Better weather

The storm has passed, but there's still quite a sea swell. There was surface flooding in tow, especially around the Oamaru Creek; the rural areas were worst hit and the State Highway north was closed.

All is well here however. The painter is here at present, sprucing up the bathroom and toilet which weren't painted last time around, plus some of the door surrounds which were varnished but have had just one coat of paint slapped over them which is now chipping off. I'll also get him to do the front door and the bedroom windows which are wooden - most of the other exterior windowframes are aluminium.

Here's a wee peek at the back of the house which is cuter than the front.

Bad weather

The sea is very rough today with the storm that's sitting over us at present.

Rainy day blues

I've been up in Christchurch looking for a house and talking to people who may offer me work. It's no small task, pulling together the selling of one home and buying another, especially when they're 250 kms (155 miles) apart. And expecially when you last did all this only 2 years ago.

Anyway.....today we have rain, which is always welcome as Otago doesn't get too much of it.

Today's photo is a cobweb I saw hanging off my bedroom window covered with tiny droplets.

A change is as good as a rest - so they say

Why, you may be asking yourselves, why is this woman Not Doing Anything?
No dyeing, no quilting, no creative stuff at all?

Ok, I have a confession to make.

I have decided to leave Oamaru and move back to Christchurch, where I lived before. Consequently, I am busy getting my house ready to sell, looking for another house, arranging a mortgage (ugh) and everything that goes with moving yourself and a business.

I'm not a quitter, but sometimes you have to accept that things haven't worked out the way you expected and/or hoped. This is one of those times.

Please bear with me and lack of creativity, as I am in Ruthless Sorting mode.

Meanwhile, here's a half Log Cabin lap quilt I made some years ago and gave to my mother. She has subsequently told me she doesn't like green so uses the other side which features a small and boring maroon print. Sigh.

A Confession...and a bit (but only a bit) of a rant

I am indeed a Harry Potter fan. I have all the books (this makes my third First Edition too) and I think the stories are rollicking good yarns. I also have the movies (so far) on DVD.

Contrary to some of the things I've read, adult Harry Potter fans are not a bunch of TV-watchers who can't read anything more demanding than a comic strip. I read extensively, an eclectic mix of fiction and non-fiction. As a child, I read almost all the "classics" as I was a precocious reader and had a reading age well above my chronological one.

I think J.K. Rowling's books can be enjoyed by both children and adults because they can be read on different levels - just as you don't have to be an "expert" on art to enjoy the Mona Lisa or Michaelangelo's David.

I think anything that encourages people (especially children) to read more is a good thing. Surely books that entertain and give pleasure to millions should be praised rather than slated. We can get too precious about what constitutes a good book - which is why the Yarn Harlot gets frustrated when her husband tells people she is a best -selling author. They're all admiration until they find out she writes about knitting. Apparently, this isn't "real" writing.

Pigasso (warning - excessively cute animal photos)

OK, I like pigs. And of course, I love colour. Here we have both these things.

You can read the whole story here!

Wouldn't it be fun to just roll around in your dyes like these piggies do, and then throw yourself onto fabric? Provided it was summer, of course!

So cunning you could pin a tail on it and call it a weasel!

This is a fascinating pattern to knit! Incidentally, the colours in this photo are more realistic than the earlier ones.

It's all based on the number of stitches, and amazingly, mine has been correct all the way through.

When I've finished knitting the lower middle portion, I'll pick up some stitches that are currently on the holders which will form the front bands.

The top seam along the shoulders is the only sewing that is required - it is knit all in one piece.

Good news and a garter stitich sting ray?

Today I had to go to Dunedin Hospital (about 1 1/2 hours' drive south) to be rescreened following my recent mammogram. Fortunately, today's close-up mammogram was clear, as was the ultrasound they did afterwards to make sure. Whew. It was a real relief, as you can't help but worry. Especially as they tell you nothing till the last minute.

I travelled on the shuttle van, partly becasue of the icy roads and partly in case it was bad news - I didn't want to have to drive home if I was upset. So there was quite a bit of waiting around at the hospital to fit in with the shuttle times.

I took the Baby Surprise with me which was a good idea. Knitting is soothing and it helps keep your mind off things. I have seen this pattern described as " what a sting ray would look like if you made one in garter stitch" - you can see that's quite a good description.

If you can't imagine what it'll look like finished, keep watching this space!

A bit of something....

....for everyone. A reclining poodle for the pet lovers.

The as-yet-unquilted log cabin bed quilt from the spare room for the traditional quilt lovers.











For the knitters - the start of a Baby Surprise jacket - a famous Elizabeth Zimmerman design - click on the link to Yarn Harlot in my Links section to see her version. No, there are no imminent babies in the family, I just wanted to knit this in some of my hand painted wool.

