Another New Hat and a Challenge!

Hi all!
OH and I got back from a week in Austria on Saturday: a skiing holiday, on which (as usual) I did not ski. I was joined in my week-long apres-ski by J who was not skiing due to the fact she is expecting her first baby. During the week we celebrated, amongst our group of 6, a 50th birthday and an engagement. We knew about the birthday and went prepared, but the engagement was a complete surprise.

In previous years I've made myself a new hat to take away, so decided to do the same again.  This time it was knitted in a cable design. It was supposed to be knitted on a circular needle, but I didn't have one the right size so I adapted the pattern to knit it on a pair of needles. It's also supposed to be more like a beret but, due to my tendency to knit too tightly, it's more like a beanie (The pattern is called Saffron but I don't remember where I got it from I'm afraid. I have a pdf if anyone is interested.)

On the last day of the holiday, J and I bought tickets to join the rest of the group at the top of the ski lift for lunch. I was really pleased we did, because the other time I went up it was too foggy to see the amazing view.

Another day we watched the men ski, from the bar half-way up the mountain. We managed to pick them out with the help of M's rabbit ears.

Back to normal now, and to the 'challenge' I decided to set myself for this year - or however long I decide to continue. I felt that I hadn't got my money's worth out of the crafty books and magazines I've bought over the years. When I thought about it in more detail, though, I realised I've taken inspiration from my books for a few of my projects, but the only item I've made from scratch and word-for-word is the knitting needle roll (above), the pattern for which I followed from The Crafters' Companion

Because it's my challenge I'm not going to put any pressure on myself, such as a time limit or amount of projects. The only rule is that there are no rules. As you know by now, I don't plan much when I start a project. It just sort of evolves. But this challenge means I'll occasionally have to plan a little. And it doesn't mean following patterns exactly - I might just use them for inspiration. As I said before - My Challenge. My rules!!

Bye for now

Teresa x

Edit: The Title that I Forgot!

 I attempted to follow the suggestion of some of my commenters regarding the "Boring Beige" and decided to try it on with some accessories to brighten it up a bit. 

All I could find to try with it was this scarf!  If temperatures in future winters continue to go into minus double figures, as in the last 2 years, I can see me making a lot of use of BB.  Despite all its boring beige-ness - it is very warm and cosy! 

It's only a couple of weeks since we had the severe minus temperatures but you would never have thought it last weekend.  On Saturday afternoon we attended a 50th birthday party at the local hotel where we sat outside in the sun (some in T-shirts!!) then enjoyed a hot buffet and watched Wales play beat England in the Six Nations rugby on a big screen.  I took advantage of the lovely sunshine  later to get OH to take a pic of the "Grey Cowl" (with me in it).  It's a difficult colour to photograph but this is just about right with the little flecks of orange showing. This has been added to my intend-to-sell drawer - along with some cedarwood mothballs to prevent the little blighters chewing at the black thread that runs through it.

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I have pairs of ankle and knee-length boots in both black and brown.  When I bought the knee-length black ones a few months ago I paid for good quality ones and vowed to make a concerted effort to keep them (and the rest of my shoes/clothes) well-maintained in order to get value, and produce less waste. I wear boots to work most of the time in the winter and with it being a construction site they can get quite muddy.  True to my vow, I dug out the polish and cleaned them up the other day, only for the bottom of the heel to fall off one of the ankle boots at a works Safety Stand Down Day on Monday!!!  I didn't notice until it was almost time to leave so there's a lonely black heel lying around somewhere at Cheltenham Racecourse.  The boots were nowhere near in need of reheeling but both will have to be done so they match!!

When I was at school I, and many school mates, would clean our shoes religiously every day after school ready to be smart again the following day.  These days it's not only school children that don't clean their shoes.  It doesn't seem to be frowned upon these days if shoes are dirty and scuffed.  I sometimes see women in high heels with the ends worn right down so the coloured covering splays out like a frill and the toes turn up.  As with clothes these days, footwear is often worn to death and replaced rather than looked after.

The last 2 photos show both sides of the first of 7 purses I've been asked to make.  Two more are under way but I don't expect to get the rest finished until I get back from next week's holiday. A group of 8 of us is off to the Alps in France. 

