The Rest of the Week

Goodness me, we're in June already. Slow down summer, don't go too fast! 

Two years ago I began a hexagon patchwork which I mentioned in this post and this post, and as that summer wore on I put it away, only to take it out briefly last summer to add a bit more. This week I have taken it out again and added lots more hexagons, making it into a large rectangle. I'm thinking of making it into either a little tablecloth or a quilt for our bed, although that last idea's perhaps a bit ambitious. It would be nice to finish it soon.

In the style of a magazine photographer I made a little photo-shoot with the patchwork, a jug of sweet williams (the first of the year - hooray!) and stocks, some roses from the garden and the teacup candle I made earlier this year. P walked past and smiled - he's used to me doing this sort of thing.

After my regular crafty get-together with my friend Jane (this time we may have done rather more chatting and drinking tea and coffee than making), I got on with some more hexagons in a different colour combination. This time it's fresh greens and lavenders and I'm planning on something smaller, a cushion cover, in fact. In that way I might actually finish it this summer.

As it was chilly and wet I decided to stay indoors at the dining table instead of taking everything out to my shed and spent a comfortable hour cutting, pinning, tacking and stitching.

I usually show you my calendar each month and realise that I forgot last month, so here is May, which for me is the month of bluebells, cow parsley and lilac,

and June, which is always full of roses.

I had to do some shopping in Bath last week and while I was dashing hither and thither I stopped to look at Pulteney Bridge and the horse-shoe weir, and was reminded of how beautiful it all is.

Yesterday P and I spent the day in Bristol. We went there to buy something for me which reconnects me to a skill which I have neglected for too long. 

I'd learnt violin briefly as a child, but took it up properly as an adult when D started school. I had lessons for several years and got as far as Grade 3, then life got busier and the time to practice became rarer as I started a training course and returned to work.

 Four years ago I put away my violin and there it's stayed in its case in a cupboard. But recently it's been quietly calling to me and so P and I went off to Bristol to the beautiful violin shop where I originally bought it. There I bought a new bow (J has my old one). Rather like Harry Potter choosing his wand you have to try a few before you find the one whose sound you like, but I came away with a bow, shoulder rest and rosin, kitted out and ready to start playing again. It's not an expensive violin, but I wouldn't swap it and playing it really does make me very happy indeed. 

I don't have lots of free time for practising, especially in term-time, but as our children are grown up now we find ourselves increasingly able to pick up the things that we used to love doing as well as finding new things too. I know I can find fifteen minutes a day. There's something special about making your own music and it's been proven that learning an instrument is good for you in all sorts of ways. And I do like playing a good hornpipe or jig.

While we were in Bristol the sun came out and we spent a very agreeable day doing not very much. We drank coffee, sat on College Green among the many students and people enjoying their lunch-breaks, and had a little picnic. Later we browsed in our favourite second-hand bookshop and I came away with some bargains. I'm still reading Robert Macfarlane's 'Landscape' which is excellent, so I snapped up his imaginative account of walking Britain's ancient routes 'The Old Ways', as well as these two lovely old paperbacks on wild flowers.

We strolled in the sunshine, drank tea by the harbour and ate ice creams. It really was a day of recharging batteries, ready for work again next week.

We've finished the week by spending today in Lyme Regis. We arrived late morning and bought pasties to eat on the seafront. It was quite hazy to start with and visibility along the coast wasn't great.

But before long the sun came out and the beach became busier. We read books and drank coffee - very relaxing. It was pleasant to hear the gulls and waves, and smell the sea air.

I do like the little cottages along the seafront, especially the thatched ones. 

It was very warm indeed and P went in for a swim, as always. He said it was chilly but invigorating.

By late afternoon it was time to head for home, and we walked back up the beach to the car park. 

It was a very summery day out and so good to be back at the coast again.

I'm back at work tomorrow, so won't be around quite as much as I have been lately, but I hope you have a lovely week and that the sun shines for you.

