Thank you and sorry.....

 Just a very quick post to say thank you to all those lovely bloggers who called by yesterday and left so many lovely comments.....what it is to feel so loved  :-)

and...

To say sorry to all those blogs that I've hopelessly failed to visit this week.  This is why.....

Before lunch yesterday I was rang by my daughter who was feeling pretty dreadful.  The sickness has still not gone and was worse again yesterday and she has had headaches for the last 4 days and that had also got much worse. 

Having had a really busy morning....and I mean REALLY BUSY....I had 8 customers and 5 of those came in a one in one out fashion!

I had to do a very quick sort out, label and fill of the 'to do' rail with all the clothes that had just arrived. Then organise a quick lunch, eat whilst changing, ring my support worker for the business [Twiglet of course] who at the drop of the hat will stop what she is doing and hold the fort here for me and then make my way into my daughters......Huge THANK YOU to you sis.

Bless her she looked pretty rough....but wouldn't you if you hadn't eaten a proper meal for 8 weeks and were now suffering headaches too?  She had managed to get an emergency appointment at the Dr's so I was able to drive her there and give her lots of TLC.  The Dr was really lovely....he took her off the tablets she had been taking for her nausea [these might have been one of the causes of the headaches, that and the dehydration] and has started her on different ones and has now prescribed her Paracetamol suppositories [if every time you swallow tablets you just throw them back then another route has to be used].....yes folks you really can cure a headache by sticking something up your bum!!  That is if you can only find a chemist that stocks them!!!  Which of course we couldn't.  We had to order some and bless her she has to pick them up this morning so I'm really hoping the tablets that the Dr gave her to stop her being sick actually make her sleep enough to get rid of her headache!

It would be really nice if this sickness would go now so that she can start enjoying her pregnancy.  The Dr reinforced what I have been telling her and that is the placentas should start taking over feeding the babies soon and the sickness should ease up....PLEASE let it be soon.

WOYWW.....

What is on my desk today?.......

It's a case of I know what it's called and have seen what others use them for but as yet we aren't too sure what we will end up doing with ours  :-)

This is what Twiglet won on Crafty Dawn's blog and it arrived yesterday.  Of course Twiglet and I will be sharing it  [there isn't much we don't share  :-) ] but as we really aren't paper crafters we will be finding other uses for her new Cuttlebug.  We are complete novices when it comes to clever machines like this but are always up for a challenge so will be experimenting and you will be the first to see what we find to use it for  :-)

Thank you Dawn for picking out Twiglet's name cos it means we both benefit from your kind gift.

I also have a gorgeous set of cards that we have received this week for one reason or other from our special blogging friends.....and yes I think one of those clever machines like the one above has been used on some of these  :-)  Thanks must go to Jo, Julia, Sue and Dawn for all the work they have put into these....you really do make us feel very special.

I am still knitting for England but I'm working with 4 ply this week and it doesn't grow as quickly as double knitting so you will have to wait for more knitting show and tells.  As you will see on Twiglet's blog we are still working on new crafty designs too but, as I have rather a lot on my 'to do' rail this week, actually making up the ones I've got cut out ready  [in the pic] will have to wait for a quiet few minutes  :-)

 We now have 158 followers over in the blog shop but only 47 of those has put their name down for the BIG followers draw so if as yet you still haven't added your name then do it now because we really want you all to be in with the chance to win our £50 plus of goodies we are giving away as a thank you gift.  We will be drawing the name of the lucky winner on Monday 4th April so the clock is ticking.

We are giving away over £50 worth of goodies...

What you waiting for folks?  

We are now in the last week of the BIG draw.  We have 156 followers over in our blog shop but only 39 of them so far have left us a comment to be in with a chance of winning the mystery gift.  

It is our way of saying thank you to each and every one of you for all the encouragement and support you have given us so please put your name down and spread the word to all your friends.  We really don't mind how many become a follower this week ....they will all have their names put in the draw.  