Progress since last time:

One commission purse finished and two more started. 

Bye for now

Teresa x

Giving Without Expectation!

When I gave the little key-purse to my work-friend for her birthday I had no ulterior motive or expectation of any kind.  It was simply a gift and I was grateful to pick up the clues from her to be able to give something that was genuinely useful.

About a week later, I received an email from her.  She'd had the idea to give a similar little purse to each of her grandchildren and asked if I would be kind enough to make them. And how many grandchildren do you think she has? Seven!!!

I am so excited - it's my first commission since my brief daliance with machine knitting many, many years ago (I've been searching for my creative niche for a long time)!!  

This may be the key to the start of selling my homecrafted items and it's come about by accident.  Rather than making random things to sell, I should concentrate on making gifts for others and things to use/wear myself.  This would be a way of testing the market and finding out what people like.  It could lead to orders and would make people aware of what I do in order to open doors in the future.  I wouldn't want to launch myself into things too suddenly so this would be perfect. There's a strong possibility that my job will finish around September this year so I need to have a plan :-)

I promised a handmade bag to another friend at work after she gave me lots of materials during a clear-out, so I'd better get on with that soon.  And this time I will have (not so much an ulterior motive as) a plan!!

While DD and her boyfriend were away in Florida we shared the care of their 2 doggies with his parents.  They looked after them in the week and we brought them to our house for the 2 weekends.  Here they are  in the back garden after we had a little snow. 

This was their home for 3 days each week. It's an enclosed area at the back of our house but has no heating. Due to OH having developed a mild allergy to furry animals (since being stung by a hornet and various wasps over the years in his work as a forester) we had to keep the dogs out of the house. Unfortunately, it was the coldest period of the winter so far and they are not used to being kept outside, but they had plenty of warm bedding and we set up a heat lamp.  They seemed happy enough and are now back home with DD. 

I used to think it would be nice to have a dog around the place - maybe when I retire and can be at home more - but this experience has made me think again.  The dogs were on my mind most of the weekend and I felt guilty when leaving them outside to amuse themselves.  It was like having small children again and I felt like I should be entertaining them constantly.

I'm still on a roll with the stitching!!  Using fabric from my store I've run up this lined shopper and matching purse for my sister's birthday in March.  All the materials are off-cuts or recycled.  I ran out of the red buttons when I got to the purse but noticed I'd used one on my needle case so cut it off and will now have to find one to replace it. 

Cowl knitting is also progressing well.  For this I used a ball and a half of yarn left over from knitting OH a jumper about 20 years ago.  The yarn has a small percentage of wool in it and judging by the missing bits of the black thread that runs through it, my guess would be that THAT is the wool part (pesky moths!)

very useful needlework book I've had since 1983

I didn't use a pattern as such; just cast on as many stitches as I thought necessary (in multiples of 10) to suit the stitch I wanted to use from this book (the cream stitch design with diagonal holes in the book above) and knitted until the yarn was all used.  Will sew in ends and join into a ring soon to finish. 

Usually, when I've had a good run with stitching something else has gone by the wayside, such as baking or cleaning.   But look!!  Over the last couple of weeks I've even managed a bit of this too.  Above is one of 2 Walnut and Banana Loaves from Jamie's Great Britain (my son's book)........

..........and this is Gingerbread made in my breakmaker. I've also managed a small batch of scones which are all gone. The fact that my house is filthy is neither here nor there (only joking!!).  All of this is due, in no small part, to the fact that it's a quiet time of year for social, church and family events.  The trick is to keep this up when the whirwind begins.

While making the bag for my sister, I experimented with a different style of bottom corner with a little scrap of the fabric. It was sitting on the table for a few days, as I continued sewing, looking as though it was waiting to be finished off. So I tidied up the edges, made a little lining and topstitched the edge.  I don't know what to do with it now!!  It's really quite sweet and needs to be put to good use.  I want to find a really ingenious use for it so that I have an excuse to make lots more in different fabrics!