The other knitting I've started recently (because I start a lot more than I actually finish, I have heaps of Work In Progress) is a mohair cardigan from Knitty (I am too lazy to put in the links today). I have made this for both my daughter andmy son's girlfriend. I love this pattern, which is knitted sideways. Because I'm using mohair which won't show the contrast stitch pattern, I'm using a darker colour for those panels instead. Why do I love this pattern? Because it has a gauge you use which enables you to use ANY yarn and ANY size needles. Brilliant!

And for the dyers and art quilters, here's some two colour pieces that I made by dipping a metre of fabric in two separate dyebaths at once, and allowing it to wick into the centre.

Home sweet home

Here's a shot of my stock room (technically the second spare bedroom) looking amazingly neat and tidy and ready for Sophie, while still managing to contain huge quantities of dyes (in the white cupboards at the end of the room, on both sides), paints, boxes of fabric, display baskets,
a roll of wool batting, trays, buckets, etc etc. And a spinning wheel, roving, wool, and heaven knows what else.

The white thing you can see poking out from under the bed (which has boxes of Pearl-Ex and silk paints stored under it too) is a fabric press that I don't use. For some reason, I prefer to hand iron my fabric, but then, I' m not mass producing it. Also, you need a stand or table for the presses (I have 2) and I don't have room for that.

Yesterday when I drove to Christchurch, it was the most beautiful day. The other photo was taken as I was driving (quite safely, I assure you, there were no other cars on the road at the time) and shows farmland with the Southern Alps in the distance. As usual, you can click on the photo to see the full sized view.

Dolphin Dreaming

As I'm going up to Christchurch today (3 hours' drive) to spend time with my daughter and her boyfriend, then pick up my son from the airport, drop the boyfriend off and drive home with my kids, there will be no creative stuff today. Nor for the days that they're here.

So here's Dolphin Dreaming, a convergence quilt I made some years ago a la Ricky Timms. This hangs in my hallway.

It's quilted very simply, with wavy lines. I like the effect of the light in the upper part.

I'll let you into a secret......the dolphins are cunningly appliqued over bits where the seams didn't QUITE match perfectly. But you won't tell anyone, will you?

A Winter's Morning....

...around three-quarters of an hour before sunrise - not that we expect to see much sun today.

Today will be spent doing creative housework**!



** I know I'll get asked what that is! I use the term to mean "getting maximum results with minimum effort". Having lots of attractive storage containers, or places to hide not-so-attractive ones helps too.

Completely black and white

This week, I'm concentrating on getting as much work as I can done in my day job - the one that pays a lot of the bills - prior to taking a month or 2 off to concentrate on my business and the creative part of my life. That's the point of making a major lifestyle change, isn't it? Giving you the freedom to pursue what you want to do.

Consequently, there's nothing creative happening at present. So here's photos of the reversible quilt I made at the end of 2005 for Erlo, my daughter's boyfriend who has been part of our lives for quite a few years now. Erlo loves cows, so one side has appliqued cows (all drawn by me) on every 3rd block which are all slightly different - standing, running, jumping, with and without horns, you get the idea. The reverses side is what someone described as "rivers" - freehand cut wedges.

It's a very striking quilt, but boy! Was I sick of looking at black and white after making this.

Give me colour any day!

House cycles

I don't consider cleaning and tidying to be my life's work.

Of course, I like things to BE clean and tidy, but I have to do it. So my house tends to go in cycles - from "Unnaturally Clean and Tidy Because The Kids Are Coming To Stay" through all the varying stages to "I Hope No-one Drops In Because I Would Be Embarrassed" - which is unfortunately the current cycle.

In a week, Cass and Sophie WILL be coming to stay, so a major effort is required. The part of my house where I spend my waking hours is Dining/Living/Sewing/Storage/Studio AND Office space. It's also where the dogs live.

Not surprisingly, it gets rather cluttered. Yes, I've heard of the FlyLady. But that only applies to normal people who aren't working on 6 (or7 or 8)or more creative projects at once. And who need to have things sitting around to inspire them. Or in sight so that they actually get done. Oh well.

So while I get myself sorted, here's a photo I took yesterday of Oamaru - sun and haze after a much-needed night of rain.

Of no particular significance...

I found a lovely scarf/shawl pattern in the latest edition of Knitty which I decided to make in this combination of eyelash and half wool. It's not blocked so you can't really see the lace pattern at this stage. It's easy to knit so it's the current project to do while watching TV.

And I don't often post photos of my Manx cats, as they live in the bedroom part of the house. Poodles chase anything that runs, so it makes homelife much calmer for me to keep the cats and dogs apart which I do with a kiddiegate. The cats sleep on my bed which I cover with a piece of fake fur to stop from getting cat fur all over my pillows and up my nose. Grizabella (left) is longhaired so sheds wisps all over the place. Seven (right) is short-haired and also a ginger female which is unusual.

