Hazy Shade of Winter

 Last week was so cold and wintry here and i spent a lot of time crafting.....i did a lot of the alpine flowers crochet blanket which is ideal to take with me when i sit and reminisce with my dad......or just to pick up and add a little to while watching tv............

 ...............and in my sewing room there is a new stash busting scrappy quilt project underway......

 ...........i wanted to begin something new and pulled out lots of soft and subtle but interesting prints from my quilt fabric cupboard to choose from.............

 ..........this is to be a quick make so i'm using the strip piecing method...........

 ..............and machining the strips together into 16 patch blocks before joining them........

 ............it is  lovely project to make just now......the fabrics are a pleasure to use and the pale colours mixed with greys echo the winter time and the cool light of the pearly skies.............

 ...............the butter dish and sugar bowl are treasured gifts from my girls..............

 ..............every day i make a few more strips and a few more blocks for my wintry quilt.........

 ............in between lots of other work related stuff and family things.........

 .............loving these pale and beautiful flowers...........the pot above was a kind gift and there are snowdrops planted in there too which i look forward to seeing in flower soon............

 ............when we take the xmas decorations down i always miss the candle bridge most which lights up the window sill.............my daughter found a little house to replace it with and i love it.....

 ...............thank you once again dear readers for your kind and gentle comments and such warm friendship..........i feel so lucky to be a part of this wonderful blogging community where our lives are sometimes shared as well as our crafting..........and your words and own experiences have been very heart warming to me to read recently..........thank you all so much xxxxxxxxx

.............wishing everyone a happy week ahead...........i hope you are all keeping safe and well whether you are in the colder regions of the world or the warm and sunny ones............back soon xxxxxxxxxx

Clouds and Rainbows

 It has been a cold cold week here in our little north west coastal town with chilly winds blowing and a pearly grey sky for much of the time............

.............i chose my bright rainbow ripple blanket to keep me cosy and some cheerful tulips to brighten up the kitchen...........

 ............ i have had some design work to do for long standing commissions which is a good thing.....

 ...............art and craft, designing and making have always been at the centre of my life and are my solace at sad times...........

 .............bright new craft supplies are cheering up the sewing room.............

 ............i am enjoying some quiet hand sewing and listening to music..........

 ..............and crochet is a wonderfully comforting occupation..........the pile of new granny squares is growing daily........

 ..............the colour scheme seems to be choosing itself so i am going with that......

 ..............this is my latest project in this month's crafts beautiful magazine.......

 ..............since we had to say goodbye to my mum i have spent many hours with my sweet sisters and dear dad......there has been so much for us to do and to organise.........so many memories to share.....

 .............thank you so very very much for your beautiful thoughtful words on my previous post....... and thank you for your kindness and understanding.........

..........................sending love to you all....................xxxxxxx

A Square of Blue

And what is life?
A crazy quilt;
Sorrow and joy,
  and grace and guilt,
With here and there
   a square of blue
For some old happiness
  we knew........

........this post is in loving memory of my dear mother who died last week........x

.......thank you for visiting me here dear readers and you kind comments......i will take a little blogging break this week, but will return next time with a cheerful crafty post again just as my positive, life-loving little mum would have wanted..........take care everyone..........back soon.....x

*the verse is from the poem a crazy quilt by douglas malloch

Winter Bunnies

 Now that the winter bunnies have been gifted i can show you a few pictures of them here......they posed for a few photos in the little wooden sleigh, and i placed it in front of this gorgeous snowy painting by janet bell (you can find it on her gallery website here...the title is*dyffryn, clwyd*...)

 ...........it hangs on our landing at the moment above the grey dresser, perfectly wintry..........

 .............here are the first two little grey rabbits that i gifted at christmas......(took this pic when i noticed they matched my collection of persephone books)......... this time i left it to my dearies to choose their names........above are hettie and betsy........and below are bunny and blossom....

 ............the little woolly garter stitch cardies were quick to knit and i chose fabrics from pam kitty garden and tilda for the little cotton skirts and ear linings..............

 ..................another picture of blossom.....

 .................one more of hettie and betsy.............

 ...............and a final picture of bunny...........

 ............things have been very busy here with lots of family times, our sweet grandbaby rhys had his first birthday party and we had such a lovely time with both sides of the family....cake pictures to come, not yet sorted out :)...............over the last few days it has turned more wintry here after the unseasonable mildness of december.......a bit more pottering in the greenhouse has been going on, enjoying the flowering plants and getting ready to sow some xmas present seeds soon......

 .................my little molly dog has been keeping me company in there too..............

 .............lots to do this week....paperwork i put off before xmas must now be done......new projects to create.......and new crochet to enjoy too.......

.................thank you everyone for your kind new year wishes..............i hope 2016 has started well for you all..........lots of crafty new things in the pipeline here.....back soon xxxxxxxxxxxoooooooxxxxxx