Having a whale of a time

I felt bereft when the boys went out on Sunday for a walk, I know that Himself felt guilty leaving me behind but he, the boys and the dog needed an airing. After feeling sorry for myself for all of..... err, 2 seconds,  I took the opportunity to make these..................

I was asked to make a catnip filled whale for a much loved 'only cat', so who was I to refuse!?

Not having a pattern did cause a bit of consternation so I tried several versions and made a few pale blue prototypes until I was happy. My biggest stumbling block was the tail, try as I might I just could not get the tail right.

So my final version - out of sheer frustration and fedupness - has a fish tail rather than a whale's. (Something spotted instantly by my boys who proceeded to inform me about my obvious lack of knowledge of a whale's anatomy - humph)

Any hoo - I was rather taken by the cuteness of them so made two more out of some vintage material I was gifted a while ago and had saved - I think they will make themselves on to a chrimbly list for some one :)

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I suppose I shouldn't be too put out that I didn't go on that walk (they were gone hours! - no way could my sore knee have withstood such a distance) as on Saturday, Himself took me out on a wonderful flat wander alongside a canal from a delightfully cute village where the cottages clung to the hillsides with their reflections twinkling away in the water. Beautiful.

Brrr its very much colder today and I have actually lit the fire this morning - does mean the house will be nice and warm for Himself and the boys to come home to. 

Enough waffle now, got to get ready for work, we do extended hours on Mondays and it makes it feel such a long long day.

Hope you all had a lovely weekend

and wishing you all a Happy Monday!

xxx

Sunday round up

Today's heart 

is brought to you

 from one of my favourite pictures

a lovely play on words and a bicycle - excellent!

Picture supplied by a Sustrans booklet

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Sunday - so of course it was raining......... it's kinda what we've come to expect at the moment, and in order to keep us all entertained we did loads of bake and make.  

Eldest made the kitchen his own...............

Youngest raided my stash and started making a 2CV - carefully snipping and cutting small pieces of felt, pinning both the fabric and his fingers, stitching and cussing, cussing and stitching....................

Himself carried on (in the rain and the mud) and finished chickenham palace, they now have a 'pop-hole' complete with mini locking door, porch cover and a brick for a step up (nothing is too good for his girls!)

He tried to start measuring up for their nest boxes when one of the hens decided she couldn't wait any longer to lay and bustled him out,  so he put a couple of mushroom boxes in as a temporary nesting place, then Himself came back to the house for a brew and one of Eldest's biscuits. After what he considered enough time, he returned to find the first egg in chickenham palace. The girls obviously approve, just need to finish making the nesting boxes proper - oh for a longer weekend!

And me? 

Well, when I wasn't helping Youngest source suitable scissors, checking which felt he wanted to use, showing how to pin without stabbing himself, threading his needle - first with blue thread, then with red, then back to blue.... or when I wasn't reminding Eldest to put in the key ingredient into his PEANUT BUTTER biscuits mix.....or running out between the rain drops to see how Himself and the hens were.....I was trying out this..............

It is from one of our Orkney Isle holiday photos of some of the stones in the Ring of Brodgar.

I'm trying some fabric art - sort of collage in cloth! I am sure there is a proper technical name for this style of sewing,  all I know that I end up with lots and lots of snippity bits and thread on the floor and a smile on my face :)       

I'd tried something a little closer to home and a lot smaller - my first attempt - I know that in time I will look back and cringe that I showed these rather amateurish attempts but for the time being I'll share my tentative steps. (All in the name of the Revolution!)

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All for now, well that sort of sums up our weekend, a bit of sunshine a lot of rain, crafting, building, cooking and creating (a mess) - not bad really!  Once again it has been lovely sharing our weekend, hope your all had good weekends too xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Knit and natter hearts and flowers

Such a dreich day.....overcast, grey, sullen.... miserable really.

But, I'm not going to let that get in my way - it's Friday!

With that in mind.......... 

today's hearts

 are brought to you

 by 

this lovely lady 

who yet again has brightened my day with her beautiful sewing. 

My Youngest grabbed my camera and took all these photos -

so, please... sit back and enjoy her work and his pictures

And, to top if off..... she wore these wonderful hearty slippers!

Talk about getting into the spirit of things (: 

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Still on the quest to brighten your (and definitely my) day, I want to share with you this little spot of colour and promise............ remember this photo? 

Well, every couple of days I have taken a snap of the Amaryllis as it has quietly opened. 

It's cheerful happy face makes me all smiley smiley  (:   Well, must stop now, the weather is still dull but my day has cheered up - I hope yours has too, I would just like to say hello to all my new followers, it is lovely to make friends along my way, welcome to my little slice of life (:  xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

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 Final bit of waffle - follow this link to see what crafty things I got up to this time last year (:

Hearts around the house

It's late and the house is now mine, all the knit and natter coven have gone, only little threads and bits of wool, plates with crumbs and mugs waiting to be washed indicate the invasion.

*happy sigh* 

I really enjoy our group, it is a gentle, non-demanding, friendship strengthening time.

SO.... with out any further delay, I now present to you...

Today's hearts
are those quiet ones
that live along side you in the home,
not saying anything but always there. See how many you can find.........

On a biscuit tin that holds my sewing, 

open at your peril, 

threads and ribbons leap out in cheerfully chaotic colour

All over a round tin filled with felt snippity bits, carefully saved for future projects,

all jumbled and rainbow hued

it always makes me happy to open this tin as it spills out it's its brightly coloured fun contents

A gift bag, 

secreted in fav sis-in-law's knitting bag,

for that 'just in case' moment'

Quietly nestled near some of my favourite books

Sitting in my baking drawer, 

waiting for it's moment when we make biscuits

Scrawled on a scrap of paper, saved and often stared at, 

another version, written in the form of a Chinese proverb

Cradled in a wire basket

Decorating the frame of a picture of the nephews

Dangling on a cord against the wall

On a work's file

****************************************

And...did you count? Can you guestimate?

