Woyww

Hello, lovely people how are you all. I decided not to post the last couple of weeks as I had no hopes of getting round anyone - sickness then folks visiting. I probably won't do much better this week but I do miss the whole crazy Wednesday thing - what crazy Wednesday thing why all the desks that come via the head honcho Ms Julia Dunnit (woyww link on the right). So this week as I type this is exactly what is on my table of determinate crafting purpose (at the moment) now: 

A quilt I am doing for a thing, an online thingy - I really should get the button that might help. Then I have been asked to make a card (my first commission :D) so this is an initial sketch idea........(very initial).

Last but not least here is the zippy pouch I was working on last time I was about - all finished and awaiting posting!

Keeping it brief, that's all from me, have a good one!

Rocking My World Friday

Hello Friday rockers (no need to run this time Sandee - *wave*) courtesy of the very splendid Virginia over at the Celtic House we love to gather together on a Friday and look at the good things that have happened in our week, because there is always something good, no matter how small.

Firstly a BIG thank you to you all for your lovely words. The writing the experience down and having a little weep has left me feeling a LOT better this week. I think that at some point if I can get myself to journal some of the harder experiences that will be positive too :) So my first positive was offloading and getting some relief!

The weekend was rare family time. It was my sisters birthday and we all piled over to my parents house on Saturday afternoon and to spend the night.  I had a cunning plan. Our boys (it is my dad's fault he wanted boys and go 2 girls so now Susan and I have 3 boy's between us........) are at that age when anyone's presents are up for grabs. Now I don't know about you ladies but I am still very much in the category of I love having presents to open especially surprises!  So in a cunning moved I scoured the house and found 3 animal badges that needed making, some thread, beads with letters and shapes to string on (enough letters for each of the boy's names) and a finger puppet. I wrapped them in tissue paper and just as there eye's popped out of their little heads at sister's presents. I presented them with their little gifts (these were promptly ripped open and then they sat quietly on the floor in a different room making badges and name thingies - result.  My sister opened her presents in peace! I love it when a plan works.

My second positive of the weekend was very inadvertent. When my sister came to visit with her boy's the other weekend (this is an unusually large number of visits we can go weeks without connecting and I am looking after them tonight over night to........) Anyway's my sister had asked if I had any good books and I gave her my copy of Moon Called by Patricia Briggs which I had really enjoyed. So this last week S's youngest fella had been off school with the high temperature bug that is doing the rounds and with a loss of what to do she promptly ordered off Amazon (2nd hand) the remaining books in the series, read them and then presented them to me as a bulk offering.  I have to return all but the last book (which she got a copy of for me) because she wants to read them all again - but how good is that! :D

Sunday I got home from parental's via a friends new house (this friend is someone who I grew up with from 10 - 18 then we lost touch and found each other through friends reunited, both pregnant with 2 weeks to go and our boy's were born 5 days apart. We got together 8 weeks later and have kept in contact since!). To find the lovely Sarah (hello lovely Sarah) had squirrelled a bag of fabric scraps by my front door when she had been up watching hockey at the Skydome. When she said a few scraps I hadn't expected a bag full. People are so lovely you know :)

Needless to say I have been on a happy boat all week. I took myself in hand made a list of things I needed to get done and jolly well did them. This meant I finally had sometime to craft this week and make sure that I got my postcards for Darcy's challenge caught up and completed for this week :) 

I have also started walking once a week. The new student I am tutoring lives in a part of Coventry with the most rubbish bus route ever. Generally Coventry is pretty good for buses and being able to get around. On Thursday's I am averaging an hour to an hour and a half of walking - this will not being doing me any harm.  I am hoping if dh work situation can resolve itself that I can get myself to aqua aerobics again. I have always enjoyed doing that and unfortunately the local classes are in a nearby hotel which will be expensive (in comparison to the local  sports centres which tend to be £20 a month but there isn't one in a sensible place to here........