See you soon x

Summer patchwork

Lately I've had the urge to have a gentle project on the go which I can pick up and put down, and which meanders along very nicely. Life's been very busy at times, and I want to enjoy the slowness of a project which isn't going anywhere in a hurry.

I've made many cushions, bunting, bags and square patchworks on my sewing machine, and ended up rushing to get them finished, so that I can admire and use the finished item. Here's a striped patchwork cushion cover which I made last summer.



That's always fun, and I get a sense of achievement from having made something. However, this time I felt like making something which you can't rush, something hand-stitched, and I remembered patchwork. When I was at junior school I was taught to make hexagonal patchwork out of crazy 1970s brown and orange swirly fabric, a mix of man-made and natural fabrics. Sadly that lovely item is no longer with us, but I do have a piece of hand-sewn patchwork which I made in the '90s from a Laura Ashley kit. The pieces were already cut out and colour co-ordinated, and I sewed them together in my chosen design.

I love the soft hues of lavender blue and pale yellow, so spring-like and fresh. I've always been a big fan of Laura Ashley, and have a small collection of fabrics which are now called 'vintage'. Once I'd used up most of the pieces, I wasn't sure what to make it into, and so I backed it with white cotton and use it as a cover for one of my baskets.

I've amassed quite a stash of pretty floral sprigged cotton over the years, and so I chose a combination of pink, red, pale blue, pale yellow, soft green and purple for my design. I included fabric from a top and some pyjamas which both of my daughters wore when they were younger, a personal touch which increases my fondness for this patchwork.

 I drew a hexagon onto card by using a pair of compasses to make a circle. I then used a protractor to measure out the circumference of the circle into 60 degree sections, and joined these together with a ruler to make a hexagon. I drew around this template to make lots of paper hexagons, and cut out my fabric hexagons with a 8mm hem allowance (this was a rough measurement). Then, using a contrasting thread, I tacked the fabric hexagons onto the paper hexagons, folding the hems over as I went.

You can see the piles of each colour gradually growing.

After a while I had a a little stack of fabric hexagons, ready to go. 

I carefully over-stitched them together in a random design, trying to even their repeat out as much as possible. It quickly started to grow.

And grow.

And grow. 

I'm really pleased with how it's turning out. It's inspired by Kaffe Fassett's designs, full of colour, and very higgledy-piggeldy. But what I like the best is that I have no idea of what I'm making with it! I'm just going to let it grow, and when I'm ready to stop, I'll decide what it is by its size - maybe a table cloth, or a throw, or even a bedspread. I'm just loving sitting quietly every now and then, carefully hand-stitching a bit of summer into each piece.

This week

It's been half term here this week and it's been a busy one. The weather's been grey and drizzly for most of the week so there hasn't been a lot of gardening going on. I have been out to admire the roses and poppies which are blooming at the moment.

Those colours do stand out, even on a dingy day.

 However, there have been times when I've been able to squeeze in a bit of creativity.The blooming of the roses means that it's time for me to make rose petal shortbread, so I went out on a dryish day and collected some scented blooms. The darker colours tend to have a stronger perfume, and therefore taste better when cooked. They do look pretty together.

Once picked, I discarded the damaged petals and checked for any bugs which may be hiding in them. Before cooking you need to take out the bitter 'heel' of the petals. It's the lighter bit where they join the flower base. This bit can be quite time-consuming!

I then chopped them quite finely in a mini-chopper so that they look like this.

After trying several recipes, I always use this one. I add a teaspoon or two of rose water, but it depends on how strong you like the taste to be. You can buy it in most large supermarkets.

I roll the dough out and cut it into flowery shapes.

 Once baked, they don't last long in our house!

I also managed to have a creative afternoon with my friend Jane. We've known each other a long time, as well as working together. Now that our children are growing up, we take it in turns to go to each other's houses in the school holidays to spend an afternoon being creative, chatting and eating coffee and cake. It's very relaxing and we both come away feeling inspired. 

I've started a summery patchwork, and Jane's been making machine embroideries, below. You can see what she makes here and here. 

 It's been good to find moments to be creative and to stop and enjoy the season. Hope you've found time to do the same x