Well, that will teach me! Having joked about SpecSavers and Double Vision, I ended up back at the opticians just after I posted yesterday. The left lens fell out of my glasses. It happened on Monday, then again Wednesday morning. I took them back and the manager agreed that they were rather loose in the new frames. They have gone off to be fixed. Leaving me acting like Steve Fletcher again, alternating between two pairs of specs. A bit frustrating as I'd set aside Wednesday as a sewing day. I got on with it as best I could. The half duvet cover was hemmed properly to make a tablecloth. I used part of the remainder to recover the ironing board.
Originally there were seven "Ports Of Call" in Jeff Banks' bedlinen range. But that was 30 years ago - now there are just two patterns [but not this one] Quick tip for making a new cover for your board. Measure length, and width. Add 25 cm to each of those, and cut a rectangle that size. Fold all edges over to make a double hem approx 2 cm deep. Press firmly. Mitre the corners as shown. Then stitch the hem all round. Close to the edge leave the mitres unstitched. This makes it easier to thread your elastic.
Take a length of elastic, feed it through the casing and pull it tight on the board. Those unstitched gaps at the corners will make it easier to thread. Fasten with a knot and tuck loose ends inside. My elastic is repurposed from an old anorak, and still has the retaining bobble!
I am very pleased with today's endeavours. I have also been working on two secret projects for Ro and Jess, and working on the 2x2 [ but gave up because I coulndn't handstitch as neatly as I wanted without my proper glasses. I did at least manage to do the ironing!
Back in 2012, my blog friend Floss suggested a new blog event. [now a fully fledged Anglican priest, it was Floss who started the Pause in Lent and Pause in Advent events]
She called it The Thrill Of What You Already Have and you can read more HERE
I was reminded of this on Saturday when I was pottering in the old garage, and came across a carrier bag of silk flowers. There were some daffodils in there, and I'd just thrown away a bunch of real [but dead] ones. They were 95p in Lidl, and they had lasted two weeks and brought much joy. These ones could take there place until more fresh ones arrive.
Normally there is a green cloth on the dining table - I have two, bought from Scotts of Stow, back in the 90s, and I rotate them. But I felt like a change. I looked in the linen drawer - and found a single duvet cover. I know exactly when I bought that - Easter 1996, it was in Debenhams, half price - and I had just been given a new divan bed for the spare room in Kirby. That bed is long gone, and most of my other single bedlinen too. I shook it out, and put it on the table. Ta Da!
I really like the way the amber/brown pattern sets off the greeny blue vase, and the daffodils. And Steph's lovely picture behind picks up those shades too. I think she painted that when she was a student - it is at least 20 years ago... It has the words of the Lord's prayer, and a dove of peace, and fresh golden wheat against a sunny background [originally hung on a yellow kitchen wall]
I quite like this arrangement - fresh and springlike. I think I may unpick the duvet cover, and hem the fabric from this side, and retain the other for something else!
I found other treasure in the carrier bag - but that will be for another post.
Do you use silk flowers - or only fresh ones ? [my daffs were purchased for a Day of Prayer display four years ago]
How often do you find 'treasure' in the cupboard, when you are actually looking for something else?
The girls were with us Saturday afternoon. Rosie had asked me to teach her to crochet. So once she was busy making chains, and Jess has realised this was not something she had the patience for, I took her off to do a simpler craft. We made some bunting, and hung it between two chairs.
I had made these all little flags last week, but before she began decorating them, I showed Jess the technique. Its ridiculously easy but you need to prepare them at least 48 hours beforehand, and children must understand that some bits can only be done by a grown up.
You need lots of loo rolls. Each one makes 2 flags. The instructions in Red can be done by children. Adults should do the hot water bit!
Half fill a jug with very hot water
Using tongs, carefully stand a loo roll in the jug
Count to ten [child can do that!]
Using tongs lift up the tube and turn it over, put it back in the jug
Count to five,lift out the tube, shake it a little
It will start to unroll, and become two separate parallelograms.
