About Me

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My name's Alison but for reasons too long to go into I'm known as Cockney Blonde or CB for short. I've been rubber stamping for several years but now spend most of my time either knitting or crocheting. However, with the advent of a New Year I have bitten the bullet and am tackling my usually hated pastime of sewing. I've even bought 'Sewing for Dummies' to guide me on my way. I've been with my hubby Dave for 24 years and between us we have 4 kids and 5 grandkids. We also have 2 cats and a dog, the latter features as my 'photo' image. I used to be able to blog daily but these days I struggle to blog weekly. Hopefully now we are settled into our new home in the country, I can get back to a daily (well almost) update from the room I now have to share with hubby. No more personal crafting space for me!!! Thanks to all the blogs and sites I follow for all your brilliant inspiration, and thank you to everyone who finds the time to comment on my blog.

Tuesday, 24 July 2012

Home Alone


Good Morning and what a beautiful morning it is too. I was kicked out of bed at 5.45 this morning so that hubby could get me 'sorted' before he had to leave at 6.30 to take the train over to St. Helens to be with our Son today.

Here is my tray of goodies to keep me going until my pal Diane arrives to rescue me at lunchtime.
You can see the flask, top right, filled with hot coffee; mug ready to be filled with the steaming contents, and of course the jug of milk and dish with sugar. Then there is the banana and pear - healthy - and the not so healthy crisps and biccies. Finally a glass of water and painkillers just in case.

Also to hand are the telephones (landline and mobile), TV remote controls, Laptop, knitting, crochet and sewing....Oh, and my current book.

Of course by the time I've finished writing this I'll be ready for a snooze...........

TTFN, zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Monday, 23 July 2012


Hello Bloggers. I hope you are all enjoying some sunshine at last. It has been very pleasant here in West Yorkshire all over the weekend and continuing into today.

I thought I'd share this unusual card with you which I sent to a very dear friend. The technique was shown to me by Chrissie of Stampin Up. Its one of those cards that presents a whole host of potential problems but once you've mastered the folds you wonder what all the fuss was about.

I really enjoyed this workshop and actually managed to finish the card before the end, obviously it is another pre-leg card, lol.


So to give you a quick resume of the last couple of days. The clingfilm is still doing its job but not for much longer as dressings should be coming off on Wednesday and then I'll be able to soak the leg. The tubigrip will still need to be worn but at least that can be taken off for bathing.

Saturday I was fortunate to have a chauffeur for a few hours so it was off to the nail salon to get the talons back on and then a couple of hours at my #2 Son's Garden Centre for an Open Day.

Yesterday we popped to our local for a drink and were able to sit outside in the sun, and then today its been a trip to the Post Office. As you can see life is just one big adventure at the moment...

So to finish up its #1 Son's birthday today. Happy 30 - 1 J... Hubby and I Skyped him this morning from bed. Just for a laugh we put woolly hats on. Anyway no comment was passed until his girlfriend popped her head in to say hello and immediately said - why is your Mum wearing a hat??? Hilarious - he hadn't noticed.

That's all for now, x

Friday, 20 July 2012

Friday's are for Resting with your leg up.....


Hello Bloggers. How are we all doing today? Have any of you managed to catch any sunshine yet? I don't just mean a smidgen here and there, as apparently summer is almost here....

Anyway some more cards to share with you, created pre-leg.

The top one was made utilising a stencil image I had filled with Dreamweavers paste. A ribbon here and there, a few gems and a flower, voila!

Next is another of my resist and spotlight cards. I do love those adirondack colours, cranberry and eggplant, together.


Finally a very quick resist card with a simple sentiment stamped on.

Tomorrow, all being well, we are hoping to pop up to my Son's Garden Centre for an Open Day and BBQ (I am whispering now in case the sun is listening). Not sure how they will manage with me in a wheelchair as the whole Centre is based on a steep hill. I may not be back in blogland til after the weekend so you will have to wait until that instalment.

Wishing you all a happy and hopefully sunny weekend, x

Thursday, 19 July 2012

Supermarket Sweep...


Afternoon bloggers. Before I tell you about today's adventure let me share this card I sent recently for a friend's birthday. This is another one of those postcards from IKEA this time used in a gate-fold card.

Anyway, today we ventured to the Supermarket, hilarious. Apart from making me appreciate the plight of wheelchair users in negotiating pot-holes, kerbs and people!!! it also made me aware of how 'removed' from things you feel when sitting at that level.

