Raw 'n Pure

This is the name of the new organic box scheme which operates locally, and which I used for the first time yesterday. There have been other box schemes here, but one stopped because it became too popular (a weird kind of irony there) and others, in my opinion deliver from too far away, and so lose points on the eco front.

This one (Raw n Pure) are about 7 miles away, and is run by two very nice women. I had a veg "surprise me" box, and a fruit "surprise me" box. This gives you the best value selection of seasonal and available products with a guarantee that there will be at least 5 items in each. This cost me £10 plus £1 for delivery. Very good value I think. Feast your eye on this....

I also finished the felted bag I was making from yarn sent me by my secret pal. It has turned out a lot hairier than I thought, but it's just the right size to carry my keys and phone when I go to pick my chap up from school. The rosette, and embellishment at the top is made using sari ribbon. I am pleased with it.

I have also cast on the stitches and knitted about 2" of the felted hat kit (colourway: seabreeze and blush). Pictures of that next time. I am using the Denise needle set. They were odd at first - the plastic of the needles takes a bit of getting used to (they are very slippery), as does the very small length of needle, and the long length of interconnecting cord, but I am getting there now. I had to unpick it the first time, as I twisted it when I joined it into the round, so I had a nice Moebius strip of a hat developing. That would have been fun! Thankfully I caught it before I had got too far.

Oh I do like to be beside the seaside

I managed to put aside some time yesterday to sit and paint and enjoy. I seem drawn at the moment to try to capture my childhood experiences of holidays on the Lincolnshire coast. I am also trying to learn how to suggest distance and form with gradients of colour, and small indistinct marks, rather than lots of detailed brush strokes.

I quite like this picture, although I think the line of the sea needs to be less broken, and perhaps there needs to be something more for the eye to focus on.

The Big Knit

My new Denise Interchangeable needles arrived this morning - but more on that in another post. What also came in the parcel was a leaflet about Innocent's Big Knit Challenge. They are asking people to knit lots of little woolly hats for their smoothie bottles. These will then go into shops, and for everyone sold 50p will be donated to Age Concern. Last winter 25000 older people dies of cold related illnesses in the UK. Age Concern will use the money raised to provide support to older people including hot meals, blankets and advice on how to keep their houses warm.

Last year 230,000 hats were knitted and £115,000 was raised.

Please join in this fun and worthwhile campaign. There is further information at www.innocentdrinks.co.uk/thebigknit.

When you have made your hats send them to "Little Knitted Wooly Hats" Fruit Towers, 1 The Goldhawk Estate, London W60BA, with a note on the envelope saying how many hats are inside.

Rowan have kindly provided 3 patterns to get people started...

Felted Goodies

On Friday I received another package from my secret pal, Monika. This ticks lots of boxes for me: hats, handbags, and felting courtesy of pick up sticks. Take a look at this:

There is enough yarn to make a child or adult version of the hat, and I am going to claim his one for myself.

I love this bag, and have just knitted my first I-cord, so am looking forward to applying this technique to the decoration of the bag.

Thank you, Monika - you certainly know how to spoil someone, and I have been amazed at your great choices, all of which I have enjoyed.

I have also ordered myself a set of Denise interchangeable needles from I Knit (great site with a fun blog), so that I can do larger projects in the round.

I have a whole range of projects on the go at the moment (bag, cushion, rosettes, collar, cards), all close to completion, so should have some FOs to post soon. It has been a mad couple of weeks, though. My little chap finishes the reception year at school on 3 weeks, and so the school is preparing them for moving up to Year 1, and all the independence and responsibility that involves. They now gather and line up in the big playground with the other children, and are led in by their teacher. Up to now the parents have gone in with them and helped them hang up their coats, find their name tags for self registration, and hand in homework/money for events/letters from home etc. Now we have to let them go on their own, with reminders such as "don't forget your reading pack is in your bag" ringing in their ears. The children are all ready for it, I think this period of adjustment is more for the parents!

I also have to complete a lot of applications for funding for our playground project as part of my PTA duties. We have raised £4,500 this year, and our target is £10,000. This will be used to regenerate the school playgrounds following major building work in the school. It will be used to buy shelters, seating, playground and sports court markings, play and sports equipment and storage. We are going to need to do a lot of fund raising activities next school year. It's quite a daunting prospect, but we'll get there.

