Deravelled

The Moomin's kimono

2011-07-08T17:46:00.006+01:00

8.05pm: The Moomin gives me a letter that says it's world-themed fancy dress day at school tomorrow.

8.06: Go into panic mode. We don't own any ethnic fancy dress, and I doubt we can get away with sending her in a Charlie and Lola dressing gown with a tea towel on her head.

8.07: Realise I'm going to have to sew something.

‎8.08: Decide on what is hopefully the easiest thing to sew, a kimono. After all, it's just strips of fabric sewn together, right?

8.10: Finally get the Moomin to stay stood still so I can measure her by lassooing her with the tape measure.

8.12: Go back into panic mode when it dawns on me that I don't have the first clue how to sew a kimono, and that the Moomin's not in bed yet.

8.30: Come back down after getting the Moomin to bed. Lay out fabric on the floor ready to cut.

8.32: Shout at Mr Deravelled for putting his feet on the fabric i have so carefully laid out, and mutter about him always getting his feet in the way every time I try and sew a kimono for the Moomin for school.

8.40: Plan out my pattern. Try and do calculations in my head, and go mad.

8.42: Get calculator, and figure out pattern.

8.46: Measure and draw pattern onto fabric with biro, as someone has eaten my tailor's chalk.

9.45: Finish cutting out all the pattern pieces (it took so long because Mr Deravelled made me spaghetti hoops on toast for supper, the sweetie).

9.46: Go into panic mode about how late it is already. Decide to pull myself together and press and pin the pieces instead.

10.08: Start sewing.

10.29: More pressing.

10.35: More sewing.

10.54: Pressing.

10.59: Sewing.

11.45: Pressing.

11.52: Sewing.

12.28am: Mr Deravelled shows his support for my struggle by going to bed.

12.46: Run out of thread in the bobbin. Search for another bobbin with some thread already wound on it. Eventually locate one - but the new thread's a different colour! Decide that I don't care.

12.50: Put new bobbin into machine. Continue.

01.25: More pressing.

01.29 More sewing.

01.30: I manage to bend the needle in quite a spectacular fashion. Spend time marvelling at the amazingness of the bent needle.

01.34: Replace bent needle with shiny new one that isn't bent. Continue sewing.

02.04am: Finished! Bed time!

Do you like it? I used one metre of Laura Ashley cotton/linen fabric. It's gorgeous and stiff, so was the perfect fabric for this project. I quickly sewed her a red cotton Obi to go around her waist, and finished it all off with a metre and a half of pink velvet ribbon.

Underneath the kimono, the Moomin is wearing an authentic light cotton under kimono, all the way from Japan. It goes with my 1940s sillk kimono that I've had for years.

What do you think?

All change!

2011-05-25T18:54:00.003+01:00

So, you know when I promised that I was going to be a good blogger from now on, and post regularly. And you know that I said that back in January, and haven't actually posted again since? Yeah, sorry about that. :/

Ok, so where did I leave you last? Ah yes, I needed to change my hours at work to fit around the Moomin starting school. Well, they weren't keen at all on the idea, and refused to budge. So, after several in-depth discussions with Mr Deravelled whilst we were in Edinburgh for our wedding anniversary (it was lovely, btw. There were rose petals on the bed and chocolate dipped strawberries and everything! - I know!) it was decided that I would (very politely, of course) tell work where they could stick their job, and instead work for Mr Deravelled's web design and multimedia company, doing the office management and marketing side of things (and, hurrah, finish at 3pm so that I could pick up Miss Moomin from school).

I've never done office management or marketing before, so it is a very steep learning curve for me (especially now I've turned 30!!), but I'm so glad Mr Deravlled offered me the job, as I'm really enjoying the whole networking and company accounts thing (who'd have known?!). I even now own a proper suit. And I have business cards. And a fancy computer on my own desk. It's all good!!

So how have you all been? :)

Gemma x

They grow up so fast.

2011-01-03T22:20:00.003Z

Tomorrow is the Moomin's first day at school. I am excited for her, but also so sad that she isn't my baby any more. It's the foundation unit, so it's not "proper" school until September, but it's not nursery any more, and she'll be getting a uniform to wear, so it's close enough.

And to make things more complicated, a change in circumstances means that I need to change my hours at work so that I will be able to pick her up every day from school. But work aren't willing to drop my hours.... argh.

Whoopie New Year!

2011-01-02T11:08:00.000Z

I hope you all had a very merry Christmas and a wonderful new year, and that by now your heads are back to normal!

As part of my Christmas present, Mr Deravelled bought me a recipe book full of recipes for whoopie pies, and a whoopie pie baking sheet. As I have never made whoopie pies before, I was eager to have a go. I set to work yesterday (with some help from the Moomin, of course!) and made chocolate pies with vanilla buttercream filling. And they are very yummy, if I do say so myself! I made 22 pies, and now only have 6 left, so they are proving very popular!! If you get a chance, pick up a copy of the whoopie pies book and have a go yourself!

It's back to work for most of us on Tuesday. Luckily Mr Deravelled and I have a weekend away in Scotland to look forward to for our wedding anniversary next weekend, and then my 30th birthday celebrations the weekend after that! I think it's important at this time of year to have things to look forward to. There's nothing worse than coming out of the party season looking at the whole grey month of January stretching out in front of you endlessly. Mr Deravelled and I have discussed booking a two week holiday away every January, so that by the time we get back the month will already be half over. Good plan, huh? ;)

Hope you're all having a lovely weekend.

Gemma xx

Happy Yule!!

2010-12-21T22:53:00.003Z

Whether you prefer your yule log like this...

...or like this...

...and whether you prefer your hot chocolate like this...

...or like this...

I hope you're having a very happy, warm and snuggly Yule. :)

Dearie me

2010-12-17T22:30:00.005Z

Oh dear. So I said I was back, and had apologised for not posting for so long, and then I go and disappear again for months. I am not a very good blogger.

Well, for my new year's resolution, it will be to apply myself and to blog interesting things regularly. For now, I hope you will be happy with some photos of mine and Mr deravelled's wedding from way back in January. Enjoy! :)

I'm back!!

2010-09-28T23:04:00.003+01:00

Hello there!!

Well, it certainly has been a long time since I last posted!!

Lots has happened since I last blogged. I have completed my post grad, and now work as an Early Years Professional in a lovely local nursery - and am loving it!

And, me and Mr Deravelled finally got married!! Yay!!

This isn't going to be a long post, as it's late and I need my beauty sleep. So I'll finish off with a few photos from the last year. :) Hope this post finds you all well.

Sew Cute Shop Amy Butler Birdie Sling GUEST GIVEAWAY!!!!

2009-08-15T00:46:00.000+01:00

Sew Cute Shop Amy Butler Birdie Sling GUEST GIVEAWAY!!!!

Such a gorgeous bag up for grabs over on Grosgrain!!

Thank you, Lovely Bloggers!!

2009-08-14T16:21:00.003+01:00

Thank you so much everyone for your very kind comments after my post the other day. It really helped me get some perspective. Mr Deravelled is now being much more supportive, and I've already managed to line up another job for September, so hopefully everything will be ok. I can now look forward to the long-anticipated course in September as a fresh start. :)

A Bad Day

2009-08-11T20:46:00.003+01:00

Today I found out that as of September I will be unemployed. I requested a change of hours, as I am going back to Uni to do a Postgraduate, and so can't do as many hours as I have been doing, but still need to work to survive, and HR got back today with the unwelcome news that they could not accommodate my change of hours request, as it would mean a change of contract, and they don't do that any more. So now I am desperately searching for another job so that I can still afford to do my course. And Mr Deravelled was less than supportive this evening about it all, so I am feeling pretty poo at the moment. :(

I'm now going to watch Friends and eat Poppets to make myself feel better. Toffee Poppets. And I don't care about the calories.

A lovely sunny weekend

2009-08-09T23:01:00.006+01:00

Well, seeing as the weather was so nice, we thought we would make the most of it and do some sightseeing. On Saturday me and the Moomin visited Brodsworth Hall and Gardens with my mum and dad and nana and her husband, Fred (lovely place - a must see if you're ever in Doncaster), and today, Mr Deravelled, the Moomin and I went with some friends to York. The weather held out beautifully, and I got some lovely photos, as you can see. :)

Ahhhhhh this is what Summer is all about! :) I hope all of you had lovely weekends, too!

A Fab Bag for a Fab Mum

2009-08-04T20:25:00.003+01:00

It's made from some gorgeous Laura Ashley linen fabric (one of their most well known and popular designs), and is lined with a scrummy deep wine tafetta.

It's got a cute little internal pocket.

And the Moomin is constantly trying to swipe it for herself (bag obsessed at 2 years old - there's no hope!!)!

I made it for my Mum for her birthday. It's not until September, but I'm giving it to her this weekend, as she's been a bit poorly and needs cheering up (and she goes on her hols soon, and it's a perfect holiday bag!!).

