hey I been embroidering

Hi all I have a wee something to show----- its been such an age and I thank those who hang in there with me and follow my blog seeing as to how I am not very good at blogging.Anyway I have been doing a little purse- crazy quilt- I must admit I began this yonks ago the shape was in a magazine "Creative Embroidery and Cross Stitch" from there I went out on my own and played, although I saw a little ribbon trail which travelled around the block and have used that. (finally my muse has reappeared yippee!!!)

Anyway I think I have embroidered it to with in an inch of its life and will now add some little bits and bobs to it over the next couple of days. and will then make it up, this is going to go to a very dear friend who has been waiting at least 2 years for something from me so I am adding this little purse as an extra bit - I hope she will like it, I think its so me but will she like that- ie purples and reds heavens I have to get away from these colours and the next thing I make it will be well away from that colour combo - keep youir eyes open seeing as I have finally found my smocking pleater machine I can finally do a little smocking - it was in plain sight all the time- the machine that is-- when I finally saw where I had put it I nearly passed out I have sat in front of it every day I am on the pooter - yup its under the desk top --- oh deary me. Anyway I am not trying tp play 10 secrets here but dont want to give away just who this wee purse is for just yet  ...........

Please let me know what you think of it please.........

love n hugs bear xoxoxoxoxox

when it rains it pours!!

this is a chatty post- sometimes I will throw these in, just to keep us all on our toes- nahhhhhhhhhh~!
anyway if most dont know here in South Australia we have been suffering a drought and horrid water restrictions - garden and car wise. This past month or so well really our winter has brought with it much rain in droibs anad drabs. So on Thursday night when the forecasters said battens down loose items and prepare for wild winds and also torrential rain between 20-50 mms expected over the state.


 So on Friday morning we woke to the sounds of thunder and rain oh eaps of thunder and much lightening and rain and more rain. and then even more rain and even more thunder and lightening and that was how it remained all day n night of Friday. Saturday morening we had had 44mms of rain the previous day(24 hrs from 9amFriday -9am Saturday). Thats about 2and a half inches of rain in our old imperial system. Again on Saturday we also woke to even more thunder and lightening though it finally eased off by the late afternoon but the rain continued, athough not as heavy as Fridays rainfall. Sunday we again had rain but in the afternoon its actually became showers and when we woke today Monday the Sun was shining.  its been some storm and unfortunately it has gone on through to Victoria and they have had the rain in more then we had and have major flooding (we had flooding but not to the extent of Victorias flooding)

Unfortunately when there are storms like this then rooves are taken off by the wind and the winds were terrible only eased last night finally! many homes lost their rooves completelyt many huge trees were unrooted by the storms many home were without power and there are many that still have now power the Electricity company hopes to have the thousand or so homes still without power at present will have their supplies by tomorrow morning.  Of cours trees toppled on houses and also cars much damage caused by the storms will take more time to be corrected. But all in all here in South Australia we have been very very lucky,  the damage in Victoria is so much worse- many towns have been evacuated because of flooding,

Not only were South Australia and Victoria were struggling through these storms but over the big ditch on Saturday those living in Christchurch New Zealand were woken by a 7.1 Earthquake. We have watched th weekends News reports, so fortunate that none were killed and it appears that building rooads and the like were  damaged. Though the Kiwis are a strong nation  and the rebuilding wil begin soon but even todday there are still aftershocks happening- My prayers and thoughts are with all there in Christchurch and also in Victoria. and that the earth will settle down again soon I think everyone has had enough. oh and the best news our Water restrictions are going to be withdrawn- yup they are all of our water Reservoirs are full and the gorvernment has announced that we will have no restrictions as of December 1st 2010, granted that was announced before this weekends downpours but December come on fellas I for one am  not going out to water the gardens or race out to wash a car. theres more rain being forecast in the next day or so oh heck!

love n hug Bear xoxoxoxoxoxo

oh PS I have a piccie or 2 of the purple scarf and beanie I knitted I will try and put it on later tonight but lease dont go hanging around for it you all know me by now! Loves yas all!

here I am at long last

Hewoo one and all

one thing I can be relied on- is that one day I will turn up and begin to talk again via my poor woe begotten blog and it has  been an age hasnt it? -  Life and all its joys and mishaps, ill health and weather keep on  getting in the way and I am sorry to be so lame but hey here I am finally - I will never get a prize for the most followers but I sure have the most reliable friends they stick around when its months in between my "wanderings of finger and mind".

