half term and a bit of crafting :)

I can't believe half term is over already, the week went really fast. We managed to start on the garden. Clearing flower beds and Tony went around with the strimmer finding new paths and underneath all the overgrown grass and ivy there is a lovely garden just waiting for a bit of TLC. Me and Arthur bought masses of seeds and having been saving all the plastic containers that food is packaged in to use as seed trays. As soon as it warms up a bit we will cover the balcony in seeds which will hopefully grow so that we can fill up the flower beds :)
We visited the Tank museum with Harry and Arthur. Arthur refused to look at any tank until he had had a proper look at this one, which he thought was a police tank. He spotted it from the cafe which over looked this hanger of tanks.
Harry had a try on of the uniform, which brought a tear to mine and tony's eyes..cause he is applying to join the army at the moment. Quite scary but its what he'd like to do. Its going to be a huge adventure.
We managed to get to the beach to, very cold but so nice to breath in the sea air. We had a picnic in the van with the roof up, Harry and Arthur sat up the top and had great fun :)
I have been working hard since xmas and making lots of new things. I have discovered 'my thing' which is freeform crochet. The necklace above is a dorset button (made during one of the workshops in my shop) which I have crocheted around and then done a length of freeform crochet with beads for the necklace.
Then I started on this bag, you can make lots of little bits of crochet then crochet them together filling in the gaps as you go...
and then crochet over the top and down the sides and turn it around add another colour
and keep adding more until you get to a shape you like. I was aiming for a bag shape.
This is the result. I love the fact that you can use all sorts of yarns together, thin ones to make a warp that you can weave the thicker ones into and fluffy ones for texture...very handy having a shop full of yarn to experiment with :) I am very lucky ! I am going to have lots of fun designing with this method of crochet.

George went for his interview to Falmouth during half term, he's not really sure how it went. He worked so hard getting his portfolio together, fingers crossed he will get in. I am very confident he will, the worst thing is waiting 2 weeks to find out :(

Happy Christmas Holidays :)

We had a lovely relaxed xmas, really just hibernated! Xmas Eve we had our main dinner as the older boys were off to see there dad and uncles and aunts on Xmas day.
Father Christmas always drops a present from his sleigh on Christmas eve ;) Arthur was very Happy with his transformer, he had put out some special sparkley food for the Reindeer earlier in the day, and made it into an x marks the spot, and amazingly thats where the presents were found. In the dark, Tony had to shine a torch on the garden from the balcony, which got Arthur very excited.
Xmas morning Tony was busy cooking a lovely big breakfast while the boys enjoyed hot choc and squirtey cream, mmm.
There have been some amazing sunrises over the xmas hols, beautiful colours..but very coooold!
When the frost cleared on xmas day it was amazingly warm in our garden, I managed to have a lovely couple of hours knitting and reading mags in the sun, it felt like a real holiday :)
Tony enjoyed the peace in the dining room, with sun streaming through the windows :)

We had Tony's family around for New years Eve and it made the house really start to feel like home :) I cooked a huge indian feast and gave the dining room a Bollywood feel Lol ;) I really enjoyed cooking for everyone and must get back to having people round for dinner in the New Year, it would be great to be sociable again.
New Years Eve went with a bang, we all watched fireworks going off across the Blackmore Vale it was lovely .
New Years Day I started as I mean to go on, I am aiming to do a 5 minute sketch or watercolour a day of the sky and landscape outside my window, and will aim to get back to painting and hold an exhibition before the end of the year, which will include photographs and large paintings.

Wishing you all a fantastic New year and Hoping that all your wishes for the next year come true X X

How does your garden grow..

Above is the view of our garden from the top bedroom. These pics were taken 2 weeks ago when we had a break in the storms, we had been planning to start tackling the garden on the Sunday and were amazed to get a gorgeous sunny day to start. Take a walk with me to see the very exciting but daunting project. The garden has been neglected for many years so we aim to clear it and cut back the shrubs to see what there is to work with. I am sure it will be a fairly slow process one little bit at a time until next spring.
I have been clearing the patio area and the terraces below.
With the aim of planting herbs in pots and covering the different levels of terrace. I love to use fresh herbs in cooking and just go outside the kitchen door and grab what I need will be a dream come true :) I also have the book 'grow your own drugs'..medicinal ones! and would love to test out some of the recipes.
I think I may clear a bit more ivy first.  It would cost a fortune to fill the garden using garden centres so I intend to do some swaps with friends for plants and cuttings, possibly some gardening in return for raiding there gardens ;)

Above is the view back up to the house from the first grassy patch.
This section we have already discovered little paths through and I would like it to be full of cottage flowers and roses, honeysuckle with a small bench. mmmm I can just smell the summer:)
Getting further down the garden now..
possibly a veg garden ?? not sure we have the time, but eventually i would love to grow all our veg.
Tony's potting shed..needs a little tlc and electric! with kettle and cups..it's a long walk back up for a cup of tea ;)
lots of hidden paths.
lots over grown..

