This week's smiles....week 130

Happy Friday to one and all.  Really hope you've all had a good week and have lots of smiles to share with us all today.  Thanks to those who joined in last week by linking their smiles here so others could share them....please join in as often as you are able cos the world can never have too many smiles.

I'm featuring Michelle's blog over in Ontario.  It never fails to make me smile that we can link up to so many places around the world just at the click of a button.  Michelle shared a pic of a little visitor she'd had at work....a little groundhog had joined her to eat the bread she had put out.....Isn't he cute?  Thanks Michelle for linking up and sharing your smiles.

My smiles this week have been many so here's a few pics to share with you...

This is a collage of pics that I snapped during a fun day looking after Amy's three last Saturday [you should be able to click on the pic if you want a closer look].  What a fun day we had too.  We popped to the Ironworks near Oswestry in the morning and the kids loved all the huge animals on display as you can see.  In the afternoon we went to Attingham Park for a walk to the wonderful play park there.....lots of fun and laughter was had by all......needless to say Sunday was spent mainly sleeping hehehehe....it's easy to forget how much energy you need to look after three active children.  :-)

 Building update...

The concrete has been put in the footings and all the building materials have arrived this week ready to make a start but we were rained off this week so hopefully the builders will get back next week to start building.

As you can see the rain didn't stop outdoor play at Amy's.  The girls are all togged up in their wellies and waterproofs and are having a great time.  :-)

The last pic is of yet another little treasure that's popped up in our back garden.  There are lots of these that have sprung up but this is the first to bloom.  Isn't it pretty.....Love in a Mist I think?

There you go....I've shown you mine now please show us yours and join in the fun by linking up your smiles of the week.

Hugs,

Annie x

WOYWW.....

Hi all.  I hope it's rather warmer and drier where you are today......brrrrrr and they call this summer!!

I think most of my customers have gone on holiday at the mo so my desk today is a quiet one and not worth sharing but I do have a few snaps of what I've been doing on it this week...

Last week I was in the process of planning / making a tissue box cover for my new sewing room so I've snapped a couple of pics of it now it's finished....

Every side has a handy pocket on it for all the bits and bobs I use in my sewing room and the one side even has a pin cushion.....hope you like it as much as me :-)

The other finished item I'm sharing with you today is a card I made using one of the little dumflings I've made.  I've mounted it on a toning pretty piece of fabric and edged it with machine embroidery....rather pretty isn't it? :-)

That's all I've got to share with you today.  I hope you've enjoyed your visit and will leave me a little message to let me know you've called by so I can pay you a return visit.

Hugs,

Annie x

This week's smiles....week 129

Happy Friday to you all.  It's been another busy and eventful week here for me and although a rather messy one it's been exciting.....more of that later.

Last week saw more of you joining in sharing your smiles.  I would like to thank those that regularly take the time to link up and to welcome those joining in for the first time....please come back cos we can never have too many smiles.  :-)  :-)  :-)  :-)

I would like to feature Jo[Zart]'s blog this week with her short sighted lion....it made me chuckle and I guess the moral to the story is....be careful where you put your glasses down.  :-)  Thanks for joining in last week Jo.

My smiles this week have been many.  As you will have noticed my back garden is springing up with real treasures and I changed my header picture so you could all share them....aren't my self-seeded poppies just stunning?

I have also snapped a photo of this beauty to share with you...

Isn't it stunning?  I really love poppies and these are some that have grown from some seeds that Janet [Fairythoughts] sent me last year so are rather special.  As many will know Janet has been rather poorly lately so I hope we can all send her our special love so she knows we are thinking of her.

My other photos revolve around the mess that's going on in my life at the mo....

This is what was delivered to my front drive on Wednesday morning....I love the way the builders have used the slope up the side of our bungalow and some rather long planks to barrow the rubbish into the skip.

By the end of Wednesday our two builders had dug out the metre deep footings by hand....and it was heavy clay soil [rather them than me!].

When I got up yesterday morning I went out with my camera to snap a few pics to record the building developments and look what had found it's way into the bottom of the footings....and bless him he couldn't get out so my good deed of the day was to put my washing line prop in so he could use it as a ladder to get out :-)

I couldn't have left him in there because the wooden peg you can see in the pic is marking out for the 9" of concrete that had been ordered for later in the day. [And I didn't want him buried alive!!].

.......and here's the proof.....

Two builders putting the concrete into the footings after we had had the visit of approval from the building inspector.  :-)

I've had soooooooo much to smile about this week as you can see.  I now hope you will snap your smiles and link them up below.  Have a great week.
Hugs,
Annie x

WOYWW......

