Back on the Wagon

A while back I started a challenge to declutter my house in 52 weeks. My thinking was that even if it only 'stuck' for a few weeks then it leave me in a better state. It stuck for a couple of months, and things (most especially in the kitchen) improved.

By and large, the areas decluttered have remained decluttered and organised. However, the pantry (ambient food storage cupboard) didn't get done. Yesterday evening, I made a start on it. There's 6 shelves, and two of them have been decluttered.

I called The Beloved and The Offspring to come have a look at my wonderful decluttering ability, and in the space of 8 minute another two shelves were done! Those were the two high ones, the ones I can't reach. I've no idea what I'm going to put in that space. Hmm... here's a random thought! Do I need to put anything in that space?!

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It appears the answer is "Yes!". In decluttering the lower two shelves I moved things around a bit. There's now a shelf for gluten-containing foods, eg pasta and breakfast cereals. There's also a shelf for non-gluten starches, eg gf breakfast cereal, rice, lentils, pasta, and rice noodles. Thankfully, all of the shelves are only half the normal depth of kitchen cupboards. I can store things on the front of the second highest shelf, as long as the items are at the front. The top shelf (which I can't reach unless I stand on something) now has paper napkins, paper plates, and plastic cutlery. If it's not used within 3 months it's going out.

Christmas Cake

The cake is made to a recipe my Mam has been cooking for 55 years, a very tasty, rich, dark, moist fruit cake. It's dense and juicy, with the cake part being a matrix to hold all of the fruit in place. The cake was marzipan-ed, then iced using fondant.  The holly and ivy were made from a mix of flower paste and fondant. The leaves were glued in place using royal icing, and the berries were also made from royal icing. 'Noel' was created by pressing in an embosser whilst the white fondant was still very soft. Later when the fondant had dried, Noel was painted using powdered food dye/pigment mixed with alcohol. (The alcohol evaporates very quickly, leaving behind the pigment.) A little Scani-inspired ribbon finished it off.

This cake will donated to a local charity that works with elderly people, providing friendship, lunch clubs, social activities, etc.

Christmas Cake recipe

175g butter

175g sugar

225g plain flour (I used Dove Farm's gluten-free flour)

1tsp mixed spice

1/2 tsp baking powder

4 medium eggs

700g mixed fruit

1 Tsp ground almonds

1 Tsp rich dark treacle

Oven temps: 180C and 150C

Method

Cream the butter and sugar. Sieve the flour, baking powder and spice together. Beat the eggs. Add the flour and eggs to the butter and cream, a little at a time, alternating. Add the almonds and treacle. The bake in a lined tin. Bake at 180C for 1 hour, then at 150C for 2 hours.

This quantity makes a 20cm round cake, about 10cm high.

Designing a kitchen

Over the last few months I have been thinking about a house for the next stage in my life, a time when there's just two of us.

My current thinking is to have a great room (sitting room, dining room and kitchen) about 6m x 12m. The kitchen will be along one of the short walls, and a kitchen island on lockable casters.

Cake Decorating Classes

I've been going to cake decorating classes, and here's a couple of cakes (and a penguin) I have made at home.

Cake Decorating

C and I have enrolled in cake decorating classes. Last night was our first class, and it was great fun. People were there to learn, and to have fun whilst do so.

A neighbour is coming round for tea at 5-ish today. We have decided to make some biscuits and to use our new royal icing skills to decorate them.

The recipe I'm using for the biscuits is:

• 50g butter (soft)

• 75g caster sugar

• 1 medium eggs

• 1 tsp of vanilla extract

• 250g gluten-free plain flour

• 1 tsp gluten-free baking powder

Method:

1.  Preheat oven to 180C.

2.  Cream the butter and sugar. Add the egg and vanilla.

3.  Add the flour and baking powder.

4.  When the mixture has come together, chill for 10 minutes.

5.  Gently kneed the dough, then roll out to 1cm thick.

6.  Use cutters, and place biscuits on baking sheet.

7.  Bake for about 12 minutes until golden brown.

As usual, my attempts at following a recipe weren't spot on. The royal icing I made earlier used 2 and a bit egg whites. I combined the 3 egg yolks and the left over egg white and substituted them for 2 whole eggs. The rest of the ingredients were doubled. The mixture was split into two, and two heaped dessert spoons of Cadbury's Drinking Chocolate were added to one of the batches.

