A Skirt!

First there was this.

Then there was this!

Thanks to Daisy's sewalong I've definitely been bitten by the sewing bug. Loved making this and I can see more to come! (Although next time I must make sure I wipe the mirror before taking any pictures!)

Meanwhile - look what came through the letterbox this morning .......

Oh my goodness Daisy Jones - look what you've started!

Happy sewing,

Jane 

xxx

A belated Easter greeting - and a teeny tiny update.

So sorry I haven't got a particularly Easter like picture for you but I thought I'd share one of some doves we spotted at a wedding in Shropshire last week!

Our bloggy get together is going to be held at Shugborough on Friday 30th May. I'll try and get everyone together on one email (might take some time) and send further details a.s.a.p. If you'd still like to join us but haven't been in touch just yet please do - we'd love to meet you!

Happy Easter everyone,

Jane.

xxx

A 'Stern Word'!

So there I was sitting in the sunshine wondering what I really should be doing with my day when I heard a bit of huffing and puffing. Looking down I could see little glove mouse making his way through the forget me nots.

 He wasn't humming his usual happy tune. In fact on closer inspection he was looking a bit cross.

After waxing lyrical about the wonderful sunny weather and enquiring as to whether he had yet spotted the new baby blackbird, I realised that he hadn't come to pass niceties.

He wanted to have a 'stern word'.

He reminded me that it had been some time since I had promised that I would give his new chums some faces.

 Much as he liked Miss Mildred and Springtime Bunny they were spending more and more time in the school room and didn't want to listen to his mousey musings. Much as he had tried conversing with new chums he pointed out the the conversations were unsurprisingly one sided. He wanted to know what I was going to do about it and, more importantly, when? 

I assured him that I hadn't been completely shirking as I had been busy stitching a zip in my skirt for Daisy's sewalong.

He was suitably unimpressed.

There was no excuse he argued and so, with the promise of some mousey help, I set to.

He fetched the needle, thread and scissors.

He helped me thread the needle using my big middle aged magnifier.

He got quite excited when he saw the first eye appear 

(but then panicked when he saw what I was doing to the nose!)

Fears allayed, he watched with wonder as two little bunny faces appeared.

And before I knew it they'd ran off to the material basket to select some suitable fabric for little bunny clothes.

Sometimes a 'stern word' is all we need to get something done!

I'd like to remind any of you who don't already know that we'll be having a little bloggy get together soon. From the responses so far I think Shugborough is going to be the place to meet, and it will be some time during the Spring break. Currently I'm looking at Friday 30th May, but it's always easy for me to forget that not everybody has the same holidays as teachers, so if the Saturday suits better please let me know. There's quite a happy little gang of us so far, so please let me know if you'd like to join us - it should be fun! I'll post final details on Sunday evening.

Meanwhile I'll leave you with a picture of the cheeky little trio having fun with some currant leaves!

Hope you all have a lovely weekend wherever you are.

Jane

xxx

Rocks, rocks, a few more rocks ... and an invitation.

Oooh Jane you cryptic old tinker you.

First the rocks.

Since Big and Little Sis were wee we've been bringing them to the Roaches. On a spectacularly scenic road between Leek and Buxton they provide great scrambling opportunities for both young and old goats alike and reward with far reaching views. (I wrote about Leek here - a perfect place for a spot of charity shopping and some pre walk sustenance.) So yesterday Big Sis and I had some lovely mother and daughter time together and decided to take off! Of course Big Sis being Big Sis her suitcase hadn't allowed any packing of what you and I might call 'necessities'. The resulting outfit of a faux fur coat and her sister's slightly too small trainers was one that isn't often seen in the hiking community - but it did the trick! The section that we usually walk is right next to a narrow road and in the time it took to lock the car door Big Sis  was already up and off.

Spot the Yeti!

The rocky path is by no means straightforward but is worth stopping along the way just to watch the light change. Within seconds it can turn from this

to this

The other thing that struck me was the absolute silence. There was a fair old breeze and the occasional word or two from a passing walker but apart from that you only heard the bees on the heather and the strange 'sweeee' sound of an unknown bird (any guesses?)

Carrying on up

Past some fantastic rock formations

We thought this one looked like a tortoise!

Noticing the old heather

and the new

Nearly there

Until we got to the top

Queen of all she surveys

I must admit I didn't quite make it to the top of the rock a la Big Sis - my knees were starting to wobble by now and the fact that these rocks have been there forever didn't allay this one bit - today might just have been the day they all decided to give way!

A wonderful day though. My cobwebs were properly blown away and I felt no guilt at all at indulging in the rather large chocolate flapjack I'd stashed in my bag for the summit!

