Here's hoping for more sewing this week!

Ella, wearing her back pack.

Well, I haven't managed to get any sewing done over the past two weeks. Once the costumes were finished it was time for play week. A brief weekend away and I am itching to get on with some stitching of my own. I've managed to fit in a couple of mending tasks - a tear in a trouser leg, repairing the hem of another pair. Nothing very exciting and not really what I want to be doing.

Bluebells in the local woods.

If nothing else, I did manage to fit in a daily walk with Ella. Being a Husky/Akita cross, she really does need a couple of good walks a day. My morning walks tend to be at least 3 miles in length, with the route changing each morning. We are very lucky to have some wonderful walking tracks around here. All are walking distance from my front door as well!

The Bluebells have been magnificent this Spring. A delicate bluey-purple haze. Sadly, they have all but finished for this year. However, I did manage to get some photos.

Just in case you are wondering, Ella is carrying her own water bottles and a collapsible water bowl in her "back pack". She does get rather thirsty when the mornings are warm as they have been recently.
I did have a lovely visit with a friend yesterday afternoon - we talked textiles. A really enjoyable chat. It really got me excited about the idea of getting back to playing with textiles once more. The soldering iron and heat gun I had ordered recently arrived in the post today ready for some experimentation. I am going to be playing with the effect of heat on fabrics, as well as getting some printing done. I ordered some new woodblocks for blockprinting, as well as restocking my collection of fabric paints. These have now arrived.... lots of fun to be had!
Bye for now.

Sewing, stitching, knitting and taking the dog for a walk.

Ella wearing her new backpack.

Ella has a new backpack which we took out on her walk this morning. She is just getting used to wearing it. 

Ella.

The nice thing was that it really didn't seem to trouble her at all. There is nothing bar a few plastic bags in these pockets. I won't be adding any weights until she is quite happy with wearing this backpack. She will only carry about ten percent of her own bodyweight - this will be around 5lbs at most. The intention is to use this for long walks where she can carry some water and a collapsible dog bowl. I'm getting a backpack of my own for a flask, snacks and my camera.  

A frosty puddle.

Frosted leaves.

A chilly morning, it was lovely to see the patterns made by the overnight frost.

Small pot holder.

Collection of pot holders nearing completion.

Yes, there has been some sewing completed. I am playing around with pot holders at the moment since I managed to find some insulated wadding a while back. Oven gloves are really not all that useful at times and I have always wanted something a little smaller. The square ones didn't have a pattern, however you can find the pattern for the oval shaped ones here: http://www.lovella.ca/2011/03/fintgertip-pot-holders.html

A new pair of socks.

This pair of socks is being knitted from a pattern I go to regularly. It is Wise Hilda's Basic Ribbed Socks. You can find the link to the pattern on Ravelry.

The Etui pattern.

Lastly, I am working on this delightful kit by Sue Hawkins. It really is lovely to work on during the evening, especially since I have a really powerful little lamp I can use to light up the area where I am working.