The chocolate dough was a bit dry, and the vanilla one a bit too soft. I cut out the vanilla biscuits, and then combined the leftovers into the chocolate dough. This gave a much better texture to the chocolate dough.

Mini-holiday mutterings

The start of September is always busy for me at work, and then there's a little breather immediately afterwards.  Yesterday and today are days of in lieu of hours already worked.  Then there's the weekend to contend with, and my usual Monday off.  :o)  Five days in a row with nothing I must do.  It is glorious.  Actually, the weather was glorious yesterday, and it's rather fantastic today.

My wrist is a great deal better than it was back in July, and I'm able to do short stretched of crafting again.  I'm trying to be sensible and not do too much at any one time, and it seems to be paying off.

A while back I started heading off to bed about and hour before I planned on going to sleep.  I would get ready for bed, and then sit and craft whilst listening to an audio book.  This is a fantastic way to ready the body for sleep, a nice, soft gentle way to relax.  

When I started doing this my sleep improved dramatically.  Not being able to craft (due to the damaged tendons in my wrist) had an impact on my sleep.  Whilst I am not up to my previously length of time spent crafting, just entering the routine again has brought benefits to my sleep.

As well as crafting - a Granny Square blanket from sock yarn, I went into town to help C select new frames for glasses.  There was a special offer, and one pair is pure Harry Potter!  We also headed out to "Boards and Brews", a board game cafe.  

Graduation Photographs

Hannah graduated with a BA Hons in Jewellery Design.  Here she is with fellow jewellers and contemporary design people.

More graduation photographs will follow when they have been downloaded and then uploaded.

Gradu-bear

What does a new graduate need?  A bear of course.

Tin foil hat time!

Oh boys!  Not being able to knit, crochet, cook or bake is taking its toll.  I've painted, drawn, and today was the day to make a tin foil hat with a rather fetching feather.

Hot, hot, hot!

Oh my! Hereford is hot. It reached 33.3 today. This is too hot for a little bear.

At lunch time I was looking for an idea of what to paint with my new paint set. I was advised to paint some that would make me happy. This is it.

Experiments with posting from my Kindle

I've never attempted to post from my Kindle.  Will it work?

Flat Out Missing!

During TT, one of the Isle of Man Constabulary officers went missing.  He simply disappeared!

PC Flat has done sterling work in the past, helping to remind people to slow down!  A plea was put out for information on PC Flat's whereabouts.  It appears that he might well have been Shanghaied by some Royal Navy sailors who had been helping as medics during the TT Races.  The local Constabulary are hoping PC Flat will be returning in around 11 months, having had a tour of duty with Royal Navy.

Manx Pie

A little pie I made today.

The filling was made from a tub of cranberries, the remnants of a tub of raspberries, a couple of apples, a sprinkling of cinnamon, and a metric tonne of sugar!  (That might be an exaggeration.)

The pastry contained 100g plain flour (Dove Farm), 75g SR flour (Dove farm), 100g butter, 1 egg yolk and 2 tablespoons of cold water.  The butter was rubbed into the flours, and then the sugar was mixed in.  Then the dough was brought together with the egg yolk and water.  It's a pretty sticky dough.  This was popped in the fridge to cool.  The stickiness decreases during this time.

 

Granny loves rainbows

My yarn stash is continuing to shrink. More yarn is being consumed by projects than is being bought! This is a glorious state of affairs. My running total for 'balls used up or given away' for this year is 84.

A few baby items have been made using a lilac merino (hat, bootees, cardigan and snuggly blankie). I played it so the yarn would be totally used up. There was about 20cm left over at the end! Then, I discovered I had previously knitted a baby cardigan in the lilac too. It was a cardigan in need of cuffs, welts and button band. And, I had just used up all of the lilac merino. Cue a trip to my stash to see if there was anything I could use to finish it off. Of course there was!

The second lilac cardigan was finished with a crocheted cream border, and second border in a beautiful rainbow yarn. This resulted in a completed cardigan, and a hook in my hand. I started crocheting again.

