A ball of wool

I bought this ball of wool a while ago, just to have. It made my mouth water, all those colors together!

I seem to be drawn to these colors in the garden

Contrast has gone a bit funny but I'm still getting used to the new program.

Calendula, Alchemilla Mollis, Linarea Purpurea & Geranium. Simple flowers with a lot of zing.

                                                        A really quick sketch!

A sample. I got my needle felting machine out from under it's dust cover (thank goodness I'd put the thing on!) Had a fabulous time needling together dark pink, orange & purple with a bit of turquoise thrown in wool- I don't have any lime green wool strangely! Added to this bits & pieces of recycled fabric, mainly from clothing & some bought organza. Listening to some of these fabrics rip into ribbons is certainly part of the fun! I needled from the front & back to do a little blending. Then added recycled yarn & ribbon, some bought. I wanted to suggest the pink, purple & lime green flowers (oh, there's no lime green here ;) & then emphasize them with sketching stitches in the right flower
 shapes.

The orange flower was too much even after I stitched all over it so I trimmed them in the little hanging above - it's about 14" x 5". The purple & lime green were a little subtle so I added french knots. Pleased with the sketching around the pink flower. It really does help to hang it up & stand back & squint at it. I enjoyed making an extra piece to cut up & roll into beads - I've been longing to dangle something off some pieces! Used embroidery thread in the 4 colors to make cords. They're just pinned on the back at the moment. I'll back it with denim but this time I'll keep the wild edging as every time I look at my last felted piece with a narrow denim border I feel it looks trapped. I'll roll the top of the denim over a twig, probably, wrapped with various cords & ribbons in all the colors I can possibly find, well within the 5 used anyway. ;) I may add beads but my eyes had had enough.

I started a second one at the early stage & look forward to getting back to it.

Couldn't help the turquoise getting into both of them. I guess that's forgetmenot, but they're over of course - pale cornflower? I'll think of something! My garden is being so useful at the moment, even having to water it, I will willingly.

Hello to my new followers, I'll come by soon if you have a link.

A little more colorful

Wow, I've got 98 followers, thanks to you all. I feel another giveaway coming on !

I had the urge for a little more color this time, inspired by the fact that the informal Sleat gardening group came by - my turn to provide a cup of tea & a little something sweet. I was meant to be showing off my Roses end of June but my turn came faster than I thought & with help from my wonderful non  gardener DH we finally tidied away winter mess,  last summers weeds & the rest of the autumn seed heads. It didn't look too bad, & after a couple of weeks pure sunshine it rained on Thursday, proper sideways rain & I thought, fine, I know Murphey's Law  & did some wet weeding with the breeze dropped in my midge hood in amongst the first midges in my garden.  The next day I got lovely comments, "should be in Gardens Illustrated magazine" well I'll hang on to that one! :) & that considering it's a work in progress, & I mean beds not dug over or planted yet, "it looked like it had always been here" which is lovely as it has been a slow process on a shoestring the last 10 years. Blow me if the breeze didn't come back & the sun come out!

A tiny sample, cord & sketch

Color inspiration?

                                                            Primula, just going over

Allium, just flowering now, one of the last 2 left....mice? Damp?

Cornflower or somethig like it, ok, not really turquoise ;)

Multicolored pennant. The orange flowers aren't out yet but soon will be! All the usual applications - the Youngest likes my "crazy gold stitching" :) Nothing like the sketch really but it gives me somewhere to start - isn't that the idea?

I just want to eat this little thing!

Mid September already

I'm going to have to admit to the Autumn, soon, much as it hurts to say goodbye, only for a couple of seasons, to these.

and these.

Looking at this pic I took this afternoon I've got to say I'm filled with hope for next year - if I can do it once, I can do it again, maybe even better (I find I tell myself this all the time, don't always listen!)

Just to fill my life with even more when there's already no room left, I did a fabulous 2 day workshop with a costumier called Morag. The workshop was held at Rag Tag & Textiles for the purpose of making a bodice to model in the late autumn fashion show that Rag Tag are putting on in Broadford & Inverness. I don't think I've cut a clothes pattern out since I was at school & i was so excited that i was finally able to be taught & to do something that so many are able to do with their eyes closed. I'm sure it's given me the confidence to try other pieces of clothing. The bodice is coming on, slowly but surely.

You get the general picture - on the right are the loops sewed on the lining that will lace me in! I've got to do some top stitching, neatly mind, on what we called the learning curve ;) I'll ask my friends for some pics of the class next week. I started a little corsage for the bodice. 

I really learnt far more than just how to make a beautiful bodice. Thank you, Morag, & Meg & Fiona for organising it.

some squares

Another piece of painted Magnum wrapper, coupons out of date; it's all about money, a dried up wetwipe for work spillages, a nod to the swallows on the wire - I had to look at the sillhouette in the birdbook to help with an outline, inspired by Jackie I tried to stitch some empty pill packets, my needle had a little wobbly but it's ok. When you both have asthma there are always empty pill packets of some kind twinkling at me from the waste paper bin! The last square is a variation of a card I was making this week - there's a fish you can just about see hanging there fashioned out of thin red wire.

