Delete

I have just deleted 9 year's worth of emails. I was a digital hoarder of digital clutter....heard that on the radio today. Years of love, anger, funnies, photos, work, travel - all gone. It was very hard to do, but it was also hard having it all there. Time has passed, things said cannot be unsaid but feelings live on as do memories.
 

Marie Kondo - declutter Queen

Impressionable me has found another heroine in Marie Kondo the diminuitive Japanese tidying expert....author of this best seller. I am not going to buy it as there is a lot about her and her methods on the web. But I do like her approach, not the 'wake up the items' before deciding whether they 'spark joy' parts necessarily, but the rather blunt way she speaks in interviews about THINGS. One can be a dainty, wee Japanese girl with a feminine turn of phrase and still call the kettle black. The other thing she advocates is the letting go of items one has been given... and never use, never will and honestly are not to ones taste (that means you don't like it or them!)....
Coincidentally I found out about this lady when I was assembling my new study area.  Serendipity indeed. For about a week, anything not in or on the new desk was on a bed, in piles. But today more steps were taken to sort and cull much of the older paperwork. It is neatly filed, it is also visible, so I know what I have held onto so do not need to keep similar items, and, it is tidy.
I move slowly and have grand plans and many of them don't get off the ground, but somehow I feel more positive and confident about this method. 
I have also rather daringly purchased a large picture frame to paint and turn into a bulletin board.....mmmm....watch this space. Deffo a weekend job and maybe not until next weekend. This Saturday I am off to the Breast Clinic. There is not much space in my head right now to be creative! 

Diversion and ramble

Yes, I am at the laptop with an essay to edit, but somehow found myself reading about crochet as tends to happen when one procrastinates...

And I found this and it is fabulous. A Bunting Blanket. Great idea and it could be made in a little version for little people and their prams and car seats etc. Clever lady.

Another thing, many of you read Frugal Queen's brilliant blog on how to live well and happily without spending heaps and with being creative. I wondered how many of you read the one about spring cleaning and did what I did....nip over to Aldi and get some kitchen cleaner? I found myself last night after a 90 minute drive home, being on my feet all day and awake at 5:30am, up on a chair thoroughly cleaning the range hood!! That woman weilds great influence I tell you. All night I had to go back and look at the streamlined bench top, the sparkling tiles and window frames....windows no, too dark to see the smears but they are on the agenda....THEN I managed to fiddle about with academic work and it was such a productive evening. 

If only I could KEEP IT UP. I hate and despise clutter and know that it has a terrible effect on me, but boy do I struggle to streamline. Often it is not that I do not want to let go, but it is what to let go and the where to let it go to that is the problem. First thing is the notion that things could be/should be SOLD to generate some dosh. BUT with life as it is now the whole photographing, measuring, listing etc on ebay is too time consuming. The next thing is the charity shops. Happy to do this. In fact this is happening more and the bottom line is that some things are just tat and need to be tossed. My tat is not the same as another person's tat so this one is a delicate balance. I less than subtly hinted that Han could 'have a big clear out' when she was home for the hols!! There is still a stinky old girafe toy in the corner...

Anyhoo, enough for now. I plan to persevere with the whole streamlining thing. In my head I equate a clutter free life with serenity. At least if one is not surrounded by THINGS that need to be taken care of, then maybe there is more time just to live?

Another little cull

Another one for the Charity Shop

Today has been slow, but productive. Tough too. I parted with some ancient items of clothing, one a coat that I bought just after Em was born.....about 18 years ago. I loved it. An elegant swing coat, in wool with deep, deep patch pockets and I wore it until about 4 years ago. I still got comments then on how nice it is, but it drowns me a bit now and just does not fit in with my current needs. 

So it went. As did other clothes, even some I had earmarked for ebay....just not enough time and I am fed up with the guilt of seeing the bags of stuff lying around that have to be listed. One or two have been kept, but most have gone. 

Some forgotten items from a life and country long over, dust covered on top of a wardrobe have gone too.

One or two things that I thought would look nice in our new home - before we left Hong Kong - but that never made it out of the bag. All gone.

The load is lighter. 

Tomorrow we get new windows at the front of the house. The current ones have blown and this should insulate us better this winter. We have had the heating on about 4 times this season. Em and I rug up when we are here on our own. It seems a lot to heat a 4 bedroom house when there are two of us rattling around. (Big J is in Kenya...as I write).

Off to walk the dog...such a lovely afternoon. 

YARN GIVEAWAY

It is Halloween but nary a ghoul nor ghost has rattled on the door knob tonight. Even though we have treats for them. The howling wind and occasional showers may be keeping them indoors.

It is the end of my three days off work and while lots got done, lots didn't. However, no beating myself up here, I also deserve a break.

Hannah's blanket is tantalizingly close to being finished, well the rows are. It will need a border, but not long now.

