Spring has gloriously sprung!

It's been the weather for long walks. My photography skills aren't up to much, so this picture doesn't do credit to how lovely the view was from this bridle path. Deep blue sky, masses of dandelions everywhere, cowslips, daffodils still blooming. The sharp yellow of a field of oil seed rape. Blossom on the trees and birds flitting about, gathering material for nest building.

This second photo was taken at RSPB St Aidans nature reserve. Easy to reach from my house, and ideal for an early evening stroll. It's not only what's visible that I like about this site. It's the sounds too. You get the birds squarking and calling out as they swoop and dive through the air, but also the rustle of masses of reed beds and dried grasses as they sway and shiver in the breeze.

Such pretty blossom.

Once back indoors, I've been studiously ignoring the DIY type jobs that need doing - everytime I go into the bathroom I'm looking up at the ceiling thinking 'It'd only take me a morning to paint that' - there's even a tin of paint and a brush in the bathroom, all ready to go! - instead I've been playing about with these improv blocks. Sewing strips together, cutting 'em up, reassembling. Once you start, it's addictive and all kinds of patterns emerge out of the chaos.

I'm alternating that playfulness with another task. Quilting this backing on to my scrappy quilt. It's made up of remnants of material, plus some orphan blocks and a couple of pieces of hexagonal patchwork that would've been made up into cushion covers, if I didn't already have way too many cushions. I suppose some people might think it's a shame to have these handmade hexies tucked away on the reverse, out of sight, but I rather like the idea of a quilt having a hidden surprise.

I'm looking forward to getting this quilt finished, and I think it'll end up being a favourite that I'll use for years to come.

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Sari scraps, PVA, a couple of books and a necklace

I'm typing this as snow's falling, and has been steadily all day. It's not settling to any great extent, though I bet by tomorrow morning the paths will be slippery with ice. Which always makes me paranoid about falling over and at the very least looking undignified, but at worst breaking a bone or twisting an ankle. Oh well, it's ideal weather to stay inside and craft, isn't it? I finally got around to listing packs of sari scraps on Etsy this morning. I only made up six bundles as I've no clue whether they'll sell or if I've set a reasonable enough price point. Time will tell. This is a link to the listing, if you're interested. This vaguely pink fabric isn't from one of my Etsy packs. It's from a bit of experimenting I was doing yesterday. I'd seen a post on Instagram showing how a DIY version of batik could be done without using hot wax. The Instagrammer used PVA instead, and I wanted to try this out....

In praise of wool

Just a quick post today. I'm offering you a short but peaceful break from the overwhelmingness (is that a word?) of Christmas. By now you've probably eaten your bodyweight in sweets//roast potatoes/pigs in blankets/cake/After Eights ... whatever your festive indulgences are. You're under-exericsed, over-stimulated, feeling broke and possibly guilty about an argument with a relative or friend you've never entirely got on with. So, here's something to take your mind off all that. I've two videos to refresh and revive, and they both concern wool. Interesting fact. Well, I found it interesting. About 1% - yup, one per cent - of the world's textiles are made of wool. Out of curiosity, I also googled how much is made of cotton. That's higher, but it's only about 24% and that's heading downward instead of up. Synthetic fibres are the bulk of all textile manufacture. Anyway, back to woolly wonders. My firs...

Another week's flown by ...

Saturday's rolled around again, and it's not been the most eventful of days. Cleaning and hoovering, a walk to the shops to buy groceries, an hour on the allotment, then home to do some odd tasks in the garden. The strawberry plants are sending out runners, so I've been dealing with those, plus deadheading the perennial sunflowers, and cutting back the gone-over flowers on the sage and marjoram. I'm sad to see those blooms gone as the bees loved them. This afternoon I spent a few hours finishing 'Dawnlands' by Philippa Gregory. It's a really good book, a page turner where you care about the characters and want to be reassured everything's going to work out well for them. Plus you become enraged about the corruption of the so-called justice system at the time of the Stuart kings and queens, about transportation of prisoners to the West Indies, and about the vile nature of the sugar trade in the 1600s and the vast profits made from it....

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