Words of Life Stitchalong - block 3 HOME...

The old saying "Home is what you make it" rings true in my life.

I cannot count the many and varied homes where I've lain my head at day's end these past sixty years, but I have learned there's a few essential ingredients which can be added to wonderfully transform any dwelling (whether that be a house, a flat or apartment, a caravan, a cabin, a yurt or a tent) into a welcoming home and a place of sanctuary for those who live inside or those who visit.

I was fifteen when I had to leave home and it was a shared room at the YWCA which became my first dwelling outside of family life. I had to leave school abruptly and quickly got a job to pay my board of $27 per week (my wage back then was $36 per week), which included breakfast and dinner from Monday to Friday, and three meals a day at weekends. What a life change that was for a girl in her mid-teens, yet in so many ways it was the making of me as I learned lessons about being personally responsible for my own care and the necessity to budget and save if I wanted shoes, underwear, medicine or bus fares to and from work on rainy days (on sunny days I walked 45 minutes into the city to my workplace). And over the following months that little room became my home, my place to stop and rest and ponder and sometimes cry. Though meagre in possessions apart from a bed, record player and chest of drawers, my 'home' was also a sanctuary and I believe it was in that narrow little cubicle style room that my love for creating a home was birthed.

I think it may also have contributed to a dislike of clutter because to this day I need everything in its place and not too much stuff to visually overwhelm my eyes - hence our regular de-cluttering and culling of 'stuff'. 

A calm, serene atmosphere with order, gentleness, plants and soft furnishings in every room is my personal 'home' environment recipe, and this has never altered despite the many varied places we have lived - whether that be a one room cabin, former convent, townhouse or large home full of corridors, nooks and crannies. Knowing what visually and emotionally nourishes my soul and the souls of my family, within four or twenty four walls, has allowed me to set up 'home' within days of each move. 

And just since marrying Mr E we have moved back and forth across Australia twenty two times!

Praise God we bought our first home last year so now we have a permanent address as well.

But not everyone's idea of a home sanctuary is like mine. Over the years I've made friends who embrace cluttered surfaces, friends who no longer have visible walls because they are lined with bookcases, friends who have husbands who 'collect' and friends whose homes overflow with crafting things, pets or some other personal hobby. And they are happy because their homes express who they are and what brings them joy.

HOME is no one size fits all, it's what you make of it, it's how a person stamps a dwelling with their own signature.

Home is where your heart rests, where it delights in the surroundings you have created for yourself and those you love, home is where you want to be.

I also appreciate there are those who do not have their own home but live in someone else's house, and that can offer a challenge at times. This is when having your own room or a set of rooms can be like a blank painter's canvas if you take time to consider what brings you joy creatively and set about adding those things to your personal area/s. It may be nothing more than a pretty quilt, a few beautiful cushions, a couple of potted plants, candles and framed photos...but if you love them, then they are evidence the space you dwell in is in fact your 'home'. 

DOWNLOAD the pattern for Home

(if you've missed the first two blocks the links are in my sidebar)

Yesterday Blossom and I went in to Spotlight as they had a very good sale and she needed fabric for dresses and some craft supplies for herself, Cully May and Rafaella to make gifts, whilst I needed threads. Seems I always need threads, so when there's a sale I stock up.

Anyhow, when we were walking through the aisles of fabric the little girls discovered a large stand of hats, alice bands and fascinators. Well, you know what happened next, right??

Afterwards we took them out for lunch because they were so good in Spotlight, which isn't easy for a 20 month old and a 3 year old surrounded by so many colourful distractions.

I'm so blessed to be Cully May and Rafaella's nana.

May your weekend be abundant in homely blessings, joyful family gatherings, inspirational conversations, creative moments and the ever bountiful love of Jesus,

hugs

Another hospital visit and the next free vintage kitchen block...

Nana used to say "It never rains but it pours" and so it's been with our family recently.

This morning Cully May, our 3yo ball of endless energy, decided to climb, climb and climb some more till she reached the highest place in Blossom's kitchen where the medicine is kept safely out of harm's way. She then chewed and swallowed a codeine/paracetamol tablet which Blossom takes for her migraines.

