Lost my mojo

I have been away for ages I know things have happened. I have totally missed the end of summer. Just before we went on our holiday my power lead for my laptop packed up. I ordered a new one but it didn't arrive for weeks and when it did it was the wrong one, so I had to reorder and wait again.

I can't blame my time away fully on technical problems as I have been having my own technical problems. Whilst we were away on holiday I discovered I am expecting again... hooorray. Then about 8 weeks of constant sickness and tiredness hit me. I have only just started to feel better at 12 weeks.. hoorrray. I totally lost my mojo, I have not read any blogs could hardly be bothered to switch on the tv let alone the laptop. I have done nothing for 8 weeks except trying to get through the day, looking after little OB and looking forward to early nights. Crochet and making has been totally blown out the window I hope I feel well enough soon to start making again because I miss it. I also want to make something beautiful for the baby. I started a ripple blanket when we was away in France and the top picture is a picnic blanket I made before we went which I intended to finish while we were away. The french must have thought I was a bit nutty crocheting on the beach in 30 degree heat. It's still unpacked in my crochet basket I can't even bear to think about doing any more to it at the moment. Hopefully my mojo will return soon.

I had my scan on Tuesday and everything is looking ok so far so fingers crossed. So you will have to bear with me until I feel that I have the energy to do anything.

Broken laptop

I am having technical problems at the moment normal service will resume soon.

More hooky

There has been alot of hooky action at my house recently. I was spurred on to finish by the local village show. I entered a crochet cushion last year and was amazed to win first prize, my aim this year was a trophy and I got it, hooorrray. I suppose its important to me to achieve something as I am mostly a SAHM. Most of my life involves the little one.

So after seeing Lucy create the Japanese flower scarf earlier in the year I knew I had to have one. I start immediately as Lucy showed us the pattern, I bought the book from Japan via etsy and bought some Debbie Bliss andes. Which by the way is beautifully soft and has a shiny lustre, its easy to work with and has a nice selection of colours. I chose about ten colours and started. I did about 7 flowers and stopped because as it grew I wasn't sure I would wear it so thought it pointless carrying on. I didn't like all the random colours put together and thought I would prefer it if it was just 3 different colours white, light blue and dark blue so I stopped, I also got distracted by the spring throw. 

I left it for about 3 months then as the show approach I thought I should finish it. As I worked on it I liked it more and more and when it was big enough to drape over my shoulder I began to love it. Its so lovely and soft and I thought it would be nice to wear with most things on my summer holidays if it gets chilly in the evening. So.....

May I present to you my Japanese flower scarf.

Taaa daahh.

        It also won First prize in the show. No surprise really as it was the only entry in the crocheted wool section, ha ha. Now I love it and

can't wait to wear it on holiday.



Have a nice sunny weekend, may it be filled with flowers maybe the hooky kind

Sarah

Shows, reveals and prizes

This is an epic moment my spring time throw is finished.

436 squares made and crocheted together and a gazillion ends weaved in. It's been a torrid love affair we have had our ups and downs but we got there in the end.

It all started with a new book back in Febuary 'Cute and Easy Crochet' by Nicki Trench found in my local WHS. So many projects drew me in with their candy colours and bobble trims I just had to have it. Jam jars cover, crocheted teddy bears and the blanket in soft candy colours. I needed it in my life.

6 months later and it's mine all mine and I love love love it.

It's amazing that I have made it I learnt to crochet last year and have only attempted cushions so far. I can't believe I did it. I made it from rowan hanknit cotton so it is a substantial blanket and I lost count how many balls of cotton I used, I made alot of orders as I kept running out. It weighs an absolute ton I guess about 30 balls it weighs half a stone. Just don't tell my husband how many they cost he is quite good at maths he will find me out.

I was spurred on to finish when I met Nicki Trench at the country living show in London and actually saw the blanket I was making. I discussed the yarn and colour choices with her. I added some new colours on her advice, used up some oddments of yarn I had and I threw in a ball of Amy butler for good measure because they didn't have the orange colour in the handknit cotton range.

Well here it is in all it's glory.

I entered it into the local village flower show on Saturday. At 5pm I emerged from the handicrafts marquee clutching my 'Best exhibit in Crochet' trophy. I was amazed but I didn't give a gushing speech. I thought it a little over the top considering it was just me and one other lady that entered the catergory. Oh wel......l it was exciting anyway I never win anything. 