Would you have said 75 hearts?

Told you they were quiet.

*************************************

I hinted that I might (or might not) show you what I needed my sewing machine for, well, here is a clue....

I've never attempted  'drawing' with my sewing machine before, I suppose there is always a first time, it was difficult initially, difficult to be free with a regimented machine that happily does straight lines. We were both rather intimidated by my plans, but sewing machine and I soon got going and we actually ended up enjoying our experiment (so much so I was late for work!) hey ho! (Sewing is part of 2011's Revolutions)

Any hoo, it's late and I must still tidy up before I go to bed, it's been lovely sharing a bit of my day with you, hope you had a lovely one too, 

night night xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Oh yes, and to see what hearty happenings where happening last year, please follow this link and part two on this link - you need to read them both, particularly about Himself, the milkman, the underpants and the belching fire....... I've got your interest now haven't I??!!?

11.02.10

Today's Heart is ..........

Part of a story,  are you sitting comfortably?  Then I shall begin.

Still under the influence of a pernicious cold that has lingered for nearly 10 days, I took to my sewing machine for comfort and crafting pleasure.
That and the fact that nearly three weeks ago I challenged our Knit n Knatter coven to make something on a Valentines day theme and I still hadn't started mine.

(Please note gratuitous usage of a scrappy heart pin cushion so to continue this month's theme)

I had been gifted some lovely fabrics and one in particular wove itself into my mind for a particular project. So after wearily doing yet another load of pungent washing, I cut out two little bodies.

(Please note further gratuitous usage of a scrappy heart pin cushion) 

At this point I have to say that the house is looking similar to  Mr Woo's Laundry as I am surrounded by  washing hanging everywhere, but - hey - that is so much more preferable to yesterday's bad smell everywhere!

Oh - where was I? 

Yes, yes, 

Today's heart and tonight's Knit n Knatter. 

After some delicate bird surgery, even more delicate cutting of the smallest hearts I have ever made - remind me not to do that again, I went cross eyed....

I have for you now , via a shaggy dog tale....

Today's Heart(s) are .......

.... on two Love Birds

Twirling in the winter sunshine

I will gift them to Himself this Sunday

with my love

04.02.10

Today's heart is.....

This felt woven heart, brought by my Mom to knit n knatter last night,  was one I had made when I was 11 or 12 for my Gran. It still has the childish uneven stitches done by a reluctant scholar.

I did it in the final year of junior school in Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) in what was called 'Home Economics' class. A thinly veiled attempt to train girls to be good housewives. While the boys went off to do wood work, cross country and play cricket, we learned to crochet (didn't pick up a hook again until last year), how to sew (only started sewing seriously-ish in last 6 months) and how to cook (only really got the cooking bug when I met Himself and I had found that by feeding him he kept coming back!!... and I really did want to keep him.)

School and I didn't get on well, I never really excelled at anything and school never really cared.
As a child, many adults used to say to me 'school days - the best days of your life....'

I know now what I felt then - they were lying.

My best days are now.

27.01.10

What I like about where I work,
is the fact I have the time in the mornings to be at home to craft or garden or paint or meet up with friends.
What I don't like about where I work is having break off
when I am in full flow of crafty inspiration or gardening
and have to tidy away all my paraphernalia.

Today is one such day.

I still have an hour before I need to go, but is that enough time to get out the sewing machine and all the accoutrements that go with such an endeavour?
No.
Not when I consider I still have to vacuum all the snippity bits of fabric and threads already on the floor,
not when I still have make up my lunchbox - and oh yes - tonight I am working an extra late shift - so make that a double lunchbox
Not when I think that I still have lots of little jobs that individually don't consume a lot of time, but put together can cause a veritable black hole where time just gets sucked in.

Where is this all leading?

Well, I want to sew and I've done all the prepping and now waiting for me....
calling me....
Nay - yelling insistently at me......
is a repurposed shirt now a cafe' style apron just demanding to be finished off.

A very favoured shirt of himself's that I 'acquired' soon after he bought it,

it's been mine for about 12 - 15 years.

Almost vintage!

Front, sleeves, neck and collar cut off,

pocket rescued and transplanted onto the back,

the button and button hole edges from the front of the shirt will be the ties,

all waiting to be hemmed.

And

What to do with all the pieces left over?

Well - this........

Put all the scraps together, and turn into a scrappy patchwork heart,

there is soooooo much I want to do!

Uh oh - almost time to go, better get the vacuum out.

19.01.10

A rounding up of crafting presents.

First - the quickly made bunting for the birthday friend.

Sourire = smile

Now for the delayed festive present round up.

Delayed for a number of reasons,

some didn't get finished in time,

some didn't photographed till recently and

worst of all...

some didn't get started until January

oops......

Clapotis scarf for my Mom

On the chair.........

on my Mom............

She made that lovely rose and red ones for my sister n law and I.

More felt bows for another friend's daughters

A felt 'chocolate cupcake' pin cushion for my Mom, friend and sister n law

Felt mistletoes with vintage buttons for my Knit n Knatter friends

Bunting for sister n law's kitchen

liefde = love

Several felt hearts tied to presents

There, thats enough for now,

I do have more pictures somewhere,

but due to my efficient filing system I use for cataloging photographs

I have no idea where they are.

Life goes on.