"Poop-Poop"!

"Toad sat straight down in the middle of the dusty road, his legs stretched out before him, and stared fixedly in the direction of the disappearing motor-car. He breathed short, his face wore a placid satisfied expression, and at intervals he faintly murmured `Poop-poop!'"

I've started this post, with a quote from 

'Wind in the Willows', as it seemed appropriate!

Exciting times to be had, this week.

For a long time, Mr C. and I had been discussing a dream we both

share, of buying a Camper Van.

Thanks to the sale of my Mum's flat, that dream has become a reality.

Thank you Mum xx

We did lots of research and fell in love with one, in Pontypool, S. Wales,

half way across the country from here.

The journey, last Tuesday, was not without it's dramas!

Dreadful weather in the shape of wind and rain.

Traffic hold ups on the M1 and the dreaded M42.

Set off at 9am and didn't reach home until 10.30pm.

We were exhausted but exhilarated having bought

this beauty ..... A  Mazda Bongo!!

The name itself suggested it would be perfect for us.

Not come home with us yet. Mr C. is collecting it next week.

My youngest son, asked us if we were getting the 'A Team' back together.

Heh, heh!

Looking forward to lots of trips away next year, when Mr C has finished

putting in the cooker etc.

I think it will change our lives ..... so many possibilities.

The open road is beckoning!

The rest of the week, was a bit humdrum in comparison.

Did manage to do a bit of sewing.

Lined this little trug, with a vintage doily ...

Did it mainly, so that wool and threads would not catch on 

the rough edges. Really pleased with the result.

Found these items, which had to come home with me.

A box to add to my collection.

and this book, which was printed in the 1960's.

 I bought it because I loved the illustration, on the front.

It might prove useful, when our granddaughter arrives.

Mr C. has promised, that our first trip in the van will be to Brighton,

to see the baby, when she is born.

A happy prospect .....

Have a good weekend everyone!

You Couldn't Make it Up!

I want to start this week's post by thanking everyone 

for their good wishes, regarding the success of our Pop-Up Shop.

I have to report however, all did not go well!

In an unbelievable twist of fate we have had to CANCEL.

I went in on the first day of opening and was presented with two

engineers who said they had come to remove the asbestos from the building!

To cut a long story short, there had been a mix up in the line of communication.

A case of right hand not knowing what the left hand is doing.

Well as you can imagine, I was thrown in a flat spin ....

We had to pack up and leave by the end of that day!!

Not an easy task, as we live about 15 miles from the site

and there is no parking outside.

It was done, all under the cover of darkness, that evening.

I don't know how we did it but but we did!

This gave me an unexpected free week, after I got over the 

tiredness and stress of it all.
Managing to laugh about it now.
Could only happen to us!

Mr C, bought me this lovely cyclamen to thank me for all

my hard work.

It has pride of place in my work room.

Felt inspired to progress on, with my 'Spiral',textile.

I have been mulling over an idea, I found in tnis vintage sewing book.

It involves embroidering on net.

Having mounted my work, on section of net curtain

I thought this might be a good way to integrate the piece into the background.

Photocopied the design onto a sheet of A4 paper and tacked it into place.

Sorted out some crochet colours in similar tones to the Spiral.

and began!

A work in progress .....

A very satisfying end to a traumatic start of the week.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Baptism of Fire!

What a week it has been! 

 It's been non-stop, gettting ready for the Pop-up Shop.

We only have a small car, so have been going into Harrogate,

every day this week, in the early hours (so we can park outside), to

drop off all the things we need.

Snapped this 'rosey' sunrise, as we left on Monday morning.

The weather has been unseasonably warm and the Autumnal colours, glorious.

But, I digress!

We set off this morning at 6.15am and arrived to find all the alarms

in the shop, were ringing. Frantic keying in of code, ensued, to no effect.

What chaos, the noise was unbelievable!

To cut a long story short, many people were roused, at a very early hour.

Promises were made .....

The local police were informed and we abandoned the property.

Hopefully, it has been sorted! 

Definitely a 'baptism of fire'! 

We have learned a lot and now feel up to tackling any contingency.

A rash statement, if ever I heard one.

Tomorrow is set up day and we open,  Monday morning.

The rest of the week, has been spent ......

 framing my 'Grid' textiles, in perspex frames.

Handmade Britain

Woman to Woman

Perspex frames, are a new departure for me but I think

 they suit these pieces, perfectly.

Finished a collaged, Yorkshire Landscape.

Found this lovely frame in my usual store.

Washed the fabric buttons I found in Brighton.
They've come up well!
They are little landscapes on their own.
Meanwhile Mr C. has been tidying up the garden
and harvesting the last of the produce.

These are our Jerusalem Artichokes.

A bumper crop, this year.

Could be 'windy', in more ways than one, this week.

Heh, heh!

Preparations!

The weather here has been very mixed this week.

Swinging between sunshine, rain and high winds and

sometimes all three at once!

It's been all systems go here, as we have been given

the opportunity to take the Pop-up Shop again.

 On our own this time.

My main job today, has been collating cards, envelopes and cellophane sleeves.

All 64 of them ..... job well done!

That's another thing ticked off the list.

Had fun, with a bit of retail therapy.

