Treasure in the post

Good morning!

I am pleased to report that is is NOT RAINING! However it is so windy that Giant Baby nearly got blown away.

Last week I spent some time choosing some treasure on the interweb and over the weekend two exciting parcels arrived.

One contained these.

Two kinds of labels because I couldn't decide which I liked best.

I still can't decide so I am going to use both for a while and see which one feels right.

The other parcel contained a rubber stamp and ink. Again indecision over the colour but I finally plumped for black although they do so many pretty colours I think another one might have to wing it's way to my house soonish!

Do you want to see what the stamp says?

I am ridiculously pleased with them. It makes me want to make lots of things just so I can tie lots of labels on!
So what do we think? White with the pretty fluted edge...

or manila, utility chic?

xx

Pots of joy!

I am so fed up with the weather yesterday and today that I am going to share some of Wednesday's sunshine to cheer us all up.

Tulip pot

Paper pots

Tall Girl's over-wintered pot

Pots with promise

Pink pot

Chimney pot

Came in a pot

Pipe not pot

12 pots

Tea pot

Bright pot

Spotty cup pot

Not a pot

xx

Weekend project

Hello

The rain stayed off today for long enough for me to finish taking pictures of our weekend project.

We used two old pallets to make a cold frame. John and I make a great team for projects like this. I planned it out the day before and bought a big bag of nails and a sheet of perspex.

I am in charge of the sawing and he is in charge of the hammering.

Tall Girl was fascinated with the creative process and amazed and astounded that her Mummy and Daddy are so clever.

First job once it was all together was to re pot a tray of Thyme.

These are going to be come a dwarf hedge one day but at the moment they are completely filling the cold frame so I still have a windowsill full of everything else.

I have wanted a cold frame for quite a while and I am extremely pleased with our efforts.

Time for bed now.

xx

Slowly but surely

Hello

I am gradually making progress with the second batch of bean bags. Machine sewing is done in short snatches. A couple of mornings a week I have the luxury of the house to myself while my Mum has Giant Baby and the others are at school. A very precious two hours and 45 minutes between returning from the school run and setting out again to fetch Tiny Boy. Usually I try to find a happy balance of housework and other necessary tasks that are much easier when child free, and me-time when I can make or bake uninterrupted.

Last week I managed to iron on the applique for both bean bags. I am afraid they are horribly gender stereotyped but in my experience that is how the Smalls like things to be. Beach huts for a boy and flowers for a girl.

I also managed to sew around the applique in a second stint but this time when Giant Baby was sleeping and he woke up before I managed to take any pictures.

I sewed on some of the other flowers and things that I had already made so now I have to decide how much more embellishment I want to add before I sew them together. I definitely feel some bunting coming on strung between the beach huts. What do you think?

We had a very busy weekend indulging my creative urges to the max with a bit of carpentry. I'll show you what we made later in the week...

xx

Full of beans

I thought today I'd show you something I made for the Smalls a few weeks ago. Actually they took a few weeks to make in snatches of sewing time here and there.

The bedroom reshuffle had resulted in a request from Tall Girl for a garden theme and I imposed a red white and blue theme on the boys (red for Tiny Boy and blue for Giant Baby).

I was completely thrilled with my first ever attempt at applique, and my second ever at zips. I followed a pattern I found on the interweb but it was so full of mistakes and things I had to alter to make it all fit that it really isn't worth including a link.

I am now working on another pair of bean bags for the children of a very dear friend. This time I am being guided by a pattern in Cath Kidson's book Sew which I received for Christmas from my sister in law. I say guided because I am completely incapable of following any pattern to the letter. I always end up making it my own. In this case I am adding applique and extra sewn on embellishments.

I'll let you see how they turn out!

xx

Square rainbow blanket

Hello

I absolutely have to show you this.

It is a totally delicious blanket made for Giant Baby by his Godmother. She brought it when she came to visit last week. In fact she brought it when she came to his naming party a year ago but then it was smaller than a cushion cover. It is made from colour changing wool and I love the fact that it starts with the rainbow being really obvious in the middle then changes to stripy as the squares get bigger.

It is knitted on tiny needles so it is not surprising that it took a year to complete.

I love the back too. You can really see the ridges where she joined in the new stripe as she went along.

Actually I think I might love the back even more than the front! Giant Baby is not that interested in it yet since it is neither noisy, nor edible, so for the moment I have taken temporary ownership and I am cherishing it in the manner it deserves.

xx

Pretty colours

Good morning!

After days of rain and mizzle the sun peeped out for a few minutes as we walked to school this morning and by the time we got home I was actually too hot! (Mind you I was wearing my winter coat and a scarf in May...)

I managed to recharge the camera and take some pics of the lovely yarn I bought at the weekend.

I am completely in love with the colours, and with the lovely wooly smell. I ofter knit and crochet with cotton or linen but wool has such a nice smell it is great to be reminded of it.

I am thinking a patchwork of little squares but I am not sure yet. I also need to keep going with my flower ball cushion and finish a little something for my friend's baby who was born yesterday. I love having lots of projects on the go even if sometimes it is a wee biyt overwhelming!

Have a lovely May Day!

xx