easter egg bags

As a rule, I'm not a fan of acrylic felt. I bought some online a couple of years ago, thinking it was wool, and it's been sitting in a bag doing nothing ever since. The colours that you get with acrylic felt are quite vibrant, and I found the perfect use for some of this yesterday. 

I bought some little praline easter eggs for my nephews a few weeks back, but the packaging wasn't that exciting so I decided to make a couple of little bags for them, with a chick on the front, and their first name initial on the back.

 These were mostly hand stitched (whilst watching the finals of dancing on ice) - I just used the machine for the main seam.

 I know I'd like them more if they were made from wool felt, but my nephews won't care - in fact, I dare say that the chocolate inside will be the most exciting thing and the bags won't get a second look!

Easter bunnies and new beginnings

The bunny in the top pic is a monda bunny. The second pic is a baby bunny in my mum and dad's garden, taken by my dad. Very appropriate for Easter time aren't they.

I've been a little absent from my blog these last few weeks. I didn't feel like writing very much because after much soul searching and internal deliberation, I've decided to leave my job. I've worked for the same company for almost 10 years, in various positions. The reason this was such a hard decision is because there is much about the job and the company I like, and I have lots of friends there too. On the flip side of this, there are also things which are making me unhappy. I had to remind myself that I don't live to work, I work to live, and as such, I need to do what makes me happy.
I sent an email to my colleagues today to tell them I will be leaving the company soon, and had such a lovely response - people were shocked and surprised, saying that things like 'please don't go' and 'it won't be the same without you'. The reality is, that things will be fine without me, and I will be fine without it. I was asked what I was leaving to do, and of course I've spent a lot of time thinking about this too. There is a world of possibilities for me really, but one thing is certain - I'll be hanging out around here a bit more, and making the most of any opportunities that come my way.

keep calm and carry on

So, I'm having a little spell of crappity crap - more on that later, maybe.
In the meantime, I'm seeking calm, and found these lovelies on flickr which just do the trick. I'm radiating calm now - are you with me?

 1. Blue green calm, 2. Moss, 3. grey moss stitch scarf, 4. Green calm, 5. moss, 6. ring_zinnia_green, 7. Petite Leaves Garland Lariat -- Women Cotton Blend All Season Summer Lariat/Scarflette/Fiber Necklace Jewelry - Lime Green, 8. Moss Heart, 9. Tranquility (53 of 365)

something old, something new

happiness today came in the form of 2 new books - well one of them is quite old actually, but still quite exciting for a nerd like me.

This ledger is a 'cash book':

 The first entries are in April 1926, and from what I can tell, this was a record of household spending. I don't imagine this was a normal everyday working household, but perhaps and small Manor house or country house. There are payments detailed for various dates in each month, and some of the things on the monthly outgoing list are:

House - 2 pounds

Gardener and Boy - 2 shillings and 6 pence

May Carpenter - 2 pounds (was she the housekeeper I wonder?)

Freda (monthly allowance) 1 pound

Higham Coal - 2 pounds, 6 shillings

Man (mowing grass) 5 shillings

Cleaning suit (oxford) 6 shillings and 6 pence

British legion xmas treat - 5 shillings

Overcoat cleaned - 9 shillings

Freda (passing exam) 1 pound

There is also something on one of the lists called X-box - I'm guessing that's not a games console - maybe it was a games compendium!

my second happiness today was my new print & pattern book:

 This is actually my second copy of the P&P book - the first one from amazon was damaged in the post so I had to send it back without even looking at it - torture indeed. I love the P&P blog - such a inspiring dose of eye candy each day - Bowie does a great job at showcasing some of the design talent out there.
I'm off to dig in to this now. Mr Monda will no doubt be wondering what all the oooh-ing and aaaah-ing is all about.

Owl City

I'm stating the very obvious here - but it is March already! That happened very quickly indeed.
As a follow up to my last post, and having had some time to think things through, I've come to the conclusion that I need to let episodes like the one mentioned only serve to make me a stronger and better individual. It's obvious, but I know a lot about the kind of person I am - what my values are and what my truth is, and I'm very happy with that.  Enough said.

Moving swiftly on - It's been owl city here this weekend:

There's nothing like giving yourself a deadline to get you going is there. I made these over the course of a couple of days - with interludes of making bread and soup, and doing washing.

Another kind of owl city:


Mr Monda thinks that it sounds like Kermit the frog singing this tune, so naturally I checked YouTube to see if the little green guy had done a version of this. I found this, which is not Kermit bit still midly entertaining - the best bit is the kid on the wii in the background - totally oblivious to what's going on around him. Perhaps this is an advert for Nintendo?