I have been slowly editing my yarn and fabric stashes and tonight I offer to anyone who might like to comment on this lowly blog:

100gms of 12ply Boucle Mohair

 

 

 

It is all the way from Oz, and is enough to make a scarf. I had plans to make a beanie with it, but I am just not a mohair sort of gal really. It itches me too much and while the colours are GORGEOUS, this pile of yarn needs to go to someone who will love it and use it. If you click on the photo below you should be able to make out the details. The actual tag is nowhere near as faded as this.

 

Just stick a comment on my blog (not a rude one please as that will not be counted) before Saturday 10 November to be in the draw.

 

Could be the perfect Chrissie pressie for someone...

 

x 

knickers on the table

Here I am, slightly tousled (not had a shower yet) in pjs knowing that work waits, and I have been reading blogs. Fox's Lane I love, and many others. After reading Kate's latest, I thought what a pretty life. People in blog land seem to be organised and have time and get things DONE and get things FINISHED. Wow, thinks me, WOW. Then I looked around at what I am sharing my table with this morning.
Breakfast, too hot to eat,
Files
Two laptops,
and a pile of knickers to be folded and put away. The height of glamour!

There is no way at any time soon I will be allowing you to see into my world folks, the SHAME.

What is on your table/workspace this morning?

Be honest now!!

 

GIVEAWAY - BIG WIP OHIO STAR QUILT

A few years ago I wrote about a lady who gave me two quilt tops to finish off for her as she was losing her eyesight. With the best intentions in the world I took them on. I cut and sewed hexagons for one and made it bigger and brighter but I did not finish it because  I discovered CROCHET and all my patchwork templates and fabrics were left languishing, ignored in the basket from that day forward. I felt very guilty.

But I hung on telling myself that there will be time to work on them one day, all the while building my yarn stash and because frankly it was so hard to admit that these projects were not going anywhere under my watch.

These hanging on feelings clash directly with the desire to have fewer objects (especially unfinished ones)  and even though it might seem a bit pitiful to the organised and productive folk out there whose blogs I drool over and whose work and homes I aspire to, it can be very emotionally draining.

So today - while doing more decluttering, I decided to offer the big project to one of you lovely people out there. You may be a quilter, you may be part of a group who quilts, a teacher, someone on a budget - let's face it, quilting fabric can cost A LOT - or just someone with lot more get up and go than yours truely.

IF anyone is interested, just let me know in the comments bit. If a few of you are interested a name will be drawn out of a hat.

There are SOME IMPORTANT DETAILS:

This spectacular quilt top is not complete - there are some spare squares, but you may have to make up more.

There are 35 squares (approx 12.5" x 12.5") The border is 2".

18 of them have been sewn together and some have been pinned.

It is HUGE.

It is ALL on backing paper - the traditional quilting method, but with careful measuring and sewing new blocks can be added without paper.

There is no template, although I do have the pattern (not to scale).

There is no spare fabric - all I got was the quilt top.

I will post it to you - anywhere - 2nd class in the UK and standard international anywhere else.

Here it is lying out on the (clean) kitchen floor- 8 loose squares on the quilt and some pinned.

Any questions? Fire away.


As for the little quilt, it has gone to someone local. x

THE DEADLINE FOR THIS GIVE AWAY IS 9TH OCTOBER....My mum's birthday.

 

This week

We had a graduation. Adam got his degree from the Brighton Institute of Modern Music. How proud and happy were we.  A rare shot of us, am still in two minds about appearing in my blog!!

My Dad underwent surgery down under (in Australia) and came out perky and pleased. Still waiting to get results, but he remains positive and that is important. Mum sounds tired. She worries for all of us I think.

My nose got the all clear which is a big relief. How would one get used to a face they have known for 50 years that suddenly changes?

We went to see a David Bowie tribute band with the girls, who were the youngest members of the audience by MILES. Loads of nostalgic fun.

I have been ebaying all day - the weather demands it - and the fact that it is a free listing weekend! Hoping to make a killing, but will be happy just to get rid of things.

A roast is underway in the oven....something warming for this cold wet day.

And, it has been ages since any crochet (apart from the boob) has been on here, so here is the WIP that is Han's blanket. She choses the colours.....

It is so wide it takes ages to finish a row. I think I need to learn how to measure up my projects before starting them....





 

Piles

There are two piles of clothes in our bedroom. One for ebay - very small, but hey! One woman's fashion disaster could well work for another person out there.

And one for the charity shop, which is big. A ruthless, speedy toss out from the wardrobe and my drawers. It is true - cleaning out a wardrobe is like losing weight. My load is lighter now.

The latter will be marched off to the shop where I donate tomorrow. There are so many charity shops, but there is one I favour and it all goes to them.

Feeling pleased.