Nikki's Stitches: June 2012

Wednesday, 27 June 2012

Erm, me, really...?

Well there was I bumbling along (as I do!) finally catching up on months' worth of blog posts after sharing an internet dongle with Mr N for the last six months when suddenly my name crops up in post... What?

Juliet from The Crazy Gypsy Chronicles has nominated me for a blog award! I double-take, double check, is that really me she's listed - why yes it is! I've been nominated for the Versatile Blogger award. I'm really quite chuffed, not to mention surprised! I certainly had a secret smile on my face after finding out! How daft is that (the secret smile that is)?

Having moved halfway around the world less than six months ago, I'm discovering a whole new world of sewing, knitting, crafting and cooking bloggers, of which Juliet is one. I think I was initially drawn to her blog by a link and then started following because of her projects and also the humorous and fun way in which she writes, particularly once the large glasses of wine have been poured...

Thanks Juliet, I'm touched and certainly feel welcomed in my new adopted country!

So, I believe there are now some rules I have to follow... The rules state that I have to mention seven different things about myself. Well OK, here goes...

I'm originally an Essex girl - help! Yep, I was born in that fair county just outside London in the UK :-)
I wanted to be a lollypop lady when I was about 6 years old!
I'm a member of Jaffaholics Anonymous - a sacred society of people who are addicted to Jaffa Cakes. There was a sign on my wall at uni which said "Jaffa Cakes enter at your own risk..."
I'm a closet petrol head - although not so much now!
I like elephants.
My great-grandfather was called James Herriott, but he wasn't a vet, he was a train driver!
Erm... OK, the boring one, I originally trained as a maths teacher and am now a chartered librarian...

Now all I can do is to pass this on to other blogs which I feel deserve the same treatment. Like Juliet before me, I'm unsure if you've already been nominated, so if you get a double nomination through this, then I reckon that counts as an Oscar! :-) These blogs are nominated because I enjoy reading them, the way in which they are written encourages me to read more. I also like that bloggers style, choice of projects and the way they encourage me (through their posts) to try to make something different. So here goes...

And to be honest, I reckon some of you lovely ladies are due an Oscar!

Wednesday, 20 June 2012

Prima Patterns

I’ve intended to write a post about these patterns for some time and never got around to it. Finally with a bit of prompting from Claire from Sew incidentally.. here it is.

I seem to have amassed quite a few Prima patterns over the years. When I began to get these I didn’t subscribe and used to phone up for the patterns, in the end I decided it was easier (and cheaper) to subscribe. I can still buy the magazine here in New Zealand, but it tends to be a couple of months behind, by which time it’s too late to order the pattern.

[In the interests of those who want to know about the phone numbers and if they repeat, I can go on the numbers from about mid-2008, before this, they were completely different. From what I can see they use about three different phone numbers only, which started with 0906 757 6471 in May 2008. And so, each May, August, November and February the number to call is the above number ending in a 1, the months in between will end in a 2 and then a 3 (trying not to give too much away... :-) ) ]

I have generally found the patterns easy to make with clear instructions. Their sizing also suits my shape and I find I don’t have to make any changes. They also include seam allowances in their patterns... Sometimes they are printed double-sided, which can be frustrating, but I've actually found the paper they print them on quite nice for pattern pieces.

Here is my collection, including the descriptions which the magazine used, I’ve put photos of them all on my Pinterest site, instead of clogging up the whole blogasphere, and have posted only a few here (no preference to whether I still like them or not!) Apologies for the shiny bits, it’s that magazine glossy paper which is a pain to photograph and my scanner isn’t quite set up! Next in line will be posts about those patterns I’ve actually made up!