Trying again

I've given up trying to get Picasa to post pics to Blogger - the "fix" they say works just plain DOESN'T.  Grrrrr.  If this method works, I'll try to repost the pics from the previous post!

So, to test out another way of doing it, here're a few pics of some earrings I fiddled about with last week.  The bigger ones are made with regular #11 seed beads, and the smaller ones with #15s.

A weird week

I'm having a bit of a weird week - no change there then! I didn't know gardening was hazardous - I managed to pop something in my back and pinch my finger in the cutters all in the space of an hour on Saturday. I've been stuck at home ever since trying to move about slowly but with a lot of grunting and groaning like an old lady. Anyhow, I had some physio today and it's a bit easier so fingers crossed it'll ease up a bit now and I can get back to work - minus the hot water bottle stuffed down my trousers, lol.  Then my laptop did very weird things and I thought it'd died - black screen, white screen, wouldn't switch on or off.  I unplugged it, took the battery out and let it sulk in the corner overnight.  It seems to be playing nicely again now though so I thought I'd do a blog post while the going's good.

So, stuck on the sofa, I got some beads out and had another play - the pattern is from Beadwork Feb/Mar 11 issue but I adapted the beads and style a bit. It's a modified St Petersburg stitch, which is really simple once you get the hang of it. The finished necklace is about 17" long and drapes quite nicely. The green version was made with 1.3mm cubes and the red one with ordinary #11 seed beads - both work well.

Right, off to walk around for a while - I'm told it's good for me, but it might take me some time to launch myself off the sofa :-)

Edited to add:  the week gets weirder - Blogger ate my pics so I hope they're here now.  Grrrrrr.

Edited again 3rd April - Blogger and Picasa have an "issue" which supposedly is fixed.  IT'S NOT, grrrrr.  You can't upload multiple pics and you can't edit the html code as they suggest, because the code they tell you to edit isn't there.  Anybody else having this problem?  It's driving me insane.

Busy beading (mostly)

Too many things on the go keeping me busy, but this one had to be ready for tomorrow for my Mum's birthday. The pattern was in the Feb/Mar 11 issue of Beadwork magazine and was easier to make than I thought it would be (even though it was fiddly and took a bit of getting used to as it's a lonnnng time since I got round to any serious beading).
Anyhow, the result is a bracelet for Mum, made with Toho and Miyuki seed and delica beads and Swarovski crystals in the middles and for the button. Sorry the pics aren't up to much - photography is NOT my strongpoint - but I hope you get the general idea :-)

I ought to show you these cute little pieces, found at the Antiques & Collector's fair in Brighton a couple of weeks ago. Lizzie came over from Hastings (EXPERT bootfair rummager/collector, so she led the way) and we spent a fun couple of hours rooting about. We spotted these - one little crochet hook and one, erm, prodder I suppose you'd call it (although I have no clue what it's actually for) with mother-of -pearl handles which aren't split anywhere (which I'm told is good) - and I was busy admiring them when Lizzie stepped in and bought them. I had no clue she was buying them for me, so I came away very chuffed.

I'm mid-way through crocheting another ruffle cushion (that'll be 4) and trying to knit, yes knit a corgi. I can't say as I'm enjoying that corgi very much - it looks more like a dinosaur to me at the moment - but it's another one to add to my CV I suppose, lol. Before anybody thinks my plot has gone even further into hiding, the corgi is for a Royal Wedding window display in my friend's wool shop, and not just something I've decided to do at random :-)  TTFN

Bakey, hooky, croapy and beady stuff

It's been a while since I blogged, but I've been busy doing other stuff.....

I'll start with some yummy Sunday baking - a tray of oaty bakes made with coconut, dried apricots and some white-fleshed necatrines which I whizzed up in my new gadget.  They smell gorgeous and I've had to sample 2 bits just to make sure they taste ok.  They're a bit squidgy in the middle but I'm not complaining :o)

Right, down to business.  This was a little lap blanket I made for my Mum.  I forgot to take a pic when it was finished, but you can get the general idea.  I edged it in dark brown with one narrow row of the other colours.  Mum loves it - now just got to make another for the other room.  Oh, and one for my sister, etc etc!

