The Same Ol' Same Ol'

Hello lovely lovelies❣ How has your week been? Mine vanished in a whirl of rain, hail, wind.....and a little sunshine. One more week of my least favourite season done and dusted. Goodness me, I wish my life away, don't I. Though, if Old Man Winter always behaved like he did today.....whipping up a beautiful, sunny kinda day, then perhaps I would regard him more highly. =)

The painting of the cupboards is finished. While painting this week, I almost reconsidered my propensity for slapping on paint all over wood.....almost. =) My  paintbrush lives to see yet another day; safely stored away for the next furniture paint job. Thankfully the mythological wood gods did not heap fire upon me and my cupboards...and paintbrush; turning everything (and everyone....me) into a pile of ashes. But then, hot flames would have warmed me.

This week was a little  same ol', same ol'. A little more organising of my sewing room and the culling of stuff happened. I am a little bit over whipping all my stuff into a tidy fashion.  Wish oh wish my fairy godmother would swoosh in and with a wave of her wand make everything orderly again. A lot of my pretties are stored away in suitcases  which I have acquired over the years. Suitcases are fabulous for storage and they look great, too. Well, I think they do. So, in order for me to remember what lies within the holdalls I fashioned some pretty tags to provide a visual for my muddly brain. I used snippets of fabric for the tags, stiffening each fabric tag with Mod Podge. I then wrote the contents of each suitcase on itty bitty paper doilies, gluing the doilies onto the tags.  I really, really have way too much time on my hands. =) Remember.....it's all about the look❣

It was a week where I also snatched moments to read, shop in a fabulous new store (found the perfect tea towel) and watched the Aussies (and the rest of the world's athletes) perform amazing feats in the Olympic arena. 

My 'wall' of bright and colourful leaves edged with the bias strips received a little of my attention on Flowers In Her Hair, Flowers Everywhere quilt. Just one more strip to be stitched and then the wall should be done.....I think. Why I say this is because I will design a little more this week and play with more details. I might find that I need to lengthen the wallpaper a little more. This is what happens when one makes it up as one goes along. Hopefully, I will stitch the remaining strip later this evening and join the lovely band of slow stitchers over at Kathy's place.

My husband took this fabulous photo the other night of God's sky. The sky never ceases to enthrall and delight with the brushstrokes of The Master Painter. Can you see the hand?? It reminded us both of  the verse in Proverbs of God holding him, me.....and you.....in the palm of His hand. A beautiful reminder of God's grace, care and love in these deeply troubling times we find ourselves in. Even though these times are dark, bewildering and just so menacing; and so, so sad, no matter what comes my way, God is holding me in the palm of His hand❣ Indeed, the sky beaming a smile from God, upon me❣

Upon thinking of me being safely held in God's hand, I happened upon this you tube clip of Alison Kraus singing The Palm of Your Hand........just beautiful. I know there is no better place I would rather be; in the good times, the not so good times, those impossible times, than in the palm of  God's hand. So very thankful for His grace and love. He sustains me when life can be pretty grim❣

May your week be one with smiles from God sprinkled here, there and everywhere❣ May you know that He loves you❣ God bless you❣

Until the next time..........

The Blogging Train

Hello lovely lovelies❣ Welcome to my little place where this 'Snow Queen' sits in her icy castle humble abode, where stalactite and stalagmite encrustations abound. Just joking. =) Although Jack Frost and Old Man Winter are strutting their frigid stuff; and blustering and roistering outside my windows; here in my little home where blazing fires roar away, I am as snug as a bug in a rug. Actually, even though I have awoken to many mornings of ice-sheathed landscapes as far as the eye can see, winter has not been too bad really. It has been tolerable enough.

Gosh, it has been an age  since I last chatted with you. I didn't intend to alight from the blogging train for so long, but you know how it is, you miss one week, then two, then all of a sudden the days have disappeared into many, many weeks, months even;  being swallowed up by that bearded old fellow, Father Time. I do not know how he does it, but Father Time can certainly gobble up time quicker than quick. But......the blogging train has once again  chugged into the station here at this far rural outpost, the friendly little railway man has yelled "all aboard", and with my trusty camera slung over the shoulder I have happily boarded,  setting off on the blogging train once again. Besides, I never was/am a blogger who blogs every week. I am just a blog-when-I-have-something-to-show-or-write-about, kinda gal. I don't know how you ladies manage to blog every week...and some of you who blog every other day....amazing.

