Monday, May 6, 2013

Searching . . .

Hello dear friends & readers

My Clan Gathering group went well & I was so pleased we managed a brief patch of fine weather for the day


The cows were in the house paddock which added a nice touch for all the men folk who were dairy farmers


The group had their afternoon tea here - which they had provided & dropped off beforehand 


The next day when they came to collect their plates they presented me with a beautiful cyclamen which I am enjoying inside for now


As this was my last group before winter sets in I felt relieved when it was over
However I must confess my "crafting mojo" has gone missing of late
And though I have been searching for it . . . 
I have only had brief patches of creativeness

The continual wet weather has provided some good crafting days
as I am NOT a gardener who goes outside no matter what!!!



One wet grey day I set about making my friend Donna a birthday gift
I had decided on bunting made from wool blankets
for her studio space she had recently moved into 



I was going to applique "Donna's studio" but decided it would be too long & make the bunting too big to hang anywhere
so I settled on just "Studio" 



I very much loved the soft pastel - sort of bubblegum shades - of the vintage wool blankets & chose a pastel vintagey looking fabric for the applique



I chose a cream bias binding, but upon deciding it was too stark, I dunked it in a hot parisian essence solution til it was the right shade



Also, when I was down at Mums I began this simple stitchery
which I coloured in with pastel colouring pencils
& decided to make up into a cushion for Donna as well



The bottom line reads "we're girlfriends and we're gorgeous"



I had planned to make it into a wallhanging but after making the bunting, I decided one thing for the wall was ample
& so settled upon a fat little cushion for a chair in her studio 
that she could look at while she was creating  :-)

Donna was delighted with her handmade gifts & said it had inspired her to tidy up her studio space !!

In the midst of a soul searching week I received the most lovely surprise package in the mail from my friend in the South Island
I had written to Carolyn of how much I was (still) missing the fat fluffy & how huge the gap was that he had left in my day.
She walks her 2 dogs every day on the beach & gathers "treasures" that have washed up



upon finding these heart shaped rocks she made me this most beautiful "mosaic" with tiny shells that spelled his name
I have placed them on his plot & they certainly warmed my heart - 
& bought the sun back out again :-)

I am off to continue searching for my crafting mojo
wishing you sunshine & rainbows where ever in the world you are folks


I hope you find some creativeness in your week
thanks for stopping by my world :-)
much love/hugs/friendship,
Julie xoxoxox

8 comments:

  1. The bunting and cushion you made are beautiful, I love the soft vintage colours. Such a cute cushion! I love Nero's grave, we have a special mosaic marking our old cat's grave, it's so nice to remember our beloved pets, hugs Wendy

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  2. What very special rocks! Great bunting.......you really come up with some wonderful ideas.
    Hugs........

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  3. Hello sweet one, how delightful having visitors who bring their own afternoon tea...good plan!! Very nice cyclamen. It was only quite recently that I discovered that the miniature cyclamen are delightfully scented. I have one in Lucy just presently..such sweet fragrance when I open "her" up each morning. Great bunting...did you use one thickness or two?
    What a thoughtful Nero gift...I love it.
    Girlfriends together & fabulous..excellent.
    Doesn't look to me like your crafting mojo has wandered very far at all. You always seem to accomplish so much every week. Good for you!
    No, no point being out there in galoshes, I'll leave those to Christopher Robin. Much love Catherine x0x0x

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  4. What a fabulous tribute to Nero and what a clever and kind sender. Seems strange to read of you expecting Winter when we in the UK are still trying to leave it behind! Betty

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  5. hi Julie.
    i have missed stopping by and it seems you have been quite busy.
    glad to hear you are finally getting some much needed rain. Those are the perfect crafting days.
    Your stitching always inspires me to get stitching.
    But alas the boy is super sick and leaves no time for crafting.
    and I also need to find my crafting mojo once again.
    Here is to both of us getting hit by the crafting fairy :)
    Amy

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  6. Just sending hugs, hoping you don't ever give up looking for your craft mojo xx

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  7. Hello Julie,

    Love the photo of the cows in the paddock, reminds me of my Sister's place in the North Island. The bunting is so lovely, using the wool blanketing was a great idea. Enjoy that Cyclamen, love those plants, the flowers amaze me. A lovely gift from your friend, Nero will always be in your heart. Have a lovely week, we got some rain overnight and the storms are continuing today, yay.

    Happy days.
    Bev.

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  8. Hello dear Julie

    I just love this post - especially seeing your beautiful herd of jersey cows along the fence line! I love all animals but cows really appeal to me!
    And yes the dairy farmers would have felt quite at home!

    You've been busy and the blanket bunting is very pretty and beautifully finished with blanket stitch and applique.
    Donna must have been "over the moon" when your birthday gifts arrived!

    How kind and thoughtful of Carolyn making you the "Nero" memory stones for his resting place in your garden - bloggers are such lovely people!

    You haven't lost your mojo Julie - maybe your muse is telling you to have a little R & R!!!

    Such an inspiring post for me.
    Hugs
    Shane ♥

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Hello, & thank you for taking the time to comment on my posts - I read and appreciate each and every one of your comments :-)
I always prefer to reply to your comments by email unless you are a no-reply-blogger in which case I will reply to your comments in this section here. Thanks so much for stopping by to read & comment on my blog x0x