The pattern is from the latest issue of Sew Hip. It was pretty straightforward to put together, it just took a bit of time to do. I'm quite pleased with it! :)

Hope everyone in Blogland is having an enjoyable Summer - despite the lack of summeriness in the weather!

Hungry Caterpillar Skirt

2009-07-01T20:15:00.000+01:00

Hi everyone!!

Yes, it's been a while. Things have been pretty hectic here at Deravelled Towers, what with one thing or another, but the crafting has continued!!

Isn't it sweet? The Moomin adores her new skirt. It's made from actual Eric Carle fabric, and when I saw it I HAD to have it!! She has had loads of compliments on it, and when people realise that it's the Hungry Caterpillar, it always raises a smile. :) Isn't it great when something as simple as a skirt can cheer someone up??

Friday Brag :)

2009-05-01T16:18:00.001+01:00

Ooooh lovely Robert Kaufman fabric on sale at Hobbycraft!!

Hmmmm, I wonder what it's been made into...?

Ahhhh!! A lovely funky party skirt for the Moomin!!!

I was planning to make more of these to sell on my Folksy shop, but it took so long to do, what with all the layers of net and lining, etc, that once I have charged for my time, they'd be out of the realms of most peoples budgets! So I am going back to the drawing board with this skirt design, and will figure out something a little less time-consuming. :) What fab fabric though, don't you think?

Happy May Day, everyone!! (And happy Beltane to those that celebrate it!) Hope you have a great bank holiday weekend. :D

Naan Pizza

2009-04-16T13:09:00.005+01:00

A favourite lunch in our house is a naan bread pizza. It's so simple to make, and really delicious (as well as being better for you than a frozen or takeaway version!).

To make your own naan bread pizza, you will need:

an oven (grill setting)

a naan bread (plain, or for more flavour, garlic and coriander - yum!!)

cheese (pretty much anything goes, here. Today it happens to be double gloucester, as that's what we had in the fridge!!)

a cheese grater

tomato puree

and some ham (entirely optional - replace it with chicken or onion or peppers or anything else you like on pizza!!)

plonk all the ingredients on (artfully arranged, of course!!)

then put under the grill until it looks like the above.

Serve, and hopefully your little Moomins will go from this:

to this:

lol :)

Warning!! Cuteness overload!!

2009-04-14T16:29:00.003+01:00

Ok, so Mr Deravelled's sister got her Puglet today. She brought the little bundle of cuteness around to introduce her to the Moomin, and, well - look!!

Her name is Willow, and the Moomin adores her. So cute!! :)

The little Puglet soon fell asleep and was ready for home. The Moomin didn't want her to go, and said that she would look after her here!! lol She took a bit of convincing to let Willow go home!

Project Planning and Pay It Forward

2009-04-14T11:45:00.007+01:00

For Mothers Day this year, the Moomin (with a little help from Mr Deravelled!) bought me this book:

Yummy!! :) The bad thing is, my already long list of projects to get started on has just got even longer, thanks to this fab book. Anna Maria Horner has some great ideas, and has designed some truly beautiful fabrics, all of which come together to make for some serious eye candy that is just too tempting to resist! Ok, added to my project list are the following:

The cute Taxi Tote.

the I'll Have One Of Everything Bag. You could really have some fun with this one!! :)

A super cute doggy bed. I don't have a dog, myself, but Ryan's sister is getting a Puglet imminently, and so I thought it was as good an excuse as any to have a go at making a bed for it!! Did I mention I'm mad on Pugs? :)

The very glamorous Full Contact Cooking Apron. I do actually need an apron. I did have a canvas one with a picture of a cat dressed in a beret and a stripy jersey stood in front of the Eiffel Tower on it (a gift from my mum!!), but I have lost it somewhere, and so am now borrowing the Moomin's wipe clean tigger apron when making cakes!! This is not ideal, as invariably as soon as she sees me wearing it, she wants to wear it herself, and so I have to give it back!! lol So yes, I need an apron!

And finally, the ever so sweet Bo Peep skirt - obviously for the Moomin. She's not that big on frills, so this skirt will be a good compromise, with frills just on the sides, rather than all over it.

Better get cracking, hadn't I?! :)

On another note:

I'm getting involved in the Pay It Forward initiative. The first three people to leave a comment on this post will be sent a lovely little handmade gift from me. The only thing you have to do in return is write a Pay It Forward post on your own blog and spread the goodwill!! :)

Ducks and Ice Creams

2009-04-13T19:33:00.006+01:00

This Bank Holiday Monday was spent strolling around a mind-bogglingly busy Bakewell. Parking was a nightmare, as the car park we usually park in was full of market trader vans, who were also at that point blocking off the entrance to the overspill car park which was to be plan B!! So instead we found a car park a little further out of the centre, which was in a field with lovely views of the surrounding countryside, and had the river that runs through Bakewell at one side of it.

So we walked into the town centre, fed the ducks, visited our favourite cafe, Tiroler Stuberl, and ate sausages and drank coffee. Yum!! Then we ate ice creams from an Italian ice cream van, had a potter around the little shops and the market stalls (I bought some 2oz cotton batting to make a quilt with), and just generally soaked up the atmosphere and enjoyed being in the sunshine.

The Moomin's favourite part of the day (apart from the ice creams!!) was spotting all the different dogs that were out enjoying the day with their owners. I was particularly chuffed as I spotted a gorgeous little Frenchie in a cute grey brindle colouring. I have a soft spot for little lap dogs like Frenchies and Pugs!!!

P.S - If you were wondering about the gorgeously cute little kitty brooch that the Moomin is sporting on her handknit jacket, pop over to Joey's Dream Garden, a blog by a fabulously creative Sheffield lady who makes the most gorgeous little felt brooches, which I first discovered at Craft Candy's Spring Fling. I am becoming obsessed with them - I have just this minute popped onto her Etsy shop and bought another of her brooches for me!! I need to stop!! Shhhh...don't tell Mr Deravelled! ;)

Happy Easter, everyone! :)

2009-04-12T22:32:00.002+01:00

Hope you all had a good day filled with family and friends. :)

Thrifty fabric finds!! :)

2009-04-11T12:41:00.000+01:00

Me and the Moomin had a rummage in our local St Luke's Hospice charity shop the other day, and we found a few treasures. Well, by treasures I mean cheap fabric!!

I was so excited when I saw these. They are a pair of curtains made out of original Linda Beard 100% cotton fabric, and are in really good condition. The fabric has the appearance of distressed denim, and I'm having thoughts of using this fabric as the yoke of a skirt, and finding some cute white broderie anglais cotton fabric as the flared part of the skirt. I hope I've explained that right!! lol Mmmmmm. I will now need to rummage for some suitable lightweight cotton to make my creation with! :)

My baby is growing up!!

2009-04-11T12:30:00.001+01:00

Well, last Friday 3rd April was the Moomin's first day at nursery. Well, it was just a few hours, to help her settle in, and I hid in the reception area whilst she was in the room, but still!! She has grown up so quickly. I know it's cliched, but it really does only seem five minutes ago she was a tiny little thing in an incubator, with a feeding tube in her nose and with no clothes small enough to fit her. Now look at her!!

She is such a wonderful little girl, and every day is more amazing than the last. I love you, my beautiful, wonderful Moomin! :)

Another Moomin skirt

2009-04-04T11:48:00.001+01:00

Oooh, pretty reclaimed lace.

Awww, cute satin bow at the back!

Ahhh, a pretty party skirt for the Moomin!! :)

P.S If you love this skirt and know of a little girl who would look super cute in it, I have another for sale, here. :)

A wonderful swap :)

2009-03-30T11:00:00.002+01:00

Well, a few weeks ago, I signed up to take part in a swap over at Molly Cupcakes, (my first ever swap!!)and my swap partner was Natalie at the wonderful Summer by the Sea blog. The theme was hearts, and a few days ago, I received my eagerly anticipated parcel from Natalie.

Look at all the beautiful goodies I received! Everything was wrapped in pretty pink tissue paper and ribbon, which didn't last long in my eagerness to see what was inside!

Natalie had sent me a beautiful handmade hanging heart, in shades of pink and green - two of my favourite colours!! This now has pride of place on our bathroom door handle, as the bathroom is in these two colours!

Also included was a gorgeously fragranced heart shaped bath bomb, a cute little pink heart shaped guest soap (that is already being put to good use!!), and the softest hand flannel, ever!!

As if that wasn't enough, Natalie had also sent me a darling metal heart shaped candle holder, a packet of pretty little heart shaped buttons and embellishments, and, perhaps best of all, a hand-crocheted flower on the gift tag, which is absolutely beautiful (the Moomin loves it and calls it her badge!!).

Thank you so much Natalie for all my beautiful things!! I had just come home from a supremely awful day at work when I discovered this parcel on the mat, and it really made me smile. :) I hope you love the gifts I've sent you!

If anyone is considering getting involved in a swap, do it. It's loads of fun and you meet some really wonderful people. :)

An Award!