During my 'leave of absence' I have been buried under a mountain of stuff; re-organising and culling an avalanche of shall we say....crap....yes....crap. =) As I am not teaching kids this year, and probably won't any more a lot of the stuff is irrelevant now. I just don't need to hoard my 'just-in-case' amassment anymore. A friend of mine is moving to a smaller place and asked me if I wanted some cupboards. I of course said yes, as what she was offering me suited my needs in my sewing room better. The cupboards are wood, slathered with a dark stain, so me being me had to sand and then paint them with many coats of sealer and paint in a pretty shade of grey, called Marina Pearl. I know....how dare I!!!! The wood gods will heap coals of fire upon my head!! I know, splashing paint on wood is the cardinal sin to those who love to see wood grains from floor to ceiling but I much prefer a lighter aesthetic. So, so sorry if I have offended the sensibilities of those of you who adore wood au-natural, but I am that gal who loves a lick or two of paint covering my furniture. Alas, deviant genes I'm afraid. I am still in the process of painting. It is a task which is taking what seems forever. As it is winter one needs to wait longer between each coat. Goodness, gracious me, I have a ton of stuff, but it is a task which needs to be done. It feels good to purge. I suppose one should never start this sort of task, should one?? The bottomless textile, and bits and bobs pit is very, very deep and may I say, scary. =) Who would've thought that three 'little' cupboards could have caused so much upheaval. And....I might say one helluva mess!

Also, during by blogging absence I have been organising posts regarding all my finished pretties; quilts, tarted-up lovelies etc etc, and filing them away under new page headings which can now been seen under my blog's banner. A process I am still doing. This has taken some time. As I walked once again, along the path of Sarah Lizzie's and revisited old blog posts, I noticed some new implementations of Blogger had left some of my posts with a few glitches within. Honestly, sometimes Blogger is a pain in the right royal proverbial. I have no idea why these problems have arisen but me being me, and to please my persnickety eye, I have been going through all the posts and fixing them.  I just could not help myself from fixing things up a bit. Another deviant gene, I'm afraid. =) I am a wee bit particular about 'the look' of my blog. I know, I know...who do I think I am??!! No-one really. Just a gal, with a stylist eye from way back when, who has a certain aesthetic for my blog. Why, I consider each post is rather akin to a new chapter in my book. I must say though, I have rather enjoyed turning back the clock and re-visiting my posts from way back..  I had forgotten about a lot of the pretties I had fashioned; and the mad musings which have emanated from my rather muddly mind. I guess that is why we write a blog; a record and visual diary pertaining to our creative life.

Deary, deary me, ever the stylist with an "it's all about the look" aesthetic. As I  am a venerable woman I don't suppose old habits and sensibilities will change now. I was that girl who all through school my work books were  decorated with my Derwent colouring pencils; colourful doodles here, there and everywhere. Even the books pertaining to all things mathematics. But, surely boring calculus, algebra...Pythagoras theorem etc etc needed a little artistic touch. I know artistic squiggles here and there certainly cheered my mathematics lessons. Not quite sure the maths teachers appreciated my artistic bent, though. Why, I always thought (and still do) the hypotenuse of a triangle always looked spiffier transformed by a flowery vine trailing its way up the triangle's sharp incline.

Anyway, besides a little fixer-upper-ing of my blog, there has been a little stitching of my Flowers in Her Hair, Flowers Everywhere, but not much. The bias strips/binding have been taking an age to stitch. Metres upon metres of bias strips have been stitched with tiny stitches skipping up and down each strip; each leaf!  It is rather akin to hand stitching the binding to many quilts; a job which I am not particularly enamoured with. I suppose if one was to think about it I have figuratively stitched the binding on many queen size quilts. Funnily enough, the stitching of all these strips has not been in the least bit boring. Though, I cannot wait to begin to design and stitch what is outside the window. Three more lengths of bias strips to be stitched, skipping up, down.....and up again.

Oh...and I forgot to mention I acquired some more fabric....just a little. =) Why, now that I have culled unwanted fabrics there is some space in my brand, new cupboard waiting for that 'must have' fabric. AND.....this fabric is definitely in the 'must have' category. The fabric is dancing all over with big, bold hydrangeas! Just 'gorjuss'!!!! =) It kinda reminds me of 1960's tablecloth fabric. I have no idea what I will do with it, but I am sure something 'brilliant' will come to mind. It is by designer Robins Pickens and the collection is called Cottage Bleu. There is a quote on the selvedge which says "How calmly blue soothes and sings softly in the sky". Yes indeedy, this gal whose heart is forever blue certainly thinks so.

