Spencer's Sunday Hat - An Officer & A Gentleman?

The Naval Officer Cap

Richard Gere eat your heart out!

Although I doubt whether Richard Gere ever had a crocheted wool-eater blanket as his backdrop!

Looking out to sea?

Doesn't Spencer look smart and handsome?

Just a couple of photos as I didn't want to go overboard.......

Maggie xx

A Handy Tip and A Patchwork Baby Quilt

Thought I'd share this photo of Spencer with you... is it my imagination or is he winking?!

What a dreadful week weather wise. It just won't stop raining!

On the positive side though I haven't had to water the seeds I planted in our veggie patch. Nothing much to show yet but fingers crossed.

I do have a few seedlings coming up in the greenhouse though - courgettes, butternut squash, rudbeckia and sweet peas.

Apart from the weather, it's been a lovely week with impromptu visits from my parents and some good friends. Catching up on everyone's news, drinking tea and coffee.....lovely :)

Today I thought I'd share with you this little tip I saw on the TV programme Super Scrimpers. I must admit I kind of scoffed at it when I saw it on the telly but I tried it and it's really good if you don't like to waste anything.

I don't buy expensive face creams but I do like to use one with UV protection. At the moment I'm using Nivea's Light Day Cream which comes in a tube. It's quite cheap at about £3-£4 and lasts me about a month or so. Last month I had got to the point where I just couldn't squeeeeeze any more out.

I cut the tube a little way down from the top....

Sorry about the rubbish photo but hopefully you can see there's quite a lot of cream still left in there.

I then used the top cut part as the top :)

I managed to get at least another week's worth of face cream out of the tube. And this makes good savings, say, over a year :)  After all, it all adds up doesn't it?

You could also do this with hand creams or any other creams that are in similar plastic tubes :)

Not too much crafting to show you this week but I realised I hadn't shared with you my patchwork baby quilt that I finished recently.

It's made with cosy flannel/flannelette in lilacs, pinks and white....

with frayed edge seams on one side.....

and traditional seams on the other.....

The quilt becomes softer each time it is washed :)

Fun to make, pretty and so snuggly for a baby or toddler :)

Please don't forget to pop by tomorrow for Spencer's Sunday Hats!

See you then,

Maggie xx

Spencer's Sunday Hat and CAL update

I can't believe it's been over a week since my last post!

I've had such a lovely week :)

 My son Will came to stay and it was wonderful to spend time with him.

Lots of puppy walking, Guitar Hero (me on drums), eating out, cinema and chatting - just great :)

This photo sums up the weather we've been having here with blue skies and white clouds in one half of the sky and threatening black clouds in the other half.

We've been lucky to get out for a walk without getting rained on.
But never mind, a bit of rain never hurt and Spencer doesn't mind ;)

A couple of days ago, after seeing his Dad wearing a hat in a rain shower, Spencer decided he would like to wear a hat (just for fun and just for a few seconds)....

he looked so cute.....

So now we have 'Spencer's Sunday Hats'!

 This will be a regular feature on my blog with the cutest pupster around donning a different hat each time :)

So here it is.......

the first of many.....

'Spencer's Sunday Hats'.....

The Tilley Hat.....

He's needed this hat with all the sunshine and showers we've been having round here...:)

Cute eh?.....

Ok... enough of cute pupsterness....

Let's talk crochet...

I've really been enjoying my CAL projects...

So good to pick one up when watching a bit of TV (I'm always addicted to the Apprentice when it comes round each year)...

I have made it to the penultimate round of my Wool-eater Blanket....

A gorgeous emerald green.....

I love the way that when I add a colour, the look changes....

My festival granny poncho is growing....

This wool is so pretty...

All my favourite colours all combined together :)

And last night I completed 6 roses for the Granny Rose Cushion.....

Once I got the hang of them, I was surprised at how quick they are to make...

Here are the links for each CAL:

Wool-eater blanket - Sarah London's wonderful blog here.

