Its been a difficult time

HI All

what a couple of weeks, I said before about my little Freebie having her op, well she went in Tuesday, I got a call from the vets  they did routine bloods and found she had Pancreatis   this meant she had to stay in, she was put on a drip and given high doses of antibiotics, she finally came home Saturday, she looked really sorry for herself, she was on  strong painkillers and antibiotics and she is to have a low fat diet, she also had to wear a collar to stop her chewing her stitches.

I made her a space for a bed in the corner of the room thinking she would want to be quiet and left alone, how wrong was I. She was so excited to be home, jumping around, lying on her back wanting a belly rub and then in my arms, Freebie loves to be held like a baby and stroked, she was in my arms till bed time. I gave her the medication settled her on the bed beside my bed, said goodnight. The minute I turned off the light she was on the bed trying to bury herself under the blanket, what could I do so I left her there, she has been recovering ever since, her stitches come out this Wednesday. I am so glad I have insurance for all my doggies, her trip to the vets cost £3256.00, I had to pay £80.00, if I did not have insurance I dread to think what would of happened.

Now me, my legs have always had a bit of fluid on my legs, the last couple of weeks they have been really bad, they were so painful I could not bear to stand on them. eventually I managed to get an appointment with my GP, he put me on high doses of diuretics and took loads of bloods for tests, my blood tests come back ok so now, I am waiting for a echo, which is a scan on my heart and I have been told to sit with my legs up, I have got so bored and unlike me a bit down, but I did manage to get into my work room and finish my hairdressing salon, all that if left is to attach the front,

I am very pleased with this room box, I am going to write about how I made it and what I did including pictures and it is going to be in the Dolls House World magazine, then I am going to sell it, I have no room and to be honest once I have made something I am eager to get on with the next one and the one I have just made no longer interests me. I think its because I love the challenge of creating something from nothing. Anyone else like this?

well I have bored you enough with my nattering on, here are photos for you.

Freebie and her collar. post op

I had to make a false roof and a box to hide the wires

Difficult week

Hi All

Not a very good week for my little Freebie, she is having an operation on Wednesday to repair the ligament in her back left leg, she has been having problems for a while and last week the ligament slipped and stayed out. She is limping but not in pain. I know this because all  my 3 dogs have had a season and they delight in bonking each other.

Today I have the groomer coming, she is going to tidy Freebie up and give her a haircut so that she is ready for Wednesday.
I am quite worried about her, its not so much the operation, its after wards she will be in a cage for about 6 weeks, she will not be allowed to jump around and must rest, this is to prevent her fracturing her leg, she is usually so active, it is going to be difficult for her.

I am giving her lots of cuddles and love.

Freebie

progress and a moan

HI all

I am near the finishing line with my salon project, just a bit to do on the inside and then to decide what to do with the outside.

I have a nearly naked lady sitting in the chair waiting for her haircut, will hopefully dress her today.

I have been asked by Sandra, ( she works for  Dolls house world mag) if I will send her details  and photos to go into the magazine, not long ago I had a feature about Franks Place in the magazine, nice to feel that my work warrants interest.

Now the moan, those that have been following my blog know I have numerous health problems,  these I normally smile about and just get on with life the best way I can, but now it is really having an impact on my life and it is all to do with fluid, yes fluid, i have it on my lower legs and feet, and by the end of the day my feet look  like balloons, and they are so painful, I try now to have one day in my workroom and the next day with my legs raised to help to prevent the fluid, but it is not really working, so just having to get on with it, I have given up smoking but my breathlessness is just as bad if not worse, will be glad when I get to see the cardiologist to find out what is going on, moan over.

When I have finished this project I will be starting on the next one, it will be a clinic in the Niger Delta, that's all I saying for now you will just have to wait,

anyway here are some photo's of the salon so far

Turn away if you have a weak stomach

HI All
yes it was a busy week and full of mishaps,

Easter Sunday, I had both my sons, their partners and my grandson Jack for dinner, it was all going well in the morning and I was busy getting the pork ready to go in the oven, I could not find a sharp knife, so I thought why not use the bread knife. I was cutting away, when I noticed blood, looked down and the tip of my finger was hanging off, oops!!, I have a lack of feeling in my hands so did not feel it. so made myself some steri strips to hold it in place and then got it bandaged, at least I got out of the washing up.

Jack loved hos dinosaur tail, the hoodie was a bit big, but he still wanted to wear it, went to get my camera, I had already used it dinner time and guess what, the battery was flat, Thomas will send me a photo of Jack and the dinosaur.
We all had a great day, ate too much, it was really nice to have both my sons together, does not happen often.

I showed Joe, my chiropodist the bits I made for Jack and she wants me to make her son one, talking about the dinosaur tail and hoodie. 

And on top of that my little Freebie has been having problems with her left back knee and this weekend she jumped off the chair, yelped and her cartilage came out, so trip to vets, she is having a operation on the 13th of this month, and I have to keep her caged for at least 8 weeks, so that the bones will heal with hopefully no complications.

I did manage to do a bit more to my salon, I put up the mirrors and lights around them, I used the cheap string of lights that I got at Christmas (they cost me a 1.00) I also made some bottles, boxes for creams, shampoo and dyes, these went into the corner unit.
anyway enough patterning, have a look at the photos.

Jack enjoying his dinner

my 2 sons

Freebie (yorkie) Mollie (black one)

I HAVE A TAIL

Hi All

Happy Easter

Yes it's official I have a tail!! well Jack will have, curious? then let me explain.
I showed you yesterday the hoodie I adapted for Jack, well I also found a pattern for a dinosaur tail, so I decided to make that for him as well. It turned out ok. Not sure though if I am not opening Pandora's chest for later in his life when he want's fancy dress costumes, he is not old enough yet to tell me, time will tell.

