Yippee, The Summer Has Arrived

Its the 23rd of July and the great British summer was delayed until 2 days ago!  I frankly had lost hope.
There has been optimistic planting.

I have planted quick stuff. Cauliflowers, spring onions, radishes and beetroot and I have another of those planters to do some more in in a few weeks time. The egg shells work to some extent but I find searching the slugs out after dark the best defence. I need therapy I gotten rid of so many!  I hate doing it but they were rapidly destroying everything I put out. I wish I had room for hens.

There has been more flower arranging

Today, on my first official holiday, having waded through lots of laundry and some accounts (yuck to both), there has been some sitting outside with the little miss

I have lots of things to get on with in the craft department and it is Christmas in July tomorrow you know!

So, I am going to show off my little plot as its looking kinda ok right now. Yes I could tidy a bit more but life is too short I think. Its really not very big but it is my little slice of paradise. This record is very much for me too so I can look back in the winter and remember what was there when its all dormant, cold and grey. I often go putting things in an apparently empty spot and then find sleepy roots of something else. Hopefully this and the little plan I shall sketch will stop that from happening. So please allow me to indulge myself a bit here. xx

It has really evolved from when we first moved here and set it out. If you want to compare, I did a photo journey about it on my flickr page when I started. Much has been lost and/or changed with rubbish winters and other gardening pitfalls, but it feels really mature now. My OH would rather there were less plants out there I think, but I cant help it, I love plants!

Upcycling!

So last weekend I did a bit of non toy sewing.  I have been meaning to get around to this for a week or two.  I bought my self a gorgeous blouse from Boden.  I thought I would probably wear it with jeans. I did then spot this lightweight needlecord skirt in my wardrobe. Now this skirt has been a bit of a pain to me. Unless I wear it with boots, it does nothing for me at all. The length is all wrong for my leg shape (I don't seem to have the slenderest ankles to my dismay).

 It is quite a lightweight fabric so not ideal for winter wear really and I never wear it in the summer as you might imagine, yet I still couldn't bring myself to ditch it. This made me think.  Nothing to lose other than a wee bit of time and maybe a couple of quid on the right trim. I actually spent longer looking for the fabric than I did doing the work I think. I was about to give up when I found this one under another in John Lewis.
So, I shortened it to just the right length for my stupidly proportioned legs and made some bias from the floral fabric to cover the selvedge. I saw no point in hemming when I could make it beautiful in this way. Then, added a thinner strip over some purple ready made bias further up.  I had intended to add some flowers in the style of this one which I loved. Although, once I reached this point, I thought it was probably just right in the less is more category

 I couldn't get a shot of me in them, but trust me, the length is now the perfect length for me and I realised that these Birkenstocks I have will make it look like I have spent a fortune! Will have to paint those toenails before the sun comes back out though.

New Bag and new fave supplier

Its been so cold in my sewing room I have to say that the knitting has taken preference over the winter.  I dont know what it is about that side of the house, but for a 4 year old house it is like a different climate in the dining room and the sewing room above it. I really dont know how my daughter slept in there in the winter.
However,  having discovered this lovely lady in the teambritannia forum I have fallen in love with sewing again, if not my ageing and very annoying sewing machine. Now, even the cold will not stop me. These handmade buttons are just fantastic and have inspired some new bags.

The first is here, and has a lovely summery feel.  The best thing of all is its reversible, so actually 2 bags in one.  I already have a few more combos planned so leave some buttons for me please.

On a final note, the pattern was from Lisa Lams` Bagmaking Bible which I treated myself to just before Christmas.   Great book with lots of clear instructions and such inspiring pictures.