Do this with all the loo rolls
Lay the shapes on a worktop or chopping board to dry
Carefully fold in half to make a "pennant" shape.
Next day, when dry, stack them and put a weight on top to keep them flat
Now they are ready to decorate and will hang tidily over a string. You can staple near the fold to stop them coming off! The card is really good for paints or felt pens, or for sticking things on with PVA or Glusticks. NB You can sterilise loo rolls - place 4 in a cross shape on a microwave plate, and zap on full power for 20 seconds [no longer, they may catch fire] but I reckon this total immersion in very hot water is adequate cleansing.
Watching the rolls uncurl to become diamond shapes is weirdly magical. And people are so surprised when you tell them what the bunting is made from! I shall do this one again i think.
For reasons beyond my control I arrived rather late at my Craft Group Christmas Social. Everyone else was well into making their cinnamon stick trees. I was giving slightly misleading instructions and there seemed to be a limited number of fabric strips available. So my tree doesn't really look as it should. I was told 'tie your strips all round to make a tree shape' but you are supposed to put all the knots at the front so it is a flat tree - like this one
I will know next time! But there wasn't time to retie everything, because we were onto the second craft. Janet, our host, has this brilliant idea for repurposing the IKEA scarf hanger from her wardrobe. She only ever uses a few of the rings, so she cut off the bottom 16 rings. They were natural string colour, she dyed them brown with ox gall.
We were each given a ring, and selected greenery and trimmings from the baskets on the table to make mini wreaths. Our trees and wreaths were all hung at the window to make a pleasing display whilst we ate our bring&share lunch. We had a really good time together and lots of laughs
I was much happier with my mini wreath and that is now hanging up in the hall under my Mum's picture! I was glad I took my tin of little bells - quite a few friends used one for their wreaths.
I really should tidy up my scarf hanger. I am afraid I pull out a scarf and wear it, then just push it back in later. They look so much tidier when hung properly.
Definitely Not! But I am starting the process of tidying and ordering the loft, because it has become something of a mess up there. I get down some project [eg Shed Aprons] and all the stuff is in a large plastic box. But when I return it, I realise there is another 'loft thing' - so that goes in that box. Or in a rush to tidy up because guests are coming, I put a suitcase away, without checking it is properly emptied. And then there are the bags labelled with messages like "Old greeting cards, 2022, sort these out ASAP" I wrap up well for this task, and wear sensible footwear [going up and down the loft ladder in slippers or socks is a bad idea] Here is my equipment
7A rubbish bag [for rubbish!]
a couple of large strong bags, for stuff that needs to come down and be relocated[Charity Shop, other people, the craft cupboard etc]
A reel of masking tape, sharpies and a pencil - for labelling
A pair of scissors - always useful
My tablet [to listen to the radio**]
My phone - in case somebody phones me, or in case I need help for some reason [eg lifting down a large item and Bob is out in the workshop] I used the phone for the picture hence its not on the table
I found an angel's tinsel halo, so put it on and felt joyful. Then there was a large freestanding mirror - redundant now we have a mirror on the wardrobe door That's going to Manchester for Steph's new house. Note the rubbish bag hanging down, gradually filling up. That empty cardboard box is for recycling, and is the THIRD one I filled in the first hour. I have decided I do not need every cardboard box which has entered the house [the new kitchen came flatpacked in over 100 boxes]
They have just announced there will be a village Yard Sale in the Spring, to raise funds for the Parish Church - so one corner of the loft is now 'possible yard sale stuff'. But my task was interrupted by an IKEA delivery lorry. We are changing the two single beds in the back room for one double. It will free up a bit more floor space. But that means as well as sorting the loft, I also have to sort out all my bedding. The singles will go to Manchester, along with their linens, [and that mirror] when we visit at Christmas. I'm hoping to have the loft and back bedroom straight by Friday 7th when Julian comes. There is loads going on - especially Bobs 70th birthday on Tuesday.
