Goodbye April Hello May

 

Here we are again and I am making a concerted effort to be on top of my post this month. I'm starting with my book choices for April.

For Mothers Day my daughter gifted me Scott Mitchell's book of his life with Barbara Windsor.  It was a love affair that nobody thought would last.,  Barbara was 26 years older than Scott, meeting by chance when his mother a life long friend of Barbara , asked him to collect Barbara from her Mews home in London and drive her down to Sussex for a visit.  They hit it off straight away and what started out as an occasional lunch soon turned into a love story that would last thirty years 

I really didn't know much about Barbara Windsor's life other than what had been in the papers on and off for years.  She had led an incredible life but had also had a lot of heartbreak that is until she met Scott Mitchell.    They shared  a rollercoaster ride that was their  life  together in which Barbara supported her husband through his alcoholism and his road to recovery to him looking after his beloved wife through her illness with dementia.  ⭐⭐⭐⭐

 

Fifty years ago, a group of teenagers spent a weekend on Holy Island, forging a bond that has lasted a lifetime. They still return every five years to celebrate their friendship, and remember the friend they lost to the rising waters of the causeway at the first reunion. 

Now, when one of the found hanged, Vera is called in. Learning that the dead man had recently been fired after misconduct allegations, Vera knows she must discover what the friends are hiding, and whether the events of many years before could have led to murder then, and now... But with the tide rising secrets long hidden are finding their way to the surgae, and Vera and the team may find themselves in more danger than they could have believed possible. 

I am never disappointed in Ann Cleeves novels especially her Vera Stanhope series.  The Rising Tide is another fabulous offering . and I would definitely recommend. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

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Aprils crafting Ta Dah moments comprise of another project I started but didn't get to complete last year. 

This is the Tree Skirt designed by In the hoop designs made each panel made individually and then joined together on your sewing machine.   I hadn't tackled something this detailed before and it has certainly been another steep learning curve. 

When I visited my last sewing retreat Easter was just around the corner and as my grandsons were due to visit I made them one of these little gnomes another design by In the hoop designs made completely in the hoop on my embroidery machine. These little gnomes are hiding a secret.  They are sitting on a kinder egg and my two little boys absolutely loved them.  I am even considering making them for the Christmas table this year and adding a bell to the hoods of the gnomes. 

Keeping with the Christmas theme and another design from In the hoop designs. As every crafter knows you have to start early preparing for Christmas if you are planning to craft your gifts.  I couldn't resist these bottle covers as gifts for friends and family this year,  They are mainly made in the hoop on my embroidery machine but finished off on the sewing machine.   I intend to make around 10 sets and with just two completed I still have a fare way to go. 

With being away and with having visitors over Easter I didn't quite get to complete my March socks until April. Made with Woolcraft 4 ply sock yarn in Paisley 984.  This does of course mean that my April socks are a little behind with  one completed and one still on the needles. 

I think my greatest accomplishment this year so far has to be completing my latest cross stitch project. 

The blue haired lady,  as she is affectionately known in my house and with friends who have watched her progression, has taken 18 months to complete.  She is another one of my projects that for the most part was finished last year but I took a break from her when the beading became a little monotonous. 

When I first saw this chart she immediately reminded me of my daughter who has a significant birthday next year and did at one time have blue hair.  With just under a year until the big day I finally decided it was time for her to come out of the cupboard again and get the rest of the beading completed.  

The chart of La Clef [The Key] is by French company Nimue but they now have many retailers stocking their charts across the UK.  This is the third design I have completed by this producer  all of which have so far been gifted to my daughter so I really hope that when her birthday arrives next February that she will equally love this one. 

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Take care one & all

Mx

Goodbye March, Hello April

 

Spring is finally here 💓 and yet again I am very late with my post. In my defense I have had a weekend away and my two little munchkins came to stay for Easter. 

I had a fabulous time away at  my sewing retreat.  It was a weekend spent with like minded people and a whole three days of machine embroidery and work shops. 

As part of the weekend Sweetpea Designs were running a workshop and I am a great fan of the designs that Alison and Annette come up with.  They come with clear instructions that even my addled brain can comprehend. 

This particular bag comes in three sizes.  I used the smallest to make as a bits & bobs bag which now fits nicely into the larger bag and of course I added a few embellishments as I just couldn't resist.  I was a little nervous when we were all asked to show off completed projects that the girls from Sweetpea might not be so keen on my embellishments but I needn't have worried as they thought the colour combination and the addition of buttons and ribbons really showed off their design. 