I haven't managed to do any painting for 2 weeks, but hope to be able to find some time for that today as well.

SP10 comes to a close

The end of SP10 is approaching for all participants. I for one have had a wonderful time. This was my first exchange of any kind, and I could not have wished for better either in terms of my pal (Monica at Knitty Goodness) or the person I was spoiling (Nephele at ADKD).

Thankyous have been exchanged all round, but you can never express too much gratitude so I would publicly like to thank Monica for the wonderful job she did of spoiling me - she sent we wonderful yarns, lovely and useful accessories, introduced me to sock knitting, and kept my little chap entertained as well with models and chalks.

I also want to thank Nephele for being so responsive to the packages I sent her. It was great fun to read about her receiving and opening the parcels, and hear the plans she has for the yarn I have sent her. I was particularly pleased to find some hand dyed yarns that from The Yarn Gallery that she had not come across before. Here are a few pictures.

More textiles

I promised more textiles for you to feast your eyes on. Well here are two of my favourite pieces from the recent LUSAD exhibition I went to this week. Actually, one is textile, and the other isn't but they are both beautiful, and to me have great similarities. The colours, shapes and textures are just wonderful.

I have been collecting gold and green threads and fabrics for ages now, intent on doing a mixed media Klimt inspired embroidery. This might be just the push I need to get started. One thing I learned from the students' technique books is the value of swatching!!! Testing the individual elements, and the individual techniques in small samples, and then combining and recombining them to learn what really works. It sounds so obvious, but let's face it, when you find a few moments to indulge in crafty pursuits, it can be all to tempting to dive in rather than take a structured and academic approach to creating. I have seen a lot about "inchies" on sites like Dot Frankston's maybe that might be a good way in.

Anyway - the credits for the pictures shown above are:

(top) Mixed media textile by Stephanie Nixon

(bottom) Fictional Artefact in silicone, oxidised stainless steel and guilding metal by Nicola Stock

Can you guess what it is?

OK! Here is a bit of fun... this is a picture of what my two boys bought my husband for Father's Day. Can you guess what it is?

I will make a knitted flower brooch for the first complete, accurate and correct answer, or the most original and amusing suggestion received by Fri 29th June!

Textile Exhibition

Yesterday I went to Loughborough University School of Art and Design to see the final year textile students' exhibition. WOW! What a wonderful array of woven, printed and mixed media textiles (actually they called it 'multi-media', but to me that means video, sound and printed word in a kind of hi-tech presentation, so I am sticking with 'mixed media').


Anyway, back to it - such talent! So many beautiful textiles displayed as swatches or sometimes used as clothing, upholstery, wall art, or even translated into wallpapers.


The students displayed their textiles, and also their research and technique portfolios - these were fascinating, and it was so good to see where they had drawn their individual inspirations from, and how they had examined the elements of these and interpreted them into their own work.


Each student had these lovely photographic cards to advertise themselves and their work. I have many more to show you, so watch this space for more to feast the eyes upon.

Credits for work shown here (left to right):

Blues and golds: Alexandra Brown, Charlotte Jane Winn-Morgan, Alice Janssens, Daniel Michael Smith

Blacks and White: Katie Leamon, Kathryn Neville, Madeleine Wass, Joanna Parkin

Yellows and golds: Stephanie Earnshaw, Gemmas Wade, Linda Mackie, Sarah-Jane Skrynnyk

Pink and reds: Katherine Dawson, Rebecca Cox, Georgina Reynolds, Beth Morton

A weird kind of surprise

I have felt a strong urge to tackle and achieve something major and tangible this week. So I have gone for a bit of a bathroom makeover. Now our bathroom is really nice. It is huge, and it has wild wallpaper which was put up by the people before us and which I absolutely love. There was one major problem with our bathroom however, and that was the carpeted floor. I dislike carpets in bathrooms, they just don't seem very hygienic or practical. Add to this the fact that we inherited the carpet, and also that it extended sixteen inches up the back wall behind the cistern and basin (yes really!), and you will see why this has been a makover on my mind for a while.

Another factor in the equation is that my husband works away all week, only returning home late on a Friday night, and then off again on a Sunday. So it is nice for me sometimes to take on a big job and do it while he is away, then he comes home to a great big surprise.