It was as she swallowed that chewed tablet and her face screwed up (because it tasted awful) that Blossom caught her, at first thinking Cully May had eaten a vitamin but then discovering the more sinister truth.

I met them at the hospital and we were seen immediately, Cully May monitored for the next five hours. 

Initially very drowsy and just wanting to sleep, she picked up as the hours wore on and after regular monitoring by the nursing staff the doctor gave us the all clear to take her home. 

Praise God! There was a lot of prayer offered up in the hospital and Mr E was praying at work too.

Blossom was amazing, so calm under pressure (takes after her dad) which is important in situations that can frighten children. We're just so relieved Cully May is fine and the emergency is over.

A motorbike accident, a dog bite and Cully May in hospital - all within 13 days.

Mr E, Blossom and I all agree that we could use a break from accidents and hospitals right now!

I'm showing the second last block in My Scrappy Vintage Kitchen today and it's one of my favourites, The Apron.

You'll find the complete pattern for My Scrappy Vintage Kitchen HERE

If you've missed any of the previous patterns in this stitch-along the links to them are here

We're planning a quieter weekend than those of late and I do pray your own will be restful and calm as well.

Excuse me for the short post today but there's a cup of chamomile brewing and a dear husband waiting to watch a documentary so I'm going to sign off and settle in for a restful and hopefully uneventful evening.

hugs

Contentment and simple things...

You can learn an awful lot about life, and yourself, from a child.

On Tuesday I was blessed to babysit for Blossom and Ross so they could go out for their first meal 'alone' in a little over three years. Since before Cully May was born, actually.

Rafaella went down for her afternoon nap and this gave Cully May and I some one-on-one time together. We played hide and seek, shared lunch (the girls always like to share my lunch), made houses out of bright coloured felt triangles, twisted pipe cleaners into bunny ears (which she insisted I wear) and sang songs.

So much fun we had playing together and I got an excessive amount of cuddles which filled my happy-nana-heart to overflowing. Then we slowed a while, shared some strawberries and custard, and I asked "What would you like to do now?" Without skipping a beat Cully May's smile beamed wide and she answered "Nana, will you make me a superhero cape?" and handed me a bunch of pipe cleaners. 

"Honey, I don't think we can make a superhero cape out of these." 

"Yes you can, Nana!" she responded, her eyes sparkling and her voice full of confidence in my abilities. So I stopped for a bit and thought about it. 

You know, we adults can tend to overthink problems, but that's something young children are free from. They're right there in the moment and when you let go of your own ideas and expectations of 'perfection' or 'the right way' and consider how simple their needs really are, simple solutions soon follow.

Like my calico grocery bag which goes everywhere with me - if you think like a child it is the most amazing superhero cape!

Those pipe cleaners Cully May felt needed to be part of the cape tied the handles together around her neck.

Around and around the room she ran, superhero cape swishing behind her. She was happy, I was content. Simple things bring joy.

Then she stopped in front of me and asked, "Nana, will you make me a mask?" 

Aware now that I wasn't to raid Blossom's fabrics and set up her sewing machine whilst googling 'patterns for a superhero mask", I considered what we had in front of us on the table. More pipe cleaners and paper!

I'm telling you, the way to a little girl's heart is paved with a shopping bag, pipe cleaners, paper and simple imagination.

I mean, really, is this three year old happy or what?!

When Blossom and Ross came home their little girl insisted I make daddy a mask too, so I did, and they both played superheroes. Happy and content, this nana said her goodbyes and headed home, quite impressed with how a three year old reminded her to stop, consider, and think of simple solutions before trying anything more complex.

Wednesday I did a lot of housework including a thorough cleaning of my front loader washing machine (inspired by this post of Annabel's) before sketching and preparing new designs as part of a larger project in the future...

Later that day I removed the border from a very special old design from 2010 which had been displayed in a frame.

Here's the stitchery removed from the frame but still with the dull dark blue border.

I'd chosen the fabric you see behind it as my cushion print but the stitchery border now needed a brighter blue to match it...

So I found this lovely blue print in my stash and it looked as though it would really 'lift' the overall finish of what was to become a cushion.

A thin 3/4" border of the blue and then large floral borders all around transformed my "Little House Sampler" stitchery...

