WOYWW.....

 Hi all.  What a lovely week it's been.  I've had a steady flow of customers and have also enjoyed some special family times.

Last Thursday we met up with 4 of our gorgeous grandchildren and their mummies at a local sunflower field.  It was so special to spend time with them and to watch them enjoying time with their cousins.

On Saturday our men went to the first football match of the season so I spent the afternoon with that much older sister of mine....I've missed our Saturdays together.  Love her to bits.

In the sewing room this week I have...

•  shortened and altered a pretty Wedding dress
• shortened 3 pair of trousers
• let out a gent's trousers and...

....labelled this pile [plus the jacket]  of school uniform ready for a young lady to start her new school next week.

I have also got some memory bears to make from silk ties so that will be a lovely job to do.  I will pop over to yours ASAP to see what you've been up to.

Hugs,

Annie x

This week's smiles....week 528

 What a lovely week it's been here at Sewing by Annie's....mainly because I haven't been here most of it :-)

We left last Friday morning so for those that linked up early I was able to pay them a quick visit before we left but the others sadly didn't get a comment from me because where we went to had a really poor internet signal....but it was really lovely.

We booked in for 4 nights at The Three Castles campsite near Monmouth...it was a tiny site with only 12 pitches but the facilities were one of the best we have ever had to use....it was a communal block with 4 wet rooms and was spotless.  

On the sunday morning we had a visit from...

...a large group of TVR cars at the field by the campsite plus a cooked breakfast to raise money for a local Farmers Minds charity....a great time was had by all.

We went for a ride to Abergavenney to look at their local market and as we approached it from the car park we came across this treasure........I have been ordering zips etc from them for years for my sewing business but didn't realise they had a shop in Abergavenney so it was a really lovely surprise.  I went in and introduced myself and was greeted like a long lost friend....so special.

We took another ride out to Upton Bishop.  This was the little church where my Mum and Dad got married and is really beautiful....I could just imagine Mum walking up the aisle in her powder blue dress :-)

While we were away Gina took the boys with a group of friends to our local sunflower fields...what gorgeous photos :-)

Of course it wouldn't be Friday without a few funnies...I hope these make you smile.

Please leave me a little message so I know you've called in and I will do my best to pop over to yours to see what you've been up to.

Have a great week.

Hugs,

Annie x

This weeks smiles....week 330

This week my post is one full of so much promise....I can't stop smiling.

The lovely raised veg garden I shared with you last week has changed a little....

We had a delivery of two dumpy bags full of topsoil dropped at the front of the bungalow so my darling hubby had to barrow it all round to the back and this is how he filled the raised garden.  

We spent the weekend preparing the soil and planting it up and can already see new growth....we've planted dwarf french beans, beetroot, mixed coloured carrots, mixed salad leaves and mixed coloured radishes.

Our little greenhouse also holds a lot of promise...the tomatoes and fruiting well and with all the sunshine we are having I'm sure will soon start ripening for us.

Having bought a Motor home last September and spent many weekends in it we realised there was one or two things we wanted so this week we have upgraded it and now we have this ....and I love it.

This is the main reason...this one has a fixed bed that can be made up and left up to save my poor hubby having to make the bed up each night....my knees don't allow me to kneel so I am unable to do it.

My other smiles have been from the wonderful photos Amy has sent me from their holidays in France....just look at that sunshine and sunflowers.

I hope you have found something to make you smile today and will leave me a little message before you then link up below to share your smiles.

Hugs,

Annie x

This week's smiles....week 283

Another week has passed and I have more smiles to share....

Little Theo has been away on holidays with his mummy and daddy  and has enjoyed bike rides on the back of his daddy's bike and rides on his daddy's shoulders during their visit to the Eden Project.....they grow us far too quickly.  It only seems 5 mins since his daddy was that age!

The twins are growing so fast too....but not as fast as their sunflowers :-)

We took photos of our three doing exactly the same when they were little too.

Look at these 5!  Phoebe, Lulu and Steve went, with their friends, to Theatre Severn in Shrewsbury to watch the sing along version of The Greatest Showman as a holiday treat....here they are posing for me before they went in. Whilst in there, as part of the show, they asked for volunteers to go on the stage to sing and little Lulu was that keen that they fetched her from her seat at the back of the theatre up on stage and she sang part of one of the songs on her own up on the stage.....what a proud few moments eh?  I have watched the video of her singing many times now....she's such a little dot but she more than makes up for her lack of height in character.

That's all from me for this week.  I hope you enjoy my smiles and will link up below so we can share yours.

Hugs,

Annie x

WOYWW.....