About 8 years ago I made a baby blanket from the same yarns:

And I am going for a repeat performance.  

Last time round, I ran into a number of problems and the blanket sat in the naught corner for a good few months until my Mammy came to visit and took pity on it.

I have been learning my lessons. The first is than on a project with lots of ends, weave them in as you go. Some people like weaving in ends - I am most definitely not one of them! The second lesson is to crochet the squares together as you go - definitely do not sew.

The blanket above was made of 42 squares (6x7) and proved to be a good, useful size.

The yarns being used are King Cole Merino Mix, and Lorna's Laces Shepherd's Sock in Child's Play. Both are 4ply, and I'm using a 3.5mm hook.

2016 Calendar Quilt

Overnight, I've thought about losing the leaf point. And, I've decided that it doesn't really bother me. Autumn leaves are not perfect. Neither is mine. 

With regards to colour, my plan is to have at least one colour in each block repeated in another block. The penguin belly is the background to the heart. The yellow background, and the orange from the penguin’s feet will form part of the daffodil. Leaves from the daffodil will be used in the Christmas tree. Not every fabric will be repeated elsewhere, but one of the fabrics in the block will. This will hopefully give the quilt continuity across the months/blocks.

2016 Calendar Quilt - October

The block for October has been done.  The choice of design was made by The Beloved.

There is a rule of quilting, "Don't point out your mistakes!"  I'm going to break that rule, but simply because this was the first bit of American paper piecing I have tried.  The longest leaf point should have a bit of yellow at the tip.  I forgot to leave a border on my patchwork, and things got a little silly.

I'm debating re-doing it.  

Stash Diving

These were actually the first finished items of 2016.  They used up several balls of stash yarn.

(5 finished projects, and 6 balls of stash used up)

Hat-a-thon 2016

This is the 4th or 5th year I have had a hat-a-thon.  The aim is to make 26 hats within the space of a month, a marathon of hats.  A few of the hats end up with family and friends, but the majority are donated to charities.

A couple of days ago I learned a group on the Island are looking for hats for babies and children.  These will be given to refugees on the mainland of Europe.  The collection date is 3 weeks away, so I don't know if I will be able to complete the hat-a-ton in that time, but I'll give it a good go.  

Here's hats 1 and 2.

2016 Calendar Quilt - January

And here is the January block for the Calendar Quilt.

2016 Calendar Quilt - February

One of the hazards of being a Time Lord is that life doesn't always follow in chronological order as seem from the standpoint of a neutral observer.  This explains why the February block was the first one to be completed.  Either that, or it was a nice simple one to get me started.  February is a simple appliquéd heart.  

The blocks will each be 12" (finished size).

The Mighty Squibs

The Mighty Squibs have swum passed Bray Hill, taken a right turn at the Quarterbridge Roundabout, on through Union Mills, Glen Vine, Crosby, Greeba Castle, and on to Greeba Bridge. This is just over 6 miles in 11 days! We are definitely on course for finishing those 37.5 miles before Easter.

Huzzah and puppy snuggles.

Swimming the TT

I am a sucker for challenges. This is so true. Fe challenged me to take part in 'Swim the TT' or as it properly called, TT Swim Challenge 2016. The TT circuit is 37.5 miles long, and a team of four of us is going to swim its length. 

Depending on when the challenge started, which might be this year, or today, I have either swum 1.1miles (1.8km) or 0.62miles (1km). I so hope it is the first! 

Resolutions - it's a new year after all

Last year, I took the Cold Sheep challenge.  I didn't buy any yarn for a year.  The total amount of yarn in the house became smaller as I was knitting and crocheting from stash. However, my general productivity decreased.  Out goes the 'no new yarn' mantra and in comes the idea that I can 'earn' the right to buy new yarn.  When I use up 100g of yarn I can then buy 50g of new woolly goodness.  So far this year I have crocheted 1x 50g ball of delightful alpaca.  But this isn't my resolution.

