Lilys House

pretty in pink

How's this for a match made in heaven....

just the faintest sliver of the dusky pink velvet caught my eye as I passed the wicker basket in the charity shop.................I held my breath and dug deeper - one curtain........two curtains.........three curtains, this time a beautiful peach.........and.......oh my....what could that be right at the very bottom........................the most gorgeous double flannel sheet you ever did see!
Perfect recipe for a little girls bag handed to me on a platter. To top it off the lady shoved it all into an outsize carrier and said £3 the lot ! I nearly fainted with delight (I am very sad like that) as she chucked in the bagful of buttons I was clutching for free.

This does not happen everyday, I can tell you. In fact I find it's a bit of a feast or famine scenario with the old thrifting game, don't you?

Ha! It really doesn't take a lot to please me, such a cheap date!

meet ivy

Inspired by leaves I bought back back from our freezing Saturday walk..........

this bag came into being

I love the shape and colour of ivy and have fancied it on the side of a bag for ages. So here it is. Its a bigger version of the usual, a nice deep, cosy hole for everything bar the kitchen sink!

Delays

I had really hoped to post up a pic of the new bag today but unexpected stuff, including feeling like a complete zombie due to work and unresolved tension issues with the sewing machine - are getting in the way of completion.
Having said that I am off into the sewing den to see what I can muster up tonight..................BUT I have an early appointment and will not be able to photo any results in the morning... Ho hum, just the way it goes I guess.
Just one 'off' day seems to throw such a spanner in the works round here!

Anyway - not to linger on that. I will leave you with some more photos I took earlier, and get off this thing and make some of these (couldn't resist when I saw them - thanks Amanda)...

Sorry - gratuitous holly shot - had to happen sooner or later. Plenty more where this came from ;)

Happy weekend and Thanksgiving to anyone over the pond!

'our' time

Lunch........

I am bad at eating regularly and if alone will just grab something if I'm hungry without being tied to times. This I understand, is not good and not a trait I want to pass on to the children.
About six months ago I decided that I really needed to make the effort to sit and eat with them, rather than use the time to empty the dishwasher, do laundry or any other job.

So now everyday we eat together like this at lunchtime and it truly is 'our' time, a little chance to catch up and to take a breath. I enjoy it so much , despite finding it hard to stop and well, just stop.
This sounds obvious - but I really didn't get how my dashing around affected mealtimes.
Not to mention being pounced on from a great height...........

We usually have 'soupbreadcheese' as Maddie would say! Today a golden soup of squash and leeks.
Tea time is a bit fragmented for various reasons, but I'm working on it.

Right - moving on from that little reflection....thought you might like to see what came in the post today...super Etsy japanese fat quarter....

and the groovetastic pillowcases I found for 50p each

The softest, softest flannel and such seasonal colours - I was very pleased with myself.

one in the making

<

I have a little helper now and then. One that is epecially interested in the pins.........
So I let her do her 'pinning' whilst I get on with mine. Strict rules apply though. No pins outside of sewing area, no pins without mummy, no pins in keyholes, cat baskets or any other dubious tiny crack.

Mostly she's content with this and despite the odd pricked finger (I'm a great believer in experiential learning ;) seems fascinated with the piercing of cloth.

I love it that she's interested, and that she is happy to sit and get involved in what I love doing.

Lily is also a creative girlie and was given my lovely Singer Stylist to practice with. It promptly died, through no fault of her own I may add. A gear has gone and I've been told it's not worth replacing as soon the other parts will follow suit. It was Mamas (my grandmothers) old machine and I loved it. It was solid and smooth and played ball with me when I wanted to bend the rules a little. I'd had it about 10 years.
I'm looking around for a substitute for poor Lils.

I'm currently using a newish Brother machine that my Dad kindly gave me on permanent loan. We are still in the getting to know you phase.........It has lots of nice labour saving bits and pieces, but it just doesn't feel like my old faithful. It's getting easier though as time goes on and it's little ways become more familiar. We may be friends yet.

Meanwhile, goodbye dear old thing....

getting a bit done

Introducing a new member of the bag family!

(dodgy pic - it's so dark here at the moment)

The first one is always a learning curve and a very valuable exercise. It's always exciting making ideas real. I wanted to make a little handbag, sturdy and hardwearing but soft. A friend very kindly gave me a whole roll of deep brown velvet, which was like a dream come true. As you all know, I love using wool and the lining of this bag is recycled blanket, dyed a dusky, browny pink. It's squashy and cuddly, perfect for the weather. So this one's for you Pam!