2009-03-20T00:55:00.004Z

I have received an award from the ever lovely Nicky over at Hollypop's. Thank you so much Nicky!! I now have to list 7 things I love, and pass it on to 7 other bloggers. So here we go:

1. I love my wonderful, amazing, beautiful, funny, clever daughter, Moomin, and also her wonderful, amazing, beautiful, funny, clever daddy, Mr Deravelled. They both make me smile every day, and I am so blessed to have them in my life! :)

2. I love HUGE pink peonies with ridiculous amounts of petals.

3. I love my huge collection of books - and I especially love buying new ones!

4. I love rainy evenings when it's cosy inside.

5. I love cake. Any kind really - chocolate, madeira, treacle sponge - you name it, I'll eat it!

6. I love Cornwall, and Whitby, and York, and Heidelberg, and New York!!

7. I love creating something special for someone I love. :)

Ok, so that's my 7 things (I could have gone on and on, but I'm trying to restrict myself!!). I would like to pass this award on to the following fab blogs:

Country Cottage Chic
Diary of a Tinyholder
Silkie Sue
Miss Sew and Sew
Casey's Elegant Musings
Country in the Town
Lissy Lou and the 2 Little Boys

Thanks again, Nicky!! It was so sweet of you to think of me. :)

Night night! x x

Happy days :)

2009-03-18T17:50:00.003Z

"Is the first slice for me, Nana?"

Brum brum!

Cute baby goats.

More baby goats (photo taken by the Moomin).

Cheeky monkey!!

Hope everyone is having a good day! :) x x

Bubbles and Garden Time in the Sunshine :)

2009-03-14T20:04:00.003Z

A day in the life of the Moomin...

Yes, she is pushing a pot of primroses along in her cart!!

She is wearing a beret I knitted for myself months ago. It ended up too small, so the Moomin claimed it for herself!!

Sorry it's been so long since my last post, ladies. I think I just got out of the swing of things a bit lately. I'll try not to leave it so long until I post again!! :)

St David's Day

2009-03-01T14:35:00.003Z

As I was born in South Wales, and lived there until I was 10, March 1st is always an important day for me. Happy St David's Day, everyone! :)

Playing shops

2009-02-20T11:54:00.002Z

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!!

2009-02-19T11:29:00.006Z

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..........

2009-02-17T21:59:00.006Z

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!!

2009-02-16T08:50:00.004Z

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

2009-02-15T13:42:00.010Z

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!! :)

2009-02-14T22:28:00.009Z

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

2009-02-13T13:12:00.007Z

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

2009-02-08T23:36:00.005Z

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! :)

2009-02-04T23:05:00.008Z

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!!

2009-02-02T19:01:00.005Z

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! :)

Yay! I've won an award! :)

2009-01-30T10:48:00.004Z

Well, after six months of blogging, I have finally won an award!! The wonderful Sharon at The Crafty Trundler awarded it to me for always having a cheery word. :) Thank you so much, Sharon - I'm absolutely thrilled!

"The authors say that blogs who receive this award are exceedingly charming. This blog invests in proximity in space, time and relationships. These kind bloggers aim to find and be new friends. They are not interested in prizes or self-aggrandisement. Our hope is that when ribbons of these awards are cut, even more friendships will be propagated. Please give your kind attention to these writers."

I have to now pass this award on to 8 deserving bloggers. Hmmm, this is the difficult bit, as you're all deserving!! I decided in the end to award it to some of my first and best blogging buddies, as these were the creative, witty, wonderful women who inspired me to start blogging in the first place, and to appreciate more deeply my life and everything (and everyone!) in it. Thanks so much girls!

So, in no particular order:

Blair at Wisecraft, a blogger from across the pond and probably one of the most crafty people in the whole of Blogland!!

Jayne at Country Cottage Chic - I love her blog and her crafty goodies - and she's one of the founding members of the Vintage and Handmade Fair.

Nikki at Ninny Noodle Noo - Nikki was the first person ever to leave a comment on my blog. Her blog is a real wealth of information for crafters and homeschoolers, and she has a fab little shop, too! :)

Pat at The Sewing Room - I can but aspire to be as nifty with a sewing machine as she is!!

Lisa at Periwinkle - I just love her blog, and she was one of the first people to ever leave me a message on my blog. :)

Angela at An Exaltation of Larks - a beautiful, lyrical blog full of wonderful things.

Jennifer at Buttercup & Roses - Jennifer is an inspirational and hard working young lady - you have to visit this blog - her shop is beautiful, and one day I will manage to pay it a visit and buy everything! :)

Julie at Little Cotton Rabbits - how she manages to do so much amazes me - her little knitted animals are beautiful, and she is a true inspiration to all.

Clarice at Story Book Woods - a scrummy blog full of delicious recipes and crafty yumminess.

Yes, I know that was nine altogether rather than the required eight, but so many of you have been such an inspiration to me, that to be honest, it was really hard to just stop at nine!!

Thank you to everyone who reads my blog, whether or not you have ever left a comment. I feel truly blessed to have met so many wonderful people since I've started blogging. Thank you everyone! :)

Patterns and planes :)

2009-01-28T18:43:00.006Z

Woo hoo!! We're flying with these when we go to New York next January to get married. I really and truly can't wait!! And even Mr Deravelled is getting excited! :)

I am going to have a go at making the bridesmaids dresses myself (with help from my lovely little sister), as I have been searching for the perfect bridesmaid dress for over a year now, and I still haven't found it. However, whilst browsing some patterns, I found the perfect dress!!

What do you think? I have found some gorgeous claret colour taffeta to make them out of. I am having three bridesmaids - my sister, Mr Deravelled's niece, and one of my best friends' (whose husband is Mr Deravelled's Best man). The Moomin will be a flower girl, and I am now searching for a suitably cute historical style dress pattern for her. Any ideas?

Good news and Laura Ashley wellies

2009-01-26T22:33:00.003Z

I spoke to my area manager at work today, and she has assured me that despite our branch closing in April, my job is safe, and I can choose where I would like to be transferred to. So I feel quite relieved. Now I've got to decide where I would like to work. This move will also mean either less hours on a saturday or no saturdays at all. So despite the fact that my pay would drop, it would mean that I get my weekends back, which would be a wonderful luxury. I need to think long and hard about what I want to do....

I spied these gorgeous Laura Ashley wellies in Homebase yesterday, whilst me and Mr Deravelled were looking at new bathrooms (guess what our next big project will be!!). I couldn't justify the £29.99 price tag then and there, but they are certainly something I will covet for the future!! And what a coincidence that they are the same pattern as the fabric that arrived the other day!

The winners of my giveaway!

2009-01-25T23:44:00.002Z

Thank you to everyone who entered my very first giveaway. I have now drawn the two winners, using the random number generator at psychicscience.org (the first one I came across on Google!!). The two numbers it generated was 7 and 17, which, taking just the first post from everyone in order, means that Thrifty Mrs has won the first set of goodies (with the soap), and Louise at Surfer Rosa has won the second set of goodies (with the notecards). So that I can send you your prizes, please email me your addresses to deravelled (at) gmail (dot)com, replacing the bracketty bits with the usual symbols. :)

Well done, you two. :) Thank you everyone who left a comment - I really wish you could all have won! However, I will be having another giveaway in the not too distant future, so keep your eyes peeled!

Fabric Scrumminess and Mr Cat

2009-01-24T17:07:00.007Z

For my birthday, my mum ordered me a load of fabric from Laura Ashley in their sale. Despite her ordering it on 5th of January, as of today, only one metre of it has arrived, which, as I do not need to explain to you, my fellow fabric afficionados, is incredibly frustrating. However, one metre has arrived, and has now been washed and pressed ready to be used in a future project.

I thought I would take a photo of it to show you - it is a pretty well known print (Erin in Chalk), and is 80% cotton 20% linen, so has a lovely luxuriously heavyweight feel to it. However, whilst photographing it, our gorgeous old boy, Mr Cat, decided that he wanted to get involved, as he was concerned by the lack of photos of him on this blog.

So here he is. Well, parts of him, anyway!! He's a grand old man (on 1st May this year he'll be 17!!), who we rescued when he was 11. Mr Deravelled loved him because he said he looked like a lion. lol And he's a wonderful cuddly lap cat, who loves his food and knows to the minute when his next feed is due. Woe betide you if you forget to feed him at that precise moment!!

And here is one of him posing nicely :)

Hasn't it been a glorious day today? A chilly start gave way to a lovely sunny afternoon, and it was a delight to drive home from work today with an orange setting sun warming the fields as I passed them. :)

I feel sad

2009-01-23T21:11:00.005Z

For several reasons (which I will go into when I have more time) I feel very sad this evening. So any cheeriness that you girls can send my way would be very greatly appreciated. Thanks.

EDIT: Thank you everyone for your kind comments. Basically, I have just found out that the place where I work will be closing in April, leaving me in a position of uncertainty as to my future with the company. When I told Mr Deravelled last night, instead of the support I was hoping for, he instead said that we couldn't afford for our monthly income to go down, and what was I going to do about it. Not the most supportive thing to say!!

