A Walk Through the Spring Garden

This is my favorite time of the year in the garden. Although we are not yet reaping the benefits of what we have sown we sure are living in splendor. The apple blossoms are in bloom and everything else seems about to follow suit with buds exploding everywhere. 

The babies are not so cute anymore sadly, all their nice soft downy is falling out making space for little feathers. As ugly as they may be they are still very sweet. they are still too small to live outside so I have them in my laundry room under a heat lamp. Not the most ideal place for them but I fear the barn house won't be safe enough as our neighbors dog roams about the place and I worry she might just fancy a little feathery snack. Evie and I have them out in a run during the day while we are gardening and the simply love scratching about in the dirt looking for bugs.


Potatoes have now broken the surface which I am happy about. I've done something different this year which I don't know will pay off or not... I chatted supermarket potatoes... I just hate the waste of buying seed potatoes as here in France they come in a crate and I simply don't have the space or the appetite for that amount so each year they go in the bin. Im trying a few varieties this season. Red ones which are my personal favorite so I hope that the books are wrong and they work out ok.

My first strawberry patch has been planted out too which is great. I have so many plans for these little beauties this year...
im wondering though whether I need to get another patch down as we are definitely going to need a good amount.

Black Rock Table Decoration

Another quick Table decoration. Not very elaborate but it did the trick. I love using candles and water together. This was actually a very cheap creation as most of what is used are things that I collect and keep to re use in designs. 

Book Review - Death and the Penguin

This book I was forced into buying by a very good friend. the way it is written is beautiful, so simple, although its hard to tell whether thats because of the way it has been translated or thats the way Kurkov had written it in his native tongue.

I found it a hard book to put down and I was finished in three days which I think is pretty good going as I juggle Evie and the housework.

Synopsis

Viktor is an aspiring writer with only Misha, his pet penguin, for company. Although he would prefer to write short stories, he earns a living composing obituaries for a newspaper. He longs to see his work published, yet the subjects of his obituaries continue to cling to life. But when he opens the newspaper to see his work in print for the first time, his pride swiftly turns to terror. He and Misha have been drawn into a trap from which there appears to be no escape.

An Update Of Goings On

Been a busy week, had my husbands cousins come to stay with their two young children so out seeking time was filled up with going to the local wildlife park and aquarium. It was a great weekend but Im glad its over and I can focus on getting the house cleaned again and getting back to my organized life.  Above is a picture of my second baby, Ive not named him but he/she is my pride and joy. Its a little Cheyenne pepper plant that I started from seed and its doing beautifully. Cant wait to use its fruit in future food projects.

I took this photo of these jellyfish while visiting the aquarium in Monaco which Im quite happy with. Im no photographer but I am in love with my camera and love learning to use different settings and new techniques. The other photo is of a part of quilt I have finished. Im planning on making it into a cushion cover for my mums birthday, perhaps sew a few hearts onto it but Im not sure yet.And finally this is my naughty little Evie, now walking and helping her mummy with the baking. I think she looks like a little crab :) 

Pink Glam Table Decoration

 This table decoration I did for a dinner in Monaco. Some fairly young female guests who were staying onboard were heading out for a night on the town so I wanted to create something glitz and glam for them to make them feel that extra big special before their big night out. 

Baby Amelie's Gifts

This is a project that I just finished off for a friend of mine who has just had a baby. Instead of going and buying things I thought a home made touch was a lot nicer.

I made Evie a baby blanket out of old scraps of material I had lying around. It took me six months to complete by hand and she loves it. I don't have the time or patience to do another by hand and my mother in law bought me a sewing machine so projects get completed a lot faster.

The longest part of this project was cutting out the fabric. I decided on a very simple design for the blanket as to be honest its been an experiment using the machine.

The bib is made with toweling and is perhaps a little bit too pretty to be used as a bib as they just get ruined but I think that every mother wants pretty things for their child and why not, they are so precious :)




Tutorial for the bib to come :)

Doodles and seedlings

Baby Evie

Been another busy week garden wise. Most of the seeds and sprouted and grown vigorously on my window sill. Sadly we have had a lot of wind so going out into the garden has been a bit of a nightmare and Ive been unable to plant anything out creating quite the back log.

I put out two of my baby melons to see if they could handle the temp but sadly the didn't like it and have wilted their beautiful new leaves. Thankfully all was not lost as they are still alive and back on the sill to be nursed back to health.

Im adding a few pics of sketches Ive been doing while stuck inside and also the start of one of my new quilts. The sketches are by no means great but as this is a blog about what I have been doing and little inspirational bits then I figured they should be included somewhere.

Ive been starting quite a few quilting projects actually now that the sewing machine is back up and running. I will post some pics in the next few days.