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A Postcard from June 2025

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Hello there, how are we at 14th July already? Almost at the midpoint of the month! I hope it’s been a good one for you – it’s been a decidedly warm one for us, with temperatures in the 30s (which for those of you in hotter climes probably doesn’t sound too hot but we felt it was!).

Last month was a rather special one for me in my blogging life, this little blog celebrated its 10th birthday. Never in all my imagination did I think, it would still be going after all this time when I first started out. I can vividly remember going out for a walk one evening (about a decade ago) along the winding streets and passages of Gibraltar taking photos of bougainvillea to illustrate one of my earlier blog posts and thinking, ‘is there anyone out there who will want to read this?’. I’m thrilled to say there was, and I’m still here knocking out posts (a little less frequently these days due to work commitments) and you’re still out there reading them! Thank you!

That bougainvillea from 10 years ago!

Anyway, here’s a quick look back at June in my world:

International Stitch Day

What a way to kick off the month, and what an amazingly on-brand event for Making Stitches! I was thrilled to be able to attend International Stitch Day on 1st June at the opening of Woven in Kirklees Festival in West Yorkshire. It was a brilliant day hosted at Oakwell Hall in Birstall. There were stalls, workshops (including one I had a play at), lots of interesting things to look at, and the most amazing thing I have experienced this year so far, the Red Dress was on display in the old hall itself. 

I have been aware of the Red Dress for quite a while now through social media and blog posts I have read, but to be able to witness it myself in real life was quite something. As I arrived early at the start of the event, I was able to go and have a look once the initial flurry of visitors had been in and at one brief point, I was the only person in the room (apart from the staff standing discretely at the back). The atmosphere was amazing and I felt truly privileged to witness it for myself. 

To see the intricate stitching and the countless hours of work by 380 different embroiderers, both professional and amateur, and to learn about some of the stories of the people who have stitched onto the dress was just amazing. After seeing it for myself, I was able to go and hear the ‘creator’ of the dress, Kirstie Macleod, give a talk about how the project had come about and a snapshot of some of her adventures as she has traveled around the world with it. It’s just mindblowing how big this project was and the complexity of the logistics involved. 

I was delighted to be able to sit down briefly with Kirstie after her talk to record a short chat for a future episode of Making Stitches Podcast and I’m thrilled to say that she agreed to a longer chat with me for a special ‘Red Dress’ episode which will be out in autumn.

A weekend away

Unfortunately one of us had to take the picture – but there were 5 of us!

I was so lucky in June to experience not one, but two brilliant weekends – first came Woven and next came a weekend away with four very special ladies who I have known since University days (one even since primary school!)

One of them lives in the Lake District and we have been trying to arrange for us all to spend a weekend together at her house for years. Each time we thought we had a date in the diary, something would come up and we were determined to do it with us all there. Persistence paid off and we had the most amazing couple of days reconnecting, walking, eating and drinking.

True old friends are just the best. They hold you up in the worst of times, share the best of times and, no matter how long passes between your meetings, when you are back together it’s as if you were never apart. 

I feel truly blessed to have them in my life.

10 years of this blog

Back in June 2015, after years of reading other people’s blogs, I decided to have a go myself. I thought the chances of anyone reading it were slim, but I thought I could use it as a kind of diary to record our life as a family living in Gibraltar. In its first iteration as Postcard from Gibraltar, it really surprised me – I found people around the world all reading it and sending me lovely messages. 

In the intervening years, our family has changed, has moved back to the UK, I’ve gone from being a full-time stay at home Mum to a working Mum Postcard from Gibraltar morphed into Making Stitches and the Making Stitches Podcast was born too! If you missed my post about the anniversary, you can find it here.

First strawb of the year!

I don’t know what happened to my strawberry plants over the winter – but I went from having about six containers full last year to just having three weedy looking specimens. My parents felt sorry for me and sent me over a new container filled with healthy plants and this was my first strawb. I am giving the new pot a lot of attention – especially during this very hot and dry weather so that it survives beyond the first month in my possession!

Soccer Aid

Honestly, trips to Old Trafford are like buses, you wait for years to go and then get two trips straight after each other! After going to the last match of the season for Manchester United in May, I went back with my Dad and Youngest to watch Soccer Aid on Father’s Day.

It was a great evening’s entertainment and really quite funny at times. There was even a musical interlude at half time which included a grand piano on the centre circle!

