Do you know what it is yet?

Today I did something unusual.  I bought a kit.  To be precise a latch hook rug kit.  

I couldn't wait to start it, but I haven't done latch hook rug making since I was a child and it took me a while to get the hang of it again.

This is what it will hopefully look like.  In actual fact it's not much of a rug as it's rather small but there was a reason why I bought it.  My father is mad about horses and once this is made it will be great as part of his Christmas present.

And after it's finished I'll have the latch hook if I want to make more.

Remember to share your gifts with the world

I try to do a daily meditation and often use an online guided meditation.  I try a variety of different types and lengths and today's was lovely.link.  I felt so inspired after it, and as the message was about sharing gifts I thought I would share it here.

Me - with a difference

After the disastrous dark pictures taken whilst making the shorts I knew I finally had to get a new photo editor.  So I did and I spent some of this afternoon playing with it.  I haven't quite to to grips with all it's functions but I have redone the shorts photo's and edited the post to include them.  Then I played with a photo of me and produced this.

I quite like the way it turned out.  I'm going to try some other effects when I have more time.

The long and the short of it

 Unfortunately I have no time for the sewing Sunday that I had planned for this week, but with a bit of effort I can make the items over several evenings this week and next week. I have to apologise for the pictures bit my camera doesn't take good photo's when it's dark!

 As the winter Bermuda shorts I have planned for the jade (or perhaps its more emerald?) cord is a new pattern I found time on Wednesday evening to trace the pattern out.  On Thursday evening I laid the pattern on the fabric and cut it out.  Here's the pattern laid out, it looks a bit messy as I only roughly cut out the paper pattern.

It was a bit of a tight squeeze to fit it all onto my 1 meter of fabric but I managed.  My nan taught me lay out a pattern when I was young and she developed her skills during the war when making kids clothes from worn adult clothing was common.  As long as the pieces are placed on the grain correctly you can usually use quite a lot less fabric than the pattern suggests.  This is all the material I had left - maybe enough for two patch pockets.


 I admit I did have to make the facings from a different material - part of an old pale green sheet!

and here's the actual pieces ready to sew.

 I spent Friday evening happily sewing (whilst my henna hair colour developed).
 The shorts have a side opening which the pattern suggested was closed with snap fasteners, but I had visions of these popping open every time I sat down or bent over.  I wanted a more secure fastening and as I was using a chunk cord fabric I opted for the hammer-on type of jeans buttons.

When I first cut the fabric I was worried that the shorts would be too small, but actually they fit really well.  This isn't the most flattering picture

Nest week I'll make the navy cardi to go with these, ready to wear when we go out for a meal with family on the 1st October.

Autumn

Depending on your thinking Autumn begins on the 1st or the 21st September and I believe that the actual equinox is tomorrow (23rd) this year, but whatever way you think Autumn is definitely here.  Hooray!! No more pretending that we will have some sunny weather, and getting chilly in short sleeves and sandals.  I love Autumn and always have, the colours are stunning.  Who couldn't be inspired by the palette of golds, reds, browns and greens that abound at the moment. 

I found this little conker whilst walking my dog at the weekend, it was away from the tree and gave the impression that it had escaped from a bulging pocket or slipped from an overcrowded hand, so I just had to pick it up and take it home with me.

Jade and Navy

My usual autumn colours are browns, gold and berry red.  But I seem to be going through a much more green and blue phase.  This gorgeous jade cord arrived today, I'm going to make some shorts (I'm rather fond of shorts and I can see this with thick navy tights underneath).

Here's the colour combination the multi patterned fabric is actually a chiffon shirt that mum bought me for my birthday back in April, it has the most wonderful colours including the same shade of jade as the cord.  As it's rather thin for the winter(even with thermals underneath) I'm going to make a cardi from the Navy fleece.

I'm cutting the pattern for the shorts and cardi tonight ready to sew over the weekend.

where did this come from?

Look what appeared on my bedroom ceiling today.  He (or she) was crawling across it when I got in from work today.

I can only assume that it came in on some washing yesterday.  Of course I had to help it back outside.

It did cheer me up because I realised that I was really bored at work even though I'm very busy. There is nothing that stimulates me.  Nothing good happened, nothing bad happened in fact apart from me doing the usual boring stuff nothing happened.  I have to remember that it pays quite well, but there is more to life than money, even though I do have a son who wants to go to uni in a few years time.

Never mind I'm promising myself a sewing Sunday soon and despite my best intentions I have ordered some new fabric.  I've also partly sorted out my abandoned knitting projects and there are definitely some that can be resurrected.  I'm hoping pictures on both these will follow this week.

Apple day and lots more

Remember these?

 Well they were joined during the week by these.

So I started making the chutney first thing on Sunday morning. You can find instructions here recipe

Then whilst the oven was on cooking a Sunday roast for most of the family I cooked most of the remaining marrow stuffed with a lentil mix and spicy mexican cheese.

Apple flapjack was baked

and individual apple tartlets

and spicy apple cake

and some choc chip cookies for those that don't like apples (how could they not like apples!!)

Sold !!!

