Surprises, Awards and lots of plants.........

Hello there

Have lost my blog mojo a bit at the moment. Twiglet starts playgroup for the first time in 2 weeks, so we are cramming in a lot of stuff. This coupled with the fact I've got a grotty cold seems to have affected my whittering abilities (stop cheering!) so this is going to be a post heavy on photos. (The above are photos of the lovely roses Mr Twigs and Twiglet bought me for being a good mummy and taking Twiglet out on trips while I've been poorly :) This was a lovely surprise as I rarely have flowers bought for me. After I gave birth to Twiglet, Mr Twigs bought me a cornish pastie!!! must admit I did enjoy it though:) (He also bought me a gorgeous Doug Hyde print 6 weeks later :)

I've done very little on the crafting front this week. I've kindly loaned the car to Mr Twigs so Twiglet and I have discovered the joys of public transport in a rural area and we've had good fun. It's lovely being able to nosey into peoples gardens and relax and enjoy the scenery which I can't do when I'm driving. Of course Twiglet has been in his element being something of an old lady magnet, I'm sure everyone in a 20 miles radius now knows he has new shoes and a new haircut:)

I received a lovely surprise in the post this week, Vicky over at Anglesey Allsorts posted recently about some agapanthus plants she'd bought at a car boot sale. I mentioned how jealous I was as they are VERY expensive up here. Well, what a terrific surprise my postman delivered two for me from Vicky along with a smashing little book for Twiglet, how kind is that? Here they are in the new pot I bought for them today!!!! Big thank yous and big hugs from Twiglet!!!!

We've spent quite a lot of time in the garden this week and I've finally had some ripe tomatoes in my greenhouse, which were swiftly gobbled up by Twiglet.

Here's my fledging herb pot, I've got a bay tree, rosemary bush and thyme elsewhere in the garden. Today I bought some lovage and comfrey(to make tomato food) but will pop those in a pot so they don't take over the gardenMy lilies have finally flowered too, here's one for your enjoyment (yes I know it's blurred :)

I received an email from Cathy @ Big Cats Emporium this week to say that my Cupcake & Tea swap had arrived safely in Australia, so here's a piccy for you. Although, I'm a coffee drinker myself I just had to include some Yorkshire Tea didn't I? (Gorgeous Cupcake card and tag made by Jan @ Daylily Lane - take a look at her lovely Etsy shop!)And in other news, as they say on TV, I'm trying to learn to crochet again - grrrrrr, that's my only comment. I've opened a new FOLKSY shop, see the link on the right hand side, now I really do need to rediscover my crafting mojo!

Twiglet has now had a big boy haircut and looks about 3 years older, I nearly cried when the hairdresser chopped off his lovely long blonde tresses - sigh. He does look blimmin cute though.

I've also been lucky enough to be the recipient of two awards firstly this one .............

From the lovely Tassie @ Tassies Craft Blog, thank you very much it's so kind of you lady. I was also given this award by lovely Natalie @ Natalies World of Sparkling Cards - lucky Twiggy, thank you Nat.

So I need to :-
1. The winner can put the logo on her blog.
2. Link the person you received your award from.
3. Nominate at least 7 other blogs.
4. Put links of those blogs on yours.
5. Leave a message on the blogs of the girls you’ve nominated

Now, you know I'm lazy and never add links but all my favourite blogs on on my favourite list so go take a looky see at :-

Lynsey @ Swirly Thoughts

April@ Cake Makes the World Go Round

Jan @ Daylily Lane

Emma @ Jellybelly Jellybrain

Lee @ Solstice Dreamer

Sal @ Sals Snippets

Sarah @ Tiggertastic

To quote Frank Carson, and there's more.............

I was given this award from lovely Jo over at Freaky Deaky Crafty Chick, thank you missus, here are the rules that I nicked from Jos blog and as ever all the favourites can be found on my faves list.

1. Only 5 people allowed.

2. 4 have to be dedicated followers of your blog

3. 1 has to be someone new or recently new to your blog and live in another part of the world.