Happy Wednesday to one and all....hope you like my new header picture.  It's a quick snap of one of the poppies that's sprung up in our back garden.....they could have been pulled out as weeds but my motto this year is leave anything other than recognised weeds in to see what grows and aren't I thrilled these have survived?

On my desk today is a little project I'm working on......

I went into our local fabric shop, Watson and Thornton's in Shrewsbury  [you know the one Sam and Jan ;-)]  looking for some stiff cotton fabric for a few projects I have in mind and as you would expect Brian, [the man who can put his hand on anything], found me some Permastiff Cotton......has anyone ever used it before?  If so what did you think?

I carefully made a paper pattern using some brown paper and pinned it onto the Permastiff. [I've only pinned it at the edges as the Permastiff does seem to mark with the pin holes ].

I cut out the fabric carefully so as to not cut into my newly made ironing board cover :-)

As you can see I'm using a push back method with my machines today....I've got no other room at the mo!!

I've clipped into the corners as you might be able to see.

I don't often pin but I've pinned the basic shape together to see if it fits....can you tell what it is yet?

Ta da.  It fits a treat and I think it will do the job nicely.  I am planning to use the Permastiff as a lining for my tissue box cover for my new sewing room.....I am planning to make a cover with pockets and attach a pin cushion to it to it will be useful and pretty.

As they say....watch this space for further developments.  :-)

Today there should be a skip on my drive and builders in the back garden digging out the footings for our extension so its mess and excitement all round for me.  Please leave me a little comment so I know you've called by and I will be over to yours to see what you're up to this week as soon as I can.

Hugs,

Annie x

This week's smiles....week 128

Hello all.  I really hope you're all having a great week.  Thank you to those who joined in by linking up with their smiles from last week.....we can never have too many smiles.

I'd like to feature Laura's post from last week.....there was maybe only a few tiny strawberries on her plants but I bet they were the best tasting strawberries ever.....I could almost taste them from here Laura  :-) :-) :-)

I have found a couple of pictures to make you smile this week...

Many years ago Shell learnt how to create with balloons and here you can see the twins  were enjoying some of mummy's creations at the weekend....they love to make you smile so thought you'd like to share it.

 :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-)

 

My other snap is of this little treasure from our new front garden....it's a little self seeded viola and is barely 3" high but has at least 20 blooms on it....isn't it gorgeous?

:-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-)

So that's all from me for today.  Please link your smiles below so I can pop over to yours to check them out.

Hugs,

Annie x

WOYWW....

It's a quick post from me today.  Life here is keeping me pretty busy.

On my desk today is...

I've snatched a few creative minutes and have done some machine embroidery on the dumfed pieces I made a couple of weeks ago....they are still not finished pieces.  I will add more embroidery and a few beads etc to finish them when I get a few more creative minutes of play time.

 This is what is taking up a lot of our time at the mo.  Last week the builders put the new door and two windows in the end of what will be my new sewing room and since then we have been preparing the space where they will build our new kitchen/dining room extension ....exciting times and a lot of mess to come yet.  :-)

That's it from me today....I said I would be quick :-)  Please leave me a little hello message to let me know you've called by and I will pop over to yours to say hello ASAP.

Hugs,

Annie x

This week's smiles...week 127

I know I know....I'm running late today so for you early birds here's Mr Linky and if you'd like to find out why I'm running late please pop back later when I do an update....but for now here's a clue.....

Update

Sorry for the delay today.  I usually write my Friday post on Thursday evening but last night was spent in the company of that gorgeous hunk in the photo above. Alfie Boe.....yes it's Alfie Boe!!!!!! We went to Pangolin Llangollen [obviously the spell check on my computer doesn't understand/speak Welsh!  :-)]  to see him in the Thursday night's concert with Sophie Evans, Amy Dickson and Jonathan Antione and wow it was amazing.  I don't think I stopped grinning all night.

And all that happened after a really exciting day because work started in my new sewing room.....

Sorry about the glare of the sunlight through the door on the first pick but it was a really sunny day here yesterday. 

Lots of dust, brick ends and cups of tea later and wahooooo my new sewing room has a door and two new windows in the end.....and I can't stop grinning.

I'm not sure where my machines will go between the acros that were put to hold the roof up while the work was being done but I'm hoping when they come back today to clear the rubble that they will take those too.  :-)

There you go folks....I've not had time to feature anyone from last week but I will say a huge thank you for joining in and I hope you will be back to play today....now I've managed to write my post  :-)

Have a great week.

Hugs,

Annie x

WOYWW.....

I'm sharing a different desk with you this week.  Yesterday we had a very special visitor join us for a day of fun and crafting.....and what a wonderful day we had too.  It was yet another friendship that we have WOYWW wednesday fun to thank for.

So here are just a few snaps of our day yesterday...

