Knitting Revival!

Still no sign of the mini-mojo but I've not been idle. My son was going to buy a new hat. You've probably seen the youngsters wearing them - the slouchy ones, reminds you of Papa Smurf? Anyway, he seemed quite happy to part with £35 - yes, thirty five pounds! - for a woolly bunnet until I said that I could knit one for much less.

"Yes, but this one is bamboo!" he points out,
"Yes, I can buy bamboo yarn too!" I reply.
"Well can you make one, then?" he asks,
"No problem" says I and off I go to Google bamboo yarns.....

Hmmmm, not as many as I thought! But determined not to give up I headed for local craft store and found two balls of bamboo yarn in the colour he had requested. Home again, rummage for knitting needles as it has been sooooo long since I last used them et voila...

Papa Smurf!!! Sorry, I mean my dearest son modelling his sock hat! And for less than £5 (not including my labour!) It's also reminded me how much I enjoy knitting so I think there will be more on my needles soon, especially as he would now like more hats in other colours!

Anyone for crochet?

My mini mojo seems to have deserted me so for now my blog seems now to be more about Allsorts and less about all things Miniature. Nevertheless, there's been loads of crafting going on here. I've been teaching myself how to crochet. I could crochet an edging around things but following a pattern and using 'proper' crochet stitches had always baffled me. I had been looking for a knitting pattern for a shrug and the only ones I could find were crocheted so what else can a girl do but to join the crochet brigade. Here's my first effort, don't laugh - it's a scarf!

I'm quite pleased with it but, between you and me, I think I'll continue with my hunt for a knitting pattern!

Nooo! Let's get Autumn by first!

Hi everyone and an especially warm welcome to my new followers, glad you're here!

Now, today I picked my mail off the mat only to find my first Christmas catalogue among it - it's September, for goodness sake! The sun is shining today, my washing is blowing in the wind and Christmas is the last thing on my mind! Mind you I did enjoy flicking through it whilst having a cuppa but I know I'm not going to be ordering anything just yet so it'll be consigned to the 'get-to-someday' pile, and then when I think the pile needs tidying up it'll probably end up in the recycling. Do companies have to push the festive season on us earlier each year? Or maybe I should be auditioning for a spot on Grumpy Old Women!

Have a wonderful weekend everyone, wherever you are xx

"Sisters! There were never such devoted sisters...."

Our wee craft group (and I mean wee - there's two of us!) recently started again and I was looking for something to take along. As I've been in a sewing mood recently, I brought out my unfinished raggy dolls to see what actually needed to be done to finish them. As usual with me, it was not a lot! So after some finishing touches may I introduce you, a little out of season, to 'Christmas Rosie'....

and her sister, 'Raggy Ruby' ...

There is still a pair of legs sticking out of my work-in-progress box wearing black cotton stockings festooned with orange stars - looks like that young lady will be a Hallowe'en witchlet! Although 'witch' Hallowe'en is anyone's guess x

Dreaming about Autumn

Thank goodness the weekend is upon us and the stresses of the past week can be forgotten!

Now that we're in September I've noticed that the weather has turned decidedly cooler here in the west of Scotland. There's a nip in the air when I leave for work in the morning followed by some watery sunshine and cool nights. The trees are changing colour and it's now, more than at any other time of the year, that I want to stay at home, to cook, to bake, to make things for the house - start settling down for winter, in other words. Does anyone else feel like that?

I know that it may seem to some too early to think about Autumn but it's my favourite time of year. I've started planning what crafts I want to do over the coming months and as well as miniatures, I want to make some more bears and dolls, try my hand at making handbags (real life size as I'm a handbag junkie!) and have a go at quilt making to try to use up some of my fabric stash. Wouldn't it be nice to give up work over the winter months?

So it looks like I'll be busy and, of course, I'll be sharing it all with you and drawing inspiration from your fabulous blogs. I can't wait....x

Is it too early to hibernate?

This week at work has been the pits and I would like some duvet days please! I work in the health service and I never cease to be amazed at the appalling attitude of patients towards staff. Could I ask all my lovely followers to think twice before kicking off at receptionists and secretaries? We are short-staffed, under-paid, feel under-valued and are most definitely caught in a hard place between the medical staff and patients!

Rant over...normal service will be resumed tomorrow! x

The Falkirk Fair

Ooh 70 followers today - I like round numbers! Welcome all!

Ok, an update about my weekend past. In general I have stopped going to fairs in Scotland because they are quite poor. However, every August there is a fair practically on my doorstep and as it combines bears and dolls with dolls houses and miniatures I always make a point of going. I came back with a solitary item, this ...

A 24th scale sink unit for Mulberry Cottage

(I had made one myself but felt it wasn't quite right!)