4. You must link back to whoever gave you the award.

The award goes to:-

Jennie@ Falling Down the Rabbit Hole

Daisie @ Daisie Days

Louise @ Home is Where the Heart Is

Vicky@ Anglesey Allsorts

Linda @ Two Pink Possums

Phew, another mammoth Twiggy post, I'm off for a lie down and a Lemsip. Have a good week.

Bye for now

love

Twiggy x

He's a Big 'Un

Blimey you don't get many of those to the pound do you? We visited our local country fair last weekend, and it was great. Apparently 10,000 visitors converged on the little village of Emley during one day - phew! no wonder the fields were so muddy.Twiglet was rather taken with the hamsters.How about one of these lovely creatures? you could make your own wool.
I love living up here.
How sweet does Twiglet and his little cousin look hand in hand, holding onto their respective Daddies hands - bless. He is only 5 months older than his l'il cuz and they get on so well but we live far apart so see each other a handful of times a year, but they're great friends.

Here's a bag I made for the little lady in question, she seemed quite taken with it!

The next day we went to a very rainy Lotherton Hall and met this pretty fellow.We popped into town this evening to meet Mr Twigs from work and had a quick trip to Primark as I never seem to get to go shopping anywhere and I was after a snoogy fleece to make into some cosy cushions. I'm very pleased with this................

And these gorgeous tea towels are so lovely it would have been rude not to buy them.
All at the credit crunching price of £2 each !!!!

I have done a bit of crafting this week, as I am all sewed out, thought I'd do some ATCs. I completed these for the lucky bag challenge I'm taking part in this month on the ATC Addicts R Us forum. The remit was to use only things from the lucky bag you were provided with and basic stuff like glue scissors etc. I used so much glitter, it is still everywhere. I left a fairy dust trail on the bus this afternoon, which I thought was rather pretty :)Good news by the way my friend LOVED the beans on toast brooch and bando that I made her for Cropredy and will wear them with pride (see previous posts). She did think the brooch was hilarious too, it's good to know you're not the only strange person out there :)Finally, now I know that Simone has received her giveaway prize, here's a piccy. Or as they used to say on the TV programme, BULLSEYE, Here's What You Could Have Won ! sorry, I'll get my coat :)

As Simone is a cardmaker I tailored the prize to include stuff I thought she would enjoy using the most.

Have a good week.

love

Twiggy x

Happy Yorkshire Day & The Winner Is....................

Happy Yorkshire Day everyone!

Ok, it's time to announce the winner of my giveaway selected by Twiglet from one of his lurid Ikea bowls

And the winner is ...................................................................................................................................

SIMONE@ LINDEN GROVE
Well done Simone, and sorry to the rest of you but thanks for the book recommendations some interesting stuff there. As I said in my previous post I intend to do a Pay It Forward in the next month or so, so keep watching.
Twiggy x
PS Just a quick note to say that I'm in the process of making some new stock for my Etsy shop so I've got a little sale on existing stock so please do take a look. New stock will be in there hopefully in the next week or so, Twiggy bettter get moving :)

Flowers Galore

This is going to be a very flowery post after Louise @ Home is Where the Heart Is requested more pics of the garden. We spent most of the weekend and the beginning of the week in the garden, thankfully, as all we can see of the lovely view today is a few murky outlines and lots of low cloud, it's like Brigadoon up here today.

Twiglet got a new paddling pool as his old one had burst and spent 4 hours in it on Sunday afternoon, so money well spent.
Now here's the gardening section, are you looking Louise:) The above pic is some Livingstone Daisies grown by Grandma Twiggy. I love these and used to call them jelly tot flowers when I was little, just look at the centre of them.This Dahlia is a beauty also grown by Grandma Twiggy.Beautiful scented rose that I insisted on bringing with us when we moved 2 and a bit years ago, it smells heavenly.My lovely daisies, I have a huge clump and they are very tall.
Some out of focus Sweetpeas that smell lush, I grew them from seed and they are lovely, just look at those colours.
I love Sweetpeas they are my favourite flower along with Lilies and Poppies.

