I am so proud. My daughter has learned how to use a sewing machine. Here she is sewing away, totally oblivious to the fact that I have taken this photo. She had a day at my patchwork group, Quilt Time, sewing angel outfits and a rag doll each for her two girls. She is now making them Christmas stockings and draft excluders!

I have just finished my 2010 Christmas Journal and am taking photos and writing journalling for 2010, but do not think it will actually get finished until the new year, as at the moment there are so many other things to do.

This page shows me returning from the shops with a sledge full of shopping, and Emily and I sucking icicles in the garden. Actually it has been good that it has taken so long to finish the journal, as as I have been putting it together I have been able to relive the memories I have recorded. I think every Christmas I should get out all my Christmas Journals and re-read them.

Family History Scrapbooking

This is the second photo in my Furness family history scrapbook. It shows the Rivelin Hotel where my gt--gt-grandparents and gt-grandparents lived and where my grandmother lived until just after she married.

The facing page below shows photos of my great-grandparents. Unfortunately the photo of my great-grandfather is really badly worn.

This section of the page shows a bit of my great-grandmother and some of the embellishments I added to the page.

I am really enjoying this project, but as usual, there are not enough hours in the day....

Its never too early to start your Xmas Journal, or finish it!

Last Christmas was unusual as my daughter and her family moved in with us at the beginning of December, so I thought I would get my Christmas Journal and the date labels made well in advance so I could just write the journalling and stick the photos in.

I even made my own Journal with a patchwork cover and tie fastener.

I stuck Shimelle's Manifesto in the front cover, and was ready to go.

Unfortunately a lot of the photos I had taken were inaccessible, as the memory card in my camera would not allow me to download the photos, and as the house was totally disorganised due to the family moving in, I could not find the lead from the camera to the computer, so could not download them. When the family moved out at the end of April, not only was the lead missing, but also the camera!

Last month they both turned up and my son-in-law downloaded the photos for me, so, one year later, I am ready to do my 2010 Xmas Journal. I have temporarilly added the date labels, journalling and photos to check I have all the photos I need and that the journalling is the right size - which I have, so am now leaving it until a quieter time in the year to add all the embellishments etc.

After all, I have got to make my journal and date labels for 2011 in the next few days.

Anyway, it gives you some idea of what it will look like when it is finished.

Papercraft Workshop

I signed up for a Samuel Tayor workshop at the Papercraft Show in Harrogate in September. The workshop was using stamps to make an icon holder.

The wooden icon holder was dry brushed with white acrylic paint and then I used blue and purple paint to stamp the images. Finally the large design was printed with glue and flakes of glitter were added.

This was how the inside was decorated. I was not sure when I made it what I was going to use it for, but I used blue and purple as I liked those colours best. The workshop included stamping a saying in the centre of the middle panel, but I was not keen on that idea, so did not do it. I hate making things and then not using them, but could not think how I was going to use this project, but thought I might put a photo in it at some time.

Then a couple of weeks later my 3 year old grand-daughter took this photo of me with my grandson. Its fair to say I hate having my photo taken, but I really like this photo and the colour I was wearing just went perfectly with the icon holder.

It now has pride of place on my mantlepiece where I can see it every day.

Not only does Emily take a really good photo, she even manages to make me look thinner. Thanks Emily x

It's Easter

Made a start on my Easter photos. We were in America when these photos were taken, and we missed the very hot weather England had in April. Obviously the girls enjoyed it.

Isn't it lovely to play in water when it is really hot?

I am trying to sort out all my embellishments, and found a lot that went with my colour scheme for these pages. The pile does not seem to have got any smaller though.

Grandma has got her sewing mojo back

There is no stopping my grandma now the weather has turned colder and she does not have to work in her allotment so much.

A good friend gave her two pieces of curtaining which she has turned into four bags, and she used some strips of fabric left over from another project to make a bag for someone she works with who has been pestering her for one for ages.



Project Linus had had a polar bear cushion panel donated to them and she has used some other fabric with polar bears on to make it into a lap quilt.

She also cut some boat and dolphin fabrics into squares to make another Project Linus quilt. As you can see I have thoroughly inspected them and refused to get off them when she wanted to take a photo. Well it is my blog, so I should be included.

I hope she now makes a start on catching up on her scrapbooking. She has only got to the end of April with Emily and Katie's book and June with Louis book, so there is plenty for her to do. I would not mind having a long walk either!

Project Linus Quilts

Hi Everyone

Grandma was away on holiday last Sunday, that is why she did not do her weekly blog, and then old age made her forget where she had put her camera, so she could not download any photos for this Sunday. Anyway better late than never.

She has been finishing off two quilts for Project Linus. She did the piecing, quilting and binding, and I did the checking to make sure there were no loose ends.

All those trees and nowhere to do a wee! Apparently they were all blocks which were left over from the Quilt Time Project Linus Day last February, so I am glad she had finally used them all up. This cat quilt is also made from left over blocks.

I think it should be a dog quilt next time.

Tag x