March | 2016 | Sewchet

March 28, 2016
by sewchet 29 Comments

Sunday Sevens #81

Sunday Sevens is a weekly blog series started by Nat at Threads & Bobbins – why not go and see how it works and how you can join in?

1. No. 2 Son went to Kilve Court for four days with the school and braved all the teasing about having my pink suitcase! (No.3 Son had a pirate day at school).

2. The postcard we received from Kilve – cheeky little beggar! 3. A lovely lady in the village picked a posy of flowers from her garden for me. How nice?!

4. Mr H-L and I shared a seafood platter at the pub – it was lush!

5. Fifi had prime position in the pub window. She loves to watch people walk by.

6. Bagged these two bargainous ‘as new’ books from the charity shop. I bought the DIY one for No.1 Son only to find out I’d already bought him the same book some weeks ago:)

7. This amazing cross stitch was going for a song in the same charity shop so I snapped it up.

8. Just £6.50 for all that work – criminal.

9. I reckon there’s at last a year’s hard labour gone into that.

10. After a glorious day on Good Friday on which all the french windows in the house were flung open all day, the rain came on Saturday. It didn’t stop The Boys playing cricket in the garden, though.

11. We spotted two pairs of extra long full length curtains in a second hand shop, originating from some grand country house or other.

12. A considerable investment but a bargain at the same time. All interlined and lined, they’re such good quality that they’re going to be dry cleaned and stored until they find a new home in our future B&B.

13. We stayed with my brother at the weekend and had cocktails down the pub.

14. On the way home we were faced with cattle walking on the road through Burrington Combe – not a usual occurrence and they were lucky not to be hit.

15. Mr H-L and No.1 Son started stripping the wallpaper off the walls in our guest room. We haven’t decorated it in nearly ten years and it was looking a bit tired to say the least.

Well, that was part of my week, although I’ve got lots more to share in blog posts of their own to follow soon, including progress on the guest room decorating front. Talking of which…..back to the sanding down!

March 25, 2016
by sewchet 42 Comments

Crochet Woodland Animals

Having had a number of knitting projects lately (remember all those bobble hats?), I recently had the urge to pick up a crochet hook again.

It would have to be a quick make as I have too many things on the go to commit to another lengthy project, so I decided on a little crocheted animal from this gift box given to The Boys at Christmas – their little fingers are just not yet nimble enough to cope with something quite this fiddly.

The “Woodland Crochet” box by Kristen Rask, includes a book, hook and all the yarn needed to complete two of the animals, one of which is a sweet little fox that worked up in a couple of leisurely evenings.

I was happy because it looked exactly like it does in the book!

woodland animals crochet book

I snapped the eyes on to the white bit instead of the orange bit so they stand out more.

crochet fox front2

The whole thing only stands about four inches high and currently languishes on top of the pianola.

crochet fox crochet fox front

The tail acts as a stand, enabling the fox to stay balanced upright with ease.

crochet fox back

The cute little upturned mouth appears to be a smile and gives him a happy expression – always essential on a soft toy, in my opinion:)

crochet fox head

I might attempt the owl next – there’s something about owls which makes them quite endearing.

crochet owl

Of course, it’s Easter on Sunday – I wonder if I’ve got time to make the bluebird and her tiny chick?

crochet bird

March 20, 2016
by sewchet 32 Comments

Sunday Sevens #79

It’s Sunday again – where did THAT week go? Well, I’ll show you in this week’s Sunday Sevens – a weekly blog series devised by Nat at Threads & Bobbins to give readers a glimpse of what you do outside the blog in about seven photos.

There are no rules, which is just as well or mine would have to be renamed “Sunday Twelves” most of the time. It’s easy to join in, so visit Nat to find out how.

It was my birthday last Sunday, as previously mentioned and, because I share my birthday with my daughter, we went out for lunch on Monday to Summer Lodge in Evershot. It’s my favourite place – and now my daughter’s, too:)

2. The food was amazing as always and we even both had flowers, a birthday card and box of chocolates given to us by the hotel!

3. My daughter bought me a gorgeous Lamy fountain pen in pink……

Lamy fountain pen

4. ….and a bottle of 24K Prosecco!

