Summer snapshots - home

The last of my Summer Snapshots posts - home.  I'm not sure that any of us feel as if we're properly home yet.  We definitely love our house even with the squish and the squeeze (currently the boys are sharing a small single bedroom*), and I'm very confident that it will feel like home but at the moment it is all too new - the house, the schools, the activities, even the scenery and surroundings.  It will just take time.

The wild flowers were picked for my new vase, which was a gift from some of our summer visitors.  Do you know Anta?  They design and make wonderful homewares (all materials are sourced and made in this country).  I have coveted their stoneware for quite some time so I couldn't quite believe my luck when I unwrapped the vase. The Anta workshop is not far from here and I'm itching for an opportunity to visit.

John took Finn off for a big boy weekend part way through the holidays.  One day the rest of us collected beach stones, washed and then painted them.  It was a great wee project for us all........apparently the finished stones look very 'pretty' arranged along the wall of the house and Katie takes pride in showing her 'bunnies' to anyone who comes round.

Last but not least I had a little time to do some sewing.  The first for months.  I still have a fair bit to go on this quilt top but it was very satisfying just to sit down and lose myself in the fabric - the patterns, colours, textures - and the planning........ so much planning goes on while I sew!

Katie and I have picked brambles most mornings this week.  Or should I say that I have picked brambles while Katie has eaten them.  She has shared a fair few with the dog too, Susie loves fruit. I'm finding it a really relaxing way to begin the day........wave off the school bus, wander down a footpath to the shore picking as we go, throw some stones or run in the sand and then make our way back home - to remember all the jobs that need doing!  We've eaten brambles most nights through the week and have frozen a few bags too.  I do love free food! Have you had a chance to pick any berries so far this year? 

* There's only space for a small desk between the two beds (each has half of it) and the door doesn't open fully because the room isn't designed for two beds.  They are coping remarkably well especially given that Finn is very messy and disorganised and Angus is the opposite. Finn's hamster, Sporty, is on the floor between the two beds as well.......and that's it, no more space.  We have plans, though, to convert the garage which will give us a fourth bedroom and separate rooms for the boys.  We may also be able to add on a fifth bedroom if we're able to stretch our money and then the girls wouldn't have to share either.  I know that plenty children have to share rooms all through their childhood and if the girls have to carry on sharing that would be fine too, and isn't in any sense a judgement on families who do so - we fully understand the predicament, we have always had at least two of ours sharing!  If we can manage a fifth bedroom it would feel like such a luxury and really help with overnight visitors. 

Ribbed hats for baby girls

So far we're having a good year for baby girls. I wanted to make gifts for two special wee girls but just didn't have the chance, with all the moving shenanigans, to sew up cute wee trousers or dresses (which would have been really fun). Since I really did want to make them something I had to rely on my fledgling knitting skills........somewhat risky but I think I pulled it off.

I went back to the Boyfriend Hat pattern having successfully adapted it for John.  I played around with the basic pattern until I got a length and depth of hat that seemed right.  I used one of Katie's hats as a template and aimed for 6 to 18 month size.

The yarn is Rowan Kid Classic (a lambswool and mohair mix - I wanted these hats to be very soft) and I knit double with Feather and Tearose.  I decided I couldn't go too far wrong with a colour as pretty as Tearose for baby girls!  Ravelled here.

Clearly Katie is a little big for the hats, but that is as it should be as she is two and a half, and despite the rather odd perched-on-top look she was very happy to model for me (long may that continue) - I wasn't rash enough to ask her to stay still, I just chased her around with the camera while she scooted. 

I raided my stock for bibs to go with the hat for my cousin's wee girl.  There wasn't a lot of point sending bibs for Sarah's baby.  Sarah and her mum came to my bib class at The Stitch Gathering and I know they have since made some for Molly - so a couple of favourite lotions were sent off with Molly's hat instead.

Other random bits and pieces::

:: John set off for his new job in Inverness on Monday, and he tells me his bike commute this morning (from Avoch, on the Black Isle, to Inverness) was simply stunning

:: we think we may be making progress on the house - fingers crossed

:: we may also have somewhere to buy.......with only a few homeless days in between

:: if it all falls into place we will be moving very soon, scarily soon in fact, but we can't actually do anything until things firm-up on our house

:: the sun is shining, isn't it wonderful?

:: Charlie, the cat, is determined to sit on my knee while I type, he is not a help but he is lovely

:: I have made this dip for the kids' snack this afternoon

:: I want to try making gorse flower and honey icecream

:: this article really has me thinking, I try to give my kids a fair bit of freedom, and believe it is very important, but I think I may not be going nearly far enough.....this article is very thought provoking.  Please do read it.  What do you think?

I do hope that the sun is shining with you too.  I'll be back as soon as possible with a little giveaway.

Christmas sewing - linen messenger bag or 'Africa Adventure Bag'!

I can't tell you how delighted I was when mum asked me to make her a bag for Christmas.  Mum does not do ostentation and she only has a small handful of bags, each of which has been with her for many years - every one has it's own purpose and she wouldn't just buy a bag on the spur of the moment, only ever if she actually needed it.

So, to be trusted with making one to replace her 'Africa Adventure Bag' was quite an honour (and also a little scary)!  Once I'd said yes to the challenge, mum sent me the dimensions and layout of her current, but falling apart, bag and some specifics about what she was looking for (this was all done in a very scientific and methodical way......that's my mum, she reminds me so much of my grandad, her dad, who was an engineer - and very engineer-like when it came to details).

