Stacey Solomon, Eat Your Heart Out!

 

To be fair, I have not watched more than about one-and-a-half of these programmes. Dear Stacey goes to help people living in overcrowded chaos to minimalise their possessions, and get everything organised. All the while she is relentlessly cheerful [except when consoling people as they part with emotional items] Her decluttering technique is quite a common one - empty everything out. sort it into categories, then dispose of items which are duplicated, dated, damaged or despised. Sounds good in principle, but I get hot under the collar when this reduction includes getting rid of books or haberdashery.

SS herself lives in a massive Tudor style mansion costin £1.2M which she calls "Pickle Cottage". So she has loads of rooms to play around with. Anyway, back to my decluttering. 

Cornerstones' original garage is a small, damp brick built, flat roofed building. And since 2009 we have been filling it up with more and more stuff. Bicycles, gardening equipment, outdoor toys, painting and decorating supplies etc. Plus old freezer and even older tumble dryer. I said "If we have a dry sunny day, I will empty it all out and tidy it up." Not least because all my flower pots were at the end behind three bikes, and I could not get to them. I have no idea how many I have, nor yet what sizes. Here are the before shots

As you enter, the frudge and dryer are immediately inside the door. The bench is stacked high with gardening stuff, and you cannot reach the green drawer unit because there is a lawnmower, dustbin full of compost and sack barrow in the way. Then on one side shelves crammed with paint, toys, tools, a gas heater, whilst the opposite wall has a hanging rack full of tools 

and the central space is packed with bikes, and bits of wood etc. There is no room to swing a small felt mouse, let alone a cat. We have bizarre things like huge rolls of foil, a large bag of microphone stands -  and a pair of coffin trestles. I am not sure why Bob rescued them from a church decluttering day...

Everything went outside in vague "Categories" . The wheeled stuff included bikes, lawnmower, 2 sack barrows[flatbed and sacktruck] 2 pressure washers, shredder, shopping trolley, toddler vehicle, trolley jack...

Cans and boxes, trugs and bags, the gas heater, and my sign from a skip. And a heavy box - not unpacked since Easter 2021. Why do you have so many vices? I asked him...and the blue thing that holds the drill to the bench...

I put paints and chemicals under the windows in the shade and Bob came and sorted them out, I found a strange thing that looked like part of the Starship enterprise [it is the heavy base of a stand for holding things up when you are working on them]

And Liz's 1982 nappy bucket, now totally full of funnels in all sizes!

And a mysterious jar of green liquid which is definitely not  seafood sauce.

But I ran out of time, the items were put back neatly, but the bench is still stacked with my garden stuff and unsorted flowerpots. That's for another day. But lots of junk went into the bin, and I was able to repurpose my tall flower arranging buckets to store garden canes, brooms and 'spare broom handles' very neatly.

Now one bike is hanging up at the end by the door [which cannot be opened due to the sandbags on the other side] But in the space behind it, the coffin trestles have provided an excellent stand for the mic-stand case to rest horizontally, no longer in danger if getting a soggy bottom from a damp floor.

Tools hang neatly, brushes are supported in tall buckets. The mower is parked sideways and takes up less room.

You can see the clear space around the bicycles.

All is good, and we are happier. 

I am still wondering what the green stuff in the seafood sauce jar is though...

And I never realised I had so many of those blue stacking Sainsbury boxes from 1998...

Monday Was A Sun-Day

It was so delightful to stroll through Norwich yesterday. Bob was going to the Hospice so I travelled with him, and he dropped me off 10 minutes from the city centre. It was warm and sunny. As I was in no hurry I kept stopping to take pictures. So much music history here!

Sarah Gl9ver developed the Tonic Sol Fa system to help to teach singing. That may sound unfamiliar, but it is what Julie Andrews, as Maria, did with the Von Trapp children. Do Re Mi... 

It's fascinating to think that Laurel and Hardy and Archie Leach [aka Cary Grant] appeared on stage here. Leach, who had run away from school joined a circus troupe and appeared as a stilt walker. 

Yalm pronounced yaarm means "to eat hungrily" and it's an old Norfolk dialect word. Yarm is a popular eatery in the Norfolk Lanes. The old Labour In Vain" Yard takes its name from Psalm 127 - Except the Lord build the house, they labour in vain that build it. There was much graffiti in evidence today"

The Red Herring is not an endangered species. Please try to keep awake

Get connected! 70% of British people feel they no longer have any connection with nature

Do NOT write on this wall! 

