Tuesday 30 November 2010

White snuggly Can Can Scarf

I have had terrible problems getting decent pictures lately. These are taken outside at the weekend during the day and still they are a bit dull looking. Anyway, I hope you can still see them fairly well.
The above is a new scarf that i made for the last craft fair that I took part in. it is made using the new Can Can yarn and I really like it!! Google it for your nearest stockest.
This is an off white and it has a can can frilly look when it is finished. It is a lot of fun to make and I have another one waiting to be started.
I have put it on top of my black winter coat (which I bought with some birthday money last Christmas and it is the best coat I have ever bought!) to give you an idea of size etc. I also made the felt brooch that you can see as well.

My model ROSE looks quite comfy with this scarf on and it is surprisingly warm too.

Eventually I shall list this in my Etsy shop once I have been able to take a decent picture, in fact I have a bit of a backlog with this but you can not put rubbish pictures in an on-line shop! I am pushing it a bit putting them here but I like to try and post something every day or at least every other day.

I am making slow progress with making these..............

these. I decided to cancel my knitting group after school today due to the bad weather we have been having. it has been a bit unpredictable lately and I decided they would be better off getting home on time. So I have another week to add to this lot.

Best go got some work to look at before bed.

Thank you for visiting

xx

Sunday 28 November 2010

Quilting by the Book

Above are just some of the blocks that I have made recently and I do have to thank this book for helping me.

I have had so much inspiration from this book. One of the things that I like about it is that it suggests different ways to use the same block, either by changing the colour combination, sequence of using the block or how to combine blocks together. It is also very easy to follow and there are useful photocopiable templates.


Very colourful pages and you can see at the bottom of the page the various combinations.

Clear instructions ans measurements are given and so far (touch wood) I have had no trouble what so ever in making each of these blocks up first time. They also enlarge very easily to produce larger final blocks.

Now, I dare say that most of what I have written here is not new to some, but every so often out of all of the books you buy, one just pops up as a "I am so glad I bought that book, I use it all the time!" This is one of those books.

I completely recommend it, especially if you are learning to do patchwork, or if you would like a lovely book to look at and gain ideas.

xx

Saturday 27 November 2010

My current Read

Memoirs of a Geisha.
by Arthur Golden.
I have read this book before, about 6 years ago. I borrowed the book from a friend, read it and gave it back, I thought no more about it. I then stumbled across it again recently in a charity shop and decided to read it again.
It is now on DVD and it sticks pretty well to the book, but as always I think that the book has the edge.
It is a very good book and covers a topic which has a mystery about it and for all of the wrong reasons.
It follows the true story of a young girl who is taken from her family and is trained to a a Geisha. The journey for her is long and difficult and she achieves something that no one before has been able to. What is that? Well I do not want to spoil it for you.
Well, Sophie was pretty poorly last night and was sent to bed with a hot water bottle, a dose of Calpol (brilliant stuff) and was propped up due to a very blocked up nose. Discussions of not going to this party were covered if I felt she was not well enough or if we had snow!
Got up this morning and Sophie woke up smiled and went back to sleep again, not normal for her so I left her for a bit. Then with the worst case of 'bed head' I have seen in ages croaked "I am fine, I'll be ok once I get there" That's my girl! So we jumped in car (once I had sneaked in a blanket, flask of hot water, de-icer, spare food etc, well come on I had flooding last week!). There was nothing to see in until I got about 8 miles from Newquay and everything went very white. Quite a thick covering of snow on the road and the motor cyclist in front of me was not taking any chances, he had to go so slow at some points that he had both feet on the ground as he went along! Ice was a bit of a problem, especially in sections where the sun had not got to it on the very winding road to Newquay. This was about 10am and the sun was blazing down but it was still very cold.
We eventually got to Dairyland and their car park was really covered in it and we were about the 7th car there. I decided to reverse into the parking bay as I would rather slide out of the parking space seeing where I was going on the way home, rather than backwards!
Despite the snow etc we actually arrived 5mins early. Two weeks ago Sophie had her party here and it was roasting in there, but due to the cold outside and the severe lack of people, me and five other Mum's sat for three freezing hours! Luckily we did manage to get a heater near us.
Sophie was very tired at the end of it and once we had driven back (snow still everywhere) and stocked up on more Calpol it was a sofa afternoon watching Shaun the Sheep and eating some cake!
Tomorrow I have LOADS of marking to do and Sophie has another panto rehearsal. Hopefully Hubby and I will be able to sneak off and do a bit of Christmas shopping with her out of the way.
So, take care and keep warm.
xx