I must start off this week by saying sorry.  I managed to upload my blog post but really struggled with life and what it threw at me last week and also I had loads of sewing through my door so my return visits were few and far between.  A huge thank you to those that called in here and I promise I will aim to do better this week.

So here's what you came to see today.....

I found an idea on Pinterest to make an eye spy quilt and as I have loads of suitable fabric and 5 [soon to be 6] grandchildren who I was certain would get lots of pleasure playing with one I pulled out my fabrics and cut 80 squares out yesterday.

It was my day off yesterday and just like the bus man's holiday I spent it sewing.  I guess that tells you that it's far more than just a job to me.  

This is how far I got with my quilt........

I stitched my squares into 8 rows of 10 with all the squares facing different directions so the quilt can be viewed from all 4 sides.  As you can see I miscounted and had actually cut out 81 squares lol......guess that's a square towards the next one. :-) :-)

That's all I have to share with you in my sewing room today but I am certain you will all like to share the gorgeous sunflowers that one of my customers bought for me this week....

Aren't they gorgeous?....Far too pretty to not share them with you all.

I hope you are all having a great week.

Hugs,

Annie x

T for Tuesday....

I'm joining in today quickly before I head out the door for a fun day.

 One of my good buddies is starting up doing crafty workshops and today that, much older, sister of mine and I are playing guinea pigs for her.  We are making a bag following her instructions and helping her to tweak it all before she takes her first proper class.  I've managed to get some real fun fabric off ebay and have all my pieces cut out ready.  As they say....watch this space.....I will surely do a show and tell when the bag's finished.

So here you go this is my T for Tuesday for this morning....

• My essential morning medication
• Wholemeal toast with diabetic marmalade
• My morning coffee in one of Mum's pretty fine bone china mugs today...it would have been her birthday this week 
• My beautiful sunflowers that Jo brought me to celebrate Mum's birthday with...thought you'd like to share them too.

That's it from me this morning.  I must now go and make my lunch to take with me and make sure I've got everything with me for my day's fun.  Hope you all have a good one too.

For more T for Tuesday posts just follow this link to Elizabeth's and have fun.

Hugs,
Annie x

My next three 25, 26 and 27......

Yes they keep coming and I will keep blogging each and every one  :-)

The first two I made together [same thread needed so a little quicker to make].....Spot the difference  :-)

These were made using some of the gorgeous fabric Wanda sent me all the way from USA.  It has trimmed up so prettily with either pink or green pockets and each little girl likes to be different doesn't she?

My dress number 27 is another one made with the pale blue sheeting one of my customers gave me trimmed up with the trimmings of the quilt I bought in a charity shop  :-)  I love the way we can make bias strips and pockets etc to match from a quilt that has already made 5 dresses....nothing gets wasted here  :-)

My last pic for today is my sunflower now out in full bloom....I think it looks like it's smiling at me.  :-)  This greets all my customers as they bring me their sewing.

This is my little bit of sunshine to share with you all on this rather damp rainy day here in Shropshire.

Colour from our garden....

I had a quick walk around our garden last night snapping a bit of colour to share with you.

It's not the best snap cos he didn't really want to pose for me but this is our visiting woodie feeding on the nuts literally just 4 foot from the shed I was standing in  :-)

These are a couple of the thistles in our wild area at the bottom of our garden....some,as you can see, are rather more planned than others  :-) The finches will enjoy these when they go to seed.

The veg garden is looking good too....here are the kidney beans now growing big enough for the picking and sharing....you need to help yourself Twiglet.  :-)

We have put a new obelisk for our everlasting sweet pea to grow up this year and it really seems to be enjoying it's new home

Wow.....look at my poppies now.....just my most fav flower.  They are such a stunning bright red at the mo.

And to finish off here's one to put a smile on every face.  Sunshine on a stem....cos there isn't much up in the sky here today so far.  Enjoy your weekend.

This week's 20 minuters

I am still managing my 20 minutes every day doing something creative. The new shop is having a lot of interest and I now need to restock where items have sold. I have spent my 20 minutes every day dumfing and then finishing off my sunflower picture so thought I'd show and tell. It will be put in the shop soon so keep a look out if you're interested in buying it.
Photos don't really do it justice. The day light is poor today but I will do my best to take a better picture of it for the shop. Hope all you other 20 minuters are still enjoying your creative times as much as I am.
Don't forget to pop over to the shop and get your name down in the Gift Draw. We will be drawing a name out on Monday 22nd Feb so not much time left now :-) Good luck.

Sunflowers to brighten a day...

Have just read Sue's blog and Rein has challenged them to a card with sunflowers on. I've little time for card making today but thought you might like to see a photo of one of my machine embroidered piccies with really cheery sunflowers on. Hope you like it and hope you feel better soon Rein.