sky - Fenech, or possibly one that I don't even own yet! But I need to wait for a frame to come free by me finishing something else first.9. What is your fave ONS? And why?
I don't really know what ONS is, but from th answers I've seen I'm guessing it's something to do with store/online? So I'm taking a random swipe of an answer with HAED10. Do you have a stitching chair?
Corner of the sofa generally, but it's not specific11. Do your children/pets get into your stitching things?
No children or pets, so it's all safe at the mo!
 12. Do you participate in any stitching forums?
Not really, I just love watching peoples blogs and progress that way!

Princess by Jean Sasson

I should possibly say 'ghost written by' Jean Sasson.

I approached this with a mix of feelings because I've recently read Love in a Torn Land also ghost written by Jean Sasson and thought that it was appallingly written. That's possibly unfair, it was an unsuitable writing style for the topic, however, I attempted to put that aside because I'd wanted to read this for quite some time (years) so when I saw it at the library I practically snatched it off the shelf (earning myself some very strange looks, I can tell you).

Princess tells the story or a Saudi Arabian Princess who tells the story of her life and the life of women in Saudi Arabia during her life. It's very well written and I've absolutely flown through this, occasionally reading bits out to Ben, generally when I couldn't believe them and needed him to hear it as well incase I was misunderstanding it. It's a fascinating read and to a Westerners eye, almost impossible to comprehend. It tells tales of women being punished by their father's by being drowned or locked in a darkened room for the rest of their lives, for things that we wouldn't even consider to be a crime, and not only are their father's not punished for this behaviour, they're actually applauded.

But to begin at the beginning, the story is told by 'Sultana', she doesn't reveal her real name, and changes the names of those around her to protect her. It starts with her earliest memories and follows her through to, I would guess, middle age. Sultana was a spoilt brat, and she admits that she was, she writes that she remembers things now and cringes to think that she behaved like that. But, for all that she is a brat, she's quite a likeable brat, she's got sensibilities that a Western woman can understand, and we side with her because we want her to be right and we want her to succeed. Sultana wants equality for the women in Saudi Arabia, and as a reader, so do we.

As is often the case with non-fiction writing, it's quite difficult to review, because this is someone's life, it really did happen to them so you can't really comment on the 'plot' as such. Jean Sasson's voice seems less prevelant in this than it had in the previous book that I had read by her, and that's a good thing. Love in a Torn Land read like a badly written Mills and Boons at time, and while I've got nothing against that, that's not the style you'd really choose to use for a war torn land.

Overal, I really do recommend this book. It states in the reviews on the front pages that everyone should read this book, and I agree with that. I think it's important for us to remember just how lucky we are and how when we complain what an awful day we've had, it's actually not been that bad. As a Princess Sultana also hasn't had the worst life possible, not compared to the poor of Saudi Arabia, but at the same time her life has, in many ways, been much harder than mine, because I can't even begin to imagine what it would be like to live with the restrictions that she has had to endure, simply because she is a woman.

Still no dragon I'm afraid

After two weeks of page finishes, this week is a page start instead, which I guess rather stands to reason.

I used practically every light in the house in an attempt to stop the flash going off and bleacing the colours, but it still decided that it needed the flash and so looks a little washed out. And why don't I just turn the flash off I hear you ask? Because, for some reason that I have yet to fathom, when I turn the flash off, it all turns my anti shake off. If anyone knows how to make it stop doing that please do let me know.

We're away this weekend, which is why I'm posting my weekly update practically part way through the week. It's Ben's cousin's birthday so we're heading off to Centre Parks for the weekend. I'm a little intimidated if I'm honest, there's a lot of Ben's family, and I find myself turning into the quite one that hides in the corner and doesn't speak when I'm around them. Plus it's going to be a very sporty, active weekend, which I'm not really. So, if I survive, I'll be posting noxt week.

A Weekend with Mr Darcy - Victoria Connelly

I've had quite a constructive evening already, I'm quite proud. I've done my exercise (just got Camilla's Cardiodance Workout, which thus far I'm rahter enjoying), I've submitted my article to Costume Chronicles and finished my book. So it's the book that I'm going to blog about.

A Weekend with Mr Darcy by Victoria Connelly tells the story of Katherine Roberts and Robyn Love, both of who are Jane Austen fanatics attending a Jane Austen conference, and the romances that may or may not happen around them.

To be honest, I don't really like books that use Austen or Darcy or similar to get attention for their book when they don't necessarily need to. Victoria Connelly does better than most, the idea of the Austen conference works well as a background to the 'action' of the novel, even so, I think putting Darcy in the title is cheating a bit.

