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As you know the Knit Relief auction ended last night.
Scarlett and her amazing needlewomen (and me!) raised…..
Yep….£2038!
I’m in awe of the amazing Scarlett for organising this.
At 16 all I was bothered about was ponies!
Scarlett…you’re the best!
And a big shoutout to everyone who contributed.
Just to remind you that we’re in the final hours of the Knit Relief auction.
Please go and bid on whatever takes your fancy.
It’s a good cause!
Today is Sport Relief day in the UK and up and down the country people are fundraising for disadvantaged people at home and abroad.
It so easy in these times of austerity to forget just how fortunate we are. If you’re reading this blog you have a roof over your head, a warm safe bed and food on the table. You have a computer and internet access. And I’m pretty sure you take these things pretty much for granted.
I know I often do.
I’m lucky in other ways. My children remind me every day how different life could be.
They had a tough start to life. Their 5 other siblings had a tough start to life. Their birth parents have a really tough life.
They dodged a bullet as they were at severe risk from mental and/or physical health issues that they have thankfully avoided.
We are blessed to have found them and without the social services in this country they could have had a very different life to the one they have now. It’s not a perfect adoption service but it sure as heck beats some of the alternatives.
So I’m going to remind you now that thanks to Teen Granny, a group of talented needlewomen, and me, have donated hand made goods to Knit Relief and the auction is currently underway on eBay.
So far the total is at about £1000.
I think we can do better.
The auction finishes on Sunday 25th March at 7pm GMT.
Please bid on whichever Knit Relief item takes your fancy.
Please donate to Sport Relief.
Not every family is as lucky as ours.
If you haven’t visited Teen Granny’s blog already, you really should mosey on over there right now.
Well, maybe read this post first. But definitely when you’ve done that.
Because Scarlett is seriously cool.
She cooks and bakes and sews and is generally all round creative.
And she gives a damn.
She’s the kinda girl I hope Button turns out to be.
This year, she’s hosting Knit Relief 2012, which is an auction of crafty delights donated by a bevy of talented craftswomen.
I really wanted to be involved so I popped Scarlett an email and she graciously accepted my offering.
So this shawlette (which has been sitting in a drawer since completion – I promise it hasn’t been worn!!!!) will be in the auction:
The bidding begins on the 15th March (that’s next week). Please go check it out. It’s a really good cause. And you can score some cute stuff into the bargain.
One of the wonderful side effects of writing this blog is that I’ve made new virtual friends and discovered new people who are on the same wavelength as me, or who inspire me to be a better and more creative people.
One of these new friends is Chica Andaluza who lives the kind of life I’d love to live, maybe in a few years. She lives up a mountain in Spain and grows her own food and shares her adventures, culinary or otherwise on her very delightful blog. If you’ve not checked her out yet and love food and a simpler life, I suggest you meander over there with a glass of wine and enjoy.
Picture shamelessly borrowed from Chica Andaluza...con muchas gracias
Whilst coveting her Pot au Poulet today and eating soup inspired by her recent posts for a lunctime respite from French grammar, I clicked over to the link she’d posted for Food, Photography and France.
Picture courtesy of food, photography and France...avec mes remerciements les plus sincères
I swear if he sewed and knitted I’d be convinced he has my perfect French country life. As is… it comes pretty darned close. In my dreams I can cook like this and take photos like this. As he does photography holidays in France this is at least one area that I could improve just a little bit (hint! hint! to The Husband for next years holiday!)
I’m off to purchase his ebook and am now convinced that I need an iPad…just to read his eBook at it’s best. I’ve been resisitent to an iPad for forever. C’est la vie!
Yesterday I ordered a little thank you gift for a friend from Loop.
- Image source: http://www.loopknittingshop.com
Along with Brownberry yarns these are my go-to gals for delicious gifty loveliness.
I’ve got to tell you that with this order the Loop ladies excelled themselves.
They rang me three times yesterday before I noticed that I’d inadvertently switched off the ringer on my phone. When I rang back it was to find that they were concerned as a couple of people who had purchased the yarn had commented that it leeched colour whilst knitting. As it’s dyed with indigo I kinda expected this and the colour was too perfect for the intended recipient to worry about this. It will stop after a wash or two.
I thought this was pretty brilliant, especially as they offered me a discount which made the postage costs more palatable.
Even more amazing was that even though it was gone 3pm when I finally spoke with them, the gift arrived in today’s delivery. They had packed it up and got it ready for last night’s post collection.
