Meeting Blogging friends face to face!

Only a few years ago, I thought people were NUTS for arranging to meet someone in person after they had been communicating on the Internet. But since then, I have met many ladies whose mutual interest in stitching has brought us together, and I have made friends who I would otherwise never have met. At first, Ken and other family and friends were horrified when I planned to meet people at craft shows, or at their homes, and I had trouble convincing them that these people were middle-aged ladies like myself who shared my interests. But now he doesn't bat an eyelid, and has even met (and liked) many of my new friends!
Today was yet another pleasurable experience, and I hope the start of a long friendship. I met Anne (Feather Stitching) and her delightful Mum at Sharon's (Blank Page) home. Anne and I brought a few items for 'show and tell' and for me, to see Anne's work on her blog is one thing, but the reality is absolutely gorgeous. As well as being a brilliant stitcher, she is a lot of fun. Sharon and Anne will no doubt write up their own thoughts about today on their blogs, so I will not write at length, except to thank Sharon again for opening her home to us until late in the afternoon, providing a delicious lunch, and being her usual cheerful and amusing self. Hope we can do it again sometime soon!

Three pictures..in the wrong order!

Now why did Picassa do that? I downloaded the two pictures of the teacosy - a recent eBay win, and followed that with my latest completed cross stitch project....which landed in between the other two pics! Oh well, it't not that important - just irritating. Isn't this teacosy sweet? Teapot on one side and teacup on the other, very neat stitching, and hand crocheted edge.
The cross stitch of the flowers with teapot and cup took me about a month. My friend Helen had her kitchen renovated last year and I offered to stitch something to hang on a wall, and she said 'yes please!' So I hope she is happy with the result. This was actually done using a kit that another friend gave me, and there was enough floss left over for me to do another of the same for myself if I want to.

Tea cosy - other side.
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This is for a friend's birthday. She has just had her kitchen renovated, so I am hoping it will fit in with her new decor!
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Tea cosy - front.
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Unfinished apron.
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Australia Day, 26th January, 2006.
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Scottie dog apron.

Another eBay win. There is not much to do to finish this apron; just the dog's eye and some flowers on the right hand side. Then the material has to be cut and sewn up into an apron. Just like the other 30 aprons I have in my stash...

I don't usually buy machine embroidered work, as it is not my area of expertise or interest. But the lady who had the other cloth on eBay also had this one listed, and I just couldn't resist bidding for it...well for $12.50, wouldn't you?
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And here is the matching napkin. Aren't they sweet?
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This is one of a set of four napkins I found on eBay a few months ago. I had forgotten to scan them, until I got them out to use at a dinner party where the girls ooed and ahhed over them! Wouldn't they go well with the Crinoline lady cloth? Anyone for afternoon tea?
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The last corner is the mauve lady. But wait - have another look! I have scanned the back of it this time, just to give you an idea of how perfect the stitching is!
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Here is the pink version. How many stitches can you find? The detail on this cloth is extraordinary.
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And the yellow corner.
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This is one corner of my prized Crinoline lady cloth. They are all the same design, but she is in a different colour in each corner.
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More exciting stuff today from eBay!

...but too tired to scan and post, so you will just have to wait - sorry!

Such a pity the whole thing wouldn't fit on the scanner. Underneath the lady, it says "It seems they like my kitchen best". So cute!
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Yup...another peacock. Whenever another one arrives, I have an awful feeling that it is the same design as a previous ebay win. But no, they are all different.
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Part of crinoline lady table centre/runner. One lady at each end of this charming item.
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Some more eye candy..

Thursday was a very hot day here in Melbourne. It was also a very sad day for me, and the hundred or so people at my late friend's funeral. But to make things a little more bearable, Australia Post delivered two little packets from the U.S.A. in record time. One lady emailed me last week to say she had received my payment on the 13th January. Lo and behold, her parcel arrived on the 19th! Must be a record! Here are pictures of what I received - two table runners and a teatowel/tray cloth.

More about my stash of old greeting cards...

