Thursday 30 December 2010

My second craft fair

My second craft fair went really well, it was held in the main church in our town and although the snow lay thick on the floor and it was so cold outside people came. I must say though because it was on the 18th Dec and close to Christmas I did feel under pressure to get things done, I had also been poorly so lost a few days making too. My hats sold really well, I was pleased but also surprised, you know my bf is always telling me how good my things are but even though I believe him it's always nice to hear strangers say it, it gave me a real boost.
The naughty tinker elves at the back went off to some good homes, apart from 2 who are sulking here with me!! I called them tinkers and a friend pointed out that in Ireland that's what Gypsies are called!! I am still going to call them tinkers as I don't mind gypsies anyway.

My bunting said "Dotty Delightful" after my shop and misi page, I had loads of fun and can't wait to do another one, I just wish here in Blackpool there was more going on culturally, I know individuals try and organise things but the council make it hard and also people don't tend to turn up to events much either. We had loads of empty shops right in the middle of town that could be used to hold fairs and such, it seems so silly them sat there doing nothing.
I would love a shop again (I used to have a vintage/retro clothes shop), I really enjoyed doing the window displays and it is so nice to talk to people, some have such interesting things to say. I also have some rather funny stories from my shop days too, like the one where a man asked if he could try on clothes and then took this large holdall (shoplifter I thought) and a woman's dress into the changing room. He was in there ages, I knocked on the door and asked if he was OK, I wont type what I heard but put it this way it's something you should only do in private!. I knocked loudly and said we are shutting now, you need to come out.....he did wearing a blond wig, full makeup and one of my dresses, heels and stockings! I didn't quite know what to say and tried hard not to look shocked or laugh, he asked if he looked OK!!. I said yes but he had to change as we were shutting (he had been in shop about 2 hours now), he then spent ages longer back in the changing room and asked if he could stay all night, he asked to be locked in so he could try on more stuff!! My friend called her boyfriend and he had to be rather stern with the poor fellow!. I did kinda feel sorry for him as he said he felt free dressed up, but not so sorry after I found the dress covered in ...use your imagination :{



Sunday 26 December 2010

woo post 100, christmas and snow Brrrrr

Its been over a month since last posting and do you know it drives me mad, thinking I'm a bad blogger etc but the thing is I spend ages reading other peoples blogs and then have no time left to write anything, so I have decided I shall not label myself any longer as a bad blogger but as a good blog reader!!
Well we have had in no particular order....colds, flu-ish type thing which I don't want to call flu because it is Sooo overused to class everything ill related in winter to flu, ohh and going off on a tangent here, have you been reading about the swine flu jab and how certain people in the media are writing, pregnant mothers should have it or they could harm their unborn babies - how bloody irresponsible is that, I would hazard a guess that they real ingredients in the jabs are more likely to harm them. I keep getting a doctors letter advising me to have one as I have asthma but that is not happening. Our bodies re chemically polluted enough just living in this world without having more pumped in so big pharma can get richer-Crazy.
On a lighter note and going back to what we have been up to, I did my second craft fair and although the snow was deep and uneven and bloomin' freezing I still did really well, much better than last year. I really enjoyed chatting to people and enjoyed it when people who don't know me liked my things, I sold bags, plush toys and hats the most. I can't wait to do another one but the prep for it made me so tired. The week before it I became ill, with the (not) flu, I spent a couple of days led on the sofa feeling sorry for myself but it was frustrating too as my arms ached so I couldn't knit or crochet anything, I felt like I had wasted loads of time doing nothing. Chris picked it up next but was thankfully better after a few days of the sniffles. He has been loving the snow, bouncing on the snow covered trampoline much to the disgust of our boring neighbours!I made everyone apart from my eldest who by this time had got the (not) flu, come out to our local park, to say it was a disaster was putting it mildly, imagine slippy boots, freezing toes and hands, breathing in ice air, crying, moaning and grumbling and me saying "ohh how lovely, how beautiful the now is" and then you will get the idea. I got home really disappointed we had not had the perfect outing, I hate the way I look at magazines and watch certain Christmas home shows and feel like we should be more perfect, we should have a grand decorated house, the children should all be lovely to each other and me and my bf should dance in the snow whilst singing gaily, not quite the real picture though is it. My poor hard done to (having me as his gf) bf, freezing in our lovely winter wonderland park....


