3 things to smile about #5

This time of year nothing makes me smile more than preparing for Christmas - well, it's only just around the corner isn't it? And before that, there's the advent calendars to think about, of course.
I've gone a bit mental with my advent calendar boxes business in the past three or four years, and although I am sure I'll come back to it, this year sadly, I'm not making any apart than for close family. The truth is, I've left it all a bit too late to get organised on that scale, and in any case it's good to leave things to rest sometimes. So one of the best things at the moment is browsing for my own advent calendar, and there is so much choice out there, it'll be hard to pick one.
 Carrying on with traditions, this year I will definitely be doing is homemade stocking fillers. So here are some of the easiest, lovely things that make me smile.

First up is the old classic - lavender bags. The is a really easy one to make, and a crowd pleaser, because you can always use a lavender bag to bung in a drawer or in the car for that extra fresh smell of Provence! I order my lavender online from the good people of Amazon, and any old bits of scraps will do for your fabric. That said, this series of fabric above is perfect as you can just cut up around one of the adverts.

Next up is great for little people, and although it's a bit fiddly it's a rewarding one. I make my life easier with this one by not turning any of the fabric over, I just shear it after sewing. You do need to get some small magnets, but again, my Amazonian friends are very resourceful on this one.

Finally, handwarmers. Who doesn't curse the cold when they go out on a cold morning? Those are so easy to make, and they're a cool, natural alternative to the ones sold in the shops for a fiver. You'll probably use them longer too. My one and only trick is to double-sew the edges if you're using rice like me. It just ensures your grains stay where they should, and don't end up in the bottom of your coat pockets!

Well, I hope I have inspired you to make a few stocking fillers with fabric scraps. I would love to hear more ideas from you. Do you make your own stocking fillers? Do you make and sell at Chrismas markets?

things I love this summer...

 

 

♥ being in the middle of nature for a week, getting back to your sources and getting greeted by a flock of ducks in the morning
♥ feeling the wind in your hair and face whilst riding a bike - such a feeling of freedom!
♥ making lots of simple lunches
♥ taking a sewing course and learning new techniques
♥ visiting my husband for a spot of improvised lunch
♥ the mighty return of the Great British Bake Off - how cute is Martha?
♥ whizzing our way through breaking Bad. We'd never seen it and got the box set before the holidays...addictive or what?

♥ se retrouver au milieu de la nature pendant une semaine, se ressourcer, et se retrouver nez-à-nez avec des canards le matin
♥ sentir le vent dans les cheveux et sur le visage en faisant un tour de vélo - rien de tel pour se sentir libre!
♥ se faire plein de déjeuners tout simples
♥ faire un stage de couture et apprendre de nouvelles techniques
♥ rendre visite à mon mari pour un déjeuner improvisé
♥ le retour tant attendu du Great British Bake Off - elle est pas chou, Martha?
♥ visionner Breaking Bad à toute vitesse. On ne l'avait jamais vu et on s'est offert le coffret avant les vacances...ça rend accro, non?

snow where are you?

Wet and windy February. Whilst the south of the country is literally drowning under all the rain, here we are, miserable, wet and windy but not properly cold like a good old winter should feel like. Snow, I miss you. Last year it was snowing on the day Baby was born. We were waiting to be seen at the maternity ward very early one Monday morning as day was just breaking and it snowed. Later that morning before I lost my mind track of time in the delivery room, I remember looking outside and seeing yet more snow falling down.
As Baby's birthday approaches I realise I am feeling increasingly nostalgic of those last  few weeks of pregnancy and early days of motherhood. I miss the anticipation of it all - even though it drove me mad at the time, the laziness, and touching my tummy to feel her kicking back at me. And the cold, crisp air charged with the impending snow.
Man, I really wish for some snow before winter's over.
In the meantime I have found some comfort in finishing all the nitty-gritty hand quilting of my last baby quilt. What a great feeling when it finally comes together! I also made a new bias in a lovely black sakura-style fabric I bought with Atina Alga years ago. And we've taken the habit of going out for breakfast at the weekend. Lazy days, hibernation, and comfort foods. Just that darn snow missing...

still winter days

Yesterday on the radio many people were phoning in and saying how happy they were that January was finally over. It's true that it's a pretty long month, and for those who made resolutions it can be a bit depressing. The incessant rain just doesn't help to make things any better.
Still, if you look on the bright side, you might say it's great to come home and have a hot cup of cocoa. You get to snuggle up on the sofa under all your quilts and later in bed with a hot water bottle. You get to bake hearty comfort food without any complex, and January is also a good excuse to snap up some sales in the shops. Being the capricorn that I am, I got a bargain or two on a recent shopping trip. Well...recent shopping trip...ummm. All is relative now with Baby. "Recent" goes back to the first few days of the month about three weeks ago, as for "shopping trip" it is more like an hour zooming from one place to the other in the local shopping centre.
Luckily the days are getting much longer already and there is hope that soon I'll be able to venture out with my pram and Baby in tow at the end of the working day. Till then, back to comforting things. Enjoy hibernation while it lasts!

