Summer Holiday Catch Up!

I've not been getting much done because #summerholidays ! I'm loving spending time with the boys though! In fact we are *hopefully* going camping tomorrow [I've said no to camping in wet weather but Rikki still seems to think it will be "fun". I think hes forgetting who gets to dry the tent and wash all the muddy clothes afterwards.] So I thought I might do a catch up of whats been happening! 

Well first lets talk about this little fella!!!!! I was given this beauty a few days ago by a friend and I am BUZZING about fixing it up. Its very similar to my other hand crank but this one is basically in tact. So far as I can tell there's nothing missing but it does need a lot of TLC. The machine itself just has some rust but the decals seem to be fairly intact. I've been dosing it with machine oil and its easier to crank now. Next Ill work on getting rid of the rest of the rust and trying to open up the shuttle compartment.

The box was covered in paint and dust. The above picture is actually after I'd wiped all the dust off, I couldn't wait to get started! Luckily for me the paint must have been water based because I've gotten most of it off with a damp cloth. I've started removing the rust from the handle and then hopefully the box will go off to Rikki's Grandad to be glued back together.

Its going to take a long time but I'm hoping to get it working enough that its usable. And by the laws of sewing machine gifting if he ever needs curtains hemming or trousers taking up I'll do them with no grumbling.

The day after I got the sewing machine we spent a day at the Crocky Trail with Lil man and our neighbours. I've never been and I absolutely loved it!!!!!! I'd say its well worth a visit if your in the Cheshire area and even if your not I'd still make the trip.

I've sewn up a stella hoodie. I got the pattern in the #greatbigpatternswap I ended up cutting out one day and sewing it up a few days later when time allowed. Hopefully next I'll be able to find some time to take some pictures of it on!

But just because I'm taking a break from my sewing machine doesn't mean I've been sat on my backside. Well I have but you have to for hand sewing there's really no other option!

I've started another blanket. This one I'm called my crap scrap hexy quilt because its going to be made from just scraps!!! It's probably going to look like an awful mess because of all the random fabrics but its going to be the project I take camping and then hopefully it'll be the quilt I take camping. Ideally I want it to cover me but who knows how big I'll go!!!!!!

And that's it really. I had a quick visit to the fabric shop with another friend so he could pick out a background for the quilt I'm making him but we were very quick and I made sure not to look at other fabrics!!!

And here's a pupdate!

- Polly has continued to settle in nicely and definitely looks more at home
-shes currently in possession of 5 handmade blankets. Two knitted and 3 quilts.
- Shes very nearly stopped growling at Rikki
- We happily go for a mile long walk [I mean she takes a big nap afterwards but hopefully we can build on this until shes trotting around no bother]
- We've changed her food from wet and dry to just wet. It made sense because she was always leaving the wet food and scoffing down the dry.
- she's learnt to sit [For treats, no seriously if you ask her without a treat in your hand she looks at you as if you have two heads!]

Right so that's me all caught up!

I best go and finish packing for our camping trip!

Wish me good weather!!!

Much Love

Frankie

xxx

I'm Back! And MARRIED!!!!

OH MY GOSH, can I just take a moment to process that I haven't stopped in about two weeks? I feel like I might need another holiday!

But here they are. The long awaited wedding details! You guys have been so patient whilst I kept hush!

The excited really started a few days before when I received these lovely flowers from my friend Pin and Tonic! These are still alive by the way!

I then spent the night before the wedding with my bestie and bridesmaid kal, we ate pizza, drank wine and put the world to rights. The idea was we were going to get an early night but lo and behold midnight rolled by and there we were still awake!!

I also wore my Grainline Lakeside pjs to get ready in the morning, as the fabric and pattern were a lovely gift from Pin and Tonic!

in the morning we got up at nine ready for Rikkis auntie to come and put my rollers in [shes a hairdresser!] then my mum and dad arrived, and the photographer and my friend Ali who did my makeup and before I knew it my house was full!

I also received this lovely package from Rikki 

Flowers which naturally I instagrammed 

and a lovely cute teddy that had been fully smushed into its protective packaging!

After what felt like an age of my trying not to panic and having people work on me I was ready to go.