I didn't get my hair cut, but I did make my 5th clothes purchase of the year - a new pair of shorts [£23.99 reduced to £7.99 - a bargain]

Bob and I met near the market and enjoyed coffee in the sunshine. We wandered round Sostrene Grene together, then came home for lunch. 

A delightful morning's outing! 

. 

Here Comes The Sun!

The Story of Our Solar Power

When we purchased Cornerstones in Spring 2009, it was with a view to retiring here in 2020.[The Government moved the goalposts after that, so we didn't get our pensions till 2021] But at the time, we considered how to make our 'forever home' energy efficient. We knew that loft insulation was a priority, and did that promptly. Six months in, there were major problems with the plastic oil tank. But that was sorted quickly [and mercifully without any cost to us] and the new tank had a life expectancy of around 15 years. That has just been replaced with a metal oil tank, a planned expenditure. 

But in 2009 we wondered about solar panels. It is a bungalow, with a large south facing roof. But we decided against it for a number of reasons

• cost - we had just taken on a mahoosive mortgage, and didn't think we could afford it
• timescale - we were advised that after about 15 years the panels become less effective - we didn't really want them to be at the end of their efficiency as we moved in permanently
• recouping the outlay - it was going to take a very long time.

But when we finally got here in 2021, we revisited the solar panel idea. This time, our conclusions were very different

• technology has moved on, and so they are not as expensive as they were
• back then, you had to 'make hay while the sun shines' [or cook the dinner, have a shower, run the washing machine...] now  there are batteries to store the power for later use in the day
• we could pay for it up front by using part of the pension pot

We wanted a local company to do all the work - many of the larger solar panel companies are national, but subcontract the installation to small local firms. That is not always good if problems arise later. Bob found D W Electrical Services based in Yarmouth, and Dudley Whiting came over and visited. We were really pleased with his knowledge of the subject and his helpful advice. 

It is just two years since he fitted our system. 

We have 22 panels on the roof, and a 10KW battery unit to store the surplus energy.

This means that on a day like yesterday, we generated power and used it for showers, cooking, etc [we've had weekend guests which did mean extra showers] first thing in the morning we used a little more power than we had available - but over the day 95% of our use came from the panels/batteries. While we were at church, sitting in the garden after lunch etc and using minimal power, the batteries we 100% charged and we were feeding surplus to the grid. 

We have an excellent app on our phones which gives us all the information about power generated, consumed and sold. So I can tell you almost instantly that 

on Saturday, we generated 30.68 kWh, used 9.57kWh* and fed 21.11 kWh to the grid.

0.32kWh were from the grid [we took early morning showers] but overall the panels provided 97% of out energy.

July 2024 thus far we have had an average of 95% from the panels each day

This year we have had, in total, 75% from the panels

In the two years since installation, 79% from panels. 

But we have fed 52% of power generated back to the grid, and the money we are paid for that more than offsets the 21% purchased. Thus our electricity bills are 'negative'

I must stress that this is only working so well because we have the batteries. [They are about the size of two large suitcases] These store surplus energy for later use.  Neighbours who just have panels end up paying more/saving less because they can only use generated energy while the sun is shining. 

We estimate that we will have recouped the installation costs within 5 years of the panels arriving. It has definitely been worth it, and we are grateful we were able to access the funds for the project up front. 

I would definitely recommend solar panels - and if you are considering it, feel free to email me and ask any further questions. Bob did a phenomenal amount of research before we parted with our cash - and I am grateful to him for that. It isn't something to rush into, but it is so good to feel that we are using this wonderful sunshine to provide the energy we need for our home.

Have A Great Sunday!

Down The Alley...

... or jitty, ginnel, twitter, snicket,gunnel, loke... We have some fabulous dialect words for those little paths here in the UK. Sadly in some parts of the country they have become very neglected. In areas of dense housing, the paths running behind the rows of terraced houses are real eyesore. Too narrow for modern bin lorries, residents keep their wheelie bins in front of their properties. And the alleys are unused, unloved and ugly

So well done to the people who try to make a difference. Some of the residents in these Manchester houses have been collaborating to turn a eyesore into an eye-catching display. Rotting rubbish turned in a place of beauty. All the residents are asked to make a small contribution to the cost, and those with gardening skills put it all together. And because it is so lovely, it discourages littering and people take delight,in maintaining it.  And George and Jacob can enjoy going home safely walking among the flowers to their back garden gate.