Fingers crossed I won't disembark from the blogging train for such a long time again, but you never know with me, as I do tend to wander off for a little while. As it is Sunday today, this blogging train is pulling into Kathy's station, picking up all the other ladies who are stitching slowly as we all chugg along. Conversation, a little slow hand stitching and a little enjoyment of the countryside swooshing by, as the steel wheels swish on the steel rails beneath. For me, stitching bias strips, skipping up, down....and up again.

Oh....I forgot to say, those of you who were following my little blog via email, I am afraid I have taken this gadget from my blog. I am still investigating other options. Some of the emails I have been receiving from other bloggers seem to come with a lot of advertising, so as I don't particularly want you to receive all the adds I will wait a while. I will ponder my belly button re this subject for a little while.  If you still want to follow me and read my ramblings each time you can do so by clicking on the 'Follow Me with Bloglovin' link at the top of the page. But then, if you do follow me via email, then I suppose you won't be reading this......oh well. =)

Anyway, thank you for visiting my little place after all this time. It is a joy to have you visit; it really, really is❣ Thank you so much you lovely lovelies who emailed me through this last little while to see if I was okay❣ Beautiful friends, whom although we have never met and probably never will this side of heaven, I consider precious kindred spirits❣ All is well, down here at the bottom of the world. May you enjoy a beautiful Sunday. It has has been a rather chilly one here....but there is a spring to my step as the garden is beginning to come to life whispering to me that my favourite season is thinking about it's arrival on my front doorstep and rat-a-tat-tat on my bright pink, front door. So, so excited❣

Until the next time.............

It's Enough To Drive Some Up The Wall

 

Hello lovely lovelies❣ Welcome to my little place where bold pattern and colour has been the order of my week. Myriad of little leaf-shaped patterns have been affixed to the wall of my Flowers in Her Hair, Flowers Everywhere quilt. There I go again......singing 'that' song over and over. I am afraid this happy little tune is stuck in a groove in my brain, rather much like a broken down record. I of course underestimated just how long the 'wall papering' process would take. I supposed I would have the wall finished in a week to show all you lovelies, but no, I am still sitting here, placing each leaf here and there; but that's okay as I rather love playing with each leaf. I rather love petting all my fabrics. It is always a pleasure for me to re-visit all the lovely fabrics, for yet another time. 

I suppose adhering leaf after leaf onto a 'wall' is enough to drive some up the wall, but me, no; I am having a lovely time. I am loving the explosion of colour and pattern that is unfolding before my very eyes. All the bright and joyous patterns and colours before me are the perfect antidote to the grey, rainy days that have been the order of my wintry week. What I am not enjoying though, is the explosion of fabric that has taken over my usually orderly sewing room. Truly, it looks as if a fabric bomb has been detonated and fabric blown to smithereens. I joked to someone this week saying that if a burglar were to perhaps peek through my window he would see an unholy mess, and thinking I had already been burgled, move on to try his luck at his next intended address where treasures await. Goodness, I am always amazed as to the mess I can whip up in such a little time, with very little effort at all. I am so very good at it.

As I adhered leaves to the wall I began thinking about what fabric I would use for the binding, which would cover the  edges of the leaves. I thought perhaps a solid fabric, but what colour to use?? Black?? Purple?? Mmm....not really. I saw in my mind's eye that a solid cover would look too heavy and too defined. Perhaps a patterned fabric?? But it would have to be a design that blended seamlessly with all the explosion of colour and pattern which sat on the 'wall' before me. So, I went shopping. And....after an inordinate amount of time being betwixt and between, auditioning many bolts of fabrics.....this one.....that one.....I decided on a print which I felt would be perfect. A patterned fabric where there is an allover pattern of flowers and paisley designs in colours of purples, greens, blues and white. I rather love how it blends seamlessly between each patterned leaf.  I love how the binding causes the pattern on each leaf to pop. Yes indeed, a splendid choice, me thinks. With the binding fabric all sorted, I cut lengths and lengths of strips on the bias to make the binding, using my Clover bias tape, thingamajig. After gluing each strip lengthways along the edges of the leaves, I then began to hand applique the binding down. I thought about machine stitching the binding but I thought I might do that later when it is time to quilt. But then I may not; remember, I am making this up as I go. =)

I am off to hand stitch some more binding along my leaves and yes, I am still singing 'that' tune'. =) Such a happy little song. Have a lovely Sunday, lovely lovelies❣ May it be one filled with loveliness, flowers, quilts.....and whatever makes your heart sing❣ Take care❣

Until the next time........

 Linking up his week to Kathy's Slow Sunday Stitching, and

Frédérique's Quilting, Patchwork and Applique