David

This is King David from the Old Testament, and I see it every time I sit down in the lounge. I hasten to add I did not embroider it. I did a City and Guilds in Embroidery parts I and II a few years ago, and one of the ladies a year ahead of me embroidered this. I kept on looking at its progress every week. It was spectacular! I can't remember the name of the lady who embroidered it (perhaps Pat?) but she was so talented. I fell in love with it, and said if she got fed up with it, no matter when, I wanted it. As soon as the finals were over she sold it - to my husband! He bought it for me! I still love it! I have had it nearly thirty years, and I still adore it. Every day, David's expression changes. Sometimes he is sad, reflecting on his past life, other days he is smiling. He gets a new poppy every year, after the 11th November, Remembrance Day.

Hope you enjoy the picture.

tich

Froghopper

I'm really proud of this photograph. We went on a guided walk last week, and the Ranger showed us a plant with froth (cuckoo spit) on it. Inside the froth is a tiny nymph. This is what the nymph looks like on the Ranger's thumb.

Just had to show off!

tich

Sheep Shearing

I was invited this afternoon to come and see my friend shearing sheep, belonging to one of the spinners on the island. I had a great time. The sheep were gathered into two pens, one inside the barn and one outside.

Ian literally zipped through the fleeces. He made it look so easy. The younger sheep struggled a little, because they did not know what to expect, but the older sheep, who had had their fleeces taken off previously, just lay back and let it happen. It did not hurt the sheep, and they seemed relieved that the heavy fleeces were off, and that they were now able to dance about in the sunshine. The fleeces were beautiful, and some of them were extremely large. The resulting wool, spun from from these sheep, will be of extremely high quality. A very interesting afternoon. Thanks Ian!

tich

Polytunnel

   
               

I have been really busy planting, so I have not managed to do any sewing recently. We are really late this year getting the plants in the ground, but we have only managed to get the cover on the polytunnel two weeks ago, because of the weather. This is what the polytunnel looked like last year. It is a BIG polytunnel - 72ft x 18ft. We got loads of stuff out of it last year. In October, we went off the island down to see my daughter. Whilst we were away there were 75 miles an hour gales, and they totally destroyed the cover, along with lots of other things on the island. This year, we had to wait until the weather settled, before putting on a new cover. Never mind! Think of those luscious tomatoes!

tich

Eye Candy

Just some eye candy to keep you going, while we were away. Wish i knew how to upload pictures, so that they stayed on a straight line.

tich

Little Bags

I remembered that years ago I made a number of small lined bags with a flap. The lining was put in as one piece, with no topstitching on the edges. I could not remember how to do it. It is really easy to put in a lining on a bag without a flap, but I was having difficulty working out how to sew in the flap, without top-stitching the top edge. Anyway I got it. Notice the buttons are not sewn in place yet. There is a buttonhole under the the grey button. There is something about completing a project that I have problems with. Now all I have to work out is how to put a lining in, using the same method, on a bag with gussets!

tich

Jelly Rolls

I know it sounds absolutely pathetic. I have been making patchwork on and off for nearly thirty five years now, and up to two days ago, I had never actually seen a Moda jelly roll in real life. I had drooled over them on the Internet, and finally I decided I was going to get one. There were some really nice ones here, and I was fortunate enough to get one on sale, and, of course, I had to get something to go with it! The service was fantastic, and the postage was really reasonable, so I would definitely recommend a visit. Now the only question is - what am i going to make with them?

tich