But your kind comments have helped me get a little perspective, thank you. :)

Gemma x x

A skirt for the Moomin

2009-01-21T11:01:00.005Z

I have made the Moomin a skirt. It is only very simple, and I didn't use a pattern. I just cut a length of my chosen cotton fabric, from selvage to selvage, to the length I wanted it to be plus enough for hemming and waistband, then sewed it all together.

For the waistband I used 1/2 inch non-roll elastic. Because it is really sturdy, the resulting waistline is really neat and even.

I finished off the skirt with a trimming of broderie anglais, which has a lovely delicate botanical design on it (and it as a bargain from Hobbycraft, too!!). The Moomin has received many compliments when she has worn it, and Mr Deravelled says how great it looks every time he sees it. It's almost as if he can't believe that I could make something so nice!! The cheeky so and so!!

Also, if you haven't already, don't forget to leave a comment on my giveaway post below, for your chance to win some lovely goodies!! :)

I am currently planning out a fleece blanket for the moomin, so more on that later......

My first giveaway!!!

2009-01-18T19:39:00.011Z

Finally, here it is. The first ever Deravelled giveaway!

Since I started blogging last summer, I have met so many wonderful people in blogland. So, as a little thank you to all of you for being so friendly and inspirational and wonderful, I would like to offer you my first giveaway.

I wonder what's inside?

Lucky winner number one will win the following: a shabby chic botanic style stiff card box (the perfect size for photographs); a shabby French chic inspired hanging heart with ivory satin ribbon and black reclaimed button (made by me); a still wrapped bar of Culpeper Elizabethan triple milled hand soap (the most delicious vintage fragrance ever!) which is no longer made, so a rare find indeed and taken from my personal stash (aren't I kind!):

And finally, you will also received a handmade card, perfect for Valentine's Day, featuring two entwined hearts joined by a silver gemstone heart. It also features a real metal "zipper" charm, with the word "Love" embossed onto it.

This card, made by me, come complete with a matching pink envelope.

Lucky winner number two will win the following:

You will win a handmade Valentine's card, but this time with the word "Together" embossed on the zipper charm.

You will also receive a set of three handmade shabby chic note cards with matching envelopes, featuring fabric-look floral papers and skeleton leaves:

And finally, you will win a shabby French chic inspired hanging heart with ruby red grosgrain ribbon and ivory reclaimed flower button (made by me):

So, if you'd like to win one of the above two prizes, simply leave a comment below (and state your preferred prize) before I draw the two winners next Sunday evening, for your chance to win. :)

Thanks again for making my time in blogland a happy one.

Gemma x x

A lovely afternoon

2009-01-17T17:17:00.004Z

Today we went to a local park to blow away the cobwebs and push the Moomin around on her Iggle Piggle trike. Although cold, it was lovely and sunny - a perfect winter's day.

Then we walked up to a pub that backs onto the park, and had a scrummy meal in the warm. Lovely!

Tonight we're going for another meal - this time with my parents, sister and her other half, to belatedly celebrate my birthday all together. :)

A little shopping spree

2009-01-16T17:11:00.007Z

Today the Moomin and I went to our local indoor market to pick up some new thread. As you can see, we came away with a little more than the planned white gutermann!! I found some nice denim fabric, which I bought a metre of to make into a tote bag for a friend (she saw mine, and decided she had to have one!). To go with the denim, I picked out a lovely smoke grey zip, to turn the tote into an everyday handbag, with a bit more security when carrying keys and purses, etc.

I got the white thread (hurrah!!), but then also had to take home a spool each of ivory, sunshine yellow, tangerine and nut brown threads, as they were such gorgeous, happy colours. I will use the yellow thread to sew the Moomin's new curtains (I ordered the fabric yesterday - a lovely cheery yellow cotton with white polka dots - the Moomin's choice!!). The ivory thread will be used to sew a skirt I am going to make for myself, the tangerine thread I chose to compliment the denim fabric I bought to make the bag for my friend, and I haven't yet decided what to use the lovely nut brown thread for yet - sometimes it's nice just to know you have it!!

After searching for nearly two years, I also finally found the perfect sterling silver charm bracelet for the Moomin. She received several precious charms for her first birthday and naming ceremony, and I have been searching since then for a tasteful charm bracelet, to no avail. I found this one in H Samuel purely by accident whilst I was waiting for them to replace my watch battery for me. And even better, it had been reduced from £50 to £29.99!! Whoop whoop! :)

I also couldn't resist picking up the latest issue of Country Living magazine. I am trying to curb my obsession with all things home-making magazine this year, but I decided to treat myself to a little light reading, seeing as it was my birthday on Tuesday!!

Right, I'm off to make a cup of tea and get the Moomin some juice. Then I've got to decide what to make for dinner, as Mr Deravelled will be home in about half an hour, after an exhausting drive home in heavy traffic. I'm thinking fish pie. Or maybe stir fried chicken breast in hoi sin sauce with rice. Mmmmmmmm..... :)

Avoidance...

2009-01-15T23:49:00.004Z

Well, today I had intended to get down to the business of completing several sewing projects that I have on the go (including the giveaway item - coming soon - I promise!!). However, it would seem that the god/dess of sewing had other ideas. First the bobbin ran out of thread, then I ran out of white thread altogether after filling the bobbin. So I had to use a spool of pale pink thread instead. Sigh.

Then the machine started playing up and trying to eat the fabric I was sewing, before acting like the thread tension was all wrong and making everything pucker. And to top it off, the upper thread kept jumping around all over the place and not behaving itself. By this time I wasn't just sighing any more. So, after completely ruining a perfectly good piece of Laura Ashley fabric, I threw a sulk (rather than the machine), and went into the other room to read through the manual, to see if I could figure out why it was being so evil to me today.

Turns out that when I replaced the top thread, I put it on the spool thing the wrong way round, and so the thread wasn't feeding through to the needle correctly, and so was dislodging from the upper thread holder and just basically making a nuisance of itself. So I turned it around and to be fair it did look a lot happier.

But that wasn't all. While all this naughtiness with the top thread was going on, the bobbin had decided it wanted to join in, too, as I discovered when I took it out to inspect it. It had somehow managed to gather together a rather unsavory group of extra threads - all with many ends sticking out all over the place, and it also looked like it had at one point tried to hang itself, it was so tangled up in the mass of knotted threads. So I just started pulling ends out whenever I found them, until eventually there was just the recommended number of ends poking out of the bobbin feed hole, and everything looked nice and tidy again.

I tested that the machine was now working properly on the now ruined Laura Ashley fabric, and, once satisfied that I had done an excellent job of being sewing machine doctor, no longer felt the urge to sew. So instead, I did what we all do when faced with tasks we don't find appealling - I avoided it. I suddenly, and with great conviction, decided that it was desperately important that I press, fold and put away my fabric stash - in full - immediately. So that's what I did. I even found a nice little place for them on the bottom shelf of a kitchen cupboard (my sewing area is in a corner of our kitchen). It took me two hours to do completely (some of the pieces were pretty creased!), but I am very pleased with the result. And despite it being an avoidance activity, I do feel like I have achieved something today. And also, now Mr Deravelled is much less likely to notice if more fabric adds itself to the pile, seeing as it is now nicely tucked away under the tea towel shelf. And, as you can see in the photo, there's plenty of room for more! ;)

So tomorrow the Moomin and I are going to take a trip to our local indoor market to pick up some more white thread from the little fabric shop we like to frequent. Just the thread. Promise. Although, I do need some ribbon. And some broderie anglais to edge a skirt for the Moomin. And possibly just a smidge of fabric to make a little skirt for me.....

The Lunch Date Blouse GIVEAWAY!!!!

2009-01-14T11:40:00.001Z

The Lunch Date Blouse GIVEAWAY!!!!

Ok, this isn't my planned giveaway, but that of a very inspirational blogger, whose posts I love to read and be inspired by.

Such a beautiful blouse - and such a beautiful woman. :)

Happy Birthday to me!! And a giveaway coming up!!

2009-01-13T10:36:00.008Z

Well, today I turn 28. I can't believe how fast life flies by. It doesn't seem five minutes ago I was sixteen and sat gazing out of the window in a geography lesson, wishing I was older and didn't have to go to school any more!! (I actually loved school, but geography was not my favourite subject!) Now look what's happened - it's twelve years later, and all that's changed is that I now sit at a desk in a mind numbing job, wishing I was back at school!! lol

I remember playing "Button Moon" with my friend Sally, at age six. I remember being one of the only kids at school one day, age eight, because the snow was so deep, and all the lessons being cancelled and having snowball fights all day (bliss!). I remember the tears I cried when we moved up to Yorkshire from South Wales when I was ten. I remember my first kiss at age eleven (it was awful!). I remember fearlessly walking two miles to my best friend's house, down a long and winding country road, on a regular basis (she lived on a farm), and thinking nothing of it, aged fourteen. I remember breaking my heart when my first serious boyfriend dumped me, age sixteen, and swearing off boys forever (ha ha!). And everything since then has gone by in a blur. Meeting Mr Deravelled; starting a new life with him in his home town, away from all my friends and family in mine; getting engaged; graduating from uni; planning our wedding, then that same weekend finding out I was pregnant with the Moomin (!); the Moomin being born six weeks early, and spending two very stressful weeks in hospital with her, praying that she would soon be well enough to come home; moving house; Mr Deravelled starting his own (still very successful)business; the Moomin's first birthday; falling in love all over again in New York City; the Moomin's second birthday; Mr Deravelled taking a 9-5 in Leeds; planning and booking our wedding in New York and having everyone who we wanted to be there being able to make it (thanks everyone!); and now here I am, sat typing this!

