Let it rain...

.. I don't care anymore. I mean the relentless almost daily rain or scattered showers, or 'white cloud' or whatever they call it to describe our pitiful weather... gets you down after a while, especially when it's supposed to be summer, but then the sun breaks through for a moment when you are driving over the moors and you see nature's colours...

Then you know why you live in this rainy place. And you know if you can still see the beauty in most anything, you're going to be ok.

Secrets, swaps and 'summer' holidays

It's still school holidays here so there is not much sewing going on....

This is the only quilty pic!! My eldest (almost 5) loves taking photos and my youngest (almost 3) loves monkeying around in them...

It's my scrapbuster on our bed...

As we are not going away for any of the holidays, we are doing 'stuff' locally. So off we went to Tropical World in Leeds. We started off in jumpers, but by the time we were halfway through we were sweating!

The place is HOT! I guess there's a clue in Tropical? LOL

More butterflies...

I am definitely bringing my Mom here, she is always complaining it's cold in England (and there were Meerkats here too in a South African desert recreation...

Then we had a trip to the Butterfly House (are you sensing a theme here LOL) in Williamson Park in Lancaster

It also has a mini-beast section with various revolting little critters like hissing cockroaches etc... And a gorgeous flower section and aviary...

An added bonus is the playground with stunning views to Morecambe Bay on one side and the memorial on the other...

On the drive home we saw a hot air balloon. We stayed to watch it get itself out of the trees...

The boys had been watching Peppa Pig and the littlest guy remembered the song when they were in a balloon. Something like "big balloon, big balloon, bigger than the sun and moon..." (Remember to hold the note on 'moo' so it sounds like 'moo oo oon' LOL)

Then the only vaguely warm day we had saw us head off to Morecambe Bay again for some sandcastle building...

DH said that he didn't recall ever going to the beach when it was that overcast as a kid. As a South African, I can safely say, I never went to the beach when it was that overcast as a kid, because, hey, the sun shines in Africa in summer!!!! We are still waiting for summer to arrive here! The poor kids wanted water for their moats, but there was only mud LOL

All sewing related stuff is now top secret as I have joined, not one, not two, but 3 swaps...
I've started work on this one (top secret)


I also signed up for Chookyblue's Sectet Santa Swap. Last year Sharon from Red Geranium Cottage was my partner and I adore the bag that she made for me.

Then, I'm not sure what came over me, but I also signed up for the 2009 Advent swap and this sounds fun. I have Ailsa as my partner and we will be sending each other 24 little gifties and one big gift for Christmas. I had better get sewing!!!

I'll stick to sewing

Bouyed by the finish of my Berry Crush, I decided to resume the hand quilting on my BQL Ostrich Quilt from 2006.




I just do a few stitches here and there, but it's very relaxing so hopefully it will get finished sometime (this year if all goes well...)

The bees and butterflies are still enjoying the last of the Buddleia's flowers...

Even our humble weeds are an attraction to this butterfly :-)

And here is a photo of my gardening mastery, cough cough, sigh. Clearly not the green fingered sort, I have managed, no thanks to all the endless rain we've had, to produce about 5 red strawberries. Luckily they are tasty, but not enough to make any jam.

I'll spare you a tomato photo! I had so hoped, I'd be swamped with tomatoes and be able to make chutney, but alas I haven't got any that are edible yet ;-(

Guess, I'll have to stick to sewing LOL

Phew! One down...

... A phew! more to go LOL

I have finished my Red Berry Crush a.k.a. Bonnie's Orange Crush Mystery Quilt.


Designed By Bonnie Hunter @ Quiltville


Pieced By Moi

Quilted By Chris @ Father's Heart



Bound By Moi

Helped and kept company whilst hand stitching the binding by DS2...
(or as my mother calls him 'Dennis...' I'm sure you can guess the rest LOL)

(He wasn't fussed the binding wasn't on, he just wanted to be under it, or stroking it - too cute!)

And hopefully loved by all our guests (as it will live on the guest bed when we have a guest bedroom, where we currently have the old kitchen...)

Here's a photo of machining the binding on...



She's a big girl LOL. (She's approx. 82.5" x 94" )

Girl's day out

LOVE my kids, but almost a whole day without them! Bliss!


The day started with my friend Vicky coming over so that we could all go in my car. We loaded my kids and Vicky's quilt tops and drove to Grandma's house. We piled kids, bags, lunchboxes etc out and headed off to Chris, the lovely longarmer. (Grandma a.k.a. Crazy Grandma and Grumps, meanwhile took the kids on a day out to see the birds at Harewood House). I collected my Orange Crush (now ready for binding...)




I chose a swirl and feather design and am very pleased with the quilting. I also chose a Moda backing which I think is very cute. Now I just need to bind it...

