Finished in time!

Hooray! I finished the pink felt bag last night. Phew! Just in time for the deadline. I must admit I am a last minute kinda girl. I think its a female thing, we know just how long we need to do something and how long it will take, and as long as men and children don't get in the way it usually works! Here it is.

Have a sneaky peek inside at the shimmery mauve lining.

This is the front

And this is the back.

So... Lesley and Sarah, I look forward to seeing your creations. Who's turn is it to set the next challenge?

Machine Embroidered Felt

Can't stay long! This piece of felt has to be turned into a bag by tomorrow, so I'll have to get cracking!

Just thought I'd update you with its progress.
It's now been machine embroidered to within an inch of its life!
And is waiting to be lined and have a couple of handles added, so it will be ready for the textile challenge.

Then finally be sent on its way to the Fatsheep!

Shamrocks and Sunshine

I'm embarrassed to say that last night after I'd posted my blog, it was so cold up here that I asked wonderful man if he would light the stove! Can you believe it, in June! I soon warmed up and removed a couple, of the FOUR LAYERS of clothes I was wearing, I even warmed up enough to manage to force down a bowl of marscaponi ice-cream.

Today has been lovely and sunny. I was sat in my attic studio making shamrocks this evening(I'll explain in a minute) and a shaft of sunlight fell on my little felt pincushion and mug of tea. The little glass headed pins sat there twinkling at me. aaah!This made me smile. Smiling I looked around for any more little gems to photograph for your delectation. My smile melted somewhat as I took in the messy state of my work area! I have a lovely big pine table, and always end up working in a tiny 6inch square space!

Now! To explain the shamrocks. This could take a long time... This weekend here in my little part of the world, there will be the village gala. This will be the first gala for us. Apparently the whole thing is aimed at children and rightly so, although I suspect there maybe a few adults partaking of the huge mud slide that is to be made down the sloping village field!

As part of the tradition, all the local shops, pubs and businesses decorate their windows and the staff dress up! The theme this year is 'planets and countries'. So, to finally get to the point. One of my work colleagues will be dressed as an Irish Leprechaun. (sssh! don't tell anyone! it's a secret!) Your in front of me now! Yes, this has created the need for shamrocks.

They were quite simple and quick to make, that's if you don't count the hour I spent looking for the florists wire! Isn't it amazing? I could remember exactly where it was at the old house, but could I remember where I put it in this new house? NO! Anyhow I found it in the end (inside the only box I didn't think I needed to unpack!)

Can I just ask a question here? What do all you bloggers out there do with all photos you take for your blogs? Do you delete them as soon as you've posted? Or like me do you have file upon file full of sometimes meaningless and quite frankly, bizaar photos? Please help me here, you've already seen the state of my work table so imagine what my computer files are like!

Looking out of the attic window, I thought I'd finish as I started, with a comment on the days weather.

luuurverrrly!

Flaming June!

Can you see the rain on the window screen and the complete whiteout?

Yes, we decided to take a flask of tea, some bickies, a book (for wonderful man) and some crochet (for me) up to a local beauty spot. A couple of hours of peace and quiet, beautiful views and a spot of crocheting, no phones, no TV, no radio, just a little quality time together. Well it was'nt quite like that. We did have a couple of hours of quality time together sat in a rain cloud with the rain bouncing off the bonnet, and the howling wind rocking the car!

This is sneaky dog. The face says it all. "Can we go home now... pleeeeease?"

This photo was taken last Sunday. This is what we should have been able to see out of the window screen.

Oh well! Looking on the bright side, I enjoyed two cups of tea, one mini battenburg cake curtesy of Mr Kipling , too many Hobnobs to count, the latest Country Living magazine and made this little pinafore for my crochet bunnys.

I'll leave you with another photo of the view we could'nt see!

Keep Up The Momentum!

Right, that's one felt bag finished, must keep up the momentum and get on with the next. This one is a textile challenge from my lovely friend Lesley. The challenge is to make a bag using either handmade felt or machine embroidery, oh and it has to be finished by 30th June!

Here is my colour palette. Better get started then!

Hmm! Maybe a cup of tea and bickie first!

Felting Happiness

Tadaaa! Finished!

Here is the finished bag that I started to make way back on the 20th April

Here's one side
And here's the other

All machine embroidered And embellished with shimmering ribbon and beads!

Ready to be sent off to the Fatsheep Shop in Reeth.

Garden Visitors

We've had new visitors to our garden twice this week. Uninvited at that! The first time we found our lovely neighbour who, I might add is in his 80's, had CLIMBED over the fence and was shooing them out. He then proceeded to CLIMB back over again! I was frightened to death he might fall and break something! I just hope I'm half as fit at his age and maybe twice as sensible! Anyway the second time wonderful man managed to capture our uninvited visitors in the act...
SHEEP! One of this years lambs, so in sheep terms I suppose she's a teenager now. That explains a lot! Wonderful man decided she wasn't doing any harm and the grass did need cutting anyway, so he thought he'd leave Lamby trimming the lawn.
But then as teenagers often do, Lamby blotted her copy book. She decided to try something a little more exotic than grass...
Our newly planted honeysuckle! Needless to say Lamby was given her marching orders sharpish!
This week has an escapology theme to it. Sneaky dog has managed to escape from the garden twice. So we have sheep getting in and dogs getting out! Sneaky has discovered that she can squeeze and squirm between the lats in the gate and wriggle her way out. Not bad going really for a fat dog! Quite impressive to watch! Just rather embarrassing when you get a phone call at work from your neighbours to say there is a mad black dog trotting around the village, and we think its yours!

Wild and Sunny

Isn't this beautiful? A wild flower meadow.

Wonderful mans parents came to stay at the weekend. It's the first time since we moved here. They may never want to visit again after we walked them for miles and climbed millions of steps. Ok so the millions of steps is a slight exaggeration, but that must be what it felt like to a retired couple who live in a bungalow in uber flat East Yorkshire!

We started by taking them to see the Buttertubs on the Buttertubs Pass. My photos don't do them justice, they're really deep limestone potholes. I'm a big scaredy cat, and cringe when ever anyone peers over the edge, as you can see by my photo, I'm way over behind the fencing taking the pics while wonderful man and his parents impersonate mountain goats!

The weather here on Sunday was wonderful, just how June should be, gloriously sunny and warm, with blue skies and fluffy white clouds with flat bottoms. No coats needed today, no jumpers, no cardigans, just t-shirts and sunglasses. Our first port of call was Aysgarth. This photo is taken from the car park looking down over Saint Andrews church. We walked down through the churches grave yard, complete with rabbits and sheep,

and down lots of steps to...


the high falls, apparently this is the waterfall where Robin Hood Prince of Thieves starring Kevin Costner was filmed, well the fight scene with Robin and Little John anyway. We carried on through a woodland walk

and down more steps to the middle falls

and then back up these steps

and on to the lower falls...down more steps.

where we find the lower falls. Here you can walk along side the river over the rocks stopping to peer in hundreds of small round rock pools.

Now here's a very important picture...

my lunch! It was delicious, that salad bowl must have contained my 'five a day' for a week!
Then on to Bolton Castle, where there are lots more steps, and yes, we climbed them all!

Right to the top, out on to the roof!

I love this picture, all the stonework, all the little nooks and crannies. The windows of blue sky and the green ferns growing out of the walls.

Back down at the bottom we took a walk through the village, viewing some 'open gardens', along the way

At this point I must apologise to my inlaws for walking their little legs off! I'm sure they'll think twice before visiting again. I just wanted to share all this loveliness with them.