Suffolk puff ball necklace

I was recently wasting time mooching through Pinterest and I came across this link

suffolk puff necklace
Definitely pick my interest, especially as I had a box of Suffolk puffs I had made a couple of years ago, I had made a blue and white necklace/scarf with them which I really like but was a little fragile.

Basically I just had to undo them, stuff them and do them up again,
a good sitting in front of the telly job.
But just one long string as in the link wasnt going to work for me.
I suit shorter necklaces up round my collar bones,
other curvy ladies will know where I am coming from....
So I added a couple of beads at each end and knotted it.
neeeahhh, not sure.

So off came the beads and the ends sewn together, and amazingly it was the perfect length.

ta da!

Love these colours and the size of it, think I will be wearing it a lot this summer

Though I must not leave it on the bed, or I will loose it!

Perfectly camouflaged.

You can see they both came from the same fabric stash.

Actually used some of the original Suffolk puffs to secure my quilt.

Really pleased with how they both turned out.

The fight against plastic, part one

Over the last 8 months or so, we have all become so much more aware 

about trying to reduce our use of plastic. 

We are trying too to do our part. So far I have swapped to a bamboo toothbrush, we use shampoo bars, toweling pad for removing make up rather than cotton wool and we have always washed and re used small plastic food bags and tin foil.  

Then on the internet the other week

 I saw that the washing up sponges that we all use are another no-no, 

they are are a disposable plastic item that cant be recycled.

Then I was browsing on-line and came across a great knitting site Yarn Yarn 

Gorgeous silk sari ribbon and peace silk are on my wish list, but it was the hemp yarn that pulled me in, it was being advertised for making your own exfoliating mits. 

I thought that it also might work for a stronger dish cloth, almost a scourer?

Well hemp is interesting to knit with!  

You will end up with very soft hands, and when its just a small square, its very possible.

Well am very pleased with how it turned out, and it does work, though my husband says when it is wet it looks like a drowned rat!!!!

The best thing as it is a natural fibre it can be easily washed and when it is too far gone it can go in the compost bin and help the veg patch!  (Did you know that's what they used to do with very old and grubby rag rugs? ) And then I can just knit us another....

So tiny, so perfect

I was in London over Christmas and was able to visit Loop up by Angel tube station. What an amazing wool shop, stunning yarns in silk, wool, linen, cashmere etc. Also some gorgeous scarves and necklaces by Sophie Digard, i love her work so much, they aren't cheap and they shouldn't be, but one day, one day.

I got to the till, was getting some beautiful silk for a summer scarf. When i saw these tiny boxes. Their contents I totally feel in love with.

Tiny, tiny scissors! They are perfect, and work really well. I couldn't leave them, well we all need to buy our selves a Christmas present dont we!

at last, after four years........

As some of you may remember back in 2015 I started a big project, it had actually been the Christmas 2014 when I started the first square.  Well Christmas(ish) 2018 I have finished it!

The whole thing is handsewn, 

 had tried years ago to do some patchwork by machine, 

but I didnt feel I had enough control.

I am so pleased with the finished quilt, I love the colours and the look.

With hindsight it maybe be it was too big a project for a beginner, but I stuck with it.

The only problem is I feel with such a busy bedspread we should have plain curtain at the windows.  But that will be have to be a job for another time.

so much love in those sawdust hearts

You may remember that back in July I submitted a sawdust heart to WW1 heart project , well last Monday we were up in Yorkshire visiting Ollie, and we were able to go over to Scarborough to see the exhibition. It is on till the end of November and if you are in the area I definitely recommend it. My husband came to support me in a project I had been involved with and he really was moved and very impressed. This is the Link.  The heart above is one of the originals from the Great War and this was the one that inspired Helen Birmingham to start this project.

She made 1,568 sawdust hearts - one for each day of WW1.

Nearly all were returned by crafters all over the British Isles, 

and they were displayed in groups of 25.

What was amazing was how different they all were, as well as how moving they were.

From the traditional....

