Oh, the piney wilderness of it all.

This will (unless something really noteworthy, like an earthquake, or thunderbolts happens) almost certainly be the Last Blog Entry Before Christmas. I may, if not horizontal on the carpet at my long-suffering Mother’s House, post one between Christmas and New Year. I may, with luck, decide that my New Year’s Resolution is to join a peculiar branch of a peculiar tree-worshipping sect, and eschew the computer for leafy branches and delightful shadow patterns. But it’s unlikely.

I have few nice new pictures to show people, which is rather mizz. It’s because I’ve been busy being Mama, and having a Rather Nasty Cold, which sentence will be causing stressed Mamas all over the world to nod knowingly in time with me, whilst wading through seas of paper and sellotape, and blowing their noses in synchopated rhythms. We should start a band. Really we should.

However, I can show you the more landscape oriented pictures of the frosty morning walk (and I shall – it is unashamed padding). And some pictures of the glassy, classy baubles on my Christmas Tree, some of which are finds foraged from junk shops and are relicts of chandeliers, and under which people have probably danced, and cried, and looked at for many years. Very Jane Austen, the chandeliers, and the landscape, I think, and that feeling of watching people dancing. Although, to be fair, they did not have telephone wires in Jane’s day. Or cameras, apart from the obscura kind.

Orange Monday

As a change from Blue, you understand. Although blue is still my favourite colour, and I am not suddenly going to get all orange-crazy in a hurry. But today was twinkly and orangey, and I made apricot jellies from dried apricots (see recipe section if you want to know how to do this too), and, beautifully orangily and rather co-incidentally, found some gorgeous orange gold vintage brocade fabric in a charity shop, too.

I made pomanders with the children yesterday (and Rosie took one in to ’show and tell’ school today), which are rolled in Orris Root (to help preserve the scent), and drying in The Boiler Cupboard in little paper bags. Then, when photographing the fabric in gloomy light, I noticed the orange glow of the kitchen, with its Christmas star lights, and thought I might add that on, too.

The fabric I will use to make some cushions, then sell the rest on Ebay, because although it’s rather lovely, I don’t really have the storage to hoard the tangible. If anyone reading this wants to buy it, then feel free to contact me.

I’m too busy to do much artwork at the moment, which is frustrating, because I’ve got a lot of ideas. But Christmas admin takes over, and I’ve stuff that I have to finish, before I can get on with new projects, so it’s just a case of hoard them in my head (goldishly) and wait. Perhaps writing them down would be a good idea, too, so I don’t forget them:

I want to:

Do some more photoshopping

Work on my website

Knit/crochet some long funky mittens

Work on my embroidered landscape

Contact The Lion Gallery with a view to having more stuff put in there

Make a freeform crochet bag

Finish the knitted socks I started ages ago

Use the store of old hand-embroidered table runners and the like that I’ve picked up over the years to make a camisole top for the summer (for me).

Tear up some old sari fabric I have, and do some crochet with it.

Work on some more landscape pictures.

Chocolate fishes

Marshmallow and chocolate kebabs, cream fudge, and other yummy things. It’s the time of year when I boil up sugar, do things with an orange that don’t stop with juicing, and make confectionary for Christmas presents.

Why do this? Well, firstly it’s cheaper – far cheaper, to make these things yourself. Secondly it’s fun, and thirdly you know the provenance of the items. I’m not sure it’s super-green because of fuel economy, but it’s not terrible, at least, especially if you save and recycle packaging.

So far I have made cream fudge (the recipe, if you want it, is here), barley sugar and crystallised orange peel (dipped some in chocolate, too – well, not actually dipped, more popped them in the pan and stirred them about, pulled them out, left to dry, rather than the ’skewer each piece on a cocktail stick’ tidy purist method). I’ve made mincemeat (very, very easy, and you can check for what kind of nasty fats go in there), and I’ve covered marshallows with chocolate for stocking fillers.

Tomorrow, barring adventures, I make Turkish Delight, which is such a delicate thing to make, and, like all these things, incredibly easy.

The barley sugar has been taken to friend’s houses for gifts (it’s vegan, which is useful), and the marshmallows have been put away. The crystallised chocolatey oranges have been hidden in the ‘cupboard where the ceiling is coming down’ and the fudge…

the fudge…

The fudge I have eaten. This is bad. There was one bit left, about half an hour ago. I photographed it. Then I ate it. It is (or rather was), and you can trust an expert here – Very Lovely Fudge. It sits on a nice vintage plate that I found for 10p, and which originally was made for a Brexton Hamper.

I have also made a small embroidered landscape with which I know not what to do next. I don’t want to embroider it any more, and so I shall, ummm…paint it?

Rosehips and Sunflowers

This week I finished a cat picture (which I’m really pleased with, and lets hope that its recepient will be, too), and went fruit-picking from the hedgerows, where I’ve gleaned at least two pounds of rosehips, and lots more blackberries. I was planning on making some blackberry wine, but can’t decide whether to make blackberry vinegar instead, and invest in a wine ‘kit’ for my first attempts, so I can get a feel for the winemaking process first.

I re-read bits of ‘The Doors of Perception’ (Huxley), but only on-line, because I’ve mislaid my copy of the book, alas, and also a really interesting pamplet published by ‘The Guardian’ which transcripted a brilliant interview with Francis Bacon, which you can also read bits of online, here.

What else? Well, lots more bus journeys, some successful fabric-hunts (see picture), and my new brown boots are starting to become less painful. This morning, at the Car Boot Sale, the people-dressed-as-fairies were out in force, which was fun. I found some treasure, too, which was also fun…a damask tablecloth, a tin of linking monkeys, a green jumper, some bellis daisies, and a yummy smelling sage plant. Oh, and lots and lots and lots of wooden coathangers, which I’ll paint, I think, or do something with, although I only really bought them because they were part of a job lot which included a really pretty 1950’s tea plate. And if you’ve ever walked two miles with a whole heap of wooden coathangers poking into your leg at every stride, you’ll know what my shins feel like now.

Back to school

Well, tomorrow my youngest daughter starts school for the very first time. I’ve embroidered her an elephant on her pump bag, made her some button badges with her name on, and she has a fantabulously cute surprise to come from an etsy swap (more on that later, because I don’t want her sneaking a peek).

Today has a real feel of Autumn to it, as well. It’s been a gorgeous day – sunny, but with that goldeny light, and a chill to the morning which I enjoy. We went for a walk up the hill after tea, and all was beautiful.

Etsy team cloud challenge

I’m not sure whether to do more to her, but I’m working on Cloud Woman here, for the etsy Uk August challenge.

Last night, a friend of mine who has been clearing out her Mum’s garage, found some old brooches she wore as a child, and showed me this one (I hung on to it to scan it through, because it’s just so pretty)