Too much playing this last week, not enought work :)

Bits of a summer garden in August

It seems that in hot arid parts of the Northern hemisphere summer is over, we're discussing seedheads & Autumn, already. Ok, so I collected some seeds today from my Aquelegia but I am not ready to accept Autumn yet! I guess it pays  to be in a moist part of the world after all, parts of my garden are still positively summery, so on this gorgeous, lightly breezy, therefore midge free, sunny day I took a few photos of my garden.

Clematis & Solanum, my birthday plants

Lots of feverfew from my old friend Jetta

I'll never tire of a foxglove still enjoyed by the bees

lacecap in my little woodland

wrong end of the country for a gravel garden, but still.

I missed out on annual sweet peas but still have the perennial ones

I need more Sweet William, it looks like a cluster of Pinks.

I had such fun making this for Billy's 18th ;) He'd just been fishing with a mate up the North end of the island & caught a huge Pollack which was delicious, as were the Mackerel. This looks nothing like either fish! I used, as you may have noticed, the same papers I'd made for my postcards. I 'borrowed' a 'fly' that Billy had in his collection of tied flies. He assured me it was a good one & will probably want it back. Also that you don't catch pollack with a fly - that's me told!

I've got 20 postcards towards my month of July, of course. Of that 20, 7 are 'missing' from my photos file so I'll have a browse around a few blogs to see if they were the ones posted about. If not, no matter!

I completely forgot on this bright day, to take a pic of my next strip of August squares. Too excited prancing around the garden in amongst the summer flowers!

Two more beautiful cards

I can have two cards again today! The first one is from Sue M at Sue's Craft Cupboard, a brand new blog,  in Victoria, Australia. This is a fabulous postcard, full of detail, lots of layers made out of a mixture of handmade, hand painted & found papers. Even a wrapped slide mount & a cute little dragonfly! Another fab heart from a bit of map too! My 15yr old just came back from a weekend away & noticed "a lot of love" in the recent collection, well, it's what makes the world go round! I love all the text messages, especially for me, particularly the word 'exceptional' ! :)

The envelopes & another birthday card were pretty amazing too, more eye candy for the postie!

I even got a present of Sue's lovely handmade cards & everything was tied up in pretty ribbon & paper - everyone's been great with the wrappings!

I am feeling exceptional, I really am, thank you!

My second postcard of the day was from Kelly at the Happy Shack, in Florida, USA. This card is positively gleaming, so shiny with wishes - it says on the back "my wish for you is your wish come true" I will wish for myself & of course for all of you. Love the lime, turquoise & green pretty retro flowers, they take me right back!

Another wonderful envelope to feast our eyes on!

I feel quite wishful, thank you so much!

Yesterday I went on a visit to 3 gardens on the peninsula, one possibly opening for the last time so quite poignant. I was helping with the teas & even did some baking ( I made banana bread cupcakes as I knew the loaf would take too long so I prepared the oven putting the baking shelf in -it's a 2 door Aga - & wondered why they weren't cooking. Put them in the wrong oven, oh well we got there in the end!)

I was shattered what with the baking, the running around 3 gardens within the time & the teas - fabulous weather, just enough of a breeze to keep the midges away & a bright sunny sky, so I've only sorted a few images to share with you, just to show what can be done on Skye. 4 days to go, I can hardly believe it!

Deep purple Iris

pretty flowers (?!)

Lupin

Mecanopsis

Valerian

Today's postcards

Today I opened 2 postcards, well, there are only 5 days left now! The first one in line was from Jacky at art4moi from Victoria, Australia. This postcard is amazing, it's a weaving technique, learnt, as Jacky says, in Jude Hill's online class - Jude's work is fabulous. Jacky has used linen from a table napkin & fabric from the '70's (oh, I remember those!), nothing like a good bit of recycling & lots of beautiful slow cloth hand stitching - sraight, cross & tiny french knots. What a subtle red, with other lovely dashes of color, I absolutely love it!

I am enraptured, thank you so much.

The next card was from Lorna at Artymess in Hampshire, UK. & other members of her family!
Her card is remarkable, full of hundreds of little flowers , beautifully hand stitched onto her wildly free machined with glitzy thread background. If I sat down to count the stitches, I wouldn't have finished by dawn, I just can't believe the effort put into all these cards!

This is the back, unbelievably, more lovely love! Soft, too & puffy like a little pillow.

Jim wanted to join in, I was quite delighted! (the only man brave enough!) Love the little birds, the canoodling couple & this is the face of spirituality, protective.

It was an extra surprise to receive a card from Ruby! I had no idea, & so sweet!

Then there was another added gift of a beautiful little silk bag full of goodies & all of the above were wrapped up in this cool envelope - the postie has been loving all these!

I am completely mesmerised, so grateful, thank you.