About time I posted something –
it’s 10 days or so since the last one – I’d like to say 10 productive days but
I thought I hadn’t much to write about.
Now that I really come to think of it, I’ve done lots of little bits and
pieces and it all adds up!
As it’s January, and the Seville
oranges have just reached our shores, I’ve been making batches of
marmalade. There is absolutely no
comparison between the taste of what you buy in the supermarket and a homemade
marmalade. Mine, without wishing to
boast, is
delicious. I’ve almost run out of jars now so I’ll have to slow down a bit.
In between batches I’ve been
making Christmas cards! I try to
recycle as many cards as I can and, rather than having a mad panic in November,
I try to get them all made and put away in the loft with all the Christmas
decorations – last year it took till mid February but I finished this year’s
yesterday and have just climbed the ladder and put them away. Hooray!
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| Waistcoat nearing its final stages |
Over the course of the last
couple of weeks, Liz and I have made a felt waistcoat for her – I’m hoping
she’ll let me take a photo of her wearing it for next time. We made it in two parts – one piece for the
back and one piece to cut out the two fronts.
I used an old paper pattern to adapt to make a ‘prototype’ from some old
upholstery fabric and we cut it out from that! I think we’re both quite pleased with it
but it did shrink a bit more than we’d hoped in the final stages so, next time
(if there is a next time), we’ll be a bit more generous – and we might felt it
onto some fabric for extra strength – watch this space.
The woven scarf is now finished
and will become a ‘shrug’ – a bit like the turquoise waistcoat I made a few
months ago. The embroidered strip
picture is still not finished – I stitched it more densely than I’d originally
planned and the one bit that needs further stitching is proving a bit difficult
to put the final touches to.
Another
project finished was the recycled jeans tote bag as in Ineke Beryln’s https://www.facebook.com/ineke.berlyn?fref=ts
book the Patchwork Object – I think I misread the instructions somewhere along
the line and it turned out to be a monster.
It was a beast to quilt, heavy and
unwieldy, and it is so huge that it will actually hold everything
including the kitchen sink! Having
said that, it was the first time I’ve attended Friday Felters carrying only one
bag!
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| There is a different picture on each of the four sides |
At the meeting of Friday Felters,
this month, we had a workshop, run by Helen Melvin https://www.facebook.com/helen.melvin.31?fref=ts
who is a great teacher and good
fun. We made asymmetrical bags – very
unusual and all so different. She
brought some kits for those who needed them, the colours of the wool, which
she’d dyed using natural dyes, were wonderful.
Unfortunately, I didn’t finish
mine, but it is a work in progress.
On Saturday last, we went to
Manchester to see our grandson play in a brass and percussion concert. At one stage, there were five xylophonists
playing together and he was one of them – amazing - there’s nothing like a
group of young, enthusiastic, talented young people making music together!