What is your local word for alley? Are there any "Community Garden Projects" near you? 

I Got U Babe!

 Did you see Cher in this slightly odd ad? 

TV channels Drama, Yesterday, Dave have all combined under the umbrella of "U". Last week when I was recuperating for a couple of days after my dental work, I watched some programmes I'd almost forgotten about. Like Howard's Way.  That was meant to be the BBC's answer to Dallas [with boats instead of oil] Those dreadful 1980s Fashions! The women must have got through so many cans of Elnett Hairspray. Do you remember that one?

There are newer shows, including quite a few crime dramas. I may finally get round to watching the Whitstable Pearl. And I'm looking forward to Annika with Nicola Walker. I enjoyed the original radio programmes set in Scandinavia, and will be interested to see how well her relocation to the UK works. I shan't bother with Sister Boniface, she irritates me! 

It is a free channel, but the price you pay is seemingly interminable advert breaks,which often inexplicably happen mid-sentence. 

At least the rebranding means they will stop those irritating adverts saying "There's only one channel called Drama" 

Have you caught up with U yet? 

There's A Mouse In The House

[Plus Six More Besides]

 Katie posted this on the BBCM Facebook Page over the weekend...

I cannot wait to take Jess on the Mouse Trail...

Young Scientists!

UCL - University College London is consistently ranked among the top ten universities in the world, and rated 2nd in the UK for research power. It was the first British University to award degrees to women - and 150 years ago was a pioneer in Engineering Education. This year, to celebrate a century and a half of that Engineering, UCL held a festival, showcasing all the brilliant stuff they do.

Jon was heavily involved in planning and delivering this event - and got tickets for Rosie, Jess,Bob and myself to visit on Saturday. It was great fun, and we learned lots [and I was too busy to take more pictures]

The girls learned about blood, brains and bones. And lasers, and undersea exploration, and scanners...and so much more

I was impressed by the patient way students explained things to all the children [and adults] The atmosphere was lovely. Jess loved her wristband [which she insisted on calling her bandage] Then a rather splashy handwashing session after lunch in Leon caused it to completely disintegrate. The girl on the entrance desk cheerfully gave her a new one. As the afternoon wore on, we had a quick trip to the Playground next door. 

Jess and I got the bus home, and Rosie and Bob stayed on for a lecture in Bloomsbury Theatre with Andrew Smyth, aerospace engineer, creator and judge of Netflix Baking Impossible. When she got home later, Ro told me all about materials and floating and sinking - how they each had a rice krispie cake and a chocolate button to assist with the experiments. She was positively bubbling with excitement. And did you know, Grandma, that Cadbury's Mini Rolls are the favourite snack of cross channel swimmers? Because if you are attempting this feat, you are not allowed to touch the people accompanying you in the support boat. But CMRs float - so they can throw you a snack and you can gobble it up without breaking the rules! [Its chocolate coat helps it float]

The girls both consider themselves part of the UCL family - their parents work there, and both have loved belonging to the staff nursery. Rosie met up with a buddy from her nursery days and they had a great chat together.

So much work goes into an event like this, and I was so glad we could go with the children. It was all free, too. If it encourages more young people to think about a career in engineering or research, it will be worth al the hard work.

Thank you Jon, and the rest of your team, for making this festival happen!

Thank You Catriona

Catriona is one of my wonderful blog friends I have yet to meet In Real Life, although we've progressed beyond comments to emails and phone calls, which is lovely. Her OH is a Shedman too, we have lots in common.

Bob and I got back last night from 3 fantastic days in London looking after the girls whilst their Mum and Dad were away. I will post pictures later of the places we went. But I'm too drained after lots of eating, walking, laughing, and being hugged. So I'm borrowing the picture C put on her Facebook page recently. Currently scoring 3 out of 4 on this list...

Away In A Manger

I was recently given a "manger" hay basket to hang on the wall and fill with plants. But I needed a liner for it. I visited various local home and garden stores with no success. I ended up buying two circular hanging basket liners for £2.25 each. They are made of coconut fibre.

I used some jute string and two strong needles and stitched them together with saddle stitch. 

