LEGOLAND gets political

LEGOLAND Windsor have got on the political bandwagon. This is 10 Downing Street in London miniland. Nick Clegg and David Cameron are carrying Gordon Brown out of No. 10 towards a 'Brown's Removals' van.
I wonder what the scene will be after Election day on 6th May?

the preparation phase

Before I take the world by storm (I'm feeling quite ambitious!) I'm doing lots of preparation. That preparation is currently taking the form of an overhaul of the spare room, because I can only work in there if I actually like being in there, and at present it looks like a junk room, cum spare room, cum office.
The start of the preparation is the filing cabinet - which frankly we have just been stuffing things in for the last 5 years. It was bulging and fit to burst, so for the last 2 days I've been sorting and shredding, and re-filing. It is truly tedious but so necessary. A clean start and a fresh palette is what I need. I think it's a mental clear out as well as a physical one. 
I now have enough shredded paper to sort out any hamster or gerbil for at least a year - shame I don't have one but I think I'll offer it up on freecycle and see if anyone wants it. It might be good for paper making too.
I have kept all the envelopes though - there are hundreds of them. I have plans for these involving stitchery

I've been making some use of the new wool I purchased on holiday last week. I'm actually making something for myself for a change - just a simple crochet scarf.

The good thing about this, is that I have forced myself to look in my crochet bible and find out how to do edging. I'm happy with it, despite it not being strictly scarf weather at the moment. I might not actually have enough of the wool to finish it off - so thankfully I found some more online here. What a fab wool shop.

I also wanted to show my lovely leaving gifts from my former work colleagues. I was asked (on the quiet) if there was anything I especially wanted, so told them I'd be happy with anything Cath Kidston (well you would, wouldn't you). I received a lovely new bag, a pretty stationery box, pencil case and note paper.

I also received 4 Martini glasses and a bottle of tequila - my cocktail reputation clearly precedes me.
My quite unexpected present was a magnolia, called Eric apparently, after the variety (although I can't remember his full Latin name). I'm going to re-pot Eric into a bigger pot so if I move he can come with me.

Such lovely thoughtful gifts.

a highland holiday

By way of explanation of my absence here, I've been on holiday this past week, up in the Scottish highlands. The plan, before the volcanic ash is that we would fly from London to Inverness, and hire a car for the duration of the 2 hour trip to our destination. With flights, airport parking and car hire all cancelled at the last minute, we got in the car and drove for 12 hours to get there instead (a 12 hour drive!). We had a great week - the weather on the whole was good, one day we had thick heavy snow and bright sunshine within about an hour of each other! Despite the lovely sun, it was chilly up there, and we were thankful that we'd chosen to take plenty of warm clothes and waterproofs/wellies etc, and for the underfloor heating in the lodge we were staying at!

Somewhat naively, I wasn't prepared for the stark landscapes, main roads which were single track and like a roller coaster, towns which had one or two little houses and the odd shop, and  no mobile or internet connection. Oh and millions of sheep!

It truly seems like a different way of living, and is maybe what appeals to the many artists and crafts people who work up there. We were just a few miles away from the Isle of Skye, so spent quite a few days driving all around and exploring the little villages and hamlets, and sometimes the only thing at the end of road was a loch and a little artists studio/house/workshop, or a tea room which was the annex of someone's house, or a little shack/shed in their garden. We were visiting out of tourist season, so all of these places were quiet and it's difficult to believe that the artist can actually make enough money, but having spoken to one ceramicist, she told us that she spent the majority of the out of season months making, as she doesn't have the time for making during the busy summer season.

One of the little places I visited was a hand spinner of wool and silk. The lady who owns the shop dyes her own wool too. I felt it was only right to support a local crafts person, so spent a silly amount of money on wool. I now just need to think of something to do with it all.

 Our little cats missed us this week (and we missed them). When we got home last night, mellie came to meet us on the path and was literally yelling miaow's as us, and little stevie will just not leave me alone today - here she is just lying behind my laptop, sticking a paw out to touch my hand every few minutes

'

Also, it's official -  as of 16th April, I am unemployed. This feels weird, but exciting all at the same time.
My work colleagues got me some lovely and very thoughtful gifts and I had many emails from people wishing me luck and telling me they would miss me. I had a leaving speech from the Snr. Director of our department and I had prepared a few words to say also, but when the time came, I just had such a lump in my throat and couldn't say anything.

I'll pop back in a couple of days to show you my leaving gifts and tell you a bit more about my plans for the next few months.

The plan for today is to have a TV day - we're both totally shattered after the drive home yesterday. If you've emailed me ( I have loads in the space of a week with no internet!) I'll get back to you soon.

