Mindful stitching and mindful moments ...

 

Breathe and take a mindful moment.

Life can be hectic for all of us for different reasons.  Mine has been but wonderfully so, sorry I have not posted in two weeks.  I have been away in Cheshire and I did post from there but upon my return I had a friend come and stay,  she needed a rest has had just packed up her home and is preparing to move to live with here children in Australia. 

She is now there for a few weeks then back here for a few weeks then off for good to live.  I want to see as much of her as possible as you can imagine.

My stitching has been really varied and rather prolific and I am doing several projects at the moment.  Obviously the quilt project is coming along but I do leave it for a few days and return to look and decide on things.  I want to add to its history and by doing so not actually take anything away from it as you can imagine.  I feel it is not one to be rushed and then to have to unpick anything and further damage this gorgeous Canadian red cross quilt.

I have little baskets of projects spread across my Threads of Time studio and my lounge.  The quilt is in the studio taking up the whole table with majestic beauty with little applique pins in it with things to sew on and word lists to stitch on to it.  I go in and move bits around and when I am sure I stitch things in place.  In my lounge at this moment in time are baskets with wonky log cabins being made up and little pouches of torn fabrics in different colour ways so pinks, reds and blues which are all antique fabrics .. some tiniest of scraps saved for something else I have in mind as well.  The birds are getting threaded scraps for their nest linings but they are happily gathering bits of old eiderdown and paisley fabrics ...
Gorgeous nests here in Dorset!

Then I have a white linen dress which I am hand stitching on for the Summer and going to vintage fairs , I am looking forward to warmer days and meeting up with friends new and old and choosing one of my dresses to wear.

I have stitched a Oscar Wilde quote around the neck line which reads "A flower blossoms for its own joy" and I am still hand stitching bit onto this dress.  I am not a dress maker so I either purchase a old dress or indeed I get a dress made for me to be able to add covered buttons and hand stitchery to.

Then dear reader I have a basket of English paper piecing as well,  I have cut out about 40 fabric hexagons at this moment and I have the card board inners in a little basket with needle and thread and I am covering and stitching them.  When I get through those I will be cutting out more from gorgeous antique fabrics, yes paisley and eiderdown fabrics are in there! It is such a relaxing thing to

stitch of an evening and is easy to do with my candles and twinkling fairy lights on and my log burner too, the nights are still chilly here in Dorset.  It is not detailed stitching just basting and so it is great whilst watching a film or listening to a podcast.

Then finally I am stitching a meditation roll and that is wonderful too on a long piece of old linen and stitching things on to it (bits of fabrics with raw edges, I have stitched a little cottage on there from fabrics with detail embroidery.  You stitch it all on by basting it and then you choose a thread or threads and you go across all of your fabric with running stitch.  It gives it texture and somehow makes it all come alive.  You then wind it up onto a wooden bobbin and fasten it by a button with button hole or if you do not wish to do a button hole then you can stitch some ribbon on there and wind it around said button.

Some people stitch on fabrics that mean something to them like their children's old

baby clothes or a parent who has passed they cut up shirts or clothes and it is a keepsake. looking back I wish I had done that with my Dads shirts but he passed away in 1999 so .....

I am doing it with lots of beautiful bits of fabrics that are really just scraps but all stitched together they look so wonderful I think.

So you can see I have been busy here at Thimble and loving the hand sewing and the mindful moments that goes along with it.  The sound of the needle and thread going through the fabrics is calming and it certainly helps me, I am still struggling a little from loosing my Mum and I find it best not to have moments where I find myself not doing something right now.  Its early days and its all the firsts.  Her Birthday and Mothers Day with out her here have been particularly difficult but I relieve in my mind such happy memories that make me smile.

Also I have been purchasing new threads and I have fallen in love with Shashiko threads that are variegated especially to do running stitch through my wonky log cabin squares and my meditation rolls...  

I bought a few of them and some needles ( the needles are longer for running stitch as you get more stitches on them)  For those of you who have not heard of it then leave a comment and I will do a little extra blog on it.  It is facinating in its history.  This picture shows two of them but I have around eight different ones now ...

My little garden is jumping into life and to my delight foxgloves, daisies and bleeding heart flowers are starting to surface from their Winters nap.  I can see tulips budding and I have just sewn around my wild flower seeds as well after a really good weeding of my flower beds and by the little fence.  I am certainly looking forward now to warmer days ahead.

The hedgehogs have woken up and need their food every night in the garden along with their water bowls as well,  Soon enough there will be babies with them and I delight in the fact that they come every day to feed and wander around.

Also I have been doing a lot of baking and cooking and really enjoying that as well, I made some huge banana, cinnamon and oat muffins which were addictive.  

Well I really hope that you have enjoyed my ramble today and as you can see I have been busy and productive.

I hope you all have a lovely weekend and as always take care and Happy Stitching.

Sarah XX