In my book, that’s how you do it.
Ladies from Loop, thank you so much.
The shocking
Before Christmas I bought some fabric from an eBay seller fabricexpressonline. This is the eBay store of Narang Wholesalers in Bradford.
When the fabric arrived we had sick folk and Christmas and I put the fabric in the sewing room until things had calmed and I could get back to it.
When I did open the package I found two of the three pieces I’d ordered to be faulty. And one of them was a good 1/2 meter short!
So I wrote to the seller who agreed that if I sent all pieces back they’d refund me the full amount for the fabric, plus initial shipping costs, plus return costs.
Ha!
Today I received the payment for the original fabric cost and the original shipping costs, less £1.20 PayPal charges, because they sent the money as a payment for goods I’d sold them, rather than a refund for shoddy goods they’d sold me and I’d returned. It was also light £4.41 for return shipping costs.
I queried it.
They told me they weren’t now refunding the return shipping costs as I should have contacted them earlier, and they weren’t refunding the fees either.
Now, I’ll admit that I should have checked this sooner, but frankly, shoddy goods are shoddy goods and if you’re selling online your stuff should be as advertised. And if you email me to say you’ll refund all my money, well….do it.
It’s not a great deal of money at all. That’s not the point. The very poor levels of customer service are the point.
I won’t be buying from them again. They have a good star rating. But I can’t leave feedback on their shop! I wonder how many other dissatisfied customers find they’re unable to do so.
It’s up to you whether you want to risk it.
The AWESOME!!!
Vogue Patterns, on the other hand, win my Gold Star of the day for exceptional customer service.
I want to make this top again, this time the version with the tie neckline:
On the weekend I pulled out the fabric and the pattern and laid them all out.
I checked for the instruction sheet.
Nowhere.
I turned the sewing loft upside down and inside out.
Nada.
I suspect the sticky fingers of small people!
Or possibly my inability to find anything up there.
Either way I really wanted to double check them. So I dropped Vogue Patterns a quick email today explaining my predicament and asking if there was any way they could help.
Within 5 minutes I had a response. Including the instructions.
5 minutes!!!!
I swear it takes me longer than that to actually open an email, never mind read it, find the required information, attach said required information and press the send button.
So, this is a shout out to Meg at Vogue Patterns, who today restored my faith in human nature.
And that some companies do actually give a crap about their customers.
I’m seriously impressed. And I definitely will be buying Vogue Patterns again.
I recently purchased a copy of the Singer Sewing Reference Library book Sewing Lingerie following Cidell’s review of it.
Due to a bit of a mix up, I received two copies and when I contacted the seller, they told me to pass it on!
So I am.
To one of you lovely readers.
All you have to do is leave me a comment on this post and I’ll pick a winner on Sunday 27th November.
If you subscribe through Google Reader or sign up for email notifications you’ll get an additional entry into the draw.
And yes, I’ll ship internationally.
Good luck!
Well…my first ever giveaway and I’m late with the result!!!
I’m claiming lack of broadband and a surfeit of craziness as my excuses and hope you’ll let me off the hook.
So, without further ado, lets find out who the winner is.
My glamorous assistant did the picking.
Drum-roll please:
We’ll ignore the not quite so glamorous grubby fingernails and give a big cheer for Chica Andaluza, the winner of the Lazy Daisy Shawlette.
Congratulations!
Please drop me an email with your address and this pretty will be winging it’s way to you post haste.
When I started this blog in 2008 it was really just a way to connect with my family who at the time were living nearly 300 miles away.
I wanted to share with them our progress as we knocked our home into shape, and photos of the children following the adoptions.
I had no idea that I’d still be doing this 400 posts later, even though my family all now live within 2 miles of me!
I hadn’t anticipated that anyone else would read my ramblings, or that I’d connect with so many talented women all over the world. Women who inspire me to be a better and more creative person.
So to say thank you for being there for me I’m excited to hold this, my first ever, giveaway:
This is the Lazy Daisy Shawlette by Orange Flower Patterns knitting in Debbie Bliss Pure Silk in hot pink.
It’s so soft and cosy.
And it’s could be keeping your neck toasty warm this winter.
How to enter
1) Leave a comment on this post.
2) For a second entry subscribe to this post by email…little box at the top left of the page…or by subscribing through Google Reader.
3) For a third entry, link back to this post on your blog.
This giveaway closes at midnight GMT on Sunday9th October.
I’ll announce the winner next week.
International entries more than welcome. I’ll post this little beauty anywhere.
