♥ Strawberry Hearts....

Last week I continued to finish off a few projects

and so among other things I returned to my newly named Strawberry Hearts quilt...

Red and aqua...one of my most favourite combinations...

The little polka dot hearts make me think of summer days and strawberries.

It didn't start off this way but I did lose my enthusiasm for it at one point

and so I decided to rescue it by just having some fun 

adding appliqué hearts and some big stitching before securing the layers

...only the 'stitch in the ditch' can be seen on the reverse now it's complete...

It has a red spot on white backing and I made a mini strawberry binding

which I wasn't sure about but now it's complete I think it was the right choice.

I always enjoy sitting hand sewing and stitching down the binding is my most favourite part

....all pins removed and everything being neatly enclosed is such a good feeling

A very brief visit from Mr Sunshine!

The weather here has been wet and humid over the last week...

I had wanted to take a nice pic on the garden bench in the sunshine
but that's going to have to be another day...
I had to make do with taking a chair out from my workroom onto the decking

in between showers....it's rained even more since taking this pic!

Leah has laid claim to it and Ashley's having the crochet

cushion in the last post....(and both are home from uni in less that 2 weeks!
Can you believe Ashley's year in Spain and Portugal is almost at an end?)

Oh...and have you seen these yarn/thread cutters?

I've only just found them and have one in my bag now

whenever I go out which is so much better than taking scissors

....much safer if you have little ones around too...

(mine is from Clover)

.... the plants are happy despite our lack of sunshine!....

...and the shady part of the garden is happy and growing too...

a favourite place for the birds who visit the bird bath and table...

My workroom is just on the other side of the decking there

so I have a good view of everything they get up to!

(the fern came from the garden where I grew up
 and it's clearly thriving in these damp and humid days...

♥ ...and thinking of strawberries.....

Will you be watching Wimbledon?
I think I may just sneak off and watch a couple of hours this afternoon
....strawberries in tow of course!

(and it slots into your cotton reel...how neat is that?)

♥

Next post is one of the yarny kind

as I've been doing some knitting and crochet too...

~♥~

Thank you as always for calling by!

Wishing you a wonderful new week

Take care until next time

Things old and new...

My crochet cushion is finished....I love how it has turned out...

both the mix of colours and the gorgeous Rooster yarn which give it a beautiful dense quality

(the reverse side just has a single flower in the centre)

Time is such a funny thing, isn't it? 

I'm often complaining that it flies by far too quickly these days 

and yet I only started to crochet at Easter and that momentous occasion now seems a lifetime ago...

It's definitely a firm addition in my crafty life now...especially those 3D flowers!

(I must add that it's lovely to hear that I've encouraged others to pick up their hooks too

which was completely unexpected)

~❀~

I've used a smaller size cushion pad than the one used in the pattern
which I prefer so that the cover just sits comfortably over the pad and isn't stretched.
I do love beautiful natural yarns...and this yarn has a wonderful feeling of weight to it....
...I've used it in the past but had maybe forgotten how much I loved it...
I'm also thinking that it's going to work out quite expensive to crochet a large blanket (!)
~❀~

(Just looking at this walking foot makes me want to run to my sewing machine!)

I've also been working on my quilt and am currently securing the layers together
by using the 'stitch in the ditch' technique.
(now that I feel I've really mastered it I have to confess it's become a bit of an addiction...
this walking foot by Bernina is my preferred one to use
...the original open walking foot which has a really good view of the seam
... although there is a new addition and if you purchase 
the walking foot it now comes with 3 different designs)
Once the radio is on I can happily stitch away for hours!
~❀~

My gorgeous Giveaway gift made by lovely Teresa!
...whose wonderful and entertaining blog you can find here...
Teresa is a lucky lady who lives on a farm in stunning Oregon
I was thrilled to win my beautiful sterling silver and Swarovski crystal stitch marker
(the sparkling emerald green reminded me instantly of Scarlett ...
as did the gorgeous earrings which were won by another lucky lady)
It brought back lots of memories for me....
~❀~
I first remember coming across an article in my art class at school when I was 16
'The Search for Scarlett'
all about the many actresses who auditioned for the part with lots of photographs from
those auditions and at this same time the film also had one of its many re releases...
(so we all went off to see it after school at the lovely little cinema which was close by....
although we didn't expect it to be around 4 hours long with an interval in the middle!)
~❀~
There was clearly a resurgence of Scarlett fever that year and it made me ever curious.
Sitting in the garden, I read the book 'Gone With The Wind' through a long hot summer of that same year.
  I brought it home from the book shop I was working in during the summer holidays
and still have a very clear memory of the story
(and the many emerald green references brought back to me by Teresa's little stitch marker)
It won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1937 and is still ranked No.21 in the BBC Big Read
(and I still have the book as you see above...so maybe it's time to revisit it!)

(Wasn't Vivien stunning?...It doesn't quite tally with the first line of the book....
but I think it can be forgiven because she was perfect in the role and went on to win an Oscar!)
~❀~

Incidentally, around same time, on one of my regular visits to an
art gallery in town with my dad, there was an exhibition of Hollywood costumes
in one of the downstairs rooms...and the outfit in this photograph was amongst them,
The dress was standing beautifully arranged in a glass cabinet .....
(you can see more pics on the website)
Those costume designers were so talented, weren't they?
In the story, the outfit is made from old velvet curtains and the designers made sure
that the dress reflected this with large areas of faded velvet...I loved it!
She isn't wearing her emerald green earrings in the pic here but I do remember those too.
And now I have my 'Scarlett' stitch marker which is stored safely in the magic cupboard.
I will treasure it and only hope the yarny projects that
it will surely soon adorn can do it the justice it deserves!
Thank you Teresa for my lovely gift
(and for bringing back more than a few happy memories too! )
xXx
..and the link to Teresa's lovely Etsy shop is here!
~❀~

One last word today of another lovely find...
My new bag from Cath Kidston in the sale
a perfect size for carrying my knitting and crochet projects
It was definitely a bargain at less than half price
(just between us......I've since bought another one in a different fabric..shhhh!)
Oh...I did say less than half price!
~❀~

Time to go

...I've kept you long enough today...
but thank you for coming to visit
..it's always lovely to see you...

Take care until next time

P.S Guess who I've just heard somewhere on the roof tops as I type?

Lady Peahen, who has been staying at home of late....

far better because she's much safer there but there's no mistaking that sound

...I'm off to find her...

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