Stitching progress since last time:

Shopping tote for sister with matching purse - finished

Grey lacey cowl - just needs finishing off

The 7 Zipped Purses - fabrics gathered

Mini fabric pot - waiting to have a use

Bye for now

Teresa x

Resolved to Sew 2012

I've said before that I don't believe that New Year's Resolutions are a good idea and I stand by that; however, if I did make one it would be to Resolve to Sew in 2012.  I will still strive for it, but not as a measurable goal that could be setting myself up for failure.

Finishing my HST quilt last week has spurred me on.  Recognising that 'procrastination' is my biggest stumbling block could be the key to making more progress this year. 

All this has come to my mind as result of Ali at Very Berry Handmade and her amazing Giveaway launched yesterday, entitled Resolved to Sew 2012.  As a blogger I get an extra entry for writing a post on the subject and with such fabulous prizes on offer (yes there are 11 prizes!) I had to give it a go.  I highly recommend you to pop over and take a look at what's on offer, especially as she will post anywhere.

Although this is a little, extra, mini-in-between-post, just to keep up the momentum, here's my stitching progress since last time:

Knitted ripple scarf - this is no longer a ripple! It was working out  too chunky so it's been unrun (twice) and is now being knitted in a lacy pattern. So, basically, it's at the same stage as last time.

Knitted cardigan - tried out for size some buttons that my mother gave me from her stash but haven't sewn on yet.

Zipped pouches - One almost finished, one hardly started.

Bye for now
Teresa x

2011 into 2012

Hello friends!  It's been a whirlwind couple of weeks here, as I expect it's also been for many of you. I hope you had a wonderful Christmas and that 2012 is off to a good start. One thing I wish for this year is that it goes a little slower than 2011.  I think the trick is to enjoy the moment and focus on each task or event rather than to be always thinking of the next thing you have (or want) to do.

Glasses cases and phone case from Folksy.

Although I didn't have time to make presents for gifts this year, I tried to buy handmade or eco friendly where possible.

Handbag mirrors from Folksy with cases (note the pretty matching crocheted flowers - it's the little touches that make all the difference)

On the day I finished work for the holidays, I arrived home to find that OH had put coloured lights on my shed for the season. 

I've compared my crafting and book reading pages from 2010 and 2011and  it's clear there's little difference in the book reading,which is a bit disappointing. I thought that having the previous year to compete with would give me more impetus to get reading. As for the crafting, I can't believe how little I got done compared with 2010.  Keeping a record is clearly not the way to inspire me to do more. I'll keep the record going out of interest but I'll have to think of some other way of motivating myself.

DD made starry biscuits to contribute to the Christmas Fayre

At least the last 2 weeks have given me the opportunity to complete a couple of long-term projects (details below).

OH & me at a New Year party (and no, it wasn't fancy dress or a masked ball - we, and 3 friends just decided it would be fun!)

I don't think New Year Resolutions are particularly effective at helping to motivate me.  Plans or goals, however, might be the way forward.  I'll think more about how to go about this but any ideas would be welcome.

Crafting since last time: -

Knitted cardigan - finished apart from adding buttons (after a little hiccough during sewing up when I realised I'd made a mistake in the decreasing at the top of each sleeve) The only problem now, and it's a biggie,  is that I don't like it!!  I'll add the buttons to see what difference that makes but I'm not too hopeful. I might show a photo soon if it isn't too horrible!

HST quilt - ALL FINISHED APART FROM SEWING DOWN THE BACK OF THE BINDING (which I will do at my quilting club on Saturday).  Can you tell I'm pleased about this one??  It's my first quilt, albeit a small one, so I'm quite proud of it and will definitely show a pic next time.

Bye for now
Teresa x

P.S. I'm afraid my blog reading has run away from me so I'm not sure when I'll be able to catch up with your lovely blogs.  I will definitely get around to it eventually because I'd hate to miss anything, so please be patient with me.

Caramel or Brulee?

DS has recently finished a 2 week stint covering a holiday for the chef of a local pub/restaurant.  It was a one-person kitchen so, apart from a washer-up and a couple of waitresses, he was on his own. It was the first time he'd been in charge and quite enjoyed being called 'Chef' rather than being the one doing the calling.  It's a small establishement but has a good reputation locally for its food so the owner was putting a lot of trust in DS!  By all accounts, he did himself proud!! 