I've started work on 52 Weeks To An Organized Home.  Last week was the first challenge (I like challenges): Kitchen counters and sink.  Stuff that had accumulated in the kitchen was found new homes, or put in the bin.  Electrical gadgets that aren't used every day were relocated to the pantry shelves. The cleaning supplies and DIY stuff were moved to the laundry.The electrical gadgets are close to the kitchen, very accessible, but tucked away, giving clear counter tops. 

This week, the challenge is: Kitchen drawers and cabinets.  This is a large task, a very large one.  Looking over future challenges, there will be weeks when I have nothing to do, eg attic, basement, garage, 'back to school' etc.  Therefore, I'm going to split this challenge over this week and next.  This week is drawers - we have 6 kitchen drawers.  I can comfortably clean, tidy, sort and declutter one drawer a day. 

Today was the light bulb drawer. Also in the drawer are some screwdrivers, a ball of string and keys to various windows and the back door.  I've no idea why there's a drawer for light bulbs, screwdrivers, keys and string in the kitchen!  But that's were they are.  My inclination is for them to be in the laundry/utility room with the rest of the tools.  That room needs a good sorting out though.  If I just start dumping things in there it will turn into a complete and utter mess, rather than the partial mess it is just now.  The laundry room's turn will come at the end of February.  I'll hang on until then.

Next week will be the turn of the cabinets.  The other challenges will be off-set a week until I get to 'coupons'.  That's one I won't be doing.  But this 52 week organisation isn't my resolution either.

My actual resolution is to make my bed every day!  Yup, that's it.  Nice and simple.  It's a habit I want to instill in myself, and it's working.  I've managed 10 days of making my bed.  But's it's the 11th!  Not a problem, I'm just about to go change the sheets, and I'll make up my fresh, new bed.

Christmas 2015

A couple of quilted items from Christmas 2015.

A Nightmare before Christmas quilt:

 

And the reverse:

A Christmas Trees table runner.  There is a little gold star at the top of each tree.

Alpaca Blanket

My first purchase of yarn in one year was two 50g balls of Drops Alpaca in turquoise.  I've decided to make a Granny Square blanket in various shades of blues and greens.  When I've used up the 100g, I'll buy some more yarn from Sweet Ginger in Ramsey.  

Yarn: Drops Alpaca (5 ply)

Colour: 2918 (deep turquoise)

Dyelot: 312260

Hook: 3.5mm

Pattern: 8 round Granny Square

A year without new yarn!

This last year has been rather odd.  I decided to go a year without buying yarn in an attempt to bring my yarn stash under control. There was a minor hiccough in November when I was asked for a fox hat as a Christmas present, but didn't have the yarn to make it. The Beloved bought the yarn for me, to enable the present to be made. After the fox hat was made I started using up the leftovers. This resulted in a second hat, and four pairs of fingerless mittens! 

My year has come to an end, and I have my 'one year chip'.

Whilst this is a lovely accomplishment,  it has come at a certain cost.  Instead of yarning (knitting or crocheting), I have been fabric-ing. Two quilts and a Christmas table runner have been made. Fabric has been bought. Essentially I have switched from one form of stash enlargement to another!

Therefore, I am ditching the 'Cold Sheep' method of stash reduction, and am returning to 'two from stash, then one new'. To get new yarn or fabric, I need to complete two projects from stash yarn or fabric, and only then can I buy something new. There will be a little bit of wiggle room, and a tiny bit can be bought to finish a project. However, the underlying principle is 'two from stash, then one new'.  

Getting crafty, and tidy

Mondays are days to do what I want.  

Today, is wet and wintry.  I want to snuggle up on the sofa and craft. One fingerless mitten has been finished, and then second one is at least half way done. The pattern for the fingerless mittens is currently being written.  

My house is in need of some attention, and today the kitchen and the laundry room are receiving a little bit of TLC (tender, loving care). But I am fearful about those rooms going into shock, so they are only getting the TLC for about 10 minutes in each hour. 

This gives time to improve the situation, and get some crafting done.

So far, there has been knitting, pattern writing and testing. In the kitchen the chicken has been transformed into stock, and the stock into carrot soup.  In the laundry room, three loads of laundry are/have been washed. One load is in the dryer, and two load have been sorted and folded. These will be disappearing upstairs soon. All in all, it's looking tidier.