I have scanned some of those old cards that I mentioned last week, and put the photos on Patra's Other Place. I have also posted a message there relating to those of you who expressed interest in having some of the cards. So, if you are reading this - Nicole, Maureen, Maggie, and Patty - please pop over to Patra's Other Place for more info! In the meantime, here is a pic of one corner of the cloth I bought on the weekend. Each corner has the same design, but in different colours. Ken raised his eyebrows at this, with the query "Are they supposed to be budgies?" to which I patiently explained that embroidered pictures are not necessarily representative of the reality; rather it is an individual's interpretation of the item. But for me, it is the quality of the stitching that is most important and in this case it is excellent.

One corner of my latest acquisition - budgies embroidered on suppercloth.
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I'm back...feeling quite a bit happier now.

Thank you to all my friends in the blog community who have left kind messages here and at Patra's Other Place, relating to the death of my friend Claire. I still have the funeral to get through later this week, but I would rather be there to offer love and support to Claire's family, instead of giving in to my feelings and making it worse for others.
Anyway, this weekend has provided some unexpected nice surprises, which has taken the edge off my grief. Ken and I were to have friends staying with us overnight on Friday, but one of them was taken ill, so that didn't eventuate, which was probably just as well. On Saturday I was chatting to a friend online (she lives around the corner!) and when she mentioned they were at home that night, I invited them around for dinner. So we had the company of old friends for the evening, which cheered us up. And as a bonus, Sharon phoned that night to see how I was. Thanks Shaz - sorry I couldn't talk longer, but will catch up VERY soon.
Today was full of nice bonuses. Ken and I decided to get out of the house, and go for a drive into the country. We stopped for coffee at a place called Yea - next door to an antique shop where we have been many times previously. The lady who owns the shop is a Wildlife Rescue volunteer, and she often has baby orphaned animals with her in the shop. Today she had a one year old wombat with her, curled up fast asleep inside a rug on an antique chair! So cute!! But not only that - I found a stunning suppercloth displayed on a table - with gorgeous budgies embroidered around it - for $25! So out came the credit card...;-)
The day didn't end there. I had been watching an auction on eBay for four days, for a cloth embroidered with crinoline ladies. It had a starting price of about $12, but the seller had several close up photos of the embroidery, and it is absolutely exquisite. (I know I use that word with great abandon sometimes, but this truly is the most beautiful example I have seen. I have dealt with the seller before, and she only has top quality linens, so I know I won't be disappointed.) As I had expected, the bids came rolling in, pushing the price over $50. I waited until this morning, about 4 hours before the auction finished, and put a maximum bid of $100 on. Crossed my fingers and went out for the day! Came home tonight to find I had won the cloth - for just over $50!! Obviously the other bidders weren't prepared to fight it out with me! And still another bonus; the seller has thrown in another cloth for free - an unworked one to add to my stash of SINS.
So, dear friends, over my sadness, the sun still shines brightly.

Mourning a friend today.

I lost a dear friend last night, so I don't feel like blogging at the moment. Back next week. (See Patra's Other Place for details)

Today's Mail.

Don't you love receiving parcels in the mail? Especially when you are expecting some eBay wins! I had two of those today - a gorgeous little suppercloth with koalas stitched on it - so cute! The other was one of two items from the USA - a table runner featuring a peacock - yes, another peacock!! Love those birds...
The other item from America was a complete mystery. I didn't recognise the sender's name and address, and when I opened up the packet and a bundle of small cross stitch kits fell out, I was still wondering who had sent them, as I knew I hadn't bid for them on eBay. Then I read the note that was enclosed. It was from dear Peggy at Hidden Haven Homestead. She had emailed me some time ago, asking for my postal address. She said she wanted to send me some things that I would like. It seems she had found all these kits at a bargain price and grabbed them for me, knowing how I love cross stitch. I am often in awe of people's generosity and kindness, even more so when it is someone who you have never met, are never likely to meet, but have become friends in cyberspace. Thank you very much, Peggy. I have posted a thank you message on your blog, but wanted to acknowledge you here as well.
While I was visiting Hidden Haven Homestead, I found another of those fascinating quiz thingys, and of course had to try it out!


what decade does your personality live in?

quiz brought to you by lady interference, ltd This is funny - the first time I did it, I was a child of the 60's! Wonder which question I answered differently the second time around?

