Bag, feather edged cardi, flowers

Lined open blue and white bag.
Bag closed.
Embroideries forming pocket outers.


Quilted base. The biggest bit of proper quilting I have done to date.

The finished wool cropped cardigan with feather edging.Close up with horn buttons. A totally natural cardigan!
Honeysuckle- gorgeous scent.
Ampelopsis- a member of the vine family with pink young growth fading into a green and white motled leaf.
Jasmine- gorgeous scent.
Fatsia japonica- castor oil plant. I've let it seed as the birds are taking the black coloured berries.
French lavender

Rose with ivy, and virginia creeper. the creeper will turn red in Autumn.
Fushia buds
Climbing rose about 10 ft in the air.
Rose- unknown variety.
Foxglove -digitalis.
Rose
Flowering sage
The violas I planted earlier with Reine Victoria rosebuds. The scent from this rose is unbelievable. I can't wait for it.

Sorry no pics of town- I completely forgot the camera. It was a lovely day out though with my elderly neighbour.

Patchwork + cardi wips

My fingers would be drumming with impatience if I wasn't typing. I have gone to all sorts of lengths to gather these Laurel Burch fabrics over the past year. I am currently waiting for some blue waves fabric to go around the edge of this to complete the top. It will be a wall-hanging. I got the gist of the pattern from http://www.clothworkstextiles.com/patterns.asp

but changed some minor details as I didn't have the fabric and wasn't sure about having so much yellow as well as the other bright colours. I think I'm right in saying that all pics on my blog can be clicked on to make bigger. Please let me know if that's wrong. It could be they do it for me as the photos are on my machine? Technology is beyond me. The fabrics have an ocean theme -seahorses, mermaids and fish with waves.
A while ago I was in a charity shop and bought a load of these 40-50g balls of pure wool for 20p each! I think there was 600-650g in all so a huge bargain. I've started knitting myself a short cardigan with a feather edge following "The Knitters Book of Handy Sweater Patterns" where you choose a wool, do a test square then look up on a grid which line to follow according to how many stitches per inch, then start making your sweater choosing which elements you want. It's interesting as I haven't knitted like this before.
This is the feather edging on a sleeve. I used 5mm needles so it hs been a fast knit. I have half a sleeve, collar and button bands left. I have a set of real horn buttons put by for just this sort of project which I got from an Anglo Saxon re-enactment day in West Stow last year.

News here is that Angel is now fine. She fought theMRSA on her own. The vet was worried that by giving her a majorly strong antibiotic it would kill off the minor bacteria and thus allow the very bad bacteria more of a hold. I am just so relieved that she has a clean bill of health now. All the stitches came out too, so we don't have to trek all the way to and through St Helen's to get her seen again by the specialist. (An hour each way in clear traffic). I'd been doing all the laundry in lavender detergent with a couple of drops of lavender essential oil in the conditioner, as it is meant to be an antiseptic. Perhaps it helped. We have been so worried about her- she is 9 years old so in the more prone to illness age bracket.

No news on the developer front. I have written out a draft speech. The thought of standing in front of this committee fills me with fear, but after the way he has behaved I know I've got to stand up and beg that he isn't given planning permission to to the work he has in the main already carried out illegally.

Sorry no new pics of the garden, but I'll take the camera into town with me today when I have lunch with a neighbour. Hope you're all well. I'll pop over to your blogs to have a look.

Pic, embroideries, lavender, apples, mat, pot

This was my birthday present picture by an artist called Kol. Love the crows!
These 3 will be pockets for the blue and white bag I'll be making at the weekend.
Excuse the water soluble blue pen.


A few quick lavender bags made this morning.
I used this book for the apple knitting pattern.
Apples pictured centre in red and green.
I stuffed adding a few spiced apple crumbs.
A leaf and a stalk later and I have a bowl of russet apples. The wool is one of the ones I got from the castle trip. Perfect!
I finally made a mat for the top of the wool cabinet.
I made this pot back in school and fine carved the face after firing. Quirky!

I'm currently making a quick cardi in cream wool for me and piecing and cutting a quilt based on Laurel Burch's Ocean Songs fabric range. The site of the link also has a number of free quilt patterns by lots of designers.

Son came back from adventure camp yesterday wearing clothes that could've taken themselves to the washing machine. The ones in his case however were far worse. Just what is it with boys being muck magnets? LOL It's good to have him back. I had a good tidy in his room while he was away. I think he was relieved as it had got a bit much for him. I liked seeing all his shirts hung ironed facing the same way in his wardrobe. I know it wont stay that way for long, but at least I know it was done. Another bag of out grown clothes to the charity shops!

Tomorrow is a vet trip. Angel isn't burning a temperature now and has a good appetite. I'm hoping she's beating the bug. If all is ok, her stitches will come out.

