Getting Back into it!

Good evening.

I must admit to really looking forward to writing this post this evening. Writing the post last night really highlighted what I have been missing. I think I see this as a form of escape and a way of emptying my head of everything before bedtime…..when I eventually got to bed last night I slept really well.

So here I am ready to go.

But we have a problem. The camera has run out of charge!

NOOOOOOO! (She takes a deep breath.)

It’s not a problem. I didn’t want to show any pictures anyway. ..She says lying! Ok so what can I do before disappointment sets in?

Well I have to admit to having had problems with the camera before Christmas, so much so that I bought a cheap standby just in case we didn’t have anything to capture the precious moments with. Unfortunately the quality is not as good as my old faithful, but I can at least show you some of the crafts that were made before the Christmas festivities.

December

Can you see what I mean about the quality? Ho hum…it’s better than nothing I suppose, and I so want to restart the blogging mojo.

So what is it about. Well as you can see by the date this was Christmas Eve and I was still making. Upon the tree, mixed into the other decorations you will see gingham hearts, pom poms and Scandinavian hearts. I decided that I needed to take precautions due to these little fellows……

Now I love my Christmas tree, especially all the little memories that go with each one of the ornaments and baubles that I have collected over the years. Unfortunately most of these are glass. Having survived Moo, Boo and Roo, I didn’t want any of them to succumb to the feline monsters.  So they were left safely snug in their packaging and replaced, for this year at least, with less fragile trinkets. I know you can’t really see them, but I think you get the idea. It was good thinking in the end, as it soon became clear as the branches were left to settle, that both of our kittens enjoyed scaling the dizzying heights and were up and down it like rats in a drain pipe! Can you see how the tree is leaning? It actually toppled over completely on the 29th of December and had to be replaced by our artificial standby…..Boo!

Can you also see what is sneaking into the bottom of the picture?

Want a closer look?

Tadah! Baby christmas tree decorations.

You don’t really get the true sense of these due to the grainy picture. The materials were a mixture of Christmas prints and silks. They were not as big as the summer trees that i made, but they were very popular. I finished up making seven of these. I made a couple for a Christmas Bazaar, but that led to orders being placed for five more. I could have made even more, but I just ran out of time. I am sure you know how that is before Christmas. You can also see one of the Christmas tree, Christmas tree decorations that I made……can you see it? Green and to the left of the picture. Very fiddly to make to be lost in the branches of the tree. I don’t think I will be making any more for next year.!

Christmas seems such a long way away now. All the work and preparation that goes into creating the perfect day passes by and the feeling of  ‘what was all that about?’ sets in.

Other crafts that were accomplished was the making of home-made mincemeat, Christmas hampers including jams, chutney, biscuits and gingerbread, and a few patches being sewn to the union flag patchwork. ( Yes it is still on the go!)

Looking at the evidence of the flurry of activity it looks really pathetic, but I worked for hours for very little. Never mind, I have all the decorations for next year…..and I already have orders for more trees! (If you want one let me know now so I can book it in!)

Anyway bed is calling. I can assure you that the camera is on charge for more reveals tomorrow. I have Most of November and all of January to show so I will be back tomorrow …..I promise!

Night all. xxxxxxxx

 

 

 

Days 187- 213: A post at last!

Good morning, afternoon or evening my old friends.

I know you may have been wondering where I have been- well I have been here, and I have been crafting, but I just haven’t found time to blog.

I have really missed the excitement of writing my daily post, and the excitement of looking at my statistics to see how many people have read it. I guess all those years of dreaming of becoming a famous author as a child have just been hidden down in the depths of my brain waiting to come out, and I can honestly say that I have missed you all. So why have I had a little holiday from my blog? Three words……

Back At Work!

Being a responsible adult in charge of littlies takes up so much of my time. The new school year has brought the usual amount of work, and it is so time-consuming. I had to make a choice. Craft or blogging?

I think you can guess which one had to have the holiday! Yes the blogging. I figured that I set out on a year on the make, and so I have got to complete what I set out to do. Believe me, mum has been on my case for you all- giving me gentle reminders that I have not blogged since September the 13th. It has been a constant frustration and one that I am determined to right over the next few weeks.

