A Propensity to Procrastinate.

The past week has been a strange mix with each day bringing so many things to work through and time racing past before I have the chance to clear the list. Orders are pouring in more than I remember of other years for January and new designs sit partly finished at the end of my cutting table. As for the dreaded tax return...well, let's not spoil things. As ever, it will get done and the new product range will be completed, photographed, copy written, uploaded....heaven's to Betsy, it makes me feel tired to even think of it!

Of course, my propensity for procrastination comes to the fore at such times with my determination to get out into fresh air calling to me even on somewhat dingy days. A recent promise to take a friend over to the north Cornish coast saw us heading over to Porthtowan and St Agnes, both very lovely in different ways.

Trevaunance Cove was stunning as ever and peering over the cliffs onto jade seas so clear the rocks appeared with each receding wave meant I was able to capture this image. It makes me think of a painting rather than a picture frozen by the camera.

The wide open spaces and clambering cliffs cleared my head and proved the worth of dipping out just occasionally to steal such a day.

The cold weather has been more acceptable to me in terms of sewing lately thanks to a lovely gift from the equally lovely Jane who very sweetly offered to knit me a pair of fingerless mittens after I mentioned how cold my hands were when toting my camera. They also get pretty cold when embroidering as I am hardly moving enough to get myself warm.

The heater pumps out plenty of comfort in my sewing room, but still my fingers get chilly. Jane's thoughtful gift has solved the problem and the pretty shade of spring green makes me smile just to see them.

Thank you so much dear Jane; they are perfect!

And talking of spring, these dainty crocus are lighting up the garden at the moments in clumps which are naturalising more and more each year. Even when the sun is absent they seem to shine and hint of what's around the corner.

Of course, a little sunshine does make them even more beautiful.

Ahh, I can't wait to be in my garden, pottering around and smelling the earth again. In the meantime, it's back to the sewing room and I really will do my tax return tomorrow...maybe...

A Propensity to Procrastinate - there's a book there surely! x

A Little Quiet.

Odd to be back blogging and truthfully I am still very much in the midst of the Christmas break as are most of you no doubt, but I felt a little quiet time here was needed. Not many words, just images from our Christmas which has been just how I hoped it would be: restful, fun, full of family and feasting with plenty of creative moments thrown in. So, first up are some of the handmade gifts I was unable to show before: blocks of pure glycerine soaps cut by Dave and packaged by me as gifts for friends.



Pretty bottles of oil flavoured with garlic, chilli, rosemary and juniper berries with a few bay leaves thrown in. In the background is a large jar of pickled eggs made for Sam who has been asking for some all year!



Walks were taken at Trevaunace Cove in icy winds



where the late afternoon sun caught the cragged cliffs bathing them in cool winter light and casting the battering sea below into deep shadow.



Frozen, we headed to nearby Porthtowan Beach for huge bowls of hot chocolate to chase the chills away.



Yum.



Then out for a last run across the sands as twilight rapidly descended into night.



Well, I think that'll be all for this first foray back into blogging. I must off to scoff one of the gorgeous cupcakes Lucy has made using her new cookery set, book and apron. Truly delicious and I think next year may be the year of the cupcake in this house.



Which one shall I choose?



Hope your Christmas has been all you hoped for.
Bye for now x

Gunpowder Towans

After our lovely walk at Cowlands and Coombe, we decided to visit a different face of Cornwall. We had enjoyed the restful atmosphere of the river in the late afternoon, all calm, peace and tranquility, and were now ready for somewhere that offered wide skies, vast seas and hige, open vistas, somewhere where the wind would freshen the rain-filled air and fill us full of energy. We piled into the car and headed for just such a place: Gunpowder Towans close to the Hayle Estuary.





This area of never-ending sand dunes offered the chance for the children to race down the sandy hills charging and yelling like mad things, arms flailing in all directions as they tried not to lose their balance. Dave and I took a somewhat slower pace, needless to say.





Of course, descending from such heady heights means there is some ascending required, not quite so popular with me or Isabella (who unfairly was given a lift by Dave where I had to make my own pitifully unfit way!).





only to repeat the same thing over





and over again. Eventually we tried to make our way through the undergrowth of brambles, following a footpath that decided to disappear just at the point I remembered that such places of sand, sun (huh) and grass provide homes for adders who love to slide out to bask in the heat - and guess which noodle who should have known so much better had ventured out in flip flops? Hmmm...





