collections part 1.....

.....another afternoon,idled away in the sunshine....bliss!

(click on my flickr photostream-right- for descriptions)

dusty day.....

.....a  crisp,frosty day with the most glorious luminous light-perfect for photos without a flash.Also perfect for exposing a winters worth of dust,did I get out my feather duster? Did I heck I got out my trusty old camera instead! These were taken around my workroom,in the tidy spots! So many treasures....

Grey sky,red shoes......

......January is the time for new beginnings,a fresh start,a clean page,the first chapter in the 2010 year-book,so much potential,my head is dancing with imaginings on a grand scale for this decade of dreams! Dreams of;stitching,drawing,making-sorting,gleaning,baking,writing-reading,reading,reading!!!!!! But January is not an eager participant in all this activity,it's brooding & sulky after all that December merrymaking-occasionally cracking a smile with some winter sunshine. My mind may be turning cartwheels but the flesh is weak & I fight a daily battle to stop me from doing this..................... ......& as well as taking comfort between the,all enveloping,pages of my new book,my ears are being soothed & caressed by the velvety tones of Morrissey,whilst I fritter away the first month of this year of promise.....its all in the planning!

.....however,having cast aside the brooch I started stitching during the 'snow' (it wasn't holding my attention) I took up with an old friend instead-this was a little vintage doll I started 're-dressing' last year,it was to be for my mama for Christmas until time ran out! This is a little 'hobby' of mine which I find very therapeutic-I buy old souvenir costume dolls,which are in abundance at car boots across the land,those funny little dolls brought back from happy holidays,cherished in childhood then abandoned.I strip off their 'national' attire & then make new tiny clothes for the plastic people,the dolls themselves are so charming with their chubby cheeks & quirky expressions,I have always had a soft spot for them and have adopted many dolly orphans over the years. Some of my favourites have macabre painted toes in place of shoes,this little cupie however has painted ankle socks & red shoes,she also has spiky fingers & a very stroppy demeanour-I love her! Here she is in my 'sofa-sewing' box,most cross at having to wait for me,originally she was dressed in a kind of Dutch costume but with a dear little felt pixie hood which I retained & trimmed-the red shoes & hat meant she was destined to become Red Riding Hood in polka dots...........

...........so,here she is today,all dressed up,just before going to live with her new mama-better late than never-such a cutie pie but still stroppy-mama is used to naughty girls,she had 2 of her own!

This big girl needs to pull her thermal socks up & seize the day before January becomes February,there will always be grey days but there beats within a bright red shiny heart!

Work in progress......

.....at last there is some stitching going on here! After a frolic in the snow,me & the snow babies spent an afternoon infront of the goggle box,fire blazing up the chimney,chipping away at dad's Toblerone. I started on this brooch last night,late last night-a habit of mine,I am an owl never a lark. Wonderful to wake the next morning & remember you have a new project in the offing,like opening your eyes & seeing the shoes you bought yesterday,waiting to be worn-since childhood I have left new shoes where I can see them when I wake. While the mornings chores were carried out, the sewing was begging my attention downstairs,while upstairs my book was trying to get me back into bed-as it was I managed a bit of both,it is a very good book! As for the brooch,the idea is a kind of cameo,the pendant part attaches onto the bow by means of a very vintage hook & eye,which is part of a large ebay haul I never knew what to do with-until now! The 'portrait' is drawn & stitched,I am unsure how to finish the raw edge-blanket stitch maybe-as the pendant can be unhooked & turned round I can put another design on the reverse. A nice little project to start the year & get 'paperdolly' up & running (ok jogging) again. If only I could read at the same time,I can hear the Brontes calling me up to bed.......

Part 2 of the year that was.......

.....by mid 2009,settled once more into our old home,complete with fully functioning workroom,I could begin the slow process of getting back to 'work' once more. Being without a workspace had not prevented the creative imaginings & there was (still is) a backlog of new projects waiting to be given form. Much like being on a diet & torturing oneself with fantasy food,my mind,had for many months been fixated on cloth & haberdashery,& the procuring of it-the growing hoard of fabric,buttons & trimmings,waiting & winking,like a guilty stash of chocolate! Where to start.....stitchers block loomed,my once nimble fingers awkward & unwieldy,afraid to make a snip or stitch-beautiful cloth had become the pristine first page of a new sketchbook, my fine spiky needle,a jumbo black marker pen! Help was at hand in the unlikely form of a JML mini sewing machine,those child-size portable '.....ideal for home or caravan (?)...'machines,as seen on TV & in those gadget catalogues for the over 60s,who on earth would buy one of those things?Someone with a fear of full sized sewing machines & a co-ordination defect,that's who! Yes my mama is a skilled seamstress,but I emerged from the gene pool at the-unable to follow instructions/patterns,hold things properly,operate machinery,catch a ball-end,so the mysteries of dressmaking have always eluded me! But in need of chintzy cushions for my chintzy sofa & with a stack of Cath Kidstons charming florals,I got my JML fired up-ok,revving,its a Metro not a Ferrari-no bells or whistles,just straight(ish) lines stitched at a snails pace (though it will do tortoise speed for the more advanced user!) & produced a pile of cushions of which I was inordinately proud. In the meantime my nimble fingers had,once more, become needy of needle & thread & I had conquered a small machine.....just don't ask me to play catch!