OH and I went there for a meal in a group of 7 and we were all thoroughly impressed!  The Creme Brulees he made were to-die-for!!  It reminded me of the time we went on holiday to Malta when the kids were about 8 (DS) and 10 (DD) yrs old.  DS was always quite adventurous about trying different foods (although he'd not shown much inclination towards cooking himself).  He ordered Creme Caramel for dessert at a restaurant after I'd explained what it was.  When it arrived, however, he didn't like it and failed to eat much.  It turned out, he'd thought it was Creme Brulee. Now, here he is, making Creme Brulee himself - and quite perfectly, I should add.  Not sure if he's made Creme Caramel yet but I have to say, I much prefer Creme Brulee too!!

These 2 desserts are quite similar but the end result tastes very different.  Which do you prefer?  Is there anyone who prefers Creme Caramel?

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I got out all my Tag Square Bee blocks last weekend and layed them out on the floor of my shed.  So, here they are!!  On reflection (and looking at them layed out together), I think I should have been more specific in my requested colour preference. "Autumn colours" was a bit too general and I'm now a bit flummoxed as to how to put them together.  From looking at many quilts online over the last few years, I'm aware that I probably need to choose an accent colour to bring them all together somehow.  The questions are - "What colour?" and "How do I use it?"  I'm thinking sashing and borders in the mystery colour, but will it take more than that to bring this lot together?? 

My Life Coach friend (who, incidentally, has just launched a website for her business - see my testimonial on the Sunflower Club page) came round yesterday for a 'tour' of my shed.  She saw it at the Shed Opening Party, but not since I've filled it with furniture and fabric, books and buttons.  Showing her my ongoing projects in one go opened my eyes to exactly how much I have to do.  It's time to buckle down and concentrate on one long-term project at a time (with little ones in between!).

Talking of "little ones in between", I was feeling in need of a quick-fix fabric fiddle so pulled out a few scraps and - well - fiddled!  There's a little heart- felt creation that will hang up once I've added a ribbon (inspired by Betz White (sorry couldn't find exact post), but nowhere near as neat and pretty as hers);  then there's a completely random piece of crazy patchwork that I have to decide what to do with.  Maybe a pincushion?

Stitching progress since last time:

Knitted cardigan - a couple of hours on the second sleeve.

Bee Quilt - Laying out blocks and umming and ahhhing.

Felt and fabric fiddling.

Writing down here, for the last few weeks, what progress I've made has been a useful exercise.  I knew I wasn't getting much done but didn't realise that some weeks it was practically nothing!  I wonder if the next step should be to write down what I want to do (or am going to do) before the next post.  Mmmm, I'll have to think about that a bit more because I've only just thought of it.  It might motivate me, or it might make me leave a longer time before posting until I get it done (which would be a bad thing).

Bye for now

Teresa x

Look to the Future!

Looking at my progress on my blog pages for reading and crafting I see that in 2010 I managed to read 14 books and complete 16 craft projects.  I immediately thought of declaring them dismal results but I must look at it a different way.  I must look at the lists and actually 'see' what is listed, congratulate myself on what I've achieved and aim to do more in 2011!  Therefore, I must look forward now and not back or I'll convince myself I can't do any better. My friend, who is a life coach, has told me that each time we meet up she wants me to bring something new that I've made to show her. That will be good motivation for me.

I'm aiming to get enough items made to take part in a small craft fair this year and maybe even sell to friends. This scarf, along with my purple mini quilt and small embroidered hanging/runner makes 3 items in stock!! I finished up this scarf, which is made from reclaimed yarn, during the days after Christmas when I wasn't feeling my best.  It's not from a pattern exactly but based on an idea from Betz White that intrigued me.

The recent holidays also saw me finish sewing together the half-square-triangles at last!! I need to decide where to go with it next.  I think it needs some kind of border to finish it off but will have to put a bit more thought into it.

The Tag Square Bee had a break for December but is back in action now for January.  I had an idea for the block below but somehow managed to cut 8 instead of 4 squares for the middle.

