A Perfect Day

I know its only just started not 9 o'clock yet but I just know its going to be a good one.  I'm going out to a familiar place to create with some people I have met before, some whose blogs I peek at but have never met and meeting a very talented artist who in my opinion makes some of the most delightful works of art - in the words of little V who is just 3 - the most favouritist, bestest in the whole wide world.  Any one guessed where it is, who I might be meeting and who the talented person is?  Answers on a postcard please - only joking - I will show and tell maybe later today or in the next few days.  I am verryyyyyyyyyyyyy excited as I actually only found out I could attend on Thursday.   Yeeeeeeee   Haaaaaaaaaa.  Going to get dressed now and gather some stuff to take along with me.

Hexifest

I know I have only just posted but I wanted to show you my progress on my hexagon quilt top and I wanted to show you it all on its own little post so it feels special.  I started it on the 25 Feb so its been on the go almost a month and it is coming on well.  I was inspired to begin the hexies by sally at Robin Red who had joined the Wednesday Hexalong you can find the info on Sally's blog as I can't manage to do the link properly.  Anyhow here it is in all its glory my hexagon quilt so far:-

Getting bigger all the time covers the Ikea chair now

Oh sewing machine box and ironing pile in the background!  Quilts pretty though.

Close up shot

Some of my vintage fabrics - the circus one, the blue dots and flowers and the heavily flower pattern one.

Hexies to sew and squares and papers.

I am enjoying the process and trying to keep the quilt rectangular (if that makes sense) so I can stop when I have had enough.  I have another hex quilt somewhere in my WIP pile that is sort of a granny's garden pattern but the shape has gone a little bit crazy which put me off finishing it.  I will dig it out - ha a joke dig/garden - and show you all.  I am going now as I am starting to type rubbish.  Night night. 

A Bit of this and That

Phew can't believe its a week since my last post.  What a busy time.  I have done three 10 hour shifts in a Children's Centre which was great fun but very tiring. I haven't worked a long shift like that since mother's day in the florist shop. The children and staff were really lovely, friendly and good fun so it went really quite quickly.

I have also bought some more Annie Sloan paint for more make overs.  The latest item to receive the paint treatment was the fireplace. It has gone from Morris Green to Old White.  Looks a little better but still have to organise the ornaments and shift things around a little.  I bought the bottles in the basket from Reg Taylor Garden Centre and I am so pleased with it the daffs look very spring like but boy they smell nasty - bit like cat wee actually.  Oh well they look good and I am looking forward to using different flowers as the seasons change.

Want a peek-

Morris Green 

Old White - much brighter

Painted the mirror too

The pretty smelly daffodillies in my new bottle/basket vase thingy

It makes the room look brighter and fresher.  Did you notice the old yukky gas fire not a pretty sight and on the long list of things to change.  I also started painting the dining table and am nagging K to bring the top of my dresser back in from its 10 year hibernation in the garage.  I am so glad I didn't get rid of it and am looking forward to having it back in the house.

Here is a photo of the cakes Belle made for us for when we returned from Southwell at the weekend.  Rocky road cakes - they were yummy.  Thanks Belle! I promised I would put them on here and I did.  She cleaned all her pots and the kitchen too. 10/10.

Here are the museli cookies I made yesterday they are so tasty and you can make them in minutes and depending on the museli you use they taste quite different.   Last week I made them using a berry museli and they tasted good too.  This week I reduced the sugar by half to make them a little less sweet and it worked well.  Here they are

They look a little like rock cakes but they are cookies - honest.  Want the recipe I don't think Mary (Berry) will mind. If she does - sorry Mary.

Ingredients

6 oz marg soft

4 oz caster sugar (I only put in 2 oz)

1 egg

6 oz SR flour

6 oz muesli

Pre heat oven to 180C 

Measure ingredients and place all but muesli in a bowl.  Mix until smooth and blended.  Add muesli and stir in well.  Spoon teaspoonfuls of mix on baking sheet leaving room for spread.  Bake for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown.  Cool and enjoy.  They really are that simple.  Let me know if you make some.  

Painting, Pottering and Pancakes

Just a very quick post as tea is on and almost ready.  Yesterday was such a lovely day it definately gave me a spring in my step.  After I had cleaned the bathroom I thought that looks better - urm then I looked at the yellowy white doors and the far from white ceiling.  I got out the paint that had been bought for the job previously and gave it a quick lick of fresh white paint - it looks so much better.  I then went on to paint 4 of the doors on the landing and the skirting board.  I didnt do any prep at all - i'm a rebel - I just splashed it on and it looks so much better.   I'm sure it was quicker than washing all the doors and woodwork down.  After that I had a potter around the garden - in my slippers - and dug out some weeds and generally tidied up.  Much more needs doing though.  I did start to take photos but it all looked so bare and bland that I didn't bother in the end.  Then it was time to get Nephew H from school and have a pancake party. 

