Where has the time gone?!?

Wow, I cannot believe that more than a month has passed since I last blogged :( What a busy month it has been! Apart from quite a bit of work, I have managed a few crafty bits too.

Here is my completed cross stitch - a Gumlace Secret Pals gift from Janette in Canberra. On Saturday night I won a gift voucher from a framing business at our local Scouting Entertainment night, so this little kitty will have a lovely frame very soon. I love this pic because the kitty looks like my Sox about 15 years ago. When I get my own classroom, I intend to hang the pic there to remind students to "hang in there".

Speaking of Secret Pals - the final round of my second foray into this delightful pastime arrived last week. My Arachne package contained 2 months of gifts, so I really did feel very spoiled :) This May package had so many treasures! I have started tatting a collar with the Seashells coloured Lizbeth thread, using the silver tatting shuttle. The booklet has lots of information about Nottingham machine-made lace and is a very interesting read.

This gorgeous pewter plate, depicting a lacemaker was the June installment. I have never seen anything like this before, and will treasure it always. Many thanks to my pal Pat Hallam in Nottingham!

I have really enjoyed both rounds of Secret Pals. Finding or making just the right gift for my recipients was terrific fun, and I have made 2 new lacey friends with each round :) And I did not manage to guess either of my pals prior to the reveal, but have learned a little something interesting about each.

On the same day, Diane's parcel with threads to complete my Lizbeth doily arrived! 2 balls of thread will enable me to complete the big doily and make a pair of matching small ones. (The other ball is attached to the shuttle, but not the doily yet.) Diane purchased 2 pair of bobbins at a Lace Day she attended, then split them and shared with me - am I lucky or what! I just love the unusual shape of the bobbins and cannot wait to try them out. Thank you Diane, a little something for you will be winging it's way your way by this afternoon.

In my last post, I shared some French Beading with you. Now I have bunches of wildflowers :)

These are quite quick to make, so I have short stems to wear on my clothing or long stems to put in a vase.
I have made all the bits for the Rose, but am still in the process of lacing the leaves and petals before construction can take place. This project is taking much longer!

Apart from winding many, many bobbins for the children at school, the only bobbin lace I have on the go is this little Bucks edging. In November I will see how long it is and use it to decorate some baby goodies for my first grandbaby :) There is not much to show just yet but it does grow fast.

Enough from me for now! I have managed to drop in on a few friends over the past weeks, and have enjoyed your stories and sharing.

For now, stay well, happy and able to make and share your lace adventures.

Warm hugs.