Little Black Bag

I don't own a Little Black Dress, but now I do have a Little Black Bag.

This is the other thing I made at the felting class on Monday. It's made all in one piece using bubblewrap as a "resist" between 2 layers of wool. When it's felted to a certain level, you can cut a piece off and voila! A seamless bag.

Like all things when you're just learning, it's not perfect. Some of the decoration didn't felt on well and I have had to needlefelt it on with my embellisher, breaking several needles as I went due to the thickness of the felt.

Oh well, that's what learning is all about. If you never try anything for fear of making a mistake, how do you ever get to learn?

That's my philosophy for a lot of things in life. Some of the most important things I've learned have come about through making mistakes.

Something old, something new

It's new to me, but an ancient craft - feltmaking.

This sample is my first piece of wet felting, made using carded wool slivers, mohair curls, silk threads and bits of yarn.

I've also made a bag, which i'll show you once it's dry and completed.

Expect to see much more of felting in the future!

Thanks to everyone who commented on my last post - what a great response! The random layout was clearly a winner. I appreciate your taking the time to say what you thought.

Orderly or random - which looks better?

Ok - your input is requested. This is Side 2 of the reversible quilt sample I'm putting together for a class (the simple patterned one featured a week or so ago). I decided to use some quite muted hand dyed greens for the reverse, and I've appliqued batik cats onto them to jazz them up a bit.

However, I didn't have enough of the same fabric for all 20 squares, so I added some other green hand dyed fabric for the other 6. Because they were different, I put the cats facing the other way as well. Initially I planned to have these in the centre of the quilt, but then thought they might look better randomly distributed.
























Your opinions please, as to which layout looks better.

And it's not just cats who lie on your fabric - here's Cressy using some as a pillow. Right behind where I stand at the ironing board, of course.

Thanks to all of you who sent good wishes to Mum. We have really appreciated it. She has been sent home (but is feeling fine) as the hospital is too busy at present to operate - they will remove her gall bladder to ensure this doesn't happen again. So she'll go back in another week or so for this.

Another morning; yes, we're cute, and what not to do with your hot ashes

I haven't posted an early morning shot for...umm....probably a week or so, so here is an unuusal cloud formation on today's horizon. It's cold and windy and the forecast is sleety showers. Huh! Probably we'll get a 2 minute hailstorm and that's it. However, I feel disinclined to walk into town this morning to do my usual Saturday morning stroll around the shops, so I must apply myself to doing some of the 372 things on my "Create this, why don't you?" list. Not to mention the "You SHOULD be doing this stuff" list. You know...taxes, cleaning, tidying....

The poodles always seem to do this in the mornings. A bit of doggy solidarity perhaps, until they work out what I'm doing for the day? ago. At one time, they would always lunge for the camera if you tried to photograph them. Now that they are stars and get to feature on a blog read by people all over the world, I guess it's old hat.

Because I'm burning my fire pretty much night and day, there's a lot of ash buildup in the fireplace. I got my dustpan and scooped a couple of pansful of ashes out the other day. I figured it'd be safe to put it on the raised garden, as there's practically nothing in it except for that stray aubergine. I raked the ashes into the top of the soil and figured the cold would kill the odd little hot ember I could see (the fire hadn't been used for half a day).

Nope.

When I went outside a day later, I found the entire back of my garden was burnt through, including the centre post which is 3" by 3". The rails are 6 feet long, the lower one had gone entirely, and you can see there's not much left of the top one. I guess an ember had landed on the weed matting that lines the garden. This is just the left half you can see in the photo. I couldn't believe how much damage had been caused. I watered it with the hose for 5 minutes and it was still smouldering. However, because there's that little stone wall behind it, I can make it useable again. A project for my son when he comes down in a couple of weeks!

The shortest day, the longest night

These great photos were taken yesterday by my friend Donald.
Click on the link to see more wonderful shots of Central Otago. This has to be one of the most beautiful parts of New Zealand.

Unfortunately, I live on the coast and we seldom get snow here. There's another storm coming through today which is supposed to be dropping snow to sea level, but I doubt if we'll get any in Oamaru. Rats! I'm a city girl, from the North Island, and snow is a real novelty to me. (OK, Deb from Alaska - if you're reading this, I know YOU don't find it a novelty!)

Nothing much happening on the creative front. Mum is still in hospital while the doctors wait to see if the pancreatitis settles down by itself, as it often does.

Loved the comment about Mum looking like a spunky lady - she did a tandem parachute jump after she retired, which I think is pretty darned brave. And I am nervous having her in hospital because last time, she got an infection and ended up having a leg amputated and spending 6 months there.