I love this photo and want to enlarge it for our wall, the boys are actually sat in front of the lake which is frozen solid, the poor ducks and swans seem so miserable....


Me bundled up with my sprightly youngest, whom I'm happy to say loves the outside as much as me, in front of the lake, there were footprints all over it too, some people are so stupid, I have even seen full families on the lake with little toddlers, Crazy....



Poor ducks, our chickens have had cold bums these past few days, we have been putting extra bedding in and each morning and having to defrost their water whilst in my dressing gown and bobble hat is very fetching.
Well I hope you all had a jolly Christmas whatever you celebrate, my oldest boy and middle one have the (not) flu so spent the day coughing ( sorry but how long do you last before you want to shout "STOP coughing" at them?) snotting everywhere, shivering, leaving their Christmas dinner and sleeping, the rest of us ate, drank numerous cups of hot drinks, played games and slept by the fire. It was OK, not great, not awful just OK, but then again it's only one day out of a whole year and I'm looking forward to the other days when everyone is well, the tiredness is gone and we can smile and dance gaily whilst holding hands....Yeah right ;)

Wednesday 24 November 2010

just stuff...

Well it's been a while since I last posted but not because we have been doing anything really exciting, just because of my rubbish time management skills - yeah I know it shouldn't really take long to write a post but you see each time I sit down to write one I find other peoples blogs more interesting to read oh and then I check facebook like a lonely teenager with spots who has no friends, just to see if anyone still wants to talk to me, which most of the time they don't or I end up reading other peoples status' which sometimes can be amusing but I hate the ones that say things like "right I'm off to work" -SO BLOODY WHAT!, maybe just for fun I will put "right I'm off for a poo, oh and I ate breakfast today and got some post etc", it is the voyeur in all of us though that looks at such sites, I wonder sometimes if these sites are actually bad for the already twisted nation, like the woman who was so obsessed with farmville (a shitty farm game) on FB that she smothered her baby to death because it was crying and it was interrupting her time on the game.
I do love blogs though, they are so inspiring, uplifting, funny, and awesome. I have so many on my favourite list I need at least a day to read them all, I think I am officially a blog hoarder.
We made a little terrarium for a caterpillar we found at the park, Chris carefully collected things he thought the caterpillar would like to keep him cosy including some lovely soft moss and a twig to make his cocoon on. That was 2 weeks ago and I haven't seen the caterpillar since, I don't think he is dead or an escapee though, probably just hiding somewhere.

The boys love drawing, Adam especially is very talented and I don't just say that because I'm his mum either!. He wants to be a comic illustrator when he's all grown, he draws the most comical pictures.

Chris loves getting tips off Adam with his drawing, it's lovely to see them in full concentration, with hair not brushed and a complete tip of an art desk (mine) behind them!


I have been drawing designs by candlelight (not because the ellecy had run out, just because it's cosy) for an embroidery commission I am doing for a lovely lady, it has been great doing something so girly with 3 boys running around the house. The close up sewing has been affecting my eyes though, I pick up my new glasses tomorrow, they are proper geeky and black, I love them, the boys said I looked a real nerd when I went for a fitting so I'm glad, that's the effect I'm going for, my youngest asked me "what if Tom (bf) doesn't love you anymore when he sees you", bless him.



