WOYWW 125

WHAT'S GOING ON?
Absolutely nothing, that's what. My desk looks almost identical to last week's shot.  This is due to the fact that I was away for a long weekend at my eldest niece's wedding up in Yorkshire. I have come back home to chaos and the realisation that I now have only 4 days until the first craft fair.... 
I might even - and brace yourself for this, Julia - make a list. As I am one of these people who never make a list for anything, this shows that the fear factor is at work!
Anyhow, here's how it looks at the moment..

It couldn't be anything except Christmas in the picture above, could it?!  I'm amazed at how much is in the shops in the Scandinavian fabrics and prints that I showed last week.  I might have to venture back down to Winchester to go buy some more as every square centimetre of the initial lot has been used up. Well, that's my excuse to go shopping again *grin*
Here's a couple of the stockings made up. I kept the Gentlemen's Stockings quite simple in the end, the buttons didn't work so I left them off.


And here's a basket of bunting ready for next weekend. I'll hang it up to display properly but this is just handy to keep it all together...


Now, there's just the table runners, more stockings, stuff the hearts and whipstitch 'em closed, a display board to make. Is that a list I see before me? Surely not :)

On the way back from the wedding, we stopped off at Leeds for a couple of hours in order to visit the Royal Armouries Museum. G3 and the Big O were very keen to go - I'm not really into that sort of thing but the museum was fab, really interesting and well laid out.  We were particularly struck by these huge displays of arms and weapons in patterns, just like in old baronial halls except this was inside a stairwell that ran the height of the building.


 


Aren't the patterns amazing?  We stood and looked at this for ages, whoever designed it is a genius.  I love patterns like Celtic Knotwork, diagrams, maps, even Mr Dunnit's blueprints for his joinery, much more than figurative work or landscapes. Even a print that I bought on holiday in August is in this vein.


Isn't it gorgeous?  I love the stylized ripples and the otter dipping down below the surface.  I'd had birthday money given to me (thanks Mum and Dad) so treated myself.

Another mixed bag this week, but I thought I'd leave you with an image that may amuse....



I was trying to look regal but instead it appears that I'm asleep or going to sneeze!!  I'm afraid blue blood does not run in these veins, lol !!

Have a great week! xx




WOYWW 124

IT'S BEGINNING TO LOOK A LOT LIKE CHRISTMAS......!!

Someone once remarked that my desk wasn't messy enough - well, this should prove 'em wrong!!  It's all going on here.  I'm flitting from one project to another without settling to a particular task.  Get a grip, LLJ, you still have two weeks before the first fair..

So, here are some stockings, hearts, bunting all waiting for me to get my act together!

Some random Christmassy -ness...


Here's one I made earlier :)  It was too cold to photograph the bunting outside today so here's my fireplace instead!  I will have to inform people that the material is not flame retardant when I come to selling the stuff though!


Variations on the theme of Christmas Bunting!  You may notice that I've got a bit of a hare thing going on - I'm fascinated by hares, can't explain it, I just am. There's lots of them around where I live and they are amazing to watch. Wild and magical they are - so much more than just big bunnies!!


I decided to make some Christmas Stockings too, using funky materials. They may sell, they may not, but I've really enjoyed making them.  Love this decorations fabric...


The tartan cutouts are for my Gentlemen's Stockings range - no, no, no, NOT like Priscilla, Queen of the Desert at all !!! Am going to do a contrast lining with buttons round the turned over top.  Dunno if they'll work but I'm game for a laugh...

Look - it's the return of the blue, bubblicious material again!  Carmen wanted a pegbag in funky colours and this one had her name right on it.  She emailed me and said that when it got there, her 4yr old thought it was a Mr Tumble (much beloved children's TV character) bag and refused to let it go!  Carmen eventually managed to get it back to put her pegs in but.....

we can't have a little girl going bagless now, can we?? 


Hope she'll like it :)

I am fortunate to live in a really beautiful part of Wiltshire - we really are spoiled by the gorgeous landscape around. Avebury and Stonehenge are on our doorstep as is the Savernake Forest. This is one of the old Norman Royal hunting forests and still covers a large area, even today.  DH usually travels through here at around 7am and is in the habit of taking his camera.  These shots were taken early one particularly lovely morning last week.



That was a mixed bag from me this time - or maybe I AM the mixed up bag, lol!!  Had a conflab with Son No 2 about his name for this blog and he came up with G3 - Ginger Gentle Giant.  Anything to keep him happy... :D

May your Distressed Inks never be too emotional and your glitter flow freely.  Have a happy week everyone! xx






WOYWW 123 - easy as ABC...