There is also the extra gift in the draw that has been kindly been donated by Tina Gilmore our buddy from Indigo Moon.  This gorgeous little box and those buttons are really special so thank you Tina for joining in the fun.

Plus, [yes, it doesn't end there!] of course if any of you make a purchase before next Monday 4th April then you will also be included in the extra gift we are adding for a buyer, if you are the lucky winner.

So folks,  now is the time to pop over to the shop before you forget.  You really wouldn't want to miss out on the chance to win this lovely mystery parcel would you?

Thank you Jo...

I have to say a huge thank you to one of my blogging friends that I've yet to meet.[ But I really hope one day I do].  As a lot of you will know, Jo from JoZart has been out to Germany visiting her little Granddaughter Lottie who has leukemia and although I'm certain it was a very worrying time for her she still found time to hunt me out a ball of the most gorgeous 4 ply wool.  It has arrived this morning with a really lovely little card and I would like to say a huge thank you to Jo for being such a special friend.

I really hope Lottie responds well to her treatment.  My love goes out to her family and friends. x

Sunshine...

I've just looked out of my sewing room window and snapped this lovely pic.  My magnolia is now in full bloom and smells divine and even my beautiful pair of collared doves are enjoying the gorgeous sunshine today.  Doesn't it make you feel better? ....well it does if you're not still suffering big time from pregnancy related sickness....really hope it stops very soon M [keep taking the tablets and nibbling all you can].

Now folks it's time to pop over to our blog shop because this week Twiglet and I have launched the BIG followers celebration draw.  It will be running til April 4th so make sure you get over there asap to get your name down and join in the fun.

The twins....

As promised here are the latest scan pics of the twins.

Twin 1 and

Twin 2 and

Both of them lying in their comfy bunk beds  :-)  One is lying on top of the other and they are lying head to toes with each other  :-)

They were very active and both look to be growing well.

Introducing my family.....

I have been given permission by their mum to put pics of my beautiful little girls on my blog and introduce their new baby brother or sister to the world  :-)

This is P and I think she was trying to see just how much chocolate she could get on her face whilst she was eating her biscuit.  She loves to make me smile and is such a happy little girl especially when it comes to pulling funny faces for the camera.

This is little L.  She's my brown eyed girl and just loves her Nanny.  She is nearly walking and loves to get into all sorts of mischief....especially knocking down all the things her big sister is trying to build  :-).....she is showing off her baby teeth here.

And here is the scan of baby number three for my youngest daughter and her hubby.  If you can see this one is lying on his back and already looks really laid back [just like the other two  :-) ].  The midwife says this one is about 10 weeks and 5 days old so will be yet another October birthday for us hopefully.

Maybe you can now see why I would rather play days with these gorgeous little poppets than spend my time sewing.......but needs must now so I've put my toys away now and must get down to some serious work  :-)

I will hopefully have twin pics to show you later  :-)

WOYWW....

What a beautiful week we are having with lots of lovely sunshine and doesn't it make you feel great?

This morning I'm wearing my Nanny Annie hat and I shall be having a play time with two very special little girls so I am launching this automatically and will be popping in on my blogging friends a little later in the day.  Both my daughters are having scans this morning....The eldest who is having twins has an appointment at 9.30am and the youngest daughter who is expecting her third has her appointment at 10am so they are taking over the scanning clinic for an hour or more  :-).......I hope to have other photos to share with you later.  I'm so excited and can't wait to see the babies :-)

On my desk this morning is ...

This lovely crocheted shawl that I have just finished and........

 The latest little knittie.  This is in the softest double knitting wool and has a lovely little frill around the bottom so is obviously one for a girl.  I'm now knitting a little hat to match it with a cute little flower on the side  :-)

 Also I have just received my latest parcel of yummy wools ready for knitting.  I  really enjoyed knitting the little ones in the 4 ply and have managed to fund some really pretty wools. So, as they say, watch this space for the next instalment  :-)



I have a rail full of trousers to shorten and yet another pair of b***** curtains to shorten too today!!!.....guess there is always tomorrow  :-)

Now folks, before you pop over to Julia's blog, it's time to pop over to our blog shop because this week Twiglet and I have launched the BIG followers celebration draw.  It will be running til April 4th so make sure you get over there asap to get your name down and join in the fun.