I had my bloods done yesterday and they are still within the range the doctor's want them to be. which is great for me as it means for now I can go 6 weeks between tests instead of weekly, 

Having to rest a bit more this week, sitting with my legs up, which I hate doing, but there is increased fluid on my legs, they cause me a lot of pain and because the family will all be here Sunday, I want to be at my best.

But I am not here doing nothing, oh no!! I have found a book with some lovey medieval cross stitch patterns, I am in the process of shrinking them down to 1/12th, hard on the eyes , but better than sitting doing nothing.

Have a look at my tail

it attaches with a Velcro belt.

Now this was hard

Hi All

Before I talk about myself and what I have been doing, I want to extend my sympathy to the families of the people that have lost their live in the recent bombing's.
I cannot understand where it is right to take lives in the name of religion,  I do not think we will ever have a peaceful land. 


I had started the dinosaur hoodie for Jack and yesterday I finished it, and it was one of the hardest things I had ever done. 
First I added a zip, not the right colour but  I did not want to spend a lot of money and this and will only what I have in my stash. which turned out to be light blue.

I then made the dinosaur spikes to go in the hoodie, the tutorial I had seen showed stitched the spikes opened on the hoodie first, I decided to make them a bit different. I had some stiff stiffener in my stash, so I made the spikes using that to hold them upright, I edged the sides with dark green bias binding. I then added a row of open smaller spikes to the hoodie and stitched the spikes to this, I had to use a brown tape along each sides, not only did this add a decorative bit, importantly it hid some of the dreadful stitching underneath.

Finally after a very long day I completed it!!

Today I will be making the tail. like how I said that confidently, we will see,

the dinosaur spikes along the back

the front, I added the dinosaur figures to the front.

Lets talk mini's

HI All

It was all going well, but something was not right, I felt my hairdresser's salon was to bland, it looked like I had taken the soft option and gone for boring beige, so out came my stash of papers and I found some black and silver ones I liked, not enough to cover the walls, but enough to make a statement.
I also found some silver and black paper that would work on the floor.
So out came the beige and in came the silver and black. it now looks right.

I also had a fiddle around with the layout and think i have go the layout I like. I added pictures and the nail varnish shelf  to the walls.

I am not happy with the receptionist desk, it does not look right to me, I think it is to high, so going to change it.

As it is Easter this coming weekend, I decided to have the family over for dinner on Sunday, it's not often I get them altogether, so really looking forward to it.
That got me distracted, my lovely grandson, Jack, he is now 18 mth old, is in to Pepper Pig and dinosaurs, and the other day on Pinterest   I saw a hoodie made into a dinosaur, well not exactly, but enough for him to have fun, I also found a tail, so decided, as you do, to make him one for Easter, so that meant a trip into town to find a hoodie, just about impossible, eventually tracked one down, got it in a charity shop for 2.50. have got to alter it, started it today,
have got some photo's for you to see

boring beige

the papers

on the wall and floor

fiddling about,

the original hoodie

beginning to change it

Time flies

Hi All
How is it the older I get the faster time goes, I wake up on Monday, I blink and its Friday!!

well I have had my week of crafting, this week its back to minis, I want to get my salon finished so I can start on my African clinic, not sure if I told you about this.

It came about one morning when I was having my check up with my GP, he asked me what I did during the day, I told him about my blog and my mini creations, he pulled up my blog and was fascinated with it all, we the got chatting about his charity work.

He, his family and friends have a charity called  "New Foundations"  they have a clinic in the Niger Delta, every year they take equipment and themselves to the Niger Delta, to treat and also train people to care and nurse the sick. have a look at their work
I some how agreed to make a room box of the clinic which he wants to auction to raise money for the foundation. I have started making notes and gathering ideas and information and will as usual show my workings and progress on here.

Back to crafts, this week I made a couple of  messenger bags and my daughter-in-law wanted a seat for Jack for when he is in a supermarket trolley , so I came up with one, I included to clips to hold toys, it was fun to do.

A few photo's of my weeks work

this is a doggy bag, clips onto your belt of the dog's lead

little girls bag

Its crazy here

Hi all

Yes it has gone crazy here, I have been busy with orders, the little cushions seem to be going well.

Not getting much traffic in my Esty shop, going to do some research today  about marketing and other things.

My sewing machine has been put away, so next week I am back to doing minis.

I am very lucky, I am having 2 Mother days, this week my youngest son, Liam is taking me to an Italian restaurant for a meal, and next week my eldest son Thomas, is taking me to his house ( he now lives in Cambridge, left Edinburgh last year)  and his cooking me a dinner, so lucky me.
hope you all have a happy mothers day.

here are some photo's of my craft work

this one is a bag for when you walk your dogs,

kiddies bag

I am having a change

Hi All

Yes I am having a change, I now have an Esty shop, where I hopefully sell handmade bags and gifts, this came about from me making Christmas gifts for my family. They encouraged me to make some to sell, so I am having  go.

So what I am doing is spending one week with my minis and one week doing my crafts.

This is my craft week.

I also realised, while my blog was unobtainable, I was still doing my minis, so I have some photos for you of the work I have been doing

my collection of glass was growing so I made a room box to house it

these are my man caves, I had so much and they could not be seen so now they are displayed in room boxes

well that's the lot for now, 

.