...into a beautiful new addition to our bedroom.

The cheery brightness of these fabrics has brought life again to a heart-felt design I've always loved but had grown tired of in it's old setting. 

It's called the "Little House Sampler" in honour of the many years we homeschooled and the thousands and thousands of kilometres we've driven across Australia listening to all Laura Ingalls Wilder's "Little House" books along the way.  When I designed this we'd just completed our homeschool journey and both my 'young ones' were now adults and working their first jobs. It became my personal way of stitching a memory that spanned eleven wonderful years.

So to have it now on our bed is rather special.

I've decided to offer this stitchery pattern as a gift to all new Rewind Club members who join by September 4th. 

Below is the cover with photos of all the patterns inside the next issue.

To find out more just go here to the rewind page.

The other day my precious husband bought me a rose.

For years the only roses I received were the occasional bunches he'd buy to fill a vase on the table of each rental house, but now that we have our own home he thought it time we had a permanent rose.

It's called Shocking Blue and is in a very large pot outside the bedroom window where it gets a lot of sun but can be moved to safer ground should we find the next tropical wet season to be more than it can take.

After the January/February floods we're a little cautious.

Yesterday Blossom came by with Rafaella and Cully May and we had morning tea out back watching the cockatoos and rainbow lorikeets feasting on seeds from the feeder.

I bakes scones which were served with homemade strawberry jam and the little ones shared mugs of (very weak milky) tea with us. Rafaella is almost 18 months old now and I've nicknamed her Climbing Houdini because she appears and disappears and she climbs up, over and under everything. She's so quick and when you catch her that cheeky little smile you see in the photo below is paired with the cutest laugh. Love.

Cully May helped me pick cherry tomatoes which we'd then pass to Rafaella who would take them to Blossom who filled a bowl to take home. Teaching them about the garden and fresh food is a joy!

Too soon my little munchkins made their goodbyes, but I must admit to needing a rest later as time with them is always full on...in the very best possible way.

These past weeks I've thought a lot about contentment and the simple things in life which fill my heart. None of them were big things in themselves, just a number of small and simple joys and doings that satisfied my wife, mother, nana and domestic heart. 

Things like baking scones, making jam, hanging the washing out to dry, brewing tea in a pot, picking tomatoes and fresh herbs for dinner, planting healing herbs under the lemon tree, preparing my husband's lunch box for work, taking freshly dried sheets off the line and airing the bed, sewing a special cushion, sharing deep thoughts with Blossom, buying fruit and vegetables at the market, preparing a simple pot of tea for my love when he comes home, making a superhero cape from a shopping bag, sitting out back to watch the sun set with the man I love beside me, praying for a friend, making a small gift, discovering an orphan tomato plant ripe with fruit in a hidden corner of the yard, listening to my son in law as he shared an idea I may try, choosing not to spend on things we don't need, letting gratitude well up from deep inside for all we've been blessed with...being still and knowing God.

I'm intentionally slowing my life because it's too precious a gift not to savour, and my prayer today is that you also embrace a slowing of days, of things, of doings, and give time to considering the blessings which have come your way.

May the Lord be your anchor in the storm, your guide in the darkness, your delight in the sunshine, and your hope in every new sunrise. 

hugs

Fresh starts...

Out front there is a huge white buttercup bush (properly named a Turnera) and each morning it is where scores of bees stop on their daily pollen shopping spree.

I tried to capture a photo close up but the bees are swift and refused my pleas for a portrait, so I've just zoomed in closer for you to see one of the buzzing beauties at work. Makes me happy knowing our garden has many bee, butterfly and bird friendly blooms.

So here we are on January 1st with a new year before us, untouched and unexplored.

As I mentioned the other day the pre-Christmas Craftsy changes have definitely put a speed bump in my path and though I'm quite accepting and relaxed about it all I do now have a lot of extra work to do setting up a new online pattern shop at Etsy and updating all my patterns due to their expired links - not how I'd hoped to spend the summer holiday school break with my teacher husband.

So I'm not going to kick off the 2019 year of gentle domesticity with it's associated book study, free patterns and regular homemaking blog posts until next week. Right now I just want to go for a couple of long country drives with my beloved and gather my thoughts, pray and set up a shop. 