All four grandchildren appear to be having a great half term, at Forest School and Holiday Club. ** I listened to the final episode of Jane Eyre, a programme about Men's Sheds, and a 'Limelight' thriller on BBCSounds.
Always in my loft I hang the paper heart which turned up in a loft sort about 30 years ago. It has hung in three different lofts, but the message holds true. My loft, and the world in general, may appear to be in a chaotic mess sometimes - but there is One who is watching over us, and his love never fails.
...for my bread Many years ago, I found a Hornsea Butter dish in a CS, in the Brontë pattern. I loved it. Then two years ago I dropped the lid and it broke. I was really upset
And then, about three weeks ago, I noticed the dish was chipped at the top, and a crack was running down from the chip...
I have been checking the CS in Norfolk and Chorlton looking for a new glass or china butter dish [of any brand] I had no success. I looked on eBay - they had complete Hornsea ones for £20 - £40, And the ones without lids were £10+.
Then I found a lidless one in the Tapestry Pattern for just a fiver. And my wooden lid fits perfectly. And I am very happy. But I suspect this is becoming something of a Trigger's Broom exercise.
I do so like to have a civilised breakfast, with a toast rack and a butter dish...
I am sure Julie Andrews and her daughter feel just the same... [of course, the King has Duchy Organic Marmalade now, doesn't he?]
I thought it was Men in Black, but in the NANSA CS in Norwich, they have a basket by the door. Everything is £1, and labelled with a tag saying MIB and describing a fault. Ripped sleeve, broken zip, stain on front, faulty seam...
I picked up a dress, it was a really pretty 100% cotton fabric. And my size too. But a horrid rip in the sleeve and half the buttons missing.
I'm not sure if MIB means "Mend It"Basket, or "Make It Better" but the fabric was lovely and I knew I could make something from it. When I got home, I carefully unpicked both sleeves. The dress was extremely well made, every seam stitched neatly, and all raw edges properly finished. The tag said "Patra", not a name I recognised. I tried on the dress. It was...snug. But pretty, an incentive yo lose a few lbs. I bound the armholes with bias binding, found buttons to fill the gaps, and added discreet hooks&eyes between the top buttons to stop gaping.
Definitely good value for money.
My
Incredible Bargain.
Midi-dress In Blue
More Interesting Buttons?
Do you ever buy things from a CS which needs mending?
Not far from here there is a small joinery company, which makes bespoke furniture and cabinetry. They supply customers across the world with amazing conference tables, library fittings, dressing rooms and more. They also fit out super yachts. It is all high end, luxury stuff [a million miles from my flat pack IKEA kitchen] They also run a wonderful apprenticeship scheme training young men and women in woodworking skills. And as well as all that, they have helped our Shed Project by occasionally donating offcuts of wood and veneers etc.
The latest generous parcel unexpectedly included some fabric. I suspect it may be offcuts from upholstery on one of the yachts. It's a heavy blue and white striped cotton. There is an awful lot of it!
Bob wondered if I could make some stuff to sell to raise funds for the Shed. But the thing is, no piece is more that 50cm wide. I spent Sunday afternoon sorting and measuring it all.
Stacks of fabric labelled "50x200cm, THREE PIECES" etc. What to make? I thought tote bags, Bob suggested BBQ aprons, Liz said drawstring bags, and Steph [the Oasis fan] came up with "Bucket Hats"!
I decided to start with an apron. I had to join two strips with a centre seam to get a piece which was wide enough. I spent Monday afternoon working on the project. Here is Prototype #1, being modelled by my ShedMan.
It needs a bit of "tweaking" and I want to add some sort of Shed logo or tag. But it is good quality fabric, and if I make a batch, the men can put them out to sell at their stand, when they go to community events etc.