Reasons to be cheerful

A few days ago a friend on Facebook lined to a quiz about 1980s music. I scored a very respectable 12 out of 12.  This was on 'Black Friday', and rather than have a rant about the insidious nature of this  despicable import being forced upon a culture, I decided to be thankful instead.  The words of Ian Dury and The Blockheads started running through my head, Reasons to be Cheerful.

This is so much better than being ranty!  Reasons to be cheerful.  There's so many reasons to be cheerful, and I'm having a hard job choosing just the one thing to post about each day.  There is no real order to them, just what pops into my head, and then isn't displaced by something else by the time I come to post it.

1.  My first reason to be cheerful is someone named in the song, 'Miss Molly'.  Miss Molly was a person I knew on-line.  She died almost 13 years ago.  The way she approached death was an inspiration to all who came in contact with her.  Even though death was stalking her, she was very much alive.  She encouraged people live life, and not to fear death.  

Reasons to be cheerful - part 1:  I am alive, and have a life worth living.

2.  I have a stash.  No, two, sorry, three... at least, stashes.  There's my yarn stash.  There's my fabric stash, and there's books.  These stashes represent the potential for many happy hours.  There's happiness in planning, joy in making and a delight in using or giving things away.

3.  Reasons to be cheerful - part 3:  This is the song that started the whole thing.  It would make no sense if it were not included!

4.  A wet and wintry day off has created the perfect excuse to smuggle up on the sofa and do some Christmas crafting.

My quilts

I realised I didn't have photographs of my quilts on my blog.  This post is to remedy the situation.

My first quilt: 

The second, a table runner for my parents' golden wedding:

And my third, a lap quilt for me:

The time between the first one and the second was about three years.  Then it was one year between finishing the second and starting the third.  The time between the finishing the third and starting the fourth was 5 days.  And it was only that long because I couldn't get to the fabric shop to buy supplies!

There are unfinished projects around the place.  After the two Christmas present quilts are done I am going to get back to them and sort them out. 

Machine Patchwork can be incredibly swift!

Today I started work on a Christmas quilt, well, a Nightmare before Christmas quilt.  This is one side.

And this is the diagram for the other side.

The yellow has been changed to a bright pumpkin orange.  The yellow sashing will be white, and the outer purple will become a dark grey pattern that looks a bit spider-webby, and echoes the colours in Jack's suit.

Granny's Flower Garden Quilt

My summer project has been completed.  This is my third quilt, and my first hand stitched one.

Previously, hand stitching and quilting is something that I would not have tried. It takes a huge amount of time to make a quilt by machine, and it's even longer doing it by hand. However, I have found the experience to be strangely compelling.

This quilt is a lap quilt. My next quilting projects are also lap quilt. &They are for my offsping. There will be a TARDIS quilt, and a Nightmare before Christmas one.

Twelve week fitness course

The National Sports Centre offers a system whereby your GP can refer you to trainers to help with your health.  In the last 6 years my shoulders have dislocated 3 times, and there are many, many subsequent dislocations.  It takes about 18 months for my shoulder to heal, and I've had enough.  I've asked for help in targeting the muscles that will help hold my shoulders in the right places.

The system means I have 12 free sessions at the gym and swimming pool between now and Christmas.  The woman handling my induction this morning will be seeking out exercises specifically for my shoulder issues.  

Today I spent 10 minutes on the treadmill, keeping my heart rate at around 130.  There was 5 minutes on the bike, again at 130 bpm, 50 repetitions on the rowing machine, and having a go on various other bits of kit.  This evening I took a half mile walk.

Next week, I'll do more work on the treadmill, bike and rowing machine, and hopefully add in some shoulder-specific things.  Then, it will be time to go swimming.  When I was swimming back in May I found it to be very useful for my shoulder.  

Update on Grandma's Flower Garden Quilt

The central flower section of the quilt top has been made. The top, wadding and backing have been sandwiched together and pinned in place. I've even managed to quilt 3 of the flowers!

When this section has been quilted almost all of the hand sewing will be completed. A purple border will be added, and then a wide white one. There are a few flowers left over, and these will be onto the white border (the bit that hangs over the edge of the bed.

