WOYWW - My Little Obsession

A few months ago, my flutterby brain took me off in an entirely new direction - dolls houses and miniatures. I'd always loved the idea of them, but then a friend gave me a kit she didn't want, and I was hooked.

Welcome to Thimble Cottage (4" tall, 1:48 scale). Kits like this are flat pack, made of balsa type wood or cardboard, for you to assemble and decorate. I made the thatch from an old paint brush, the plants are tissue paper and florists' wire, the bean poles - cocktail sticks, grass - crumbled oasis, veg beds - match sticks and the soil, tea bag innards.

Having got such a kick from improvising with stuff I found round the house, I decided to go the whole hog, and used a rusty garden ornament for the next one, Lantern House. The chair is made of card, the curtains, carpet and portraits made from bits in my stash.

I then discovered the wonderfully talented Sharon Ojala at her 'Homemade Obsessions' blog. It was love at first sight, and I made my first needle-felted figure. Meet Eric ...

Eric and his adventures have really taken hold of my little world. He likes to be known as 'Eric, Eco Warrior' and is insisting that everything he has is made from recycled materials. Right now, I'm helping him build a tree stump home, and you can follow our progress, and his other antics, at his own Facebook Page, 'Away with the Faeries'.

This is the pine cone roof we finished a few days ago

just before painting the inside of the stump (this is the view through the French windows to the front door) and you can just see his bedroom porthole window at the top (no floor/ceiling in yet).

I hope to be able to share more progress next Wednesday. In the meantime, you could follow him on Fb. I hope to catch up with as many of you as I can, via Julia's network (see WOYWW button on side bar, click and be amazed!)

Love and best wishes, Chris and Eric xx

WOYWW 362 - The Flutterby Returns

Hi folks - I'm back with a vengeance - three posts in as many hours, after a year's absence 😊!

If you want a quick skim over the year's happenings, look through the previous two (short) posts. Otherwise, I'll just show stuff I've been busy with, since we last met.

Lots of ...

KNITTING

Home-made Dorset buttons

for a new cardigan (actually navy blue!?)

A couple of pairs of socks

One quarter of a finished baby blanket

A WIP shawl for me

CROCHET

A couple of baby blankets

This Mum asked for earthy tones

A C2C (corner to corner) pressie

Then there was a lovely pattern from Sandra (Cherry Heart)

with enough spare yarn for this pretty, finished with a bobble edging

Then, in true flutterby fashion, it was on to some shabby chic decoupage, with a pretty shade I found online

I'd better stop there for now, hoping that Julia will forgive me for a ridiculously long post, though it is almost all pictures. I promise, though, Mrs D, that this is the first and last time I'll do this, and I'll save my current flutterby obsession/interest until next Wednesday. Lots of love to you all, and I hope to visit you over the next few days.

Chris xx

PS For the one or two on the planet who don't know about WOYWW, hop over to Julia's place (via my side button) and prepare to be amazed x

A Year in One Post

A quick recap of the past year - Mum (92) has become increasingly frail over the year, following a serious illness last summer. Although she rallied, and can feed herself and walk with a frame, I have to do everything else for her now. It's been a steep learning curve for both of us, but she copes with the indignities very well. One HUGE upside to being housebound for much of the time is that I get lots of crafting time, for things that can be picked up/put down quickly - so, knitting, crochet, even dolls house making (my latest obsession) help tremendously.

One sad event of last year was that we lost our cat, Rosie, last Spring. She was 18, her whole body started to fail, and it took DH and I a long time to adjust to losing her. However ... last August we bit the bullet and found two new friends, via the Dogs Trust. Meet Cleo (10yrs) ...

and Basil, aged 6

They've apparently always been together, and seem like they've always been here.

That's enough of the personal stuff. I'll do a crafty catch up in a THIRD post of the day, for WOYWW - talk about one extreme to another!!!

Bye for now, Chris xx

Guess Who?!

Hi there - sorry to have been MIA for over a year!!! Life events and an impossible new PC got in the way, and I'm only just at the stage of pulling up my big girl pants and getting on with it.  When DH gets time, I'll ask him to show me how to upload pictures from Facebook, and hopefully give you a quick catch up. There's been lots of crafty stuff going on.

I started a new Facebook page today - Away with the Faeries - where I'll post short snippets of new crafty stuff, as opposed to the more personal drivel on my usual page. There's not much there yet, but I will update regularly, if you'd like to follow it. I hope you can find it.

I'm not sure how to move on with this blog - much depends on how I cope with the new blanket-blank PC. Right now, it's doing my head in and I want to throw it through the nearest window!!! But I used to enjoy waffling on about life here, and would like to return to that.

Love for now, and if you leave me a message, I'll get back to you. Chris xx