The magic of the sun....

We had a gloriously sunny day here yesterday and the warmth worked magic around our garden so I thought I would just do a quick show and tell.....

The blooms on our flowering cherry tree opened out.  They were barely buds in the morning!

The willow tree in full bloom now and already dropping some of it's flowers.

The blooms on the Magnolia have started to open. [you can bet we will now have a hard frost that will turn these brown].

Dafodils have popped up all over the garden and are now wearing their best dresses and really enjoying the morning sun.

Ok so I've cheated a little here.  These aren't home grown.  We bought these from the garden centre on Sunday but they look so pretty I thought I would share them with you.

Happy 'catch up' Tuesday to you all.....I have lots of sewing jobs to do today but have to say it was a pretty special Funday Monday yesterday so don't mind working harder today to catch up.

Don't forget that we have now launched the BIG mystery parcel draw.  It will be open until April 4th so please don't miss out on the chance to win at least £50 worth of beautiful, hand crafted goodies.  Click here to join in the fun.

It's Monday so it's fun fun fun today :-) ...

Good morning to one and all.  This is the start of another funday Monday here at sewing by Annie's.  

Very soon Twiglet will be winging her way here and we will be drawing the name out for this week's gift draw over in the blog shop so keep a look out to see if you have been lucky this week.  We will also be launching the BIG followers celebration draw so make sure you get your name down to be in with chance to win the mystery parcel of goodies....it's worth over £50 so well worth putting your name down  :-)  You will find details here later today so be sure to pop over and join in.

I've had a busy weekend....

• crocheting
• knitting
• gardening
• cooking
• cleaning
• sorting out the contents of my neighbours house to get it ready for putting it on the market [power of attorney duties]
• supermarket shopping
• care home visiting
• dog nursing [Wispa has eye ointment... £47 for tiny tube! and ear drops....bless her she is so good at letting me do what's needed]

It never fails to surprise me how many hats I wear in a day....how about you?

Happy Friday to one and all....

Just a quickie to say thank you to all those lovely bloggers who left kind comments on my WOYWW post.  As you all know my days are always full of all sorts ...

Now today is one of those days....

• I have started off with a medical for me for an insurance [I passed.... all ok]
• Twiglet has just text to say she is on her way
• Eldest daughter is coming for a day's nurturing
• Two special little girls are coming for their mummy to go for her antenatal booking appointment etc
• I'm still open for business with the sewing [just hope I don't get too many customers today!]

I also hope to fit in some knitting, some cooking of meals, [have already hoovered the house!] and would really like to watch the red nose telly tonight.

Can you please remind me......

How many hours are there in the day?

What I would like to share with you is what my daughter has been doing while resting on the settee.....

She has been knitting booties....but as you can see she has only knit one of each so far and one was knit in double knitting and the other in 4 ply :-)  I think she may need to knit a few more for her twins don't you?

Now folks don't forget to pop over to the shop and put your name down to be in with a chance to win the set of desk accessories that's up for grabs this week.  Good luck.

WOYWW.....

Wow!  That was a short week  :-)

As you will have seen from my previous posts I have been AWOL for a few days but as you will know I couldn't be away without something crafty to do in my spare minutes so I have another couple of little knitties to share with you again today.

 I've knitted this one in double knitting and it's a really lovely soft spotty wool.  I have to admit I much prefer to knit the very tiny knitties in 4 ply now.  I think this one would suit a boy or girl.