Table at the ready, cornish ice cream, syrup, nutella, squirty cream, jam, bananas and sprinkles.  Yum. Not very well presented but delicious all the same.  H thought it was great and declared that he was going to have three. 

Nom, nom nutella with banana, squirty cream and sprinkles.  I had one just the same.  Delicious.

Nellie had the same.

H pancake with syrup and nutella this time.  Did he manage three - not quite he did manage two and a half though.  It was declared a successful pancake party and after two I felt positively stuffed. 

Best Made Plans

Today I had planned to go to Southwell Minster to the craft fair.  Then to visit Nellie in the Shed to get some more Annie Sloan to do the top of my dresser and then on for afternoon tea at Reg Taylor's Garden Centre.  Betty and Nellie had expressed an interest in joining us so it was going to be a lovely day.   Unfortunately the dreaded lurgy had other plans for me.  Nellie had been off school on Friday feeling a little sickly and sleepy but she wasn't actually sick.  Late afternoon I thought um feel a tiny bit grotty but not a lot.  K came in from work, we cooked tea together, ate tea together then I began to feel worse.  Yuk, tummy gripes, sweating followed by full blown dreaded lurgy.  I am a real baby when it comes to sicky bugs they make me want to cry and shout 'I want my Mummy' - like Percy, Sarah and Bill in the Owl Babies.  I didn't actually need to get my mum - she would have come quick as a flash - but I wouldn't want to pass on my germs.  I just soldiered on spending time on the bathroom floor - don't like to be far away from the toilet - and groaning away in bed with K just quietly muttering 'you ok' whilst still asleep.  So today I have had a pyjama day - it was enforced though so not so much fun.  I have done a bit of sewing, bit of blog reading, some sleeping, shed a few tears (I know i'm a baby) drunk tea with sugar in - only have sugar in when suffering lurgy of the sicky kind - and a tiny bit of reading.  I couldn't concentrate though so put it down.  So not the day I planned but what can one do.  I must remind Nellie though that although I have always told her since she was tiny that it is 'kind to share' as I have told all my girls and lots of other children too I really, really, really don't mind NOT SHARING when it is the lurgy of the sicky kind.  To all you Marmite haters out there - no it was not the marmite that made me sick. 

Love It or Hate It

I love it - not so much that I eat it everyday or even every week but sometimes I just need a Marmite fix.  Today is one of those days.  I have been a busy bee this morning, washing in, washing out, washing pots, hoovering, toilet cleaning duties- you get it.  I have also used the very last scrapings of my Annie Sloan paint - very watered down - to lime wash my kitchen cupboards.  They look much better.  I have also been to  Mum's and cleaned out my nephew H's guinea pigs - they  live at his Nannies and we all take care of them.  Now its time for this:-

Yum, tomato soup - tinned not homemade - and marmite on toast (with flora) to dip in - oh my goodness it is delicious.  Anyone else tried this combination?

Now I am going to do this:-

Soup, marmite on toast, feet up - ohhh yeah!

and then some more of this:-

My new hexie basket - its so cute and cost 20p

Hexing and blogging and watching Horton Hears a Who

Dyl and Betty have chosen to do this

Snuggling time 

And last but not least photographic evidence of myself hexing in public - John Lewis cafe Wednesday evening whilst waiting for Nellie and Belle.

Going now back soon got an interesting weekend coming up so more blogging to follow.

A bit of Stitching

Tonight I have mostly been making these:-

 

Lots  of  hexagons



 Hexies all in a row

All lined up

I am still not sure what I am  going to do with them I know I want to use a different fabric for each one but not sure if to make a few cushions or a small lap quilt.  I have used some of  my feedsack from America (via ebay), some vintage fabric I have picked up here and there, some from old clothing from CS and CB.  This is for my next batch  - I have admired it for long enough now - it's time for it to be used up - well only a tiny bit for this project.  

CK fat quarters bought from York

I'm going to sign off now - blogger is being a bit naughty and won't play nicely - then again it may be just me.

Good night

Oh my goodness I have no idea what's gone wrong but I don't know how to put it right - any ideas? - sorted thank you Sally.