Since the quilts have arrived there has not been a day when I have not sewed...bliss. This weekend I am driving John and the girls to Dorking in Surrey to practice the drive for when Francoise comes. There is a quilt shop there, but to be fair, it is a pretty looking market town and we want to take the girls shopping.
Plan to post some pictures of the quilts this weekend.
Friday, 10 July 2009
Tuesday, 7 July 2009
Bitten by a bug
It has been years since I have done any sewing, despite just buying a second hand Singer!! There are two unfinished quilts at home and some fabric that I have carried with me from Japan, but until last week it was all in the loft.
The girls and I went to a boot fair at Marsh Green in Kent and before going, went through the fabric stash to see what we could sell.
There are pieces of their great grandfather's jimbei (pajama like men's wear) with tiny patches stitched into them where the cloth wore thin. There are obi's and a wedding kimono and lots of bits intended for various unfinished projects. We had a good day at the boot sale and got rid of many clothes, but no one wanted the material.
Not preturbed, I then went off to Tunbridge Wells with a friend and bought a pattern and something to make some trousers with!!!! (Still haven't tested the machine yet!)
It gets worse. I have also been on the look-out for a full sized floor frame for hand quilting as both my quilts are very large, and just for luck I advertised for unwanted, unfinished quilt tops.
Yesterday a woman and her husband dropped over to the house when I was at work and John was at home and left for me two beautiful tops and her fabric stash. One is an Ohio Star pattern, almost complete, double bed sized in navy and pinks and blues. The other is a hexagon strip of 'flowers' in pale lilac...even if the colours are not ones I would have chosen, the work is beautiful. All the pieces are on paper and the stitches are so small and neat I thought they had been sewn on a machine. The lady has lost the sight in one eye and is losing the other eye as well. She wanted the work to go to someone who would get joy from it and would not take any money. I was completely moved by the gift and am really looking forward to sewing the remaining pieces together over the next few months.
The girls and I went to a boot fair at Marsh Green in Kent and before going, went through the fabric stash to see what we could sell.
There are pieces of their great grandfather's jimbei (pajama like men's wear) with tiny patches stitched into them where the cloth wore thin. There are obi's and a wedding kimono and lots of bits intended for various unfinished projects. We had a good day at the boot sale and got rid of many clothes, but no one wanted the material.
Not preturbed, I then went off to Tunbridge Wells with a friend and bought a pattern and something to make some trousers with!!!! (Still haven't tested the machine yet!)
It gets worse. I have also been on the look-out for a full sized floor frame for hand quilting as both my quilts are very large, and just for luck I advertised for unwanted, unfinished quilt tops.
Yesterday a woman and her husband dropped over to the house when I was at work and John was at home and left for me two beautiful tops and her fabric stash. One is an Ohio Star pattern, almost complete, double bed sized in navy and pinks and blues. The other is a hexagon strip of 'flowers' in pale lilac...even if the colours are not ones I would have chosen, the work is beautiful. All the pieces are on paper and the stitches are so small and neat I thought they had been sewn on a machine. The lady has lost the sight in one eye and is losing the other eye as well. She wanted the work to go to someone who would get joy from it and would not take any money. I was completely moved by the gift and am really looking forward to sewing the remaining pieces together over the next few months.
Thursday, 2 July 2009
Heat goes on
Loving it. Last night we were hankering after fresh cool soya beans for our salad. I think the Japanese do 'hot weather food' so well.
We toyed with the idea of growing eda mame this year, but frankly they look as if they need a lot of space, at least to get enough of them to really enjoy. Maybe next year.
Wednesday, 1 July 2009
Little Gem
I adore poppies and this one blossomed yesterday in the front garden. It is a ladybird poppy, aptly named with those black spots. It is far smaller than expected, some varieties are big and blousy, but not this little thing.
Hot English Summer
It is fantastic. It feels like Australia, those bright, bright days, warm before breakfast and swealtering by lunch time!
Last night we were all craving something cold and sharp to eat, and the thought of cooking was not pleasant, so we made hiyashi chuka...cold Chinese noodles.
I even found a reciped for the dressing and it was so good the girls said it was like being in heaven!
I even found a reciped for the dressing and it was so good the girls said it was like being in heaven!
Fired up by this nostalgic culinary success, the next sauce on the agenda is ponzu!
Tuesday, 23 June 2009
John, Adam, David and I went to see two international Twenty20 matches at The Oval in London at the beginning of the month. I am not a die-hard cricket fan, but a Twenty20 is shorter, faster and you know when it is going to end. (Each side gets 20 overs each, an over being 6 bowls...)
We saw South Africa play and beat Scotland and England vs Pakistan. England won, John was happy.
We drank beer and sipped Pimms, very English but was SEVEN POUNDS per pint....
We saw South Africa play and beat Scotland and England vs Pakistan. England won, John was happy.
We drank beer and sipped Pimms, very English but was SEVEN POUNDS per pint....
Monday, 22 June 2009
Camera up and working at last.
Finally we have replaced the battery charger for the camera (thanks, John) and blogging can continue..It is hard without pictures.
MUCH has been going on but life is full of living.
Yesterday, Father's Day in the UK...(not in Australia!), we picked most of the cherries off the tree. For weeks it has been shrouded in the net curtain we took off our bedroom window to keep the birds from getting at the fruit. Some losses, but the crop itself was fabulous. More than 100 berries, we got 6 last year I think!
After a very gooey banoffee pie for dessert we all had a bowl of cherries each. Nothing like home grown fruit and veg.
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