This is the teenage bit, right at the bottom of the garden where next summer they will be able to have camp outs, though Harry is imagining a nice shed..free cycle I think :)
A small amount of clearing to do first!! It's going to be a great family project and we are hoping for a few more sunny sundays :)
Tony and harry playing with the new toys! They did clear quite a long way down and it already looks better.

Shop refit

On Sunday and Monday (actually i started Saturday night!) we had a huge shop reshuffle, we moved all the yarn from the back room above into the front of the shop, I had made a plan the saturday before and even measured it up to make sure my plan would work.  It was much easier for Tony to just come in and do the moving the furniture bit and go back out again. The first job was moving everything out of the corner below to make room for the wool shelves, quite a bit of shuffling went on! and the house filled with yarn when we moved the shelves in place.
It had to be ready for Tuesday Morning so we had to work quite fast...while packing the house inbetween.
I think the shop looks great now and it has really given it a revamp, there is still a bit of a way to go unpacking my bits into the back room which will be my office and workspace (the buttons have there very own display cabinet and shelves) actually I'd forgotton how much we actually moved...all of my stash and the shelving, I will put a photo of the finished room on my blog next week.
I really l;ike where the jewellery cabinets are it all seemed to go to plan!

I am hoping that the house move will go as smoothly, I have loaded the van with the first lot of boxes and Tony's new chair especially for relaxing with a cup of tea.

ooooooooo moving tommorow whoo hoo, I may not be able to walk much after the move my legs are aching already!

Moving House

Well the move is well under way, and I am feeling amazingly calm. I have been slowly clearing since July, though there is still masses left to do I think it is achievable by Friday 23rd Oct.

We are having a major shop refit today, clearing the back room in the shop at the moment full of wool and clothes, andf putting it in the front of the shop..I have a good plan and think the shop will look fab when it is finished. 

My major stash of fabrics, buttons,beads and vintage books are being moved into the back room which will become my workspace and a place Arthur can relax after Nursery. A whole little room will be fab, I will be able to see the fabrics rather than having them in boxes and customers will be able to go through the buttons and beads. I have had a corner of the dining room for the last year as my workspace which has gradually filled up and spread into the rest of the room.

I am so excited about the move, and everytime I start to feel exhausted or cross with the mess I just look at this pic, and calm right down.

This is just such an amazing house :) It is the black painted one.An Edwarian house over  4 floors, our room being right at the top. (will need tea stuff and a little fridge,or i will not be making tea and taking it back to bed!)
A very long garden which needs a bit of tlc, we're hoping to have a section each, I am imaging a little blue painted wooden studio surrounded by herbs and cottage flowers, Tony will have a potting shed, Arthur a little house, and the teenagers are having the bottom end and thinking about a skateboard ramp...not sure about that one. Obviously this will be over time ..
This is the sitting room, and down the next floor is the dining room, both with balcony's.
OOOoo I can't wait to sit here, will not care about opening boxes! I have ordered cakes from Dee incase any one drops in over the weekend. It will be amazing to have our own place and be sociable again and though having the shop attatched to the house was great while Arthur was a baby. Locking the door and going home will be priceless :) The new shop and Tony's office are only 200 yards from the new house. 
Right I am off to sort the shop and move my stash, leaving loads of space to pile boxes.

Travelling Anonymous Market Bison Farm.

On Saturday I took my little shop to the Bison Farm at West Knoyle in Wiltshire. I aimed to get there early so I could drive in and drop off my bits instead of walking it all in, got there just in time..5 minutes after Kate and I unloaded our cars everyone else arrived.  That gave me an extra half hour to set up, I was not so stressed this time and everything seemed to fall into place. Putting the wool in the boxes worked really well.


Kate has been collecting lovely vintage bits and upcycling them as well as mixing with more modern fabrics and selling gorgeous bits of china, love the coffee and tea flowery pots.
The Lavender Russian dolls make a great use of the fabric I have in my shop, I imagined doing something like that when I originally saw the fabric so its really nice to see them made up, backed with vintage fabrics. I have asked kate if I can have some for my shop so hoping she hasn't sold out ;)
There was a great feel to the market, the sun was shining and everyones stalls looked fab! The bus above was a cafe inside and sold delicious coffee.
Dee has just started a cake business and sells to offices in and around Gillingham and Shaftesbury, her cakes are yummy :)
A que formed immediately hee hee :)... who let the goats out!
I loved Rose Hatchers felt, she has not been felting that long but has done some amazing work. I can see her work selling well in Galleries. I have got some of her cards in my shop which look fab and I really like to stock local artists work especially when people are just starting out.
and I really really want this coat!!! but would have to win the lottery or maybe sell one of my original paintings. Will have to have a go at wet felting it looks great fun.
some more lovely stalls :)

There was lots of fab food too, the most delicious salads and Olives.
and of course the bison..who luckily didn't get out..you would have seen me abandoning my stall if they did!
It was a great day in the sun, and Arthur went off with his best friend Ted to a little theme park..so I had a lovely break, could have done with lots more customers though!! think people went off to the beach instead :)

Tony went off to The Goodwood Revival and texted me what a fab time he was having and how it was vintage heaven..mmm he originally told me it was  a car thing!  I will be booking my tickets for next year i think!