So I cut extra small squares and made this one aswell. Monafrank wanted a block with all shades of green (except neon) and would welcome the odd bit of blue, red or orange in it too.

I've decided to send her this one simply because I asked my OH and DS which one they prefered and they chose it!  I'll make a cushion cover or something out of the other one.  I nearly forgot - someone must be sending me a block too - can't wait until it comes and I can add it to the pile.

I didn't intend for this to be 2 'bread-shaped' loaves!  It started as a plan to be one 'bread-machine-shaped' loaf.  Wanting to make use of my machine in the holidays I used a pack of granary flour I had in the cupboard and followed the recipe on the pack.  The recipe made 8 rolls so I thought I'd double it and started throwing ingredients into the pan.  When it came to the flour it wouldn't all fit so I left some out, put the pan in the machine and crossed my fingers!  I went to check after 15 minutes and, although the machine was making a noise, nothing was moving!!  There was nothing for it but to tip it all out and continue by hand.  I was quite relieved when I saw it was acually rising!  Turned out alright in the end I think!

Bye for now

Teresa x

Making the Best of What We Have!

In a continuing effort to leave as small a 'footprint' as possible on the planet as I can, whenever we need or want something we look amongst the things we already own for a solution.  Therefore, needing more storage for the 'shed' we unearthed these 2 grotty-looking specimens (as shown in an earlier post).   

 

Here they are almost finished and ready for use.  There's not much of a difference, I grant you. We stripped off the old fabric from the tops and gave them a coat of paint (with the remains of a half-used tin in OH's shed).  Then I chose some fabric from my stash that I'd previously thrifted (yes it is different although it may not seem so at first glance) and covered the tops using upholstery tacks also from OH's shed (I'm amazed at what he's got stashed away in there!).  They're usable now although I intend to replace the handle and line them with paper at some point.

I'm ashamed to say that it's taken me 10 months to get around to making up this handy shopping bag from the fabric I was sent after winning one of 100 'green' bags from Green Bag Lady during Sew Mama Sew's giveaway day last year.  Now I have to find someone who will appreciate and use it, to give to.  It's just a simple tote bag but is a good size and will fold up quite small to tuck into a handbag.

I'm trying to think of more ways to reduce my waste of paper and water. With that in mind I bought these napkins a few weeks ago to take to work (or anywhere else I take food) to use instead of paper serviettes.  It'll only make a miniscule difference but it all helps.  On the subject of water, I need to cut the length of my morning showers and stop running the tap to rinse dishes while washing up.

Here are some napkins I bought from a charity shop a few weeks ago. I'm beginning to remember to take them every day with my lunch, altough it took a while.

Talking of using what we've got, my mother gave me some apples from her tree a week or so ago and as most of them had little holes (the evidence of unwanted occupation), I didn't put them in the fruit bowl but chopped them up with other fruits to make this Autumn Relish from a recipe in my slow cooker book.  We haven't tried it yet so the jury's still out on the result but I hope the fact that my OH had all the windows in the house open the next morning to get rid of the lingering smell isn't an indication of the taste!

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Bye for now

Teresa x

The Wrong Way Around!

My photos are the wrong way around! Someone mentioned having to use 'old-fashioned blogger' the other day, because of problems with the new one. Well, I only know one blogger and it must be the old-fashioned one because it doesn't let me move photos once added and takes ages to upload so I'm going to have to make do!
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So, first up are some glimpses into my Sunday.

Lemon biscuits. There are over 40 here and they're now in the freezer ready to take away on holiday. Do you think they'll be enough for 5 (maybe 6) people for a week!! Oh, and I musn't forget the little vase (bottle) of sweet peas my OH picked from the garden.

Some Strawberry Jam made in the microwave with the last of the strawberries from the garden this year. I got the recipe from a blog but can't remember which one (Note to self: Must write name of blog on any info I print off). The recipe didn't ask for preserving sugar, just 'sugar' so I didn't use it even though I was wary of the outcome. I don't think I'll make it like this again - it could be a bit thicker and I would prefer the fruit to break up a bit. Whole strawberries make sandwiches a bit lumpy :-)

Here's the mini-quilt top finished. I'm quite pleased with how neat it looks. I hope I don't ruin it when adding the quilting and binding! I've cut out wadding (batting) and backing fabric now so it's ready to go.