As part of the fun of the retreat we each take part in a gift exchange.  I made the scissor pouch out of some left over vinyl.  Vinyl is not a material I have used very often and certainly not tried adding a zip in the hoop.  I was very pleased with result.  You rarely get to find out who received your gift but whoever they are I hope they will make good use of it. 

I also made one from the leftover denim I had from my bag and it now resides inside my bag ready for when I go on my next adventure. 

 

When the munchkins come to stay Freddie likes to spend time in the kitchen with grandma baking.  Last time he came we had to tie a tea towel around him to stop him getting covered in flour.  This time I was more prepared and embroidered them an apron each whilst at the retreat.  Theo will need to grow into his but Freddie's fitted perfectly with a little growing room leftover.   

I can tell you they had a great time in the kitchen and even helped with making the pasta for the lasagna for dinner.  

Of course being Easter meant Easter eggs.  Now like most grandchildren within a fare sized family they got far too many eggs from family ad friends so grandma chose to make them these little gnomes which hides a small chocolate egg underneath.  The design is from Adele Burrows of In the hoop designs. 

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Now over to my books for March. A friend of the bearded one has been trying out their writing skills in recent years and is in the process of writing a quartet of novels which will form the Misty Blue Quartet by Misty Gardner.  The first novel  sets the story of Micky Culshaw, his life and loves together with a few heartaches a long the way. 

Micky Culshaw is a musician. No longer at the peak of his career he has yet to find love. After a troubled childhood he has moved to London where he leads a shadowy existence between touring and recording with his band, Misty Blue. He finds love with a mysterious older man, Alex, but his world is turned upside down when the lead guitarist of the band is brutally murdered and he finds himself accused of the killing. The remaining band members rally to his support and Micky finds that, in the midst of his living nightmare, his wildest dreams come true, but more anguish is to follow before he finds the true love that he craves. After the trauma of the trial and its aftermath Micky has space to 'grow', but along the way real life intrudes, bringing back long-buried memories which in turn bring developments that will ultimately bring high points and low points, joys and sorrows into his life and those of his friends and family.The story opens in the early 1980s with flashbacks to 1960s Manchester before moving on taking the characters up to the dawn of the new millennium. It recreates the atmosphere that prevailed in the period immediately following the 1967 Sexual Offences Act and through the Aids crisis and attitudes in society before the advent of Civil Partnerships and 'gay marriage' The story deals with sensitive topics and explores the characters' emotions and reactions progressively against the background of its setting

Rhapsody in Blue is Alex's story and the second of the quartet 

Alex is successful, articulate, handsome... wealthy beyond the dreams of avarice. Alex is lonely... Growing up in the grey days after WW2, outside the warmth of normal family life and in a country which is not his own. he carves out a successful career as a barrister before becoming an MP, but Alex has a secret - one which, in those days, could end his career - possibly even bring the Government down... Rhapsody in Blue follow's Alex's search for love as it leads him to form a number of different relationships, showing love in an assortment of different guises. 

Making me Blue is Davey's story and the third of the quartet. 

How many of us truly know who we are?  Especially when we are still in our teens? Davey certainly didn't/  YUes, there were a few certainties in his life. Home and Mam, his four brothers and four sisters, his best mate Micky... But just as he started to see a way out of the mundane, poverty-stricken life of 1970's Manchester the pressures started. Girlfriend Tina was expecting his child but he was still a child himself... All he wanted was a quiet life, to play drums with the band, to hang out with Micky... 

I have read all three books and although probably not my usual go to read I was presently surprised at how well written they are and how much I enjoyed all three.  You would have to read Micky's story first in order to set the scene but after that you could read the others out of sequence.  Misty Gardner is in the process of completing the fourth and final part of the quartet and I am eagerly awaiting for it to arrive so I can complete the four.  

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As it's craft night at the local church this evening I better get my skates on. I'm taking my latest pair of socks to work on tonight, which will hopefully be ready to show you next time.  

Until then take care one & all

Mx

Goodbye February Hello March

 

You've got to love a fairy haven't you I'll let you into a secret they are my best friends and lots of them live at the bottom of my garden. 

This month I'm going to start with what I have been watching on the telebox.

Based on the Sarah Vaughan's novel of the same name Netflix has made a six part drama thriller starring Sienna Miller and Michelle Doherty.  Sophie Whitehouse, the wife of British Tory MP James Whitehouse, ;earns that her husband has been having an affair with an aide., Olivia Lytton. The news goes public blowing up their lives and forcing her to deal with the consequences of her husband's disastrous actions. To make matters worse, James is accused of raping Olivia and has to stand trial. 

