Caterpillar Girl

Look at these!! Just look at them!! They look like something which just crawled out of my brocolli. But they're not! They are my first pathetic attempts at crochet ..

These crawled out of my brocolli ... can you see the resemblance?

I'm upset .. i'm very upset. All night it took me to get just a few caterpillars. All night, and all morning. I have a headache and my fingers have gone funny, so twisted and contorted were they whilst trying to co-ordinate all the different strands along side the hook, whilst maintaining some level of tension! What is it? What's wrong with me? Children can crochet, why can't I? Is my tension too tight? Is my yarn to thin? My hook too thick? What am I doing wrong? I wanted a square - just a square, one little square .. and after much persevereance, I got ... a savoy cabbage leaf shape ... I have plans .. grand designs! I will learn how to do this. Even if my family goes hungry, my house turns into a squat and I get square eyes looking at Youtube.

Unless anyone has any tips ?

Something for the Weekend

Have you been to THIS amazing website?? It's the Burda World of fashion website. There are free patterns, tips and projects galore, including how to cover glass cases, like this:

How to make stars and accessories like this:

how to make flowers like this:

And a whole host of other free 'how to's. There are more downloadable patterns than you can shake a needle at including this beauty which is copied from a 1954 original:

And there are free patterns too, including this delicious bag which also has a skirt and belt pattern included:

There are creative ideas for the home, and gift ideas, which even if you dont want to download (many of them are free anyway), you can glean shedloads of inspirational ideas from!


And as if that wasn't enough to keep you hogging the internet for good few hours, there are also pages on how to knit, how to crochet (I am probably the only person around here who doesn't know how to do either), how to lay a pattern and cut it, advice on fabric, sewing techniques, other essential tips and tricks, and fashion history and sizing guides!

Related is another, open source website, called BurdaStyle. Also brimming with tips, tricks, pictures, patterns and more. Here you can even learn how to convert your patterns into PDF files using Gimp or Photoshop!!

Happy surfing!

Dressed for Success

Being a bit strapped for cash this month, it being January and following the expense of all the festivities in the house of Marmalade, when I came to revisit my working wardrobe which has been stuffed in a suitcase under the bed for 18 months, I discovered that, as much as I missed the clothes therein, they were a bit out of date, and not really appropriate for the more 'casual' work attire in my new work place. Everybody wears jeans, but call me old fashioned, I really don't like to wear jeans for working in an office. It doesn't put me in the right frame of mind, even if it is only 15 hours a week. It's a bit like a preist in a grey suit - it just isn't right. So I had to act fast, and make myself a smartish dress which goes with long flat boots.

I dug out this pattern which is quite old now, and adapted it to suit me and the cold weather. Luckily, all the pattern making books that i've been poring over, have done their work and i'm now able to measure and adjust with ease - though this is a very easy pattern with which to practice.

I made a toile from an old sheet, which went through several fittings - it was mainly the darts I had to adjust because I have a small back, but am big (for my size) out front.

A while ago, I bought some polyviscose dogtooth print fabric, which seemed just right for the job. Easy to sew with, doesn't shrink or crease, and is quite sturdy and warm.

Et Voila! It's not perfect, but it was easy and I'm very pleased with it! And I have an accurate pattern for me, which I can use for the same style in other fabrics!

It's the Way You Say It ..

Today I was going to blog about my new dress that i'd made. But when I checked my Yahoo mail, I found this on the news page which I just had to share. I now look a little like Alice Cooper in that there is mascara all over my face from tears of laughter! Enjoy!

Playing with Paper (part II)

Thank you all for your lovely comments on my last post. Though my reasons for writing it were to clarify my thoughts surrounding the 'problem', your lovely words have really cheered me up and it's been heartening to know that i'm not alone!!

So today I have been playing having a few Blue Peter moments with paper, glue and sticky back plastic.

A while before Christmas, my mother-in-law had a clearout - she lives in a converted chapel - and found a couple of very large Victorian bibles which had all but fallen apart. Not wishing to throw them away, she passed them on to me incase I could find a use for them. At first I wondered what on earth to do with them, and then in a moment of urgency one day, after making a batch of fresh mince pies, and requiring some nice wrapping for them, I came up with the Old Bags idea detailed in my last tutorial.

But as you can see, I have a lorrra lorra paper to get through! It's 'vintage', it's handmade, it's ready aged - so no need for wet teabags - and it's a nice size to use for crafting projects. The only trouble was, I wondered if it may be a little disrespectful of even blasphemous to use bible pages for wrapping! But then I resolved that better they be used for something pretty and useful, than put in the recycling bin destined for an unknown fate.

So with a little creative stitching, I've made more little gift bags, some envelopes, and with some iron on vinyl, a bus pass holder! My ideas are quite limitless - next i'm going to try making a bag with the paper and the vinyl which, if you coat both sides, makes a remarkably strong and durable material!