Friday 26 November 2010

Keyring Madness

What is mad about a bunch of keyrings? Only the creator who thought that they would make good stocking fillers at the local craft fair and only sold one!
The above are all hand cut and hand stitched. Some have been made before and I have sold many in my Etsy shop, but after attending a fair a few months ago, the keyrings generated a lot of interest and I did sell a few. So I decided to make some more.

This is probably my favourite and the idea came about whilst watching CSI Miami! Must have been all of the flowers I saw in the gardens that were featuring on the show at the time.

I do love this button version. I have cut out a pink version to make up too.

I also made some plainer new ones, for an alternative design.
I made quite a few of these and I have taken some to work and put them in the tin of cards that I have there for those who want a handmade greetings card instead of trudging to a supermarket.
Most of these will eventually end up in my Etsy shop and some will be used as stocking fillers.
..........................................
The beginning of October has seen the re-start of my knitting club at school. We have ended up with some older students this time and one of them saw an item in a shop and as a result we are all making these:

I need to make quite a few more of these. What do you think we are making?

SNOW SNOW SNOW

Last week it was flooding and this week it is snow! I was told last weekend that a friend of mine was two cars behind me on the day that I had to drive through deep water when it flooded in my area in Cornwall. She said that is was to the top of the wheel arch of my car! I have also been told since of all the other possible outcomes I could have had that day and I think I shall not dwell on them. That was last Thursday.

This Thursday I woke up to a couple of inches of snow and wonder what the journey to work would involve.................... thankfully the trip was uneventful, but I had a phone call when I got home from work from Hubby who had to deliver a boat to East Anglia and on the way back the M4 was blocked so took a 2 hour detour to Seaford and is staying the night at his sister's house.
Better than being stranded on the M4 over night! One or two people arrived late to work because they live near/on Bodmin Moor, but basically the day went without incident.

The weather forecast is saying more snow in this area and other parts of the UK and tomorrow guess what Sophie and I are supposed to be doing? That's right, going to a birthday party in Newquay! We shall see,as the Newquay road is not that great, it has LOTS of windy bends, just right for sliding out of etc.

Gosh I can't wait for next Thursday to come along, (said with rolling eyes) I wonder what the weather has in store for us then?
Best wishes
and keep warm!
xx

Monday 22 November 2010

Button Envy....

I found this picture here and I just love it! I could spend ages just looking through all of those jars!!
Took part in a craft fair on Saturday..............well I may as well have watched paint dry! Just before Christmas I was told that it would be very popular...mmmmmm. Very disappointing really but there you go.
More craft news this week, just having problems getting any decent pictures with these dark evenings.
Take care
xx

Friday 19 November 2010

Little Bunch of Monsters.

I thought that you might like to see the results of a recycling project that I have been doing with my Year 10 GCSE Textiles group. The aim was to use recycled fabrics and to create a monster using their own original design. They are still quite new to the course but their self confidence is starting to grow with each project.


First of all a group photo needed. I asked the students (14 girls and one lad) to decide on the group arrangement, well it took almost as long as actually making them but we got there in the end. 15 bright and colourful monsters made using, t-shirts, scraps of felt, buttons, felt, paint, ribbon and stuffing. everything was recycled and it cost us nothing to make them!!




My name is Berry.

Each student was asked to research into plushies and softies once they had been given some websites to look at. The ideas were brilliant and once I have managed to get them scanned then I shall try to upload them.


My name is Dumpling


I think this one has a lovely expression on its face. It has that Friday feeling look.


My name is Hubert.


This fun monster looks just like the original drawing. I have still got them as I have to assess them, but I am delighted with the outcomes and we all had a lot of fun along the way making them.


BOO!



BOO TOO.


Have a good weekend everyone.


xx

Wednesday 17 November 2010

Cornwall Flooding

My day started really early when I was woken up by loud helicopter noise which was very low. I had no idea at 5am why there was so much noise but once the radio came on at 6.30am it soon became clear. The amount of rain last night was hard, loud and for much of the night. The wind also woke me up but I am not sure what the time was.