Do any of you have any other ideas for quick and easy makes which would be saleable? Thanks for all the brilliant suggestions below
[Thank you Cleyndert and Co for your encouragement and generosity]
...She Ate Granola Apologies to Barry Manilow, but I feel it would have been a good alternative lyric to "she was a showgirl" Bob's appetite has returned, a sure sign of recovery. Very appreciative of all your get well wishes, thanks everybody!
We are both very fond of granola. My 1978 Mennonite "More With Less" Cookbook has eight different granola recipes, but I haven't made my own for years. I generally buy Sainsbury's "Simple Granola" and throw in dried fruit and banana chips [bought cheaply from the friendly guy on Fakenham Market] But then I heard Nadiya Hussein talking about the "Bread granola" she makes for her children. So I began saving crusts and solitary slices in a bag in the freezer. And this week I made some...
Ingredients
300g/10½oz
stale bread slices, cut
into 1cm/½in cubes 200g/7oz
slivered almonds 50g/1¾oz sunflower seeds 50g/1¾oz oats
25g/1oz desiccated coconut 200ml/7fl
oz coconut oil melted 200ml/7fl
oz maple syrup 2 tsp vanilla extract 1 tsp almond extract 3 tsp
ground cinnamon 1 orange, zest only 200g/7oz dates chopped Method
Preheat the
oven to 190C/170C Fan/Gas 5. Place the
bread cubes on a large baking tray. Add the almonds, sunflower seeds, oats and
desiccated coconut and mix everything together. Mix the
coconut oil, maple syrup, vanilla extract and almond extract together in a
small jug and drizzle over the almond mixture. Get your hands in and make sure
everything is well coated. Sprinkle
over the cinnamon, grate over the orange zest and mix again with a spoon. Bake for
30–35 minutes, stirring halfway through to make sure everything is evenly
golden. Once everything is crisp and golden, remove from the oven, add the
dates and mix through. Leave to cool. Once cooled, store the granola in an airtight
container. Substitutions - I was using what I had in the cupboard, so used mixed nuts, and mixed seeds. I had no coconut oil or maple syrup. Rapeseed oil and golden syrup worked fine. No dates on hand so I chopped dried apricots and added a handful of sultanas.
Here it is in my tall lock'n'lock cereal box. The recipe says 'serves 4' but we've already had 4 portions and we're barely halfway through the quantity. Bob says it tastes more like Cinnamon Toast Crunch' than granola, which makes senses as it is bread-based after all.
Bread-and-warm-milk used to be very common as a breakfast food. Dating back to the Middle Ages it was called 'sop' [a precursor to 'soup'] and was a way of using up the stale bread and preventing waste. It was popular during WW and I ate it as a child in the late 50s. In Feed Your Family for £4 a day [Bernadine Lawrence 1989] she makes this as a breakfast dish using bread or toast cubes.
Nadiya's recipe is tasty and ZeroWaste. I shall do it again!
ALSO thank you everybody for the positive comments about recycling and labels on last week's post. Steph said she showed it to her team at Tangible, who had helped with all the OPRL research.
Have you ever recycled stale bread into a breakfast dish?
It is fifteen years since the start of this annual campaign, but I think I only really picked it up in 2019. Aiming to be 'part of the solution to plastic pollution' I know that lots of you are already working hard at this - Taking your own containers to the local chinese takeaway, buying loose fruit and veg, having milk delivered in glass bottles, wearing pee-pants instead of plastic-based sanpro, using waxwraps not clingfilm, taking reusable cups to Costa ... the list of good alternatives is really long - but we still have a long way to go. I hadn't realised the new kitchen would affect my thinking about recycling, but it has.
Under the sink I now have two IKEA 'hallbar' bins alongside my yellow compost bin [i'm still awaiting the Council to sort out a food waste collection] These are labelled generaland recycling. I have found myself being much more careful about putting packaging in the correct bin lately.