Granny Poncho - Sucrette's lovely blog here.

Granny Rose Cushion - Astri's fabulous blog here.

If you've been following my blog for a while, you've probably gathered that I like to have a few different projects on the go so I can pick one that suits my mood ;)

Well, I have another project that I started this week...

It's not crochet but knitting.....

But not with wool...

It's with fabric strips....

It's a rag rug that you knit with really big needles...

And it uses up all those strips of fabrics you didn't know what to do with :)

This is my rug so far......

Mmmm...yes... I know it looks a bit rough and ready at the moment...

But it seems to be improving as it grows...

And isn't that what it's supposed to look like?!

I found the tutorial on Amanda's fabulous quilting blog, Crazy Mom Quilts.

Amanda's rug looks so beautiful and tactile :)

You can find her tutorial here.

This rug is ideal for me because I always have lots of strips and selvedges left over from my patchwork projects and I hate throwing them away! It's really satisfying recycling them into something useful like this rug :)

Looking outside, I've just noticed it's stopped raining and Chris has disappeared into the garden to continue with the dog-proofing.

The beautiful red leaves on our Pieris are just appearing.

Better take him a cup of tea....

Thank you for your lovely comments about Spencer and his new quilt last week. I love reading your comments :)

Have a lovely week.

Maggie xx

Spencer's New Quilt

 I've been enjoying Spring and the lovely splashes of colour it brings..

But something just didn't seem right.....

And then I realised what was bothering me.....

I make quilts.....

I love making quilts......

But Spencer the pupster didn't have a quilt......

Don't get me wrong, he has lots of soft blankets and bedding...

But not a patchwork quilt made by me....

Well not until a couple of days ago that is...

I've been wanting to make a crumb quilt for a while.

A quilt that would use up some of the scraps of fabric that I can't bear to throw away...

An ideal way of making a doggy quilt for Spencer without using valuable fabrics from my stash..

I remembered that I had seen a great tutorial by Rose of Ludlow Quilt and Sew.

My Mum had given me lots of lovely Clarke and Clarke fabric scraps that were medium weight fabric plus they were dog, duck, welly, birdy fabrics scraps..

Just right for a doggy quilt...

So here are a couple of the crumb blocks I made....

 I added a few Laura Ashley scraps and some blue and white striped vintage sheeting for the sashing.....

I didn't need to quilt it as I filled it with a spare duvet and so I just sewed around the edges to keep the duvet in place...

When I gave it to Spencer, he was thrilled......

And it fits nicely into his bed....

Making a snug and cosy nest :)

And completely machine washable for those muddy paw marks!!

If you have loads of fabric scraps and want to make a crumb quilt, you can find Rose's tutorial and lots of other free patterns here.

Have a lovely weekend.

Maggie xx

Hot Cross Bun and Butter Pudding and CALs

Hope you're all having a lovely Easter...

Earlier today I made this Hot Cross Bun and Butter Pudding.....

(uncooked version)

Handy if you've overbought on the Hot Cross Buns!

It's in the oven now so I'm hoping that by the end of this post I will be able to show you the finished result :)

If you have the same 'problem' and fancied trying this recipe here it is.

This lovely Camellia is flowering for the first time in our garden.....

Isn't it a gorgeous pink?

And these tiny little daffodils....so pretty....

Spencer has discovered a new hobby.....bee watching....

I thought you might like to see how my Crochet-A-Longs are progressing...

I've started a new light green round on my-wool-eater-blanket......

Only a couple more rounds of colour and I'll be back to the aqua blue I started with.... 

and it'll be finished :)

My Granny poncho from Le Monde de Sucrette is growing very nicely. I had a feeling it would. I'm using this gorgeous random yarn from Robin.

Turquoise, aqua and purple - my favourites!!

