August has rolled around, meaning it'll only be a matter of days before we start seeing Christmas themed gifts and decorations in the shops. (I'm hoping that's a joke and not an eerily accurate prediction.) I have started making things that're meant for the festive season, namely several little owl tree decorations. I was sewing them this morning while listening to Olympic coverage on the radio.
They're all getting red and green embroidery on their wings, and I'll add a sparkly gold thread for a hanging loop. I didn't finish 'em as I needed to spend an hour on the allotment, the ground much easier to dig into after a hefty rainfall overnight. I collected a bag of blackberries while I was down there, keeping aside a bowlful for tomorrow's breakfast and the rest destined for the freezer. If I can cram anything else in there.
Back home, after lunch I headed into the front garden to tidy up a raggedy looking flower border, which was both satisfying and annoying. Satisfying because the border looks a lot neater, but annoying because I've never got the hang of succession planting. The spring bulbs come, then things like foxgloves and love-in-a-mist, then ... I end up with bald patches when nothing much is blooming. So I've made a list for next year, all the seeds I need to buy and raise so I've still flowers blooming during late summer and well into autumn. Heleniums, rudbeckia, chrysanths, tithonia, helianthus, and a few more. I'll keep my eyes peeled for when the online gardening companies have their end of season sales as you can pick up seeds at a fraction of their usual retail price and grab some absolute bargains.
What else can I tell you about? Oh yes, I finished reading 'The Appeal' which was terrific. A lot of fun, and the format - where the story unfolds through a series of letters, emails, text messages - makes it a speedy, easily digestible read.
Despite my good intentions, I managed to snaffle another couple of books from a charity shop. I have read 'Rebecca' before, but wasn't sure if I owned a copy of it and this looked a particularly handsome edition. The other book by Diane Cook isn't one I'd heard of, but the blurb makes it sound intriguing.
On to the towering To-Be-Read pile it goes. Meanwhile I've started 'The Darkest Sin' by D.V. Bishop. It's a historical murder-mystery set in the city of Florence, 1537. If you like the Shardlake novels by C.J. Sansom or the Giordano Bruno books by S.J. Parris, then I think you'd like 'The Darkest Sin'.
The last thing I'll mention is my 'Creation' wall hanging, which is making slow but steady progress.
I'm adding applique 'seaweed', using the last of the Bondaweb to stick them on.
These felt trees are slightly padded out, and I've added leaves using two strands of green crewel wool. The more I stitch into this wall hanging, the more I think of how I 'd make it differently if I was starting all over again. Oh well, it's a learning curve, isn't it? I need to enjoy the process and not focus so much on the eventual outcome.
Okay, that's enough of my blathering on. I'm going to watch some Olympic swimming while giving myself a pedicure at the same time. Necessary because these trotters aren't fit to be seen in open toed sandals. I'll reward myself with my favourite chocolate bar - white chocolate Bueno, since you ask - and maybe a dish of fresh blackberries and Greek yoghurt too.
Have fun, and bye for now.
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