Wow, that was a very potted history of my life, with some ommissions for ease of reading, obviously!!

I have been pondering for a little while as to whether or not I should have a giveaway on my blog, to say thank you to everyone who takes the time to come and read my ramblings. And now it is my birthday I feel there is no better way to celebrate! So, in the next few days I will announce the first Deravelled giveaway of one of my creations. I am no professional by any stretch of the imagination, but if you fancy winning something homespun, keep your eyes peeled over the next few days. :) Now I need to find my camera......

ETA (10.30pm): The Moomin found my camera for me (clever Moomin!!), and so here is a photo of a slice of the gorgeous Victoria sponge that Mr Deravelled made me this evening for my birthday. What a sweetie! Of course, he DID use every mixing bowl and spoon we own to make it, and then left it all for me to clean up!! But we can't expect everything from our menfolk, can we? ;)

My first bag!

2009-01-12T09:37:00.005Z

Well, after my last post, instead of going away and working on perfecting my doll pattern as planned, instead I decided to make a bag. Yes, a bag. The pattern is from Lotta Jansdotter's fabulous book, Simple Sewing, and I have to say, I'm really proud of my achievment. It took me about 4 hours, start to finish (the fabric cutting out process takes me ages!), and was loads of fun! The photo doesn't really do it justice, so I will explain all the bits. The fabric I used for the outside is a medium weight 100% cotton, snapped up in the current Laura Ashley sale, and is a lovely faded blue colour. The fabric I used for the lining is a cute floral polycotton fabric in baby pink, which I spotted at a fabric stall in my local indoor market (it was a steal, too!!). I used a bit of pale rose coloured velvet ribbon that I found in Hobbycraft to line the edge of the pocket on the front, and all in all, I think it looks pretty good for my first bag!

It's funny, because I didn't really enjoy doing sewing at school. I was always afraid of the sewing machines (after my teacher gave us the ubiquitous girl in previous year didn't look what she was doing and got the needle through her finger speech), and so kept away from them as much as possible. But my little sister had her own sewing machine from a very young age, and could knock up pretty much anything if she put her mind to it. But then last October, she asked me what I would like for Christmas. I had been admiring several Cath Kidston-esque quilts from afar, and so mentioned those to her as an option. However, knowing how tight money is at the moment for everyone, I suggested that she could make me a quilt instead of buying one, as it might save her a bit of money (and we all love something handmade with love, don't we?). She agreed (the darling!), and proceeded to keep me updated with visits to fabric shops etc.

I started wondering what I was missing, and the more I thought about it, the more I realised that I wanted to try this whole sewing malarky for myself. After all, I had managed to finally conquer knitting last summer (after a million and one failed attempts as a child - much to my mother's despair!!)so, maybe it was finally time for me to conquer my fear of getting a needle stuck through my finger (I actually haven't got rid of that fear, to be fair). I was already ok at hand sewing, but felt that the time was finally right to move on to bigger things. And by bigger things, I mean a sewing machine.

So when my mum asked me what I would like for Christmas, I knew immediately. Knowing nothing myself about the difference between a domestic machine and an overlocker, for example, I left the decision up to mum (she does indeed know best!), and so, on Christmas day, after an age of waiting, I was finally the proud owner of my very own shiny new scrummy yummy sewing machine!!

It is a Brother XL-5600, and I adore it!! It's a model that is now no longer made, but still fab, and I am enjoying getting to grips with it (especially figuring out what all the additional feet provided with it are for - only a couple of them are explained in the manual). Sorry there's no photo of my own machine, but my camera has gone AWOL, and Mr Deravelled's has just run out of battery (not that mysterious an occurence, seeing as the Moomin was playing with it last night!!).

Anyway, sorry for the long post, but I did promise to post about my Christmas pressies ;). Mr Deravelled got me a tax disc for my car (it's what I asked for!!), and, just to prove that he is quite romantic (and to balance out the whole tax disc thing) he bought me some gorgeous underwear from Figleaves.com. AND he picked my favourite colours. AND he got the right size!! Clever Mr Deravelled!! :)

Very sleepy now, and a photo of a doll

2009-01-08T00:33:00.004Z

Just a quick post before I finally clamber into bed. The meal tonight was gorgeous, and it was wonderful to catch up with friends we haven't seen in a while. For Craig's birthday (he turned 29), I made him a "Craig Doll", which was dressed in a karate uniform, complete with black belt (Craig is a karate instructor). Evereyone loved the little doll, and were making it do all the karate moves across the table all evening. Here is a photo I took of it earlier.

It's not bad for a first attempt at making a doll. I designed the pattern for it myself, and just winged it with the little jacket and trousers. Although Craig told me this evening that I had tied the belt wrong!! But I don't do karate, so how was I to know? ;) I now have several requests to do mini versions of other people, so I'm going to see if I can perfect the little doll pattern over the next few days. I'll let you know how I get on. :)

Back to normal

2009-01-07T15:27:00.003Z

Well, the tree and all the decorations came down on Monday evening, and have all been carefully packed away ready for next year. I can't believe the festive season is now well and truly over. It never lasts long enough for my liking!! However, as next Tuesday is my birthday, I have managed to get next week off from work, so things are looking up!!

Tonight we are going out for a curry for a friend's birthday, which I am looking forward to. And a year today me and Mr Deravelled finally get married (after a lot of false starts and cancellations!!), so I am now allowing myself to start to get a little bit excited. Yay!! We are getting married in Ladies Pavillion in Central Park, New York, and it's all booked up now. All that's left to sort is the bridesmaids dresses, Mr Deravelled and his Best Man's suits, the flowers, and the party for everyone who couldn't come to New York, for when we come back. We are also spending our honeymoon in New York, so will be there for a total of 12 nights!! We're hoping for snow (not so much that the whole city comes to a standstill - just enough for it to look good on the photos!)

Here is a photo of Ladies Pavillion in summer. Doesn't it look beautiful? :)

Happy New Year, Everyone!!

2009-01-03T13:22:00.003Z

Just a super quick post before the Moomin steals the laptop to play her Mister Maker DVD on. I hope everyone had a very happy new year, and that it's turning brings you love, happiness, peace and plenty!!

I will post more later - including pressie pictures!! :D

x x

Merry Christmas, Everybody!

2008-12-24T08:41:00.005Z

Well, as we are all aware, things are about to get pretty busy for us homemakers and purveyors of Christmas Spirit (and I'm not talking about alcohol!). The food is all now bought, and anything that has been forgotten, we'll have to do without, as time has run out for me to be driving all over the place looking for that elusive ingredient or food item.

Oh my goodness - it's Christmas eve, everyone!! How did that happen?? I had weeks left a moment ago!! Argh! I feel like we're at the very top of a roller coaster, teetering just before the big drop that you can't control and just have to enjoy. And we will enjoy it. The Moomin is now old enough to get excited at the mention of presents and Father Christmas - or, as she calls him, "Vawer Grizmaz".

As I am quite a slow knitter (having a very energetic two year old doesn't help speed the process any!), I am ashamed to say that I didn't manage to complete my Christmas Knit List this year, but the most important things got completed, and are wrapped and under the tree, so that's the main thing! I am knitting Mr Deravelled a stripey blanket in manly shades (blues, browns and creams) that I was hoping to have had finished by now, but, as with everything, life got in the way, and so I'm four panels down (I have completed two). Luckily, that was not his only present, so I don't think he'll be too disappointed tomorrow!! I just need to learn some speed knitting techniques, methinks.

We went food shopping last night, and, as is the tradition, forgot a food item. This year it was the chocolate yule log. Never fear, thought I - I will make one, no problem! It was only when I got home that I realised that I don't have a big rectangular baking tray for baking the pre-rolled log on. Argh!!! So instead, we are having Chocolate Orange Cake, as featured in Nigella Lawson's classic culinary tome, How to be a Domestic Goddess. And for all of you lovely ladies who may be in a similar predicament, or just fancy a good quick standby recipe (because, lets face it, that makes us all feel a little more secure), here is the recipe for you. :)

Chocolate Orange Cake

125g unsalted butter
100g dark chocolate, broken into pieces
300g good, thin-cut marmalade
150g caster sugar
pinch of salt
2 large eggs, beaten
150g self raising flour

20cm Springform tin, buttered and floured.

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C/ Gas Mark 4.

Put the butter in a heavy-bottomed saucepan and put over a low heat to melt. When it's nearly completely melted, stir in the chocolate. Leave for a moment to begin softening, then take the pan off the heat and stir with a wooden spoon until the butter and chocolate are smooth and melted. Resist temptation to dip finger in.