Then there's the slight flower scarf addiction I seem to have developed lately (Emily, I know you're with me on that one!).  The annoying thing is that ALL of these yarns claim to be "double knitting" thickness - look how different they all are!

Then there's a stash-buster lap blanket I thought I'd do for my niece who has splashes of bright pink in her bedroom.  Yet another WIP....

Oh, and there's a shrugelero thingy, just another WIP...... all those wonky squares have got to be sewn together and made into a curvy edging. 

Then, there's this luscious stuff lurking in my stash.  When my sis asked me what I'd like for my birthday as we happened to be sitting in a coffee shop next door to the yarn shop...well, I didn't physically drag her to the display, but you get my drift :o)

That's all the hooky stuff for now. There is a shawly wrap thing lurking too, but there are far too many of those offending loose ends to sew in yet.

***************
And so, after almost a year, I finally croaped.  Oh yes, my croap crown is safe, and I am indeed the Croap Queen.  I so want to be a decent soapmaker when I grow up.  They NEVER turn out like the image I have in my head.  Quite why I get such bad ash on the tops is beyond me too. 
The blue one is scented with "Blue Amberwood" which is a lovely spicy unisex scent, but for some reason the FO misbehaved and has left brown traces in the soap.  It's also going through the curing stage still so I expect that yellowish colour to change again.
The purple one is scented with Geranium & Lavender.  It's a new FO from Jo, and it behaved beautifully in CP soap, and is holding the scent well so far.
Neither soap has palm oil in, but is loaded with shea butter and other goodies.

This is the purple one before it went through the gel process.  Quite interesting how the colour changed afterwards.  Those "peaks" didn't last too well, but never mind.

And finally, how's a girl ever supposed to get anything done when they keep issuing mags like this, and she keeps getting reminders from people that they're waiting for the jewellery they were promised.  I'll have to have a beadfest when my poorly neck gets sorted out.  Yipppppppppeeeeeeee.

Well, I think that's me for now.  No doubt I've forgotten something and will get told off by Lizzie.  

Think I'll go and sit in the sunshine with a cuppa and a smallish chunk of oaty bake while my horrid neighbours are out and it's nice and quiet.

Hope you're all having a lovely Sunday.  TTFN.

Long time no blog!

Thought it was about time I updated my blog as my ears are ringing from the nagging from certain persons (begins with "L" and ends with "izzie"). This may be a long post, so brace yourselves :-)

Well, I swanned off to Portugal for a little while in May/June and because they've had such a wet winter/spring all the wildflowers were still out and it was a real pleasure to see. Just after I'd taken these pics, and been crawling about in the "mato" or scrubland, my neighbour was busy strimming all the wildflowers around her house. I accused her of being a flower killer but she pointed out it was because conditions were perfect for snakes to start breeding/hiding/lurking! Glad I didn't know that before I wandered about in my flipflops.

The weather was really weird for the time of year - either cold and windy and we were sitting about in fleeces (in June!?) or it was a heatwave. Very peculiar and I've never seen it like that in all the years we've been going there.

Even this poor "Dama de noite" or night-blooming jasmine was a bit confused - the flowers usually close up tightly during the day. Although the beautiful scent didn't arrive until night, it was very odd seeing the tiny flowers open all day long.

So, whatever the weather, a girl has to get her crochet hook out - it's the law :-)
Our lovely neighbour had been into the house and made it ready for us - we had no idea she was going to do that and I was really touched by her kindness.  She even climbed over the wall to get in because she couldn't get the gates to open.  Anyway, I thought I'd make her something to say thank you so I had a little play about and came up with a little cotton bag/pouch and a beaded bracelet.