Making Stitches 2025 CAL : June

Summer Solstice Square
Bonus Birthday Square

June saw not one, but two new squares for the Making Stitches 2025 CAL. The main reason for me doing this CAL this year is because of the special anniversary, so it seemed appropriate to mark the occasion with a bonus square in addition to this month’s main square. The Summer Solstice square was launched on 1st June and the Bonus Birthday square pattern was released on my blogiversary. 

I am thrilled that I have managed to reach the mid-point of the year with people still discovering the crochet along and joining in along the way. The more the merrier! If you would like to have a go at any of the Making Stitches 2025 CAL patterns, you can find them all here!

Podcast News

There was just one episode of Making Stitches Podcast released in June as series 9 drew to a close ahead of the summer break. My guest this time was Micah Clasper-Torch a punch needle designer who has taught thousands of people the craft through her online platform. She has a new book out and is hoping to reach an even wider audience through her wearable punch needle designs. You can listen to the episode with Micah here.

Before I go…

This Postcard is almost at an end but before I head off, just a couple more things…. I have been so busy with crochet designs and recording new episodes for the next series of Making Stitches Podcast that I am well and truly ready to have a bit of a breather as life shifts down a gear and we hit the soon-to-be-upon-us school summer holidays. 

Before the holidays hit though, I am looking forward to sharing a bit of lovely news with you very soon. Keep your eyes pealed for that please – because I am going to need your help with something very special and worthwhile. 

Also, when my boys break up for their school summer holidays I will be launching my Summer Craft Challenge 2025 when I do something creative every day during the school summer holidays. I would love it if you would join in too! I love doing it each year and carving out a little bit of time each day to do something creative (it’s a real sanity saver amongst the chaos). As one of my boys finished for the summer on Friday this week, so I am going to be starting day one on Saturday (19th July) and posting a social media post each day to share what I have done, which will keep me focused on maintaining the challenge. 

The thing about a Summer Craft Challenges is that it’s always better when you’re not the only one doing it. So… please do join in and share your makes this summer on social media with the hashtag #SummerCraftChallenge2025 so I can see what other creativity is going on – just like the Making Stitches 2025 CAL – it’s better with friends and it would be great to build a Summer Craft Challenge community!

Until next time, thanks for stopping by!

Lindsay x

 

Summer Craft Challenge 2024 : Week One

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Hello there, well that’s the first week of the school summer holidays done in our house and that means week one of my Summer Craft Challenge is done too.

It’s been a really rather special one for me – I’ve been doing this every summer since 2016 (except during 2020) and occasionally other people have joined in here and there. It was primarily a way to give me a focus during the long summer school break (10 weeks long back then when we lived in Gibraltar) with 3 young men to look after and entertain. It had the benefit of reminding me that being creative is good for my mental health and it’s so easy to become overwhelmed with all the things which need to be done at the cost of carving out a little time for yourself.

Back when I started, I invited people to join me and never before has it been so whole heartedly done – thank you so much to everyone who has tagged along with me!

Here’s a little look back at this week in craft..

Day One

This time last week, we were in beautiful Grasmere in the Lake District visiting our good friends who live up that way. School finished the day before and we headed straight up to Cumbria that afternoon. We woke up, had breakfast and headed to the Mere for a morning out on the water. We all took a turn kayaking and while I waited for mine, I sat on the shore hooking! We even had a visit from an inquisitive duck!

Crocheting by the water at Grasmere

Day Two

Still in the Lakes, we hiked to Elterwater for a wonderful Sunday lunch in a hotel – it was delicious and all the more tasty thanks to our walk to get it! I took my yarn and hook with me to get some more al fresco crochet in – it ended up being crochet on the move as we caught the bus from Elterwater to Ambleside after lunch.

Elterwater

Day Three

We traveled back home on Sunday and I took Monday off seeing as it was the first proper day of the holidays. There were lots of jobs to do, as is always the case after a trip away so the first chance I had to sit down and do something creative was after dark! I’m hoping to finish this Tin Can Knits top down jumper I’ve been working on since before Christmas at some point this summer. I’ll keep you posted!

Day Four

Another busy day. Back at work but did manage a bit of knitting while there was still light in the sky!

Day Five

I ditched the yarn this evening and blew the dust off my sewing machine to repurpose an old unwearable school shirt into something new – a couple of little cushions for a project I’m working on.

Day Six

That project I was making the cushions for is finished. It’s a gift so I can only share a sneak peak and this is it. Once it’s been gifted, I promise I’ll show you what it is!