Purchased this tiny teapot.

An addition to my very small but growing collection.

Found this little knitted owl, finger puppet.

To add to the 'Pencil Top Gang'!

Picked up these three yarns to add to my stash .....

A very old cotton reel, loaded with green crochet cotton.

Some heathery coloured Jaeger Wool

and 

A kop of peacock blue mohair wool.

Lots of possibilites in these!

Clocks go back tonight.

Looking forward to the nights drawing in.

I love the change in the seasons.

Enjoy your extra hour of sleep!

This and That!

It's definitely been Autumnal here this week, the weather 

has been testament to that!

On Sunday we set off, in the early morning to

photograph Pen-y-Ghent and the mist in the valleys, for a 

new series of paintings Mr C. is planning.

Although the views looked promising from the top of Greenhow 

When we got to Grassington, the fog became impenetrable,

so reluctantly, we turned for home.

We ended up having our picnic on the kitchen table and

making the best of it, I spent an enjoyable day in my work room.

I was persuaded, by a neighbour to go to the GP about 

my finger, as she thought it might be broken.

The upshot is that, thankfully it isn't but I have torn all the

tendons and ligaments. Might take weeks to heal.

Oh, whoopy doo !

Making the best of it and have managed to do a bit of knitting.

Finished the main body of my baby sleeping bag.

As the baby, is going to be a little girl, I have chosen this

Laura Ashley fabric, from my stash, for the lining.

Think they go well together!

Finally a couple of pictures of my acquisitions of the week.

I was seduced by this box of springs. 

Only I could get excitied about such mundane objects !

Thought I could use them in my textiles. 

I love incorporating unusual objects in my work.

A bag of feathers .... a gift from a friend.

The colours are fabulous!

I am sure I can make good use of these.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Dislocated!

This weeks blog post is a bit short and rambling. Mainly due 

to being limited by an injury, I sustained last Sunday.

I had such a fabulous time the week before, I suppose it's not 

to be wondered at, that I have come back to earth with a bump,

literally!

I took a tumble down that river bank, whilst out walking Daisy.
I am so accident prone, it's not true!!
The end result was that I dislocated
 (self diagnosis ... well I am a nurse after all),
the little finger of my left hand.
It's very painful, swollen, black and blue and no
use for doing very much.
Bother !!
 Meanwhile, Mr C, has installed, a multifuel burner,
in our front room.

We are taking advantage of the monies raised from
selling Mum's flat, to make a few improvements
to our daily living. He's done a great job and as you
can see ...... it's merrily burning away.
Toasty!  
Just in time for the turn in the weather.
Managed to get in a little retail therapy,at my
favourite Charity shop.

 A rather garrish frame (but I love it), for the
bargain price of 99p
 and these ......

I think they were  a 'freebie' from a knitting magazine!

This is what they are for .... rather handy!
The little pink flower like studs are press studs, not buttons
as I initially thought. Knew I should have taken my glasses!
Not sure if I will use them but I am a sucker for
any knitting ephemera.
They will be absorbed into my vast collection.
Well that's it for me!
Not been able to do anything, in my work room, to share
with you this week. I'm down but definitely not out!

I think Ethel despairs, of me .......

Hope you have better luck this weekend!

There and Back again!

I set off to blog yesterday but thought I'd just

update our website first, as Mr C has just sold some paintings.

This, being one of them.

(Bluebells and Wild Garlic)

A 5 minute job, or so I thought !!

Somehow, I completely messed up.

None of the links were working properly and I

completely lost the shop pages ........

After a few minutes of utter panic, I took a deep breath and set
about putting it right. Took all afternoon but I managed it,

thank goodness !!  Hit the OFF button after that, as I was exhausted.
So here I am this morning ....... trying again!

I have been absent from the 'blogosphere', for a couple of weeks,

as I have been away on a trip to see, my sons in Brighton.
I left Mr C looking after Daisy dog and let the train take the strain.

The visit has been much anticipated, as I haven't seen them in a while.

It's a long and complicated story of how they both ended up

in the same place and me in Yorkshire, as they grew up in Oxfordshire.

It was lovely to see them at the same time and that we could all be together.

I had a very special time and was spoiled and cossetted by both of them

and my youngest son's partner Izzy.

Here are a few memories to share with you!

 Fountain,  in one of the parks. As you can see 

the weather was glorious.

The famous Brighton Pier.

That small speck is my son, Henry, off for a swim, whilst I sat 

relaxing on the shore. 

These beautiful metal flowers were in a Homlessness Comunity

Centre, just outside Brighton. It had a secondhand shop, where we spent lots

of time mooching about and a lovely cafe.
Perfect for lunch!

This is the oldest dovecote in Sussex and is

at the bottom of Tom's (my eldest's), garden.

Couldn't resist taking a snap of my cappucino.

Loved the design! shame to drink it but it was delicious.

Buttons seemed to be the focus of my buying, both new and old.

Last but not least my crochet bunting, for the baby went down well.

Can you see it, hanging in the corner of Henry's front room?
There were a few tears at our parting but we had shared
 much fun, laughter and childhood memories.
These will be stored in my 'memory palace', to be taken out
and looked at many times in the future.
Thank you boys x x
Have a happy week, everyone !