Now add the marmalade, sugar, salt and eggs. Stir with your wooden spoon and when all is pretty well amalgamated, beat in the flour bit by bit. Put into your prepared tin and bake for about 50 minutes or until a skewer comesout clean.

Cool in the pan on a rack for 10 minutes before turning out.

Decorate however you wish (a snowy dusting of icing sugar looks nice). Can be eaten warm with a good dollop of creme fraiche (or ice cream), or cold.

Serves 6.

And here is something for the children - you can track Father Christmas live as he flies his sleigh around the world. That should get you in the mood!

Merry Christmas, Everyone!! May your day be filled with joy and goodwill to all, and hardly any bickering!! x x

Happy Yule, everyone!!

2008-12-21T12:37:00.003Z

Just wanted to say Happy Yule to all those who observe the sacred festival. Although I love winter and everything that goes with it, it is also wonderful to be able to now say that from today, we know that the sun is slowly returning, and it will not be long before we see the evidence of new life appearing, in the form of snowdrops in the countryside, and new baby lambs on the hills. It is a festival of optimism and light in the depths of winter, and reminds us that death (or darkness) is a part of life (or light) and is not to be feared.

We will be spending the evening with friends, celebrating with food and drink like our ancestors always have, and marking the passage of time and the light that remains even in the darkest of days.

Happy Yule, everyone!! :)

Busy busy busy!!

2008-12-18T11:26:00.004Z

I have been busily washing and cleaning in preparation for a couple of days off from the drudgery of household chores once we hit Christmas eve evening. I am aiming to get on top of the hamper of clothes at the top of the stairs (I have already vanquished the basket in the kitchen - woo hoo!!), but this means I'm pretty much non stop at the moment. I need to hoover the whole house (and remember to empty the hoover first this time!!), wash the windows, clean the bathroom, put away the worryingly teetering tower of clean clothes that were not long ago in that basket in the kitchen, take the rubbish out, get stamps from the post office to post the christmas cards that are STILL on the table in the living room (yes, I KNOW that I've left it really late - but they're cards for Mr Deravelled's friends, and he's not exactly seeing the posting of them as an urgent priority, so it's left to me, again!!), and convince the Moomin that her toys would look much better tidied away in her bedroom rather than scattered liberally around the living room. Phew! Now it's all written down, I don't think I have the energy to do any of it!!

To finish off, here's a little photo of the Moomin that I took the other night. She hadn't had a nap all day, and it got to 8pm and she just dropped!! How sweet! :)

The Christmas Day Menu

2008-12-17T22:34:00.004Z

Ok, so after much pondering and flicking through of my recipe books and magazines, here is the planned christmas day menu (obviously dependent on actually being able to get hold of some kind of turkey!!)

Christmas Day 2008
Turkey Crown
Roast Potatoes
Mashed Potatoes
Yorkshire puddings
Peas
Carrots
Cabbage
Brussel Sprouts
Stuffing balls
Bacon-wrapped chipolatas
Gravy
Cranberry sauce

Yummy yummy yummy!!!

And for dessert, we are having chocolate yule log, hot chocolate sauce and clotted cream ice cream. Mmmmm. I love christmas!!!

And here is a little piccy of some of the decorations adorning our hallway tree. I can't show you a photo of the whole tree, as our hallway isn't big enough for me to get far enough back with my camera!!

Photos of our tree

2008-12-16T21:18:00.008Z

As requested (and promised!!), here are a few photos of the tree that stands in our living room. It is a collection of vintage, new(ish) and handmade decorations - and we tend to add to it every year. Anyway, enough of me jabbering on! Here are the photos!! :D

My parents brought us back the red velvet ribbon for the top of the tree from one of their frequent trips over to America, a few years back. I really like it because it's not the usual star or fairy.

I made the gingham heart myself. There are currently two on the tree, as well as several in different fabrics dotted around the house (although they are constantly being moved around as the Moomin likes to play with them!!). I bought the brass sun ornament (there are a few of them on the tree) when I worked at Culpeper.

And here is one of the robins made from feathers that we have. It is perched precariously on a branch, as the Moomin has somehow managed to pull it off its thread!! You can also see a brass sun disc (again from Culpeper). They are so deliciously Pagan, and remind us that even though it's cold and dark outside, the warming sun of spring is not too far away. Don't you just love that symbolism?!

The tree!!

2008-12-11T17:10:00.004Z

The tree is up!! After much searching and head scratching, we finally found our trusty christmas tree, hidden under several hundred boxes of junk in the attic. I was hoping that the Moomin would be eager to help decorate it, but she seemed more interested in taking the baubles back off it, which I thought was very unfestive of her. I even managed to rope Mr Deravelled into putting three or four baubles on it for once (he usually takes a back seat in the annual decking of the halls fiasco). This year our theme is red and gold, with much more emphasis on gold than red, although that is mainly down to us having many more gold decorations than red!!

We also have a mini tree up in the hallway (which is truly an achievement of epic proportions, considering the matchbox dimensions of our hallway) and no one has (yet) tripped over it or knocked it over etc. Its colours are red and gold also, with slightly more emphasis on the red, just to balance things out a bit!! It is also sporting three rather realistic looking robins, which the Moomin thinks is wonderful. However, it has no lights, as we couldn't find them. And come to mention it, the big tree in the living room is without twinkly lights, as one of the bulbs has gone, and in my haste to swap it with a working one that was currently at the back of the tree, I broke it, and so now none of them are working. Grrr. Mr Deravelled brought home a replacement string of lights that his sister has given us, but the thought of having to take all those decorations off to get to the original string of lights and replace them with the new ones, then put all the decorations back on, fills me with dread. Mr Deravelled doesn't understand this, as he usually has little to no involvement with the decorating side of things, and so has no idea what a pain it will be to replace them. That can be his task for the year, then!!!

I will post photos when I can find my camera. :)

So excited!!!

2008-11-26T17:46:00.005Z

Well, the festive season is imminent, and I am really getting excited now!! I have done nearly all my gift buying, and can now concentrate one the presents I am making. I will post photos of the hand made gifties as and when I finish them. There are a few on the go at the moment - all involving fabric and buttons and thread and stuffing.... You'll have to wait till they're finished to find out what I'm up to!!

In other news, I spied the most gorgeous two tiered cake stand in Morrisons last week, and, after squealing delightedly about it, Mr Deravelled finally got the hint, and has bought it for me for Christmas!! yayay!! Here's a sneaky little pic that I took of it before it was whisked away for wrapping.

It's so vintage and lovely and perfect for prettily iced fairy cakes!!! Mr Deravelled doesn't see the appeal himself, but then, he likes modern styles more than vintage. But we can't have everything, can we girls?? :)

Free Yoga!!

2008-11-16T23:07:00.002Z

I found this brilliant yoga site whilst perusing the world wide web. It offers free yoga lessons online, that you can follow in your own time. It looks really good, and you can do it next to your desk! I used to do yoga a bit when I was younger, but then, as with everything, life got in the way and I neglected my studies. Maybe I should make a new years resolution...

Nordic Bo Peep and Long Lost Sheep Costume GIVEAWAY!!!!

2008-11-11T22:39:00.000Z

Nordic Bo Peep and Long Lost Sheep Costume GIVEAWAY!!!!

Remembrance Day

2008-11-11T19:58:00.003Z

I am pleased to say that the two minute silence was observed at work today by everyone - except some old men who continued talking!! So at the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, we remembered the few to which us many owe so much.

Lest we forget.

Butter Biscuits in the warm and dry

2008-11-09T17:36:00.007Z

Today has seen us with the curtains closed, the lights on, and the heating on all day. What wild weather we're having!! It's been rainy and windy for most of the day, so we felt that we had no choice but to stay in and watch films and play games.

We watched Stardust, which Mr Deravelled picked up for £5 in Morrisons yesterday as a little treat for us, and it's a brilliant film!! Even the Moomin stayed still for some of it! Then Mr Deravelled and the Moomin painted pictures (and got more paint on the floor than on the paper!) and stacked dominos, while I rolled the dough out for butter biscuits that I had prepared last night. Then the Moomin cut them out into different shapes and I put them in the oven. They're definitely moreish, and there aren't many left now. I was intending on icing them, but I dont really see the point now they've nearly all been snaffled already!!

I'm now settling down with my Christmas knitting, and later I think I'll have a nice warm bubble bath (which the Moomin will probably try to steal lol). Maybe I'll just have one more biscuit......

New ovens and sock patterns

2008-11-08T01:00:00.003Z

Well, the new oven arrived yesterday, and it's lovely. All shiny and fancy looking!! We now know just how past it our old oven was, as this one is so efficient and quiet. Our last one used to heat the whole kitchen up before it cooked the food, and was soooo noisy!!!! This one is whisper quiet - so much so that when I first used it yesterday, I had to open it to check it was working!! I then got a blast of super hot air in my face, which again was a shock, as it wasn't hot at all on the outside. Wow, a proper real oven!!! Time to make more cakes, methinks!!