I am going to make you all a solemn promise. I know that it will be impossible for me to blog everyday- that is just asking too much of myself. So he is what I am going to promise you all-

I, Ickle Ed, Promise that from now till the end of my first year on the make, I will blog at least once a week. I will not let time run away with me again. Cross my heart and hope to die.

Not sure about the last sentence but I think you get the gist.

So what have I been doing? Well big news in the Ickle Ed household is that we have now got these………

I have never been a cat person. I thought I didn’t like cats at all, as they chased my guinea pigs and rabbits when I was a child…….and they still do! DH on the other hand, is a cat person and has frequently commented that he would love a cat, usually followed by a blanket ‘NO!’ response from myself.

During my recuperation, I had time to do a lot of thinking, and decided that it was unfair for me to dictate, after all the Monsters and I went and got the guinea pigs without DH. So I relented and let him explore the ‘idea’ of having ‘a’ cat. (Note the singular!)

He wasted no time in getting me to ring up a local charity and, after a home visit, we were soon on our way to pick up our new feline. On arrival at the foster house, DH decided that one was not enough, but we should have the little brother too. Boo, being there, agreed and I was out-voted. One became two, and the rest is history.

I was determined that it would be DH who was responsible for them- especially the litter tray, and that I would not have anything to do with them at all. So how has it worked out so far? I do have to admit to have being adopted by these two little fellows. The little black one in particular- who we were told did not like human contact, has for the last two weeks followed me around- does this make me an alien? DH is highly amused that I have suddenly been, against my will,  thrust into the role of a cats mother- but the little monkey can not be discouraged and he follows me to bed every night, wakes me up in a morning and sits by me when I find five minutes to watch the TV in an evening.

So does this mean that I have suddenly become a cat fan? Well I like these two!

The other big news is that after about 4- 5 years waiting we have eventually got an allotment. It all happened very quickly in the end. I was saying to DH on Wednesday that I needed something else to focus on as well as school and craft. Many suggestions were made, but then the decision has been made for me with the arrival of the letter on Thursday morning. I am very excited, especially when we visited the site. It is a little over grown, but nothing I can’t rectify so fresh fruit and veg are on the agenda for next year.

The major patchwork is still under construction- hopefully with a Tah dah in a month. With the changing of the colours on the trees, and the smell of bonfires in the air I even took out ‘blast it’ again, staring wistfully at the remaining pieces, wishing that it was made and ready to wear. Who knows it may be completed by Christmas! Chutney has been made using the gorgeous autumnal ingredients that are in abundance in the shops at the minute – (F.I.L. will be very pleased.) I do have to say that as growing seasons go, this year has been rubbish; but I have managed to grow beetroot and celeriac which due to be harvested. Roll on a better crop next year.

Ho hum! Autumn days with the nights drawing in and the christmas trees building up in the local shops- already!  Plenty of time for crafting and blogging in an evening.

It’s nice to be back.

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Days 149- 186 : Patches! Patches! Patches!

Good morning, afternoon or evening. I hope you are all well.

I am so sorry for my absence. How long it has been since I have been in cyber space. The summer holidays are over, and guess what…….I am back at work!

I found the holidays so enjoyable and frustrating at the same time- if that is possible. Spending time with the little people in my life brings so many rewards, but at the same time is so exhausting. Days of planning entertainment and fun for the littlies, I found myself crawling into to bed at 10 every night; only to hear the abominable phrase “What are we doing today Mum?” every morning! Exhausting. Painting, baking, making, sight-seeing, playing, den building, visiting, pajama daying and creating all done, it’s back to school for all of us.

Now the Olympics and Paralympic games are over too, DH is back in our lives after a summer of goggling at the box. National pride is at a high-  On the down side it’s  back to the domination of football on our screens, and I, yet again, become a hockey widow. The evenings are drawing in and believe it or not I am contemplating finishing ‘Blast it’ as the temperature has dropped by about 10 oC this week.

I must admit to struggling to keep motivated on the makes. I am determined to finish my year of makes, and belive it or not I am over halfway through now. I think this latest slump is due to the slow progress of my latest project, and my return to work which is requiring a certain amount of evening time for planning, marking and preparation. I am endeavouring to chip away at it though. Slowly. Slowly.

So what have I been up to? Can you guess from the title of this post?

