Finishing off

Do you get those traffic jams of projects? You know, when you’ve got a growing queue of things that just need finishing off. Of course, there’s always a good reason - I need better light/sunlight to sew it up, some more yarn ( that always seems to be in the loft), to work on larger needles for a while, to get a present finished....

I've been trying to catch up - especially as I want to try something a bit different with this blog in the coming weeks...

I've been doing a bit of small scale weaving and have taken plenty of photos of the process so that I can start putting some step by step guides up here too..

The Donkey Sanctuary near us is a favourite outing with my nieces' children. So I had a go at making a donkey - albeit a rather wonky one. Every time I make a stuffed toy I promise myself it'll be the last time as the combination of my sewing on of limbs and consistent stuffing skills are at a minus level. Then I spot a great pattern and think 'oh I've got the yarn for that in the loft' and behold another wobbly headed, floppy footed character.

We did have  trip earlier this year to Devon World of Country life - got to love an alpaca - even if it reminds you of the fleece from Widdecombe Fair that you bought three years ago and haven't finished spinning .. yet.

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Ahh well - that's the first batch of pictures I meant to pop up … I'll get the rest of the makes and memories from this summer up and posted soon so I can get on with that next project

Celebrations and Occasions

We love a party in our family! I enjoy planning for presents and surprises while others get the food and games sorted....

Just recently we've had my niece and her husband visiting along with my great-niece, and had her Peppa Pig party (hence the picture of her Peppa Pig jumper in a previous post).

Last week it was the turn of the youngest member of our clan (at the moment). She's mad on Paw Patrol, but could I find a Paw Patrol pattern anywhere? Mulling it over with my spinning group they told me how to transfer a picture using special graph paper with the suggestion of copying it onto acetate first so that the graph lines appear on top of the picture. So here it is!!!

Then there was the small matter of a birthday card. There are plenty of 'Happy 2nd Birthday' ones and some Paw Patrol ones for 3 year olds, but not for a two year old. So what could I do - well let's raise a glass to the good old laptop and some photographic paper!!

That just left Mothering Sunday. All buoyed up with my knitting achievements I attempted to knit a picture 'M', but somehow whatever I did the tension came out all wrong so I was in my sister's local craft shop when I spied a wooden letter that I could cover with fabric - day saved - Ta-dah!


                                               

A couple of years ago it was my elder niece's 30th. I was able to collect pound coins from almost all the years since her birth, but none from the year of her 30th. So I made her a purse and filled it with a selection of coins from all the years that she's been around making up £30 and mounted a pound coin from her birth year and a different coin from her 30th year for her. This year it's the younger one's turn. It's even more tricky as the pound coins from her birth year have now been withdrawn so I'll have to think of something else.... Watch this space!

Doing Two Things at Once

Now I know that when I finished work I promised myself that I’d not rush around anymore trying to juggle multiple tasks, but...... well I must admit this time it was pretty pleasing to realise that I’d ticked two items off my list without realising it!

I got a Kindle as a present the Christmas before last and I’m converted totally. I always thought that I’d never take technology over handling a book, but I’m truly sold on my new-ish toy. I’ll never be able to turn my back on my love of physically turning a page or retreating to the bath with a paperback, however the sheer joy of having virtually any title I want in my hand immediately is both addictive and mesmerising.

I've indulged my butterfly brain over and over by flitting from one book to another, having multiple pages open, never losing my place and all without driving himself mad by leaving two or three (sometimes more) lying around part read. He’s more of a ‘one thing at a time till it’s finished’ kind of guy - suffice to say it’s just not in my nature. Now I can have as many books on the go at a time sometimes reading parts of two at the same sitting without annoying anyone - well with my reading habits anyway.

I'd downloaded Marie Kondo's 'Spark Joy' a while ago, but only dipped into it so decided to read it properly along with Cait Flanders' 'The Year of Less' and came to the conclusion that it was time to tackle my excess 'stuff'.  I won't bore you with the list of tired t-shirts or solo socks that now no longer fight for space in the bedroom or the books liberated from dusty shelves to gladden new hearts.

It was time to tackle the loft.... The loft contains all my craft resources. Having started with plenty of kits from magazines that I will never start (let alone finish) - boot fair - and two smelly fleeces that I will never spin (there are still four left, but let's not talk about those) I was feeling like I was getting somewhere.

Then my sister needed some new cushions so I stopped and made some covers for some old cushions I 'just happened' to have up in that loft... Then my niece rather liked an applique one I gave to my sister so I did a couple for her. What a result - I now have no cushions in the loft AND I got to do some sewing just like I promised myself I would earlier in the year. Two for the price of one without even trying - Howzat!!

March 2019 - Where did that come from?

One moment you are working away, travelling lots, taking train rides to visit family, spending hours writing at the computer and then.... Well then - it seems that almost three years slip by and I neglect to record anything...

Each time I've intended to start, something (as ever) crops up. Even as recently as January I wanted to begin the New Year with a post about packing up the Christmas decorations. I was going to wax lyrical about repairing some of the old baubles by covering them with fabric complete with lovely photos, although I did manage to take one of all the Christmas cards I made from odds and ends and photos of the decorations before they were packed away (I find it easier to do these while Christmas is still hovering in the air rather than before it all gets started).

I was also quite impressed at beginning the search for next Christmas' lucky dip, but that doesn't seem to be all that relevant now we're in March! (We have a family lucky dip on Christmas Eve with lots of little bits and pieces we've gathered during the year - colouring books, free perfume samples, sale items from Christmas stock, odds and ends I've sewn or knitted and so on - it takes ages and is great fun and means we all get some small presents without spending loads on the occasion.)

So to now.... Don't worry - this isn't a list of all the happenings since my last blog - tempting though it is to plod through it just to show that I have been productive and busy and all that. Suffice to say that I did lots more writing for work, finishing with a particular product for them that I'd wanted to write for a number of years so that was very satisfying. As part of my leaving present I got a coffee machine and pasta making 'stuff' following trips to Rome and Florence - how was my life complete before them?

 

It's Lasagne in case you're not sure!

Visiting Rome has meant that I've been able to see my youngest niece who lives there with her husband and daughter (and is about to add to the clan soon). My previous trip to Italy was around 40 years ago on a whistle stop 7 day tour. What a bonus it's been to spend plenty of time going back over the things I studied for A Level and degree courses...…

 Not bad for a view from the kitchen of the apartment we stayed in, eh?

What else - well apart from a wedding (my niece) and a daughter for my other niece, I retired - as you may have worked out from above - hence the time for Italian excursions. I don't seem to have had much other time - it appears to be true what people say about retiring and then not knowing how they found time to go out to work.

The last few months have been exciting times, with my family (apart from the Italian extension) moving around 20 miles away from me after all the years of being 170 miles away, so no more long train journeys and I get to see them every week.

What about the craft? - I'll not go into a great long list, but here's some snaps of one or two items that I've managed to squeeze in ……

 Finished my fish at last!

Next up is a Paw Patrol jumper so fingers crossed for that one!

So that's me back - promise it'll get more interesting from here on in!!!