Now for the invitation bit. I was wondering...if maybe...oh I don't know...just a thought...perhaps it would be nice if us bloggy folk could have a little get together? Hmmmm? I was thinking maybe sometime in the last week of May. Not sure where but I thought perhaps a National Trust type of place where we could have a picnic and lovely walk if the weather was nice, or go in the tea rooms and visit a lovely big house if it's not. What do you think? Shugborough? Tatton Park? Calke Abbey? I'm completely open to suggestions so if you think you've got any good ones do let me know - it would be so nice to actually meet some of you!

Meanwhile here's a by no means flattering picture of windswept me atop a rock!

Jane

xxx

Half Baked Bunnies.

Thank you so much for all of your birthday and get well wishes. Today is the first time I haven't actually had to take any painkillers or wander around attached to a box of tissues so they obviously worked. April has been here for a while now too so I thought I'd better update my calendar photo.

I love the colours in this one - very Scandi/Grimms fairy tale - Grandi?Scrimms?

It's been a strange old time making wise. One of those 'lots of ideas and busy minds but not quite enough energy to put into practice' phases that I hit now and then. Not the least bit helped by the Great British Sewing Bee. Oh how I've loved snuggling down at 8pm each Tuesday to watch others do all the hard work! (Surprised at the winner though but that last dress was a real show stopper!)

Big Sis is back from university for a couple of weeks as well and, despite my requests for her to sleep in the garden shed, has insisted on sleeping in her own bed - in my craft room - the injustice! Still, I've managed the odd spurt. My little basket is filling itself with bunnies.

 Sadly none of them are yet complete - they are in fact 'half baked'. Each time I think about getting on and adding the details I get sidetracked. Glove mouse is very excited by their arrival and is anticipating all the nice chats he'll be able to have once they actually have faces! I did, however, finish a couple of little crochet pincushions and had great fun making up the patterns and adding the beads.

But the highlight of my week was getting my McCalls pattern through the post. For those of you who haven't caught up yet Lazy Daisy Jones is hosting a sewalong for a fab little a-line skirt (hit the button on the sidebar to take a peek!)

I must admit I would have completely overlooked this pattern if I had been browsing through the catalogue. However having seen the results of Daisy and Jacquie's sewing I knew I had to have a go. The best thing about it so far is the fact that it has only involved cutting out four pattern pieces ( I really dislike cutting out) - a breeze! 

So here they all are, ready for the next steps. 

All it requires now is for me to get up off my overused derrière (ooh madam) and get on with it.

 Poor old glove mouse is going to have to wait a little longer for his friendly chats.

Hope you are all having a warm and wonderful weekend - and if not I've saved up some of your well wishes and am sending them your way.

Jane

xxx

A Shameless Bit of Self Gratuity .....

I've been a.w.o.l. for some time owing to some rotten virus type thing that just won't seem to budge, but just wanted to pop on to say IT'S MY BIRTHDAY in a completely self gratuitous manner! Being nice and spoilt and taking it eeeeaaaaasy. 

Hope you're all virus free and will enjoy a slice of virtual cake with me (courtesy of Nigel Slater)

Normal service will be resumed as soon as possible.

Bye for now my lovely bloggy buddies,

Jane 

xxx

Ding Dong Sewalong!

For those of you who might be wondering what on earth I'm on about (and not for the first time) I am, of course, referring to the very talented Miss Daisy Jones who is hosting a tip top sewalong for a 'simple' skirt. Now let me just clarify - 'tis not I who have coined the phrase 'simple' here.No in my case it's more of a tip top skirt for a simple person. Hmm. 

(I've just been distracted by a duck sitting on the roof right outside the window - maybe he too would like to join in - no?)

Anyhow, if you're still there, I thought you might like to see the fabric I've selected. Please bear in mind that in true 'me' fashion I have waited until the time in the evening where it is impossible to get a good picture - the colours aren't quite as lurid as they might seem.

Contender number one

Yes you are correct in thinking that this is an old curtain. I love the colours and the loose weave but I'm currently using it for bag making.

Contender number two

Another curtain. This time with more of a glazed finish but I think more suited to a dress I've got in mind. (Hahahahahahahahahahaha - oh yes it's amazing the dreams we can dream!)

So the final contender, and to be honest the one I've plumped for, is this one.

A very fine needlecord which is far prettier in real life than this picture shows. It was a roll end from a charity shop and cost the grand total of £2.49. I've been waiting for the right thing to do with it so hopefully fate has called and I will soon be parading around proudly in it.

So that's my choice. 

Do I have a zip? No.

Do I have the pattern yet? Errr - no! (but hopefully popping onto the doormat any day now)

But do I have the enthusiasm? Heck yes!!

This is going to be good fun. If you haven't joined up yet pop over to see Daisy or use the button in my sidebar.

Simple - that's my kind of sewing!

Off to watch 'The Great British Sewing Bee' now for my weekly fix.

Jane

xxx