Lastly for now is the Mouthy Stitches swap that I am taking part in on flikr. It is so much fun seeing everyone's work, although I am more of a sneaky peaks showing person. But the positive comments are so lovely (and when 2 people pinned the finished owl as a favourite that made me fair beam!). My sense of humour tends to come out in my commenting and I have already gained some new friends from it - hello *waves8 to mammafairy and Diane. It is lovely having new friends :)

Right lots of look forward to this weekend too, more about that next week! Hope you are all having a splendid time and I shall be round to see what is happening in your worlds.

Darcy's Postcard Challenge weeks 4 and 5....

Ok playing catch up so keeping it brief. China then France.......

Right not sure when, probably Saturday evening, I'll be playing catch up on postcards too......

WOYWW - back to the sofa

Good Morning (ish) lovely Wednesday people. If you are wandering by my blog and are a new follower - run, run now. Only joking you have found yourself in the middle of a pathway to inspiration, everything from papercrafters, to fabric people and the odd jewellery crafter and everything in between. What will you see, who knows but it starts with a desk, a single desk of Julia Dunnit and flies outwards (WOYWW link on the right).

This week the table of indeterminate purpose is being a determined dinner table. I have transferred with some stitching to the living room (which has retained its new formation since the Christmas change around (and the sofa has a new cover.....). So any-ways I am working on my pouch for my Mouthy Stitches swap:

I had never heard of Kate Spain and her terrain fabric but I like what I have of it so far. The pink is way out of my comfort zone but I am pleased with how it is going, Just keeping my fingers crossed that the sewing machine will go through all the layers once I put the whole thing together.......... Once the owl is finished and stitched on to the branch I have some sequin flowers to sparingly sprinkle around.

Hope you are all having a good - preferably lurgy free (whichever of the horrible nasty things that are going around at the moment). week :) 

Rocking my World (might be more rocky world this week.....)

Hello Lovely positive Friday people time once more for:

Hosted by the ever positive Virginia over at the Celtic House :)

This has been a week that should be happy and was full of so many positives but add in a poorly toddler (which is why I am typing this at 5am in the morning) and just the weight of everything that has been dealt with (and the fact I'm not at full fighting fitness meself) and the celebrations are not what they should be.

So at the beginning of last week (or the weekend as it is generally thought of by the many) we celebrated for the third year Chinese New Year (a day or 2 early) with friends of ours and other friends. We have a number of traditions that are slowly arising around our circle and this is the 1st one of the year. We all take around a Chinese dish or two and feast like kings my friend. My lovely husband (who is 1/2 Chinese from his Hong Kong Dad) made a Chinese curry - yum yum and experimental prawn toasts - because under my expert supervision we baked rather than fried them to reduce some lard content - and my friends not a one of the 50 odd triangles was left at the end! My contribution was a baked (unusual as they are usually steamed) cake - it was so so light and very yummy definitely to be made again :) 