I have to admit I binge watched this on a day when I had the house to myself, which is a rarity in itself. Having got the day to myself I had all sorts of things planned none of which happened because having started to watch Anatomy of Scandal I found I had to keep watching until the end credits of episode 6.  I would definitely recommend you watch it and hope you enjoy it as much as I did.  ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Just before Christmas I discovered that Netflix have made a series based on her books and was keen to see how close to the books the series would be.    I watched season one and half of season two when I decided that I had to stop watching and reread the books.  I had  to check that the books that I had loved when i read them were not as bad as the series I was watching. Although there are elements of the books within the series most of it had sadly has been rewritten for Netflix viewers and sadly not to the standard of Kristin Hannah's books, the upshot being sometimes books need to stay as books and not be made into a Netflix series. ⭐⭐

So I am really hoping that you have all caught up on Happy Valley now and if not why not???  The series is brilliantly written by Sally Wainwright and started with the first two series being aired in 2014 and 2016.  It has since been a seven year wait as Wainwright wanted to keep the original characters and so consequently had to wait for Rhys Connah who plays Ryan to grow up and be able to play Ryan  as a sixteen year old.   You can find the write up of each series here and if you have never watched it I really can't recommend the series enough and it definitely deserves it's ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐  I am just disappointed that the series has now come to an end with Sally Wainwright commenting that there will not be a series 4 but you never know she may just change her mind. 

My last offering is Unforgotten  crime drama written by Chris Lang.  The programme  follows a team of London detectives as they solve cold cases of disappearance and murder. Rach series consists of six episodes.  Each series deals with a new case, introducing seemingly unconnected characters who are gradually revealed to have some relationship with the victim. As the murder mystery  unfolds, the emotional ramifications of the crime on the lives of those affected are also explored.  Series 1 - 4 include the story of DCI Cassie Stuart's personal life: of the typical but growing conflicts in her immediate family, of her spartan arm lengths relationships with individuals who like her, of her drive to solve cases and of her coping both successfully and unsuccessfully with the relentless stain of her job. During the historical cold cases Cassie verbalizes her driving motive to find the truth of what happened, provide closure to the living and possibly bring a criminal to justice. An inner motive surfaces when she says she hopes solving a current case will help her move on. 

I am so pleased that they are bringing the series back after such a dramatic ending to series 4 and I can't wait to see what series 5 will bring.  Series 1-4 definitely worth a watch if you have either not watched the series before or just want to refresh your memory of what a brilliant series this has been so far ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Now to my latest off the bookshelf reads....

A coming of age novel about a generation of women who were both blessed and cursed by their choices.   It is 1974 and the summer of love is finally drawing to a close. The flower children are starting to realise that you cannot survive on peace and love alone. Kate Mularkey has accepted her place at the bottom of the secondary school social food chain. Then, to her amazement, the coolet firl in the world, Tully Hart the girl all the boys want to know - moves in across the street and wants to be her best friend. Tully and Kate became inseparable and by summers end they made a pact to be best friends forever. For thirty years Tully and Kate Buoy each other through life, weathering the storms of friendships, jealousy, anger, hurt and resentment. Tully will follow her ambition to find fame and success. Kate knows that all she wants is to fall in love and have a family. What she doesn't know is how being a wife and mother will change her. They think they've survived it all until a single act of betrayal tears them apart. But when tragedy strikes, can the bonds of friendship survive? Or is it the one hurdle than even a lifelong friendship cannot overcome. Firefly Lane is a book for every women knows that her best friend is the only person who really trully knows her. And it is a book she will never forget. 

Celebrity news reporter and presenter, Tully Hart, has hit rock bottom. Kate Ryan had been her best friend for more than thirty years. They'd lived, laughed, danced and cried together. Kate had been her anchor and now Tully was cast adrift not knowing how she was going to survive. 

Kate's daughter Marah, was only sixteen when her mother died. Consumed with guilt over the fights they'd had during her last months of Kate's life, Marah runs away and becomes a drop-out in society, maintaining no contact with her family. 

Tully's mother, Cloud, a child of the sixties, has lived a world of her own dependent on drugs for most of her adult life. She now wants to prove that she can help her daughter. But what will it take for Tully to forgive?

And then something momentous happens which causes each one of them to realise what they've done and what they have become. 

Fly Away is the story of three women who have lost their way and need each other plus a miracle to transform their lives. 

Having already told you what I think about the Netflix series of Firefly Lane I thought I would just reaffirm my love for Kirstin Hannah's books.  I first read Kristin Hannah books Firefly Lane and Fly Away  a number of years ago and I fell in love with this author and she quickly became one of my favorites and I still have many of her books to read.