WALKING IN A WINTER WONDERLAND!

We had our Christmas music folders dished out to us at band practice the other night - and if I've got to suffer 'seasonal' music in October, why, I'm going to have to pass that festive cheer onto you!!  Bah, humbug.... :D

Actually, my desk is looking quite festive at the moment as I'm really busy making items for the fast approaching Christmas fairs.  Here are the fabrics that I bought in Winchester the other day.

These are going to be used for tree decorations, bunting and groovy Santa stockings....


And these are going to be more bunting and padded hearts - I'm a sucker for the Scandinavian look...


I've already started to cut some pieces out...


Here are some naked bunts, ready to be backed and put onto the binding tape.


Or possibly a row of thongs, as the Big O once remarked!!  Hang on, how does he know???  Actually, I don't want to hear the answer to that *fingers in ears* la la la la la!! I'm not listening!!  :D

Then I paid a quick visit to KraftKrazy in Tidworth and bought this lovely little selection to embellish the tree decorations. The wooden buttons look really smart sewn onto the hearts.


So, as you can see, there's a fair bit of sewing to be done this week!  Keeps me out of mischief.....and if you believe THAT, you'll believe anything *grin* !

DH, Son No 2 ( who doesn't think the moniker Son No 2 is as cool as the Big O, so I'm going to have to think of another shorthand for him...) and I went to Cardiff today to visit the Big O - he'd left behind a few things that he'd decided he couldn't live without, so we did the emergency run westwards along the M4.  He lives a 10 minute walk from the city centre, so we had a stroll around.  It's changed a lot in the 20 odd years since I was last there - very shiny and new!  We were walking through the St David's Centre when both lads suddenly spotted a store selling nothing but Lego.  Most of the shelves were stacked high with boxes but this caught my eye at the far end of the shop.




I've never seen a Pick and Mix of Lego before!  It made me want to get my hands in and riffle through them all!!  And even though my lads are 18 and 15, they're still suckers for the stuff...

Thank you to my gorgeous DH for taking these pics on his iPhone cos we didn't have the camera with us.  Aren't they great, abstract shots?? Hope there's enough bright colour to keep you all happy on this gloomy autumn day!

Well, that's about all except to say a HUGE thank you for all the wonderful comments last week!  May your leaves be crunchy, your apple pies steaming and your crafting productive.

See ya!





WOYWW 122

Dhal My Number.... or

Peas, Peas Don't Go....or

Pulse Release Me, Let Me Go...or (my favourite)

Candle In The Wind !!!!!   LOL :)

Thanks to Lisa-Jane for some of these suggestions and making me spray tea everywhere!



Anyhow, take a pile of yellow split peas and whaddya get?


Filling for a doorstop!  With copious amounts of wadding too.  I know some people use sand but then you've got to faff around with inner bags to contain it.  I've been told that rice is good but it would pong to high heaven if it got damp.  Whereas dried yellow split peas get rock hard as they get older.  I found this out when I was clearing some cupboards and found a packet that was only *mumble* three years out of date  *blush*  They were like bits of gravel!  You get some strange looks in Tesco when you put ten bags of the little yellow marvels through the checkout though :)

This is what the cutouts from last week looked like when I sewed 'em up.

  

I really like this combination of colours and patterns!  I've got about four craft fairs coming up soon, so these fabrics will be used to their utmost.  Think I'll make some pegbags too.

See the tree in the back of shot?  I LOVE him!  He's definitely a he, not a she tree and he's not wee (sorry, couldn't stop rhyming there..) When we moved into this house 14 years ago, it was a fairly mature tree, but not too big.  Over the years he has grown hugely in height and girth - sadly so have I in the latter!  He's a flowering cherry but with delicate white blossom rather than the blowsy pink variety.  It is the stuff of heaven to lie on the grass at blossom time and just marvel at the beauty of him - the amount of bees zipping through the branches is spectacular. 

He has been the best climbing frame in the world, for boys and cats.  I have fond memories of Owen and Rhys sitting almost at the top being pirates in the crows nest, or adventurers waiting in ambush for the baddies.



And the best thing is that as I sit here writing the blog, I can look out of the window and see him.  The leaves are just starting to turn, as is the season - he is nature's timepiece.

Have a great crafting week!  xxxx





WOYWW 769

 WE'LL MEET AGAIN.... I'm going to take a break from blogging for a while - please don't worry, all is ok! - think I just need a...