This is what Twiglet and I made for dinner, Toad in The Hole, yes I know not very Summery but it's like Autumn here today :)

My boy did his first bit of sewing today at the age of 3, I'm very proud, we are making a tiny sock monkey together :)
Remember I asked you to guess what I was making for my mate, well here it is, it is a Bando and I was so taken with it as was Grandma Twiggy, I've made one for Grandma Twiggy and I'm going to put some in my Etsy shop.
Please excuse terrible photos and Marge Simpson hair, it was at the end of a very long, hot day and it is jolly difficult to take a photo of your own head. Mr Twigs tried and it wasn't pretty, I looked like I was about to go potato picking or something.
Here it is as a hairband.Here it is opened out as a scarf, nifty or what? and all hand sewn - ohhh get me :)
Here are some more bits I'm about to pop in my Etsy shop, which has been very neglected recently.
The cakes are a mini cushion and a small pin cushion, the cocktail glass is a little brooch.

How funny is this, for my pal? it's supposed to be beans on toast and is also a brooch, it's a little joke between us which she'll find hilarious but you probably just think I'm nuts - good point ;)

Righto, that's me for now, don't forget to pop back tomorrow night to see if you've won the Giveaway. However, don't worry if you're not lucky this time as I intend to do a Pay It Forward soon, I think I owe 2?

Cheerio

Twiggy x

All Kinds of Everything, Trains, Post & A Giveaway !!!

Here's a photo I've just taken from our garden, the farmers are very busy at the moment with lots of tractors coming and going especially in the evening - they look great with their big headlights shining. Wish I could capture the sun on the golden field and old farm buildings it looks lovely (if you look very closely can you see the campers, bottom right!)

Guess where we went this morning in the stifling heat, here is a little clue..................Oooo it's young Master Twiglet and Mavis, we had another day out with Thomas it was hot and lots of fun, loads of VERY excited little boys (and a few girls) running around like loons, Twiglet was one excited young man, we all came home and had to have an afternoon nap!!! I've said this before but if you ever get the opportunity to visit Kirklees Light Railway (they have a website) do so, it's a great place and the people who own it are terrific.

Apart from the usual baking and playing with the new breadmaker ( a small loaf a day gulp - I must show more restraint or I'll become Piggypeasticks) as I've not been driving this week we've spent tons of time in the garden yay!!!! or buying things on the internet - oops!

I've given quite a lot of stuff away on Freecycle recently and sold a few bits on Ebay and look what I bought with some of my cash.

I've coveted these books for ages.....................I've not had chance to have a good look at them yet, but the Doodle Stitching book looks great and I heart Jenny Hart (can you see what I did there:) I already have Sublime Stitching which is fab.A bundle of scrummy fabric.And a gorgeous writing set for my Sister In Laws birthday from the Etsy seller Charliemotel, isn't it pretty?

I seem to have got my crafting mojo back, I'm pretty pants at knitting but would like to improve and bought this little book a while ago, it's fab for basic knitters like me. I'm currently making a pressie for my friend, bet you can't guess what it is (please don't strain your necks trying to look at it, as I've added a sideways photo again:)Talking of knitting, did you see this in The Guardian today it is a good incentive for me to improve my pathetic skills as there is some fabby stuff in there. Lots of great projects by a fantastic lady called Mazz (the one who made the excellent Dr Who aliens last year).I've also taken inspiration (stolen) Marmadaisys idea of Crifting (being crafty in a thrifty manner). Here are a pair of shorts made from a cut down pair of Twiglets old jeans complete with patches from an outgrown t.shirt of his. I think they look pretty crifty and nifty myself!My pal (mentioned previously) is going to the Cropredy Festival soon - 3 nights without the children - woohoo you go girl !! note to self stop watching Gok Wan). Anyhoo, I'm going to attempt to make her a gift with these items, any guesses? I will show you the end result, but please note the word ATTEMPT!!!

I've won a Brilliant blog Award from Jan @ Daylily Lane, thank you so much, I've already been lucky enough to be given this one so I won't pass it on again. Apart from to say award it to yourselves lovely readers and pass it on at will!!