Day Seven

Today, I thought I’d crack out a new project I’ve been saving for this very purpose – the Mischievous Magpie MAL (Yarn by Kitey from The Yarn Whisperer & pattern by Heather from Keep Calm & Crochet On).

I got over excited and went a bit hell for leather on the yarn winding and got myself into a bit of a pickle. I was unraveling hours later as I watched the Opening Ceremony of the Olympic Games! I’m pleased to say I got there in the end…

Join the challenge!

So, as I said before, quite a few people joined me this week. You can see some of that creativity above – what a thrill! Thank you to you all for tagging along.

If you fancy joining in, please do, there are no rules. Just take a photo of your moment of creativity and post it on Instagram with the hashtag #SummerCraftChallenge2024

Until next time, enjoy your summer crafting!

Lindsay x

Summer Craft Challenge 2022 : Week One

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Well folks it’s that time of year again when I challenge myself to do something crafty every day of the school summer holidays, take a photo of it and share it. It’s become a bit of an institution round here. Being a stay-at-home Mum, and especially when we stayed in Gibraltar where they have longer school summer holidays (8+ weeks some years) I clung to my craft as a little routine to get me through!

Now don’t get me wrong, I love my children, but often the things I like to do would get cast aside in favour of family stuff. But by carving out as little as 5 minutes some days meant I had a little slice of time in the day to focus on my hands and unknot my brain.

So, last weekend was the first of this summer’s break and I thought I’d pick up the summer craft challenge baton again and run with it… here goes:

Day 1 : Saturday 23rd July 2022

Why not start with a WIP I was working on in last year’s summer craft challenge? This Daisy hexie blanket was a kit from Yarn Lane. The pattern and most of the yarn is by Marriner Yarns but I’ve decided it looked too samey so am alternating the penultimate round with varying pastel shades from my own stash (predominately Stylecraft Special DK). We’ll see if my plan works in about six years’ time when I finish! 😂

Day 2 : Sunday 24th July

More hexies today, but done with bleary eyes. Do you spot the balloon? It was Youngest’s birthday very recently but as it was very hectic with end of term excitement on the big day, his party was last night – including a ‘not-very-much-sleep… over’. I managed to find a few moments before dropping off after the post party clear up for a bit of crochet!

Day 3 : Monday 25th July

Just before the end of term, youngest was invested into one of the local scout groups. I had been putting off sewing the new badges on for a couple of weeks but decided to crack on before the new school uniform began arriving with all the required name tapes and hem alterations. Not exactly ‘fun’ sewing, more untility sewing but more colourful than what lies ahead!

Day 4 : Tuesday 26th July

An odd day with appointments and shopping, but still time to begin another project! A little head for another school child to be gifted.

Day 5 : Wednesday 27th July 2022

Leg number one done after a busy day chasing round on the hunt for new school uniform!

Day 6 : Thursday 28th July 2022

And then there were two!

Day 7 : Friday 29th July 2022

And finally a body! Just needs his head, hair, tie & jumper….

I’m feeling rather pleased that I haven’t fallen at the first hurdle and have managed a complete week! Here goes for week 2…..,

Thanks for stopping by!

Lindsay x

Summer Craft Challenge 2021 (Week 6)

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I won’t say it’s gone by in a flash, it has in some ways but in others it’s gone slowly. The school summer holidays are over (two of my three are back in school today, Number 3 goes tomorrow) and that means this year’s Summer Craft Challenge is over too.

Back in the summer of 2016 I set myself the challenge of doing something crafty, even if it was just for 5 minutes, every day of the school summer holidays. At the time we were living in Gibraltar, far from family in the UK, and although we would fly home to Blighty for a few weeks, the 9-week-long Gibraltarian school break was more than a little bit daunting. By doing something fun and crafty each day, I thought that would break things up for me. Also by blogging about it, it forced me to keep going.

I find it’s so easy (when you’re busy) to forget about crafts. They get put on a back burner and forgotten about as I get consumed with everything else going on. However, the longer I am without a crochet hook or needle in my hand the worse my mood becomes. By setting myself this challenge it reminded me to not forget my crafty projects and also made me consciously plan what I would do ie. Was it portable to take on holiday or for a day out?

I managed to fill that first 9 weeks with fun makes, and every summer holiday since (apart from last year when we moved house and country over the summer back to the UK). This year I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to keep the momentum going in a new (old) country with fewer days at the beach and lazing about, but I did. I achieved something crafty on every day bar one – as you will see.