Then we wandered around Salts Mill looking at the David Hockney's, the lovely book shop, stunning cook shop... This was thirsty work and we ended up lunching in a nearby cafe/winebar called 'Don't tell Titus'. I later heard that Titus Salt, the founder of Salts Mill did not approve of alcohol licensing in the area, hence 'don't tell Titus'. However, you can tell as we only had Lattes!

Sorry no photos - I forgot my camera, but we hope to do it again!!!!

Over the summer Chris is very busy so she is unable to do DS1's quilt until after his birthday. So I have pieced some wadding and am thinking to attempt it by myself. Life is a bit too short for getting on my hands and knees, killing my cranky joints and basting this quilt on the floor so we'll see how I get on.

And I have had a brainwave on DS2's quilt. I bought this row of Mickey Mouse panels in South Africa to make him a school bag and some place mats for the new kitchen, but think if I do a scrappy border around them it could look quite cute... Love the colours for a little boy - all those yukky greens LOL

My Mom came to the rescue and after a few texts to and fro, went out and bought me a few more rows which she will mail to me so I may just manage the quilt, the bag and the place mats (and hopefully before he grows out of Mickey Mouse LOL)


The Raeburn was moved this week...

There she goes....

Now what?

Actually, she's in. She just needs to be plumbed/connected or whatever they do... but she's in!! One step closer to that kitchen :-)

This week, I also received a block from Kate for our African block swap. We have decided to do 6" blocks from now on so that we can in theory be working on our borders.

This is a cute block and love the idea of a star border...

Thanks Kate. Now it's my turn.

Cats, Dogs, Butterflies & Beasts

Again so much has happened since my last post. I have finished piecing the back and front of DS1's birthday quilt and really hope the longarmer can fit me in, in time to get it quilted and bound by the birthday!!


The front:

The back:

(ignore the dust specks on the camera please..)

Turns out (with my usual lack of quilt calculations) I don't have enough fabric for DS2's quilt in the same theme, soooooooooooooooo it's back to the drawing board although I have several things churning around in my mind for him. He loves Mickey Mouse, but without much Mickey Mouse fabric I will be speedily researching my other options like already pieced tops or just something small like a bag for this birthday and a quilt for his 5th birthday in 2 years time! (That's about my speed LOL)

Work progresses on the house and the Raeburn cooker has been moved. Not to it's final resting place (these things take time when they weigh 300kgs), but we're closer than we were before.

Now I don't have a proper before picture, but here it is unmoved...

And here it is moved (to the back steps)...

And here it is in the new kitchen...

JUST KIDDING! It's still on the back steps while we wait for a friendly farmer with a tractor :-)

Another friendly farmer lent DH his quadbike and he moved some of the rubble (and rubbish) from the front of our house. The boys loved it....

And as I watched them go down the farm track I noticed lots and lots of beautiful butterflies on our neighbour's bush...

August already!

I am so behind reading blogs and keeping up this one. It's just horrible not having my own computer. And the school holidays mean that I don't actually have any spare time to speak of. My MIL took the boys on a train trip last week and although that meant I was kid-free I had to drive several miles to another hospital for a CT scan of my leg.

Just as I was leaving, the postman pulled up in his little red van and brought me reading material for the waiting room from Anne - fantastic timing!

Anne included some roses and boy fabric too - thanks Anne for a very pleasant surprise.

Andrea led me astray with a fabric warehouse some time ago and as it's near the hospital which is very far, I couldn't not pop in. It sells quilting fabric by the kilo. I treated myself to 2 kilos...



And a piece of red spotty pvc fabric for the new kitchen (and the messy kids!) And some spotty fleece which I have in mind for someone who visits and is always cold ;-)

So I was doing rather well for fabric, but things just got better. A wonderful lady called Barb (who has no blog) contacted me recently wanting to know if I still wanted rose fabric. Why yes!! So we arranged to swap some fabric.

Thanks Barb!

They are already over papers with Anne's fabrics.

The kitchen is coming along nicely and the worktop guy is in today so there will be major changes soon.

Friday the plasterer came in to do the old kitchen ceiling so everything had to be moved onto our bed for the day :-((( Not a pretty sight!

Saturday, was the local village show. I got a First in the Abstract Painting section (only 2 entries LOL)
and a First in the Needlework section (lots of entries) with Rosie's bag.

On the way home from the Village Show, I saw this down the small road I take to get home...

(...not something you see everyday. Not sure where they were going as they were walking in the direction of the bunkhouses and the roadside greasy spoon LOL)

Sunday, we had a day out at the Dog's Trust in Leeds. So many dogs and lots of fun.

And now, my computer time must be well and truly up, so until next time, keep on keeping on :-)