..... meanwhile, Mr M was making busy out of doors-2009 saw the return of the island allotments & ours (I use the term loosely) is conveniently placed right outside the workroom window,perfect for spectator gardening! This is the second coming of Mr's foray into gardeners world,the first time being 7 years ago,when he grew vegetables & became infamous for his abundant sweet peas & my mama has never forgotten his giant onions,that would have walked first prize in any horticultural show! Instead,this time,much to my delight he planted his plot with cut flowers-row upon row of rainbow flowers,Dahlias,Snap-Dragons,Lupins,Ranunculas,Painted Daisys,Gladiolis & Sweet Peas of course,all ripe for the picking! The miracle of a tiny seed becoming a glorious bloom is akin to magic-of course Mr M is no Mr Magica,but he is a natural born gardener,happy to tend,hoe,weed & water until the light has left the sky or rampant midges drive him in & woe betide the foolish slug hoping for a tasty midnight feast-Mr M is armed with a torch & he will seek you out! So all Summer long,the flowers kept coming-much like the magic porridge pot in the fairy tale,I shouted 'stop'when all possible receptacles were full! The allotment now lies dormant,all bare earth & stubble,sleeping just beneath its surface Tulip,Daffodil & Snowdrop bulbs,Mr M head in a book-plots & plans his Spring sowing scheme & I sit back & wait for the magic to begin.........

I can't be sure why,but the overriding theme for our year 2009 seems to be domesticity,I think it came with the move back home & the need to nest or maybe its an age thing! What is domestic bliss,different things to different people I know,does anyone ever attain it & if they do,do they even realise it? Not long after we had moved in,a neighbour happened to glance in our sitting room window one Sunday afternoon & catch the 4 of us in a snapshot moment,looking they said like a 1940s family-Daddy reading in the easy chair next to the fire,Mummy sitting sewing by the light of the standard lamp,children-one of each-sat on the floor playing quietly! As I said,this was a glimpse,from the outside looking in-it didn't sound like our life,more like an illustration from a vintage children's book,none the less I loved that,in that moment this was how we had appeared.....

......so still in pursuit of domesticity,May 2009 saw the baking of my first cake!Pre-36,the baking had been confined to Home Economics lessons & some half-hearted attempts with mama. Always the perfectionist,I found the inconsistency of the resulting fare frustrating & disappointing & then there was the washing up! So I shelved any plans I had to become Delia, and was happy just to eat the cake of others,without envy. Then-It-happened,cake envy....at the birthday party of a child,how shameful....my friend had baked a delicious Devils Food cake,all dark & brooding-moist,shiny sponge topped with glossy chocolate buttercream,far too 'adult' for a kids party-an object of desire for young & old alike! Ruby carried home her slice of heaven with as much care,as if it had been a baby bird,then enjoyed every chocolatey mouthful-saying it was the best she had ever tasted....it was then I wanted a slice,not of the cake,but of the glory! So that weekend I took my first tentative steps,armed only with a baking tray & without a recipe book until I remembered that in my Ladybird book collection,I had a copy of Learning to Cook from the 70s, bought for 10p-purely for its retro photos of kids in flares & acrylic polo necks cooking with mum! Alas,no recipes for Devils Envy cake-a little ambitious for a first timer (or a freckled face boy in acrylic)-so I settled for flapjack & shortbread,revelling in the homely smell of my kitchen & the approval of my taste-testers! Humble beginnings,but I was hooked & set about acquiring the tins,spoons,sieves-I would need to bake a cake that would set hearts afire,Ruby's birthday was round the corner,imagine how delighted she would be to have 'that' cake & for it to have been made by her mother! I asked my friend for the recipe that would conjure up such a cake......'Oh,actually Its a Betty Crocker...packet mix!'.....bubble burst!.........

however.....I kept going & have progressed a little from Ladybird,though I still use the shortbread recipe,& I have a limited repertoire,choosing perfection over diversity (less chance of failure!),baking highlights,making my own Battenburg-well worth the effort & in July having a cake stall all of my own! As for the Devils own cake.....Betty Crocker got the better of me on that one.......