Here’s my final installment…

Day 36: Saturday 28th August

Just over a week ago, I packed up the car and drove us all to Whitby for a little holiday. This was the one day all summer that I didn’t manage to do anything crafty (unless packing and unpacking fall into that category). It was a lovely day nonetheless and the sunshine welcomed us to the North Yorkshire coast!

Day 37: Sunday 29th August

After a day exploring Whitby, I had the chance for an evening with a chilled vino and my hook… now that’s what holidays are for!

Day 38: Monday 30th August

I brought my liberty patchwork kit with me on holiday and day 38 meant hexies.

Day 39: Tuesday 31st August

Our last night of the holiday – by the time we were all packed up there was only a little bit of time to sit down and crochet.

Day 40: Wednesday 1st September

Back home again and after all the washing was done I sat down to make a few more hexies.

Day 41: Thursday 2nd September

This is my least favourite sewing job of the year… school trouser hems and name tags. The most monotonous job! It can only be improved to my mind with a decent podcast playing in your ears and a cup of coffee by your side!!

Day 42: Friday 3rd September

Back on the crochet again, playing with amigurumi patterns.

Day 43: Saturday 4th September

Saturday evening in front of the telly gave me the time to work on another seven hexies, in blues & greens this time. I’m really looking forward to joining them all together.

Day 44: Sunday 5th September

I ended this year’s summer craft challenge with a very unremarkable bit of crochet … a mistletoe leaf – well at least that’s what it’s supposed to look like!! It was a busy day yesterday making the most of good dry sunny weather to get to the bottom of the laundry pile and getting the last few bits and pieces sorted ready for returning to school this week. I was almost falling asleep as I did this last night!

So that marks the end of this summer’s challenge, it’s been good fun and just the impetus I needed to keep me going with my crafting when all things family seem to get between me and few moments of craftiness. I managed to either crochet or sew on all but one day of the past 44 days so I’ll take that as a victory.

I also managed to complete a couple of things…

My Making Stitches craft room wreath from Simply crochet Magazine

And….

My Little Box of Crochet heart cushion

Thanks so much for joining me in this daily quest and thank you for stopping by!

Lindsay x

Summer Craft Challenge 2021

A postcard from a flock of Canary Craftivists

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Hello there. Sorry I’ve not been about much of late. Life has been very busy and I’ve just not had the time for blogging lately. However, I did something yesterday which I simply had to share. Here goes…

Mrs Pankhurst helping the Craftivist cause!

I’m not sure when I first heard about Craftivism, but I know it was well over a year ago. I have followed the work of Sarah Corbett from the Craftivist Collective for quite some time and found her method of ‘gentle protest’ so inspiring. The act of making for a cause; to raise awareness about something which needs to be spoken and thought about but in a quiet, gentle, thoughtful way rather than by shouting and waving placards. Whilst there is always a place for such things sometimes being quiet has a bigger impact than getting peoples’ backs up and shouting loudly.

I was reminded about Sarah’s work when I watched the BBC2 documentary ‘Craftivism: Making a Difference’ with the comedienne Jenny Eclair. In it she explored different methods of craftivism with different activists on topics from equal pay in the production of fast fashion by placing little notes into the pockets of clothes in shops to encouraging women to have smear tests by putting pairs of miniature knickers in public toilets. Sarah was one of the craftivists Jenny spoke to and she gave a compelling case for the effectiveness of Craftivism and the art of gentle protest.

After watching the documentary I was compelled to buy Sarah’s book ‘How to be a Craftivist’ and on reading it was amazed to see the amount of workshops she had led and the sheer scale of her one-woman mission. She’s spoken to groups all over the UK and many overseas as well. At her workshops she encourages people to mindfully craft something which will help focus attention on a whole host of causes including minimum wage as worker’s rights, to the environment and equality.

The book ‘How to be a Craftivist’ came beautifully wrapped with a ribbon and a yellow ‘Crafterthought’ pencil to write down my own crafterthoughts after reading it!

I decided that I had to contact Sarah and ask if she would consider being a guest on my Making Stitches Podcast. Much to my amazement, despite being a very small scale podcast I was thrilled when I got a positive reply. Our interview date was set and in the intervening weeks my trepidation grew at speaking to such an inspiring woman. There was no need though, she was so lovely.

Sarah Corbett
Photo Credit: Craftivist Collective


We spoke for more than the hour we had planned and by the time our chat finished I was more than won over to the cause of ‘gentle protest’ and offered my services to help with Sarah’s latest campaign to raise awareness about the need to reduce carbon ahead of this year’s COP26 summit in Glasgow.