The word Hayle - or heyl - means estuary and this place where the sea floods the river beds has become a protoected wildlife sanctuary. The huge, rolling seas ensure a constant supply of surfers even on days where the waters are flat calm, though this is a rarity; they sit on their boards with an unfailing patience, ever-ready for the first sign of raging surf to break - my eldest son is one such chap and I can see the other two going the same way. As we watched for a while I soaked up the beauty of the place, the scene stretching far to the left over St Ives bay where the town snuggled in against the hills, and over to the right where Godrevy Lighthouse sat almost cosily in the slate blue seas.






I came away feeling refreshed and tired in all the best ways, full of sea air, limbs aching from much-needed exertion and absolutely ravenously hungry. Off home for homemade pizzas courtesy of Mr Dave (dough-maker) and Mrs Pip (sauce-maker)with lollies in the garden as a starter (well, it is the holidays isn't it?).





The evening was spent full of excitement as an endless stream of ideas flowed through my mind. I love the way the amazing landscapes in Cornwall, all so varied and changing depending on the light, inspire me so. I am now working on the second bag of my Cornish collection to add to Trevaunance, the first. How could you not be inspired by scenes such as these? Even the leaden, rain-filled skies just add to the drama of it all - wonderful...





just wonderful.






Have a lovely Monday xx

A week of good things

Such a lovely week full of things to do and achievements of different sorts. It went something like this....

The little house was filled to bursting as Sam's girlfriend came to stay for the week, Tom and his girlfriend came for dinner and Dave's daughter, Matty, and boyfriend came for the night to see Lucy's school play (how sweet is that? With no prompting at all they travelled the 68 miles from their home after work just to see her perform, even though it meant leaving at 6.45 am to make sure they were back in time for work the next day). Lucy of course sang her little heart out and twirled around the stage beautifully. Just next week's Sports Day to get through and we are done - holidays!





Mr Dave passed his Headship training and has one more stage to go before completing the entire course. We are all so proud of him as he has worked incredibly hard for this on top of all his usual teaching duties and trouble shooting at other schools. Well done Davey xx





We have had many trips down to the beach, often in the evenings when there is that wonderfully calm feel to the day. I love this time the best of all, particularly when the day has perhaps been a bit trying, full of rush and bluster enough to fray the temper more than one would wish; the effort of throwing towels into the well-worn beach bag can sometimes seem too much and yet once you reach that shore where the sea rolls gently over the sand and the light has that calm, still quality of late afternoon, the tension just drifts away....bliss.






And yet in contrast are the days like Sunday - a bright, breezy, sunshiney day where friends and family all piled down to the beach for games and swims and shell collecting. A day where the sun turned the waters to azure blue and the rockpools tempted little people to grasp their buckets in the hope of finding a crab or fish before being reminded to put them back in the pools where they would be safe. The tide was on the way out and revealed sandy stretches just perfect for the youngest ones to run along, their feet splish-splashing through the shallow waters and Isabella trailing her skirts as she waded along. No point in removing yet another set of clothes and anyway, I like the idea that the dress I made her will have that softly faded look that speaks of sun and sand and salty seas, of a beachy childhood.







The final achievement of the week for me has been my latest range of bags which I have been working on for a little while now. Surrounded by gorgeous tolies of differing hues has had me trying out a range of designs to complement the delicate patterns until finally I hit on one which fitted my remit: a bag which echoes the soft feel of toile in its shape, which has a capacious interior without feeling bulky to carry and which is strong enough to last. And here it is - the Miss Matty bag




It will also be available in this soft lilac toile





And this gorgeous cherry/raspberry red (depending on the light) too






I like the shape so much that I decided to use it for my next range, my new baby which I spend long hours thinking about! I have so loved working on these, taking inspiration from all around me - the Cornish cliffs, moors, rivers and ocean, and the interplay of all of these elements with bright flowers, stormy skies...oh, so much to draw on! - and interpreting it in soft linens, applique and hand embroidery. This is the first of my new Cornish collection and is called Trevaunance after the North Cornish cove that inspired it.





Here is a detail picture of the hand embroidery which reads ' time drifts by on a sea of green'.






On taking the bags to the beach to photograph I sold one within a few moments to a lovely lady who was watching - very encouraging and hopefully a sign of things to come.


More to come another day and well done again Davey xx