Farewell 2012, you've been good to me!

With just the last few hours of 2012 remaining, I wanted to share some December goodies I received. I use the term 'received' loosely, as the first lot of goodies was a gift to myself.
Ohhh Lulu was having a sale and as a long-time fan of Sarah's delectable creations - my first ever purchase was back in 2011 - there was no way I could resist. These luxurious undies certainly got me into the festive spirit half way through December.

I then received a really thoughtful package from my Secret Santa, as organised by Kat. Whoever you are, thanks so much and I hope the recipient of my gift was equally pleased!

Aside from my awesomely early Christmas present – sewing room makeover – I only received one other stitching-related Christmas gift this year. But what a beauty she is...I want to take her everywhere with me!

Although you've already seen my stitching year in review, with 2012 rapidly slipping away I wanted to reminisce about some of the other cool things I was lucky enough to experience this year. There's no denying that 2012 has been very good to me indeed!
DISCOVERIES
I discovered the larger-than-life Fleetville Vintage Emporium, which I can't wait to explore again. And I struck gold in a local vintage shop, a rare occurrence.

LARGE-SCALE FUN
I admired the incredible Lionheart Project up close and personal during it's time in Leicester and I took part in a delightful spot of yarn bombing too.

MEETING YOU!
I had the absolute pleasure of meeting many of you in the flesh this year, which was such a treat! Meeting like-minded stitching fanatics is a truly wonderful experience and one I hope you all manage to take part in during 2013. There was the awesome Walthamstow meet-up in April (organised by the impressively efficient Claire), a more intimate affair in Birmingham in May (organised by the fun loving Winnie) and of course the November meet-up in Birmingham that was mine and Kat's first, and thankfully successful, organisational attempt.

I was also fortunate enough to take part in a couple of fun, yet educational gatherings. The first was at mine and saw larger-than-life Dibs teaching a number of us some cool millinery skills and the second was a fantastic session on bound buttonholes hosted by the talented and very patient Karen.

ONLINE COMMUNITY SPIRIT
Nothing quite compares to a blogger meet-up, but my second favourite 2012 experience has got to be the heart-warming online community spirit that comes with participating in a 'challenge'. The support and encouragement is so moving and I thoroughly enjoyed every single one I took part in - Debi's February Sew Grateful Week, Julia's March Mad Men Challenge, Tilly's March One Week, One Pattern and Zoe's Me-Made-May.

I can only hope that 2013 will be as productive and as rewarding as 2012. I will do my best by kick-starting it with my most cherished make to date and the introduction of an exciting 8-week 'project' that I've been cooking up for a while. I hope you stay tuned for it, your ongoing support is the reason this blog still exists!
I hope you're all planning to welcome the New Year in style and surrounded by loved ones. See you on the other side!