Today has been a very sad day, and I have no picture to mark the occasion, my father moved out of the family home.  This is the house that not only did I grow up in but so did he and he has lived there all his life.  I found it upsetting to leave (and I haven't lived there for over 20 years), I that by today he just wanted to get it over and done with but he has been very stressed over the past few weeks.  This hasn't been helped by the fact that he slipped a disc in his back about a month ago and couldn't really pack much stuff himself.  Me and the kids have been helping as much as possible but we live 50 miles away so it has been difficult.

However being more positive, the actual move went as well as it could do and we had the keys for the new house by soon after mid-day.  Unfortunately because of the packing and dad's bad back, the house was filthy and half way through hoovering upstairs the hoover packed up.  Thankfully there is an electrical goods shop very close so I rushed down there, usually I hate the fact that an assistant 'pounces' on you as soon as you walk through the door of these shops but today I just said 'I need the cheapest hoover that you have and I need it now!'  and so we got a replacement.

Dad's new house is much smaller and even though we did downsize considerably, I think he still has too much stuff - it was the standing joke of the removals men that if they didn't know where a box went it had to go in the spare room.  However I left him a couple of hours ago with everything he needs in the immediate future ready.

Dad hasn't moved very far, and the house he's now in is much more suitable for him.  In fact it is in every way a very suitable house.  The only problem is it's not the old house, but we'll all get over that!

Pale and Interesting

I was determined to find time to sew a new dress last Friday evening and here it is:

It's far more flattering when worn than it looks in this photo.  It has a cowl neckline that draps nicely and the dress then drapes round the body, showing the shape but disguising any bumpy bits.  It's made in a fairly heavy jersey from my stash and the pattern is from my August Burda magazine.  Here's the picture from the mag.

In the above photos I have shown it as part of a very neutral colour scheme, with a mink jersey, pewter tights, coffee coloured shoes and some antique look jewellery.  The overall effect when worn made me want to 'bob' my hair again and dance the Charleston.

Autumn gales and apples

The first of the autumn winds has been blowing for most of the day.  It has brought down quite a few of the remaining apples on my apple tree.  I have rescued some of them and will try to salvage some more and pick the rest at the weekend.  Then I need to decide what to do with them all.  They are usually really good for keeping, but this year they don't look like they will keep well so I'll have to get out all my apple recipe's.  I have a load of tomatoes as well so I suspect that chutney is top of my list to make.  I'll have too find out some jars.  If I can find time to get some blackberries and/or elderberries then I'll be able to make some jam as well and crumble and I have a great recipe for apple cake ........ It'll all have to wait until the weekend so I hope I can find the time.

Mary looks very bright today

That is what my colleague (the only man in our team of 6) said first thing this morning, and this is what I was wearing: 

It is a rather close fitting patterned jersey tunic with a rouched front panel.  I made it earlier this year and wear it with black jeggings (sorry I did mention black again).

and here's a close-up that shows the pattern on the tunic better.

 I mustn't forget the picture of my newly beribboned shoes.

It's amazing the effect of changing the laces (ribbons) in a pair of shoes.  I have worn these shoes to work hundreds of times and yet today my colleague told me how nice they were and how she really liked what I did with the ribbons.

I went window shopping at lunchtime today for more inspiration and at one point I felt as if I had fallen of the shop display as it was exactly the same pink and black!  Apart from that I have heaps of ideas for Autumn outfits that don't need me to make or buy anything new.  Well OK I did buy a few new pairs of thick tights.  And since I came home I have cut out a grey jersey tunic that I want to sew tonight - but I have to take the dog first so I must go now.

Time for a change

I have been wearing a lot of black recently and very little colour.  My boss says that black suits me as I have a pale skin, personally I think that without makeup it makes me very vampire like and as I just discovered that I am pale because I am slightly anaemic I'm not sure that is a good reason to wear black! My other friend says that it's slimming and elegant.  However I have been quite down recently and I'm sure that wearing black is not helping my mood.

I was quite disappointed when I went through the clothes I have been wearing recently to find there was a lot of totally black outfits, so I have to find new to introduce more colour.  With this in mind I visited a shop during my lunchbreak and brought some lovely ribbons to quickly update and introduce some colour.

 As you can notice there is also some sewing thread and a zip for my next project.  Here's the first colour introduction.  Some cerise pink ribbon through a pair of black and grey shoes.  They are now going to match perfectly with a pink black and grey tunic that I made earlier in the year.  Sorry that it still does include black, especially as it will be worn with black jeggings - but I can't have a complete new wardrobe!!

Pictures of the outfit will be shown tomorrow.

Wrapped up

So I am back again,  I'm not really sure why but I am and I'm going to keep updating on latest projects just to show that I can!! So there!!  I was away visiting my mum last week.  I won't call it a holiday as it was a rather anxious time of buying and selling houses but I sincerely hope that all is now well and within a few weeks I will have more time to keep this blog updated properly.
Anyway whilst I was away I did take the opportunity to buy some touch yarn in a lovely ivory colour.  Perhaps not the most practical but it does go with a lot of my clothes.  It has such a lovely knobly texture that I'm knitting it into a simple stocking stitch wrap.  The short ends are slanted and I'm hoping that there will be enough yarn for really long tassle's all down them.