We do a lot of DIY. This is because we don't like to pay other people to do stuff we can do ourselves, and also because, although it takes us a lot longer than it would a professional, we believe that for the most part we get exactly the finish we want if we do it ourselves.

So with all this in mind, on Monday I ripped up the carpet from the bathroom. I have put down some vinyl flooring in the wet area of the bathroom, and am going to put a small carpeted area (yes I know what I said above) in the entrance part of the bathroom (you see the room is really big, so there is kind of a dressing area and a washing area, so two floorings will be OK).

As I mentioned, the old carpet extended up the wall (yuk!), and when I pulled it off I found out why. In the past someone had tried to box in the pipework, and had done a dreadful job, so the wall carpeting was covering various holes and gaps and unevenness. I was determined to improve this area, and so today I have gone for some pine panelling. Now this is actually my favourite part of the make over, because the panelling is made from recycled wine box lids. A few weeks ago I got 300 of these lids from a local wine merchant through freecycle. They were from 2-bottle presentation wine boxes, and the lids had been removed so that a corporate client could put their own printed lids on. I have been using these lids to paint on, for craft projects, and now for panelling my bathroom! I have teak oiled the panels (we don't like to put varnish on wood), and put some architrave on the top and as a skirting board, and I think it looks fine and dandy. It will amuse me for years to come that our bathroom is decorated with recycled wine paraphernalia.

Tomorrow will see the laying of the carpet in the dressing area. The previous carpet was a dark sage green, but I am going for a cream waffle effect carpet.

The room is just going to look so different, and I cannot wait to see my husband's face. When we first lived together, he used to play five a side foot ball on a Sunday afternoon, and would come home to find a room re-painted or some such, and four years ago I made and decorated a bar for him in the cellar during one of his weeks away. So this should bring back some fun memories for him.

I forgot to take a before picture, but here is just a small area of the part that has been completed.

Black Dog

For the past month I seem to have been in a bit of a dark place. I have not felt at peace nor at full energy. I can't put my finger on it, and there is nothing tangibly wrong. As the feeling is not seeming to go away on its own, I have decided to grab the bull by the horns and focus on all the good things that have happened over the past month, and there have been quite a few! So, please excuse this somewhat indulgent post of personal newsy "stuff". One of the things that has helped shake me out of the doldrums has been some lovely comments I have received on my blog... words of encouragement and friendship. Thank you to Monika, Nephele, Dancin' Fool and Covered in Yarn.

For the past 5 weeks my elder (step) son has been doing his GCSEs (school leaving exams). He visits us every second weekend, and we have been rallying round to help him with his revision - taking turns to work through revision papers with him, and discussing various aspects of his subjects over dinner etc. This has been such a rewarding time, as we have seen him put immense effort in during these periods, and we have benefited from some moments of real closeness with him. A treasured memory for me will now always be the afternoon he and I spent studying poetry together, and discussing what we felt and perceived in the various passages he has had to study. His last exam is this coming Friday, and I look forward to seeing such a large weight lifted from him. He would like to go on to college to do an engineering based vocational course - something like car mechanics. I think a practical course such as this would suit him.

My little chap has also had some significant educational moments over the past month. We had his first formal school report, and a parents evening, and received glowing feedback about his personality, and his diligence in his studies. We also had sports day where he came 3rd in the running race, and also participated in the beanbag race and ball race. I am a very proud Mum! I was very impressed by how the school ran the sports day - all the children seemed genuinely pleased to take part, and there were lots and lots of parents there to cheer them on and support them. Given the worrying statistics on childhood obesity in the UK (currently 1 in 4 children classed as obese), I was very pleased to see how "lean" the school seemed, and this impression was backed up a few weeks ago when I volunteered to help out on a school trip, and so was able to see first hand what most children ate for their packed lunch. Although there were more crisps and sweets in many packed lunches, I was pleased at the healthy sandwiches I saw, and the amount of fresh fruit, and the healthy life style taught and encouraged by the school. I have a great interest in food, cooking and nutrition, and in some of my madder moments, I have considered putting together a healthy eating course aimed at parents of children under 11. I am lucky t have two boys who are very good eaters, and who are mostly happy to try new things and eat a good range of fruit and vegetables.

