House-warming new pattern - one for the readers

Just before Christmas, my brother moved into a new unit.  I knew I wanted to make him something for his new place for his Christmas present, but I was struggling to work out what to make him.

My brother has always been a huge geek.  In fact, he's the one who introduced me to most of my favourite fandoms - Harry Potter, Discworld, Star Wars, even (to some extent) Doctor Who.  He also introduced me to Tripod (Australian comedy trio), Lano & Woodly (Australian comedy duo), Umbilical Brothers (Australian comedy duo), Dresden Files (book series), QI (BBC TV show), and more.  G's three years younger than me but clearly has always had good taste.

However, he moved to Brisbane and then Melbourne a few years ago, and I move to England (and back to Aus), so I was a bit out of touch with what he was in to these days:

(I may have lied a bit about the "very cool idea" - not sure 'random cross stitch of some sort' really fits that description)

At any rate, reading I could work with and so I created the "A House is not a Home without a Bookshelf" cross stitch.

And now you can create your own because I've finally managed to get the pattern uploaded to my Etsy store!

What are some of your "a house is not a home without..." sayings?

Happy stitching!

Discworld

My favourite author of all time is Terry Pratchett.

Well, one of my favourite authors.  I have a number of favourites - JK Rowling, LM Montgomery, Jasper Fforde, Bryce Courtney, John Marsden.  My bookcase is a bit of a conglomeration of different authors, themes, genres, styles.  It's over-flowing at the moment (and I have more in storage and at my brother's house) but space is at a premium in my share-house and there just isn't space at the moment!  My dream house has a dedicated library.  And craft room.  And Doctor Who shrine.  Have I mentioned I'll need a mansion?

My packed bookcase, and a few of my completed stitches

Part of my Pratchett collection - there are more on my desk, and more in storage!

But now I'm off topic.

My favourite author of all time is Terry Pratchett.  I love the way is mind works, the worlds he creates, the characters I know better than real people, the emotions, the total "what the" moments, and the utter crazy dedication of Pratchett fans.  I particularly love the vividness of his stories - the way I can see pictures in my mind as I read (or listen to the audio books).

To celebrate my favourite author, I have not one but two new patterns inspired by Pratchett, now available in my Etsy store.

First there are the Discworld Earrings:

The pattern includes Igor's eyeballs in jars, Death's life-timers, Rincewind and Granny Weatherwax's hats, and of course Great A'Tuin his/her self.

The second new pattern is A Cup Of Tea, featuring a quote from "Snuff":

Don't forget, there is also the Discworld Alphabet.  I originally designed and stitched this for the charity auction at the Irish Discworld Convention in November 2013.  The finished piece ended up selling for €35 (approximately $50).  Proceeds were donated to Alzheimer's Research UK.

In other news, I may have agreed to direct one of the plays for the local amateur drama group this year.  I'm not certain - it's all a bit of a sugar-induced blur.  I blame the owl-themed patty cakes at the baby shower for my friend (coincidently the president of said drama group).

I wonder if I could convince them to do Wyrd Sisters?

Happy Stitching!