This one was knitted in a lovely lemon 4 ply and is def one for a girl.  I really loved knitting this one and am desperate to find more really nice 4 ply wools to knit in.  They are all plain colours and I really love knitting in fleck or random yarns so if you know of any really nice ones please let me know.

I am still playing nursemaid for my eldest daughter.  She went to the Dr's last week and was put off work for a week with her hyperemesis [morning sickness that lasts all day and night!].  She was given little tablets to disolve in her mouth up the side her gum over about 2 hours to help ease the sickness.  She says they taste awful as they disolve but they seem to be helping a little and allowing her to keep a little food down now.  She is still very weak and has no energy so I'm really hoping her Dr puts her off for at least another week to recover properly before going back to school [and, yes, she is a teacher not a pupil  :-) ].  She says to thank you all very much for your suggestions and lovely comments.

I am now going to do my fav job......B******** curtains!  So I will be head down for a while and hope to catch up with as many of you as possible later. 

 Oh yes, and there is the little matter of a rail full of uniform jackets to hand sew badges, ranks and buttons on!  I sew for Shrewsbury school and this is my latest 'little' request.....lots and lots of hand sewing here for me.

Don't forget to pop over to the blog shop and get your name down for the last of the weekly gift draws before the BIG one [there is a set of desk accessories up for grabs today] before popping over to Julia's to join in the WOYWW fun.

Thank you to Lynn....

On my return from the weekend away there was a special envelope to open.

Lynn from Crafty Linby had been thinking of us when out and about and had found a brilliant magnet for Twiglet and I to focus on in the sewing room.

It's now taken pride of place on the front of my industrial sewing machine cos this is the one that does all the hard work [with my help of course!].

She had not only sent us the magnet but also had put it in a really special card.  So I want to say a huge 'Thank you' to you Lynn.  It was really lovely of you to think of us.  Hugs, A & J x

Don't forget to pop over to the blog shop to put your name down for the last of the weekly draws before the BIG one.  This week we are giving away one of our desk accessory sets and you can even choose which one you would like to win.

Happy Monday to all.....

Good morning to all my blogging friends.  I have been absent without leave for a few days.  I am guilty of having taken time out for fun and laughter since Friday morning.  My darling hubby and I took Twiglet and her hubby to Torquay for the weekend.  

Our local football team were playing down there so we planned the weekend so the men could go to the footy.....the plan was for them to watch them win but alas they were slaughtered!!!!  a 5 - 0 result to Torquay was not what they were hoping for  :-(

Twiglet and I went on a girls adventure and went to see a wonderful sewing exhibition in a National trust house at Coleton Fishacre so our afternoon was rather better spent  :-)  We then picked up the disappointed men dashed back to our hotel to wash and change then, after a quick tea, we went to the theatre in Paignton to see Joey the lips.  They are advertised as 'the funkiest 10 piece band' and were really brilliant.  A good night was had by all.

We travelled back via the stunning Chedder Gorge so all in all we had a really lovely weekend away and didn't need to wear coats once all weekend  :-)

Now folks don't forget to pop over to the shop to see who has won the crafter's bag and put your name down for the last of the weekly draws before the BIG one  :-)

Sewing machine dust cover....

 For those that dropped in yesterday I'm just doing a quick show and tell.

This is the sewing machine dust cover I was making yesterday.  It has a large pocket on the front to keep the machine manual in for safe keeping.  As you can see it also fits one of my sewing machines so if you want one making just let me know  :-)
I've never made my machines dust covers because they are always in use.  :-)




Also......

Please don't miss out.......

This is just a reminder to those of you who haven't put your name down in this week's draw over in our blog shop.  We are looking for someone to trial this wonderful crafter's bag for us.  It's got lots of pockets inside and out and would be ideal for carrying all your crafty stash where ever you go.

Also it's worth becoming a follower over there too because we have a BIG draw coming up for all our wonderful followers with an extra parcel being added if the winner is also a customer who has bought something since Jan 2011.  There are goodies to the value of over £50 to be won!  Good luck to you all.