5. Progress on my lacy cardigan is slow which means there’s no way it’s going to be finished for Spain in May:(

6. No.1 Son has finished painting the sewing cabinet he bought me for Mother’s Day/ Birthday. It’s much better but I still feel it needs something more. A bit of gold leaf maybe, to tie in with the gold cording on the inside?

sewing cabinet

7. To quote Hot Fuzz – “What d’you wanna do?” “I dunno……pub?”

8. Just LOOK at the size of those (empty) bottles of wine!

9. On the walk home from the pub, we spotted these deer grazing in the middle of the afternoon.

10. Our lovely cleaner hoovered the (not inconsiderable) dust from every single one of the buttons on our antique French bed. I wouldn’t have dared showing you what it looked like before!

11. The Boys washing up again!

Boys washing up

12. The Boys after another riding lesson. I think No.3 Son will be getting new jodhpurs for his birthday….

13. The hens appreciated The First Mow Of The Year. That’s Mr H-L with his head in the chicken coop:)

first cut of the year

14. And finally, I whipped up some sample bunting for one of the Easter Workshops. It will also be a late Easter present for our granddaughter:)

bunting

March 16, 2016
by sewchet 46 Comments

Linen Look Cotton Tunic

This month’s Minerva Crafts blog post is finished!

Just click on the link to see all about the Linen Look Cotton Tunic.

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March 14, 2016
by sewchet 53 Comments

Sunday Sevens #78

Sunday Sevens is a weekly blog series whereby you show, in pictures, what you’ve been up to outside the blog. To find out more, and how YOU can join in, visit this post by Nat over at Threads & Bobbins.

1. This month’s Minerva Crafts post is a tunic in pink linen mix. I’m making view ‘D’. 2. One of my less confident students finished this pretty square necked blouse. She did a brilliant job which should boost her confidence no end! 3. We went to my favourite place in the world, Exmoor, and I snapped these wild ponies as we drove down Porlock Hill.
4. This is one of the B&Bs that we viewed on Exmoor – a long held dream which we are looking to realise in the near future. 5. A cloudless sky made for a stunning day for a walk with The Boys and Mr H-L.

6. More imaginative boy-play with sticks found en route.
7. The first bluebells are blooming!

8. The aftermath of Saturday night’s dinner party – washing up left ’til the next morning. Don’t you just hate getting up to that?

9. I didn’t have to do it though, because the Birthday Girl gets a day off! The Boys made their own wrapping paper for my present. 10. Tulips – my favourite Spring flower. 11. A walk ended up in our local pub where I was ‘treated’ to a bowl of chips!12. No. 1 Son has sanded and primed the lovely sewing table that he bought me for Mother’s Day. Painting will ensue shortly…..

March 7, 2016
by sewchet 43 Comments

Sunday Sevens #77

Sunday Sevens is a weekly blog series organised by Nat over at Threads & Bobbins – why not pop over to see how you can join in?

Fifi curled up on the sofa next to a ball of wool and it struck me how tiny she looks in comparison.

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2. Bobble hat number eight was finished and gifted to my sister-in-law whose favourite colour is purple. FullSizeRender-75

3. Mr H-L carried a tired Fifi when she started lagging behind on a walk. Remember the dog carrier I made for her? E5C5A3D4-9732-4D94-B6F2-781F0825E3F5

4. We stopped for a pint on the way home just as the pub opened. 0D611E84-06E0-419A-9EF0-AF8F0054E3A6

5. No.2 Son did the washing up for the first time. We’ve never had a dishwasher. He said it was fun….I wonder how long before the novelty wears off? FullSizeRender-71

6. No.1 Son bought this for me for Mother’s Day. Can you guess what it is – apart from being the perfect place to put down my G&T?

7. A sewing cabinet in original vintage condition!

8. Mr H-L and I were wandering through Salisbury’s back streets when we happened upon a piano recital about to start in a church. A rather wonderful forty minutes passed too quickly. FullSizeRender-73

9. Look at the smile on No.3 Son’s face as he jumps!

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10. We went straight from their riding lesson out for a walk with the dogs and The Boys did all the usual boy stuff with sticks picked up along the way.

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11. It was a bit colder so Fifi had to wear a coat to stop her shivering.

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12. Another day, another pub, this time The New Inn in Salisbury which dates back to the 12th century.

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13. Just think, some of those beams are over 800 years old!

14. A Mother’s Day walk with my sister and her family.

15. The Boys had more fun…and there was a drink and bag of crisps at the other end in yet another pub!

16. I forgot to take photos of the card I made for mum using free machine embroidery, so apologies for the poor quality of the ones she sent me on her iPad.