Now even with all those ideas, I'm not going to get through this lot in the next 100 years without some help! Anybody want some? I'll send the first 5 commenters a wadge of this paper to play with.

Monstrous Ingratitude

I have stolen the title for this post from a poem I read a long time ago, by Boris Parkin which appears in The Faber Book of Christmas. It describes a situation which i'm sure most of us have found ourselves in, where getting the wrong gift from someone who should know better, is almost worse than getting nothing at all.

And so it has been for me this weekend, when I received a late birthday present, which rather than extend my rather wonderful 40th birthday just a little more, has left me feeling at best resentful, and at worse, rather empty. It has been one of those times which spawns a plethora of thoughts about the ways of the world, and how microcosms reflect macrocosms, which boil down to profound statements that could actually describe what is wrong with many aspects of humanity, and it has prompted me to examine quite closely the type of person that I think I am, or would hope to be.

I think I am quite a simple person really. I have what may be considered to be 'alternative' beliefs, likes and dislikes, which sometimes make me appear different or perhaps even difficult , but at the bottom of everything, despite my penchant for glamour, there's no place i'd rather be than at home in the bosom of my family, wearing wellies in the allotment, or flip flops in the kitchen. My little home is as chemical free as I can make it, cleaned with vinegar and water for the most part, my bathroom cupboard contains one shampoo bar without the trimmings and a batch of home made soap. Our TV is small and covered most of the time, I don't have expensive taste but appreciate quality. I love nature, I want to live lightly. We dont eat processed food, nor do we pine after luxury holidays or cars or other goods, in the way that many people do. And this is how it's been around here for the last 20 years. Simple. I could probably write a whole new blog about it, and have included many references to my way of life and my ideas about things, right here on this one.

And so when something arrives which is neither appropriate, nor particularly nice, with lots of hand wrung excuses and a request not to open it in the giver's presence because 'it's a bit embarrassing', I wonder what fuels the motivation of that person.

Intention is the fuel of motivation. Intention is born from the first spark which lights the fire in our bellies. It's what makes life tick. It comes from the darkness of our phsyche, and manifests itself in our actions, for better or for worse. Hence the saying, "Actions speak louder than words". This is one of the key beleifs of my existence. I try to live with an egalitarian outlook - and although I may be over critical sometimes, I try never to judge and endeavour to treat people the same as I would be treated myself. Prince or pauper it doesn't matter, we are all human souls finding our way through the winding paths of life as best we can.

My way is through creativity. An aspect of myself which has always been there, but now, at the grand old age of 40, has become an absolute necessity for life and one which I have delved deeply into for the last 18 months, still with the feeling that i'm not even skimming the surface yet.

Like all of you who create and who are lovely enough to read my blog and look at my work, I don't make gifts to save money. Who does? It's often much more expensive in every way - materials, time, emotion - to create something perfect for a loved one, or a family member. And too often the things we create for the unenlightned are seen as 'cheapskate' because they are home made. What do they suppose all their designer gear is if not 'home made' at some stage in their origin? Haute Cotoure clothes are hand sewn by skilled people, and whilst I do not have the skill or resource of a French Atelier, the things I create are made with just as much care and attention. I once read a statement which sums it up - "When I give you something I have made with my hands, I give you my heart".

I do not give to receive, but still it is particularly sad, when all the time and devotion spent creating bespoke gifts for a person and their family, is acknowledged with a gesture that is not motivated by lack of finance, or lack of time - such as the excuses which were given - but lack of care.

And that is the crux of the matter.

It's lack of care which hurts the most.

Monstrous Ingratitude
by Boris Parkin

Gifts as gulfs ...
Thoughts prompted by one
from ice ages ago:
a lime-green cardigan,
a garment I've never worn
and never will wear
I hid it in a drawer
and mainly it stays there,
except when, as today,
on the trail of a lost sock,
I dig it up and feel once more
that sundering shock.

With kept creases
and buttons still done,
it invariably releases
the same terror as when
tearing the posh paper,
I saw at a glance
how little she understood me.
Well, I covered my inner silence
with mumbled thanks;
yet the rift persists
and even now
pride prevents me
from trying the thing on, somehow.

And the winner is .....

Ms TwiggyPeasticks!

Which is spooky because her birthday is my blogaversary!

And that was Yesterday!

Tips and Tippoffs

I've received a lovely award from Kitty which i'd like to pass on to all of the people on my right sidebar over there who are all people I have corresponded with through this blog and also by separate emails - and some on Facebook and in person too! I feel very happy to have 'met' you all.