Katherine and Robyn are both perfectly likeable, as are the majority of the characters, Doris Norris is lovely (really, that's her name), a charming (in my head, little old) lady, although I don't think that you ever actually find out whether she is a little old lady or not.  Mrs Soames is in the model of Austen's matriarchs, although not really given enough time in the foreground to be a Lady Catherine DeBurgh or similar. Dame Pamela Harcourt is another matriarch (with a fabulous butler), although much less imposing and very keen on helping the plot along, although she really only gets involved in the second half. Of course, as we have two heroines and this is Austen inspired we have to have our heroes as well, I'm not really going to say anything about the heroes incase anyone reads this and feels inspired to read the book, because it's difficult to say much about the heroes without giving a lot of the plot away.

Her characters I like, the setting, again, quite liked, didn't feel anywhere near as contrived as I suspected that it was going to however, the plot. It's typical chick lit fair, and I don't really know why I keen reading chick lit because it often irritates me. It's very contrived. There are some crowbar plot points, people asking really stupid and obvious questions 'Who would possibly be able to do this?' So that ten chapters later a character can suddenly go 'I know how to solve this problem', but this is chick lit and we do kinda expect it, so I don't know why I moan.

Anyway, did rather enjoy it, pretty much raced through it, although I found myself skim reading hte last 5 or so chapters, she took a little to long to get to the end and then when she did get to the end stopped rather adruptly. But rather enjoyable, pretty brainless, nice chilled reading.

HAED competition

Did you know that HAED have a Christmas competition on, with a very cool prize! Buy a raffle ticket (and the'yre pretty cheap really) and get entered into a draw for 25 charts of your choosing. Well, I had to enter of course, in fact I entered five times (oops, don't tell Ben). And while there is a massive temptation to not tell anyone (if you don't enter, my chances are increased - mouhaha) I figure everyone might fancy entering.

And, I'll get the ball rolling, if (by some extremely unlikely freak of nature) I win, I'll set up some kind of giveaway whereby someone else gets to share the prize with me, because there's no way I'm going to be able to get through 25 charts plus all the ones that I already own, so I may as well spread the love.

On that subject, if you're not already, head over to Threads Through Time where she's having an incredibly generous giveaway, she's offering the opportunity to win the chart of your choice, how sweet and exciting is that?

You know, I keep thinking that I've been here a year or so, and it's probably about time I did a giveaway of my own, hmmm, might have to think about that.,

In Love has people

Here's another page finish, so I'm two pages into In Love and it's starting to actually look like something now, which is nice. I'm quite chuffed with it actually, its starting to look really nice already. Vervaco kits are lovely to stitch, becuase they're only about eight colours and are really simple to stitch, but look so effective when they're done.

This one's built up quite quickly this week, it seemed like it was going really slowly the last time I worked on it, but I've done about a quarter of this in a week and it's developed really nicely. And it's certainly a lot simpler and less likely to make me go cross eyed than Winter's Majesty was.

I recommend the threat of nagging

I got everyone to nag me, and it's worked, suddenly I've finally managed to finish the evil first page. You've no idea how happy this makes me (actually, people who've been following me for a while probably do), this page seems to have been going on for ages, I think it's probably about a year ago that I started this. I've convinced myself that the other pages are going to be simpler and that I was simply unlucky enough to start on the most complicated page. I don't think that's just optimism, I've had a look and this does seem to be the most fiddly and confetti page. I've probably done not much more than a hundred stitches today, but it's all be very fiddly and taken me most of the afternoon because it's been filling all the little gaps where I've missed a stitch or two in the first instance (my own stupid fault, I know). The question is which direction do I go in next, across or up, undecided. Logic says up because I have already done a tiny bit of that page from when I very first started, but for some reason I think I'm going to go across instead. Either way it's going to be at least I couple of weeks off, I think I'm going to go to another project for a couple of weeks now, until I get the feeling back in my head.

Thank you for your support and nagging ladies, I'm very grateful, and will of course return the favour if it's ever needed.

In a huff!

That's it, it's no good, I'm cancelling my CrossStitcher subscription. I'm sorry, it used to be a lovely magazine, I've been getting it for years, through five different addresses, through them getting lost in the post through one of those address changes and I've stood fast and continued to subscribe. I've put up with them re-designing the magazine every six months in a completely unnecessary fashion, generally for the worst, because it still had enough in it that I liked, but now the end is nigh. They've re-designed one time to many, I gave them a second month to see if it would improve and it hasn't, so I'm off to cancel it.

Anyway, rant over, back to my stitching.