I have my japanese flower scarf to show you next I can't handle the excitment today so I'll show you that next time, also a 1st prize winner at the show.


Have a great week,
Sarah

Today I am loving

I love my new boot sale find, a vintage tea tray full of beautiful roses.

Perfect for tea in the garden.

More roses in my garden they smell gorgeous and are so pretty.

When I was a kid i always wanted a playhouse in the garden with an upstairs??!! Well its a bit late but my wish has come true. My sister's friend gave us this playhouse as she was given it but it wouldn't fit in her garden. It needed a new roof and a paint so here it is fully restored.

Isn't it amazing?? I love it.

We planted the window boxes with pansies and sweet peas its so cute and our kids are so lucky. Actually i think I love it more than the kids do. I want to fill it with vintage toys so a few more trips to the boot sale are required.

I had a moment of weakness last week and bought the water carrier I loved in the Sarah Raven catalogue. It wasn't as bad as full price, well thats what I keep telling myself. I wanted to buy the green one but within about an hour of receiving the sale email they had sold out. I was trying to buy it on my phone at work but I had to keep stopping, blooming customers then they had sold out. I want it for when we go away in the caravan, I can see myself merrily skipping to the water tap bringing it back to our caravan adorned with bunting and placing it on my cath kidston inspired table. I do live in a bit of a dream world most of the time.

Its my friends birthday on Sunday so I made her a little toadstool house cake. My sister helped and we were in fits of hysterical laughter as she annouced it would need underpinning as the top began to slide off.

Have a fun filled weekend, unfortuatley I have to work boo hoo.

Sarah

Driving me potty

We have been potty training for a few weeks now, we have good days and bad days and I think it is going to take quite a long time. I think people say boys do take longer.

As a reward for his potty training we have been moving little OB into his big boy room this week. I was more excited than him. Before he was born I felt like I couldn't get excited before he arrived as I suffers from a few problems so I never got to do the nursery decorating in case I jinxed it. So I have really indulged in everything I ever wanted for him. Though firstly we had to do boring stuff like replastering and painting and lots of dust and mess. And clearing up a room that was used to dump stuff we didn't know where to put. The whole of the upstairs has been a real mess and it is great to get everything neat and tidy for 5 mins at least.

We bought his new bed and furniture from ikea which looks really good. It has a tent over the top which makes it looks like a den, we could hardy remove him from the Ikea's display. When he was little I bought his bedding from Babou and it turned out to be lovely quality. I love having well ironed sheets so I bought from there again new curtains, quilt and sheets. The overall look is very fresh, soft and cosy. Hopefully he will be able to use them for years and years.

I also invested in stickers to make a mural for one blank wall and I am really impressed with the overall result. Helicopters, diggers, dumpers and sky scrapers all the things he loves.

We have my nan visiting this week which is lovely she is 86 buts still seems alot younger to me she has a positive outlook on life which continually inspires me and she has so many interesting nostalgic stories to tell. I could listen for hours about where she used to live in London with her parents and sister and aunt's family living next door. The parties they had and fun even in the dark days of the war. She tells me about the clothes they used to make sewing and crochet which is were I get my interest from. So far we have gone shopping, had lunch in a country pub, visited Ikea for the umpteenth time and been to the boot sale. So a great week so far and the weather hasn't been too bad either.

More progress on my springtime throw its almost finished I just need to crochet 436 squares together wish me luck.

What happened here? Are those little feet I can see in the corner?

Have a great weekend may it be filled with pretty things and sunshine.
Sarah

I did it!!

Well its DONE, I 've finishedImy worn and washed quilt and i love it, I love that I made it all by myself but mostly I love it because I did the binding and I cracked it with the help of angry chicken she has a very neat little video tutorial. If you struggle to get your head around binding as I did then I advise you to watch her video. Thank you Amy Karol of angry chicken.

So here it is my properly finished patchwork blanket......

Beautiful purple flower binding handmade by Blondes Backyard on folksy made from a vintage sheet. Just lucky it matched perfectly and with my new found knowledge was a breeze to attach.

A lovely mixture of colours and textures the worn and washed fabrics are so soft.

The binding did take quite a while as I hand sewed one side and machined the other.

As you can see it has furry approval too.

''How dare you disturb me taking pictures for your silly blog I am trying to sleep!''

