Another book that I've been dipping into latelyis rather different to the last: Handmade Home (or Handmade Home: Simple Ways to Repurpose Old Materials into New Family Treasures to give it its full title) is by the wonderful Amanda Blake Soule and it's kind of difficult to express just how in tune I feel with this particular book. Many of you may be familiar with Amanda from her SouleMama blog which is on my list of daily reads. For some reason though I didn't rush out and buy this her second book as soon as it came out. I'm not too sure ... read more
Making a moses basket for Baby C
I was luck enough to get not one, but two moses baskets via St Albans freecycle recently (along with a stand too!) but as these were just the bare baskets, literally, I knew I'd need to use my sewing skills to turn these into somewhere for Baby C to sleep. A new mattress (always recommended for a new baby) was easy to come by, and the same goes for a fitted sheet for the mattress (although how the same shop can sell fitted sheets that so not fit the mattresses they also sell is beyond me!) The bit I needed to make was a cover for the basket itself that the mattress could sit on top ... read more
Slow but steady progress
I've been concentrating lately on bits I've needed to buy or order for Baby C's arrival - big things like a cot and pram. These are now all in the hands of the delivery gods (and I'm trying to ignore the fact that some stuff didn't turn up yesterday in the 13 hour delivery window I was given!) so attention needs to turn back to the things I am making.The cross-stitch Ten in the Bed that I'm working on has been making steady progress, but I possibly need to step this up a gear now. The main part of the blanket of the bed is complete and I'm well on the ... read more
A chocolate filled Easter
It's been an Easter weekend that I think I'm going to remember most for the variety of chocolate consumed whilst doing a million and one other things! There was only time for one bit of baking though which was an opportunity to try out a new seasonal recipe. I've had the card for Waitrose's Chocolate Nest Cakes for years (possibly since 2001 looking at the date on it!) and have only just got round to trying these, although as I needed to transport them to a friend's house in the car I made them into Easter cupcakes rather than nests so that they went in a tin ... read more
Jemima lives again
Someone please tell me how I ever found the time and energy to have a full time job! I seem to be really struggling this week, despite my best efforts to make sure I achieve something every day. Still, one thing that I did manage this week was to finally finish Jemima! Sadly she's far from perfect, but I certainly learnt a huge amount about my sewing machine in the process. Next week's project should be to give her something to wear. Let's hope I can manage at least one of the outfits in a week. ... read more
Slow stitching progress
When I started my latest cross-stitch piece I assumed that the regular bed cover pattern would be quite relaxing to sew. How wrong I was!Having to keep changing colour is a right faff and quite time consuming. Still - I'm getting there - and after a bit of work on the animals in the bed I'm feeling a bit more refreshed. Bearing in mind that the bit pictured above is only half of the overall picture size, so quite a bit more to do. Three and a half more months to get it finished so I had better keep up the momentum on it as the last thing I want are sewing induced ... read more
Ten in the bed
Years ago (circa 1997) I used to buy cross stitch magazines as if they were going out of fashion. At some point whilst moving house at a later date I took out all the patterns that I liked and thought I might actually sew at some point in the future. I still have a whole ring binder full of these and last week vaguely remembered one pattern that I thought may work as something to go on the nursery wall. A good rummage in the attic and hey presto here it is! Ten in the bed is a lovely pattern and should look good on the wall whether Baby C is a boy or a girl. A quick trip ... read more
Technical socks
Please don't think that I spend all my time at home with my feet up (despite what Mr C may say). I did have to sit back and admire this new pair of socks though. The yarn is Regia silk color in shade 0189 (nairobi color). Lovely to knit with and the socks themselves certainly have a silky feel to them when on my feet.I've spent the majority of today sat in front of my sewing machine, but sadly without much sewing going on. Sewing through a pin is never a good thing. It's even worse though when doing so somehow causes bobbin case and needle plate become misaligned so ... read more
Full days
It's very strange, but only a few days after finishing work I'm already starting to wonder how I ever managed to find time to actually go to work! Somehow I've got to change that before it becomes too simple to just stay at home and not find an alternative income stream. After several days snowed in at home (not completely, but with deep enough snow outside that going out became a hassle) I've found myself filling my days with lots of little things that I want and need to get done and yet things like the pile of paperwork on my desk remain untouched.I'm pleased to report ... read more
Final Christmas preparations in the home
It's been a busy Saturday with lots of things on the pre-CHristmas to do list ticked off. All the shopping is now complete, although a fair amount more time is required with the wrapping paper and sellotape before all that is complete. There are a few handmade gifts that are not quite finished yet though. I'm not panicking yet though as there should still be plenty of time to ensure that they're all done in plenty of time - remind me of that late next Thursday though! With freezing temperatures, yesterday's snow still lying deep outside, and more forecast our attentions ... read more