I also had a really good look at some dolls. I don't usually put dolls in my houses or scenes because the ones in my price range can sometimes look downright scary but I have my eye on a particular little girl for the Laurels nursery from Bellabelle Dolls so I'd better start saving the pennies!

A Bed for the Laurels Nursery

Hi Everyone and welcome to some more new followers!

A while back I showed you the bed I had made for the nursery from a metal kit. I was soooo in love with that bed....until it came to finishing the base! The plastic side bars that came with it proved to be utterly useless at holding it together and the ends kept falling away. I finally resorted to a gluing a solid base to the frame to keep it together which wasn't really how I had imagined it but as it would not be seen it was the only way to go. I've spent an enjoyable afternoon making the bedding and taming the quilt and am pleased to share with you, this....


Have a lovely weekend, wherever you are x

New Followers and New-Look to Blog

Hello and a warm welcome to my new followers - there seems so many over the past week or so! I'm glad to have you here and hope you find something to inspire you x

Also I thought my blog could do with some tweeking so I've added some new pages, one for miniature gardening and another for my (non-miniature) cross stitching.

Real life is still interfering with my plans but I'll be back soon with the bed I've made for The Laurels - if I could only stop the quilt looking like a flying carpet..lol! Take care x

Needlefelted Bears

You may remember a couple of weeks ago I showed you a little needlefelted dog I made for my friend in the US. Well, she asked if I could make a teddy bear for the little boy's bedroom in her dollhouse. I was happy to oblige and made these two little cuties.....

In return I received loads and loads and loads of tiny punched flower shapes. I am addicted to making flowers just now and they are much appreciated!

The Laurels - exterior finally finished!

After weeks of painting, tweeking and fiddling I'm finally finished the exterior of The Laurels. Here she is....

The glazing has still to go into the windows but I'll deal with that when I get round to starting the curtains.

I Belong to Glasgow, Dear Old Glasgow Town!

Or so the song goes! I have lived in and around Glasgow my entire life but there are many places I have still to visit. First on my list was The People's Palace and Winter Garden situated on Glasgow Green, the oldest park in Glasgow. It was on this site that the last public hanging took place in 1865 (a doctor who poisoned his wife and mother-in-law) but the Green, the lung's of the city, is known more as the place where women took their washing to dry 'on the green' and some original clothes poles still exist today.

At the front of the museum is the largest terracotta fountain in the world, the famous Doulton Fountain that was gifted to Glasgow by Henry Doulton in 1888 for Glasgow's first Great Exhibition and is now lovingly restored to its former glory. It stands 14 metres tall.

The People’s Palace was built in 1898. It’s a social history museum where you can find out how the people of Glasgow lived from 1750 until the present day.

You can find out about trade union struggles, crime and punishment, leisure and it also shows you what it was like to be in an Anderson air raid shelter during the war and how the weekly wash was done at the ‘Steamie.’ The pictures below show the wonderful recreation of a ‘single end’ – the one-roomed flat that was home to many Glasgow families. To the right of the range is a double bed set into the wall with another bed underneath on wheels that would be brought out for the children.

There were also a couple of dolls houses which unfortunately were in glass cabinets so photographing them was a bit difficult. The first was built in 1955 by a father for his daughters. He built it in secret in the Anderson Shelter which was still in their garden and it replicates a 'pre-fab' - houses that were built after WW2. Second photo is top view through the cabinet.

The second house is a Glasgow Tenement with each floor showing a different decade. It featured the 1930s, 1950s and 1990s. I would say it is in 24th scale but the detail is still amazing. Again it was difficult to photograph so these are the best I could take.

You can round off your visit relaxing amid tropical trees and plants in the elegant Winter Gardens conservatory.

Across the road from The People's Palace is the wonderful Templeton Carpet Factory. When the Templeton Carpet Company decided to build a factory towards the end of the 19th century, overlooking Glasgow Green it should have been a straightforward job. But the city council kept rejecting their proposals because they were not good enough. So William Leiper, a top architect, was given the brief to design a building with impeccable credentials. He came up with the idea of making it look like the Doge's Palace in Venice - it is not clear whether he was being serious but the council approved. So in 1892 his extravagant edifice of polychromatic brick - orange, yellow, blue, with turrets and arches and circular windows became a reality. It is no longer a carpet factory, it's now a business centre, but it is a stunning piece of Victorian architecture.

I hope you have enjoyed this short tour. I'll post my next visit soon x

New blog for latest project

I'm about to enbark on another dolls house project (like The Laurels it'll be a long haul) and I thought it would be better as a separate blog. So please click on the picture to the right to read about 'Annfield.' I hope you'll enjoy seeing a 1930s home come to life x

Welcome!

I see that I have reached 50 followers...who'd have thought it?
May I welcome all the new comers from the past few weeks and, again, thanks to those who have been with me for a while!
As always your blogs are inspiring, informative and thoroughly enjoyable.
Here's to blogging!