Many people think these triangle labels on plasdtic automatically mean you can put it in domestic recycling. You can't! If you can see the number, you are usually safe with 1-5, possibly not 6 & 7. But honestly, how often do you squint at the clear plastic as you prepare a meal, and can see the triangle, but not the number? So you recycle and hope [aka wishcycling] So well done to the OPRL company [On Pack Recycling Labels] who have been working incredibly hard to make it easier for us, to recognise easily what we can and cannot recycle, with labels like this
This independent company is getting lots of big brands on board
And it seems that their efforts are paying off. Their latest report "What consumers want" involved consumer insights taken from a study in spring 2025 involving over 5000 UK consumers. They covered six areas
I find their conclusions encouraging - I do check packs for guidance on recycling, and prefer simpler instructions. I think labelling is improving - but I am aware of friends and social media spreading misinformation, usually through ignorance. Now my bins are adjacent, it is much easier to put things in the correct one. I am not sure if there are any massive changes I can make this July, I shall just keep plodding away. Recycling, but more mindfully [and hopefully in a better way] Looking out for the informative OPRL swirls, in preference to the old three arrow triangle. I have to come clean here - the company conducting the Consumer Insights Study for OPRL is a small one in Manchester, called Tangible, and my Steph is now the boss. I am incredibly proud of her, and her company, for this research. These small changes in labelling really are having a big impact on the amount of thoughtful recycling. And that makes for a better world for us to live, and our grandchildren to grow up in.
Half Term Holiday week was fabulous - thirteen different family visitors - the girls and their families, Julian, my bro and SIL, and Bob's sister and BIL. They liked the kitchen "Calm and tranquil" said Gaz. "Surprisingly tidy" said Steph. Steph, Liz and Julian quickly learned the new locations for stuff, and helped out with meal prep. The children were bright and cheerful - crafts and science with Grandma, stories and steam engines with Grandad...
Jess was eager to make floating flowers again. She explained it all to Bob. But 17 seconds is an awful long time for a three year old to wait...
Last September, when we were putting away the patio parasol, I noticed it was very ripped and holey round its top section. I made a new piece "So I will not have to repair it when we get it our again."
But when we got it out two weeks ago, the top was OK - but the rest was completely perished along its fold-lines where it had been packed away!
See the holes marked in green. Steph brought us a new cover from Manchester IKEA and all was well again. We were grateful for the shade on the very sunny days.
Now all bedding and towels have been laundered, in the bathroom the little step stool has been folded and tucked away, and the pirate ship and ducks moved to the end of the bath [so they won't impede laundry on the drying rack]And we are eating p meals made of random leftovers.
The June calendar is surprisingly full - but for a few days I shall really miss them all. Their presence makes such an impact
Last year I picked this up in a Charity Shop. When Jess asked for a pink princess dress for her birthday, I sewed her this one.
She loved it, especially the pockets and the decorative buttons. So I made another, in a Pound Fabric safari print.
When I asked what she wanted for this year's birthday, she requested another princess dress. Her birthday is not for a fortnight, but I have already made her a summer dress, in the same pattern. This time, instead of binding the neck and armholes, I fully lined the top in plain blue fabric*. I did bind the neck and pocket tops though, and added some vintage blue buttons. The hem and pockets were sewn with a decorative stitch on the machine
I added 1.5cm to the side seams, to allow for growth. She's really thrilled with this one too - and last summer's frocks still fit. She twirls happily in them!
Such an easy pattern, using barely a metre of fabric. As the Pound Fabric cloth often comes in 'minimum 2 metre' lengths, I have leftovers. I hope to make a dress for my little great niece too. * Lesley asked the other day "Do Brides still have 'Going Away dresses?' Well I have kept mine for nearly 46 years. Until last week, when I dismantled it, and used the plain cotton lining to line this dress for Jess. How's that for creative recycling? I knew it would be useful eventually!
Preacher, teacher, wife, mother, grandmother, craftswoman. Married to wonderful Pastor Bob since 1979, now happily retired to Norfolk, but still busy. I am blessed with two brilliant grown-up daughters and four wonderful grand children
