Making Good Use

Stockpiling

I seem to be making small piles of all sorts of things today.

I started off by noticing the frighteningly OCD style of piling up parcels for posting with the largest at the bottom and the smallest at the top.  I don't think I was really aware I was doing this over the weekend, it just suddenly hit me when I noticed the completed pile this morning - scary!!

Then there is the pile of Charmin toilet paper which I've amassed over the past week - it's been on half price special in Somerfield for the past 10 days.  If I could have carried in more I would have done but this was the best I could do whilst only having a shopping trolley to get everything home in.  Packs of 9 toilet rolls may be light, but they're awfully bulky.

And there is a growing pile of knitted squares waiting to eventually be turned into a knitted blanket for keeping warm on those old winter evenings.  Sadly, I seem to be coming to the end of my stash of suitable wool.  It'll either be a very small blanket or I'll have to start checking out ebay to see if I can find other cheap wools that knit up on 5.5 mm needles.

Groovy, Baby

Check out this amazingly psychadelic tea towel I found in a charity shop this morning.

I initially bought it with the idea of somehow using the material in a bag but, after watching it flapping in the breeze on the washing line this afternoon, I've decided to keep it intact and use it as is.  I had no idea the 1960s 'Austin Powers' vibe ever went as far as linen tea towels.  Oh, behave!

How To

I picked up this 1974 'How To' magazine at the 'Bargain Box' in Basildon last week.  Somewhere in the back of my mind I vaguely remember this magazine and may even have a different copy somewhere in the loft as I was heavily into crafts when I was a teenager and really liked these sorts of publications.  I know I've definitely got some mid-1970s Golden Hands mags stashed away up there.

I mainly picked it up for the lovely knitted blanket that is featured.  I hope it will be an insipiration for me should my enthusiasm for the blanket I'm attempting to knit start to wane.

There are some very dated items in there - like this uber-70s project for making tie cushions which offer a 'flexible furnishing system'!!  And a section on making decorative wall collages.  The prices are also amazing - a long-sleeved cheesecloth shirt for £3.90.  Oh, how I loved cheesecloth shirts when I was a teenager, although mine were of the stripey, fairly coarse variety, whilst the one featured in this magazine is obviously much more 'Margot Leadbetter.'

The article on how to change a plug would have proved very useful to me a few weeks ago.  But the one article that does somewhat surprise me is how to sleep with a man!  Now, bear in mind this a publication from that stalwart of middle England - Woman's Own.  Needless to say the article is very prim and proper and merely deals with how many blankets to have on the bed if there are two of you in it - 'continental quilts' are only briefly mentioned.  And what to do if your man snores.  They suggest sewing a cotton reel into the back of his pyjamas to stop him sleeping on his back, or getting him to do jaw-strengthening exercises like holding a pencil between his teeth for ten minutes before going to sleep.  And they say romance is dead, I think it probably died more than 30 years ago!!

Things That Make Me Happy Today

A garden full of cheeky starlings, who always seem to spot the crusts of bread on the grass 10 seconds after they've been put out there.

Selling another of my bags on ebay, and the fact that today is a 5p listing day - meaning I can cheaply relist other items that haven't sold.

A new knitted brooch to jazz up my plain black knitted cardigan / jacket that I got the other week in a charity shop in Bristol.  I came across the multi-coloured chenille at the 'Bargain Box' in Basildon last Friday, and although it was only part of a ball I knew I'd be able to do something with it.  The cabbage rose pattern comes from the book Knitted Flowers by Nicky Epstein.

Getting rid of a serious number of books from the dining room.  I spent most of the weekend going through all the books I have listed for sale on Greenmetropolis, and having a massive cull.  The local hospice shop's warehouse came this morning and took away two huge boxes of books and four carrier bag loads too.  At last, I'm beginning to see the wood for the trees in the dining room.

Finally having a proper working shower again after spending a year with just the hose of the shower (no shower bit at the end) being held on with a piece of string.  Last week I got a plumber in, as we had a couple of small jobs that needed seeing to, and he replaced the hose with a gleaming new one and we've re-attached the shower bit, so now keeping clean is a positive pleasure once more.

But one thing that isn't making me happy today is the flaming weather - again.  I dutifully listened to the forecast which said that today was going to be pretty much dry - ahead of the expected monsoon tomorrow.  Is it heck!!  This is the fourth time I've hung the washing out and it's looking a bit dodgy again. 

'In Thunder, Lightning, or in Rain'

Yet another glorious summer's day here in good old Blighty.

Thank heavens I went out this morning when the rain was comparatively no more than a light drizzle.  This afternoon has seen thunder, lightning and torrential downpours.  As P always says - 'at least we're not bivouac-ing.'