Anyway hubby pushed me to the store and then we hooked up to a wheelchair trolley fitting it around my horizontal leg rest. After he had retrieved me from the middle of an aisle (he did a toilet dash...) we set off to get our goodies. I have to say chocolate featured heavily on this trip, lol. It was quite an art pushing this extended length of machinery around the aisles but he did really well and we rewarded ourselves with a ride home in a taxi followed swiftly by coffee and a cookie.

Oh, and before I forget, the clingfilm therapy was used again this morning. We are now 1 week into my confinement, 5 to go....

TTFN, x

Wednesday, 18 July 2012

A Little Bit of Crochet and Tales from The Wheelchair


Afternoon Folks. So far, so good on my attempt to get back into daily blogging. Thought I'd share with you my first attempt at crocheting a poncho. I didn't have a pattern but after making 16 granny squares I used the template from my knitted poncho to work out how to connect them all together. All together not a bad attempt for a newbie. Can you spot the ruffled edging??? Should have taken a closer piccie.


And here's the recipient, our wee Scottish Grand-Daugher having fun chasing bubbles in her poncho.

So back to the wheelchair.....

Imagine, one passenger with poorly leg on leg-raise, one pusher, and 2 dogs.....

OK, you need more of a visual....Further imagine one dog being held on lead by person in chair and other dog with lead wrapped around opposite handle....

Getting a better picture now. Well we must have been a sight as we attracted quite a lot of interest in our stroll/push around the block especially when one dog decided to pull in one direction and the other dog in the opposite direction. On top of that add uneven paving, potholes......

Next time I think I will insist on a dedicated pusher and a separate dog handler. Anyway we had a giggle and I got some fresh air.

Oh, before I forget....had clingfilm time again this morning. I could get quite addicted to this stuff, lol.

Enjoy the little bit of sun that's trying to make an appearance.

TTFN, xxx

Tuesday, 17 July 2012

Another Day, Another Piece of Clingfilm


Afternoon folks. Thought I'd share some cards with you which I made pre clingfilm days.....

The top one was a combination of resist and spotlight, the middle one some more resist with Stazon overstamping. Both for crafty girly birthdays.

This bottom one was for another very talented crafty lady, this time in an easel format. The upright image is part of a collection of square postcards from IKEA. Not sure if they still sell them but they are so adaptable.
Well, the clingfilm was out again today. A neighbour had offered to take us to a local mobility place to pick up a hire wheelchair with leg-rest and hubby thought it would be a good idea for me to go out for the ride. So we started our morning routine early so that the bath and of course clingfilm ritual could be performed. We're getting good at this now and hubby is even multi-tasking.....dropping soap in bath and knocking poorly leg at the same time!!!

So we are now the proud foster parents of a wheel-chair which we have tried out quite successfully, but more of that tomorrow. After all I don't want to use up all my tales in one blog outing.

So until tomorrow, TTFN, x

Monday, 16 July 2012

G'Day All. Long time no blog. Well now I have no excuse as I am laid up for the next few weeks having had surgery on my knee. To say I am a little peeved that I can't drive or weight bear for 6 weeks is an understatement, but hey ho, there's worse things going on in the world.

Before I tell you about this little chap above let me wet your tastebuds with the follow.....

What else can you do with clingfilm???

I bought this little dog for my Grand-daughter to decopatch when we were away last month. Not a bad job she's done of it too. A little help from Grandma and a couple of eager Aunties who wanted to play but in the main Casey did a large proportion of it. She so loves making things and told my friend that when she stays at Grandma's she does 'creative stuff'. Bless! We haven't seen her now for about 5 weeks, but that's another story.

Anyway, back to the clingfilm......

Absolutely brilliant for wrapping around your leg so that you can get a bath, of sorts. My goodness I never thought having a bath could be so exhausting. I long for the day when I can get in and out unaided and soak for hours fully submerged beneath gloriously scented bubbles.

Thank goodness my hubby retired a few weeks ago as he has been an absolute godsend. Apart from not catching me when I lost my balance on the stairs..... Still that is getting easier and by the time I've finished using these crutches I will have the pertest boobies in the world. No boob job needed here, lol.

Right, off to sort some more piccies on this new computer so that I can indulge you in more delights.

TTFN, x