You can hear my chat with Sarah for the Making Stitches Podcast here.


I became the contact for a ‘flock’ of Canary Craftivists who would get together in an iconic spot in Manchester (as many flocks will do up and down the UK and further afield), dress in yellow and mindfully create canaries either by sewing, knitting or crocheting them. The plan is to then send the canaries to our local MPs to put pressure on those going to COP26 to remember the need for urgent action to halt the rapid pace of climate change.

I have to admit that this is not my usual kind of thing to do on a Saturday morning. I felt well and truly out of my comfort zone co-ordinating a small group of crafters from across Greater Manchester to get together and quietly make a stand.

My attempt at a crocheted canary

Why Canaries?

First of all canaries are yellow, and yellow is such a happy uplifting colour which inspires hope. Secondly though, canaries played an important role in checking for clean air. Miners would take the birds down pits in the knowledge that if the canaries stayed alive, there were no poisonous gases about in the tunnels and shafts. If the birds died, it was time to get out and up onto the surface quickly. These little fabric birds are our way of saying it’s time to do something before we choke the planet with poisonous gases any more than it is already, and in fact we need to reverse the trend and quickly.


We kept the location and time of our flock secret to avoid attracting the attention of any troublemakers who might want to take advantage of our action. It was also a deliberately small group both for Covid reasons and because all of us are new to this – the aim of this campaign is to attract people who perhaps wouldn’t otherwise join a climate protest. I have to admit that our group was slightly smaller than we had hoped but the dreaded Track and Trace ping hit a few of our planned flock.


Our uniform was to be dressed in some yellow. Yellow isn’t a common feature in my wardrobe, although I did have a pair of yellow jeans. I added to my ensemble by sewing a yellow face mask and crocheting a yellow canary cape.

I finished my cape the night before and added the ribbon which came wrapped around my How to be a Craftivist book to be an appropriate way of fastening it at the front. The words on the ribbon say ‘little by little we travel far’.

The weather was kind to us, we woke up to bright, clear blue skies above Manchester. I jumped onto a yellow (on message) tram into the centre of Manchester ready for the flock.

We chose St Peter’s Square as the venue as it’s easy to get to via public transport, it’s very central and has the iconic backdrop of Central Library, trams & the statue of Emmeline Pankhurst too (someone who could teach us a thing or two about campaigning!).

We set up camp on one of the benches and got busy!

The Manchester ‘flock’

Gemma and her daughter Evie wore the most amazing costumes they had made for the event…

It was a really positive experience- my fellow Craftivists were all lovely as were the people who stopped to ask us what we were doing and why. We were able to direct them to the Craftivist Collective website so that they could find out how to make their own canary to send to their MP.

Crafting by the Emmeline Pankhurst statue

All in all, this ‘flock’ has been a truly positive experience and an opportunity to meet some lovely crafty folk.

Outside Central Library

If you would like to have a go either forming your own flock or making a canary to send to your MP, please visit the Craftivist Collective website for all the help you’ll need.

Photo credit: The Craftivist Collective

Sunday Sevens #204 6.10.19

~ Making Stitches ~ 4 Comments

Hello there! We’re basking in some beautiful autumnal sunshine here at the moment in Gibraltar. If the weather where you are isn’t too great I’ll have a word and see if we can share some of ours with you! Here’s this week’s Sunday Sevens:

A new skill to start the week

On Monday I went to an extra skills workshop with my Dressmaking teacher Dorcas Hammond to learn how to do shirring and make a shirring dress. I saw some of the work produced by my fellow Dressmaking students on the last workshop and it was beautiful. Shirring is such a useful technique, not only can you make pretty dresses, but also tops, waistbands and sleeves.

I can’t wait to find the time in my busy weeks to actually put my new found skills to the test! I have bought fabric and am raring to go! Now this little dress is ready to go to a young lady I know….

The end of an era

There has been much debate and regret on local social media and in the press about the demolition of the Queen’s Cinema. When we first arrived in Gibraltar we lived very close by and I loved the architectural style of it from the outside. On the two occasions I was able to attend events inside, it was so reminiscent of the old cinema in the town where I grew up, it felt so homely straight away.

It had closed as a cinema by the time we arrived here to live, as the new purpose built leisure complex at Kings Bastion had a couple of brand new screens, so I didn’t see it in its heyday. I think it’s such a shame that a developer or the Government didn’t turn it into a facility for the community. Perhaps showing old films or for local productions? Anyway, that won’t happen now, just the bottom of the walls and the skeleton of the balcony remain. So sad…

Mantis!