And talking of lovely friendly people, have you seen Tracey's new venture at Imagine That Quilts? There's a new quilty blog to go with the new site too! She's very clever indeed - on the front cover of Quilters Companion and everything! I want to win the fireman quilt pictured above. There's a competition don't you know? So go enter it now. What you waiting for?

I have some tips for Mac users. Have you heard of Jumpcut? It's a nifty little download which puts a pair of scissors in your menu bar, and is a clipboard for up to 40 items. VERY handy for when you're putting lots of links in your blog, like this one. Or when you're copying and pasting different bits from the same document onto a new one. On Blogger, You just highlight the word you want to put a hyperlink to, and when you click on the hyperlink tool in the blogger bar and get this box

you then nip up to your tool bar, click on the scissors, select your link and hey presto .. no more too'ing and fro'ing because you will have copied these whilst browsing blogs earlier.

How do I get the screen shots? press 'apple/shift/4' all at the same time and a little 'target' appears. Drag it over the bit you want a picture of, and release. The image is now on your desktop. I did it with all the pictures on this post, and all of the new tutorial links you can see to your right. Beats trawling through lots of pictures and procedures!


Now don't forget to enter my birthday/blogaversary giveaway by leaving a comment HERE. The draw is tommorrow!

Old Bags..

Here is a tutorial for bags and wrappings made from old bits of paper ...

Recycled Wrap

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Internet & Technolog Other diet weight

And now the Year Begins ...

I feel like i've been on a rollercoaster of parties, entertaining, and more parties!! The last one was this weekend - Friday night. Now, I need a month 'in', detoxing and getting on with things at home.

And so I started today with the big Greenhouse tidy! It was sunny and warm - as long as you stood in the sun or the greenhouse - and so perfect for clearning everything down, and getting ready for the new planting season.

So while Mr Marmalade dusted out all the cobwebs ..


I organised my seed filing system ...


And planted my first seeds of the year!!

And just so all my loose ends are all nice and tidy, I'd like to say a huge THANKYOU to all of you for all the lovely comments and good wishes you've left about my birthday. I'd also like apologise for my tardy or absent responses to your lovely emails, and assure you that normal service will now be resumed.

I should be so Lucky, lucky lucky lucky!

I've been a very very very lucky girl indeed ... Lots of treats for my birthday! My hot stone massage in Henley followed by rosepetal bath and choccies yesterday was divine!! Afterwards, Mr Marmalade and I had a spot of lunch and then a wander around the town. I have to tell you that the charity shops in Henley are more like exclusive boutiques! No junk there - i'm talking Monsoon, Jaeger, Diva, French Connection, Kaliko, Jaques Vertes etc! If you're in spitting distance from Henley and you haven't been there ... GO!

I didn't fancy dinner out, even though Mr M had booked us a table at a nice restaurant, so instead I put a roast in the oven, and while it was cooking, I opened my presents. Would you like to see? Well I'm going to show you anyway. I was quite overwhelmed!

There was Jewelery; shell spirals from my mother in law who got them on her recent trip to New Zealand, the message which came with them said "Koru (spiral), derived from the fern frond signifying new life, beginnings, harmony, peace and growth; a gorgeous little fabric/felt brooch from the lovely Kitty, a handcrafted acrylic heart from my favourite sister in law; a beautiful 'sparkly bracelet' from another close friend; a swallow pendant made by The Great Frog; and an equisite pair of opal earrings from the ever kind Miss T.

There were crafting treats too! This beautiful Japanese fabric from the gorgeous JennyFlower, you can't see here, but it's long and looks like it needs to be quilted into a nice wall hanging, I think it depicts the four seasons ... except there seem to be five (?). The gadget is from a friend of mine who also likes to sew, it's a 'multi purpose sewing tool' and is quite amazing .. it has 12 handy tools housed in that pen shaped tube, including a magnet, thread cutter, punch needle, and magnifying glass to name but a few!

There were corsets!


There were girly treats and a weekend away (is there no end to Mr M's generosity?)!

And there were friends. "Dear Fatty" is a reference to Dawn French's partner in crime, Jennifer Saunders. The Italian Connection and I have a similar connection except ofcourse, we're not famous. She's blonde, i'm dark, we do silly impressions, we're funny together, and we bounce off eachother intuitivly just like they do. We have long been fans. Can you see that spangly book there? It's a photo album from my "dear fatty"... except she's not fat by any stretch. She is awfully clever and witty though. And having conspired a little with Mr Marmalade, she put together this wonderful album for me!

With pictures from my childhood


and facts from the year I was born


Details of big events

And fun times - that bottom picture is my first wedding with Mr M in the registry office (we had the white dress day afterwards)

This page is all about our 'getting ready to go out' ritual from 20 years ago which we STILL practice today when circumstance allows!