Yes the patchwork marathon continues.

Cutting hexagons……..

……..covering…….

……..sewing…….

Endless. I am about a quarter of the way there- it is going to be huge!

Luckily Boo has taken a shine to i,t and it looks like it is destined for his bed.  I am really enjoying it, even though it doesn’t sound like it. As I have mentioned before, this is my favourite of all the crafting disciplines, hexagons in particular, it is just so time-consuming as this is all hand sewing. I have got to get it finished double-quick as I am making my sister-in-law a door hanging patchwork for her 40th. She wants it be done for Christmas, so I know what my next project will be.

So here I sit in the rolling hills, halfway through my year, back at work, and back on the blog. I have missed my daily catch up, so I am determined that there will be a return to the good old days. I need to refocus, and with Christmas just around the corner and a Church bazaar to prepare for, expect to see lots more of Ickle Ed over the coming weeks.

Who knows…you may even get to see a finished blast it very soon! 🙂

See you soon.

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Days….. from my last post to today! (I will work it out later)

Good Morning, afternoon or evening. 🙂 Long time no see? Many apologies, but I intend to address my cyberspace absence in this post.

Have you ever noticed…those of you with children, and those of you without…..how the days just seem to roll into one during the summer? I started this project ready to dedicate myself to making or contributing to a make, everyday for a year. The pace of things seem to have slowed down over the past few weeks, although despite my absence from posting, the makes have continued even if it is only sewing a patch on the mega patchwork.

I am guilty of lots of things over the past few weeks these being……

• spending time with my children and neglecting my makes
• starting new child friendly project everyday with not a hint of guilt about ignoring my crafty ones
• forgetting to write my blog, even though I have taken hundreds of photographs to show
• Having lots of new inspiring experiences, but not sharing them with anyone on the blog

Am I to be court martialed for being absent without leave from the blog, because I am enjoying time with the little people in my life?

To answer that I have to think about the priorities in my life. What is most important? As this is my blog, therefore it makes me judge and jury. How do I feel about not blogging everyday?

Personally, selfishly, I have missed it; but as a mother, do I put my electronic child before my organic ones? Definitely not! The time that I have spent with the monsters is precious and only happens once. How can I justify spending time at the laptop and sewing machine when there are adventures to be had? I’m glad you agree!

So what have we been up to? Have a look at these………

Home grown potatoes ready for the pot…..

Beetroot coming on nicely!

Potatoes ready for roasting with rosemary.

We then had a little visitor. Mr ED!

Now I have not had a hamster since I was 13 years old and I had forgotton what a racket they make at night! He is really a cute little fellow..just noisy. We got to 1.30am when DH could stand it no longer and had to remove the wheel form the ‘hamster palace’, the sound of which was reverberating through the floor to our room from the sitting room. (We have put it back in again this morning though Mrs H!) Eddie didn’t seem to mind though, he just spent the rest of the night running through his tube and up and down his stairs. I’m sure we will get used to it though. It occured to me why are we spending so much on wind farms when we could have hamster farms with wheels attached to the national grid? It’s a win win situation….they get exercise and fun, we get light!

Unfortunately the monsters now want a hamster!

Back to the garden………..

More rhubarb and ginger jam to replace the diminished store!

And a visit to the latest Sheffield tourist spot…………

Then we had visitors to our road. Roo was loving seeing all the monster trucks come and go. He sat on the garden wall inspecting what was going on for nearly a week.

We had to drive up and down the road a bit to check it out….just like Lightening McQueen.

After all of that Moo decided to have a go a baking……….

Gorgeous cakes…..shame about the state of the kitchen when she had finished!

An eventful two weeks so far I think you’ll agree. I’ll be back tomorrow to show what craft I have been up to.

See you then.

xxxxxxx

And the winner is……..

Good morning, afternoon or evening.

How are we all? I have to make a huge apology……I haven’t given the results of the give away!

Time has simply run away with me, and here we are the middle of the week again.

So here we go……..

I included all the names of people who have emailed me or left a comment about the Olympic give away. (There are quite a few of you who are dreadfully shy!)

These were placed in an appropriate container……….

….and Roo picked one out.

And the winner is………

Congratulations Julie. Please can you email me with your address details and your prize will be rushed to you.