Yes folks our special visitor was none other than our very own

LUNCH LADY JAN  

:-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-)  

I'd met Jan before but it was the first time Jo and Jan had met and we all got on like we'd know each other for years....I suppose we have really :-)

Of course we do have a desk to share with you...it was Jo's sewing table and here is Jan learning how to machine embroider with Jo and I.

That's my machine on the far side of the table but I have to be honest and say it didn't even get plugged in....far too much to chat about of course  :-) [of course I do have the excuse that I had been up since 6am and done the school run before :-) ].

A wonderful lunch was put on by that much older sister of mine....thanks Jo it was really yummy.

Oh how blessed we are to have made such wonderful friends thanks to our Wednesday fun....Thanks Julia xxxx

That's all from me for today so just leave me a message so I know you've called and I will pop over to see what you've been up to.

Hugs,

Annie x

This week's smiles.....week 126

Hello all.  Thanks to all who joined in last week by linking up their smiles.

I am featuring Sam's post today.  I don't really like having my photo taken but I do have to admit to having a real chuckle at the one Sam took of Jo and I....I look rather tipsy but I promise you that no alcohol had been consumed at all...I don't need any to behave like that.   hehehe  It really does make me smile to think of all the friendships that have been made thanks to us all linking up on WOYWW on a Wednesday.

It's been another busy week over here at Sewing by Annie's.  My customer numbers really are increasing by the day and that never fails to make me smile....I love my job.  :-)

I've also got a few pics to share with you....

Look at what's now sitting on our drive....I've got a new car [well it's new to me] and I love it....after all it's blue :-) :-)

This is a special rose that we brought with us from our old house and doesn't it look happy in it's new home?

If those pics haven't made you smile them I'm sure this one will.  These are the first strawberries that have grown on our new strawberry plants....they were warm, juicy and tasted wonderful.  And there are many more ripening already.  :-) :-)

Those are just some of my smiles from this week.  Please snap something that has made you smile and link it up below and let's all do our bit to make the world a happier place.

Hugs,

Annie x

Second on the 2nd........Escapologist or what?

Elizabeth has decided to host a new blog hop and I am determined to do my best to support her in her new venture.  The idea is to repost something that was written on your blog in the past so I have looked at what was happening in my life 3 years ago this week and this was what popped up......

 Escapologist or what? .......posted on 6th July 2012 

Every week comes with new challenges here for me.  Tuesday is my day with the munchkins and they are both crawling now so the house has been cleared out to make a safe haven for them.  I showed you that they love playing in the ball pool I keep here for them, well here is the new developments....

They can go from this to.....

....this and beyond in seconds now and as quick as they can get out they can also get back in!

They are able to pull themselves to their feet but not climb yet but.....

....as you can see here Lexi is weighing up new ventures so the stair gate will be on next week!!

Wednesday night came with a whole load more challenges.  We had all 5 of the Grandbabies here for the evening......and all 3 of the babies are able to crawl now!!  The pop up tent proved a real winner for all as you can see but I have a feeling it may be a while before we can get all 5 to sit still long enough to snap them for a pic now!

I hope you've enjoyed sharing my pics and they have raised a smile or two for you.  Have a great weekend.


It has really made me chuckle looking back. Why don't you do the same and link up your post over at Elizabeth's

Hugs,
Annie x

WOYWW...

Mine's a bit of a two for one post today......and I blame Sam [Hettie].

You will have seen last week that Sam paid us a visit.....well, she had been given a dumfer for her birthday.  For those that still don't know what dumfing is please feel free to click on the link in my right side bar for an explanation.  Where was I?  Oh yes Sam and her dumfer!  I follow Sam on Pinterest and she had been pinning dumfing ideas so of course I had my creativity stirred and I woke Thursday morning with my head full of ideas and feeling desperate to dumf.

So...

• Where was my dumfer?....in it's cover having not been used since we moved!
• Where would I find some linen type fabric to dumf onto?.....oh no!! all my boxes have been moved ready for the building work to start!!!
• Where are my wool rovings, threads etc to dumf with?.........

 

 

Of course they were in box on the bottom of a very big stack of boxes that are now sitting behind the settee in the living room......why is it that what you want is always at the bottom of the pile?

 

An hour and a half later I managed to find the basics and set myself up on a table in amongst the plaster and brick dust in what will be my new sewing room for a bit of dumfing fun......results will follow some other time.

 

 

And on my usual sewing desk today is a little job for Lexi.  She tore the skirt on her fav dress so Nanny Annie was asked to mend it :-)  That's what Nanny Annie does :-)

So, there you go.....two desks from me today.  Please leave me a little comment so I know you've called by and I will pop over to yours to see what you've been up to.  Thanks for calling by.

Hugs,

Annie x