Now, onto Saturday's activities.

This is my DD's stall at the Animal Sanctuary Open Day. Her Pet Business is on the left and Body Shop Business on the right. It was a lovely day - not too hot, with lots of adults, children and dogs in attendance. Lots of people stopped to chat and took information away so hopefully some business will be generated in the future from it. DD almost had a booking on the day too but we're away on holiday for the dates they wanted.

Can you see DD and her partner's dogs are in the cage while we set up the stall.

Three sweet little girls having a rummage in the lucky dip. They took ages to find anything because they were having such fun running the sawdust through their hands!
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I mentioned last time that I was going to share a little idea I am trying out to make my evenings a bit less stressful. My problem is that I get through the door at the end of the day (about 6pm) and am immediately overwhelmed by how much there is to do. I've decided I'm going to make a list of about 3 things that I hope to accomplish each evening in addition to the normal day-to-day activities, including sewing/reading (only 1 or 2 things when I have something else on like Choir Practice or a Singing Lesson). Each evening, once the list is completed I hope I'll feel a sense of satisfaction and can relax.

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I've been trying this out for a few days but won't be able to fully put it to the test until we come back from our holiday because I'm busy getting things ready for it that are outside our normal routine.

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Tonights list is this:-

- Choir practice (moved from Monday)

- Bins out (normal and pink/purple recycling)

- Make muffins

- Cut out hexagon papers for holiday sewing.

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Then, I think that rather than feeling frustrated that there's so much to do, this method will give me a sense of satisfaction when I see in black and white what I have done.

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Despite telling you all this, I have to say that I look forward to my evenings very much and have so many plans each day - but that's the trouble - trying to fit too much in and not getting anywhere!!!

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Bye for now

Teresa x

Simple Mindedness!

It's been quite a while since I gave an update on my simple/mindful/thoughtful (whatever you like to call it) living efforts. A lot of what I do comes naturally now and I make the mistake of assuming people think the way I do. I can't believe how many people still accept plastic bags at the checkouts. At work, (in collaboration with our environmentalist and H&S guy) I took a compost bin for the kitchen for everyone to put food waste and teabags into. I doubt very much whether half the people here will use it regularly :-( but some is better than none. I also reminded the QS department that there's a supply of plastic bags they can use when they go to the supermarket at lunchtime instead of getting a new one each several times a week! My OH thinks I'm preaching but I see it as an opportunity to make a difference, and no one has ever taken offence. It's also company policy to try to be environmentally aware and do our bit.

I stop ordering an organic box delivery at this time of year because we get quite a lot of produce from our garden, given to us by friends and relatives, and growing wild in the countryside. I could order items from the delivery scheme separately but it works out a lot more expensive so I try to buy organic at the supermarket instead.

This little bag from Onya contains 5 net drawstring veg/fruit bags and I bought them especially to use instead of using the plastic ones provided (I've had only favourable comments at the checkout when I have used them). The only problem is that most organic produce comes already wrapped - I suppose that's so it doesn't get mixed up with the regular produce. It's a little annoying as not all shops use recylable packaging for organic produce.

On a more general note, I've been recording my spending for over a year and can now start to compare similar months. In comparing June 2009 and June 2010, Total spending is £340 down and grocery shopping is £5.33 per week down on average, which doesn't seem much but when price rises are taken into account, is probably quite a bit more. I'm unlikely to be able to reduce this much more while I'm still working and the 20% VAT coming in next year is going to make an impact.
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There's much more I could add to this but I don't want to get too long and rambling. Suffice to say, I'm still recycling, reusing and reducing as much as I can in all areas. But still have a long way to go.

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Now that's enough seriousness for one day!!! I tried to be helpful and put in a few photos to break things up a bit for you. I hope you've managed to get this far to get a little info on them.