A pile of cut outs awaits me, different combinations of fabrics and shape. Just experimenting at the moment really, seeing what works. I feel that bags mustn't only be lovely to look at and tactile but practical too.
Now I have fully grasped the whole lining thing (a bit of a mental block for ages), I've realised that I can really make a bag any shape I want. A bit of a lightbulb moment....

Just to make you laugh though, whilst the creativity was in full flow, something else was flowing in the front room..........................

That got my attention alright!
Bless her, she was mortified at being caught out (it had been covertly snuck from the fridge) and ran and wetted some loo roll under the tap to help me clear it up. I just had to give her a big cuddle she was so upset. In case you were wondering, I do feed the children, they don't usually have to resort to stealing food!! The fridge has just been discovered as a treasure chest of delights..................

out on the windy moors.....

In the summer we take a picnic, a blanket to sit on and just soak in the view, the birds, the trickling stream. Abundant bracken and gorse, springy grass.
We have our own special rock that we always sit against. The whole day can be spent in total tranquility. Us just enjoying 'being' in this beautiful landscape and the children content to run around jumping over the streams and climbing rocks. No traffic noise, just the faint bleating of sheep. Its lovely to see the children in this environment, away from distractions, just reconnecting with the earth beneath their feet. Its amazing, truly grounding. Something special happens up there and when we come down from the moor it feels like coming back down to reality.

In the winter, its beautiful in different ways. Wild and a little harsh. Windswept but still breathtaking. The hardy little ponies in small groups. Seeing the 'weather' on distant hills. Bracing to say the least.

It was bitterly cold and my hands were almost numb holding the camera. Maddie and I stayed lower and out of the wind whilst the others braved the tops. As we were getting ready to leave the clouds blackened and an eerie yellow light flooded over. It was very atmospheric - felt like I was in The Lord of the Rings and an army of orcs were about to pop over the horizon!

We felt invigorated and alive, if frozen. Maddie couldn't stop jumping up and down on the rocks saying her new favourite word 'fantastic' !

Exactly.

first frost

Well it came today - a nice minus 1 degrees!
Such a beautiful morning, sun bursting through the trees, crunchy grass, frosted up car. I LOVE this time of year, love dressing up in warm things, seeing our breath in the air.

As far as other things go I've been getting on with the bags 'du jour'. The Vintage Magpie will hopefully have a shop on etsy soon and we need to build a little stock! With all the Christmas gift making going on, these have been on a bit of a back burner. I am itching, itching to get some bags of cut out and will be playing with some new designs. Lifes little jobs and hurries and worries seem to be blocking my path to the scissors and the cloth and the creative flow. Its a bit frustrating as ideas are bursting out of my head, to the point of not sleeping because I'm trying to work out just how that band fits on that seam etc. Anybody else do this or am I the only sad one!

Still , I have managed a bit over the last couple of weeks.

This one has gone to Tess Designs in Ashburton along with some others made by myself and Nicky

This winged its way to my lovely sister after the birth of her daughter Minerva.

There are more, but I'll roll them out slowly so as not to bore! (rhyme totally not intended!)

Maybe the weekend will bring a little time. We have family to stay so it will be fun whatever.

Have a lovely weekend..........

back indoors

Well after all the fresh air feel of yesterday, I bring you back into the warm of the kitchen:

I'm currently enjoying these a bit too much. My little treat I tell myself. They may be free from wheat, gluten and dairy but unfortunately not sugar, glucose syrup and more sugar. Still I only eat one at a time (yeah right).

Bolstered up by the macaroon(s) and coffee I ventured to my local charity shop where I found this

for my scissors, pinking shears and anything else tall.....and these

which will just stand on display I think.......and this

which I think will make great bag linings................it's a sheet so I'm sure it will end up as many things!

getting colder

I just have to put up some more photos of the lovely Autumn colours. Everyones doing it I know, but I am truly stunned everytime we go out at the moment. This year seems particularly special, the colours more vibrant. At last we have got a very distinct chill in the air (ok - its blinking cold!) and the gloves, hats and blankets for the pushchair are coming out.

Maddie decided that she wanted to go in the pushchair this morning and cuddle up under the 'snug' as she calls her blankets. She's usually a little trooper and loves being outdoors and exploring the woods, but today it was snuggle time. Can't say I blame her, sometimes I wish someone would push me around in comfort!

This is the doggie walking crew. Sometimes there's loads of us - I think 8 dogs has been the max...sometimes we are few - but there is always a familiar face to say hello to. We tend to walk the same circuit, with a few variations. You notice that this picture is of the same little bridge that was in my first post. Just look at the change in colour over a few weeks. Just a carpet of leaves now.

I always seem to forget to look up, but was amazed by this when I did.

He goes in all year round, mad dog.