Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Downton Abbey Paper Dolls......

This is for serious fans of Downton Abbey.......like me:)

I didn't believe it at first when I heard about this but I kid you not.........go here.......Vulture and print out your very own Downton Abbey paper dolls created by Kyle Hilton.

I really love the Dowager Countess.......she has all these interchangeable expressions......too funny:)

Friday, February 24, 2012

The Donkey Has Landed.....

.....and just in time as we are supposed to be getting an Alberta Clipper.

When he arrived I gave him a big cup of tea in my favourite mug to revive him after his long journey.


One member of the household was a bit over enthusiastic about her welcome......she gave him a good sniffing.......poor donkey got head butted a few times:)


I told her to behave herself ......:)


Donkey is now safe and sound in my sewing room away from pushy moggies:)

Take care:)

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

February TUSAL

Good grief!!!!

I was so busy looking for a pancake recipe...as it is Shrove Tuesday today...that I almost forgot to do my TUSAL post for February 21st.


Here it is.....

some what blurry but I was in a hurry:)

Do you see that cute label?...I got it here from Pat Winter Gatherings as a freebie:)

If you are wondering what I'm on about visit It's Daffycat and read all about it.

Friday, February 17, 2012

Postcard swap....

I don't usually do swaps because the postage costs here in Canada are prohibitive (I'm a miserly old misery) but I was interested in a swap that happened over at Frayed At The Edge.

It was for fabric postcards. I hadn't heard of these before but since I have seen more and more out there in blogland. I didn't know the rules but I do now...LOL

My swap partner was a lady who lived in Berwick upon Tweed in England. She wasn't a blogger so I was a bit tentative as to what to do and what she would like. I couldn't visit and spy....drat.

This is what I sent her......


I thought I would do something that was Canadianish.....hence the North American Robin. Our robins are very different than the robins found in Britain. The embroidery pattern is from Sublime Stitching and is based on the artwork of Ryan Berkley. I faffed around with this thing for ages and ended up just putting the head onto the card. I did have a print of an old fashioned postcard on the back but I forgot to take a picture of it.

I was also supposed to send a postcard showing where I lived.....


I used to work on the 50th floor of one of the tall office buildings to the right of the CN Tower....I had a fabulous view of Lake Ontario:)

Now my swap partner wrote me a lovely letter and she did do a bit of research on me so her postcard is totally me....it's purple and has a mouse on it:)

Isn't it cute:)

She also sent me a map and some postcards.....


I think my hubby wants the map...maybe I'll give it to him.

Take care:)

Thursday, February 16, 2012

I won:)......

I won the extremely cute donkey that was the giveaway at Soggibottom......so cute:)


and.......

my Steampunk Crow....Russel the Crowe......just won first place in a challenge at Cloth Doll Artistry, an on line group that I belong to. I'm really thrilled because I haven't been doll making for very long.

I'm not sure if I have shown Russell on this blog so here he is looking very chuffed.....


So it's been a very good week for me.

Take care:)

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

It's all in the bones .........:)

Source

A little family history....

My grandparents Mary McBride and Henry Bradley were married at St Francis Church, Cumberland Street, The Gorbals, Glasgow, Scotland on February 14, 1911.
The Glasgow Story: the church circa 1919

When I realized this I thought ...how romantic:) I also wondered why my grandparents would marry in a church that was not in the district where they lived.

Then I did a little bit of research....and after contacting a local parish priest (yes I did.. shock horror!).... He very nicely emailed me back and told me that in the day St Francis Church was usually very busy on Valentine's Day. Why?...because they had what was purported to be a relic of Saint Valentine.  I then found this link:)

The opulent interior of St Francis' Church, Gorbals, photographed in 1919. Relics of St Valentine are said to have been kept in a casket housed in a side aisle of the church, from 1868 until 1999.
A Franciscan friars' mission was established in Cumberland Street in 1868, and a temporary chapel built. A much larger Gothic style church, designed by Peter Paul Pugin, was opened in 1881. A French family is said to have given the remains of Saint Valentine, an early Christian martyr from northern Italy, to the Franciscans in 1868. They decided that a suitable home was the new church in the Gorbals. Churches in Terni, near Rome, and in Dublin also claim to hold the remains of Saint Valentine, and there is a story that the bones were divided between the three locations.
It was only when the Franciscans moved with the relics to the Blessed John Duns Scotus Church in Ballater Street in 1999 that the existence of the remains became widely known. Following extensive publicity, Glasgow proclaimed itself City of Love and in February 2002 launched to the City of Love Festival, an event which has been repeated in subsequent years.
Reference: Mitchell Library, 333249