I am also on a quest to find a simple sock pattern for mens socks. They all seem to have cabling or fancy bits of some description, and I just want a very plain pattern.. Anyone have any suggestions as to where to find one?

Right, off to bed now. It's so late, and I'm exhausted!

Happy Samhain, everyone!!

2008-10-31T14:41:00.004Z

Or Happy Halloween, if you're more into the trick or treating aspect of this sacred festival.

Well, me and the Moomin will be carving pumpkins tonight. I have the pumpkin carving kit at the ready, and have managed to find some tea lights to go in the finished lanterns. We will also circle round and read stories on the legends of Samhain, and then, once the Moomin is safely tucked up in bed, Mr Deravelled will be forced to watch the finale of Most Haunted Live - possibly in the dark!! He wont like that!! But I'll make some popcorn, so he might not moan too much.

To be honest, the majority of the time, Most Haunted exacerbates me, what with the irresponsible ouija board usage, shouting of insults to supposed resident spirits, and Yvette's persistance in believing that Witchcraft = Evil. Sigh. Mr Deravelled looked at me and laughed the other night when I was watching it, because she started shouted something like "come on you evil witch bitches", and knew I'd be rolling my eyes. Which I was. Considering the job she's doing, she's not very enlightened!!

But I just love to soak up the experience and atmosphere - all those old houses they get to walk around fascinate me. I make notes of the best so that I can drag the family to see them in the day time! I do love my castles and stately homes!!

Anyway, I'm off to do some tidying and washing ready for tonight. It's so exciting that the Moomin will now be old enough to really enjoy this sacred celebration. :)

The oven is broken!

2008-10-30T23:31:00.005Z

Well, as the title to this post says, our oven is broken. It lights up, the fan goes, but it just will not heat up. I learnt this on Tuesday evening when I came home from work and attempted to cook a pizza for the three of us. When after half an hour the cheese hadn't melted, I started to get suspicious. Cue Mr Deravelled doing the manly fiddle with it thing, before coming to the same conclusion that I had already reached - "yep" he said, "it's buggered". (What would us little ladies do without men?) ;)

We have a new oven being delivered next Thursday. :)

Me the Domestic Goddess!!

2008-10-22T22:44:00.005+01:00

Well, the last few days have been baking days for me and the Moomin. Yesterday it was wholemeal bread rolls (so that Mr Deravelled would have some to take for lunch today), and today it was fairy cakes. Millions of them. I haven't even managed to ice half of them yet, there's that many. I have given up for the evening now, and they're all packed neatly away in a cake tin, ready for when I'm feeling more awake and creative tomorrow! I personally prefer my fairy cakes au natural, but for the Moomin and Mr Deravelled, I ice them. Some are hot pink (were meant to be pale pink, but the colouring kind of got away from me a bit, and now I also have a hot pink thumb!!), and some are the most gorgeous pale primrose yellow that really deserve some pretty purple sugar flowers on top to finish them off, but I don't have any in the cupboard, and so they've had to settle for tiny crystallised orange and lemon slices instead. It's not the same, though, and I may have to go in search of some purple cake decorations of some description tomorrow with the Moomin.

Now, I am nestled back into our comfy schmooshy sofa, puter on my lap, a fairy cake on a plate next to me, and a steaming mug of hot chocolate next to that. The Moomin is asleep in her cot, tired out after the day's activities, Mr Deravelled is upstairs in his office finishing off some work, Most Haunted is on the TV, and life is pretty good. :)

De-clutter, chuck and throw away!!

2008-10-16T11:51:00.004+01:00

Today is turning out to be a decluttering day. Who knew just how much junk there could be in a relatively small space - like on top of the microwave, for example? That has all now been removed and sorted, and in its place are a few of my favouritest recipe books, all stacked neatly, ready to be perused for new culinary ideas.

2008-10-15T17:18:00.005+01:00

Ok, my list of knitted treats for loved ones for Christmas stands as follows:

* For my little Sister (with a very stressful job as a Financial Analyst for an international bank based in Canada Square in Canary Wharf) - a Snood (circular scarf that you can pull up around your face and ears) made with some scrummy oatmeal coloured 30% wool Wendy Pampas Mega Chunky; and hopefully, if I have time (ha ha!) a pair of wrist warmers. I will probably knit her OH, a lovely Parisian man who moved over here to live with her and make a beautiful home together, some fingerless gloves - and maybe a snood, too, as he loves his scarves.

* For my Mum (also with a very stressful job in sales, where they constantly get at her to stop building up rapport with customers and just sell them stuff they don't really need - BAD company - you'd be surprised [or maybe not] if I were to name and shame!!) - an evening bag in a gorgeous creamy blue, knitted in RYC Luxe merino yarn (bought for half price in the HobbyCraft sale!!). As my mum is a super-knitter herself, I really don't know what else to knit for her - if anything. I bought her some knitty novels for her birthday, which she loved, so maybe more of the same will be in order!! And a good bottle of red, methinks. :)

* For my darling Mr Deravelled, I am currently knitting him socks (my first attempt at knitting on dpns) - well, a sock, anyway. At first he couldn't understand why I was knitting them, but now he is always asking me when they'll be finished!! lol

* The Moomin is a tricky one - she has an abundance of hats, so I may end up knitting her a snood, too. And maybe some cute little wrist warmers. But that would mean having to buy some pink yarn of some description. Hmmmmm........

* I may knit my Dad a scarf, as he has lots of jumpers that my mum has knitted him over the years. I'd knit him socks, but I find them so labour intensive that I shudder at the thought of getting them done in time!! Maybe next year!

A month away and nothing done!!

2008-10-14T14:15:00.008+01:00

I can't believe I haven't posted on here in over a month! It has been a hectic month, what with me passing my driving test (finally!!) towards the end of September, then searching for and buying a cute little car to run me and the Moomin about in. Mr Deravelled has started a new job which involves a two hour commute up the motorway every day (which he says is already becoming a bore), and the Moomin is coming on leaps and bounds with her talking - she is now talking in simple sentences, and we can almost always understand her nowadays, which is wonderful. We have even started potty training her, but as she is only just two, it is a nice, casual affair, and so far she loves the praise she gets when she asks to use her potty and then actually uses it!! We're a while off the switch from nappies yet, but at least she is happy and we're happy with her working through it in her own time, so it's all good!!

Knitting-wise, not much has been happening since I finished the red beret, unfortunately. I had got quite far with a project I am knitting on behalf of my Mum for my sister for Christmas, but yesterday I found the Moomin had pulled it off the needles (I couldn't shout at her - I had told her earlier that I was going to catch up on my knitting later, and she was just trying to pull the needles out of the knitting bag for me - bless her!) and the whole thing was too far gone to salvage. So unfortunately it had to all be ripped out, and I have just started it again now. However, when you'd got so far on a piece, and all of a sudden you're looking at having to start it again from scratch, it gets quite depressing!! Ah well, I shall soldier on!!

Me and the Moomin have been going to the park a lot recently - perhaps trying to make the most of the last of the warmish weather and soak up as much of the remaining sunshine as possible before we all snuggle down for a winter full of hot chocolate, home made gingerbread, Yankee candles and long hot bubble baths. Mmmmmm, maybe winter's not so bad after all!! And we finally get to wear all the lovely layers of handknits that have been worked on throughout the year. Bliss!

And yes, that is a handknit being modelled by the Moomin - knitted by my very talented mother. I keep trying to convince her that she should quit her awful job that depresses her and open a wool shop. I'd work there!!

That's all for now. Have to go - the Moomin is vying for my attention and going a bit crazy!!

The beret is finished!

2008-09-10T15:14:00.003+01:00

Well, the beret is now finished. It looks really good, if I do say so myself. However, the pattern called for two balls of Twilleys Freedom Spirit wool, but I actually only used one (damn my tension!) so it has ended up quite small. It does fit on my head, but it's not a big floppy beret you could pull down over your ears - more a delicate little percher that sits unobtrusively at the crown. But I like it - I can imagine that I am a young French madamoiselle, walking across one of the bridges that spans the Seine, walking a little white dog called Fi Fi, smoking a Cafe Creme cigarello and reading a dog-eared paperback copy of an eighteenth century racy novel. I imagine I would be wearing a tightly belted shiny black mac and maybe have a spotty scarf tied around my neck, and wear bright red lipstick and stockings. Ha ha - all that from a beret!! I don't even smoke, so I don't know where the cigarello came from! I should write a book!!

The Moomin has just eaten half a toasted cinnamon and raisin bagel, and has now done a huge burp. She said pardon me though, so that's ok! Well, she actually says "puh meeeeee", but we know what she means!!! lol

It's too hot and the Moomin is poorly

2008-08-30T23:59:00.005+01:00

Well, what have I been up to since I last posted? Well, last Sunday we took the Moomin to a re-enactment event not too far from us. It was really good, with re-enactors from all different eras, such as Roman, Viking, Medieval, American Civil War and First and Second World Wars. I particularly enjoyed it, as I used to do Medieval re-enactment when I was still a student, so it was nice to see it all again. Moomin wasn't too keen on the canons firing, though!!! On Bank Holiday Monday, we went to Bridlington for the day. We had a great day, and the weather stayed nice for us - if a little overcast.

