Little bits of this and that

I've been very busy, oh yes - Friday afternoon was a hive of activity, a burst of energy that saw me making piles of art cards for the little gallery that stocks them for me up in Lincolnshire, and some (I hope) for the stall Im hoping to have at the summer Craft Candy fair. All this printing and cutting and putting together whilst the little one napped, but I was on a roll, and when she woke up we embarked on a baking spree...
...Here I am modelling my new apron that I got with some birthday money! Without further delay, we got down to business of weighing and mixing and by teatime the house was full of a deliciously warm aroma of lemon and poppy seed loaf cake. We couldn't wait for it to cool down and tucked in while it was still warm, with a nice mug of tea!

You'd think Id be worn out by the evening wouldn't you, but oh no - I was determined to finish my ripple cushion that I blogged about recently. I was very lucky to find a lilac merino wool jumper to back it with in our local charity shop a few days ago, it was one of those you see delightful grannies wearing, complete with collar and brass effect buttons so I wasn't surprised when the nice lady at the counter eyed me and my purchase with some amusement as I went to pay!

Oh! Almost forgot - I got a lovely package in the post too, with my new wools for my next cushion - aren't they pretty colours? Im calling my next cushion 'Porthmeor' after my favourite English beach and I picked these colours to reflect the shades of the atlantic shallows and the creamy white sand on a typical sunny Cornish day.

I like to give names to some of the things I make, I always have done and I like that it reminds me of a special time or place. This next cushion Im going to make is much smaller than the one Ive just done, almost half a cushion in fact, and Im just trying to decide what stitch to use before I begin! I like that the colours are slightly similar to the one Ive just completed, but more blues this time so I think they will nestle together well on our bed.

Anyway! Without further ado, here is my finished cushion!!

I spent most of last night backing it and completed the crochet button holes this morning whilst the little one amused herself with Boogie Beebies :)

...and this is the back, complete with pretty shell buttons. I can't tell you how proud I am of it, would you believe that this time last year I couldn't crochet a stitch?? Its true! I taught myself last year whilst spending a week with my sister in sun drenched Suffolk. I followed the Happy Hooker book, and luckily my dear friend Niki who lives about half an hour or so away from sis showed me how to do the bits I was stuck on and I haven't looked back since!! Im totally addicted, I melt at the mere sight of a wool store and can spend hours looking at yarn charts and playing with colour combinations. Its the ultimate way to relax and tune out, and there are no expectations wiht it, its just simple, its soothing, its necessary. Its a comfort at the end of a bad day - its pleasure, watching balls of wool turn into pieces of usable stuff like bags, cushions, blankets and toys.

I love it, cant you tell?!

Well, the sun has finally come out! The only reason Im blogging on a saturday is that it got decidedly dark and started to rain, so the gardening plans I had were put on hold - however, looks like some blue sky is heading our way so Im off out to hoe, rake and sow...

See you all soon,

Love J x