These are rules from college ... that is, the rules BEFORE we attended. The year after, a new rule was added in our 'honour'. We don't have a copy of those rules, but the extra one was an empatic "nose studs are NOT allowed!". It's our claim to fame, and we love it. (As you can see, they'd already covered the pink hair factor!).

There was reference to my chinese birth year .. ha ha very funny!

And a range of 'advice' matched up to a range of idols ...

And at the end, there was this beautiful poem

Leisure
by W H Davies

WHAT is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare?

No time to stand beneath the boughs,
And stare as long as sheep and cows:

No time to see, when woods we pass,
Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass:

No time to see, in broad daylight,
Streams full of stars, like skies at night:

No time to turn at Beauty's glance,
And watch her feet, how they can dance:

No time to wait till her mouth can
Enrich that smile her eyes began?

A poor life this if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.

Party Bags!

Happy birthday to me, happy birthday to me!

Today I will mostly be here enjoying my birthday treat from Mr Marmalade.

And to give you a clue as to which birthday this is, here are 40 random facts about me ...

• I’m a Capricorn, born in the Chinese year of the Monkey
• I spent my early childhood in South Africa
• I could speak Zulu before I could speak English
• I went to boarding school in Scotland until I was expelled at 15
• I attended 4 more educational establishments before giving up at 16
• I left home at 17
• I worked in hotels from then until I was 20
• When I was 20 I went to Secretarial College in Oxford as part of a pact with my parents
• I met The Italian Connection there, she was my room mate and is still my best friend
• My mother nearly fainted when she saw that said room mate had bright pink hair
• It turned out that we were both fans of Toyah Wilcox, this was a relief to me
• My favourite song when I was 14 was "I wanna be Free"
• My mother thinks this was the main reason I was 'difficult' during my youth
• I don't believe in private education
• I can write Pitmans shorthand @ 100wpm and touch type at 70wpm
• When I started work, I had a typewriter on my desk, there were no pc's
• I gave up an opportunity to work in New York, because my social life in Oxford was too good!
• I think happiness and family is more important than career
• If I had gone to New York, I would not have met Mr Marmalade
• My husband and my best friend have the same name, but hers has an 'a' on the end
• I have blood in the following varieties: French, Spanish, Scottish, English and Welsh
• My grandfather was a 'celebrity chef' in his day
• So was my great grandfather, and my great uncle, and a few more before them
• I grew up in hotels and am not modest about the fact that I can cook
• I wish I could sew as well as I cook
• I have been keeping chickens for the last 5 years and wouldn't be without a couple
• The one piece of advice from my mother that I regret taking, is not going to art school
• I wanted to be a beautician when I left school but wasn't allowed
• I put myself through beauty school 10 years ago
• I worked in a salon part time for a while, and then became disillusioned by vanity
• I do not use products which are tested on animals
• I abhor rampant consumerism
• I don't like shopping much and do my best to avoid it
• My parents think i'm a socialist bean eating hippy
• I can't grow flowers but I am expert at growing fruit and veg
• I am upset by waste
• I can't abide snobbery or discrimination of any kind
• One day I would like to own a field with a yurt on it
• I think time is the greatest gift we have
  
• My best advice for staying young: Avoid sunbeds at all costs, and laugh ALOT!

It's also my blogoversary soon, so I think a giveaway is in order. I will decide what to put in a bag of goodies for the prize when I am fully relaxed, refreshed and massaged

In the meantime, all you have to do to enter, is leave a comment with a random fact about getting older and put a link on your blog. I will make the draw on 21 January which is the day that this blog is 1 year old!

A Snow Bird

Did I mention that it's my birthday next week? It's a big one. The Italian connection is coming over for the 'celebrations' this weekend. She is in the air now.

I hope.

This was her last message to me:

It has stopped snowing
I have found the padlock for my case but not the keys
The snow plow has been but roads are nightmare
A took test drive into Perino
A gone ages...
A came off road and into a ditch
Passing farmer and tractor pulled him out
A now putting on snow chains
Me freakin' out saying hurry up! hurry up!
On our way as soon as snow chains are on

Edit: Update live from Gatwick Airport via text, 4.32pm:

There's a lorra bings, bongs, trills, and beeps as a zillion phones have just been switched on

Phew!

I may be gone a while ....

Mac Factor

I told Jimmy when I got home that I was lucky enough to have a big Mac on my desk at work. He looked at me in a strange way and said "why did they give you a burger?".

When Mr Marmalade came home from work, I said "i've got a big Mac!". He looked confused ...

Is it me?

Thank you for all your lovely wishes on my last post. The day was fab, they bought me a big Mac computer to work on with lots of yummy design software, the people are lovely and my office overlooks the University Parks.

It feels really good to be back in 'circulation'.

If the Shoe Fits

For the past 6 months, these have been my 'work' shoes
... (and my everything else shoes) ...

As from today, normal service will be resumed ...