Have a lovely craft filled week,
Sarah

Chugging on

Oh dear... my ideal of blogging once a week isn't working very well.

Here's what we have been up to recently we have had a mini break away in Sussex. I bought my OH a diesel train driving experience on the Kent and East Sussex line. He got to ride in the cab and help the driver, halfway there Little OB got to ride in the cab with his Daddy and toot the horn on the train which he really enjoyed. He reeeaaaalllyy loves trains, well anything with wheels that moves he is not too fussy diggers, dumpers, rollers, race cars you get the idea. So it was a train based holiday really we also went on the Romney, Hythe and Dimchurch miniture railway both were a bit hit with both my boys. Along the journey we got to visit Christopher Lloyd's garden at Great Dixter and Derek Jarman's garden in Dungeness.

Great Dixter

 Derek Jarman's Garden at Dungeness

 I don't know If I have said before but I used to be a garden design before my wally of a boss ran his company into the ground. So wherever I am I love to visit great gardens. This is my favourite time of year for plants. Foxglove being my absolute favourites.

I also got to do a bit of my Springtime blanket I did my first public crocheting. Luckily no one stopped and stared or I may have had to stop, another fifty squares done, I think I have about eighty to do to finish I'll keep chugging on.

Little OB loved running about at Great Dixter, I love this photo, carefree and innocent just as childhood should be.

I have a Ta Dah moment coming up my quilt is finished hoooray.

Have a great week,

Love Sarah

xxxx

Worn and Washed

Lots of pictures today, I can't wait to show you how I got on at the Worn and Washed sewing day. It was great fun I really enjoyed myself, I think everyone that went got something out of the day and everyone went home with a quilt top. Some got to the basting stage but it was just great to have a day doing something different and to just sew...

Kim had some beautiful quilts on display. I have always wanted a patchwork quilt and never knew I could make one myself. I don't like fussy quilts although I admire their craftsmanship. I like simple things, just plain squares which is why Kim's quilts really appeal to me, that and their eco credentials. 

Really I don't know anything about quilt making I only just started sewing when my Son was born two years ago as I had more time at home. I had only done curtains before that, so I am self taught. I have a few books and of course the internet is a wealth of knowledge and ideas. So anyway I digress...

This was the quilt display exhibition. I took Little OB's cot blanket to show Kim.
She really liked it and asked if she could display it which I was really chuffed about as it was only my second quilt. Its not fussy or particularly clever I think its the fabric that does the talking, soft and worn, muted colours from years of washing and well chosen patterns that Kim put together in the little pack I bought. I choose it because one of the fabrics is a red flannel with small white stars on it. Little OB loves the stars.

Some more beautiful muted coloured quilts, hand quilted.

Just look at the detail on the binding, perfect little stitches.

 I quite like the brighter colours too, this one is from the 'old swedish' fabric pack.

This is her new fabric collection 'Out of the Toy Box' inspired by old and new toys. I bought a small pack of this to try.

  I like this one with a detailed centre and a wide band of floral framing it. I might try this out.

Well here is our sewing space, we all bought our own machines, and tools. We all picked a bundles of her fabric and set about making the quilt top. I wanted to do something a bit different to everyone else as usual a little rebel sitting in the back row. So I sorted all of my bundles in the same sized strips and cut them into 5'' squares we were supposed to sew them as they were- all different length strips. Anyway I sewed the squares together and with the offcuts sewed the irregular strips together and at the end sliced them in half lengthways to make a staggered border. I was told off for breaking the rules but forgiven as I had done a couple before. I was really pleased at the end because squares really appeal to me. I didn't do too badly matching them up I thought I would use buttons if I had to, to disguise where they are not quite squared up together.

This is not the finished picture but this is on the home straight.

The colours have changed abit in the light I took the photograph, they appeal here in blue tones but actually its more purple and lavender coloured in real life.

Heres my big tahdah- still lots to do I have to get some wadding, bast it, back it and the dreaded binding....

TTTTTAAAAAADDDDDDDAAAAAHHHHH

What do you think?

I think I my fabric choice was inspired by our walk in the bluebell wood at the caravan site where we stayed overnight. I wouldn't normally choose liliacs and purples when I saw the fabric pack I thought I would try something different.

And I am pleased with the result so far.

Happy Easter again,

Sarah