Now the next part I alluded to last week, first I shall explain a little bit because Carmen aside you won't know the background and appreciate the true momentousness of it all. So are you sitting comfortably.......... In 2005 (the year we got married) my husband and I purchased out first home together. What followed on and off was bullying, harrasment, threats and other things from the person who lived below us, a man who was unemployed, likes his alcohol, probably also played with drugs and decided to make my family his full time entertainment. We stayed so long, because we naively assumed that with right and good on our side we should be able to sort out this social tenant and stop it happening to someone else (we are sure that he was the reason the previous owner left) . But it turns out no. In 2010 things escalated somewhat and someone glued our door lock, a week later our car was keyed down one side from light to light. Then it want quiet for a few months before a full bottle of beer was thrown through our first floor flat kitchen window (still grateful it wasn't the other side which was T bedroom) we were out at the time and had friends babysitting. Then a week later we found both wing mirrors ripped off our car. I can't even begin to tell you what a state I was in by this time. I was afraid to leave my home, afraid to come back to it. Terrified something would happen to us (which was the next thing threatened). Still the police and Whitefriars (responsible for their tenant) could do nothing. No proof, sorry can't help you get any, can't do anything unless you have some. Just before the 2nd lot of incidents and following good advice from lovely blogging friends like Carmen and Donna (She of Doone fame) we had put the flat on the market. After the incidents we did some sums and decided that safety and happiness were more important than money and we moved ourselves into rented accommodation on the 1st of February last year. Much to the relief of all who know us.  Now it wasn't 7 years of bad, our lovely son was born and it was really only the latter half of 2009 and 2010 that I really started to struggle. The last year has been hard financially but better in many other ways. We have taken a massive negative equity hit in order to sell it but the help of family means that we are financially stable again. So the good news, as of 11am Monday just gone the flat belongs to someone else.  I wrestled a lot with this, but I do believe that while that man will never make anyone's life easy he had a strong hatred for us. We have to be grateful that because there was no proof there was nothing to declare. Whitefriars regarded it all as tit for tat noise complaints (I have that in writing when they sent a reply to our MP when I asked him for help). So there are no records anywhere, so we can move on with a clean slate.  My husband is smiling again as he doesn't see all his wages disappear out every month. Me I am sitting here crying as I write this, the whole thing affected me a lot more. I am not one to dwell this is the last time I shall write of it all. I am not a bad person, he was and I am assured karma will get him. I am glad I won't be around to see what happens to him. I truly believe that someone who gets pleasure from tormenting others like him is a miserable person and so he already suffers everyday. Me well I laugh a lot (maybe not so much this week). I smile everyday because I do have a child like ability to appreciate the little things in life.  I want to feel joyfully happy and relieved. Instead at the moment I feel angry and tired and really fed up. At the moment I just have to let myself feel these things as part of the whole healing process. I am not so far gone that I can't appreciate the lovely fabric that turned up on my doorstep this week. Or when my son utters 'that is the right way to do it' at something on the tv. Or the I love you smile that my husband gave me last night (and it's been a while, he really is relieved and happier) in response to something I said.

So my new friends I do not apologise for this post, but I do promise not to write another one like it again.  I look forward to my husband securing his next contract before the end of the year. Growing more vegetables in my garden wherever that may be. Furthering my sewing skills and at the moment more importantly getting some decent sleep (because that surely doesn't help). Hope you have all had a good one and take care of each other.

WOYWW

Hello Wednesday workdesk hoppers. How are you  all? First let me avail you of the lovely contents that were in Annies blog competition (they were on my workdesk Wednesday evening last after all ;)

All stunning creations made by Annie herself. The felted card and picture are just beautiful. My favourite thing of all is Cyril the bear (who comes with his own adoption certificate :) I for one will be toddling along to the sisters crafty creations shop when I am looking for a little something special for someone! As for this week:

At the back left was the Brazilian 'eye' flag that I created for Darcy's postcard challenge last week, it sits on top of a paper dragon, one of which found its way to a friends house where we celebrated the Chinese New Year with friends. To the right of my little netbook is the start of my mouthy stitches pouch swap creation ( and if you look up at the top you can see the Daffodils in their new home :) The stuff laid out at the front is ready to work on my postcard for this week - China.

So just before I head you on your way to Julia's gateway to WOYWW extravaganza (link on the right) firstly if you like sewing and fabric see the previous post.  More importantly - drum roll please................

THE FLAT IS SOLD - yehaa, Monday at 11am it became the property of someone else and good riddance! There is still some healing to do (and may well always be a little) but as a wise friend pointed out recently there is no point holding tight to the past it gets you no where.  It will take us a large number of years to recoup are losses but we dream of our own house by the sea someday and what is a person without their dreams?

Resolve to Sew 2012 - giveaway

Over at Veryberryhandmade.co.uk Ali the hostess has lined up no less than 11 prizes in a blog giveaway of fabric or vouchers to purchase fabric. All she ask is that you tell her what you plan to sew this year, go and look at her website to see the yummy prizes and for all the details :)

I started crafting again in the paper world and was positively smitten by all the beuatiful papers avaiable to make lovely thngs with. Turns out fabric is just as exciting.........
I started sewing again (since 1990s ish - [probably a couple of cushion covers to be honest] and last year it was bags with a zippy thing thrown in for good measure. The reason I started making bags I want to have a go at sewing my own clothes and needed to start somewhere.  I have kicked off 2012 taking part in a zippy pouch swap (button over on the right mouthy stitches). My intention before 2012 is through is to have made either a tunic top or a dress............