....to impressive embroidered boats

patriotism from north of the boarder

raw resent memories

simple images from children

complex works of beading

my favourite!

family tragedy

stunning embroidery and design

one to attempt to read later...

and Chris found mine first, I walked past it twice....no excuse...a bit embarrassing

Very proud to be the most southerly pin on this map of British crafters!

Least we forget

This weekend it seems very apt to share this.

In the Town Church we have this wooden cross,

 it is one of the original wooden crosses from World War 1.  

Later they were replaced with the headstones we are all so familiar with.  

This cross belonged to Eric D'Auverge Collings, 

he gave his life for his country at the age of 19 on 23rd August 1916 during the Battle of the Somme.

I wear my poppy with thanks for that great sacrifice

dreaming lampwork

Last year when I started making these fabric necklaces, 

it was because I had always loved lampwork beads 

so I was trying to do my version in fabric, but I still lusted over those beautiful glass beads.

So when Iris and Dora announced that a lampwork tutor was coming over 

 and was going to do courses, I was beyond excited!

Well it was last Saturday afternoon, and it lived up to everything I had hoped.

There were 6 of us, each with our own station and a very powerful gas flame, first we selected our colours from the rainbow for glass rods. Unsurprisingly I went for blues.......

The actual technique was pretty simple, but just like machine embroidery it is practice and control, control and practice, but I was hooked.  Our tutor was very patient and by the end of two and a half hours we had all produced about 12 beads, 

sadly my favorite one, that looked like a sputnik - all spiky, cracked.  

But all the others came off the rods easily. Really pleased.

Can wait to have ago at wrapping, winding and spodging molten glass again!

Loved it so much I actually drempt about it that night......

A towering library in my life

The Guille Alles Library has always been a big part of my Guernsey life. 

My mother was one of the group of ladies who launched 'Bookwormobile' a mobile children's library which later (poss 1981?) was absorbed into the Guille-Alle. Then later after she passed away, a video library was opened in her memory, and I remember standing in the Hayward Room for the opening, wearing a very large silver lamee scarf!  Well I was young.....

But I didnt really understand its history to well,

 and when the chance came up to join a 'behind the scenes' tour, I jumped at the chance. 

 We were led round the building by this fantastic gentleman, 

think he was called Mr Pitt, one of the early library directors from the 1880s.  

But the main reason I want to do this was to get up into the tower! 

 It's designed as a widow's walk, 

we couldn't get out side but the views from the porthole window was fantastic.

A very different view out over the roof tops of St Peter Port

and the roof top of Specsavers, some one has a brilliant terrace, but they really need to tidy it up!

Herm and Jethou behind the church

The copper tobacco leaves on top of the old Market Building 

The market, then the church and then the castle

This brilliant room is now 'The story tower' for children's story time, 

I am very very jealous of those lucky children!

finding a new artist to love

 

This time last month I was in the beautiful city of Bordeaux and I discovered the work of Henri-Jean Martin  (5 August 1860 – 12 November 1943), according to wikiart he is an Impressionist Artist.  I just though these were fantastic, I can can see the Impressionist influence, but I also think there is a nod toward Pointillism which was happening at a similar time.

In the same room were some of his painting featuring figures and I must say was not so keen on those, they felt a little kitsch, a bit twee, the landscapes and flowers were alot more powerful and felt contemporary.  The ultimate compliment of 'I would love to have that hanging on my wall' was whispered under my breath a few times (out of ear shot of the guards!).

 

I do hope you like his work too, sorry the photos aren't great, always feel guilty taking snaps in a gallery even if it is allowed.  I find it very exciting to discover artists I have never heard of, and I definitely want to learn more about Henri-Jean.

another use for old jeans

Just a quick post, I wanted to show you a little project I did last month.

My husband needed to store away his winter clothes, and I was pained to buy another one, as much as anything they are ugly.  So I thought actually that would be another good use for the pile of old jeans I have collected over the years and ta da, voila! 

Really please with how it turned out, actually rather jealous.

And actually could also make a rather good bean bag.....