Knitting .....'Tis The Weather For It ♡

   

Hello lovely lovelies♡ Well, a new month has ushered in. The month of May. Goodness, each month seems to disappear quicker than the previous one. May; the last month of autumn. It certainly has brought with it cooler days. So, of course, a fire is needed. A cosy, crackling fire to warm the cockles of my heart.....and toes. Love the hypnotic, open fire in the parlour.

The garden♡ Besides the autumnal toned, hydrangeas, all the flowers have disappeared. The dahlias, cosmos; the roses......have all vanished. No flowers!! Whatever will I do??!! Not to despair, two beautiful friends gifted me some gorgeous, autumnal, Australian native flowers this week; proteas and leucadendrons; so all is not lost.  I must say though I have been creating beauty with fallen leaves, branches laden with tiny red berries and whatever other autumnal foliage I could find. There is much beauty in an autumnal garden. I must savor it while I can. Though, there are the flowers in the fernery to add pops of colour to my little place. These flowers just keep on keeping on. I have a feeling this little glass room might keep my soul smiling through the dark and dismal months of winter.

Thank you so very, very much for the gift of your beautiful comments re my 'little' bag last week. It has been out and about with me, filling up as I flitted around the shops. One of my purchases which 'fell' into my carry-all was a tall figurine of a willowy lady with dress billowing in the wind; a crown of flowers in her hair and a sweet flower cupped in her hands.  She is so pretty. Why, I have named her Lady of the Flowers. She is going to keep watch over all the flowers in the fernery. =)

Would you believe I have been imagining another bag??!! I hadn't meant to, but while I was tidying up after the mess which enveloped my sewing room from last week, I became distracted with some more pretties and I inadvertently happened upon another vintage coverlet, AND...I became sidetracked and skipped along another bag making path. I know; who would've thunk it. 'Tis hard to believe that I might wander off the straight and narrow path, but there you go. Perhaps though, that is a story for another day.

Bag making imaginations aside, and styling Lady of the Flowers among all the pretty flowers, this week I picked up my knitting again of my kimono jacket. Gosh, it's been a while since the quiet has been interrupted by the clickety clack of my needles. As this is the weather to be knitting (it is also the weather for quilting....but....) and I would like to wear my knitted woolly sooner rather than much, much later I decided to enjoy a little knitting. I have finished the left side and have just started the right side. If I remember correctly the last time my woolly was chatted about here was when a wayward cable went off in the opposite direction, completely slipping my attention. Hence, I unravelled much of what was knitted; picking up the stitches once again and moving in an upward direction along the correct cabled path. Such a pain in the right royal proverbial. But enough about that; all is well now and the knitting needles are moving once more, knitting in a rythmic fashion.

I have spent moments in the fernery, knitting as well. If perchance Old Man Sun's sunshiny countenance smiles upon me then it's off to the fernery I go. My aim in life is to follow the warmth. =)

I potted up a few pansies up this week. Pansies are such cheerful little flowers with the sweet kitten-like faces. Slowly I am acquiring different pots in which to plant all the plants in the fernery. A little while ago, my Pete built me a potting bench just outside the door of the fernery. As with the fernery, he used reclaimed wood with layers and layers of peeling paint; just the way I like it.  As we all know potting flowers can be a dirty business so a potting bench was needed where I could make as much mess as needs be. Not only is it fabulous for the messy potting of pots, and alas, when potting up flowers I do make one helluva mess, but it is a fabulous prop for photo shoots, of course. =) A win, win, if you were to ask me.

'Tis Sunday afternoon here. A dull, cloud-filled sky, kinda Sunday, but here in the parlour all is well. The fire is a-crackling and I am happily knitting away. It must be time for a cuppa. It's off with me to put the kettle on. Thank you, lovely lovelies, for stopping my little autumnal place where as always, much fun was had with the taking of much too many happy snaps. So, so, sorry.....but I do love to tell a story with my happy snaps. Later on this evening I will join the other lovely lovelies who gather together for a little stitching....knitting....crocheting; over at Kathy's place. Hoping your Sunday is a pleasant one♡ Sprinkling a little beauty and love into your day♡

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

A New Bag♡

 

Hello lovely lovelies♡ So, so delighted for your sweet visit to my little autumnal place. Thank you♡ I wonder, how has your week been?? Here in my little autumnal place, it was a pleasant one. The days have been pearlers with sunshine shooing away chilly mornings and hanging around until it disappears behind the mountains with dusk settling in. I have spent a good part of my days in the fernery soaking up the warmth of the sunbeams, dancing upon me and the flower pots. Here inside the fernery I feel as if I am in a little glass cocoon away from the cool autumn days, with the beauty of nature just outside the windows. So, so delightful.

Sitting in the fernery, basking in the sunshine, I have been playing with twirls of ribbons, doilies, needlepoints, vintage Italian coverlets and whatever other pretties nudged me to capture my attention; for I was in the mood to fashion a new bag. I never tire of playing with all my pretties, and if they morph into a new bag; then all the better. It's always a good idea to fashion a new bag....well at least I think it is.

Though my favourite style of bag is a crossbody bag, this time I wanted to stitch a big carry-all, kinda bag with cane handles. When out and about shopping I am sometimes in need of a bag which will carry all my purchases. I hate carrying lots of individual bags for each purchase. It can sometimes be a bit of a pain when one has to check that one has everything. So, a big carry-all sounded like a fabulous idea. And I must say I am delighted with what is the finished result. My new carry-all ain't too shabby at all.

So, as I am wont to do when fashioning a bag, I chose a remnant of an Italian coverlet, a needlepoint (as it seems every bag I stitch demands a pretty flower needlepoint)  and played with doilies, ribbons, braids, little leftover flowers from past projects and began to play; design and then stitch.  When happy with what was before me I then sewed the bag together. For the lining, I used the reverse side of the coverlet fabric, stitched an over-big pocket to one side and then inserted the handles, hand sewing the flaps down. The flaps had to be stitched by hand as there was such a lot of bulky thickness. My sewing machine would have thrown a hissy fit and refused  to sew through all the fabrics. I stitched a rectangular flap for closing the bag and then embellishing said flap with a blousy flower from ribbon which I ruched. I then stitched this onto some lovely green, wired french ribbon to skip around the ribbon flower. Then, just because I am that gal who considers more is never enough I fastened a pretty vintage brooch which I have had for yonks. Care to have a bo peep at happy snaps of the process?? Why, of course you do. =)

I love my new bag. It's roomy and will carry all those bits and pieces that one accumulates when out and about shopping for the day. The wonderful thing about this bag, and for most of my bags actually, is I never have to step outside my door to find the required pretties needed to fashion a bag. Everything can be found in the plethora of suitcases sitting in my sewing room, in readiness to be showcased into a new pretty. Love having my own little haberdashery shop inside my home.

It is late Sunday evening here. My bed is calling out and who am I to resist. I am supposing your Sunday in the northern hemisphere is just beginning as mine here at the bottom of the world is nearing its end. It has been a long day but a lovely one. I jumped crawled out of bed very early this morning  to continue working on my bag which I finished within a couple of hours. Then it was off to lunch at some beautiful friends' home which is always a highlight in my days. So, so thankful for lovely friends, delicious food, delightful conversation, a beautiful bunch of flowers from a beautiful friend, blue sunny skies, sunny cocoon of a fernery, pretty ribbons and laces to fashion pretty new bags...and so very thankful for you♡ Why, I have so very much to be thankful for♡ Have a beautiful day, lovely lovelies; with sprinkles of sunshine and love♡ Let your light shine in your little corner of the world♡

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

Linking up to Kathy's Slow Sunday Stitching.