His bones in a casket......Source
A few old pictures.....post WW11

 Source

At the time I contacted the parish priest the church was no longer being used and was a walk-in civic centre. But, according to one of my genealogical blogger friends it was bought back for a £1 a few years ago to be reopened as a church.
As it looks today.
Happy Valentine's Day!!!!!

P.S Just as a point of clarification...my grandmother did live in the Gorbal's parish for a short time prior to her marriage in order to be married at St Francis as required by church law.

Friday, February 10, 2012

Liebster Awards...

Yesterday my other blog...A Cloth Doll Maker's Diary was awarded two Liebster Awards.

The deal is I have to choose five bloggers and award each of them with one and then they have to choose five etc.

There are too many wily bloggers out there and they won't take an award from me........Why?.........because it's almost like a pyramid thingy in that it goes on and on and on and on.....:(

Sigh.

p.s. if you want a Liebster award let me know....please:)

Kaffe Fusion Quilt....

As I was wandering around in Pinterest I found the most amazing quilt on a site called Sewing Daisies. It is called a Kaffe Fusion Quilt...a) because it uses Kaffe fabrics and b) because there is crocheting involved.

Here is a picture of the finished quilt from the site......

Source

I think it's lovely and even though I don't quilt and am not that great at crochet....I think I might be able to do this....a great summer project for when I'm sitting on the deck on a nice warm day:)

There are directions that you can find here.

Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Soggibottom February Giveaway....

Look at this adorable little donkey......


Soggibottom is having a giveaway on February 14th for this sweetie:)

Take care.

Sunday, February 5, 2012

A Bacon Snack for the Super Bowl....


Fox News had some recipes for the Super Bowl and here is one that I think my guys might vote for.....

FEASTY BREADED BACON
Ever get tired of the same ol' hum-drum, brittle, pan-fried bacon?? Well folks, try this recipe out!! Chances are you won't catch this recipe in any A.M.A. publications; however, it's super simple, oh so good and would make any pig proud!!
1 lb. Sliced Bacon
1 cup Flour
1 cup Brown Sugar
1 tsp. Black Pepper
Preheat oven to 350 degrees... Remove bacon from the package and separate into individual pieces. Place flour, brown sugar and pepper in a large plastic bag and mix thoroughly. Now, drop each individual bacon slice into the bag and shake...That's it!! Now, simply place each dredged piece of bacon on a cookie sheet, making sure they're flat. A pound of bacon should fit snuggly on your average cookie sheet... Slip the tray into the oven and wait approximately 10-15 minutes, depending on how crispy you like your swine!! Remove from oven, let cool and start a munchin'!!!


Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/on-air/fox-friends/transcript/feasty-boys-super-bowl-tailgating-recipes#ixzz1lWaOlWTS

 Take care:)

Thursday, February 2, 2012

Happy Groudhog Day!!!!!!!

Well our resident groundhog...Chucky...hasn't made an appearance yet but it's still early in the day.

I have no idea why he comes into our garden but I think he likes to eat the apples and pears that fall from our fruit trees. He's kinda like an uber squirrel and he does a very neat job of cleaning up the windfalls.

I haven't got a picture of him to show you as I never have a camera with me when he appears but then again a picture of his departing rear end isn't so glamorous anyway.

So...how does it work again?...... if a groundhog does not see it's shadow it means that spring is only 6 weeks away.......or, that we have 6 weeks left of winter depending on your point of view. I prefer to think spring is almost here.  We have no snow left as it has been unseasonably warm which is a good thing. It really feels springlike. It's been the best winter we have had in years.

So have a happy February 2nd ....no matter what that groundhog does.......spring will be here soon:)

Take care.