Ooo's and aah's

I met a dog walker this morning, he is very eccentric with two lovely spaniels that are encouraged to be 'dogs' and allowed to jump up with wet and muddy paws, which I don't mind on a dog walk but these dogs always seem to find me on the day I have put on clean jeans!  So, this morning we meet and I manage to keep a distance far enough to avoid wet paws, when we discuss the weather: a great British past-time, being so warm and mild in mid October its a conundrum whether or not to wear a coat or heavier jumper, so I say I was 'umming and ahhhhhing this morning on this decision.  He replied with 'umming and ahhing just stay where they are and don't make decisions.'

How true that is.

Blackberries and mild days of Autumn.

....and as another week ends and we are a day nearer to the onset of Winter, we are still having very mild Autumn days and nights, last night reaching 18 degrees C still at around 8/9pm and did mean that Izabel panted her way through the early hours of this morning before either she, or I, nodded off to sleep in exhaustion.

 

I am still remembering Autumn, the berries and golden vines.

 

 

This bead is one of my favourites of the week, its a big bead with layers of glass, gold and silver leaf and lots and lots of hand pulled canes in which I can mix the colour to get what I want.

Its not always easy to mix glass colours as they don't mix like paint, blue and yellow don't always make green and red and white don't make pink, its a lengthy process of layering the glass and pulling into canes which can be used to 'paint' onto glass.  I am really enjoying this painting style of bead making it both relaxing and meditative and I have found that I prefer to work without the radio on so I can disappear into my own world for hours at a time.

You have mail.

'Post on the side for you' said my husband this morning as I walked in the house to put down the dog leads after a very muddy walk, Defi had rolled in a stinky puddle so needed a shower off with the hose pipe outside 'its on the side' he said as he headed off out.

 

'Bother' I thought and looked at my stinky mud coloured Golden Retriever, his brown eyes looking at me wide and innocent 'you have to be showered first' I told him.

 

Hosed, towelled, kettle on - and I had a quick wee, there is something about coming back in the house after a dog walk that just makes you want to go!

 

I opened my parcel and the smile spread from one side of my rosy wind kissed cheeks to the other.

 

'Bless her cottons' I said out loud.

 

A few weeks ago a fellow bead maker and superb photographer, known henceforth as Tomcat (check out his blog its filled with amazing photos and he says he is an amateur!) contacted me to see if I would give his daughter a lesson in making beads, for her birthday.  I agreed and was delighted, we would meet, the family and me; its always fun to put faces to names and blogs I think.

 

So the Saturday came and the family arrived, Tomcat, Mrs Tomcat and Little Tomcat and we had a great afternoon in the studio, whilst Mr and Mrs Tomcat went out exploring around Hereford. 

 

They brought cake so both my kids thought they were just the best family in the world to visit and Saturday night was spent eating too many delicious flap jacks with chocolate topping and admiring the delicious looking doughnut shaped cake - it was a ring of cake, awesome! - that we couldn't fit in but managed to consume everything by the middle of the following week, there are no photos too much eating took place for stuff like that to happen!

 

We had tea, no cake we were not willing to share this house being bereft of cake makers my skills in the kitchen being limited to tea, coffee and occasional slices of toast....black.... and we talked and laughed and swopped stories and had a fabulous time.  Well I did just hope they did too.  Part of our chat was about 'girlie' duct tape.  I was agog.  You can get 'girlie' duct tape?  I was assured you could.

 

This morning in the post I received some 'girlie' duct tape of my own.

 

Owl's 'at for making me smile :)

 



 And I got a real letter, not an email, but a real hand written letter.

 

Thank you Tomcat and family, especially Little Tomcat.

Its Friday!

 

I don't have much to say tonight, which is something coming from me, other than the rain lashing down at the windows after a very mild October day, I am sat at the computer with a cup of tea, I really know how to rock a Friday night.

 

I just listed these head pins, the blue ones, in my Etsy shop but to be honest I just can't find the energy or the inclination to list anymore so I am calling it quits for the evening.  I might make myself some cheese on toast I have a fancy for that right now, and sit in front of the television for an hour before going off to bed to read my book, like I said, I know how to rock on a Friday night!

 

Blue icicle head pins now in the Etsy shop.

Head pin bouquet of lilac buds and leaves.

 A couple of buttons.

A two holed button.

Another head pin bouquet.

Have a fun Friday, it can't be more exciting than mine!!

The Notebook.

 

I love notebooks, sketchbooks, doodle pads...paper.  And pens.  I have handwriting pens, fancy ink pens, pencils: these are my absolute favourite writing and drawing implement and coloured pencils, the artist ones.

 

 I have collected various books and pads over the years and kept most of them, some sadly have been lost or destroyed for various reasons, moving being one of them. 

 

I have kept a journal, or diary, for as long as I can remember, like the blog its been sporadic and usually documents times in my life when I have been down and depressed or some great moment that has been just wonderful and note worthy.

 

 

 

 

The top book, in the photo above,  that looks like stained glass is one of the oldest ones in my collection, full of life stories that date back to the early days of parenthood, the kids now being almost 21 and 19 so its almost an antique.

The purple one is my current one, although its one of many current ones, I have one by my bed, one in my hand bag, the little one that's open is the one that comes in the 'dog' bag with me on dog walks that I stop and write a word or thought in.

I haven't shown the very oldest one, I am slightly embarrassed by the dog eared corners and childish writing: it was a collection of poems I wrote when I was around 12, they make me smile now, some are pretty good too.

 

This file is my collection of typed and printed words and holds the beginning of my novel, a whole 20,000 words, minus 200 and something and as I am about half way through it should be a good book, at least in size.

 

As well as lined journals and notebooks I have a large collection of scrap paper and sketchbooks dotted about the place, its amazing really that I get away with it as I am forever moaning at the husband to tidy up his piles of 'stuff'.

 

See the rocking chair in the distant corner of the kitchen?  See the piles of dog toys? they get away with it too!

Wordless Wednesday and a few favourite beads of the week.

My beads can be found on eBay.com or click the Etsy link in the side bar to your left. 

Christmas swop.

I know, I know, Christmas is...counting on fingers... 71 days until the 'big' day, depending on where you are in the world of course, but still, 70 odd days to go.  I stumbled across this blog,  Creative Chaos and Kimberley is organizing a Christmas swop, sounds fun, take a 1 litre container and fill it with festive goodies to open on the day.  Why not? I thought and dashed straight over to sign up!

Fancy a go?  could be fun.  Click on the link and register Creative Chaos click this link

Just to let you know - sign ups close November 10th and parcels must be sent off by

December 10th at the latest.

Right off to read another blog I stumbled upon, my day is being fast consumed with blog reading.  Photos of the poncho will be forthcoming, right after my kids stop being mean to me about it, they don't know class when they see it, ok so its a little on the large side......