Thanks to Gone to Earth for the heads up on the giveaway and if I won I would probably ask for the fancy moon prize as I am just starting out the more help I cna get the better!

Darcy's Postcard challenge, week 3 Brazil

This week I got out the paints (inks) and pencil crayons and pitt pens - it was fun!

While I have you here oh wise people. I like my inks I like the intensity they give. I want to get some acrylics to play with (not the tubey you can get me form hobbycraft kind). the look at the intensity of colour kind - any recommendations?

Rocking my World Friday

Hello Friday people :)

There is something a building - it will be revealed next week but the start of the happiness happened this week :)

Saturday I made someone else's world, my sister came over with her two lads (5 and 7) they were fed lunch and dinner and Susan sat in a chair and read a good book (passed on from me) all afternoon - what more can a mum ask for in life eh! no cooking, no clearing up!

Out for an adventure on Sunday with the little fella (potty in a bag) didn't want to go down the park so we walked to Coventry's main train station, caught the train to our local station (they are about the same walking distance) then wondered home. My husband and I shared one of those moments you know them. The scene - child in pants doing ritual clutch of self as need to pee becomes stronger, child also holding on to toy cow he has taken with him on the trip. Husband 'where's Timothy's cow?', Me - 'he is clutching it along with himself - please don't let that become a euphemism' - husband 'no because we don't want to milk it'..........................

Monday I had the satisfaction of starting to sort our front room, everything got dumped up there over Christmas and my MIL is coming to stay mid February (this is a good thing we get on very well), so the great sort out commenced. It also involves sorting out some of T baby things to pass on to friends of ours who are expecting there first child at the end of March.

Wednesday was a good posty day. I found out Monday that I had won a friends blog competition by rightly guessing 88 (we had been given clues relating to years, and I am my friends a child of the 80s (not born then good gosh no) but I got into to music and films and books between 82 and 88 (then gave up on the music and went backwards to 70s, 60s and 50s!). Anyway she was sending me 'a little something' for getting it right..............

All made by Annie herself, the card was brilliant to start with, the picture is amazing but my favourite is Cyril the bear (complete with adoption certificate :)

Then Thursday was another good day, You know the old adage if you don't ask you don't get? well I went for barefaced cheek and asked a blogger friend who I know sews a lot if they would mind sending me some fabric scraps (for practise, for appliqué work and general making). She was most obliging and this was what greeted me :)

It is brilliant as I wouldn't buy pink because well frankly I don't like the colour but it doesn't mean it won't work well in some things and other people (madness I tell you) do seem to like the colour?  I have signed up to a zippy pouch swap and now I know I'm good to go!

Hope you have a had a good week to , Seems I've had something positive to reflect on most days (plus no accidents for T all week!); Head on over to Virginia's the lovely lady at the Celtic House who started this splendid focus on the good in our lives because it's out there and sometimes you don't have to dig very deep at all :)

WOYWW - paper and fabric

Hello Wednesday peeps. Hope everyone is well. Here is the table of indeterminate purpose for your perusal this week. Please click on what is most likely by now an outdated link through to the Queen of desks (will get it sorted by next week.....)

On the left is the light of my art life, this weeks contribution to Darcy's postcard challenge, in progress and on the right my crafty satisfaction I have been playing around with creating fabric designs (a friend bought me Sew Wild for Christmas there is a whole hoard of lovely stuff on making your own patterned fabric). Not a clue what do with them now mind - any ideas?

(Hi Neet yes they were all cut free hand in red and black felt then embroidered on together to form the knots!)

Finally the last of the secret Santy stuff. This was made for the lovely Doone (who has a live videoed flick through on her blog) and sandwiched with a bunch of other stuff. She nearly didn't get it as I felt quite quite proud at the end of it :) It's my first ever book, feel free to skip to the end or peruse photo's at your leisure ;)

Spent an hour and a half doodling faces, Timothy drew trains and carriages on the back, original scanned and then printed off twice to cover front and back. 

scanned in image, original picture kept

W(HEN) EWE KEEP Y(sorry)(OAR)) MIND

Has a random list of things you can learn from A - Z (yes I got something for every letter!)