Most of us  have one or more really good friends that have always been there for us and us for them.   I know I have friends that I have known for nearly fifty years and we know each other inside and out. Tully Hart and Kate Mularkey are two women who have been best friends for thirty years even though they were the most unlikely girls to become friends for life.  They are there to support one another through the highs and lows of life.

 I still loved the books and still give them ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 

Abandoned as a baby, twenty-five-year-old Lizzie Bartholomew spent her childhood moving between foster homes and has had more than her fair share of troubles.

Now a holiday in Morocco seems to be the perfect escape. Especially when she meets Philip, a fellow tourist. After a brief affair, Lizzie returns to England, only to find a solicitor's letter waiting for her.

Philip Samson has died and in his will, has left Lizzie a gift of £15,000. But there are conditions attached to this unexpected legacy that will soon force Lizzie to confront terrifying secrets from her past life . . .

I am an avid fan of Ann Cleeves writing and having devoured her Vera and Shetland series and her latest offering of The Two River series I found my self wanting more from this wonderful author.  

Lizzi Bartholemew is set on a journey after a chance meeting with Philip Samson whilst on holiday in Morroco.  None of it makes sense until she is finally able to start and connect the bits of the jigsaw. 

The Burial of Ghosts is a complete departure from Ann Cleeves usual style of writing as it is written in the first person rather than the third. Its flows at a much slower pace than her usual novels and I think some would struggle with this change in style.   I would recommend Burial of Ghosts as an introduction to an Ann Cleeves novel. ⭐⭐⭐⭐

 

She can't recall what started her collection. Maybe it was a fragment of conversation overheard as she cleaned a sink? Before long (as she dusted a sitting room or defrosted a fridge) she noticed people were telling her their stories. Perhaps they always had done, but now it is different, now the stories are reaching out to her and she gathers them to her ....

When Janice starts cleaning for Mrs B a shrewd and tricksy women in her ninties she meets someone who wants to hear her story. But Janice is clear; she is the keeper of stories, she doesn't have a story to tell. At least not one she can share. 

Mrs B is no fool and knows there is more to Janice than meets the eye. What is she hiding? After all, doesn't everyone have a story to tell?

The Keeper of Stories by Sally Page is a story which  brings many mini stories together which weave together to make a well constructed story.   It will make you both laugh and cry in equal measure.   Pick because it came up on my kindle deals but would definitely recommend. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

So what have I been up to craft wise this month. 

The first baby blanket of 2023 has been completed for one of the loveliest consultants I get to work with. This is his first baby and he and his wife welcomed a beautiful baby boy at the end of January but I didn't quite finish the blanket before baby arrived.  As I didn't know whether they were having a boy or girl I went back to my go to Solid granny square snuggle blanket in my Que Sera Sera colour way of style craft special DK in Parchment, Cream and Duck Egg Blue.

This year I am desperately trying to finish off projects that have been shut away waiting to be completed. The wool for this jumper was brought the last time I went to Yarndale and that would of been pre lockdown. That tells you how long ago I started this jumper.  Whilst having a tidy I rediscovered it languishing at the bottom of my knitting basket. I had completed the back and half the front and it's not as though it was a difficult pattern as it is garter rib all the way through.  Having made my discovery I got on and completed the rest of the font, two sleeves and neck.  The pattern is by Purl & Jane  and is called Leannan.  It is very comfortable to wear but I am saving it for a trip away at the end of March.

With a colleagues big birthday in February and knowing how much she admires my crafting I set about making her an Etui leaving her enough room to add the bits and pieces she already has some of which belonged to her mother in law and her mother so it will become a very special little box.

My final finish of the month was another pair of socks.  I these are my go to make when I have had a long day at work and just want something to do that will stop me from falling a sleep in front of the tv which usually means I then miss a programme that I have waited three weeks to watch.  My February socks are made using Woolcraft 4 ply sock yarn  of which there are 17 shades.  My February socks are made in shade 2147 Milano. 

We have celebrated another two birthdays and with that it brings my February to a close. I'm so glad that Spring is almost here and looking forward to what the new season will bring now that winter is over.

Mx

Goodbye January Hello February

 

Here we are already halfway through February already, I just don't know where the time goes. 

In our family we celebrate three birthdays in January starting with mine and this year it was a big birthday ending with a 0.  

I was very spoiled receiving lots of lovely cards and gifts.  I was treated to a lovely evening out with some of the family and then treated to a delicious afternoon tea with all four of my children which is always the best present of all to have them all together. 

