Playing shops

Well, I finally did it. I've finally set up my Folksy shop! :) Stop by and take a peek. There's really not much in it at the moment, as there is a lot of photographing and description writing to be done, in between playing games with or feeding the Moomin!! Mr Deravelled designed the banner for me late last night (bless him!).

Please let me know what you think. There should be more goodies on there by the weekend! :D

Fat Thursday and some surprise wellies!!

Today is Fat Thursday, the last thursday before Lent begins, and traditionally a time of feasting in Poland and Germany. It is a day dedicated to feasting, with family and friends coming together to feast on sweets and cakes and other goodies in large quantities, before they are forbidden for Lent. This feast day also takes place in Spain and Italy. However, in Greece, it is known as Barbecue Thursday, a day when massive quantities of barbecued meat are eaten by all.



I personally think a combination of the two is the ideal. I will consume large quantities of barbecued meat, followed by shovel-loads of cakes and chocolate. Mmmmm. Sounds like a normal Thursday to be honest!! ;)



You all want chocolate cake and meat now, don't you? ;) Clear arteries - who needs 'em?!

In other news, look what arrived in the post today...



Look at them, in all their Laura Ashley loveliness!!



The Moomin took an instant shine to them...



And tried to claim them for her own. Ummmm, I don't think so, Moomin - a bit big for you at the moment. They'll have to stay with Mummy for now!! Mwahaahaahaaa!!

Thanks, Mum, for the lovely surprise!! They are absolutely beautiful!! Love you loads!! :D

Going out now to look for a puddle to jump in.....

And the awards go to..........

Ok, so I am now finally passing these awards on. I am passing them on to four blogs, who I feel all deserve all three of them. :)

Clover Cottage


Julie's Little Joys


Lissylou and the 2 Little Boys


Surfer Rosa

To be honest, all you lovely ladies whose blogs I read deserve these awards, so if you haven't yet received an award and would like some, please feel free to accept these three. :)

None of you are required to pass these awards on to anyone else, unless you feel like it!! :)


This is only a very short blog tonight, as I am really tired and am getting the Moomin off to bed in a minute. Day off tomorrow, though. Woo hoo!! :)

Three awards!!

I have received three awards all in one day!! (I will not make the usual observation about similarities to a certain mode of public transport!). I have to pass them on, so I will post again later after work with the blogs I have chosen. :)

Many thanks to Sharon of Clover Cottage, and Sian from Diary of a Tinyholder. Both wonderful women and inspirational bloggers!!

The Deep

As I said in my last post, yesterday me and Mr Deravelled took the Moomin to Hull, so that she could go and see all the fish and sealife at The Deep. She certainly seemed to enjoy it!



Especially this blue spotted ray, which followed her around as we were walking around his tank!!



This was a funny looking fish!!



It was feeding time whilst we were there. Can you see the divers?



There is absolutely no flash photography allowed inside The Deep, as it can startle the fish, who are not used to bursts of bright light. This is clearly signposted throughout, yet still a woman was happily snapping away with her flash on, oblivious to the glares she was getting from everyone around her, as well as the large sign next to her that said (in picture form to help the terminally stupid) No Flash Photography. Fair play to the diver, who at this point banged on the aquarium wall at her, and mimed a flash going off, then shook his finger at her. To which she remarked to her equally stupid acquaintance "what's he on about?!". No surprises then that about 30 seconds later there was an announcement over the tannoy system, reminding visitors that there is no flash photography allowed inside The Deep, and then proceeded to explain how to turn off the flash on a digital camera, just incase someone was too daft to figure it out. I couldn't help but chuckle. They clearly encounter idiots like that on a regular basis. I wouldn't be so patient. ;)



The Moomin's favourite part was getting to make her own fish. There was lots of gluing and sticking and drawing involved.



She loved it! :)



Then there was just time to see the sharks...



...and other giant fish...



... before the Moomin was asleep and it was time to go home. :)

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone!! :)

Hello lovely ladies! Did you all have a suitably soppy Valentine's day? Mine has been lovely. Although I didn't wake up to breakfast in bed, I did wake up to a smiling Moomin clambering in between me and Mr Deravelled, dragging a motley collection of stuffed animals with her. Once she was suitably wedged in, both me and Mr Deravelled were now awake, and so the Valentine's card and gift-giving could commence!!

For my wonderful Mr Deravelled, I got a stainless steel handmade chain that he's had his eye on for a while, which he was very pleased with. I also made him a card utilizing a perfectly sized scrap of CK fabric with little red and blue racing cars on it, which he thought was brilliant. :)

He, of course, spoilt me rotten (as usual - he is quite romantic when he wants to be!!). I received a gorgeous little rose bush in a pot:



This has now taken pride of place on the kitchen windowsill, so that I can see it whenever I wash the Moomin's cups and drinking bottles etc. :)

Then, as if that wasn't enough, he also bought me a beautiful pendant necklace on a red velvet ribbon, that I had been mooning over on Folksy for the past week.



