Sunday 29 June 2014

Lavender Sachet

Hi all, thanks for the lovely comments on my rocky road - I'm sorry to report it's long gone now.  (And it was goooood!)

This week I spotted something that I just had to make.  It jumped the queue of crafty projects floating around my head and scribbled into notepads.  It's small, it's simple, but it called to me.



Just a little lavender sachet, made of linen and decorated with felt.

I've seen so many lovely projects using neutral linens teamed with colourful fabrics and patterns.  I love the contrast.  Ages ago I tried to get my hands on some linen, but my local shop didn't have any.  (Why?!)  I was wary of buying online in case the colour looked different off the computer screen.

So, time ticked on until the other week when the Lumberjack was going through boxes of old clothes in preparation for our holiday.  (Our unpacking into this house has been a slow process!)  What materialised but an old pair of linen trousers!  He put them on, we had a good laugh, then they made their way into my craft room - yay!



On Thursday (I think) I spotted this on Pinterest.  The linen trousers got shoved in the wash, and yesterday I got to work!



The tricky part was picking colours from my felt stash!  I had a delve in my felt-scraps basket too - it's a great project for scraps.

Look at me, sneaking in a craft room peak.  Oh, how I toy with you!  Eventually I'll have the room in order, and will be able to show you more.  (Some of the contents of that shelf may now be scattered on the floor... maybe...)



I ended up keeping fairly close to the colours used in the tutorial - if it ain't broke, don't fix it!  Thanks to Checkout Girl for a great idea!

I am really pleased with it - in a completely disproportional manner.  Seriously, I love it.  I carry it around with me, stroking and gazing adoringly at it.



(The red and teal middles are different colours - one is pale green, the other beige - but they look almost the same in these photos.)

One last thing... you may have noticed I've changed my header!  I thought it was time for a new look.  What do you think?  I hope you like it!  There are also links in the sidebar to my Pinterest profile - come follow me - and my Facebook page.  I haven't done much in Facebook for a long time, so it may not be worth visiting - but I may change that, we'll see...  (How persuasive!)


Saturday 21 June 2014

Rocky Road

I felt like a naughty chocolatey treat and making some rocky road seemed like the perfect solution.


I had to work fast, as the sun was beating down on that chocolate!  (If I'd taken more time I would have probably cleaned up the chocolate smears on the plate - but I didn't notice them at the time - I'll never make a professional photographer!)

The recipe was from a book my dear friend Anna gave me as a house-warming present...


Peggy Porschen's Boutique Baking, recipe "Chocolate Crunch Cake with Marshmallows and Pistachios".  "Rocky Road" was a snappier post name, though!  Also, I skipped the pistachios and the hazelnuts that the recipe called for.  I popped to the local shop to get the bits I needed, and I'd have had to remortgage the house to afford the nuts at those prices!!  I'm not that keen on nuts, so I'm happy anyway.

I made it last night, and the Lumberjack and I had a piece each in bed this morning with a cup of tea - how decadent!!  That's my kind of breakfast!


I hope you're all enjoying the beautiful weather!



Thursday 19 June 2014

Holidaying

Hello!  The Lumberjack and I are currently enjoying two weeks off work.  We spent a lovely week in Turkey - the Oludeniz area - and are now pottering around at home.


We didn't do any shopping during our week away, so just picked up some Turkish Delight at the airport before we went home - you can't go to Turkey and not bring back some Turkish Delight!  It's difficult to tell the scale of this photo, but those squares are tiny - maybe 1cm cubes.  Very tasty.

We had an amazing day trip canoeing through Patara National Park - so very beautiful.  Here we are, safely sun-hatted up!


I won't bore you with any more of our holiday photos... other than to show you this amazing riot of colour...


We think it's bougainvillea, although haven't seen it in yellow before.  I love the colours!  I'm thinking I must use this as inspiration for blanket colours (Lumberjack: "Ha!  So we're having another blanket are we?!")  The blanket making desire is never fully sated it seems.  Better finish the stripy one first, though...

And back home it was exciting to see that some flowers had sprung up in the meadow bed we created this year.  ("We" = the Lumberjack)  A particular favourite is this gorgeous vibrant little flower - some internet searching revealed that it's a Scarlet Flax.  The petals are so rich in colour, I tried to capture the depth but it was tricky.


We've been pottering about trying to get things tidied and organised.  This has included some happy time filling and labelling jars in the kitchen - I know how to have fun!


My nana has been collecting up Douwe Egbert coffee jars for me - they are so useful.  I used pretty washi tape to label them up.


Ridiculous how much I enjoyed doing that.  I keep opening the kitchen cupboard to look at them sitting there all tidy and organised!

Thanks for the lovely comments on my crochet bracelet in my last post, they are much appreciated.  I think I'll have a little sit in the garden in the sunshine now.  Oh, these happy days (please don't make me go back to work on Monday!!!!!!).


Sunday 1 June 2014

Crochet Bracelet

Good day!  Thanks for the lovely comments on the crochet baby blankets in my last post!

I needed a quick crafting fix this weekend, something I actually stood a chance of finishing... so I had a go at a pretty idea I'd pinned ages ago (40 weeks ago according to Pinterest).


I found the idea and pattern here - thanks to Claire at Haken en Meer!  I think I just about followed the instructions, using Google Translate - it seems to have worked.  I created a loop with the button on, instead of sewing it straight to the band.  Nothing to do with the fact I made the band too short... of course not... ahem...


I love it, and it's so comfortable to wear!  Sometimes normal bracelets get on my nerves, clinking and clunking against everything - especially on the desk at work.  This is all soft and you don't notice you're wearing it.  The colours are so cheerful and spring-like too!


I used King Cole Bamboo Cotton for the pink and mint colours.  The yellow is some left over King Cole Smooth from my Mum.

I'm very pleased I actually got round to making something I'd pinned, a rare occurrence!

I've been trying to get everything organised in the craft room, but it's slow going.  I'm not trying very hard to be honest, I'm a lazy so-and-so.  I look at all the mess and think "why have I got all this?!"  I have decided that I will not buy any more crafting supplies unless they are for a specific project that I am just about to embark on (not one I might do one day).  No more, "oooh that fabric is pretty, I must have it!"; no more "well, it's such a bargain, I'm sure it will come in use one day!"  My first port of call will be my current supplies - if I can use what I've got, then I will.  The exceptions will probably be when I finally embark on my clothes sewing activities, when I expect I'll have to go out and buy most of the bits I'll need for an item.  If I haven't got the right fabric already, I don't want to make do, as I'll end up not wearing what I make.  I want to ensure I make clothes that will actually be worn!

Before I go, I will show you the only bit of the craft room I've sorted... a ribbon and washi tape drawer!


I'm quite excited by it.  I called the Lumberjack enthusiastically, "Come here!  Come and see what I've done!!"  His response from the doorway: "What?  Put some stuff in a drawer?"

Well!


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