WOYWW.....

Happy Wednesday to you all.  It's been another really busy week for me.  [Nothing new there then!]

Funday Monday was spent filling the Crafter's accessories shelf over in the blog shop so please at some point make yourselves a cuppa and pop over for a browse through all the new makes. [.....and hopefully you will see something you fancy buying  :-) ].

Tuesday was spent catching up with the rail full of sewing jobs that arrived on Monday....that is until I had a phone call from our eldest to say they had sent her home from School because she couldn't stop being sick.  She really is suffering badly from Morning sickness ....except, bless her, it is lasting all day and all night and she is becoming very weak because she is struggling to eat or drink anything and keep it down.....any tips are gratefully received.  She has an appointment with her midwife tomorrow morning and I really am hoping it is suggested she takes a couple of weeks off school cos she really can't teach like this.

I have my latest tiny knitting to show you today.  It's for a 12" chest prem baby just in case the twins arrive a little early and the tiny socks are sooooooo sweet.

 My 'to do' rail is empty this morning but please don't tell anyone cos I promise I can find lots to do at the mo and won't be sat here with my feet up.  :-)

 I do have a 'to do' job to show you.  I am making a new dust cover for a friend's sewing machine.  Her old one was made in plastic and her puppies attacked it so I'm making her a new one in fabric.

The other show and tell is a wipe clean desk tidy for a friend.  She always gives us a lot of support and encouragement with our shop and it is a well earned little gift.





OK folk, enough from me for today.  Pop over to Julia's and join in the WOYWW fun.

Have a great week and thanks for popping by.

Don't forget to leave us a comment in this week's gift draw over in the shop to be in with a chance to win the Crafter's pocketed bag and tick the button to follow us over there cos there is a big draw coming up soon.

OK folk, enough from me for today.  Pop over to Julia's and join in the WOYWW fun.

Have a great week and thanks for popping by.

Crafter's accessories shelf is now full....

Update....We have had a really busy morning and the Crafter's accessories shelf is now full.

  Wahooooo.  

Please make yourself a cuppa and pop over and have a look.

I just thought I'd write a quick post about all the lovely items which are ready to go on the Crafter's Accessories shelf over in our blog shop.  I spent ages taking pictures and uploading them yesterday all ready for the launch later today.  I have a feeling Twiglet and I will have a busy morning getting it all ready but am getting excited already.

The response from our blogging buddies has been amazing and Twiglet and I have received lots of suggestions in emails and on our blogs (most of them printable!!).

We have been busy sewing all sorts of crafty accessories and the whole stash looks fab!

I hope all those that gave us the ideas will pop over to have a browse and let us know what they think [.....and hopefully buy an item or two  :-)  ].  Please also pop over to check out if you have won this week's draw for the pen roll and put your name down in the new draw for the wonderful crafter's bag.

There will be a further "Joannie" draw starting Monday 14th March and then the following week, Monday 21st March we hope to launch our BIG followers draw with an added extra prize for people who have made purchases since Jan 1st 2011.  This will be drawn on April 4th to give as many as possible time to enter the draw.

Today's makes....

I have been busy sewing today and thought I'd show you my latest makes.....

This is the first door storage I've made for the shop.  It has 12 small pockets approx 4 1/2" across and two larger pockets approx 9 " across at the bottom.  I have made it to hang on the top corners of a door but as you can see here it would also hang on the back of a chair.

The other thing I have to show you is another pretty desk tidy.  I have trimmed this one up with lilac bias edging and bows.  I think this works very well and looks very pretty.

We plan to fill the crafter's accessories shelf with lots of new goodies on Monday so keep a look out.

Look what the postman brought me today......

This morning my postman arrived with exciting items and I just have to share them with you.

A few weeks back I was fortunate enough to win one of Peggy's wonderful works of art and it has arrived this morning.

It was beautifully parcelled up as you can see.