This is the face of a boy who has been told he can't go on his console as he has lightening homeschool to do! I had to put it on so when he is nosey and wants to see my blog he can find this hideous photo of himself ;) HELLO ADAM
I have loads of Christmas gift making to do, I have to make loads of things for a Christmas fair I am doing in dec, I have only 1 present made for family and I just want to curl up in front of the fire, we finally got our chimney pot put on, so it works now, and crochet granny squares. Not that I'm very good but I read this tutorial from Julia Crossland's blog, I found her in a search and I'm so pleased I did, her blog is lovely, she is a very talented illustrator, go have a peek but beware, you will be there for ages. She is also having a Christmas giveaway because she reached 300+ followers - wowee.
I have also been loving Kristie's homemade home, the good life, ugly betty, the walking dead and desperate housewives whilst I knit away when the boys are all tucked up in bed, candles glowing, fire crackling and too many cakes and biscuits to nibble on.
Have a lovely week xxx



Thursday 11 November 2010

Infinate future chaos...what will our children see?


Infinite future chaos – “whats that?” I here you say,
its the way we shape our future by how we live today,
the way we live our lives has a knock on effect,
we should give this world of ours some love and respect.

Freak weather, wars, global warming, hurricanes and nature dying,
destruction, rainforest's disappearing, children starving, children crying,
riots, warfare, guns, chemical waste, nuclear bombs and anarchy,
extinction of animals, genetics, clones, who is it down to, powers that be?.

Just think of our children, how will they survive, what will they see?,
lets all make changes so they can be happy and free,
who knows what the future holds but its down to me and you,
I'm just thankful I wont be around and bet that you are too.

This is a poem I wrote ages ago and it's message is still very relevant today, you can buy this as a card or print from redbubble, you can also get the above pic as a tshirt too, great quality too.
I wish I could wave a magic wand and sort things out with this world of ours, you may only be one person and sometimes it is easy to think that your little changes don't mean much but together our changes can become huge and have a real impact.

Saturday 6 November 2010

baby is on it's way....

My lovely sister in law (unofficially so far) is over her due date and we don't know whether it's a boy or a girl so with this in mind and some books from the library I started making some lovelies for her, I made her a patchwork quilt using some stashed fat quarters I have had for a while and didn't know what to do with and a matching lavender baby to hang in the crib to aid (hopefully) some sleep.
the baby looks much better in real life - trust me....

I love the baby blue and white striped squares, this was a sheet from a set I discovered a few years ago in a vintage shop, originally from a french hotel!! I do hope she likes it. I plan on making baby booties too with the help of this book
The photos in this book are lovely and there is a pull out pattern sheet at the back of the book to go with each design, clear easy to follow instructions too, it is written by Emma Hardy who has written several craft books and worked for Marie Claire (women's mag). I have read her green crafts for children book which is lovely if you have little ones.

I got my Christmas country living through the post today too and the piccy's are gorgeous, I do so want to live in the countryside and frolic in the deep crisp snow after opening gifts galore and looking forward to a hearty Christmas dinner then relaxing in front of a big open roaring fire, whilst smelling cinnamon and cloves wafting in the air.
Hope your having a lovely weekend xxxx

Wednesday 3 November 2010

Cheery things on a rainy wednesday....

Awesome finds to make a smile come on your face in this pissy October here in Blighty, best of all this stuff is FREE, oh yeah we all like a bargain and with Xmas on its way and no spare pennies, we like free things best off all.

Lovely, warm snuggly songs, full albums to download actually all for free and legit, I especially love this soundtrack for listening to with the kids, we listen to it at lunch and it keeps everyone cheery, it's a bit like feeling stoned without the drugs!! Have a good look around Brian Gossett's site, it's great.......

Art posters to download and print off, these are top notch pictures from really talented artists, Feed your soul, the free art site really does, for me anyway and I'm sure it will for you too....

102 free mandalas - what's a mandala?,

To relax and to improve concentration, there are many things that can be done. One of these is, in peace or with soft background music, to colour in a Mandala.
Mandala more or less means "circle" or "centre". Shapes and patterns are added to a clearly calming centre point.