We also took part in little chap's school summer fete. This is the major fundraising event of the year, and all proceeds are currently going towards regenerating the school playgrounds with new sports court markings, game areas, play equipment, storage, seating, shelter and the like. We have a target of £10,000 and the fete raised £1400. We ran a stall at the fete. It was a bean bag target game. We made a large target with 5 holes and decorated it, and the children had to throw beanbags at it, and score more than 90 points to win a prize. We raised £48 which equates to 96 visits to our stall. We had the local radio station do a broadcast from the fete, and they sent their mascot "Oakey Bear" to open the fete and entertain the children. It was a lovely day, and the sun shone, and lots of fun was had by all.

In the middle of all this was my wedding anniversary. Somehow we didn't manage to get out together this year - first year that hasn't happened. One year for our wedding anniversary we booked a baby sitter and went and had a grown up picnic on a craggy hill, and one year my husband booked us back into the hotel where we had our wedding reception and we had a VERY POSH 7 course gourmet meal! So, not doing anything this year sounds bad, but we have booked two summer holidays - a week in Yorkshire in a cottage just a skip away from the cliffs and a lighthouse. I feel a few Bronte moments coming on! And the second holiday in Ireland (husband's homeland) as part of a family reunion. So we have special times coming up.

By now you must be wondering why I have been feeling down when life has been full of so many good things - and to be honest so have I. And it just gets better, as tomorrow I am going to the local art college degree show (fine art, ceramics, jewellery, furniture and textiles!!!) with two very good friends of mine. I cannot wait to immerse myself in the talent and beauty of the local art college and their students, and also spend time with good friends.

You know, I feel a lot better already. Counting your blessings may seem like a very old fashioned thing to do, but it's also a good barometer for life.

Catch up

Sometimes you just have to wait until the time feels right to do something... and that has been the case with blogging, knitting and painting the last couple of weeks. However, last night I got the needles going again...

I have finished the socks (yes both of them!). I won't post a picture as there have been many pics of yarn and progress in recent posts.

I have also wound the Noro yarn I bought with the gift voucher from my secret pal, and have started knitting with it... it is a beautiful mix of colours, and works up nicely in this broken rib pattern. I can't say what I am making as it is going to be a gift for someone.

I frogged the black felted bag I was making. I ran out of wool for the pattern I was working to (which was going to have an eyelet design along the top threaded with sari ribbon), and am now going to do something smaller, and perhaps beaded. (I have a lovely stash of assorted beads, and have to confess that I have just ordered a whole pile more from Jilly Beads). I have also been making various brooches and charms... many of which are destined to find their way into Christmas presents (yes, I said the "C" word, but sorry, I am notoriously early in planning!). It is not too clear in the picture, but the bottom one is a beautiful set of tiny Russian Doll beads.

I have made a rosette from the sari ribbon, which I intend to embellish with some beads, and actually, I really like it made into these small items, so I might well make some more for brooches and pins).

I have also been butchering my wardrobe, and cut up a dress bought years ago to make a nice summer skirt. I loved the fabric but the shape of the dress was rather unflattering. Actually, I have just noticed that the fabric is very similar to the wallpaper we have recently put up in our hall, so I had better not stand around in our hallway too much when wearing this skirt!. I just cut it shorter, elasticated the waist (nothing fancy), and think it will look nice worn with a wide belt. I have kept the top part of the dress as well, and think I might just about manage to turn it into a top to wear with jeans. (So thrifty!)

I also drastically shortened a long line tweedy skirt that my husband finally admitted he hated. I zigzagged the bottom and was going to turn a hem, but I noticed the zigzag has made the hem nicely fluted. So I am going to keep it with this rather raw finish. I made a contrast tweed flower to put on it, and reckon it might just see me through this summer.

This wardrobe refashioning has been inspired by the fact that I have managed to lose a bit of weight over the past couple of weeks. I have set myself a target to regain my ideal weight (according to the WHO BMI) before my 40th birthday, it's a bigger target than I have wanted to admit.

Holiday inspiration

I had a day of painting today, which was lovely. I am experimenting with some dilute acrylic mix on gesso, the idea for which I got from Judy Scott. And have also taken some memories from my recent holiday to inspire me to get back to the fun of painting in watercolour (something which has eluded me for a few weeks now).

We stayed in a farm cottage on our holiday and every day was filled with the sights and sounds of swallows and sky larks. It was beautiful (despite the very wet weather!). Anyway - here is my attempt to capture some wonderful moments.