Birthday, MRSA and flowers

Hubby's birthday cake. We celebrated on the 14th although his bithday was on the 16th as son is away on an adventure weekend with his school. Last night we walked into town with daughter to see the food festival. A lot of the stalls were shut so we ended up in a Mexican restaurant. We ordered a jug of sangria and waited and waited for them to take our order. In the end we left on wobbly legs (daughter had fruit juice) -their excuse was that they didn't want to stress the chef out with too many orders! It didn't spoil our evening however as all 3 of us went to a prize winning fish and chip shop and ate them from the paper overlooking the marine lake. There was a race on complete with spinnakers and a setting sun, great fun! I don't think we had eaten chips like that in years. Good to be less grown up.
Angel with a sock over her stitches sunbathing in the garden. We've had some bad news with Angel- the culture they took from her leg during the op at the specialists showed MRSA. It is transferable to humans so the vet was very concerned if we had anyone ill or working in the health profession in the family. She appears to be fighting it and her wound although hot is healing. The antibiotics she was on wont touch this type of MRSA so she has stopped taking them. We go back onTuesday and find out if there is a type of antibiotic which will work to help her. Privately we are wondering if the MRSA was introduced when she had her lump removed a while ago at our local vets.Rose and sage
My herb corner with climbers.
I loved the way the light shone through the ivy.
Rose lavender and jasmine

Climbing rose unknown variety.
"Reine Victoria" 1872 rose bud with violas
"Roseraie de l'Hay" hedging rose 1901

Forget me not.
Columbine

Cherry tree with flowering currant bush. Love the blue sky.
Wallflower. Gorgeous scent.
Can anyone name this one? Runanculus? excuse spelling.
Pieris or forest flame bush- the young growth is pink fades to white before going green. Looks really good.


I promise I have been crafting -just not finished the final one to be able to show you. I ran out of thread and had to dash off to Patched Pumpkin for more, as soon as Sally opened this morning.

Birthday aran, felt wool, plate

The finished aran- got it sewn up last night. It took 3 weeks and all my spare time so I've had little to show here.
It looks grey on my monitor but is actually a fawn /beige colour.
The children's felting attempt from the craft day at the castle.
A few grams of dyed wool from the "Lakes and Lancs guild of weavers spinners and dyers".
The metal plate from Angel's leg. She went to the vet yesterday and had the heavy dressing removed. She is now down to the equivalent of a plaster covering the stitches. The specialist is really pleased with her. She is her normal self and on antibiotics. :-) I must post a pic of her!

There have been other goings on with the petition against the development of the house at the bottom of the garden. The petition has been finally allowed after I kicked up a fuss. The developer wrote to all signatories (the petition became public record) asking them to remove their signatures or he would fill the house with migrant workers and/or benefit dependants (DSS) if he couldn't turn it into the pokey flats he was wanting. I was very cross when one of the people told me what he had done (he hadn't asked me to remove mine or even told me about his "anti-petition") and worried about the alone elderly people who had signed. One lady in particular was taken by ambulance last week and was told by the crew that she would've been a goner if she hadn't used her emergency button to summon them. (She had colapsed on the floor). Anyway she had been recouperating with her son and only came home the day he delivered the letters. In the end I went over and sat with her. She's a feisty lady and said she'd use his letter to light a fire. LOL Another lone lady had her daughter with her and was cross about it saying the builder had a cheek.

Last night hubby and I delivered letters to all signees letting them all know that they weren't alone in being targeted by this blackmail and that the planning meeting is scheduled for the 4th of June now and that they can attend. As I'm allowed to speak to the Planning Committee, I asked if there was anything in particular they wanted me to say. This bit terrifies me as I don't do public speaking. It is necessary though, so I've got to be brave. Hubby said when he was delivering, one couple were so incensed by the builder's letter to them that they were on their way to see our MP. I had already spoken to him on the phone and sent him a scanned PDF of both the letter he sent me and the letter he sent the signatories. He gave me some advice as one of his curent concerns is rogue landlords not keeping their houses up to full spec. and putting their tenants lives at risk.

Sorry not a lot of crafting- so much energy and time being taken by the aran and this petition. Today we are celebrating hubby's birthday. Son is off to camp on the actual day so we are having fun today. I am just so relieved the aran is done! The weather is gorgeous. If it continues we'll eat outside. Last night we had a barbeque which was fun- I was sewing up. LOL

Now I'd better see what you have been up to -I can't believe it's been a week!

Plans Barn Castle

Plans are afoot for the above fabric.
The barn grew sunflowers.

The following are photos from the back garden:
Clematis
Cerinthe
Pansies and sage.
Herb corner
Bluebell with winter jasmine behind.