Whilst visiting the home of a friend this week I spied this mantis on the window of the stair well. It rather took me by surprise! They are fascinating creatures to see up close!

Sewing in the dark…

Whilst at my regular Dressmaking class this week we had a power cut. It was so frustrating as I was on a roll seaming my trial run trousers. I had just one inside leg left to sew, so I had to finish it off cranking the wheel by hand by the light of my phone torch! It didn’t half make my shoulder ache! A handle or even better, a treadle would have been much easier! There’s a lot to be said for manual power, or pedal power – it won’t let you down in a power cut!!

Stunning sunset

We have had some truly beautiful sunsets this week because we’ve had clear skies and whispy clouds. This is the gorgeous one we enjoyed on Wednesday.

Blue skies

Those clear skies I mentioned… just check out these on Friday. It was absolutely glorious. I went for a very boring trip into town on an admin mission and bumped into Mr Postcard. We had an impromptu lunch in Ocean Village with this lovely view (below):

Guess where we went shopping?

Many months ago I promised Eldest that I would take him to Ikea. (He had his eye on a new desk lamp). We have an affection for all things Scandinavian, you may remember we made a special trip to Stockholm earlier this year. Anyway yesterday was the day we went back to Ikea. We were able to stock up on a few sweet Swedish treats!

We’re into October already, which hardly seems possible. Here’s a few of my September highlights:

That’s all from Sunday Sevens for another week. I hope you have a great week ahead…

Sunday Sevens was first created by Natalie from Threads and Bobbins.

Sunday Sevens #189 2.6.19

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Hello there and welcome to the first Sunday Sevens of June! Wowzers, June already! That came around quickly…

Here’s this week’s edition of Sunday Sevens, seven photos from the past seven days:

A morning stroll

One morning this week I found myself wandering around Upper Town. It was glorious up there, the views are amazing.

The sewing begins!

After weeks of pattern cutting, hole disguising and tweaking lining, sewing began in earnest this week at my dressmaking class. I think I’m going to like this top once it’s finished!

Walking on the runway

On Wednesday I had a meeting on the northern side of the runway and had a stroll across it in the sunshine to get there. It never ceases to amaze me that here in Gib, you can actually walk across the runway… I was stopped from crossing on the way back while we waited for a rather sleek private jet to take off before I could head home.

Empowering women

I attended a very inspiring event this week put on by Start Up Grind Gibraltar. It featured successful professional women talking about how they got to where they are and what needs to be done to help more women succeed. It was a great event, and reminded me to just go for it! (I’m not yet sure what ‘it’ is though!)

Bowling fun

On Thursday, the kids had the day off school for Ascension Day. They didn’t want to go to the beach or the park, so we went bowling instead. We will be hosting the Island Games in Gibraltar next month and as bowling is one of the sports on offer, our bowling alley has had a bit of a makeover. It got our seal of approval.

A mahoosive boat

This week I have spent rather a lot of time working at my laptop on the dining table and whilst looking for inspiration I’ve gazed out of the window and I have seen so many boats. There was a very striking yacht with black sails, another yacht which quickly wound in its sails to cope with strong winds, and then, yesterday, this huge container ship came past our window. Just check out how big it is compared to the dolphin safari boat which you can see to the right of the picture.

Sewing the Rock of Gibraltar

I spent a rather fun few hours yesterday doing a spot of sewing. I have been so busy with work stuff lately that crafty fun time has been very low on the agenda. I haven’t picked up my crochet hook in weeks – but that will change soon I hope! I had fun working on this Rock of Gibraltar for a project I’ll tell you about next week.

And that’s it from Sunday Sevens for another week. I’m afraid Postcard from Gibraltar has been rather neglected of late as I have had so much other stuff going on. I’m sure that things will get back to normal again once we head further into the summer (I hope).

Whatever you’re up to this week, I hope it’s a good one for you.

Sunday Sevens was created by Natalie from Threads and Bobbins.

Sunday Sevens #167 16.12.18

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The sixteenth of December already?! Just 9 days to go to the big day – crumbs. Christmas has been looming but at last it’s just around the corner. We have had yet another busy week with end of term excitement, I’m hoping things start to calm down soon!

Visitors arriving

Last Sunday, my Mum and Dad arrived on the Rock for a couple of weeks. As I went to pick them up from the airport, the traffic came to a standstill to allow a plane to take off. It may be a bit of a pain at times but I still find it rather dramatic….