•Mandalas are healing mediums for the soul
•Mandalas are the merging of body, spirit and soul
•They uncover your own creativity
•You discover yourself and the real you
•You master your every day life and stress easier
•You become calm and gain trust and composure



Children love these and spend ages colouring them, they look great hung back to back like a wind chime, or sun catcher.



Lovely Bella Dia has the most delectable blog filled with pretty things and here I found this crochet heart tutorial, I haven't tried it out yet but it is on my to do list!

(image from Bella Dia's site)




On this site you have to register, but that won't take long and you can get you hands on some great free patterns for sewing, Burda style -for people who sew I love the tag line on this site - you have arrived at your kind of candy store!






Free printable paper toys, this lovely children's site by Marylin takes me back years, all you need is a printer, paper and scissors to get cracking at making your own paper toys, I especially loved making the mermaid puppet theatre



(image from Marylin's site)




Hope you all have lots of fun, smiles and enjoyment from these sites, who by the way have nothing to do with me, I just find these things whilst surfing the virtual ocean ;)

Monday 1 November 2010

charles cole scam

I am on a site called Misi Handmade and I received a message the other day from Charles Cole who is interested in buying my kitschy pink pop painting, he asked me to reply to him on his private email, which I did, he asked if the painting is still for sale and to send my paypal details to him, he said he would arrange collection of my painting himself.

I then received an email which made me think this is a scam, I have attached it at the bottom of this message. I googled it and it turns out he is a scammer, I wanted to inform you about this because I think it sounds like a money laundering scam, I know lots of you sell your wares online and I feel like I would of never fallen for anything like this, but because it was through misi and the excitement of selling my painting -especially with christmas coming, I did. Thankfully I realised before any money transferred. I have informed Misi of this and hope this guy's karma works very soon.

Mon, 1 November, 2010 10:20:36 just about to make the payment
From: Charles Coleman



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I was just about to make the payments when i had this little problem with the picking up of the item , I am currently on sea and i tried to book pick up with my pick up agent, but they asked me to pay first before they can make the booking, and they only accept western union money transfer for payments and they don't accept paypal or bank transfer and I tried to send the money online but i couldn't and I am on sea and there is no way i can find a western union agent to make the transfer to my pick up agent, so i wanted to ask if it was ok for me to include my pick up agent's fees in the payments I am about to send through paypal, my pick up agent charged £100.00 plus insurance and all of that, please can i include their money in the payments I want to send then after i have made the payments you will help me forward the £100.00 to my pick up agent through western union money transfer, this I would have done myself and not bother you but the for the fact that I am currently on sea, so after I have made the payments you will help me send £100.00 to my pick up agent through western union money transfer, I just wanted to seek your consent before going ahead with the payments,I will more than appreciate if you mail me back, and I will be making the payments shortly.


PS:the shipping company's Head quarters and any pick up fees to be paid is sent to their head quarters by the payee, so the money for pick up will be sent to their head quarters through western union money transfer(this can be done from any post office) at western union.

Monday 25 October 2010

where did the years go?...

My middle boy turned 13 on Saturday, I can't believe how the time has flown, how much he has grown, how 13 years a go I gave birth to this tiny, grey baby who wasn't breathing, who scared me so much because I wanted him to be fine, who, when he started to scream made me happy beyond my wildest dreams, who didn't stop crying unless I had him in a baby sling, who grew into a blond, curly haired toddler with big rosy cheeks, a quiet, smiley little boy, a tidy, bionicle loving boy who loved to play football and was very confident with his school friends, a computer geek, still loving bionicles, thoughtful, caring and smart young man who is now a teen!

We had an Italian style dinner, with Italian music, soy candles and followed by a devilishly good and 2000+ calories stuffed carrot cake
I hope my lovely chap you have many more, joyous birthdays to come



MY DEAR CHILD.
You are the poem
I dreamed of writing
the masterpiece
I longed to paint.
You are the shining star
I reached for In my
ever hopeful quest
for life fulfilled..
You are my child.
Now with all things
I am blessed.