These are from a trip to Sizergh Castle, Cumbria
Birds nesting in the barn

The children felting at a special event put on by the Lancs and Lakes guild of weavers spinners and dyers. Sorry couldn't find a web site. They are marvellous helpful ladies though very willing to share their love and knowledge of their expertise. I definately want to have a go at dying our own wool and felting it. The children loved making thei own pieces. Will photograph another time as there are loads of photos already today after my long absence.
One of the castle lawns. (They can't have many dogs!)
The original 1200s tower of Sizergh Castle with Elizabethan additions.
This was on one of a pair of a huge gate/doors designed to allow a carriage into the main hall (and out the other side) so the passengers didn't have to get wet.
The castle had a huge emerging fern collection.
I liked this member of the pea family.
Scabosia?
Part of the fernery. This was mixed with Acers (Japanses Maples).
There was a lot of this climber over the garden walls.
Looking up from the lake.
Son hoping to see a fish.
Lake and Elizabethan (1500s) view of the castle. The middle section was a balcony over one of the carriage gates I mentioned earlier.
Daughter and I looking over the garden. The purple coat is an aran I knitted earlier.
A more full view of the castle.
Lake drainage leading to a stream (1700s idea).

Tulips

Border
Us inside this walled garden.
Snake's Head fritilary

It's been a horrible week.
On Friday I was told by a 3rd party that the planning officer in charge of the proposed house development backing on to my back garden doesn't want to treat the petition as a petition because it was on separate pieces of peper for each house. (How it was delivered and how I managed to get 40 people (needed 25 for it to be legally considered a petition) to object. I was absolutely furious as this was an underhanded move by this officer as at no point has she told me this herself. I wonder if she hoped I wouldn't be told at all until it was too late. I wonder why she wants this to go ahead?

Anyway, after wanting to do very nasty things to her I got help. Hubby using our copies of everyone's names addresses and signatures made a PDF document and I emailed it directly to the councillors supporting the petition and one to the blinking planning officer. HMPH!

Alongside all of these nasty goings on, my blue brindle greyhound Angel's leg got bad. Back in 2005 her leg was shattered badly when we decided at Christmas to walk to the sea in the dark. (Think Martin Waddell's "Big Big Sea" book. She had a severed tendon which had weakened it. This is probably why she was dumped (ex-racing greyhound) and spent a year in knee high snow living rough on the Welsh mountains. She was running in the sand dunes and came up to me on 3 legs. I felt down it and couldn't make sense of what I was feeling so I knew it was bad. We got the vet out who stabilized her with pain meds and got her an x-ray. It was so bad she was referred to the top orthopaedic surgeon for the north of the UK- Ian Barclay. A lovely lovely man so reassuring. If he had a son i'd hope my daughter would marry him. Know the sort?

Back to this bank holiday weekend one of the metal plates came through her leg. It has been so warm I wonder if the metal expanding was a contributing factor and she grazed it somehow? Our vet wrapped it for us and put her on antibiotics and Ian Barclay fitted her in to his surgery yesterday. She's been in overnight and should be let out later today. The tricky bit comes next. The stitching is into scar tissue. Although the bones are fused nicely from the original injury, we've got to be careful of infection and the more brittle scar tissue tearing. Greyhound skin is thin like a humans. The part damaged was our equivalent of foot (Below the sticking out bit at the back of her back leg). At the moment the house feels weird with her not in it. The other 2 are subdued.

I'll craft when I can and catch up with everyone else's blogs on my list. I hope you're all having a good week.

Bird Houses, Gargoyles and Spring

The 3 bird house designs are from Connie's Calicos Too. Sorry can't find a web link. The above is the barn. I want to get some yellow sunflowers to go on the sides to finish it off. I used crow buttons again.
This is the small bird house. Daughter made it, with me helping sew the roof on. She used a bee fabric for the roof, so a hive and 3 bee buttons seemed appropriate.
This one I've shown before- the big bird house with heart button flowers all round.
Pear tree blossom in the garden.
Cherry tree blossom in the garden. One of my favourite Spring sites is an avenue lined in these trees with blossom falling.
Cerinthe with raindrops.
Grenville the gargoyle.
Lupus the gargoyle.
Stephanotis inside the house.
Rose scented geranium- think Holy Water smell.
My fruit bowl. Would you believe I have things like the salt and pepper to match? They are still packed so no pic.

The knitting is coming along, more signed petitions have arrived over the weekend. The more the merrier now. We have the minimum we needed for a committee to get involved, which is such a relief to me. I was so worried when I began, that if I stuck my head above the parapet that someone would shoot it off. Thankfully more and more people are realising the implications to the area. Word is spreading too-people have been asking for petitions to pass on. A councillor came today and saw for himself and is willing to take the cause up too. I've caught daughter's bug so have little energy, so I'll be glad when the whole situation is sorted.