 I got a bit carried away with the pouches after that - I think I made 6 or 7 in total although quite what I've done with the rest of them is baffling me at the moment.

Then I got the doilie bug again.  It's really strange because they're not really my cup of tea at all but I find the rhythm of the patterns really relaxing (although very frustrating sometimes and I could speed unpick in the Olympics).  Anyhow, here are a few (the last 2 are, erm, quite large to say the least!) -

And it wouldn't be the same if I didn't do at least one Diabolical Doilie while I was in Portugal, so here you go - not quite as vile as some of them but even so.....

And finally, for now, Liz pointed me in the direction of a Flickr group making African flower hexagons.  Not being one to choose the easy route to anything, I decided I'd make diddy ones (1.25mm hook and size 10 thread).  Haven't quite decided yet what to do with them - think I'll make you wait for that :-)

Right, I'm worn out after all that.  Toodlepip as Liz would say.

P.S Quite why Blogger is NOT putting pics/text where I want them, I don't know.  Anybody else having problems?

Awwww! (and other things)

I looked after my niece today and we were lucky enough to be invited to a beautiful farm where they had not only some foals but just look what else. Awwwwwww.

This lovely lady is called Kara and she's a Kerry blue terrier. She's 7 years old and has just had her first litter of babies. She's the friendliest, most gentle dog I've met for a long time, and looks very proud of herself :-)

Loooook, aren't they just gorgeous! 6 weeks old and with very sharp teeth and claws but adorable all the same

This little foal is only 2 days old and still a bit wobbly, and although I'm not a horsey person, I was very brave and said hello to Mum at close range.

A lovely way to spend an hour or so, and my niece was beside herself with happiness. Bless her.

Before we went out today, Rachel has been watching & helping my Mum make some lemon curd and wanted to have a go at something different. Ta dah! We give you .... lime curd. The little taste I had earlier was delicious. Pity I can't eat bread but I'm sure I'll find something to slather it on to.

Just to annoy Lizzie, here are some raspberry and white choc muffins and some much healthier oat, apricot & pecan cookies.

Sad news now. My old girl has finally been consigned to scrap heaven. I was very sad to see her go as she's been my faithful companion for 20 years, but she was starting to wreck my shoulder with her heavy steering, and bits were starting to drop off/go rotten. Sniff.

Still, I have a fab little new car which I'm learning to love and for the first time ever I've named a car, and my new companion is called Snowdrop. (I'm losing the plot again aren't I?)

Finally....I had the most evil migrainey headache last weekend and seriously thought I was hallucinating when I looked out of the window and saw a large chicken walking past. It then skateboarded past the other way. On closer inspection, it turned out to be one of the kids over the road trying to film tricks on his skateboard - quite why he did it dressed as a chicken I've no idea, but it was hilarious to watch :-)

Other than all that, I've been attacking those "squares" for the charity blanket. Nearly there now, but the box they're in is like the Tardis. I keep thinking I've finished but they seem to be multiplying. Once I've finished tidying them up, I've got to work out how to put them all together.....it could be a while, lol.

Oopsie

I got beeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaads, they're multiplyin'
I think I'm loooooooooooooooosin' contro-o-o-ol
It's the power, they're supplyin'
It's addictifyin'.

They'd better shape up, into things I like
'cos I got the urge to bee-ee-ead
They'd better shape up, and behave themselves
Or I'll be in a bad moo-oo-oood

They're the beads that I bought,
Woo hoo hoo honey
They're the new beads I got
Woo hoo hoo honey....

Erm, I had a teensy accident on my favourite bead site. Oopsie
Here're just a few, and I mean literally just a few.

I can't even see half of them 'cos they're so small (size 15s), but I've finally got a new work lamp. Ever-so-slightly deceptive on the website I bought it from as I thought it'd be your average desk lamp size, but I think it may come in useful anyway and it's got a base as well so I can either clip it to my work tray or stand it next to me.

Now I've finished the housework, guess what I'll be doing this weekend. Ahh, happy days.