Lovely things

Do your feet need a treat? Mine did, so I purchased these for them:

from here. Go forth and treat your feet! I can't wait for mine to arrive.
I went for the cream and pinky coloured ones. I do like the yellow and grey, but I don't own much yellow so I didn't have much to co-ordinate them with.

You might also want to treat yourself to a little bit of Cath, with 15% off anything on Wednesday, if you buy online using this discount code: SPRM

around these parts

This last week has just zoomed by so quickly - and when I think about where the time has gone, the majority of it has been spent at work. I have been putting in some long days these last few weeks, because despite the fact that I am leaving, I want to get a lot of things tied up before I go - and I don't want to leave and have people confused because they can't find things when I've gone. I've been busy filing and writing handover and process documents. 
I'll need to spend some time this week clearing my desk, packing the things I want to take with me and filing the rest under B, for bin! It will be strange to walk out of the door on Friday. I have no idea how I'll feel - probably a mixture of sad and happy.

Springing up around these parts, ever so quickly I might add, are some golden tomatoes (seeds from the ones I grew last year), courgettes and rocket:

 I have some sugar snap peas, cucumbers and spinach seeds still waiting to be planted - I've just run out of window sill space!

One of my favourite expressions at the moment, when talking to Mr Monda is 'when I haven't got a job, I'm going to ...' and this is usually followed by some ambitious plan to do something or other. I have so many thoughts and ideas about what I'm going to do 'when I haven't got a job'.

I'm itching to get stuck in the fabric I've been collecting (ok then, hoarding). I have a whole load of Mr Monda's old cotton shirts which will become a quilt, and so many bits a bobs of vintage and recycled fabrics and findings - like this little lot of recycled zips, napkins, pillowcases and old lace, just waiting to be turned into something lovely:

spring is hopeful

If I was to say I had a favourite season, I would err towards autumn,  or even winter. I wonder what this says about me as a person? Anyway, I digress. I've realised just recently that there is much I like about spring also. Perhaps this has lots to do with the changes happening in my life at the moment too, but it all feels very hopeful, and I'm looking forward to my new beginnings and the changes that will inevitably result. More about that later - plans are afoot!

 a spring/easter palette found around these parts today:

 

roses still look beautiful and soft even when they are decaying 

mmm easter eggs

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?

one of those days

I've had one of those days today. I rarely discuss my day job here - I like having the separation between my worlds. As a rule, I would say that I'm proud to work for the company I work for, I believe in the company values, and like the people I work with. On top of my own job, I've been asked to take on/cover another role whilst the role holder is on maternity leave - I'm doing this with no financial gain or reward.
Anyone who knows me, knows that I'm not an outwardly emotional person, and certainly not a crier - not even at really sad films - I get a throat lump, but I don't cry. Today at work I cried - in a meeting with my boss.
I cried out of sheer frustration and disbelief at what was being said to me. I won't go into details but I'll say that I feel massively under appreciated at this point.  I find this hard because despite my job not being my dream job, I always put a lot into it.  I care about what I do, I care about doing a  good job and getting a good result. I feel very let down. sigh.
Tomorrow is another day and I'm sure it will be better.

On a brighter note, I've just received my lovely new CK bag. I received some money for my birthday so purchased this in the Sale:

It's a huge bag - much bigger than I anticipated but it's great - and lined with a pretty teal spotty cotton.

It struck me that it would be quite simple to make a similar bag myself. I think I have enough fabric in my stash for the job (slight understatement!). I just need to purchase some of these and I'm away!

mini monsters

It's been a long time since I loaded some new items into my shops, but with my new photography lamps to assist me, I really don't have any excuse now.
Over the coming week I'll be loading a few items each day - these mini monsters are now available for sale in my etsy shop:

 

  

  

do you make owls?

a question I'm often asked at craft fairs. Until now the answer has been no. So yesterday I thought to myself 'why deny the public what they want?'. It's all about demand and supply isn't it - or is that supply and demand? not that it really matters

 This one, and a few others will be available to purchase soon.

I'm not often asked for a cheeky cat in a natty bow tie, but I had to make one. This little fella has been in my head for a while

 

Orgasmic rice pudding

This is kind of my own recipe, for the best ever rice pudding. I say kind of, because it is a mash-up of a couple of recipes, and of course the name is my own, and I didn't misspell organic :o)

4oz pudding rice
½ pint double cream
1 ½ pints of milk
2oz sugar
1tsp vanilla essence
½ teaspoon grated nutmeg
1oz butter


Put all the ingredients (except the butter) in the pan and bring to the boil. Simmer for 5 mins then take off the heat.
Pour into an oven proof dish, that holds 2.5 pints
Tear butter into knobs and place all over the top of the pudding. Put in the oven for 30-45 mins – stir after 25. It’s ready when it has a light brown colour on top.
Leave to stand for 5 mins before serving. It should be quite thick, with little running liquid left.

Serves 4