The true beauty of what was inside brought tears to my eyes.  What a talented artist you are Peggy.  Thank you so much for picking me.  I will be framing this carefully and will be hanging it in pride of place in my home.

The postman also brought me this beautiful thank you card from the very talented Lavinia.

Thank you so much Lavinia.

Aren't I just blessed?

Bags for a change...

You will have seen on Twiglet's blog from Wednesday that she has made a really lovely bag with lots of pockets that took her ages to make because of its complexity so we have both been working on designs for simpler versions.  You will see that yesterday she made two really pretty bags and posted them on her blog here.  

I was working in a parallel world here at Sewing by Annie's also making bags and these are the three I came up with.....

They are all different sizes and have different combinations of pockets but are all made with a lovely blue checked fabric and denim.

I thought you also might like to see why I didn't post my bags like Twiglet did last night.  It was my darling hubby's birthday yesterday and the two of us joined our 3 children, their other halves and our gorgeous two little Granddaughters out for a meal.  Our son and his girlfriend made the birthday cake and I thought you would like to see it.....

I will explain that my hubby is a season ticket holder for Shrewsbury Town football  [yes he's quite mad I know  :-) ] and this was the fab design they came up with.  I love it and must add that it tasted as good as it looked.  Thanks to them both for the fab job they did with it.....No folks he isn't seven but if they had put all the candles on the top we would have had to have the fire brigade on standby  :-)

We all had a really fab time.  I'm blessed with the best family in the world and love them all to bits.






For those who as still haven't joined in the weekly gift draw over in the shop please don't forget to pop over and leave us a comment plus tick the box to follow us over there too because we have a big gift draw coming up just for our lovely followers.....if you are also a customer who has made a purchase too then there will be an extra little something included in the parcel.

Thanks friends....

Thank you for dropping by yesterday and for all your lovely comments.  Special thanks must go to Julie from KC'sCourt! who very kindly sent me several knitting patterns via email.  I promise I will keep knitting and sharing the results as I go along.

Yes folks, I had to give in and hunt out some 4 ply wool for this one but it's so soft and looking really pretty.

For those who as yet haven't joined in the weekly gift draw over in the shop please don't forget to pop over and leave us a comment plus tick the box to follow us over there too because we have a big gift draw coming up just for our lovely followers.....if you are also a customer who has made a purchase too then there will be an extra little something included in the parcel.

WOYWW...

....Knitting, baby wool and even more wool is on it's way.

As you will know from last week's posting we are expecting 3 more Grandchildren by Christmas [check out the twin scan here if you missed it :-) ] and I also have two other friends expecting babies that I would like to knit a little something for.  Because of this, in my spare time ["What spare time?" I hear you say!!], I'm knitting for England.

Here you can see that I have a lovely selection of finished items now...some still need buttons.

I have a lovely box full of wools to be going on with [and more in the post  :-) ].

I have a lovely little cardigan on my needles in the process of being made....It's a really lovely soft spotty wool.

 As you can see here I have lots of lovely knitting patterns but, as ever, not quite what I'm looking for.  My eldest is expecting twins and of course these are often born a little early and are smaller than normal so I'm wanting to knit a couple of tiny baby outfits.  I have several patterns for prem babies but I have double knitting wool and most of the tiny baby patterns use 4 ply [typical eh?].  Do any of you have or know where I can find some pretty tiny baby knitting patterns using double knitting wool? Or do I have to just admit defeat and buy some 4 ply?

The other thing I have to show you is the pretty desk tidy I made yesterday.  This will be showing up in the blog shop along with the other new items soon.



Don't forget to leave us a comment in this week's gift draw over in the shop to be in with a chance to win the pen roll and tick the button to follow us over there cos there is a big draw coming up soon.

OK folk, enough from me for today.  Pop over to Julia's and join in the WOYWW fun.

Have a great week and thanks for popping by.

Update....wahoooooo look what the postmans just brought me [your wish is my command M  :-) ]....Yes folks, I'm easily pleased