Radio 2 news at 7am came on and I was surprised to hear my village/area mentioned plus other nearby areas in Cornwall as being flooded and that the helicopters were helping those who were stranded in their homes. I live near an ideal landing and take off area which is why they seemed so loud.

We put Breakfast TV on and heard of more areas affected but at this time no picutres so I could not gauge how bad it was.
I was not really sure what to do so I go in the car to drive to school.

I soon got caught up in a traffic jam and after waiting a bit I decided to turn back and go another way as I was concerned that I was going to be very late.

I turned down a lane that I have used many times before....big mistake.
Got half way along and found a very very big "puddle". There was another car coming the other way and he started to drive through the deep water. By now two other cars were behind me and none of us could turn around due to the lane not being wide enough. I watched carefully and I thought that he took it a bit quick and the water came right up over his bonnet, but he made it.

I thought that if I got as close to the hedge as possible it may not be as deep, put it in first gear and took it slowly. I could not see any water over the bonnet. If the car had stalled, I doubt that I could have gotten the door open it was that deep.
Luckily I got to the other side and realised that I was holding my breath.

Other cars were starting to turn into the road and I wound down my window and shook my head. Someone else might have gotten stuck even if us three cars did not.

I turned out on to the main road and the traffic soon stopped again. This time I leapt out and got my bag out of the boot in case I needed to ring school to say I would be late.

As I got to the front of the queue I could see that a small leat (small waterway, ditch like) had over flowed and was gushing across the road like a river. Each direction of traffic was taking it in turns to let people go around this and avoid going through the deepest section. I was surprised at the amount of debris lying around too.
Today I saw lots of people being very helpful and considerate where I was.

I drove through that and took the back route to school, stopping for a few mins to call hubby to warn him of what I had seen. He told me later that the way he took (my ususal route) was just the same as the one I took so no regrets for my choice of route afterall).
It was not until I got home and saw the News at 6 and the local programme Spotlight that I found out how bad it all is.
A lot of upset for many people whose homes have been damaged. I hope that the process of insurance etc is not dragged out too long and that repairs can be sorted out quickly. For this to happen so close to Christmas seems to compound the situation, as many may not be back in their homes by the 25th as houses will need to dry out and be cleaned at the very least.
There was a spot on the TV where neighbours were helping to save some fish from what looked like very muddy water (and other things in it) and helping those that needed it.
We were lucky, the flood water stopped just down from us as we live on higher ground but brought home the strength that the natural elements have. However, we do appreciate the phone calls that we had during the day from friends and family asking if we were alright.
As for tonight, more rain has been forecast and there is high tide at 3am!
We shall see what happens, no rain at the moment and it is 11.30pm so lets hope the weather people have got it wrong and it will be a dry night.
Take care
xx

Monday 15 November 2010

Love your veg...........

We found this in our bag of potatoes at the weekend! Sophie thought it was great and has bagged it for her tea one night this week.
Well..... you have to love your veg and it love you, haven't you?
Anyone else had odd looking veg like this?
xx

Saturday 13 November 2010

Sophie's 8th Birthday

Goodness me!
8 years old, my where has the time gone. When you become a Mum everyone says that children grow up and to be honest when you are wadding through piles of washing, changing nappies, dealing with the night feeds and feeling like an alien due to lack of sleep (or none at all sometimes) you can be forgiven for thinking "ya right" pass me that burp cloth please.

Well, they were right. To see Sophie put on her party outfit today, grey leggings with a black and sparkly Hello Kitty top, just how much she has grown up and that time is moving on and the most must be made of each day.

Her birthday was on Tuesday and I made cupcakes with pink and white spotty cases which are a thicker paper than normal and they worked well. I treated myself to some decent piping nozzles.

They worked like a dream. I first learnt how to use a piping bag and nozzles at school when there was a Christmas cake competition and I came second! I have always enjoyed the challenge of creating eye catching cakes and buns. May have missed a calling there, never mind. Grandma and Grandad came round for dinner and then we finished off with low noise, low level fireworks in the garden. Sophie likes fireworks but not the noise that goes with them.

Then on Friday evening the baking waggon rolled again as Sophie and I made more cupcakes for her party today.


