Beach, Birdhouse and Blooms

We've had a few days of glorious spring weather here. Here are a couple of pictures I took at Trebarwith earlier.

Meanwhile in the back garden the oxslips are in flower

the first dwarf tulips are opening

and we have made the birds a shiny new bird table

Speaking of birds, I made this Mockingjay hairclip for Eloise to wear when we went to see The Hunger Games on Friday (excellent movie by the way, very close to the book). It was going to be a pin, but I'd run out of brooch backs so I stitched it to a barrette clip. I found the pattern here after seeing a post on Pinterest.

And here is a corsage pin I've made for a friend's birthday.
I have, however, completely failed to complete the Monthly Challenge. Oh the shame! Off to crawl under a rock and promise to do better next month...

It feels like spring...

...and to celebrate I have been busy making a Spring wreath for the front door following this excellent tutorial from Flamingo Toes, always a great source of crafty inspiration.
Yes. I know the front door needs painting...
I changed my wreath from the original slightly by adding in some jumbo pearl beads from a vintage necklace (well I have to include something upcycled don't I?), and I used rubber stamps to make my mini-bunting rather than printing it, but other than that I pretty much slavishly followed the tutorial.
Those flowers are so much fun to make, I can see me adding them to a lot of things.
Hear that sound? That is the girls rushing to hide their things before they get a shabby flower makeover
I've got some other finishes too, but they are for exchanges and gifts so I can't show them yet.

As I was going to St Ives

I met a cormorant. He might have had seven wives, I didn't ask him, but he posed very nicely for his photo. The rock was a little way out to sea, so this was taken with quite a long zoom.

We went to a craft fair last Friday, not terribly successful in terms of numbers of people through the door, but I did spend a very pleasant time with my friend Karen, of Just Bunting, making lavender hearts like this one from recycled fabric. The fabric is from a vintage 60s dress. Looks a bit Liberty to me.

But you didn't come here to hear me rambling on about seabirds and pomanders. You want to know who won the giveaway.

I  put the comment numbers into the random number generator at random.org (still haven't figured out how to make that appear on here), and it came up with comment number five, which was



wait for it



ooh, the suspense...



Julie!
I'm off now to have a little ponder about what I'm going to make for you Julie.

Spring, things and a Blogoversary Giveaway

It has felt a lot like spring this last week, I even managed to find a few wind blown daffodils and some pussy willow in the garden, and I couldn't resist buying the campanula and white muscari at the florist's.


This display just makes me happy every time I walk into the kitchen.

Not much stitching to show this week, I've been working on an exchange piece and can't show it yet, but I did knock up this bit of daftness for Eloise, a cuddly toy Shroedinger's Cat.
Ah, Geek boards on Pinterest,
you have so much to answer for...

Naomi has been Pinteresting (is that a verb?) too, and made this wonderful picture from wax crayons.

She also made this attractive abstract art installation on the conservatory floor. I suppose I should be glad it wasn't the lounge carpet.

Anyway, a week ago was my 5th Blogoversary, (which I managed to miss, oops!), so I think that calls for a giveaway.  No pictures of the prize as I shall make something specifically for whoever wins, I promise it won't be a dead/alive toy cat (unless that is what you want of course).
If you want to take part, please be a follower and make a comment on this post. If there is something I've stitched or crafted recently that particularly appeals to you, let me know in your post and I'll try and make something like it, or you can be more Karmic about the whole thing and I'll surprise you. Either way I'll take sign ups until next Sunday (11th March). Good Luck!