Birthday celebrations

My Dad arrived just in time to celebrate his birthday. Any excuse for a thickly laden chocolate cake! Crazy end of term madness meant no time for a home-baked cake, but this one was rather tasty.

Last dressmaking class of 2018

The jacket I’ve been working on has progressed as far as it can for this year. It’s hanging up now waiting patiently for sleeves…

That’ll be why it was busy in town…

Town has been swarming with people this week, Christmas shoppers, visitors from across the border and one day, two rather large cruise ships paid us a visit too. The one on the left was gigantic!

Double rainbow

We have been blessed with lovely weather this week, Sod’s Law meant that Thursday morning brought rain and strong winds just in time for my long-booked hair appointment! Still at least we had a gorgeous rainbow (and faint double rainbow) in the Bay. That’s always got to lift your spirits. A pair of bunkering ships were the pot of gold at the end.

Bye bye HMS Astute

On Friday the visiting nuclear submarine HMS Astute left Gibraltar. You may have seen it feature in last weekend’s Sunday Sevens as it arrived. I missed seeing it moving away from its moorings but caught a glimpse of it out in the Bay. Never a dull moment in Gibraltar – there’s always something going on!

And relax…

Yesterday evening I found myself on the Eastside of the Rock. It was so peaceful and the sky was changing colour as the sun went down behind me. That’s another week done, just one week left of school term craziness before we can all relax and enjoy our festive celebrations. Things have been at fever pitch in our house just lately with all the extracurricular goings on in the lead up to the big day – I’m ready to stop the ride and get off!

I do hope that you have had a good week and that this week is a good one for you too.

As always I’m linking with Natalie from Threads and Bobbins for this weekly blog series.

Before I go though, I have to recommend a YouTube video. Gibraltar vlogger Ninja Monkey has just posted a fab video showing him climbing the Med Steps. It gives a great idea of what it’s like for anyone who hasn’t walked up them themselves and if you are thinking about tackling them yourself, you’ll see what you’re in for. Do give it a watch – you won’t be disappointed. The link for it is here.

Sunday Sevens #124 25.2.18

~ Making Stitches ~ 4 Comments

Hello there, I hope you’re having a nice weekend. We have been blessed with some lovely weather this week (I wore a T-shirt to do the afternoon school run on Friday), but – and it’s a big but, I have it on good authority that we are in for some very wet weather over the next seven days.

It’s funny you know, whenever there are severe weather warnings for the British Isles, that often means that for us down here on the southern most tip of the Iberian Peninsular get pretty rubbish weather too – admittedly not as cold as ooop north, but, still bad. So, as the UK grabs it’s thermals and digs out the shovels and grit to cope with a big freeze and snowy weather, we are digging out our wellies and rather fetching waterproof trousers to cope with an impending monsoon.

Anyway, weather talk aside, here’s this week’s Sunday Sevens…

Sunset across the Bay

Clearly last Sunday nothing of note occurred as I didn’t take any photos. This lovely sunset happened on Monday though. All of a sudden the apartment was bathed in the most beautiful orange glow and I looked out of the window to see that the sun was just about to set behind the hills directly opposite our apartment windows. Each day the sun is setting further to the right (north west) as we get closer to spring and it was a beautiful beam of orange which signalled the end of Monday’s daylight.

Seaside blanket silliness

I’m really enjoying the twice weekly instalments of the Coastal Crochet Seaside stash busting blanket Crochet Along. Last week, one of my fellow CAL-ers uploaded a cute photo to Instagram with a Lego diver, seaweed and fish on her blanket and I thought I’d join in with the silliness. I spent rather longer than I should have digging about in search of a Playmobil diver and his gear, but only managed to locate his breathing apparatus. I gave up and raided the bath toy box for this pair. I have a horrible feeling our diver has met a sticky end somewhere. (Note to self : I really must grow up).

Dressmaking class

At my dressmaking class this week I finished my slice and slide frill around the top of my toile dress. It was removed from the mannequin and converted from lots of jigsaw pieces of fabric to just two to check I had the correct drape for the frill. It’s not looking too bad. I’m awaiting instruction on what to do next….

Crochet confusion

I have been attempting to start a rainbow crochet blanket (requested by a Little Postcard) for a few weeks now, but I have really struggled with it. First of all, I tried a new ripple pattern, which required a lot of concentration by me. I really wanted something I could do without too much thought in front of the telly, but I kept getting so far and having to frog it because I’d made a mistake way back at the start of the row.