I have a few things to add to my dear blog the first is an embroidered square that I made for a couple of lovely friends of mine who are also in a couple of the yahoo groups I am in as well. So please bear with me and we will catch up the past 6 months shall we?? I have been terribly slack in my embroidery this year - I am finding my hands are suffering terribly this winter and if its one thing most South Aussies are all in agreement with - its this horrid winter we are having- its cold cold cold! an its wet wet wet. Today is a humdinger we have a weather front that has been brought up from Antartica and its VERY COLD struggling to get to 12 degrees Celsius even and rain its been steady most of the day and then theres the winds straight off the ice so you can imagine how its all feeling. BUT enough of that I have a tale to tell and lets get this show on the road!


At the beginning of the year two dear friends on a couple of yahoo lists announce they were to marry at the Doll Retreat at Sherry Goshons home in September. Unfortuatly my broomstick is in the shop to be fix and you can imagine the costs that the Elves mecanics will charge once they have fixed it up not just fixing it mechaniclaly but also to take the extra weight I have gained- More of that later>

  one of these friends Jeff  asked who would like to contribute by stitching a square of fabric for a wedding Canopy, So I said yup I would at least part of me will be in attendence at the wedding wont it?? On the day I received the fabric I also found my Country Bumpkin produced "Inspirations" Issue 65 (2010) was on sale. So I collected that and off home we went. Once I sat down and took my time to begin to go through the magazine I was astounded to find an article on a type of embroidery called Kantha Embroidery.According to the articles author Margaret Light (of Australia) this type of embroidery has been around for many centuries although sadly not many pieces of the embroidery has survived the centuries. According to the history interest began to stir again in the 1980's and luckily for me there was a beautiful example that Ms Light had produced for the magazine. The Embroidery has been used over the centuries for weddings, births, etc celebrations of all types and I thought it perfect for this wedding square. If you look at the picture below  you will notice it is a "Naive" type of stitching - although my square does not do the justice to this Kantha Embroidery that Ms Lights does. (the magazine showed  "Rainbow of Dreams" which was a beautiful example of Kantha embroidery on a pillowcase and top sheet for a younng child. Although the elephants etc were also from the original examples of Kantha embroidery over time.

   
I so very much hope that Jeff and Bruce like their piece of Kantha embroidery that I have made for them and I sincerely apologise to you Margaret Light for the not so beautiful piece of Kantha embroidery I have sewn. yours was truly beautiful. Jeff and Bruce will after the wedding ceremony have the squares that their friends made them sewn into a quilt and therefore have memoriies of their wedding and their friends to look at for "Centuries" to come Good Luck and Best wishes I hope your wedding will be held on a brautiful day in September and that you carry the loving wishes of all your friends present and from afar.

love n hugs Belinda xo

Reference: Inspirations
                Issue 65. 2010
 Article     "Rainbow of Dreams " pages46 - 57
Author       Margaret Light (Australia)
Publisher   Country Bumpkin
                 Adelaide, South Australia.
                 Australia

the square I made for Jeff and Bruce's wedding canopy

Xmas well its past by so happy New year to all

Xmas ---well oh deary me ----it flew past me and I just didnt get to my poor blog its been such an up and down year what with ill health and then with that small operation on my right hand wedding finger - which could have resulted in me having a "dead" finger but for all of the worry etc didnt and now its healing perfectly so I am going to start stitching again in the new year - but for now I want to wish my loved ones and my friends who have stuck by my ups and downs and months in between blogging entries a very Happy New year to all. and my New Year resolution is to be a better blogger- well I will be because I will be doing lots of stitching and will be able to show some things as I go along- thats the plan anyway!

 I have finally been able to purchase a set of Miss Carole Samples Templates and will be doing a A -Z of Crazy Quilting using Miss Caroles' Treasury  book and her Templates will also figure in this teachings as well, to say I am looking forward to doing this is an understatement.To have finally gotten my own copy of Miss Caroles Templates- well whoo hoo yabba dabba do and anything else you would scream at the top of your lungs to celerbrate getting something I have chased for at least 3 years.

