by Helen on April 7, 2013
I was surprised – and delighted – to receive a phone call earlier this week from a very lovely lady called Janke. Janke lives in the Netherlands (her English is brilliant) and she was trying to track down a pattern that I’d contributed a long while ago to the now defunct Sew Hip Magazine. It turned out that she was searching for my Elephants in Love applique – part of a series of ”in love” designs I created 2 or 3 years ago. One of the most popular was my Owls in Love …..
But I digress …. After Janke’s call I had a bit of a rummage around my pattern files (I am afraid I am not a very organised sort of person) and realised that I hadn’t shared the elephants in love pattern before. Although it’s quite simple, I think it’s very pretty – so I dusted it down and re-formatted it into a pdf file rather than the working notes I sent off to the magazine. And here it is …
I’ve added the pattern to my Free Newsletter Readers’ pattern library page – so if you’d like it – and/or any of the other patterns I share with newsletter readers, then please just CLICK HERE to subscribe. Subscribing is free – and I promise that I will NEVER EVER share your email address with anyone else!
Ben at about 15 months – what a cute youngster!
And finally – please keep your fingers crossed for Ben’s poor sore paw. Sadly his recovery was very short-lived and he’s limping heavily again. So tomorrow he’s off to the vet’s for X-rays. Hopefully we’ll discover the problem and then begin to treat it effectively so he’ll soon start to feel better.
by Helen on February 21, 2013
(Another of Rosie’s photos – just looking at this makes me feel cold)
Brrrrrrr… it’s chilly here today. Spring has packed her bags and retreated southwards and we have returned to grey skies, now accompanied by a vicious easterly wind that penetrated right through my several layers of clothing (thermal vest, woolly jumper, even woollier cardigan) when I went outside to play with Daisy yesterday. Her fuzzy puppy coat seems to keep her nice and warm though, and Ben simply loves this kind of weather. I have trouble getting him to come indoors – he’d far rather lie outside, basking in the frigid air, than be safely tucked up in his cosy bed indoors. I spent a while outdoors with the small furry monster(!), throwing her ball, tugging on her rope and generally pottering around before retreating to the warmth of the woodburner and a nice cup of coffee.
Which sort of brings me neatly to showing you another of the designs for the March issue of the Bustle & Sew Magazine. It’s hard to quite make out the text in this photo but it actually says “Coffee refreshes you” – it’s a companion piece to the “Tea revives you” cushion I created back in those balmy summer days….
It was in the June 2012 issue of the magazine. I’ve made the coffee pot design a bit sharper with less of a vintage feel – which reflects my feelings about these drinks – coffee is consumed in the morning, while I’m working, whilst tea is my drink of choice for relaxing with some stitching or a good book later in the day. Townie Husband loves Earl Grey, whilst I’m more of a PG Tips kind of woman – I wonder if that says anything about our personalities?!!?
by Helen on October 19, 2012
Coming next week – and I do hope you like it! There are seven Bustle & Sew projects (all those shown above) – some vintage patterns as well – articles and features, plus subscribers’ bonuses – free printable Christmas bunting and the opportunity to purchase either (or both!) of my quilting e-books at half-price too!
And of course, as always, the end of the month is the very best time to subscribe as you’ll receive the October issue straight away (containing the projects above) followed by the November issue with all the projects above and your discount codes to purchase my e-books at half-price next Thursday (25th October). So don’t delay – snap up a subscription today!! CLICK HERE to learn more and subscribe.
by Helen on October 17, 2012
I thought it would be nice to include some quick and easy designs in my November ezine and this Nordic style Christmas cushion turned out to be both….
Lovely and easy to make and quickly snaffled up by Rosie who, having spotted my photo instantly staked her claim! Still it will look nice on her sofa I’m sure!