I know we have talked about not making new years resolutions because I just can't keep to them. I tried doing my sock challenge again in 2022 and failed abysmally with only achieving possible three pairs of socks.  I decided this year that I would just try and finish off some of my UFO's before planning my new projects for the year. 

This pair of socks had been on the needles since September 2022 and I finally got going again with them over Christmas and finally finishing in January 2023.  I can't even remember what brand of wool they are from but I know at the time I liked autumn colours. 

Last year I decided to make Advent Calendars for each of my children. Now I know my children are all adults but I couldn't make advent calendars when they were children so they've got them now so that when I have shuffled off my mortal coil they will still have something to remind them of their mum each year. 

and of course I had to make them for my two grandson's too 

I ran out of time to complete the last one for my youngest son so this is another of my UFO's now completed and although it wasn't ready for Christmas 2022 it is definitely ready for Christmas 2023. 

Now technically this isn't a finish of a UFO as this little dragon was stitched approximately 25 years ago,  if not more but,  I never got around to having it framed.  It has stayed in the cupboard wrapped in acid free paper for all these years.  I finally took it to the framers just before Christmas and picked it up two weeks ago and I think it looks stunning.  Even though it has sat in the cupboard for all that time the colours are still as vibrant as they were when the last stitch was added. 

Shetland detective Jimmy Perez knows it will be a difficult homecoming when he returns to Fair Isle to introduce his fiancée to his parents. With the autumn storms raging, the island is cut off from the rest of the world.

Then a woman’s body is discovered at the renowned bird observatory, with feathers threaded through her hair. Perez has no support from the mainland and must investigate the old-fashioned way. He soon realizes that this is no crime of passion – but a murder of cold and calculated intention.

There’s no way off the island until the storms abate – and so the killer is also trapped, just waiting for the opportunity to strike again.

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A journalist working a story. Now his murder is a headline . . .

When the body of a journalist is found in a traditional Shetland boat, Detective Inspector Willow Reeves is drafted in to head up the investigation.

Jimmy Perez has been out of the loop, but his local knowledge is needed and he decides to help the inquiry. Originally a Shetlander, the journalist had left the islands years before to make a name for himself in London, leaving a scandal in his wake. He had few friends in Shetland, so why was he back?

When Willow and Jimmy dig deeper, they realize that he was chasing a story that many Shetlanders didn't want to come to the surface. One that must have been significant enough to kill him for . 

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Over Christmas I managed to read the last two books in the Shetland series by author Ann Cleeves.  I have enjoyed reading the series.  They are very different to the BBC1 series and you get to know alot more about the man that is Perez.   I know they are going to carry on with the TV series but I think the books finished at the right point and I would definitely recommend reading them. 

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I have had The Beekeeper of Aleppo by Christy Lefteri on my bookshelf for sometime.  I had tried starting it a couple of times but just didn't get into it, but I think that was more to do with me than the book.  When I did get to read it from cover to cover I really did enjoy it.  It follows the story of Nuri and his wife who have fled Aleppo during the war and were trying to make their way to England to be with family and to request asylum.  Albeit fiction the story gives you insight into just what some of those seeking asylum have been through to find a safe haven. 

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Finally The Wish by Nicholas Sparks was a Christmas gift.  This is Maggie's story.  She knows she is dying and having befriended a young student working in her gallery she decides it time that her story should be told.  She is only sixteen when she has to make one of the toughest decisions of her life. It is also when she meets Bryce who is not only her best fiend but also turns out to be the love of her life.  He shows her what her life can be like through the lens of a camera and this is the story of her of love and life with all its ups and downs.    

It was a beautiful emotional story and I would definitely recommend you make it one of your reads for 2023 and you don't have to wait until Christmas. 

Lastly what have I been watching on the Telebox?  Not a lot if I'm honest. Christmas was it's usual let down of repeats.  I did of course watch the animated version of The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse on Christmas eve and yes I cried just as much as I did when I first read the book. 

Obviously Call the Midwife was on the watch list and after seven years of waiting it was finally time to bring the third and final series of Happy Valley.  I was so excited to know that we got to see  Catherine Caewood, her grandson Ryan  and her sister Claire one last time, and of course we all wanted to know what was going to happen with Tommy Lee Royce didn't we. 

If you have never watched this series then I highly recommend you do.  Series 1-3 are available on BBC  iPlayer and I don't think you will be disappointed.   If nothing else you get to see lots of hand knitted things and crochet blankets. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Mx