yellow

Looking back over the pictures I took in the last week, it's funny to see how yellow is the common denominator (Sewing Bee book included!). Funny too that a colleague of mine brought me a gold-dusted cheese from her local farmers' market, but I didn't get a picture of that!
Anyway it's been a funny old week altogether. I turned another year in the lowest of the low-key ways but managed to catch up at the weekend with a romantic meal in town (sans Baby, which turns out is always weird now). I had great plans for us to have a superb birthday cake, something terribly calorific a-la-Nigella, but never got round to actually doing anything. Had enough calories in my Friday night meal for a whole week anyway, so it's probably just as well.
Instead we made the most of the nice weather and took a couple of long walks (say, isn't it supposed to be the middle of winter...where is the snow, by the way?). I stuck to my plan and sewed a little bit more - I love the satisfaction of taking my patchwork pins out one by one and turning the quilt on its back to see the little alcoves appearing.
We marvelled at how amazing our baby is: she has developped the start of her own language to the rhythm of na-na-na da-da-da, she cuddles us in the evening when she is all tired after her bedtime stories, she loves playing peek-a-boo, fruity yogurts and dragging her cuddly toy along into all her daily adventures. She is simply a star. Our daughter.

new sewing project

2014, as promised, will not see me making any resolutions. And yet, I insisted in setting myself a small challenge for January. It's hard to describe but I have felt a small shift in my way of seeing things. January is my month, and as a Capricorn things tend to be over-analysed and take for evvvveeeeer to actually come to completion. Somehow though, it feels like my looming birthday has given me a big kick in the backside and I have embarked on another baby quilt project.
This weekend I left all the dirty dishes in the sink, ignored all the little things I needed wanted to fix and just did a bit of cutting and arranging fabric squares. Bliss. Then I did more ignoring of the chores and just sewed all the squares together. More bliss.
Tonight I plan to not only sandwich the top, middle and bottom layers together but also start hand-quilting it. Why not?z
I see wonder women everywhere on the net who seem to be able to do it all: job, home-maker, mother and crafter. Maybe they're just bragging. Or maybe I just need to prioritise things differently again from now on if I truly aspire to be a bit more like them.
2014 is still young, but as I keep writing in my students' reports I will do my best and strive to achieve my full potential. Sounds like a plan!

catching up on sewing

Guess what? I have finally found enough time and motivation (an extremely rare combination of factors these days) to get on with a bit more sewing. And - keep still - not only have I finally finished hand-quilting my next Baby quilt, but I have also made the bias from scratch...woo hoo!
Now there is much hope and anticipation as to whether I can actually put the two together and proudly say I have finished a sewing project during my holidays. Will she, won't she? Stay tuned and find out very soon, she says, crossing all her fingers and toes at the same time!

tarte aux pommes

Well deserved time out. Baby and I are already having a grand time on day 2 of the holidays. I have baked a simple apple tart which turned out to be fabulous (no soggy bottom either, Mary Berry would be proud!) and Baby had her first taste of meat and loved it.
She makes a right mess too now and loves emptying her toy box! She is so curious. She looks at everything in amazement and we look at her trying to figure things out for herself. It's bliss.
Now that I am a bit more at peace I should be able to do more around the house. Thank goodness for holidays.

my favourite season

When I leave the house in the morning the air is crisp and the sky full of light wind which makes me dizzy. I put the heating on in the car. The heating is on in the morning in the house too, just to take the edge off when you slip out of bed.

Leaves are slowly starting to turn yellow, red and brown. Flocks of birds are migrating in the sky. In the evening time is suspended while the sun sets, as Baby and I watch from the comfort of our warm and cosy home.
Pubs and restaurants have already started advertising their Christmas menus, and over on the Posie Gets Cozy website, ornament kits are being assembled. Autumn is here, and I couldn't be happier!
Over here, not much is new. I promised a post this weekend, and...well...I nearly managed! This evening I have to charm the man of the house into giving me a few free minutes to pen these words. Nothing new, as I said. Time still escapes me like when you pick up a fistful of sand at the beach and it all disappears through your fingers. Still, I am working hard on trying to complete my next baby playmat and have tried to do a few stitches every night week.