On top of this I wasn’t completely happy with the colours I had chosen. I picked them online and got them sent to Gib, but when they sat next to each other, they were a bit harsh. I finally relented and went to the wool shop here in Gibraltar and bought three complimentary shades which evened out the rainbow effect I wanted. I also found a new ripple pattern which worked better for me. Back to the drawing board, but I had a plan!

Blue skies

I mentioned a the start of this post that we have had some beautiful weather this week. This was the gorgeous blue sky on Wednesday lunchtime. I was supposed to meet a friend for lunch but she got a call from school to say one of her little ones was ill, so lunch was postponed and I got the bus home. This was the view from the bus stop over the top of the park and Trinity Cathedral to the top of the Rock in the distance.

Watercolour daffs

I managed to finish my latest watercolour painting at my watercolour class this week. I’m rather pleased with these daffodils. They go well alongside my iris painting from a couple of weeks ago. I have decided to have a go at another painting in this same style with pen and watercolour, and after a bit of a poll on Instagram, it’s been decided that tulips should be my next subject!

I love it when a plan comes together…

My persistence paid off I think, the rainbow blanket is coming along well (although not fast enough for the Little Postcard who wants it for his bed…. “When will it be finished Mummy??” “Errr, don’t hold your breath son.”) I’m finding these ripples so relaxing to make, with not too much counting required by me. I have enjoyed a couple of episodes of Wallander on Netflix as I hooked these rows during a few quiet moments. I have been wanting to work on this all the time and it has come with me to football training and a football match just in case I get the chance to hook a few extra rows! My kids are seriously considering disowning me….

Batman update….

Did you see Batman in my last Sunday Sevens? He’s still up there bless him – I took this photo at 10:30 last night. They must have good helium in Gibraltar!!!

That’s all for this week’s Sunday Sevens, I hope you have a good week. If you are in the snow, keep warm, if you are in the wet, keep dry and I’ll see you next week, same time, same place. Toodleooo!

I’m linking with Natalie from Threads & Bobbins for this weekly blog series.

Sunday Sevens #111 26.11.17

~ Making Stitches ~ 13 Comments

Hello there, I hope you have had a good week. It’s been as busy as always Chez Postcard and I’m staring down the barrel of a frantic few weeks with all the pre-Christmas antics there are are for the Little Postcards. There’s actually one day next week where I need to be in 4 different places at the same time…. I may be calling on the services of Dr Who and his Tardis to get everything done!

Here’s this week’s Sunday Sevens…

A sunny start to the week

There was an in-service day for some of the Little Postcards on Monday. I haven’t been feeling too great for the last couple of weeks and they behaved so well for me letting me have an easy day, that we did a late afternoon trip to the park at Europa Point for ice cream as a reward. (My fluey cold from the other week turned into bronchitis 😕). The weather was glorious, as you can see, with just the hint of a Levanter cloud forming on the top of the Rock.

It’s finished #1><

Ta-dah! It’s finished at last! I have actually completed a blouse in my Dressmaking class, with a collar, cuffs and buttons (although I was tempted with velcro when the button holes weren’t behaving as I wanted them to). It’s a bit ‘loud’ colourwise so I’m not sure when I’ll wear it… perhaps under a cardigan!

Cloud free skies!><

We had more beautiful cloud-free skies mid-week. We have been so lucky to have a warm, dry autumn here in Gibraltar so far. I’m dreading having to dig the waterproofs out when the rains come….

It’s finished #2><

It’s been quite the week for finishing things, I managed to finish my autumn crochet wreath – before the end of autumn (a miracle!). I’m thrilled with how it turned out, it looked great in the autumnal sunshine on our front door. The kit came in a Little Box of Crochet and the designer was Kate Eastwood of Just Pootling.

Not much watercolour progress…><

I guess I can’t finish everything at once, so I’m still working on my watercolour painting of town. I’m getting there slowly but surely.

A new project><<<<<<<<<<<<<<

Yesterday I treated myself to starting a new crochet project. I was very disciplined and waited until I’d finished my wreath before cracking open another little box of crochet…

Christmas is coming>

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The Gibraltar Christmas lights were turned on on Friday night and yesterday we took a trip into town to visit Gibraltar’s first ever Christmas market. There are artisan stalls set up in little wooden huts, you can even get mulled wine – it smelled lovely (I shall have to go back once I finish my antibiotics!).

I’m linking with Natalie (the proud Mummy of a beautiful new baby girl) from Threads & Bobbins for this weekly Sunday Sevens blog series.