In the big scheme of life another week won't hurt anyone, but it will give hubby and I time to explore the countryside and enjoy some time out from the recent festivities, home/garden renovations and work.

Do you remember when I stitched this design last year? It was just before we moved into our home and my plan was to hang it in the kitchen once I'd decided how to finish it.

A couple of weeks ago I finally did just that...

The floral fabric is cut from a sturdy tea towel and I blanket stitch appliqued the "Simple Way" stitchery block onto the front before hemming around the towel edges and enclosing one end to allow a quilt hanger to be inserted. 

I haven't hung much in the house yet because I'm still finding my way around and discovering my style...something I thought I knew but which seems to be a little different than I'd imagined.

However, this simple wall hanging has given my decorating mojo a nice kick start and in coming months you'll see more and more of what I do within these walls for beauty and inspiration.

Lately, those stitched words "the simple way is usually the best way" hanging right where I see them all day long (I am in the kitchen a lot) has helped to relax my thoughts so that I let go of the 'too many' plans which try hard to crowd my mind. As a women who likes to keep her word, work to a routine, not let anyone down and follow through on her commitments, it's not easy for me to stop and remember than I can delay some things, change my mind sometimes, or let go when plans simply cannot be seen through to the end. 

But I read those words and there's a sweet peace that sits upon my spirit, so I look at the day or week before me and consider "what is the simple answer to this or that situation?" - and you know, an answer, a simple answer comes to mind quite soon after.

The pattern is available here in my Etsy Shop and over the coming month I'll have many more available there as it's my new PDF pattern home. But slowly...one thing at a time.

Blossom came by with the girls today and it was extra special because they got to play with Poppy. They don't see him as often as they see me because he's at work most of the time when they come by for the day, but Miss Cully May adores her Poppy so when he's around she gives me a quick hug and then runs off to be his little shadow for the day. 

Blossom and the girls bring such joy to our home...

Whilst hubby is on holidays he has made some changes to my sewing room so that I can create and work more efficiently. Firstly, his Christmas gift to me was a wonderful height adjustable table where I can sit and sketch new designs as well as prepare them for stitching. I cannot tell you how much easier it is to work in the sewing room now!

I can lower the table when I'm sitting and then lift it higher for project preparations.

The room is a mess right now because I'm in the process of rearranging things but with the new table AND the shelving he built the other day...

...I can now plan this bright and cheery work space to suit my business needs.

This coming Friday I'll be sharing two alphabet pincushions with you, the R and the S to bring us up to date (as I've already shared the T)...

The links to download the QU and T letters are still valid and will stay that way until Thursday night. You'll find them in this blog post.

Craftsy removed the three previous sets of alphabet patterns so I'll be adding them to my Etsy Shop in a few days in case you missed any. 

There are still 22 patterns in my Craftsy Shop which the owners decided to leave there, though they removed 113 others. Now I know this is a pain for anyone who was working through "A Year in the Garden" because they removed the October, November and December patterns, so in the coming week I'll have all twelve of those blocks in my new Etsy Shop and will include the quilt finishing pattern with each of them.

On the sewing table at the moment I have a number of new patterns that I cannot show you yet (though you can see a few peeks over here on my Instagram page) and I need to finish a cover for my 2019 blog planner using this little design from last month's Stitchery Club...

I've never used a blog planner before but as I have a number of new things in store for you this year it occurred to me that this may well be a wise project to make.

SO FAR I can tell you this...

We're still working through the Alphabet Pincushions Stitch-A-Long each Friday and that will run through until February 22nd.

I will begin the book study of 'The Gentle Art of Domesticity' by Jane Brocket on Tuesday 7th January. The book is hard to track down these days but is available on Kindle by clicking here.
(I do not earn anything from this)

I will share the first free pattern/project in our 2019 Year of Gentle Domesticity on Tuesday 7th January.

The rest of this year's plans will be shared next week.

I send out a free newsletter each Friday and this year there will be a few 'extras' offered along the way so if you aren't receiving them already it's quite easy to pop over here and sign up!

May your year be blessed, your heart cheered, your mind clear and your paths made straight in these coming twelve months!

hugs