Author unknown.

Monday 18 October 2010

Salford Museum and Blackpool Illuminations

We had a couple of trips out this past week, on days where the sun peeked through the October sky, we went to the illuminations, there are new ones this year and of course all the old favourites, we always walk through them but the fumes from all the cars and coaches going slow was terrible this time, maybe because it was cold or maybe because I'm more sensitive to pollution, who knows but the children enjoyed it greatly, I loved the Indian tableaux, video screen and music playing, it was great, the boys didn't let me dance though - far too embarrassing now they are older.
it's funny because living in Blackpool all my life you would think I would know all about the history of them, but I didn't, it was only when my teacher moment struck and I started telling the boys all about them with the help of this site that I learnt quite a lot, like they started in 1879!

For our topic work we have been learning about the Victorians, so I discovered Salford Museum had a fully sized Victorian street all laid out with shops etc, this was a museum we have never visited surprisingly with it being quite close, well 50 mins by train, It was great and well worth a visit if your in the area, there are sounds that are played that make you feel like you are really back in the old days, the longer we stayed the more we spotted, they have dress up clothes to wear before you go in so you can play the part, the boys did not want any part of this and when I started to dress up they ran off with a warning that "I was going to get done, and to put them back", what happen to my little fun chaps, teenage years are a bit rubbish for fun!!


It isn't huge this museum, but we spent over an hour in it, it is very near to the train station and has a reasonably priced cafe inside with a play area although we didn't use either so I can't recommend them. The toilets are clean and there are curators around to answer any questions, the bonus for me though is there are worksheets, clip boards and pencils all round the different areas for the children to fill in.



My favourite shop, the haberdashery, gorgeous hats and fabrics, it was rather dark so not many photo's came out with my camera, I also loved the corner shop, I would love everything in it for my kitchen!

We have also been collecting plums from our neighbours garden, who has had tons of them leftover, we made plum jam 7 jars, froze some stewed fruit for crumbles, made plum juice which has all gone as the boys loved it so much and been eating plums with all sorts! Yummy.


Friday 1 October 2010

share the love

Sometimes I spend hours dreaming on the net at a life rather different to mine, not that I don't love what I have and that I'm blessed with 3 funny children but you know those times when you seek solace in shopping even if its virtual, or you imagine to be someone else who is wealthy enough to purchase whatever she desires without thinking of cost or consequence, well these are a small few of the sites that I go off into dreamland. I wanted to share them with you :
Serene and beautiful all in a luxurious website Gypsy Moon is well worth a visit, imagine gypsies and pirates in a romantic faraway embrace whilst dancing seductively to a jig.....
Check out these cakes, fabulous and amazing Let them eat cake is truly a cake lovers fantasy website

The magic cabin, totally lovely stuff for children, saved for the day I am blessed with a little girl called Lavender Isabella..........


Awesome home wares and clothes, for moments of dreaming about a penthouse studio apartment on the upper east side in another life as a single fashion designer living a life I could get accustomed to.........





Dreaming of being a great singer in a dimly lit bar, singing Downtown full belt and shimming my hips in this gorgeous little green number, the man on the front row gazing at me like I am the most exquisite thing he has ever seen.....


Monday 27 September 2010

switch off sunday at the zoo

The past couple of Sunday's I have declared to be a switch off day to computers, consoles etc after being inspired by the gorgeous goddess Leonie
it has been lovely because it is in our heads that that day we can spend it doing lovely things together, I think it is really important to spend time together even when there is a stroppy teenager who would rather stay in than be out with us and his younger brothers, we do spend time together everyday obviously with being homeschoolers and both working from home but to have a whole day is rather grand and a little self indulgent, it makes me a happy momma. So the sun was shining, the soup and yummy cinnamon swirly bread/cake was made, all wrapped up and we went to the zoo, the year passes are great especially when you have zero spending money and would normally go to the beach park etc.
Since we last went there have been more changes and enclosures have been changed so it was fun because there was different things to see. The tapirs are Tom's favourite and we heard them squeal, I didn't now they made such a funny sound, this one climbed up to snort berries out of a tree! Chris took this one, I love it because it's not perfect in a photographic sense but I think it's a perfect capture, I love my man so much and adore his brown eyes which is what I was looking at here
My monkeys in the newly painted monkey enclosure, looks so much better