Then this week I've been working and attempting to knit a beret for myself. I've frogged it three times now, and am getting a little bit mad with it. But today my Twilleys Freedom Spirit wool arrived from McA Direct, so I have now started it again in that. I ordered two balls in shade Fire, and can't wait to get it finished now.

Me and the Moomin stayed over at my parents last night. She was poorly in the night, and was sick a few times. So today we got her some medicine, as she seems to have a cold, poor thing. All she wanted was her daddy, so she's been cuddling up with Mr Deravelled all evening since we got back home.

Anyway, off to bed now. :)

The Teeny Titchy Preemie Hat is finally complete!!

2008-08-16T22:01:00.005+01:00

I have now finally finished the teeny titchy preemie hat that I'd had to put on the stitch saver a few days ago. I have completed it using the 2.75mm Aero metal needles that I got from the charity shop yesterday. It really is tiny. Looking at my baby head size chart, it will fit a 1-2lb preemie baby. That really is teeny!!! I have taken a photo of it next to an iPod Nano 3G to give you an idea of scale.

I like this hat because it looks like an acorn cup. How cute!! :)

More Stash!!

2008-08-16T12:40:00.004+01:00

Yesterday, The Moomin, Mum and I took a trip into the local town so the Moomin could have her feet measured, as we thought they had grown. Turns out they had, and she's now a 7E!! So she got new pink shoes from Clarks, which she is very pleased with.

I picked up some bargains whilst in town. In Woolworths, they were selling Patons Fab! 100g balls for £1 each, so I picked up 2 balls of black, 2 of white, and 2 of cream. We then went to the market, where I picked up 2 balls of James C Brett Denim DK in a denim colour, one ball of elmo red, and one of cookie monster blue. Surprise surprise I'm going to use the blue and red yarns to make the Moomin a cookie monster and an Elmo, as she loves those characters!! From another stall I managed to get a small silver jingly bell for the Moomin's cat that I'm making now.

I also picked up a pair of 2.75mm metal needles in the PDSA charity shop (35p!!!), and a pair of 2.5mm metal needles in Dunelm. When we got home, my Mum gave me her copy of Nursery Knits, by Zoe Mellor, which is a gorgeous book full of yummy patterns for clothes and toys etc. She also gave me some of her yarn remnants for me to knit more preemie hats. I might even have a go at a pair of booties!! All in all, a great bargain stash day!! :D

Nooo!!! My Pony Pearls!!! Nooo!!!!!!

2008-08-14T13:13:00.006+01:00

Well, last night I was happily clicking away knitting the teeny titchy preemie hat I was telling you about the other day, and guess what?! One of my 2.75mm Pony Pearls went and split at the end, making it impossible to continue knitting. Luckily I was just at the end of a row, so managed to at least get it to a state where I can pick it up again when I get some new needles. For now it is on a stitch saver, looking very sorry for itself.

However, this has now given me the opportunity to get started on a new project - a little knitted kitty. You can find the original pattern for it here. Please be aware that there is a certain amount of bad language on this page!!! I have cast on to my 3.75mm METAL (lol) needles using James C Brett's Top Value 100% Acrylic yarn in a lovely shade of dove grey.

We had a lovely day on Tuesday, celebrating the Moomin's second birthday. Mr Deravelled managed to prise himself away from the office and clients for a day (well, almost!) and we spent a lovely day at Eureka! near Huddersfield. It was very rainy, but luckily it was all inside, so we didn't get too wet!! The Moomin loved it! The photo is from last Sunday - her Nana (as seen in the photo) made the cake. It has yellow icing - as required by the Moomin, who is appearing to develop a penchant for yellow food!!

Argh!! The hat is too small for the Moomin!!

2008-08-12T00:29:00.004+01:00

Well, I finished the hat for the Moomin whilst at my parents' on Sunday, and guess what?! It's too small! I've checked the measurements against my chart of head sizes to ages etc, and it turns out that this hat will fit a 3 - 6 month old, which is poo, seeing as the Moomin turns two in less than eight hours!!

Ah well, back to the needles I suppose. I will have to get some circular needles to knit a bigger size for her, as the hat really looks lovely now it's all made up. Luckily, we have been invited to some of Mr Deravelled's friends' baby girl's blessing ceremony, so we may include the hat as a gift for her.

Now on the needles is another preemie hat. This time it's going to be tiny. Before I used a pair of 3.75mm needles, this time I'm using a pair of 2.75 needles. Already it looks loads smaller. I will take photos tomorrow or wednesday, when I'm not being so lazy!! :)

Yet another hat!!

2008-08-09T23:39:00.005+01:00

I am now knitting another hat, this time it is actually intended for the Moomin. I am using James C Brett Marble DK yarn, in lovely shades of cream and pink, with speckles of grey. It's coming along nicely, and is looking good! Only thing is, I'm a bit worried that it wont be big enough for her head, so I suppose I will have to wait and see when it is finished. Fingers crossed it will be ok, because it is taking AGES to knit!!

My next project I have lined up is to have a go at knitting a pair of socks, as I've just got some DPNs. I've never used DPNs before, so this should be interesting!

Going to visit my parents tomorrow with Mr Deravelled and the Moomin, so hoping for some sunshine for once. I think we had our summer for two weeks in May, and that it's only going to get worse now. Mind you, it's still really hot and muggy - just not dry for long enough for us to enjoy it properly.

It fits on an apple!

2008-08-06T00:16:00.004+01:00

Here is my second attempt at the aforementioned preemie hat. And I think it looks pretty good!! The tension is really even, and it would appear that all my tweaking and adding to the pattern I used last time has resulted in a wearable hat for a teeny tiny preemie baby!! Yay!!

I have modelled iton an apple, btw, incase you were wondering what that was peeking out of the hat!!

Holey preemie hat, Batman!!

2008-08-05T23:28:00.004+01:00

Well, my first attempt at a preemie hat went a little bit wrong, as you can see from the photo above. Not only did I slip a fairly obvious stitch, but it is also big enough to fit on my almost-two year old daughter's head!! Well, it definitely was after she rammed it onto her head, claiming it in the name of Moomin. Sigh.

Knit knit knit!!

2008-08-02T22:00:00.004+01:00

It was Mr Deravelled's birthday on Thursday, and the three of us spent a lovely (if rainy) day at the local Butterfly house, finishing off the evening with a meal with friends at an American style grill restaurant.

Then yesterday and today was spent with the Moomin at my parents' house, relaxing and playing with the Moomin. My Mum took me to her LYS, and I picked out some yummy (and really cheap!!) new yarns to try out, including a ball of cream 4-ply, which is now being used to knit my first preemie hat. So far it is going well, and when I figure out how, I will post a photo to show you. Only problem is, I slipped a stitch as I was coming out of the ribbing, and so now I'm going to have to work a bit of magic with a sewing needle to get rid of the hole!! Other than that I am really pleased with how it's going so far - I am managing to keep my tension pretty even, and the stitches look really neat. (This is after three false starts, when I had to rip out what I'd done as my tension was FAR too tight, and was eventually too tight to knit any more!!)

I'm hoping to have the preemie hat finished by tomorrow. It is for the Three Little Birds group, that have a forum on Ravelry, and I am also going to knit some hats for my local hospital's Special Baby Care unit, where my daughter stayed when she was born prematurely. The Nurses and Doctors do a wonderful job there, and I cannot praise them enough. When I was there I thanked them with chocolate cake (a BIG one!!), now I plan to thank them with tiny knitted hats for the babies in their care!!

It's toooo hot!!

2008-07-29T08:55:00.002+01:00

Wow! How hot was it last night?? The Moomin kept waking up through the night, so Mr Deravelled had to eventually take her downstairs to sleep, where it's cooler.

I've ordered the Twilleys Freedom Spirit 455 catalogue, which was dispatched on Saturday, so should be here any day now!! I'm so excited! Even though I'm no way skilled enough to attempt pretty much any pattern in it, it will be lovely to look through it and plan future projects - know what i mean? :)

Well, off to get ready for work now. Speak later! :D

2008-07-28T23:08:00.001+01:00

I'm sat watching Family Guy with Mr Deravelled, laughing and trying to concentrate on knitting a few more rows of my latest project in yarn, Marisa Turmaine's Tanamana bag. I can't remember which yarn I'm using, as I've lost the paper label!!! But it's DK and green, and knits quite smoothly. Although it does have a tendancy to sever into two when you're trying to knit with it! It looks like moth damage or something. Hmmm mysterious.....

Anyway, back to knitting and Family Guy now!! :)

Good morning and hi!

2008-07-28T08:57:00.001+01:00

Just a super quick note before I have to get ready for work. Welcome to my blog!! It's all about me and my crafty interests! I will be posting some photos on here pretty soon of my projects finished, ongoing and upcoming. But for now, just wanted to say hi!! :)