I loved it because the picture of the little girl drawing on a slate, with the kitten having a look, reminded me so much of the Moomin, and the way she and Mr Cat exist peacefully alongside each other (well, most of the time, anyway!!). And the Moomin is always drawing, so it really summed her up nicely! :)



It was made by "A Resin Revival", and you can see more similar goodies here. You will find it hard to resist buying anything though - they are all so cute and retro. You have been warned!! :)

We had a really wonderful day today. Mr Deravelled had a rare day off, and so we took the Moomin to Hull, to The Deep. I have taken loads (and I mean loads!) of photos, so I will post about our trip another day when I have a little more time.

When we got home this eveing, the post had been, and I had received a super package from Sharon at The Crafty Trundler. She had offered to send me some patterns for little girls' clothes that she no longer needed, and, well, look for yourselves!!



What a wonderful parcel of goodies!! I must say, when I opened the parcel, I was truly overwhelmed. The kindness that Sharon has shown is truly heartwarming, and it was very exciting looking through all the patterns and being able to plan out different possibilities for some cute additions to the Moomin's summer wardrobe!



I especially love the cute little trousers and tops, and in fact, the Moomin made a beeline for that particular pattern as soon as she saw it!! I am now under strict instructions to get started as soon as possible. Looks like I'm going to be busy for a while, then!!

Thank you so much Sharon for being so generous and kind. I truly have met some wonderful people in Blogland, and feeling so supported and thought of is a fabulous feeling. :)

Right, I'm off to snuggle up with Mr Deravelled and the Moomin now (yes, she's up late, but it's the weekend, and she's been a very good girl today), and we're all going to watch Family Guy. The Moomin loves it, and calls it the "Doggy programme". Lol.

A bag for Sarah

After my friend Sarah saw the bag that I made for myself last month (here), she asked me if I would make her one, too. I thought it would be good practice, and so agreed. But then, with one thing or another, the cut fabric sat waiting to be sewn up for nearly three weeks. Until Tuesday eveing when I finished hemming my skirt (photos to follow!!), and Mr Deravelled reminded me that I still hadn't made the bag for Sarah. Oooops!!

Then yesterday I was chatting with Sarah on the phone, and she told me that she had been involved in a car crash on Tuesday evening on the way home from work (the woman behind her at the traffic lights decided to keep going when Sarah had stopped at the red light). Result: Sarah was now suffering from whiplash, and was miserable! This motivated me to get her bag finished, and so, this morning, I finally finished it!



As Sarah is not particularly girly (or so she likes to think, but she's fond of pretty skirts!!) I made her bag out of a dark denim type cotton, with an ivory cotton lining with a swirly paisley style botanical print in deep navy blue. I used a gorgeous blue grosgrain ribbon with white polka dots for detailing, and to add interest. As Sarah's favourite colour is blue, I thought that would be appropriate!! :)



And to finish it off, a cute little yo-yo brooch attached to the front pocket. To tie it all in together, I used scraps of the same fabric I used for the bag, as well as a bit more of the cheery summer sky blue ribbon with white polka dots that I used to edge the front pocket, as well as the inside pocket.



I feel really pleased with it, and hopefully Sarah will like it too. :)

A skirt for me

Just a really quick post, seeing as it's so late. But I just had to show you all the skirt I've been working on today, this time for me. It is a symbolic skirt, as it represents a lot of firsts - the first time I've drafted my own pattern; the first time I've sewn in a zip; the first time I've made pleats; the first time I've sewn in interfacing.



I still have to hem it, but, look how pretty!! And it fits quite nicely, too. :) Because of the difference in size between my waist and my hips, skirts never fit me right. They always seem to fit on the hips, but are massively too big on my waist. So I forever look lumpy and frumpy lol. But this skirt (obviously because it's made to my measurements) sits nicely on my hips and is only a little bit too big on my waist (more my sewing technique than pattern errors, methinks.



Here is a close up of the zip I put in. I surprised myself with how neat I managed to make it!! The directions were from a book I got for my birthday from my little sister, called Sew What! Skirts. The finished length once it's been hemmed will be just a smidge above the knee. And yes, the material is indeed another Laura Ashley fabric!! Part of my birthday gift from good old mum.

Oh, I'm so proud of my achievement!! Just wanted to brag. :)

Fun in the snow! :)

Today was my day off (can you believe I actually made it into work Monday and Tuesday?!), and so the Moomin and I ventured outside to make a snowman or two, and basically just crunch around in it.






Mr Cat wasn't too keen to get his paws cold, though!! (And yes, our door does need painting - it's on the to do list!!)





What a little sweetie!! And she outlasted me, too. After about ten minutes I was ready to go back inside and get warm, but the Moomin refused to come in for another ten minutes, by which time I was having delirious halucinations about hot chocolate and slipper socks!! I eventually got her back inside with a little bribery - the promise of a picnic on the living room floor.



Here she is surrounded by all her toys, or "mess", as it is fondly known!! ;)

Hope you all had a great day!

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!!

It's snowing a bit, isn't it? :)

I hope that you are all safe at home in the warm. Mr Deravelled is not home yet, having to come from Leeds. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that he'll be home soon, though, as the Met Office have issued another severe weather warning for tonight and tomorrow. Looks like a snow day for all of us tomorrow, then!!



The Moomin can't wait! :)