The car arrived at 1 (we were getting married at 2) and we had gone for a fully traditional Downton abbey style car, which was beautiful and wonderful until it BROKE DOWN! I'm not even kidding. As it turns out the older the car the more unreliable it is in cold weather. Luckily there was a back up car not far behind, so on our local crossroads we stopped and I got out of my lovely old car into a shiny new car. Which would have been wonderful if 1. the driver hadn't had the heat all the way up and I mean I was sweating and 2. she actually knew where we were going. A long story short guess who ended up directing the driver?

Anyway we made it there in the end and after a quick chat with the registrar I walked down the aisle and was married! But omg was I shaking, my legs were like jelly!

Here we are signing the registrar, FYI that's not the original headdress I planned to wear, Instead I wore one I made at half eleven the night before. At some point I'll photograph the other headdress, which was lovely but wasn't quite right in the end. This one is actually two head things? joined together with floristry wire!

And this was my dress, it was a fit and flare style skirt and bodice with lace all over and some serious sparkle! I loved wearing the dress mainly because the skirt and top style meant I was super comfortable all day long. And I was fully capable of going for a wee by myself!

The veil was a two tier handmade scalloped edge, with crystals and I loved it.  

Here's a close up of the beading on my dress.

And here's my bouquet which I made, I used foam flowers and pieces of broken jewellery and beads and because I'm a sewer I put a few buttons in there for good measure! I actually had this made for about 15 months which is the beauty of foam flowers they don't die! and they also don't make me sneeze!

Our cake was lego themed, as were our favours and the cake was made by Rikkis, cousins, wifes , Aunty...... I hope you followed that! Anyway after making the cousins wedding cake, Rikkis Auntys wedding cake, Nan's birthday cake and this one I officially dub her the family baker! She also made the donut cake which you can see in the background, I desperately wanted to forgo having a cake and just have a stack of donuts for people to grab but sadly donuts go stale too quickly so as a surprise Rikkis Nan and Grandad had us a donut cake made! 

Here's me and Rikki after we cut the cake, and after I had cut myself a slice. Which is why Rikkis giggling because I immediately cut myself a slice of cake and he was like "babe you don't need to cut everyone a slice the venue will do it" And I was like "I want mine now, this is for me, everyone else can wait!"

#hungrygirlproblems

And these were the favours everyone had a little lego figure which was tailored to their personality, and their name on a lego brick, ask me how fun it is writing names on lego bricks? go on I dare you!

I loved doing the lego figures and they seemed to go down really well! everyone also got a lolly pop and the kids had boxes filled with pencils and activity books, which seemed to keep them all nice and quiet during the speeches. And guess who made a speech? yep me that's who! I was pretty hilarious if I do say so myself but nothing could beat the best mans speech who did a this is your wedding style slideshow with pictures and audience participation!

And then It was time for the first dance and time to PARTY! This was one of my absolute favourite parts of the day! I made sure to greet all my guests early on so I could spend the rest of the night having a laugh and dancing away! 

We stayed at a local hotel who were kind enough to leave the bar open for us, although some of our guests weren't so chirpy after a full night on the beers and no sleep!

and then the next day this happened!

Yeah bless him he carried me over the threshold! He also flashed my pants to the whole road lifting me up but we'll ignore that!

Then we had a day on cleaning and washing, a day of packing, a day of changing money over and before we knew it we were ready to fly!

Here's me looking terrified at the airport, guess who hates flying? Guess who discovered that If you take two really strong travel sickness tablets, a full dose of Kalms and wash them down with a large glass of wine then you don't really care who you are or where your going or how your getting there? 

Me! #feelingbuzzed

Anyway I will cover Vegas in a whole other post because I took some outfit pictures and we did too many activities to tag it onto this post!!!

But we did come back to this

A lovely sign and a balloon at the airport! We actually screwed up this plan , they wanted to be waiting for us as we got off the plan but we arrived an hour early so we were waiting outside!

Notice how rough I look? We'd been awake for nearly twenty four hours at this point!

and this was decorating our house!

as well as balloons and confetti!

So right now, I'm trying to get over jet lag, I spent most of last night trying to convince myself that I did actually need to sleep and no it was not time for food. 

Writing thank you cards.

Doing all of our holiday washing...... Did we really take that much stuff?

Changing my name over on various social media and actual government things! 

And trying desperately to get the house back into some form of order

But mainly I want to sleep,

and eat......

anyway! much love!

Frankie 

AKA Mrs Baldwin

 xxx