[Susie from the Repair Shop would have been proud of me] Mind you it did look like a rather large hairy bra when I took it outside.

Bob mounted the basket on the wall opposite the raised bed. It is just outside the side door, from the Futility Room.
I had compost already, so planted it up with 5 lettuces

My theory is that [a] I can easily pop outside at lunchtime for a few salad leaves, without walking across the muddy grass

[b] I don't think slugs will climb the wall and eat the Lollo Rosso

These plants came in a tray from Swaffham Market and cost less than £1. This was last Saturday when I put them in - they are already flourishing and will be ready to pick tomorrow once we're back from our London weekend. 

When the lettuce season is over, I am considering putting hardy herbs in here over the winter

Mum's Centenary

One hundred years ago today, my Mum was born. She died in 1991, but I still miss her. I went into the loft and found a few old photographs [and spent ages looking through boxes of pictures going back over 60 years and remembering all sorts of past events]

This was part of a collage made for their Ruby Wedding in 1988

This was taken in 1965, when we moved to Norfolk and Dad became Minister at Dereham Baptist Church. I  have the same haircut today

Clacton 1987 - how Mum and Dad loved their granddaughters

How Mum loved to relax with her copy of  The People's Friend!

She was an amazing woman. Born in Romford into an ordinary working class family, the 6th of 7 children [Auntie Peggy was her younger sister] 

She met Dad when they were 15, as WW2 broke out. They started "going out" at 16 and were engaged when they were 18. By this time, Mum had left school and was commuting into London each day to work as a clerk in the Foreign Office. She was whisked off to Bletchley Park and spent the rest of the war as a Codebreaker [no, she never told me a thing about what she did, other than that she had to learn Morse Code] 

After the War, she and Dad believed God wanted them to go to China. So they went off to Scotland to do a theology course and missionary training at a college in Glasgow. Halfway through their course, they married in 1948. But the world situation changed, China would no longer accept Christian Missionaries, so Dad became a Baptist Minister instead. in 1951 Mum became very ill, and would definitely not have survived if she'd been in the Far East. They were back in Romford. In 1955 I came along, and in 1962 my brother Adrian arrived. Dad worked in churches in Kent, Romford, Bishops Stortford, West Hartlepool and Dereham. She had a few part time jobs - but wasn't really fit enough for long hours. But she was an incredible support to Dad's work, running Ladies Groups, doing Pastoral Visiting, and being a great friend to many people. She died in 1991, just two years after Dad retired.

One final picture- Mum's 54th birthday in 1978. My best friend Dorothy was over from Belfast and staying with me for a few days. My new boyfriend offered to drive us up to Norfolk to surprise Mum. 

Here's Mum, Dad, Dorothy, Adrian - and Bob

This was the day my Mum met Bob for the first time. Her comment - "He's a really nice boy, but his hair is a bit long"

He had it cut very short soon after and never grew it quite that long again!

Look at my Dad's awful flares, and my brother's chunky boots [1970's fashions]

I learned so much from Mum, about life, and faith, and caring for others. I was privileged to grow up in a loving home, my parents had a strong marriage, and family life was very important. She would have been so proud of my girls, and their families. 

How the world has changed in the hundred years since Hilda Margaret Spooner entered the world. But her values of love, faith, honesty and service are still the best. 

Graduation Day

In my youth, most people didn't graduate till their twenties. Here's a sunny day in London back in 2006 when Steph graduated.  But now it seems you can graduate at the ripe old age of four when you leave Nursery and go to Big School. 

In 2020, during Lockdown, Rosie's Nursery had to postpone their Graduation Ceremony. Parents were asked to send in a photograph of their child in a mortar board. Rosie was with me at "Grandma's Nursery" and we made this together from black card

Now it's George's turn. His Nursery produced the outfits, and commemorative keyrings for the parents! George also received an award certificate for "creating the best Lego Models"
Time flies so fast! Steph also received a poem about two special days in a child's life - birth, and the first day of school.

God bless these little ones, and their parents as they face the huge changes ahead...

The Beginning...

