alien purl bunny

...keeping true to my word I have made something larger than a deck of cards again this week, although no less frustrating and probably the same amount of pricked fingers and time! Flip it over and it's two bunnies in one! I can't decide if it's involved in a stick-up or an angry... time to do some pattern alterations? I got the pattern from the purl bee which has a lot of lovely things to look at and patterns of things to make on your own.



Oh! Quick! the sun has just come out! Time to open the windows and let some fresh air in.

I used some of the precious Amy Butler fabric for one side and vintage (circa 2003!) ikea fabric for the other, and felt scraps for the inner ears...This is supposed to be for a birthday gift but I think I'll call it my trial one and make another one (a bit bigger as well) this weekend.

Hamish left at 5:30am this morning for Portugal and I was half awake while he was getting last minute things ready to go and FULLY awake by the time the taxi came to pick him up. What does one do that early in the morning?! Eyes too puffy to sew, can't concentrate on a book, too dark for a walk, too early for tv! So I checked my email (nothing) and busied myself with laundry, a bit of cleaning and attempted to sort through the boxes of fabric I have in our storage room. Note to self: don't sort ANYTHING at 5:30am, it only seems like a good idea!

There is a rack on wheels- a bit hard to describe, the type that bread comes in from the bakers- sitting outside the local adult college- that I have been coveting for about a month. I might get up enough courage to go and ask the secretary for it today. It would be a great rack for fabric and I could think of a hundred other uses for it. I walk by it every day on my way to and from the gym. It sits forlornly and desolately outside one of the side entrances and I think if I was to go and push it home no one would notice...EXCEPT for the loud clanging of wheels and the oddity of a woman pushing it through the quiet streets of Richmond. Best to ask for it from the secretary who knows nothing of it and therefore gives it freely! Fingers crossed!

new toy

Hamish is off for a week's surfing in Portugal and instead of hiring yet another SatNav I decided it was time we invested in one ourselves!

It hadn't quite got the positioning correct at this stage, but after playing with it for a mere three hours last night Haim got everything working to his liking and it's all good to go!

It seems he is away more than home lately but I'll be busy with interviews and the gym... although my arms feel about to fall off with my newest programme (to make me fighting fit!) I will carry on through the pain knowing it will all be worth it in the end...but the whole point is that there is no end...oh bother!

set the frog free

...so with my recent and public pledge to finish off all of my 'projects' this afternoon I tiptoed outside cross stitch for some variety. Eyes were getting wonky, head was feeling light, fingers needed a rest from all the poking! This frog was one of my ongoing and seemingly endless starters that had become a bit of a bugbear...for a small frog he's certainly given me some grief (of which I am prepared to share should anyone want to hear). I think it should become a paperweight instead of it's original intended destiny as part of a hanging mobile for baby Dylan! I've filled it with sand in protest, although the protest is all my own. I think I will stick to more traditional 'baby' things for the mobile- ducks, bees, boats. Plus the poor frog looks like he's currently involved in a stick up!

Luckily I haven't spent my whole day on him, and I'm thinking it might be good to do a catch and release this time- with the amount of rain we've had these past few days there is surely a puddle close by that he'll thrive in...I will hereby stick to items no smaller than a (large) deck of cards and please, please, please hold me to that! xt

raining again...

What to do on a rainy day in London?

• lie in bed listening to rain till 10am   
• go to gym
• watch dvd
  
• finish cross stitch
  
• iron like a mad woman
  
• update blog (once, twice, three times)
  
• catch up on washing
  
• write a few emails
  
• read last chapter of novel I've been reading for almost a month!
  
• sort kitchen utensil drawer so I can open it without surrendering to the whisk!
  
• 100 strokes with the brush through my hair
  
• annoy Hamish without being too annoying
  
• walk to shop, buy whole chicken, leave for husband to prepare while I go to the gym!
  
• return a few phonecalls
  
• return a few text messages
  
• feed the squirrels (who don't mind the rain as much as humans and have taken over the park benches!)
  
• surf internet for interesting things to cook
• clean the shower
• organise sock drawer (just kidding Martha!)

Twins on the bus...

Funny things I see in London...Oxford Street, 3pm on a Tuesday.

Cupcakes!

