summer

Summer seems like an age ago.  

These are a couple of the highlights. First trip abroad for the children. We went with family to Paris, stayed in the suburbs, enjoyed the sights and foods and had a ball at Disney.

Back at home we made the most of Londons free museums and galleries with loads of days out. We celebrated my 40th with cream tea too, yum!

It was great summer, with a few crafty makes too, more on those soon.

bits and pieces

A couple of weekends ago I went to Lola Nova's workshop and spent the evening chatting and stitching with like minded folk, very good for the soul let me tell you, I should do such things more often.

We each made a patch / brooch from Alexandra's new book Simple Sewing with Lola Nova, which is packed full of lovely projects to make (there are some great Christmas pressie ideas in there).

My photos are all dodgy, so take a look at Alexandra's (Lola's) tale, peek into her glamorous assistant Flaming Nora's extensive stash and meet fellow pupil Laila, who wrote a lovely post about the evening here.
  
Aside from all the practical tips, the best thing I learned? To just sew, for pleasure, it doesn't always have to have a purpose. I often only sew with a finished result in mind, I will try and make time for more whimsy sewing (probably after Christmas though!) 

*****

Little Miss turned 5 last week. She's desperate to be a big girl and I'm desperately wondering where my baby has gone. 

Pink Bun popped up on just about everything, he/she is her partner in crime.

There was of course a party, with bunnies and hat making, games and laughter. 
With an exhausted me at the end of the evening, remembering when she arrived, the good times we have enjoyed and thinking of the exciting times still to come.
Five years, gone in a flash.

*****

This quilted cushion cover is finally coming together, I started off quilting it like this, but thought it too busy.

So I unpicked and started again, much happier with it now.

I know this post is all over the place, but so am I these days. Things are starting to come together, starting with my new screen printing screens which arrived yesterday, the next post will be full of pictures, just warning you! 

summer

I have been completely absorbed in the summer holidays, I love this unrushed, schedule free family time.

Midway through the Olympics I was sulking a little as we couldn't get any tickets, no matter how many hours I spent trying. So we took ourselves down to the Southbank as we always have a fantastic time there.

There was a massive Lego Map of the World being made, so we joined the queue and made our two squares, then added them to Brazil. We dipped our toes in the rainbow beach, admired the enormous fabric tree and other incredible sculptures around the area. (more photos here)

We took advantage of the sunshine and had a few days camping by the sea. It was so nice to escape from everything and recharge. Life's good when your hardest choice is ice-cream or kite flying.

I have managed to get a tiny bit of sewing done, the LMQG challenge for the month was to make something using the Paper Piecing method, I have been very afraid of trying this. I shouldn't have been, it was oodles of fun! I used these free patterns and turned the letters into coasters for the girls.

This card sums up these holidays, I made it for my Mum's birthday. 

Hope your summer has been just as good. x

a snippet

July seems to be a bonkers month, lots going on, too much to try and catch up on. 

So here's a little snippet.

The end of the school year always turns me into a snivelling wreck, where did the year go? Look how much the girls have achieved / grown / matured / done ... blah blah...

This also coincides with Missy Big's birthday, her 7th, which we celebrated with an Olympic themed party, which was oodles of fun. Just a few days later the torch came through Harrow on the Hill, what an incredible experience.

So now on with the holidays, hooray! 

thank you ma'am

for 60 wonderful years 

Now I'm not really a huge royalist, but there has been something quite special about the Jubilee celebrations this year. People have come together and cheered and celebrated and really felt part of something quite magnificent.

I won't waffle on, but I've loved this Jubilee, and I don't want  this mood to end.  

We had a last minute party with just a few close friends. Which included 5 giggling girls making crowns.

A little too much cake...

and lots of happy memories.

Hope yours was as good. x

little hands making

The holidays are over and I'm trying to find my way back into the routine, smiling as I look around and find some of the things we made over the last couple of weeks.

I think these were my favourites - making notebooks for friends by drawing around hands and cookie cutters. 

We had a great couple of weeks, restful, creative, happy.

Now I'm looking at the chaos that has been left behind and wondering which bit to tackle first? How can we have made so much mess in just two weeks?    


Hope your holidays were good too. x

China Town

Missy Big is learning all about Chinese New Year at school and is so excited by it all, yesterday we went to China Town to see the decorations, look around the shops and enjoy some delicious food ahead of the tomorrows celebrations.

We had a great (but exhausting) day, it was packed and there was loads to take in.

She had also made paper dragons at school and delighted and showing her sister how to make one too. I love her enthusiasm, it seems to be rubbing of on all of us. 

It's great to see the world through fresh eyes.

Little Missy is getting big

I've been a little preoccupied lately. Someone small turned four at the weekend and I very easily slipped into present making and party planning and stayed away from the world of blogging for what seems like forever. Hello again, it's nice to be back!

I had a go at a rainbow cake, I've seen them all over blogland and thought I'd have a go, a layer for each year. I used gel food colourings as many people suggested for a more intense colour, I was pleasantly surprised when I cut into it, as it had seemed a little dull when each layer came out of the oven. 

A happy party playing pass the parcel, pin the hat on scooby-dooby-dooby-dooby-do, musical spots, you get the idea, simple pleasures.
 

 

Little Missy, we love your adventurous spirit, have-a-go attitude, drama queen antics, endless twirling and hilarious face pulling.   

Happy Birthday baby girl x

good times

The big one went back to school today, the little one starts nursery on Monday, and I've been looking through the holiday pictures. This is what we got up to...

loved the recycled sculpture trail at Teignmouth beach

we baked, and made, and played, and started on some pompoms, we're going to pompom bomb the allotment, or the park or maybe our garden, inspired by this

it hasn't been a fantastic year at the allotment, many things just didn't grow, but we did get lots of flowers and it was still fun

 

a day out at the Southbank, where we caught the last of the Festival of Britain and the Liberty Festival, and browsed through the booksellers stocks

all polished off with delicious birthday cake the girls made for me and some last minute sewing, a new P.E. kit bag


now I'm wondering if it would be wrong to stuff in the last of the cake before school pick up?

Tea With A Tiger

I'm quite sure you all know the slightly barking, but wonderful book The Tiger Who Came To Tea by Judith Kerr. It's a favourite with lots of little ones.

And of course her other books, the Mog stories. If you're a fan you should get yourself to The Museum of Childhood quick smart. There is an exhibition of the original illustrations for the books, and a giant hungry tiger waiting to be fed in Sophie's kitchen. It finishes next weekend - so hurry!

It's one of those places that has been on my 'visit this' list for ages, the museum is fantastic fun, with lots of activities on throughout the day for little ones and a trip down memory lane for us oldies as you weave through all the displays of toys from yesteryear.

 

It was quite a magical day, it was a sharp reminder just how quickly childhood goes by, and how children really always come back to the simplest toys, anything is fun with a dose of imagination. 

These wise words on a blind sum it all up perfectly.

"There is little that gives children greater pleasure than when a grown-up lets himself down to their level... and plays with them as an equal"  Sigmund Freud.

Enjoy the rest of the holidays, playing. I intend to. x

 

a family portrait

My creative space is enjoying some quiet time, sewing with my girls. Not sure if days get better than this? 

Missy Big is doing the cake from her Made By Me book.

Little Missy stitched a boat with oars, on a pink sea.

I saw this idea over at Feeling Stitchy  by Detroit Mommy  and thought it was the perfect way to preserve those tiny hands. This is my version.

What are you up to? Get inspired over at Our Creative Spaces.