Sewing for pleasure

Every so often I try my hand at sewing, and I have been going to a social group twice a month on and off for a year or so. The people at Liverpool Sewing Club keep on helping me to try new sewing-related things, and although I haven't actually finished a project yet I've got a lot more done than I would have on my own.

Yesterday a few of us went down to Birmingham and visited the Sewing for Pleasure exhibition. After a couple of workshops (that I need to finish off the creations from) and a *lot* of walking I came across an amazing installation in support of the RNLI...a whole knitted undersea walk through tunnel culmanating in a life size knitted mermaid. She is very impressive, although slightly unsettling. See?

No pictures of the little workshop projects I did, as I haven't finished them off (and one is going into a package I'm planning to send so I don't want to spoil it).

Today I spent many hours really properly sorting out the back room. I've done a lot of the clearing out in the past, and so the stuff in there really needs to stay and be organised. After a break for lunch out in the sunshiney garden, Rosa came upstairs to 'help' by checking out every box, bag, shelf and newly revealed corner. The sorting's still all not done, but the room is getting there. The long term plan is a reading/sewing room with space for an airbed for people to stay on when they come to stay (and a new carpet). Today's sorting included bringing a general sense of order to the bookshelves (I should have waited for Rach's next visit and taken advantage of her librarian organising skillz)...*big* job as it turns out. We have a lot of books.

To recover I watched the second half of back to the future and drank lots of tea. Which always seems like a good plan.

Hope your Sundays have been relaxing and light (Summertime is here, in daylight hours at least).

Rosa and I are sitting on the back step, listening to jazz and drinking cider in the sunshine. Well, I'm drinking the cider, and she doesn't seem too fussed about the jazz either to be honest, but she's happily curled up by my feet sunbathing. I want every Friday to be like this...sunny, relaxed and creative.

Creativity today has included

• Rejecting every mother's day card in the shop as too cutesy and mother-as-definition focused for my mum - who is very much not defined by the fact she's my mother, although it is something she's very good at. I'm calling it a creative decision, as it'll mean I need to be creative about her gift/card.
• Making a HUGE pot of stew from freezer finds...if I don't recognise it and I don't remember putting in the freezer then it goes in the pot. Sh*tmix stew is usually a hit. It's not the focus of this evening's planned romantic dinner though. We're having steak (also from the freezer but don't tell hubster) with home made chips.
• Putting bread on in the bread machine - fingers crossed for the well past the best before date yeast.
• Creating piles of clean fresh laundry
• Discovering a more active, happier me by riding to town to get the things we need the bathroom
• Authoring a blog post from the lovely warm sunny washing filled garden

I have a query/pondernace about the apostrophe in Mother's day btw. Would you go for Mother's Day - a day for your mother, or Mothers' Day - a day for all mothers? (despite the fact that it is in fact the traditional day to return to your parish's mother church, and not originally anything to do with mothers, biological or otherwise). The card shop had a fascinating array of mother-in-law, mother-to-be, you're like a mother to me and 'from the cat/dog/hamster' type cards. My mind boggled. Though I did want to buy my mother a card from the dog, and my Mother-in-law a card from her cat - an animal which she tolerates and appears to enjoy bemoaning the effect he has on her house (hairs, scratching, being in it generally). Entertaining ironic humour or just plain mean?

Ongoing creativity plans for the rest of the day include at least one of the following (if I ever get off this step);

• painting the bathroom and sealing the bath
• stripping the wallpaper off the living room
• making some kind of cake or biscuit
• reading one of the many books on my 'to read' pile
• winning the lottery or inheriting a fortune from an unknown relative so I can always spend Fridays like this

Rosa's gone off to explore, so I'll just *have* to stay here for a while, since she's scared of being outside on her own (literally a scaredy cat). Oh well, think I can cope!

Lovely Saturday

Today has been lovely. I've been enjoying an almost perfect balance of getting things done and relaxing. It started when the cat woke me up by purring in my ear (then standing on my head because I wasn't quick enough to fuss her), then I chilled with her for a while before getting up and sorting the kitchen and a load of washing.

Once that was done I got myself up and dressed properly, then rode my bike to the library. I felt very boho chic, and that I should really have had the chance to be photographed for a style blog (in my mac n jeans combo with a bag of books). Books back to the library, a few bits from the shops and ride on home. I got hubby a bit of apressie, because he's been working so hard to tile the bathroom (and he had a really good appraisal at work).

The tiles are on the wall, and have all stayed there. Tomorrow the plan is to grout. Hubster's plan is to grout. My responsibility has been finishing off the kitchen cupboards, which was going well. They were all ready, handles on and only needed to be fastened on before the in laws come over to visit this evening.

When I went to put the cupboard doors up the handles were on backwards. And I didn't even notice until I fitted them on, screwed them in and then tried to close to the doors...I hate to reinforce the girls are rubbish at DIY sterotype, my apologies to the feminist cause.

After an emergency trip to B&Q for a new door (there are three cupboards and no way to move the doors around to fill all the gaps since I put the handles on the wrong side of all the doors) the kitchen is now finished. It's also clean, wiped, tidied and prepared to act as showhome to impress the visitors.

Who are coming round at 7ish, so I should go and make myself as ready as the kitchen. There will be plenty more DIY distasters to share in the future I suspect.

Pic of the day

A sunny Sunday...

Waking up with a happy cat



Seeing flowers coming out all over the place





And making progress on the bathroom (actually Hubster's work, though I had a central supporting role). No pic until the last tiles are up and the grout in place.

A sunny simple Sunday, with space to think and just be. Lovely.

And here she is

all curious and affectionate and totally unaware of the stress she's caused us

TiLT

Today I love that our new cat found her way home and that the posh telly box we got for Christmas has mysteriously recorded a repeat of the last ever episode of ER.

Snap of the day

I can't decide which I like best...



Cat in a box!


Or an arty shot complete with mirror detail shot in the sunshine while waiting for a visit today