People have been putting pictures of their stash etc. on their blogs. I have already shown my wardrobe of tablecloths and aprons, my tallboy with linen bursting forth, and my cupboard of UFOs and SINS. This is just one of my bookshelves. The top two shelves are other books, but the bottom section is mostly filled with embroidery and cross stitch charts and magazines. The two shallow shelves on the right contain boxes of calligraphy paraphernalia.
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Yes, another peacock from the USA. This one is a table runner, with the peacock at each end. OK you purists, I know the colours might raise some eyebrows, but I love the variety of interpretations of peacocks in my collection.
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Delightful suppercloth, featuring the koala and her baby in a flowering gum, on each corner. The edge is hand crocheted.
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Collages and old greeting cards.

This post is not about linen or stitching, but as there are a lot of people who read this blog, but not Patra's Other Place, I am posting it here for maximum exposure to those who I think would be interested.
In the New Year, I take all our Christmas cards, cut off the personal greetings and put the pictures into a box to take to one of our local primary schools for the kids to do whatever they do with such things (collages? scrapbooking?). Last week, one of my elderly home care clients was having a clean-out, and had a box of VERY old greeting cards she was going to throw into the recycle bin. I asked if I could have them, and she was happy for me to take them off her hands. Now this lady is in her nineties, and the cards go back to the 1940's, as far as I can make out. Why I am mentioning this here, is because I know several blogging ladies who do these collages, and I thought they might like to have some of these cards. So before the cards join mine in the box destined for the primary school in early February, speak now or forever hold your peace. If you are interested in them, you can either email me direct, or leave a message here.

One completed cross stitch card and some new eBay wins.

I am in a couple of MSN cross stitch groups, who have activities such as round robins and various exchanges, one of which is a birthday card exchange. We start the year with a list of people who want to participate. The list has the names and addresses, and birthday of each person. We all commit to sending a hand made card (paper or stitched) to each girl on her birthday, so we each receive a dozen or more of these lovely cards when our turn comes. The lady I did this one for is a fairly new member of the group, and I don't know her interests, so I chose this little pergola design from one of my mini motif charts. Cute?
I received a couple of eBay wins today, one of which is the crinoline lady unfinished doiley. I can't resist small UFOs like this; the stitching that is already done has been done using one strand, and is very fine. I will have my work cut out if I am going to match this standard! The other items I received today are both whitework, and didn't scan well, so I haven't included a pic. Instead, I scanned a set of items that I got a few weeks ago. I just love this set! How would you feel, having this presented to you on a tray in the morning? Tray cloth, along with matching tea cosy, egg cosy and a wee pocket for a slice of toast! Did people really use these things on a day to day basis, or just special occasions like Mother's Day or birthdays?

Newly finished card for a Birthday card exchange MSN cross stitch group.
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Tea cosy to match tray cloth.
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Egg cosy on the left, little pocket for piece of toast on the right!
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Tray cloth. Note little pocket on left hand side to slip napkin into.
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Dolly Varden UFO doiley. This shouldn't take long to finish...if I ever start on it - lol!
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How much is your blog worth?

If I thought I could get this amount of money, I would sell it tomorrow! Any takers?

My blog is worth $13,548.96.
How much is your blog worth?

I found the plate, cup & saucer, and small dish in opshops. The smallest dish and little vase belonged to my stepmother, who left them to me in her will along with a lot of other ornaments.
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There was so much interest in the Crinoline lady plate that I posted a pic of last week, I decided to photograph the others in my little collection. Ken gave me this plate for my birthday last year.
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This is the chest of drawers I bought to house the smaller items in my linen collection (everything other than aprons and tablecloths which hang in the wardrobe). The tall boy is already full, so I have started culling!
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Happy New Year to all readers of Patra's Places!

I have just posted details of our New Year's Eve doings at Patra's Other Place, and having finally finished the film in my camera, decided to post some piccies here. They are (sort of) related to the Collection, and my own stitching. The pictures are all scanned from normal photographs, and therefore not as clear as I would like, especially the Round Robin sampler, which is so much prettier than what it appears here.

Unfortunately not a good photo - but this is my completed Xmas round robin.
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