It doesn’t feel like I’ve had a very productive year. I’ve tried writing another blog post twice in the last few months but nothing ever came of it.
Honestly, I’ve not been feeling great. Over the last I-don’t-know-how-many years, I’ve had tummy problems that appear to be IBS, I then had my appendix removed following what I thought was a bad IBS flare-up and I’ve now been diagnosed with adenomyosis. I am waiting to see a gynaecologist, but who knows how long that will take but am currently on hormone medication which is helping with the symptoms. All of this coupled with depression and chronic migraines makes for a very unhappy bunny (I have new meds for the migraines too which are also helping).
I’m writing this on Christmas Day. For me, this just an extra couple of days off work. I’ve spent the day with G, we didn’t get up until 12 o’clock because we’re both exhausted. I made us a nice dinner, I opened my one gift from my best friend and gave G a gift card. Neither of us could decide what we wanted so he got a gift card and I ordered myself some crafty bits from Hobbycraft which will arrive next week and G has given me some money towards it. We’ve never been huge on gift giving. Christmas should be about spending time with our loved ones and not how much we spend on each other.
This year I’ve done a few more test bags/pouches for Liz of MOMENTS by Liz. Oh and for those who aren’t already in the know…she now has an Etsy shop!! Whoop whoop! This is so great for Liz and her customers, makes it easier for them to shop and allows Liz a break from having to organise PayPal payments and manually email each pattern out. Such great news for her š
Here is a gallary of the MOMENTS bags I’ve made this year…I think the Diamonds are my favourite š ā¤ļø
As well as testing for Liz, I’ve also managed to do some other sewing in between. I tried my hand at making a few tops to wear for work (and one that I don’t wear as I’m not keen on the shape). I made the Oslo craft bag by Sew Sweetness for a friend who had a baby. I made a peg-bag, some no-show slip socks (a free video tutorial by Crafty Gemini), a few glasses cases (free tutorial by Sew Sweetness), tissue pouches, Meraki pouches (free YouTube tutorial) and that cute little bunny I made as a quick test for a freebie Liz did for her Facebook group.
I’ve also been cooking (way too much), baking bread and making my own pizzas. I’ve mastered tiger bread but still can’t get nice soft bread rolls…something I’m still working on lol there were also some little granola cookies I made in there too…they were good, I must make those again!
I treated myself to a Sizzix Big Shot Plus about two weeks ago, a kinda early Christmas present to myself (which was naughty as I’m supposed to be saving for a new sewing machine!). It’s something I’ve wanted for a long time and although I know the latest fad at the moment is the Cricut which also looks really good and a lot of fun, I don’t think I would get as much use out of it so I went for the Big Shot and I love it! I now have a new addiction and have been playing with it in my spare time. Now I’ve added some paper and card to my stash and am waiting for some nice Distress Ink so I can make some nice cards. I’m not very artistic and struggle to come up with ideas so I’ve been reading magazines and watching Sizzix videos for inspiration and to learn some new techniques. I’m looking forward to getting stuck in and playing with the inks when they arrive š
I’ve made a few small things so far, one of the girls in work asked if I could make hair bows for her little girl for Christmas and I ended up making a gorgeous little box with some of the dies that came with my Big Shot (I had the starter kit that included some of the thinlits and framelits). I made the red & gold bows to practice using the dies (one of the bows is made using a template and cut out by hand) and putting them together. Then someone else in work wanted some for his niece which meant I got to make another box too š I do enjoy making the boxes, they’re so much fun and so functional. They’re great for cards which have dimension and need protection from being in a standard flat envelope. I also made a little gift card holder which is in the shape of a parcel, super cute die and can see me using this one often!
My biggest achievement for this year was the blanket we put together for my gran’s 80th birthday in July. My mum and I came up with the idea a while ago for me, her, my sister and cousins to crochet lots of squares and I would then join them all together to make one big blanket for her. My best friend, who my gran used to babysit and I’ve known as long as I can remember also provided some squares to add to the blanket. I’m thrilled with how it turned out and my gran was totally surprised and absolutely loves it ā¤ļø
I do still enjoy crochet and have also done a little cross stitch and attempting some embroidery. Here are some final pics of WIPs and completed bits:
The book shown above is just wonderful, it has lots of things to try as well as crochet including jewellery making using silver clay and some baking recipes too – highly recommend this book, it’s so beautifully written. I believe I got my copy from Amazon.
So that’s it…I’ve done more than I thought I had but still don’t feel like I’ve been productive enough. I am not good at making resolutions, but I will carry on doing my best. I will keep going and I will continue to get up each day, go to work and hopefully still have time for me.
I hope everyone enjoys the holidays and wishing everyone a happy new year š and just remember, it’s ok not to be ok ā¤ļø
xxxšHšxxx
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