I Procrastinated, Cogitated and Deliberated

All day yesterday I kept putting off making the new cushion covers.  I hoovered the whole of the downstairs, washed the kitchen and hall floors, got on my hands and knees with the 1001 Carpet Cleaner and rubbed out some of the peculiar little black spots that keep appearing on the living room carpet.  Then I listed a few items on ebay and generally messed about all afternoon.  Finally, in the early evening I went out and cleaned the back windows.  Anything to put off the moment of actually cutting out the cushion covers.  Finally, at about 8.00 pm I could put it off no longer (plus I was heartily sick of myself for so much procrastination) and within half an hour I'd not only cut them out, ironed the fabric, got out the sewing machine, found a vaguely decent match for the thread, but they were sewn up, the feather pads inserted and they were gracing the settee.

I was so pleased with how they turned out.  I'm sure an envelope-back cushion cover is one of the simplest things in the world to sew but I'd never done one before and I really didn't want to mess up the lovely Amy Butler fabric.  I used the original cushion covers as a template and it all worked out beautifully.  One pad is ever so slightly smaller than the other but it really doesn't notice, and the gorgeous pattern of the fabric has cheered up our totally plain dark green settee immensely.

Now I'm eyeing up all the other cushions in the living room and thinking how nice they'd look with new covers too!

Just a Small Observation

I'm sure readers in the UK will have heard about the drop in profits at Marks and Spencer, and the subsequent dip in their share prices.  In the media the fall in profits at M&S seems to be tantamount to the end of consumer spending, and the heralding of a recession. 

I was reading through some of the reader's comments about this story on the BBC news website yesterday, and was amazed to find that a few people seemed to link the fall in M&S profits directly with their withdrawal of free plastic bags in April.  Personally, I thought it was a brave move by M&S to be the first large retailer to start charging for plastic carriers in its food halls.  I very rarely buy food in M&S myself - delicious though it is their prices are a little too 'rich' for me - although I do make an exception from time to time by treating myself to one of their fabulous Hoi Sin Duck Wraps.  I certainly have no problem with putting what is a well-wrapped item into my own bag, nor would I have a problem with bringing along my own carrier bags - be they cloth or plastic - if I wanted to buy a lot of items there. 

The paradox here is that Aldi (my favourite supermarket and, luckily for me, practically my corner shop) has always charged for plastic carrier bags, and at 3p or 9p per bag they are more expensive than M&S, and their profits have soared by 21 per cent in the past three months thanks to people trying out cheaper places to shop for food. 

Most worryingly, one of the commentators on the BBC website yesterday claimed that plastic bags were not actually a problem for the environment!!  Somehow I find that comment even more scary than the idea of a recession about to come and bite us all on the bum.

On a more genteel note, I'll leave you with a photo of a rosebud from the garden which co-ordinates rather nicely with some other items on my mantelpiece. 

Finito

Despite the fact that it remained muggy and hot, I had another session on the sewing machine yesterday evening and finished up the other two pillowcase book bags that I'd cut out a few weeks ago.  These too also went together well and I'll be listing all four on ebay shortly - with the hope that people might want to buy them for their holidays. 

The blue floral one is lovely and fresh looking, just the thing for a hot summer's day.

And the stripy one has turned out much better than I though it might - I wasn't too sure that the pattern on this pillowcase would work as a bag, but I think it has.

When I put the sewing machine away last night I thought I wouldn't be getting it out again for quite a while, but this morning I found a feather-filled pillow pad in a charity shop in Billericay for only £1.50 (I'd been on the lookout for one for ages and ages) so tomorrow I'm going to have a stab at making a couple of envelope-back cushion covers using some of the lovely Amy Butler fabric Mum got me for my birthday last year.  I've never done a cushion cover before so I'm keeping everything crossed I'll be able to sew up something reasonable without ruining the lovely material.

On the Hottest Day of the Year So Far

Yup, today is forecast to be the hottest day of the year so far, with temperatures expected to peak in the south east around 28 degrees (82).  This morning was lovely with a nice breeze keeping things pleasant.  This afternoon is another story, I'm drawing the curtains to keep out the sun as it is now full on the back of the house, and have all the windows wide open, still I'm rather hot and sticky and I really haven't been doing much at all.  As you can see below, there's not a cloud in the sky - just a vapour-trail from a passing aircraft.

I did get the sewing machine out this morning and have so far sewn up two of the pillowcase book bags that I cut out a few weeks ago.  I think I might have another go this evening when temperatures have cooled a tad as I found I was getting rather hot and bothered just sitting in front of the machine and not even really moving!!  I know the weather forecast said it would be rather humid as well as hot and, for once, I think they may have been totally accurate!

I'm pleased with how both bags have turned out, especially the one with purple roses which has such a lovely summery look to it.

Rather less seasonal, I've started knitting up odd balls of thrifted wool into squares with the idea of making a blanket to keep warm on cold autumn evenings.  At the moment I'm really gung-ho about this project but it may all go a bit 'Pete Tong' and then it'll probably end up as something much smaller like a shawl.  I'm only on the third square but they knit up really quickly - nice thick wool and 5.5 mm needles - and they're just the ticket to do whilst watching telly.