Birthday Brooches

To celebrate and mark the childrens Birthdays, I made them both a special felt Brooch . Yesterday Rowan turned nine, he loves trains and wanted a 'Northern Trains' cake. I didnt feel I could stretch to a novelty cake this year so decided to make a 'Northern Pacer Train' brooch instead. He seemed pretty pleased with it and it will last a bit longer than a cake!

Pacer Train Brooch.

Robyn got a Robin Brooch a couple of months back, when I was too busy to blog it.

New Cats and Cosy Dogs



Me and Magic Peter in Close House Woods

 Today felt like the arrival of Winter, a hard frost and sub zero temperatures all day, but accompanied by beautiful bright sunshine. We headed out with the children and the dogs for a brisk walk round Close House Estate.

frost covered Willow tree at Close House



Peter stayed cosy in his fleecelined coat and knitted snood.

In the afternoon I managed to photograph some new black cat brooches for Etsy.

 

I like the bright cold weather, and hope to enjoy some more winter sunshine tomorrow.        



Special Delivery

Today my day was brightened  by a  lovely handwritten postcard from Wildlife photographer and TV Presenter Chris Packham. Way back in early june last year, during the Spring Watch series, I sent Chris a black poodle brooch.  He has two Poodles called Itchy and Scratchy who he is very fond of and who have also made appearances on the BBC Spring Watch and Autumn Watch programmes. At the same time I also sent his co presenter Kate Humble a green oak leaf brooch.

A few weeks later I got a postcard of the Springwatch team from the production unit in Bristol, saying thank you on their behalf, and so was delighted today to receive a note from Chris himself.

It was written on one of Chris' own postcards , a stunning shot of a Black Rhino he photographed in Kenya.

Chris Packham is one of the good uns.

Season Of Renewal.



Rusty and Buntys Christmas stocking decoration 2011

  Fellow dog walking friends Paula and Adele, kindly asked me to make a decoration for their dogs Rusty and Buntys Christmas stockings. I enjoyed coming up with this design which reflects Buntys love of finding and eating apples on her daily walks. I sewed the apples on to the stockings and I hope Santa will be kind to these gentle doggy friends as they have been good all year.

The last week has been very busy, with last minute Christmas shopping and a few Etsy orders to fulfil. The children are now on holiday and their last week of school was the usual tiring round of panto trips, Christmas parties and carol services. Following a Christmas night out with Elswick Harriers, I am happy that there is nothing written on the calendar for the rest of the week to come. I am hoping to catch up on some running over the next couple of weeks.

With the winter solstice fast approaching and holiday time here. It is a natural time to take stock of the year almost over, and start making plans for next year.  Life can be unrelentingly busy so I look forward to using the natural lull the Christmas holiday brings to recharge my batteries.......I hope this is not wishful thinking.

Hexham Christmas Market



My Stall...those mismatched table clothes are a bit dodgy!

Last Saturday saw my second year at the local Hexham Christmas Market. A freezing cold morning, i packed the car up in the dark as my kind hubby scapped the ice from the windscreen and we all bundled in and drove to the market square. When we got there many stalls were already well set up and this induced a form of panic. I eventually got everything out and put last minute prices on stuff. Anyone who has ever made stuff by hand will appreciate the time that goes into a single item and many weeks of work and preparation went into producing this meagre stall. The stall behind me in contrast simply unpacked boxes of cheap imported wooden goods.

A very nice lady who bought one of my wreaths last year appeared early and bought a similar one to last year which felt very gratifying. I was kept busy for most of the day and was grateful for the help of my mum Margaret. I was happy with the number of sales I made, but found the whole day utterly draining.



Pixie Peg Wreaths



Its nearly Christmas?

The weather has been mild but gloomy this week so i've had a go at brightening up the place with some nice red fairy lights.

They look lovely when it gets dark and are low voltage too, so I dont feel guilty having them on a lot. I've also been trying to plough on with more garlands for the Hexham Xmas market stall. Heres one I made today with the nice snow flakes I got from Bonnie designs. The hearts are interspersed with red buttons.

Christmas Pudding Wreath

Feels like I've been making felt christmas puddings for weeks now, so decided to do something slightly different with these ones and make an unusual wreath. It could go inside or out I think.

Pudding Wreath.

I've also made a christmas pudding garland with blue toppings. The poor light today made photographing it difficult.

Engine Dene, Wylam

The dismal weather has been a stark contrast to the beautiful cold clear morning we had yesterday.

The doggies needed their thick coats on.