Thank you to everyone who commented or emailed me with your Olympic stories.

See you later.

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Give away reminder

Good morning, afternoon or evening.

Where has the time gone? 16 days ago I started the Olympic giveaway, and here we are on the final day.

Just to remind you it is not too late to enter all you have to do is to comment on any of the posts that I have made since the giveaway launch about what you viewed and where you were in the world during the olympics,  how you celebrated the Olympics, or how you avoided it all. It is your chance to win this…….

 

One of my Union flag cushions.

All names will be placed in a hat and the lucky winner will be drawn from a hat tomorrow evening. (We thought this would be better as it allows for the time difference around the world.)

Someone has got to win so have a go, and good luck.

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Days 147 and 148: Home again!

Good morning, afternoon or evening. Hope you are all well.

Well, after my last post I think I will mention Jess Ennis in every single one from now on, as I have had more visits from different countries than any other day since I have been posting. Hoorah!

Today saw us heading back north after our Olympic Holiday. 😦

DH has to go back to work tomorrow, so it is definitely end-of-holiday-itus in our house tonight. We had a great break. The monsters were upset we were not going to France this holiday, but we explained to them that the Olympics was our holiday this year. They then set to, as they do when we go on our Summer holidays, thinking up different things that they wanted to do when we were not watching sport. Moo decided she wanted to see as much of the Olympics as possible, Boo wanted to see castles and Roo wanted ice cream! We tried our best to accommodate them……

(Ignore the man taking pictures of the ducks.)

This is Hever Castle, the childhood home of Anne Boleyn, second wife of Henry VIII. As an avid fan of Horrible Histories, Boo was desperate to see Tudor life all for himself.  Having been up to London two days running, and being on my own, we opted to go to the leafy lanes of Kent, rather than the Tower of London.  Fantastic time was had….especially in the water maze, where the monsters ignored my warning of avoiding getting wet and got soaked through to their underwear!  Luckily we went there last….and then three of the four of us squelched their way back to the car!

This is the Belgian television car that was filming us getting soaking wet watching the Ladies’ Marathon……

Notice the soggy microphone.  Yes we all got slightly damp!

These girls deserved the clapping and cheering. They were running through torrential rain….I know! I was standing in it.

Luckily we were close to an ‘M and S’ so we nipped in there to buy Moo a new T shirt….she had ‘forgotten’ her coat! Although I can’t talk as I went in my bag for my umbrella at the first spots of rain….not there! GRRRRR! We all squelched our way home!

Unfortunately I don’t have any pictures of Roo’s ice cream. It didn’t last long enough for me to get my camera out!

Sights seen, sports spectated, history lessons taught, meals and laughs shared, fine wine poured, teams cheered on, patches sewn, mini Olympics seen (on the in laws back lawn), car packed…off we set homeward. Boooooooooo!

Never mind. Back to reality and the piggies, who have been in their own hotel since we have been away. I know what I will wake up to tomorrow…..

‘Mum. What are we doing today?’

See you tomorrow. 🙂

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Day 146: GOLD!

Good morning, afternoon or evening.

Just wanted to drop in to say……..

Jess we love you and well done! I was screaming at the television during the 800m, after not being able to watch all day…just in case I was a jinks! Loved it and so proud of ‘Our’ Yorkshire lass!

Also well done to Fly Mo and Greg Rutherford…a fantastic night for Team GB.

For those of you who are wondering what I am talking about……

Jess Ennis: Heptathlon Gold (Pride of Sheffield)

Mo Farrah: 10 000m Gold

Greg Rutherford: Men’s Long Jump Gold

Not to mention the two rowing golds and the Velodrome Gold. All today.

Fantastic! Oh I’m getting into this! Very, very proud! Up early tomorrow for the ladies marathon.

Have been sewing lots today too…not much to show, just more patches!

See you tomorrow

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Days 139- 145: Olympic Fever!

Good morning, afternoon or evening.

So how are you? Enjoying the Limpicks? I have to admit to something. I am actually watching it all…even without DH being there! Shock! Horror!

Our celebrations continued last Saturday with an Olympic BBQ. We didn’t see much of the nephews who visited….they were firmly ensconced in front of the TV watching the first days events.

This week began with a trip down to London. What for I hear you ask? Well what do you think! ‘Limpicks!’