The boss orangutan, always surveying the zoo and showing his teeth!
Tom and I like to snuggle, if we could we would hibernate, we are rather animal like in our behaviour, sniffing, snuffling and cosying up, the animals we are most like are Aardvarks....




They cosy up to each other when they sleep and are so lovely and v.cute, so we was so happy when their enclosure had been made over and they were awake - never before had we seen them awake, oh the sheer delight!!



Look at their huge ears





snuffling the air, ohh I want to get in there with her I bet she is so warm!






they have really long eyelashes to and love to dig, they have a long projectile tongue for getting ants and termites, they are native to Africa and are pregnant for 7 months, having one baby which weighs around 2 kg, this stays in the burrow until it is two weeks old. They can live up to 23 years in captivity.
We had a great day, although exhausted when we got home and the teen said "thanks for a great day" so it is good to spend the day together!

Friday 24 September 2010

before and after.....

Ha! I haven't disappeared although most of you probably thought I had seen as though it has been so long since I last posted anything, I have been extra busy with new boilers, new windows, decorating, having sunny day fun and my mum is 67 and has osteoporosis, she fell in her kitchen and fractured her pelvis, broke her thigh bone in 2 places, shattered her knee cap and fractured her shin bone, she has been in hospital for a couple of weeks having operations and then went to a rehabilitation hospital where she left yesterday, she is now at home with lots of walking aids and hopefully on the mend. She has drove me nuts, I have been having terrible nightmares, running about up to the hospital which is an hour both ways on the bus and generally feeling tired out. That's mainly why even though I have been reading all your lovely blogs I haven't had the energy to update my own, but today is the day when things are not as hectic so I can bring you all up to speed. Big breath and relax......
Right so I'm not sure if you remember many moons ago I was decorating/doing up our lounge, well it's done at last, I love it, such a peaceful space, to read and knit. I have done before and after pics so you can get the idea of what a transformation it is: cast iron fireplace was definitely for keeps after the trouble we had putting it in!














after many hours and hard work and weeks of saving up it was finally ready....





Wallpaper from B & Q's Eco range - very tricky to hang, scratched really easily, paint by Crown's breath easy range, hardly any odour and very low VOC's. We used antique cream on the walls and cotton white on the woodwork. Went on really easily, would use again.






Black chandelier from B & Q half price in the sale, I made the curtains by using up some lovely thick upholstery fabrics with a edge border of brown satin and black flocked leaves. I made the tie backs with silver shot silk fabric and silver beads on chain.








Tom made the TV cabinet right across the bay window, using our local wood shop and FSC wood which they had to order in! underneath is a great storage area.




Cosy reading corner, armchair and sofa from DFS, the first ever brand new sofa I have ever owned, it was such a thrill when it finally came after 5 weeks wait, they really couldn't understand why we didn't want stain protection on it though, even after I had explained the chemicals involved and the health issues attached to them. It is a shame that the whole thing couldn't be free from chemicals, but you can only do your best I suppose. Blanket knitted by me, half finished, lovely and thick with 5 types of wool and size 12 bamboo needles.



Some soy candles, cosy cushions and pictures (made by me) and a lovely pure wool carpet, no stain protection on that either, we also have wool fleece underlay so that is as natural as it gets. I'm glad our formaldehyde laden laminate has been thrown out, the carpet is so warm on your feet.



Scrumptious chenille covers, the armchair looks much bigger in real life, how strange! Really good for falling asleep on!. Even though it took a while it has been really worth it, I have been given the incentive to carry on and do the rest of the house now.