Don't tidy up too much!

This isn't the best photo, but can you make out some of the dozen or more stripy caterpillars that were demolishing this once flourishing weed? One day they'll hopefully, almost magically, turn into beautiful Cinnabar Moths. Which is proof that you shouldn't be too tidy when it comes to your garden or allotment. Within reason, let the weeds grow, and rewards will come.

The Marjoram's flowering, a real bee magnet. They love it.

Same goes for the Borage. Bees love it, and apparently it constantly refills with nectar, so if a pollinator feeds, within minutes the Borage has replenished its supply.

I may need to learn how to cook gooseberries. Perhaps in a fruit crumble? Mmmm, crumble and custard, that sounds good.

The blackcurrants are enjoying the sunshine, and ripening up nicely.

Hollyhocks are a classic cottage garden plant, aren't they? They've tended to succumb to disfiguring rust on the allotment, but are much healthier so far this year.

On to crafty things, I haven't been especially productive today when it comes to sewing. I'd had an idea the other day about getting blank greeting cards, and making mini sized scrappy patchwork quilts to attach to the front of the cards. As a quirky kind of alternative to an illustration, you see.

I cut out strips of material, about an inch wide, sewed them together into blocks, and then chopped each block into thirds, mixing the stripes up to add interest to the overall look. I'm not sure whether this idea's going to work, but this evening I'm adding wadding, binding, and basic quilting stitches. After all, it is a Slow Stitch Sunday.

These various blocks might end up being sewn together to make a cushion cover, or I may buy some blank cards and try the mini quilts idea after all. Not sure yet.

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Fabric bowls & electrical cables ...

To add to my seemingly never ending list of works-in-progress, I've started making a fabric bowl. Or should I call it a fabric basket? I'm not sure. Anyway, I've made the odd bowl or two before, like this blue & white one that I keep cotton perle in. I decided to use upholstery material, which has both advantages & disadvantages. On the good side, it has a certain stiffness, which helps the bowl stay in shape. On the irritating side, the kind of material I'm using frays like mad, and I'm forever picking up threads off the carpet. The bowl's a simple construction, and I've used a circle of cardboard covered with brown felt for the base. It'll look much better when I've embroidered and stitched into it. I've made a start on that, and appliqued on a rectangle of plum coloured velvet for extra interest. When not stitching, I've been catching up on my reading. I finished C J Sansom's 'Dark Fire'. Real...

Threads of Freedom and charity shop bargains

It's Saturday afternoon, and I haven't done half the things I'd meant to. Partly because I spent most of this morning messing about with paints, stencils and the gell plate. Never mind, everything on today's 'To Do' list will join tomorrow's 'To Do' list ... it's hardly life or death if I don't haul the hoover around the room or pull up weeds in the front garden. I thought I'd show you what I made on Wednesday. I'd gone to my monthly StitchArt group, and this time we did something a little different. There's a project called 'Threads of Freedom' which is working with various community groups across the city. It's about creating little stitched pieces, some of which will be included in a textile panel to go on display at Leeds art gallery. There was lots of fabric we could choose from to sew with, and I picked this vintage tray cloth with the roses embroidery. My own embroidery's not a patch on those flo...

Another fabric bowl & what's starting to look like a craft room ...

Hello on what's been a beautiful autumn day. Bright blue clear sky, a chilly start but warming up in the afternoon. I've been on a long walk around a local nature reserve, not wanting to stay inside when it's so lovely outdoors. In the last week or so, I've been finishing this fabric bowl, and have started making another. But mainly I've been having a bit of a change-around in my house. I've hauled furniture from one room to another, clutter-cleared cupboards and bagged up things for the charity shop, and generally hoovered and cleaned all those dusty corners. I'd finally made a decision about turning the dumping ground of the front bedroom into a craft room. It's taking shape, though it really has taken some effort. Larger pieces of material are stacked on shelves, grouped into colours. Lower down is my Sissix machine and die cuts, and at the base of the shelving are beads and jewellery making supplies...

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