Sophie and I had a great time making and decorating them. The look on her face of sheer delight in making them knowing that her friends would be eating them. She said that it was so much fun. I really hope these little fun times last for as long as possible. Sophie loves cooking and making things and I have a feeling that this will make up a part of her life.

They were arranged on my cupcake stand and some candles added. A number 8 was put on the top and as it stands with all of the candles that we have now I am ready for the 12th - 18th birthdays.

They had a great day at Dairyland near Newquay in the bull Pen which has plastic balls, massive slides etc. Sophie and 8 friends were running around so much they all had bright pink faces!!

Fun was had by all and Sophie said that she had had a brilliant day!

She is now all tucked up in bed looking forward to tomorrow when she can start to use her new pens and pencils which she was given today.

Sweet dreams

x

Thursday 11 November 2010

Remembering...............

Remembrance Day.




Sewing Machine History

I found this picture on Craftzine and again on google images.
The time in collecting and the sewing history here is amazing.

I would really love to have an hour or so looking at these in person. Unlikely to happen but I did have the next best thing today!

One of my Year 7 students brought in an old hand operated Royal sewing machine for the rest of the class to look at as their previous homework had been to research into different kinds of sewing machines. it belongs to his Gran and his Mum dropped him off at school in the car today.

One of the reason for his interest is that during his research he found a line of sewing machines which bears his family name, which is unusual, and his family are now trying to trace this and see if there is a genuine family link. I have really started something here, this is why I teach, opening minds. Did I have a camera NO! (wails of dispair!!)

The group loved looking at something "really old" and were surprised at how it was made and heavy it was.

I wander what tomorrow will bring.

xx

Sunday 7 November 2010

Pieced STAR Quilt Block


This is my latest block for the Christmas Bee. Most of the fabric used was supplied by the owner of the quilt and I added the white so as not to make it too dark. I really enjoyed putting this one together. I did have a senior moment or two and kept swapping seams round between table and sewing machine (do not know why onor am I that old, but anyway) but I was pleased with the end result and I shall make some more of these for my own use. Very easy to cut up, I might do a tutorial for this one and pop in in the side bar.

Another busy week ahead but I have managed to sqeeze in some knitting, poor light means no picutres but I shall take some tomorrow hopefully.

Quite into the old knitting at the moment.

Enjoy the rest of the weekend.

xx

Saturday 6 November 2010

Etsy Treasury - Purple Rain


I was delighted to see that I have been included in my first treasury called Purple Rain!!

I have really tried to put a picture of the treasury here on this post, as I have seen it on other blogs, but for some reason I can not. Any suggestions?
Edited:
Many thanks to sarah at Paper and String for helping me with the importing of the Etsy Treasury. Due to having a note book I can only print screen half of it at a time which is why there is a split in the screen. This is what Sarah suggested:
Open up Picassa, paint
click on F11 to remove the headers and footers
click print screen and it is imported to Picassa so that it can be cropped etc.
It worked first time, so many thanks.
Bloggers are really helpful like this which is why I do this.

Do pop over and take a look as there are many other Etsy sellers featured. I am going to do some Etsy Christmas shopping this year to help support handmade.

I have also stated on my items that many are P&P free, especially in the UK.

It has been such a busy week this week that I have not posted since Monday, but I have managed to finish another Christmas block which I shall post this weekend. It has been so dark in the evenings to take photographs.

Off to Plymouth today to do some Christmas shopping while hubby does a boat survey. I have been asked by my Mum to make some cushion covers for her so I need to add to some fabric that I have and start them asap.

I would also like to say a BIG HELLO to my new followers in the side bar. I have been visiting and even managed to leave some comments which has not be possible recently, blogger has its off days sometimes.

Back later.

xx

Monday 1 November 2010

Corsage Galore

Just before half term my new year 10 group had fun making some corsages using recycled fabric. I tried this project last year and it went down well.

One or two were not sure to start with, but once they got going discussion of what they could do with the flowers and how they could be taken further soon started!

When I grouped all of their work on the front of a spare cushion pad to give another idea of how they could be used, the screeches of excitment was so great I thought that I was going to have to get the first aider in! To round it all off, several blog site addresses to look at and further excited discussion as to what they might make over half term. This is why I do this job!!! Roll on Friday, we are making Monster softies, can't wait!!!!!

xx

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...