Rainbow Cake

I made this cake a few years ago.

Oops, I wasn't meant to eat those things!

Learning the dos and don'ts of Whole30 is proving to be a bit of a tricky business!  I've managed to have corn with every meal today, and had peas at dinner time too.  Ooops.  We live and learn.

Breakfast: chicken and sweetcorn risotto

Lunch: chicken and sweetcorn risotto with salad leaves

Dinner: roast chicken, jacket potatoes, gravy, peas and sweetcorn

Fruit: honeydew melon

The last two days I seem to have done nothing but think about food.  However, there is a very helpful little paragraph on the Whole30 website:

It is not hard. Don’t you dare tell us this is hard. Beating cancer is hard. Birthing a baby is hard. Losing a parent is hard. Drinking your coffee black. Is. Not. Hard. You’ve done harder things than this, and you have no excuse not to complete the program as written. It’s only thirty days

It isn't a trivial thing to do the Whole30.  I've been trying for 2 days, and I messed up on both days.  It happened by accident, not by design, and tomorrow will be a better day.

My guts were in uproar last month, and my energy levels were all over the place.  I want to get to a place where the food I am putting into my body nourishes me properly and doesn't cause problems.  

I've love some chocolate just now.  My body wouldn't.  This month has to be about my body's 'needs', rather than my brain's 'wants'.

Whole 30

July was not a good month for my gastro-intestinal system. The slightest little thing could set things off. Whole 30 was suggested as a way to give my innards a bit of a rest, and try to re-set things. A dietician recommended some rice was added to the standard Whole 30 program. This is wonderful for me as when my guts start acting up my go-to meal is chicken and vegetable risotto. 

"The Whole30® is our original nutritional program designed to change your life in 30 days. Think of it as a short-term nutritional reset, designed to help you put an end to unhealthy cravings and habits, restore a healthy metabolism, heal your digestive tract, and balance your immune system." This is done by removing, for one month, grains, legumes, dairy and processed foods. I already know that it is these food that are causing me problems.

Most days I am not hungry in the morning and breakfast isn't something that happens. There was some dairy in last night's dinner, and let's just say my system had a bit of clean out. This meant I was very hungry this morning. Many of the suggest breakfasts rely very heavily on eggs. They are another one of my trigger foods. Today's breakfast has been sweet potato, onion, leek and bacon.  

Lunch was a couple of gluten-free sausages with a green salad and some home made lemon mayonnaise.

Dinner came in the form of chicken and sweetcorn risotto.

Flowers are in bloom

My summer holiday project is coming along nicely.There are 11 colours of flowers, and currently there's two flowers of each colour.

It is working well to make a flower at a time, then add partial ring of 5 white hexagons. This gives a block of 12, and it tiles nicely. Then one flower of each colour is placed beside the part that has already been sewn and the family collaborates on a pleasing arrangement.

This fabric flower garden will form the top section of a double bed quilt. There will be a strip of one of the purples around the hexagon section. This section will be hand quilted by stitching about 3-5 mm away from the colored hexagons. It will make the flowers 'pop'.

I haven't quite decided what to do with the sections that will fall down the sides of the bed. They might well be deep sashings of white. I am loathed to try to buy any fabrics to match the existing ones as they were bought in Hereford, mid-Wales, and Chester. Hmm, I'm sure I could order more of the purple bought in mid-Wales. It was bought from Cross Patch in Velindre.

Granny's flower garden, part 2

The flowers continue to grow.

Birthday cake

A birthday cake made by the wonderful offspring.  When they brought it through, they were like two little children again, full of gleeful delight in their creation.

A Scrabble Bag

A friend commented on the picture of the Rummikub drawstring bag and said she really needed to make something similar as her Scrabble tiles are currently in an sock!

Being on holiday, having the rest of the fat quarter, and a bit of ribbon, I offered to make her a bag.  This is the result.   Tomorrow it crosses the Irish Sea to its new home.

Ideas for Sustainable/Eco Housing

For as long as I can remember I have been designing houses I would like to live in. At the Centre for Alternative Technology I came across a couple of ideas I really liked.