Inspiration

Have you ever noticed how just going onto the Heaven and Earth designs site inspires you to do more stitching? Well, I don't know about you guys but it always does me! I go on to the site, and look at all the beautiful charts on there and think "I've got to get stitching, I need to free up the frames so I can start on those, I've got to stitch as many of these as is humanly possible." But I'm still stitching away on Winter's Majesty at the moment, I'm determined that I'm going to get that first page finshed this weekend. Despite the extreme fiddlyness of it at the moment, I'm actually quite enjoying it, because it's filling in all those little gaps so it seems to be growing quite quickly, because I'm basically just piecing it together. So, it will be finished this weekend, the evil page that I've been working on for nearly a year will be completed, this weekend. And if I haven't posted a completed page 1 by last thing on Sunday I want everyone to shout at me and generally guilt trip me until I get my ass into gear and do it!

I've decided that no matter what my next design has to be a HAED, I have to finally stitch one of the beauties, I've got my eye on one of the Spangler's (there are so many beautiful copies of Train of Dreams out there at the moment) that I somehow just think would be perfect for my mum, I don't even know why exactly, but I just saw it and knew that I had to stitch it for her, however, I also already own seven charts, can I justify buying another when I already have 7 waiting to be stitched? It's a gift, it's for someone else, of course I can (so, how many times have we all said that, huh?)

I've been remiss with my stitching the last couple of weeks, we've been away at the weekends (last two weekends spent in Cardiff) and busy in the evenings so I'm trying to make up for it a bit this week, but then I also bought a Wii this week, (birthday present from the combined donations of family members), so I'm playing on that as well because it's my exciting new toy, but I'm trying to ration myself and make sure that I do do some stitching as well, and I am, I did about an hour and a half tonight and about the same on Monday, it's not a massive amount I know, but it is something and I'll attempt to do at least the same again this weekend. We've got a friend staying this weekend, my old housemate in fact, but he's recently decided that he likes hill walking and scrambling (which I hate), so he and Ben are going out for a boys day of hill walking and scrambling (or as I call it, genrealised plummeting, I hate it, you may have realised that) and I get the flat to myself for the day with the TV and my stitching, although I'll have to make sure that I get some exercise first thing, or they'll make me feel lazy, fat and guilty when they get back.

Anyway, what started out as a five minute post about how HAEDs inspire me to do my stitching has turned into quite a ramble (there's a reason why my blog was originally called 'Random Ramblings of a Kim') so I'll stop now, go and give my teeth a super clean (dentist type torture tomorrow - sigh) then go and curl up in bed with a book and wait for Ben to get back from his badminton match (damn single court venues, it's 10.50pm and still no sign of him).

Happy stitching all

Update on Little Snap Dragon

I've had a very productive evening, but that doesn't make for very good update pictures. So far I've stretched a piece of stitching ready for putting in the frame, just as soon as I find where my gummer tape has gone... or failing that gone shopping on lunch tomorrow... what do people usually use to stick their stretched piece to their mount board? I couldn't do the mount board to size and just slot it in, as the fabric in the kit wasn't big enough.

I've also mended a pair of trousers and put a button back on a jacket, so it's all been very productive!

But I do also have a stitching update, as you can see, this is the first page of Little Snap Dragon done, 1st of 9 and think, and not all of them are full pages, so its quite a big percentage of it done it quite a small period of time, by my standards anyway.

Not getting to get much stitching done again this week, but I'll try and put an update up at the end of the week.

Winter's Majesty continues to be blue

I continue to post updates on Winter's Majesty, despite the fact that it's really still just a whole lotta blue! And I'm aware that to the outside eye it doesn't really look like its growing much, but believe me, this is much changed since my last post on this project.

I'm actually starting to enjoy this one again after it frustrated me for a long time, I think it's because the end of this page is in sight and I'll actually be able to see it growing into something when I start the next page - woohoo!

I've got quite a busy week ahead of me so don't know how much stitching I'll get done, ushering at the theatre tonight (going to see Chris Addison, so that should be good), an evening of cake backing on Monday because I have to take birthday buns into work, meeting Tuesday evening, it's my birthday on Wednesday (woo) so I'm off work and might get some stitching done in the afternoon when Ben's at work, then I think I actually have Thursday evening off, before theatre Thursday night and away for the weekend.

Les Miserables at the O2 Live Broadcast

I mentioned on my Saturday post that I was going to see Les Miserables Live Broadcast at my local cinema, so I thought that I'd nip on today and give a bit of an outline of what I thought about it.