When we were in Paris, we visited Musée Carnavalet, dedicated to the history of the City. We went there back in 2006 and loved it, and wanted to spend some more time there. It is set in two adjoining mansions, on three floors - with a courtyard and gardens in the middle. I realised that on every floor there were leaded windows looking out onto the gardens. And they were all different geometric designs. I took some pictures

When I got home I decided to reproduce one of these patterns on a rectangle of fabric for our latest project. I found a scrap of Sanderson Honeysuckle print in my stash - a favourite print of my MIL [she made sofa covers in it] Once stitched it was reminiscent of looking through the Museum windows at the flowers.

I was happy with it and wrote notes in the travelling logbook and posted it off to Kirsten on Monday. 

Today I received her parcel.

She had used a piece of vintage Laura Ashley Curtaining and made a cover for her travelling book with the same fabric. 

Look at the superb way she has picked out the design by outlining it in a variegated thread, and adding French Knots to the flower centres. So charming. I am sure this latest collaboration is going to be as enjoyable as the last two. We are no longer constrained by the regularity of evenweave cloth - and we can enjoy Slow Stitching to our heart's content.

An Unexpected Goody Bag!

Thank you everyone who sent such kind words yesterday. My journey went very smoothly, no traffic issues. I arrived with 10 minutes to spare. Roshan the dentist was brilliant, and the who procedure went smoothly. I had to be covered with a large blue paper 'blanket' and wear a green paper mob cap to keep things clean and tidy. I very nearly asked to take a selfie,but decided against it! Everything was carefully explained, and before each stage I was asked if I was happy. Because they needed to take x-rays, we were in the room with the camera - and that doesn't have Wally on the ceiling. But praying, breathing, and mentally reciting Psalm 23 kept me calm.

When I left I was unexpectedly given a goody bag

A paper carrier

Mouthwash

2 tubes toothpaste

soft toothbrush

2 gauze pads

a record of the implant

a cool pack

"You Rock!" sticker

The little tubes of paste will be useful [we are going away this weekend] I've stuck the sticker on my phone case. The record book is useful - "In case you change dentists" said Roshan. I told himI am never going to another dentist. He says it is so hard when people turn up with dodgy procedures they have had done cheaply abroad, and there are no details anywhere.

The Cool Pack was ...cool. Once the centre is squeezed the chemicals inside mix, and it cools vey rapidly. By the time I'd got home, the local anaesthesic was wearing off and my face really ached. I was able to take 2 paracetamol and lie on the bed, with the pack on my cheek. It really helped. I've rested all day.

I had a glass of Huel for lunch. But - oh bliss- when I said I would miss my cups of tea,  he said the important thing is to avoid hot drinks. So if I drink my tea lukewarm, that will be fine. As I make my tea in a pot, and often get distracted and forget about it, lukewarm tea is my default. So that's OK.

And yes, he was right, today was not as painful as the extraction of the dodgy tooth which the implant is replacing. Grateful for a good dentist, an efficient procedure, and such kind words from friends and famly. I'm still smiling...

Where's Wally?

 Answer; On the dentist's ceiling!

This morning I have a very early start because I have a dental appointment at 9. and I need to allow an hour for the journey. Although Roshan is the best dentist I have ever had, and I am much more chilled at his surgery than in any previous practice, I still get a little anxious [especially when injections and drilling are involved]

I have three 'coping mechanisms' for managing my stress. 

1. I mentally sing my way through favourite hymns. Usually good until |get stuck at verse three and forget the words
2. I practice 'box breathing' - where you inhale for a count of 5, hold your breath for 5, exhale for 5 and then wait for 5. 
3. I stare at the ceiling and try and spot Wally on the huge poster up there. 

Roshan does change the poster sometimes, it is about the third I have seen since we joined the practice in 2021. But last year when I had a series of appointments over a few weeks, could remember where Wally was every time I sat down. 

I am trying to be chilled about this encounter today. It will be the most expensive visit I have ever had, and the day after a large garage bill. But I am grateful for having a reliable car to get me to the dentist. For having a dentist at all - rare as hen's teeth in Norfolk [Norfolk hens lost all their teeth years ago due to lack of dentists] And for having a dentist who is so good.

I have to sign a consent form before the implant procedure. I read the 'post op advice' last night. 

I can manage the salt water mouthwash for a week. 

I am not bothered about 'no alcohol' for a week.

I can avoid solid foods and drink Huel protein drinks for a day or two.

But I am ridiculously stressed about not having tea or coffee for twenty four hours!

How do you cope with dental treatment?

Are You Sitting Comfortably?