Amidst all these pastures new,rolling out over the past 12 months,there are times when,life at best can seem un-remarkable,at worst a little dull,as they say...thats life! But,looking back on our year through my photos,it was a memorable year,a year like no other.....& heres to the next one..........

That was the year that was.......

.....2009,is fast departing us,time to reflect maybe or even just sort out the photos on my computer,same thing really!Here's some of my 'best bits'.......
In February,we got what we like to call snow,sorry to be a killjoy-but really it was more like Slush Puppy or the ground ice made by a Mr Frosty machine!But it was enough to create a picturesque landscape & more importantly to make a mini snowman,Ruby's 3rd (in 10yrs),Georges 1st!

In May we lost a dear old friend,our tabby cat Mog-aged about 16.Mog came to live with us not long after we had left the mainland & moved to our island home,she had been living with an old lady & a blind Yorkie dog-Mr Magoo-having turned up on their doorstep one day,looking for a new start!So the 3 of us started our life together,all learning as we went along & readjusting with each new addition to our family,kittens & babies-Mog disliked both in equal measure!She was quite the celebrity,spending her days with the tourists,having her photo taken & even letting them pick her up,her daily diet was supplemented with titbit's & clotted cream! Each evening with the lowering of the castle flag she would return to us with a round belly,fur smelling of the perfume & cologne of her adoring public!At home,it was affection on her terms,she barely tolerated her 3 furry brothers,let alone her 2 legged siblings & was a very fussy eater,but how we loved her & we treated her like a little person.By May our elegant feline had become a little old lady,thin & bow legged,seeking out the sunny patches as always,but mostly spending her days in her igloo,head always poking out-keeping an eye on things!How enormous is the gap left in our lives when these little creatures leave our side.........

......so,in July we decided our 3 furry boys needed a new mistress,enter a scrawny little tortoiseshell cat called Honey age 2!We all know the Internet can be dangerous,in this case it was fatal-do not google your local re homing centres unless you are prepared to have your heartstrings tugged at most severely!The animal equivalent of an NSPCC advert,these websites are not for the feint hearted or recently bereaved!So it was that Honey found her way into our hearts & our well used cat basket one rainy afternoon this Summer.She had been brought to the RSPCA,a stray with newborn kittens,long gone by the time we met-thank goodness-else we would've come home with 3,no doubt!The little scrap of tortoiseshell has blossomed into a rotund ball of fur,despite her idyllic surroundings she prefers to stay at home & eat,like the previous mistress she dislikes the fur boys & is not keen on our 2 legged rogue & his noisy,light sabre wielding ways!We are honoured with the odd knee sitting session usually as a means to getting fed,yet how grateful we are for these moments,on any terms!

Sometime in Spring,I finally sorted out my workroom.....

We moved back into the fully restored lodge house,that is our home,in the run-up to Christmas 2008,this was the 2nd time in 3 years.....since we had first moved in we had aquired a boy child,boy toys & a mountain of-stuff!I hold my hands up,mostly,my stuff-mama,I place the blame for this firmly at your door-brought up as I was amid the glory days of the jumble sale,village bazaar & best of all,flea market-where mama often had a stall!So the seed was sown,fed & watered,until a bumper crop of stuff had been harvested,packed in boxes & moved from house to house,loft to loft!This time however I was determined it was not going back in the loft,it had to be sorted-by me-& so,as it had its own room,I shut the door & left it!However the room it was occupying was also to be my workroom/studio & I had ambitious plans for it,having bought 2 lovely old shop counters-crying out to be filled with haberdashery & well,stuff!The room was originally used as a Parish Room,for parish meetings & social gatherings & is full of character,granite windows & an enormous fireplace,oak beams & an original parquet floor,in the half of the house that is in the castle grounds,it looks out on the gardens-away from the tourists!Like a scaled down version of rooms in the castle,it is at the same time filled with light & best of all,birdsong-perfect as a studio.So having ignored the skyscraper boxes for months & being without a workspace,I took courage & locked myself away ....several weeks,several trips to the charity shop,recycling bank & skip later,I realised my dreams & my drapers shop-workroom was born!Here I am surrounded by my treasures,one counter is used for storage (it holds lots of-stuff!),the other for displaying my collection of vintage haberdashery-gorgeous lace,ribbon,buttons,so many buttons,sylko threads,doilies,table linens,more buttons-all the lovely materials for my work.It is a very inspiring space,for which I am eternally grateful....& no more boxes.......well,just small ones.....