The first is using photovoltaic cells to form the roof of a cloister or corridor. On a bright summer's day it is rather like being under the dappled shade of a large tree. There's still significant amounts of light, and there's also shade too. Being photovoltaic, the roof also supplies electricity too. I had initially thought of it as being a way of creating a covered 'outdoor' space with good natural light, but this image from the University of Southampton has made me consider whether it would be possible to do this on the whole of the south-facing roof space. The big question would be whether it would be suitable in the winter.

A conservatory is a must. It provides additional living space in the summer, and in the winter it is an excellent thermal barrier, keeping the house itself a little bit warmer.

Cordwood construction struck me as a very low-tech way to build, whilst at the same time having visual interest and appeal. I'd love to try this for a garage or outbuilding. I'd prefer my house to be a bit sleeker, with clean lines.

In cordwood construction the "cordwood" or short pieces of debarked tree are laid on a bed of lime or cob mortar. The whole wall can be made this way, or an infill of a thermally insulating material can be used. The eaves of the building extend 30-40cms beyond the walls to throw off as much rain water as possible.

Another little bag

We packed the game Rummikub to play on holiday.  I thought I had made a bag for the tiles.  And it wasn't until the contents of the box spilled open whilst we were away I realised I had made a bag for the tiles, but I had given it to my Mam for her Scrabble tiles!

Time for another bag.  This one was made from half a fat quarter of fabric, and 1.25m of navy ribbon.

These drawstring bags are so easy to make, and quick as well.  They make great little bags for games, but can also be used to store bread, vegetables or as a re-usable present bag.

Little Living

This year we spent part of our holiday in a static caravan in mid-Wales.  The whole caravan was about a quarter larger than my bedroom at home!  

Whilst on holiday I learned a few lessons about 'little living'.  The first was the vast importance of tidying up as you go.  If things are left out beyond the time they are being used then the whole place looks untidy, cluttered and claustrophobic.  Tidy as you go.

Another lesson was the importance of good storage.  One very nifty storage solution in the main bedroom was a bed where the mattress could be raised to offer access to the divan.

My parents have drawers in their divan.  They are useful, to get access to the drawers at the head of the bed you have to pull the bed out, away from the wall.  This isn't practical if you need to use those drawers more than a few times a year.  At home, we have a wooden framed bed, no divan.  Under the bed I have a couple of large, flat plastic boxes with lids.  They are great for storage, but it gets rather dusty under there (if I am not diligent at evicting dust bunnies). 

Another lesson was I have too much stuff!  From books, to yarn, fabric and clothes, I have too much stuff.   Eight years ago when we moved into our current home we rattled around in it for a good while.  Now, there's stuff everywhere.  

It's time to use these lessons.  Since the start of the year I have bought no yarn.  My stash must have reduced, but I am having problems seeing much of a difference. At the start of the year I couldn't imagine not buying yarn for a whole year, but I reckoned I could make it until Easter.  At Easter, going until the summer seemed possible.  Now, 6 months later, I am ready decide not to buy yarn for the rest of the year.  But, I suspect I need to do something similar with fabric.  It's time for no new fabric either.  However, to give myself some wiggle room, I am going to say that I am allowed to buy just enough fabric to finish a project.

And each time I leave a room, I will cast my eye around to check that things are tidy.  I will tidy as I go.

Holiday creations: hexagon patchwork and project bag

This holiday, I decided I wanted to try a project that was small & contained, didn't need electricity, and was a bit different from my usual projects.

Doughty's of Hereford do a fantastic range of fabrics, and it was a little pack of 20 strips of patchwork fabrics that caught my eye.  Next I spotted a little pack of hexagons, and my holiday project was decided.

It feels very weird to be doing all this hand sewing.  But I am enjoying the simplicity of it.

At Christmas, the Beloved bought me some lovely yarn from Wool Warehouse, The yarn came in a drawstring bag.  I have been using this bag on and off since then, but over the holiday the bag started to fall apart.  This morning I remade the bag, making sure that all of the voile was carefully enclosed within seams.  I also added a much stronger cotton top to the bag.  

I love that the bag is see through, and I can easily find the little hexagons, the threads etc.  It is much easier to use than an opaque bag.