#sundaysevens is a weekly blog series devised by Nat at Threads & Bobbins whereby you show seven photos of your week that may not be worthy of a blog post on their own.

Yes, I realise it’s now Monday and, yes, I know I can’t count……

1. Mr. H-L wouldn’t dream of doing this in our London flat – go out to fetch the eggs in his dressing gown and wellies!

2. Working from home country-style; still in his dressing gown and in front of a blazing fire in the kitchen. Well, our home office isn’t anything like as cosy!

3. Of course, working from home has other benefits, not least of which is having still-hot-from-the-oven Dorset Apple Cake and cream served up to you at regular intervals throughout the day.

4. The next day, while their father hopped on the train to London, The Boys played “Going To Work” with an old laptop and keyboard – they even unearthed a couple of ancient mobile phones that hadn’t been recycled for whatever reason. The Boys decided to dress properly, choosing shirts and trousers over PJs.

Just like Daddy – how cute!

5. The Boys had a Fun Day at the stables. When asked what they had done they said, “Riding ponies and cleaning up poo – it was brilliant!”

6. A family day out to Exeter museum (RAAM) which The Boys LOVED. Museums are far more fun nowadays, most having lots of interactive things to do to bring history alive. There was a xylophone in the African department which they thoroughly enjoyed playing with.

7. In the park next to the museum, at the foot of the old Roman wall, lay a homeless man, fast asleep in his sleeping bag.

After explaining to a curious No.2 Son what being homeless meant, he burst into tears at the horror of it. Living ‘the good life’ in a tiny hamlet means The Boys live a pretty sheltered life and this dose of reality hit him hard.

We tucked some money inside his sleeping bag for him to find when he wakes up.

8. Number eight already? Sorry, please bear with me – only a few more to go!

Popped into Ottery St. Mary garden centre on the way home. The Boys loved all the Christmas displays – this one was outside at the entrance setting the scene for what’s inside.

9. Despite the busy week (remember the half term sewing camps?) I did manage to fit in a little bit of sewing.

In the words of Rolf Harris “Can you guess what it is yet?”

C’mon, admit it – you just said that in an Australian accent, didn’t you?!

10. Last one – honest!

My ‘Blogger of the month’ feature in Craftseller magazine. You should be able to click on the image for a larger version if you want to read it.

The Boys have an inset day today so we’re going to a friend’s for lunch but, for those of you back to school – only 35 more school days until Christmas!!!

Another Sunday, another #sundaysevens – seven photos of your week giving followers an insight to your life in the real world as organised by Nat at Threads & Bobbins. Visit her site to find out more and how you can join in yourself.

1. No.1 Son has now largely recovered from a fractured skull – this photo was taken last week before his fall, in a hotel restaurant nearby. Mr H-L is admiring the grounds in the background.

2. Couldn’t resist ordering the book I mentioned last week and it arrived a few days ago.

3. This project needs to be finished before I start on the above book. I’m on the home straight though, just the hair to finish off and then I can begin the mammoth task of photographing everything to show you.

4. A very rare supper-on-the-sofa moment made special by the romantic surprise gesture of my own personal candlestick. Mr H-L cooks a mean Chicken Gumbo.

5. I pass the church each time I walk the dogs and it struck me that any day now the leaves will change to a glorious shade of russet before falling to the ground.

6. Teaching pattern drafting to a student; I taught her how to draft a skirt sloper and then make a pattern from it. I really must get some small weights as the homemade jars of jam are a little too big!

7. A sweet photo of a tired No.2 Son curled up on the sofa with Fifi.

8. I had to squeeze in an extra photo this week to show you a very special picture – our first grandchild! Here is baby Lilah having her first cuddle with a very proud Mr H-L. After a traumatic start to life, she is now home and doing well.

Hope you all had a good weekend!

Just hopping on the computer briefly to do this week’s Sunday Sevens, linking up with Nat from Threads & Bobbins. Too busy for many words but, as they say, a picture speaks a thousand….

1. Had a moonlit supper outside warmed by an old woodburner that we keep in the garden especially for times like these.

2. The following morning there was a beautiful sunrise as I let the hens out.

3. No.2 Son is continuing to enjoy his cross stitch.

4. He had great fun untangling all my embroidery skeins and organising them all.

5. The Boys had their first proper riding lesson and absolutely loved it.

6. Harvest Supper at the village hall – a huge turnout for our tiny community of 240 residents.

7. Stocks have started arriving for my new venture – The Stitch Academy. Just waiting for one more machine and a stack of patterns to come. I have my first client booked – a 1:1 dressmaking session this week!

What a busy week!

Here are this week’s Sunday Sevens as organised by Nat at Threads & Bobbins – seven photos that sum up your week that otherwise wouldn’t be enough to make a full blog post.