 ...then I'll Begin

Older readers may recognise those words as the beginning of the day's story on the Radio Programme "Listen With Mother". It ran from 1950 - 1982 [ending when Liz was just a few months old] I think this was the first Radio programme which I considered 'mine'. Mum and Dad listened to other stuff - Woman's Hour, The Chapel in the Valley, Desert Island Discs and The Archers etc - but LWM was for children.

Even after my great aunt gave us her elderly B&W TV  - a tiny screen inside a heavy wooden box - we were still more of a radio family.

As I grew older, I discovered other programmes I liked, and by Grammar School I had other favourites- I'm sorry I'll Read That Again, Hancock's Half Hour and various quiz shows. But there was just the one family radio, so any programme had to be ok with everybody. Unlike my friends, I didn't have a transistor radio hidden under the bedclothes, for late night listening to Radio Caroline.

Many programmes came and went - and I love the fact that BBC I-player enables me now to catch up with all those dramas, and classic serials from years ago. Paul Temple, Dick Barton, and more recently Cadfael, Raffles, After Henry. 

I listened to the Archers from childhood right up until covid. At Uni, my landlady and I sat in the kitchen after washing up. My children were always in bed by 7 when they were in primary school, so I could listen in peace with a cuppa. I was an Archers Addict. But i went Cold Turkey in covid, and haven't listened since!

But one programme which began just a few weeks after my wedding in summer 1979  is still around. It has recently moved from its original Sunday/Monday slots to Friday/Saturday. I try and catch it at some point in the week [I previously used to listen on my way home from Sunday Morning preaching engagements]

And 45 years on, I still think the Food Programme is excellent. In the beginning it was presented by Derek Cooper, who had a lovely voice for radio - Now Sheila Dillon and Dan Saladino are the main presenters. I have learned about the development of farming methods, food preparation. changes in the nation's eating habits, the cost of food [to our pocket, and to our planet] artisanal producers and high tech solutions, older food traditions and the newest trends. It is different every week and always interesting. 

There are well over 900 programmes available to catch up with on iplayer.

Last Friday's episode was part of Just One Thing Day - and looked at the many aspects of diet which had been highlighted by Dr Michael Mosley. Presenters had picked out their favourite highlights of his JOT show. It was excellent. 

I am definitely a Radio Girl. I can sew or knit whilst listening, and I'm not distracted by the pictures! But just recently my Radio Pleasure has been greatly enhanced. My tablet gave up the ghost [I'm losing track of Household Items which are packing up and irreparable this year] and the replacement came with an unexpected bonus - bluetooth earbuds. 

Now I can listen clearly whilst using the sewing machine, or sit in the lounge doing embroidery, listening to my radio programme, without disturbing Bob who is watching TV.

It's mostly OK - unless I am listening to the Daily Service,[15 minutes of reflection, 9.45am  Radio 4Extra] as I sometimes forget and start singing along to the hymns!

I am sure Guiglielmo Marconi  never realised in 1896 just how his invention would transform our lives.

Do you listen to the radio - national or local?

And do you have a favourite programme?

Never Mind The Quality, Feel The Width

Older readers may recognise this as the name of a sitcom from the late 1960s. It involved two men [one Jewish, the other an Irish Catholic] who ran a tailor's shop. It was definitely not politically correct, and we did not watch it in our home. But the saying - allegedly deriving from East End businesses who were seeking to sell their customers shoddy merchandise, came to mind recently when I bought some fabric.

In Dorset, I used to go to Fabricland  - this was a good source of inexpensive cloth for play costumes, curtains and dressmaking. 

They have an online store, but I have not used them since moving to Norfolk. Recently I discovered Pound Fabrics. They're in Birmingham. I ordered a couple of lengths of fabric, and was very pleased with the efficiency of delivery, quality of cloth, and value for money. 

My latest purchase was a grey safari print in organic cotton poplin. It was the work of an afternoon to make another little dress with pockets for Jess. 

The fabric cost just £3 and was lovely to sew. The binding came from my stash - an unopened pack of Aero tape - originally costing 9p! I bound the neckline, armholes and pocket tops. I used a fancy stitch for hem and pockets, and an 'overcast' foot to help neaten seams and raw edges.[more new skills learned on my new machine]
It is so sweet. Let's hope Jess loves this as much as her pink dress.
If you do dressmaking, where do you buy your fabrics?