Blackbird Designs Sunflower House, Meester en Juffendag, Queen's Day and a New Start
April 30, 2006 at 10:04 AM
by Ashleigh
Sunflower House Loose Feather Number 9 (c) Blackbird DesignsTa da! Sunflower House is complete! I used the recommended threads and linen - GAST Mulberry, Butternut Squash, Sarsaparilla, Grecian Gold, Brandy, Deep Sea and Burnt Orange on 28 ct R&R Friendship Blue. The pattern says that you need a 10 yard skein of the Brandy, but I only used one of the two 5 yd cards and still had about half a strand to spare. I changed the American flag for a Dutch one, which is also red white and blue so I didn't need any extra colours. The yellow in the flag is meant to be an aged white I think. It was fun to stitch.
Other news:
Meester and Juffendag* was celebrated at Seb's school on Wednesday and it was really fun! I was paired with a Dutch mum whose son is in the 8th grade and we were in charge of 'Flesgooi' - basically bowling at bottles filled with water. Luckily it wasn't that cold as we got pretty drenched! The kids were put into groups of one from each class from grade 1 to 8 and then they got points for each activity on the parcours. There were loads of activities - stilt walking, football, hula hooping etc. It was a nice day and I got to see some of what I can look forward to when I have 8, 9 and 10 year olds! 8 year olds seem *really* naughty!
Queen's Day was a bust for us. The weather was horrible and poor little Joe was awake a lot on Friday night with an earache. He doesn't get sick often so when he is he is terribly miserable! There was a strong northwesterly blowing which would have done nothing for his earache so we stayed in yesterday. I bought oranje tompouce (like a custard slice decorated in orange for the Queen's birthday), slagroomsoesjes (profiteroles filled with cream), and chips (crisps) and we had a party indoors. For dinner I made chicken sate, so we were quite Dutch for the day! Queen's Day is such a festive day that it was a shame to be indoors but better for everyone I think. Of course, my storage room is now still full of the stuff I had intended to sell yesterday which will have to wait til next Queen's Day!
I started stitching The Heart's Content Splendor VII last night and began with the bunny fob. I like the silk! Its Gloriana Luminescence in Eggplant. It's absolutely perfect for over one stitching as it doesn't tangle or snag like normal stranded silk. I have Ellen Chester's little book and that calls for Luminescence too, which, after using it this time, I will definitely order in for that!
The other reason I picked this kit out of my stash is that it contains the frame, so when its done it will be an instant finish, rather than something to lie around in a drawer until I can afford to frame it (like so many of my other finished pieces)!
The other new start for me is to remotivate myself with my weight loss! I've lost 17 kilograms now and I've come to a halt. I think most of the lack of motivation was from being ill but I'm well now and I have to get back into the swing of things. Let's hope for a more motivated me in the next few weeks!
We also found out today that we can get Brad's Lasik treatment for his short sightedness and astigmatism paid for on our medical insurance so I've made a start on getting him the intake appointment. Once he has that we can see if he is a suitable candidate and hopefully he'll be able to say goodbye to his 'Coke bottle' lenses. Once we've been to the Eye Centre I'll post about it all so all the foreigners wishing to have Lasik/Lasek/whatever in the Netherlands will have something to base their research on.
The coming week is the Meivakantie (May holiday) and we have an action-packed week ahead. Tuesday we're off to Gouda to see Barbara and then on Thursday we have plans to visit Linneaushof with a friend and her son. Its touted as Europe's biggest playground so I'm sure the kids will have fun. I'll take my sewing and enjoy chatting to my friend :)
*Meester and Juffendag means literally 'Master and Miss Day' and is when all the teachers celebrate their birthdays on one specific day. Everyone takes a gift for their teachers and its a day of games, eating nice treats, festivities and fun. Our gift to the teachers this year was a gift voucher for 15 euros that could be used in a variety of stores. Seb has two teachers and a 'helpjuf' (teacher's helper). The helpjuf got a box of assorted teas.
Comments
Your Sunflower House turned out to be gorgeous! Congratulations on a great finish. :)
Sounds like you guys have been having some fun; sorry you missed out on Queen's Day. I hope Joe is feeling better!
I hope that Brad is a suitable candidate for Lasik. I've thought about it before, but it's not a cheap procedure and our insurance doesn't cover it, so I hope that he gets to take full advantage!
Sunflower House looks fantastic Ash! I love the threads on that fabric, it's a really pretty blue.
Sorry that Queen's Day wasn't so good - I hope Joe's feeling better now. Have a great time with Barbara next week :)
It's a pity you couldn't celebrate Queen's day, but the weather was horrible. Next week will be better! Have lots of fun with Barbara.
Congrats on the finish! It is a great piece.
Your sunflower house looks lovely Ashleigh.
Sorry Queens Day wasn't good for you.
Oh and enjoy your time with Barbara, don't forget to let us know how it went.
Sunflower house is really nice, I love the fabric colour you have stitched it on. Your stitching is really nice.
That's beautiful work, Ashleigh. I want to thank you for sharing it with the world (in which I happen to be included :)--I'm especially appreciative because I discovered the Blackbird Designs Sunflower House leaflet AFTER it was retired. I wanted to stitch one up for my boyfriend's mother, who happens to love sunflowers, for her birthday in September and unfortunately, the leaflet is no longer available. So call me stubborn or crazy, but I've decided to try and duplicate it from images I found on the internet. I just don't think BB's newer Sunflower Charms compares to the Sunflower House design. Anyway, yours is the first site that actually mentioned what color GAST threads were used--so that's a great help. You're an inspiration. Best wishes!
Is Joe feeling better? Oddly, Niek also woke with a very bad earache on Saturday, but we went to the Keukenhof anyway. It was COLD. Niek took some paracetamol to keep the pain at bay and we tried to keep out of the wind. It was the certainly the coldest Queen's Day since I've lived here!
Meester & Juffen dag sounds so fun. I'm going to suggest it to Max's school! I can't wait to see you on Tuesday! (I may even be motivated to do some housecleaning!)
April 30, 2006 10:38 AM