I first saw Les Miserables about 20 years ago (man that's depressing when I work it out), I was only 7 or 8 and don't have a massive memory of it, most of my memories are derived from the 1995 Royal Albert Hall Concert, which I absolutely loved. My mum originally took me because she loved it and decided that I would as well, the fact that this was incredibly heavy and probably a little over my head never occurred to her (I wandered round singing Lovely Ladies for two days afterwards until my mum caught me and politely explained to me that I probably shouldn't be singing that one).

This time I saw it with my other half (who I'd emotionally blackmailed into coming with me so I didn't have to go on my own) and his parents who, when his mum found out we were going declared that she wanted tickets as well. I was the only one who'd seen it before meaning that I occasionally had my other half leaning over doing "so, who's she?", "is he dead?" "is she dead now?" "didn't she die two hours ago?" questions like that, occasionally relaying questions from his mother to me then passing the answer back again, and so on. His father, got to the interval, decided that it wasn't his thing and left again.

I mostly hadn't heard of the cast. Was really glad to see Lea Salgona back as Fantine because I loved her as Eponnine, Matt Lucas as Thenardier, didn't like the idea but was pleasantly surprised, Nick Jonas as Marius, again didn't like the idea, he was okay, but blatantly out of his depth, he just didn't have the voice to compete.

The trouble I have is that I have cast members that I absolutely loved, Colm Wilkinson as Jean Valjean of course, Alun Armstrong as Thenardier, Lea Salgona as Eponnine and I thought that Philip Quast was wonderful as Javert (he hits notes so low that you don't so much hear them as feel them), so it was going to be difficult for other people to measure up, but I'll try to be level and not rule people out automatically.

Alfie Boe as Jean Valjean, actually very good, he managed to over come me being prejudiced against him for not being Colm Wilkinson, so he must have been good. Had a really good voice.

Nick Jonas, bless him, I'm sure he's very attractive, but he stood out, he wasn't a strong enough performer to manage in this forum, he was completely out classed by everyone around him, and you find yourself wondering who got turned down so a teen star could get the part. Also, his accent was annoying me, don't worry, he didn't have an American accent, but he'd obviously (or so it seemed to me) spent some time with a vocal coach to get rid of the American accent, and consequently came up with a couple of unusual pronounciations, tomorrow seemed to go on forever.

Norm Lewis, again never heard of him, didn't quite have the amazing range of Philip Quast, but he was very good and Javert's suicide was the only time I clapped (I feel stupid clapping in a cinema 200 miles away from where the performance is, and got royally mocked by Ben for it I might add).

Matt Lucas, much better that I expected, I really disliked the idea of him as Thenadier, thinking that he'd use it as a vehicle for himself, but he actually gave a very credible performace and was quite impressive really.

Lea Salgona was, of course, wonderful, simple as, I was slightly surprised when I heard she was going to be playing Fantine (don't know why, I just couldn't picture it), but she was brilliant, and got the first standing ovation of the night if I remember rightly, and probably one of the longest, meaning that I had to try and explain to Ben and his mum that she was quite famous and there were probably quite a lot of people there who were big fans of her.

Katie Hall suffers from the fact that I don't particularly like the role of Cossette, never have done. As a kid I just thought she was boring re-watching it now I realised that Cossette doesn't really have a role or a personality of her own, she's a catalyst for a lot of the action, but she doesn't really do anything herself, and she's the only main character to not have her own song. Gavroche has more of a solo than she does (why is it by the way that both concert versions have cut out the full version of Little People which I've always really liked). I'm sure she was very good but I'm afraid that she suffered from me really not caring.

Ramin Marimloo as Enjolras, again, very good, as you'd expect, I keep thinking that I recognise him, but I can't work out where from so I'll just have to leave that be.

Samantha Barks as Eponnine, Eponnine is one of my favourite roles, so I'm liable to get quite offended if you do something that I don't like. Aparently Samantha got to the last three in I'd Do Anything, but I'm afraid I really don't remember her. She was good, a little more shouty than singing at times, and a little to 'London' but very good all the same.

The end of the show saw the three current casts on stage, then the arrival of the original 1985 cast (minus, as far as I could tell, David Burt as Enjolras, I've done a bit of research and it looks as though he's still alive, so I don't know why that was). The final song was the 4 Jean Valjeans singing Bring Him Home, which was wonderful (queue audience shots of crying women). They closed with many children singing do you hear the people sing, personally I think that should have finished on Bring Him Home which was a much more effective closer, but that's just my opinion. I really enjoyed it and wish that I could have been at the O2 to see it, although I suspect that that would have been a lot more expensive.