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It's Hot Air Balloon season at the moment and with the good weather we've had there's at least one up every weekend. It's early morning or dusk that the conditions are suitable for them so this one was spotted last Saturday morning. Actually we usually hear them first, firing up the gas to get altitude . I'd just had a shower, heard it from the bathroom window, grabbed my camera and headed out the front door wrapped in a towel (not where neighbours could see me!) As I held up the camera the people in the balloon shouted 'hello' and waved. I was back indoors before you could say 'smile please'. I don't think they were talking to me though because a lady walked by walking a dog seconds later. Phew!! My OH took this photo for me!!!

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I made another recipe from Fuel for Body and Soul's blog last night to use up the rest of the puff pastry. They are Potato and Chick Pea Rolls. Mine are more like parcels though because, as I said yesterday, I couldn't get Filo pastry. I ate the messy one with roasted vegetables and peas and froze the rest.

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I've come up with a little strategy for hopefully making my evenings/weekends more relaxed so I'll share that next time. Only started it yesterday so don't know how effective it will be yet.

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Bye for now

Teresa x

I'm Back.........and you didn't even know I'd gone!

The residents' lounge
Access to CAT via gravity/water powered carriage

OH and I have been away for a long weekend to Mid-Wales. We left Friday afternoon and arrived back Monday afternoon. It was a lovely break and nice to not think about housework or cooking for 3 whole days!

One always takes a chance booking accommodation online but, fingers crossed, we've been lucky so far. We stayed at the Buckley Arms Hotel near Machynlleth where we were made to feel thorougly relaxed and at home. All the rooms were large and comfortable with everything we needed at hand. On 2 out of the 3 evenings we ate dinner here too and the food was delicious. The Residents' Lounge was a dramatic room with an old-fashioned feel, but everything looked quite new (see top photo, sorry all the photos didn't load the first time and then I couldn't move them around).-
Saturday was a bit of a wash-out weatherwise but we managed to find an indoor boot sale (didn't buy anything) and a craft centre to visit.
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Sunday was much better and we took the opportunity to visit the Centre for Alternative Technology which was one of my reasons for staying in that area (and can now be crossed off my Things I Want To Do list).

The veg garden at CAT (above and below)

An insect home wall

The new conference and education centre (called WISE but I can't remember what it stands for)

Ducks by the pond at CAT having a thorough grooming session and taking no notice of us at all.

In the afternoon we drove to the coast. It was very windy and not terribly warm. The people there were almost willing it to get warmer by dressing in shorts and t-shirts (there was even one brave girl in a bikini!). We kept our jumpers firmly on and I don't think I'd have been too warm if I'd worn a coat too! I saw one chap wearing a woolly hat and sandals - this weather is very confusing!!

Despite that we had a lovely relaxing afternoon:

admiring the views........

watching people trying to catch crabs (OH said he thought it was a competition as they all had the same buckets. We didn't see any crabs getting caught - they usually fell off the bait before the fisherman was able to pull the line back up)...................

and eating icecream (well, you've got to at the seaside) while relaxing on a bench and people watching.

On the way back to the hotel we passed this beautiful lake (or is it a reservoir, I'm not sure) where 2 lads were fishing from a little dinghy.

It really was a lovely, relaxing time but all too short.

We had a couple of cream teas while away (not this one, I didn't take photos unfortunately) and I did quite a lot of thinking (thinking in general for a change instead of about what I have to do next). At one point, I mentally planned my perfect day which involved:

1 A sunny summers day

2 Me selling craftwork and sewing from my Shed

3 DD selling her products and promoting her business

4 DS making and serving cream teas on the lawn.

I aim to do at least part of this at some time in the future but it seems a long way off at the moment.

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There were shelves of books in the hotel lounge so one evening after dinner we sat there and had a browse. I didn't want to start reading something and then have to leave it so I picked the smallest book in a set of classics and read it in an evening. It was The Wizard of Oz!! (they were children's classics :-) I was surprised at how different they made the film to the book but enjoyed the quick read. I already knew the shoes were silver and not 'ruby red' (due to the fact that silver wouldn't show up well for the film on a yellow brick road) but a lot of the other changes surprised me which was good because then it wasn't too predicable. And I can add another book to my reading list for 2010, meaning I'm almost on track for one a month (pathetic really!)

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Bye for now

Teresa x