Wednesday was our anniversary, and so we put the Olympics aside and took a trip up to town. London however is definitely in an Olympic frenzy however…even Nelson’s getting in the Olympic spirit

Leicester Square sported Olympic medals…….

But Shakespeare remained un-amused and undecorated. It took a pigeon to use it’s initiative to try to decorate him.

Carnaby Street and China Town also showed their patriotism…..

See what I mean!

We had a fantastic day….without having to drag tired monsters about the sights. A visit to the National Gallery to see lots of grand Masters, soaking up the atmosphere in this very international celebration, and a long ago promised fulfilled with a meal in China Town.

We also saw the man who has cycled here all the way from China…..

I have to admit to having very sore feet at the end of the day, but this was very welcome………

Then we went to the Olympics!

Don’t believe me?………….

We were there! DH was very excited!

Before the match started…hence all the empty seats.

Holland verses China. Holland won.

Watching the big screens……trying to get on telly!

And the Royal Barge. Moored just behind the BBC centre.

We had a fantastic time, and I can confirm that the Olympic park is brilliant! Just wish we could go again. Ho Hum!

Well time to revert to the giveaway that is up for grabs. It’s not too late to enter.

What do you have to do? (A reminder)

•Tell about a creative way you are celebrating throughout the olympics.  EG. An opening/ closing ceremony party, an event BBQ (eg Men’s hockey final), rejoicing in a gold medal win of your favourite athlete etc.

•Comment on where in the world you are watching the Olympics. Telling the event that you are watching, and the time that you are watching…I know some of you may be up in the night or very early morning to see.

•Don’t like the Olympics? Tell us about the creative ways that you are avoiding it all. Have you booked a 2 week cruise down the Nile? Decided to climb Everest?

You can include a photo if you want or email it to me at ayearonthemake@gmail.com and I will post it for you.

After you have commented, sit back and relax.  The winner will be drawn on Sunday 12th August 2012.

Just drop me a line.

See you tomorrow.

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Day 138- Give away Launch

Good morning, afternoon, evening. How are we all? Are the flags out? Things are hotting up in the rolling hills. Literally 1 and 1/2 hours to go before the opening ceremony. DH returned home with olympic posters, flags….you name it. To say he is excited is an understatement!

Anyway folks; down to business. An Olympic themed give away.

I decided to launch the giveaway as the deadline, which I will tell you about in a moment, will collide with the half way point of my 365 days. So to celebrate with all of you that have tuned in to read my witterings, I put my mind to the task of thinking up something that would be easy to do, but then would also give a lucky winner a reward.

So what do you have to do?

Well for those of you that have tuned in for a period of time, you will know that I am a sports widow. Since the 6th of July 2005, this summer has been planned…in DH’s head anyway. The Olympics has been growing in momentum since then and it is nearly upon us.

I know that some of you will not be bothered about this particular world sports day…but spare a thought for those of us that have to be bothered whether we want to or not! The give away is for you too….promise.

I decided that as this is a creative and making blog, then what you have to do should be along these lines too. There are therefore three ways you can enter, all doing nothing more than commenting under this post.

You will have two weeks and three days to enter. The giveaway competition will begin today and last until the closing ceremony.

After the closing ceremony all names will be entered into a hat and a Rooster will pick the winning name.

But what do you win?

Tadah! Feather filled, 100% cotton patchwork Union Flag cushion measuring 30 x 25 cm approx.  I love it so much I have made a large one and small one to adorn my sofa.

So what do you have to do?

• Tell about a creative way you are celebrating throughout the olympics.  EG. An opening/ closing ceremony party, an event BBQ (eg Men’s hockey final), rejoicing in a gold medal win of your favourite athlete etc.

• Comment on where in the world you are watching the Olympics. Telling the event that you are watching, and the time that you are watching…I know some of you may be up in the night or very early morning to see.

• Don’t like the Olympics? Tell us about the creative ways that you are avoiding it all. Have you booked a 2 week cruise down the Nile? Decided to climb Everest?

You can include a photo if you want or email it to me at ayearonthemake@gmail.com and I will post it for you.

After you have commented, sit back and relax.  The winner will be drawn on Sunday 12th August 2012.

Good Luck xxxxx