 So for now I am going to enjoy setting up my blocks I intend to use for this and taking the next week nic e and easy  and I will be all ready for when this begins !! Yippee! And I will be watching the post people for the mail carrying my Templates to me hopefully they will be flying on angels wings and be here before much time elapses hope!

So for now- thank you for hanging around waiting for me to write and entry and maybe put in a picture sorry none available- Kierons' got the good camera mmmmmmmm better get that back for a bit, I have tamed a very wild little kitten who is so pregnant shes about to have them any old day so I would love to get a picture of her before her kittens are born etc (once shes had her kittens when they are  around 7 weeks of age she will be speyed and then she will be a lovely little girl shes so smoochy people dont believe she was wild til they try to pat her then she takes off- but Kirk's getting there she allowed him to stroke her Xmas Day so he was chuffed!

Anyway  I hope your Xmas was lovely and Santa brought you all you desired or could afford gggg and that you have a Very Happy and safe New Year - if in one of the countries where its winter stay lovely and warm and if here well try to stay cooler and wherever you are stay safe please  Happy New Year all

love n hugs Bear xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

hewoo this is a blatant plug for

Hi one and all

if you happen along here one of my dear friends Sherry www.sherrygoshon.blogspot.com is having a competition for her 200th post. Wowee 200 !!!! Congratulations Sherry that's fantastic- and being this is her 200th post she is not giving away not just 1 but 2 prizes so please go look and leave her a comment to enter into her draw.
oh bear u is sooooooooooo blatant - if you go read the rules for entry you will see why - I Have NO pride do I?? I am going for as many entries as I can ggggggg
much love and hugest of hugs to all I hope everyone has a fabulous weekend!
love n hugs bear xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

well do you believe this a second post

Hi all

well do you believe this a second post and in the same week as well - goodness I must be ill??? I never do that well not for a long while I dont I have just finished this purple block- do you get the feeling I like purple well you is wrong I LOVE PURPLE!

Anyway I know I always say -"I dont know bout this block" BORING Bear BUT hey this one has come from far left field hasnt it?? No spider web roses in fact no ribbon embroidery at all, and all those bought flower motifs on the right side and even the leaves are fake. I decided to play a bit with really heavily embroidering the seams etc - all are done in Silk threads- oh so dreamy to do seams in silk threads, some of them came from www.colourstreams.com.au and others came from the www.thethreadstudio.net , I have used the Colourstreams(Qld) silk threads before these ones are from their stranded silk threads beautious and so easy to use they glide on through the fabric so easily they are scrumptious and their colours well I do adore them - am going to get more soon yummy they are.

The ones I bought through the Thread Studio (WA) were from selections of Jacinta Leishman, Rae Cummings, Ken Done, and oh me oh my they are all such wondrous colour schemes and again glide through the seams "like a knife through butter. Yummy they all are. So I did heavy seams and really played with what ever came to my fickle brain and my hand grabbed. LOL the bottom right hand corner these little beauties came from an American /Australian Crazy quilt swap of swaps if I remember right Willa gave them to me and I have had them many many moons waiting for somewhere to place them they are made from sequins and are very cleaverly made I like them heapsa. The other flowers were all dyed by me the only other things on this block are dragonflies and butterflies, and a wee bee all charms that I have picked up over the years of trawling through our local Spotlight store.

So there you have it my last 6 inch block for a bit I am doing a swap with Hideko now- years and years ago we decided we would have a swap between us and I am making a very pretty evening bag out of black quilted fabric the middle insert is a Fuschia Duponi and of course there are lot of beautiful trims including a beaded trim the middle inset is smocked - only 4 rows I think- This pattern came from one of Country Bumpkins many smocked patterns but this little bit of smocking gives the effect of a small gathering of the insert Lol I am so looking forward to making this little baggie for Hideko. and After I finish that I am going to be making a 12 inch block for my dear friend Sherry G and I Am looking forward to that one as well- so much easier to work on a bigger block then on these little 6inch ones

Anyway thats it for tonight if anyone wants the actual email address for all the different names etc I have mentioned above please email me and I will give you the correct addie - I will make sure of the email addies tomorrow but for now even though Spring has Sprung downunder Bear is still in her sleepy mode and I am heading off to the den - nighty night all and thank you for taking the time out of your lives to come by and have a look at my embroidery etc

love n hugs to all Bear xoxoxoxox