The specifics included mention of 'room for binoculars, passport, tissues, suncream, sunhat and lipsalve'.  And the following fabric request 'tough material and dirt resistant colours! Present bag tough cotton lined in black'.  Travelling in rural parts of Africa is a grubby business!

All went ahead pretty much as mum requested.  I tried to persuade her to have an adjustable strap or inner zip pocket but they weren't needed.  But I did manage to get an internal key fob and zip for the main compartment added to the spec - yay!

I used linen for the main and lining fabric (full details below) - suitably tough and dirt resistant I hope.  I based the bag on this tutorial but made a lot of adjustments.  I added a zip for the main compartment (to keep those binoculars safe), under the flap there's a patch pocket and a big lined zip pocket (for passport and other documents).  The pattern suggests attaching the flap part way down the back of the bag but I thought it would be neater, and stronger, if attached at the top between the main and lining fabric.  The flap is closed with a loop of black elastic and a vintage horn button which I have been saving for something special.

And there you have it - mum's new 'Africa Adventure Bag'.  She seems very pleased with it and, as we speak, it is off on it's first African adventure.  Having been home (from South Africa) for three weeks over Christmas, mum and dad set off yesterday for Uganda.  After a couple of weeks there - including trekking to see mountain gorillas and chimpanzees - they will be back in South Africa until early April.  That's the life, eh?!

I'd love to know if you and your mum are bag people, or essentials only like mine........I have to confess to having a little bit of a thing for bags (and I battle with my conscience if I see something that I like but don't need - if we ever have more spare money I think I could build up a little collection)

Details:
Pattern - the basis of this bag was mmmcrafts basic messenger bag, I changed the dimensions slightly and attached the flap differently.  I referred to Lisa Lam's The Bag Making Bible for the concealed top edge zip and lined zip pocket.  I also added a patch pocket, key fob and piping
Fabric - Essex Yarn Dyed Linen in Black and Ellen Luckett Baker Triangles in Grey
Notions - black hair band for elastic and large vintage horn button for closure
Comments - I loved sewing this bag - and feel pretty proud of it.  In some ways having quite specific requirements made it harder, but at the same time it was much more satisfying to make something just right.

Wise Old Owl - Katie's handmade birthday

Wise Old Owl is Angus' birthday present for Katie.  Angus had actually started making the owl for himself but when Islay and I made her the teddy carrier he decided that he'd like to give the owl to Katie.

Angus made pretty much all of owl himself - except for hand sewing the gap once owl was stuffed.

 I asked Katie to show me how much she loves owl.  I think she loves him quite a lot!

Details:
Pattern - Wise Old Owl from Sewing For Children by Emma Hardy
Fabric - bought in Tanzania by my sister-in-law
Felt - wool felt scraps leftover from other projects, bought from The Village Haberdashery and Myriad 
Comments - a great wee pattern although the template has to be enlarged which always frustrates me (that was too much faff for Angus and me so we just sketched it out to a similar shape and guessed the size). Angus machine sewed most of it although it can be hand-sewn

Katie loves her Wise Old Owl and Angus is very proud that he was able to make something for her. 

Wishing you all a lovely weekend, especially those of you who have been celebrating Thanksgiving.

Adventure Bag - the trial run

I've realised that there is very little to show for the sewing I've been doing lately.  I've been preparing for a class that I'm teaching tonight (aarrgghh!) and a craft show a fortnight today - so, once again, getting folksy up and running has been put onto the back burner.  

In the October holidays, though, I set aside some time to work on a wee Adventure Bag.  I have long wanted to make a little children's bag - one that is robust and fun.  My first attempts, such a long time ago now, just weren't right (although Islay and Katie still play with it a lot).  And then quilts and baby blankets and bibs, and actual babies, took over.  But I have kept the thought ticking over.

I knew I wanted a bag suited to a boy as well as a girl (although, realistically, it will probably appeal to girls for a longer range of time).  I also wanted it to be suitable for a wide age range.  And fully lined.  And fun.  And not too costly.  So - a lot of requirements for a little bag.  But a sudden idea about how to make the straps adjustable and then realising that portholes would be perfect for giving a peep of colour on a robust linen exterior got me all excited.  I really couldn't wait to get it sketched out, planned and sewn.

And here are the first versions of my Adventure Bag.  I used a couple of fun fat quarters from The Stitch Gathering.  They are lovely but not really me or quite Forest Poppy.  The mermaids will be a gift for  a wee friend of Islay's and I have plans for the robots too.

The fabric below is set aside for some proper Forest Poppy Adventure Bags.  I can't wait to get sewing!

Teddy and doll carrier - Katie's handmade birthday

Katie turned two last month and an adoring set of older siblings meant she was a very lucky girl.  All the children wanted to make her something and their gifts are so lovely I thought I'd share them.

This wee teddy carrier was Islay's idea and she chose the fabric too - I did most of the sewing but Islay was very involved in a supervisory kind of way...............repeatedly asking when I would be able to make it and hovering over my shoulder and breathing in my ear while I was making it!

Katie isn't too keen on carrying her baby in it but she does love to carry Ele around.  It is especially useful when arranging fabric scraps.....two free hands and Ele is still close by.  That, in Katie's book, is a very good thing.

Details:
Pattern - bear carrier from 'Oliver and S - Little Things to Sew' by Liesl Gibson
Fabric - Yay Day (Birch Forest and Wings of Love) and Essex Yarn Dyed Linen in Black from The Village Haberdashery
Buttons - vintage buttons
Comments - a straightforward pattern, straps are really long on a shorty like Katie but do leave lots of growing room, it is adjustable so will fit a small toy like Ele or a much larger teddy or doll, I love the fabric.....a lot