Although, this week, I could write an entire blog post about every photo but just don’t have the time:)

Here goes: –

1. No.1 Son graduated from Plymouth University with a 2.1 in Business Studies. He’s already got his first post-degree position in Marketing. Here he is with his sister.

2. Celebratory post ceremony meal back at our local pub.

3. Work continues at the weekends on the sun room. No.3 Son is helping daddy build….

4. …..whilst No.2 Son does cross stitch with mummy!

5. Lunch with Granddad in his care home. The Boys didn’t drink the whisky.

6. Stocking up my other Folksy shop, ‘Artyzan Crafts’, which sells accessories made from upcyled materials only.

7. My exciting new venture – I’ve opened a sewing school!

After a LOT of planning the first courses are starting after half term. Website is done but not all sections are completed yet. If you fancy a nose, click on the pictures or follow this link – The Stitch Academy.

Well, here we are again, another Sunday, another Sunday Sevens as thought up by Nat over at Threads & Bobbins – seven photos summing up your week. Click on the link to find out how you can join in.

1. Craft night at a friend’s house. Alcohol, finger food and yarn – what could possibly go wrong?

2. The bucket of sloe gin is already smelling divine and we’ve got to wait until Christmas before we can drink it!

3. Elderberry jelly is a first for me and it’s absolutely delicious. The jars look very sad without a pretty little fabric hat though, so I must get around to doing that.

4. Managed to get tickets to Dismaland which, for those of you who have been living in a cave shut off from the outside world for the last couple of months, is Banksy’s masterpiece on the seafront in Weston.

5. This was one of the crazy installations – a crashed car with a cross-stitched bonnet.

6. Seriously – REAL cross stitch!!

7. French windows are in and work is under way on the sun room at last. Is it me, or do builders seem to be getting younger?

8. I’m sneaking in an eighth picture to show you the Welly Family picture I made for the friend who came with me to The Handmade Fair (see this post). She loved the ones that Katie Essam makes, so I tailored one to fit her family in the muted hydrangea colours that she loves so much.

If you’re reading this, Velvet Cow, act surprised when I give it to you in the playground tomorrow:)

Until next week – “That’s All Folks!”

Welcome to this week’s #sundaysevens, as thought up by Nat over at Threads & Bobbins – a weekly blog series featuring seven photographs of your week to show a bit more about the person behind the blog.

1. Spent the first part of the week with my cousin in her second home in Cornwall. Here she is outside the cottage with her sons and two dogs. You can see more photos of the cottage in last year’s post here.

2. Our first visit to The Eden Project which was very busy but better than I expected it to be. The sheer scale of the project is mindblowing and continually evolving.

There is a dinosaur exhibition on at the moment, complete with life size dinosaurs operated by people within.

The dinosaurs are so realistic that the human’s legs have to be showing to show that is just a dressing up costume, so that the children are not scared half to death!

The actors inside were brilliant and did a great job of ‘hunting’ down the adults amongst us whilst being quiet and gentle with the kiddies.

3. Treated myself in the Apple store….

4. Cracking on with those crochet dolls and accessories.

5. Eldest step-daughter’s graduation as a mature student – here she is with the proud dad-to-be.

6. Naked cricket in the garden – Mr. H-L even mowed a cricket pitch for them!

7. My daughter and her boyfriend came over for lunch today and some fun in the sun which included the pool and some more cricket. What a glorious day it has been so far!

That’s it for this week – now time for a refill and catch a few more rays while it’s still hot out. Hope it’s been nice where you are:)

Time for another #sundaysevens as dreamed up by Nat over at Threads & Bobbins – seven photos that sum up your week in a nutshell that aren’t meaty enough for a blog post on their own.

1. No.2 Son won top goal scorer and player’s player of the year at the football presentation. 

  
2. Lunch at a very dear friend’s house.

 3. Visited the Devon Guild of Craftsmen in Bovey Tracey – fell in love with the textile landscapes of Amanda Richardson.  

4. Spent the day in Exeter museums/galleries with my sister and mum. Had a lovely lunch with bubbly to celebrate mum’s 67th birthday!

 
5. Sat in the car in a field on my own for FIVE hours while The Boys played in a five-a-side tournament on the way down to our mini break in Cornwall. Dogs weren’t allowed obviously, and it was too hot to leave them in the car, but we couldn’t even see the football from the ‘car park’! 

On the plus side though, I don’t often get the chance to crochet for five hours solid:)

 
6. The little old lady from a bungalow backing onto the ‘car park’ came out with a cup of tea as she felt sorry for me sitting there for so long!

 7. Playing table tennis in our cousin’s holiday home in Cornwall.  

 It’s raining, so The Boys have nipped up to play pool in the log cabin playroom and I’m about to put my feet up and sneak in a bit more crochet. Those dolls are coming on a treat…..