I was given the yarn as a birthday gift from my Mum and Dad a couple of years ago. I had started knitting a jacket but didn't get very far with it so I decided to use it for my poncho. I'm really pleased with the results so far......

And now to the Granny Rose cushion...Mmmm

This is such a pretty pattern from Apple Blossom Dreams and there is an excellent video to help you.

I've struggled with the rose a bit but I have now managed to produce something that resembles a rose...

This is as far as I've got with this....just need to get the tension a bit tighter....

Once I've 'mastered' this rose though, I'm sure I will progress much quicker.

My oven is beeping - I'll just go and check on the pudd....

Gosh I'm impressed! This pudd looks and smells delicious...

I'm just giving it another 5 minutes to make sure it's golden all over...

In the meantime, take a peek at these pretty tea towels I bought in the week...

Such pretty Springtime colours...

The oven is beeping again...

This time the pudd's ready.....mmm....it really smells so delicious...

I'll just make some custard to go with it.....

Maggie xx

Wild Flowers and Gardening

Gorgeous blue skies here today :)

Lately we've been taking Spencer for some lovely walks on Rodborough Common which is only a few minutes away. We've found routes near to us that we didn't know existed. One of the wonderful benefits of dog walking...

We're also getting fitter by the day and are seeing things we wouldn't have noticed before..

Like these lovely flowers on the common..

Pretty cowslips.....There's hundreds of baby ones all over the common....

I don't know the names of these but they're very pretty - does anyone else know what they are?

As we are walking up there most days, it's lovely to see the little changes happening...

And of course, Spencer loves his walks....

He's so gangly when he runs now... it's hilarious - he's all legs! (Spencer not Chris!) :D

 That's Rodborough Fort in the background. We are very gently increasing Spencer's walks from week to week as we don't want to overstretch him but we're looking forward to taking him on the circular walk that leads around the Fort.

It's going to be a gardening day for us today...must make the most of the sun before those cold wintry showers return....

Last week, Chris assembled our new little greenhouse..........

And I planted some seeds - veggies - tomatoes, peppers, squash, courgettes and some flowers -nemesias, rudbeckia, geraniums, mesembryanthemums...

Whilst I was seed planting, Chris was busy preparing our veggie patch......

toiling away... he gets all the best jobs! ;)

Today we're planting our veggies :)

.....carrots, parsnips, leeks and potatoes.....

I'll keep you infomed if anything grows!

That should be a 'when' not an 'if' - must think positive - of course they'll grow!

Have a lovely Easter!

Maggie xx

My Mum's Knitted Tea Cosies

Gosh I just can't believe it's April already!

 Where is the year going? Slow down!

Today I just had to show you some of the lovely knitted tea cosies that my Mum makes......

I think I mentioned before that my Mum is a very crafty lady. She is always making something -  sewing, knitting, tapestry.......tea cosies, aprons, bags, bunting, knitted cardigans and jumpers.....

So here is a selection of her lovely knitted tea cosies...

Some are my Mum's own design, some are from or adapted from patterns....

Here they are....

Enjoy!

For lovers of Cornishware, a blue and white striped cosy with a sweet little cup on top!

A Cosy Country Cottage cosy..... such lovely detail...

I love the little horse shoe on the door :)

and the beautiful hand embroidered detail....

This Cute Tabby Cat cosy is a real character.....

.......bit of a rough diamond?

I seem to remember he objected to sitting on that pink rose fabric...

 An adorable and a little posh White Cat cosy......

This Laundry Day cosy is so pretty...

soooo sweet baby clothes on the line.....

Tea in the garden? with this lovely Strawberries and Cream cosy...

Those strawberries look good enough to eat.....

A cuppa on a sunny day with this wonderful Sunflower cosy...

And I just love this cosy!

Because I love tea!

A piece of Battenberg cake with your cuppa?

And this is Max's favourite - he thinks it was designed with him in mind ;)

They're all lovely aren't they?

Enjoy the rest of the week - we might get snow!!

Maggie xx