After seeing her on Martha, I finally got a hold of Betz White's book and made some cupcakes of my own. Many sore fingers from the sewing, pricking and stabbing of needles but they have been worth it I think! (the birds from before are based on her pattern too).

The fabric in the background is another find from a few weeks ago- it's Amy Butler for Rowan Fabrics and I got it at a bargain price off ebay. Liberty carry a good variety of her fabrics but they didn’t have this one when I was there a few weeks ago.

And thanks to mum, I finally have a pair of scalloped edge scissors! After turning over every imaginable stone here in the UK, I managed to find these at a shop down the road from mum's house in Kelowna! They were picked up, posted, received and tested by me within 5 days of the first phonecall for them. Thanks mum.

Orla Kiely Sample Sale!!!

After battling the entrance line for a good hour last week I managed to get inside the saleroom, grab what I could and wait for another hour in the checkout line. I was good, I was great. I managed to not spend every last penny in our account and got a bargain in the process. I got a wallet, a small zip bag, a lovely sample skirt and this apple green leather bag. I was actually in line to pay and spotted that the woman carrying the bag had set it down- to grab something else? to balance? decided against it? not sure, didn't care! I asked the woman closest to it pass it over to me (I was two tables away and not leaving my spot in the line!)- so she did and boy, did I ever! I love it, it's great, it's fresh and it's mine! I'm sure I've seen it before at a past sale but not in the shops... Afterwards, in my post-sale bliss I thought I would stop in at the local shop and get a few bits for tea. After waiting in line (again) and paying for my stuff I was rudely pushed aside by a very grumpy guy (he was obviously tired of lines that day too). He yelled at me to move on and all I could do was stare at him- a truly jaw dropping moment- I couldn't believe how rude he was! After being berated I simply closed my hanging mouth, smiled and told him to have a wonderful evening. Honestly, I'm sure he didn't even register that I'd said that but it made me feel better. Everyone behind him was as gobsmacked as I was but, this being London, no one said anything and everyone continued on as normal. I was shaking as I left the store and quickly walked to the bus stop. Once safely on the bus home I managed to sooth myself with my bag of bags. Ah, London.

...On the way home I thought I would stop in at a few charity shops along the way...here's what's taken my fancy this past week or so!

Fab silver shoes!

Great Granny coat!



...and an old white flower frame vase.

I have decided to tidy up all 'unfinished', 'half started' and 'almost done' projects this week, including some old cross stitch, a quilted blanket and several skirts. Should be an interesting week.

birds, picnics and sun

It was another hot sunny, sunny, sunny day today and the blue sky was endless.

To make the most of this past week- while Hamish is away and which could possibly be the last one I have to myself before I start working again...I have been doing all sorts of 'me' things. Sewing, sewing, charity shopping and visiting with friends. Today my friend Dushka and I sat on the Green and had a picnic lunch with lovely things from a couple of the local shops. We watched people and wondered if any of them worked?- but then again I think they were probably thinking the same about us! What a great day.

I made a new felt bird today- what a lot of work but very cute I think! I will make some more of these for the market on Saturday as I have lots of cupcakes and felt I needed to add something new for the stall. I hope there will be enough room for it all!

May Day in Richmond

Woke up this morning to the sound of a loudspeaker announcing that the bacon butties were ready at stall 5...so I went out to investigate and found the entire Green had been taken over for the May Day Charity event ... complete with bouncy castle, about a dozen white elephant stalls and of course the bacon butties, hot dogs and fried onions. I was about an hour off the start but the pickings left at 9:30 were still pretty good and I hauled home three bags of essentials! Fabric, clothes, vintage platters, lace and even a couple of old suitcases.

There was a stage and local schools and groups were dancing and singing...When I heard the announcement for the Morris Dancers I went over again to watch the four groups of dancers (kids and adults) and felt quite nostalgic ... then took another spin round the remainders of the white elephants for the inevitable end of day deals!

There were probably a few hundred people - the most I've ever seen on the Green! with the sun out, a few cool drinks in their bellies and a lovely atmosphere today they will probably realise what a great spot it is and our weekends will never be the same!

Imogen and I have a market stall next week in Marylebone and I have much to do to prepare! I need to sew aprons for us to wear, more pincushions, hangers and some button decorations. I will definitely have sore fingers and wonky eyes by the end of the weekend.


Back to the sewing...