Righto, I've been tagged by lovely Jennie @ Falling Down the Rabbit Hole - thank you kindly lady. You know, I'm sure I've done this before, so for once I'll keep it short and to the point, yeah, yeah first time for everything I know :)

(Rules stolen from Jennies blog).

Link to the person who “tagged” you.
2. Post the rules on your blog.
3. Write six random things about yourself.
4. Tag six people at the end of your post.
5. Let each person know that they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.6. Let the tagger know your entry is up.

You know as I constantly tell you I'm too lazy/stupid to do links so I'll names names at the end, ok? they're in my list of faves!

Random facts:-

1. I'm VERY allergic to cats.

2. I DON'T like my beans or soggy food to touch my chips and I don't dunk biscuits - urgh, Mr Twigs says I'm weird - harumph!

3. I love beetroot and eat loads - hang on, I am weird!
4. I'm left-handed.

5. My hair is naturally curly (frizzy - think Crystal Tips - if you're old enough).

6. My secret hero is George Formby

Ok, I pass this to.

Jo - Blissed Out

Josie - SykesSillySite

Maxs Craft Creations

Daisie - Daisie Days

Vicky - Angelsey Allsorts

Lizzie Jane.
Phew, nearly there. I've finally posted out my Cupcake Swap but won't post a piccy until I know it's arrived safely with Cathy in Australia, hope you like it Cathy.

As I said previously I intended to have a Giveaway for my 50th post and completely forgot, so Please leave a comment and let me know which classic book I should read next. I'll ask Twiglet to draw a name out of one of his lurid Ikea bowls next Friday and announce the winner. Haven't decided what the prize is, as I'm going to tailor it to the winners likes/dislikes. (Ha ha cop out by Twiggy).

Have a great week

Twiggy x

PS The Woman in White is VERY gripping so far!

Hop - a - long Twiggy !

Here's a photo of a lovely marigold that I grew from seed, isn't it fluffy?
Well my doctor says that I've sprained the ligaments in my knee area ! That'll explain the pain then and how did I do it? getting out of the car, what an old biddy! Anyhoo, I haven't done too much crafting this week as sitting for any length of time is a problem - ho hum.

However, we were quite busy over the past week considering.

A nice trip to a park we haven't been to before, last weekend was a big hit with young Master Twiglet.

Mr Twigs had a bit of time off this week so we went to lovely Filey and of course visited Sterchis choccy shop, I would have shown you the rose and violet creams and the chocolate owls but we've eaten them - well they were very scrummy.

Blimey I finished reading Tess last week, I enjoyed it but have had enough of Thomas Hardy and death and turnips for a while so now I'm reading The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins (if anyone tells me that turnips are involved I won't be happy :) Another unputdownable classic - hooray they do exist after all, or perhaps I'm just turning into an old fuddy duddy - don't agree please :)

Here's some of Twiglets artwork for your delectation, all the tiny bears have names you know!

Art in the kitchen too, what a talent!

My completed cupcake swap. As you can see it truly represents the sort of cupcake I would produce - a bit uneven in places, I've some bits to add to my finished parcel so will show you next time.

I've kept myself busy doing a bit of embroidery (excuse rubbish photo) can you tell I have cake on my mind?A piccy of the other cute items we bought for baby Jemima from a lovely Etsy seller. Wish I could get that hat in my size, although I don't think I'd be able to squish my big hair into it!
Other exciting news (I don't get out much) we have a bread maker from a lovely Freecycler it's ace, will pop a photo of it on here next week, Mr Twigs is currently using it, he is a top baker when it comes to bread!

I've given away a ton of stuff on Freecycle recently and sold a few bits on Ebay and with the proceeds I've bought some lovely additions to my fabric stash and a couple of fab books, when they arrive I'll show them to you.

Have a lovely week and hopefully I'll have more crafting goodies to show you next time as my knee gets better. I was going to show you some pics of the garden but I bet you're exhausted by now, so bye for now.

Twiggy x

PS I was going to have a bit of a giveaway for my 50th post - but have realised that was a few posts back, so will spring it on you in the next few weeks so keep your eyes peeled!