Sometimes I do silly things

Some years ago I bought a complete set of Golden Hands (a positively iconic craft partwork from 1970) for £10 from a charity shop. During a house move I stupidly decided I didn't need them. I've regretted it ever since.
Imagine my absolute glee today when I found the complete set in the Salvation Army for just £7.50!

Just look at that gorgeous maxi dress on the right, why can't you buy fabrics like that nowadays?
Another page has lovely crochet circles.
Each binder is packed with lovely (and occasionally not so lovely) things to make.

I'm a very happy bunny!

This post was brought to you by my lovely shiny new Compaq netbook.

Festival Chic!

So after battling the cold from hell last week, I went to two festivals this past weekend - possibly the only festival action I'll get this year boo hiss. Saturday's was a small local festival featuring some of my favourite Welsh bands (it's not all choirs and harps you know, head over to YouTube and search for Radio Luxembourg - now rebranded as Racehorses but they were better before - or Derwyddon Dr Gonzo as two prime examples if you are so inclined). I didn't take any pics, it was fairly uninspiring and badly organised. The highlights of the day were finding a very decent chippy and my friend Emma From Chesterfield (full title, that's where she lives you see) purchasing a piece of furniture she described as a 'chaise short' from a curious Chinese shop as she wanted to sit down - actually a telephone seat but definitely modelled on a chaise longue.

Sunday's was much better - superbly organised and as Mr Fuzzyfelt was the dj we had backstage privileges, which basically meant we looked at the bands' bums rather than their faces. It was held on the same site as this year's Radio 1 Big Weekend which was a pretty nice location.
I took the time to get familiar with the camera on my phone so I came away with a rather random collection of photos.

Derwyddon's bums (well some of them, there's so many people in the band I've lost count)

If your eyes worked in negative this is what you'd have seen looking out from the back of the stage - the grass looks just like a swimming pool and the trees like broccoli (eta CAULIFLOWER! The white stuff!) I think.

Looking out from my perch (a turntable carry box, we forgot the chairs!) across the field at the start of the afternoon -

Something I've never seen before and hope not to ever see again - next to the portaloos was a strange round object - can you see it? After much speculation and horror that it could be a porta-urinal it turned out it actually WAS! Practically in the middle of the field! The discreet option was too pee against a fence! It was most disconcerting to have to walk RIGHT past it to get off the field I can tell you.

Here's my outfit, Emma and I got roped in to stewarding for the last hour (which explains the very tired, very caffeined-up faces and rained-on frizzy hair!). We agreed to do it on account of the hi-vis vests. Don't we look important? We liked to think so and we took our duties very seriously indeed.

Three good things

As the perpetually positive Vix pointed out, there were way too many negatives in my last post and it doesn't make for happy reading or in fact a happy me. I promise to do better in future! There's certainly no negatives today.

For absolutely AGES now I've been wanting to make a colourful coat just for me and I've finally got around to it. It is a little brighter than the pic shows and the bodice is black flecked with purple rather than brown. It is completely perfect, fits me like a dream and I couldn't be happier with it. Hopefully you can see the fantastic little clasp I found for just £1.35, I think these will be featuring in lots of coats in the future - Abakhan had better not stop selling them!
Here's my latest cooking crush - Rice Krispie squares, very yummy indeed. Here's the recipe -

100g toffees
100g butter
100g marshmallows
200g rice krispies

Put the first three ingredients in a big pan, heat until thoroughly melted and allow to bubble for a minute. Take off the heat and stir in the rice krispies until they are completely coated. I add a few extra marshmallows at the end, that's the white and pink goop you can see in the picture. Pour (or more accurately, flob) the mixture into something that measures approx 8"x10", or that looks about the right size, press down well with the back of a wet spoon and pop in the fridge to cool. Cut into squares - it makes LOTS - and scoff happily.

And finally - I have noticed quite a few bloggers smiling in their pictures lately and it makes me feel happy, it definitely rubs off so please keep smiling, it makes the world a much happier place!

A real live outfit post!

A possibly ill-advised outfit post, look at my HAIR! I really should have fluffed it up or something, it is suffering from product overload as usual - I have practically no hair at all so I try and put tons of stuff on it to make it bigger. Also I really can't cope with short hair, I think I have set a short hair record this time, it must be two or three years now, my default is as long as it will grow (not very long!) and I'm hoping to get back there asap.
I've been needing some new sandals for a while, my silver gladiators are falling to bits and after a completely fruitless search I found these tonight in Tesco reduced from £15 to £7 which was enough to pay for sandals I don't love but are ok and do the job.

The reason for this rare outfit post is because this outfit is so ME. It's not glamorous, sophisticated, classy or any of those things I'm not. It is comfy and slouchy and slightly eccentric which suits me so much better.

I went for a last day of term lunch with a friend, the last time for a few weeks we'll be able to do anything without the offspring present so I did my version of dressing up and wore a black and silver mini dress, leggings, my gorgeous heeled silver boots topped with a thrifted black mac as it was a bit cold and a bit wet.

The dress I made from the same pattern as the green paisley, this time made in jersey, the centre front panel is black with dull silver circles, the rest is some really cheap jersey I picked up on the roll, several metres for about £3. I really must stop cutting my dresses so very short! I'm almost certain I don't look as dumpy in real life as I do in the pic as I had several compliments on the dress today.

The fluffy pink cardi I made out of some weird knitted fabric that is lovely and soft and warm that I couldn't resist.

A final thought - I really wish Shabby hadn't left Big Brother, it is boring, boring, boring now!

Birthday suit

Ok, somebody forgot to rotate the pictures and is so stupid she doesn't know how to delete them from the post. Whoops sorry! Stand your laptop on end / tip up your monitor forthe best effect!
It was my birthday last Saturday and I made this dress out of the vintage fabric I bought at the vintage fair the other week. Sadly nobody had remembered to take a camera to my party so there are no pics of it actually on me as yet but I promise one before too long. The pattern was a very lucky 50p charity shop find. It has princess seaming which is perfect for someone my shape (narrow back, big boobs) as there are a lot of seams to tweak for the best fit. I put cute little patch pockets on it to hold girly essentials. The total cost for the fabric, pattern, thread, zip and binding came in at less than £10. This pattern is going to get used a million times at least!

This is a dress I've been threatening to make for at least a year now, I was reluctant to cut up my precious Last Shadow Puppets tee shirt but I'm glad I did as it is now so much more wearable.

Here's a little trinket I picked up while shopping in Chester yesterday, a necklace that is also a watch, isn't it sweet? It was from Wallis and at £9 in the sale I thought it a worthy purchase - my only purchase all day actually, I impressed myself! I might put it on a different chain though, or even perhaps a thong.

closed-

and open-

I've not worn a watch for so long now I'm not sure I need one any more.

And finally, a link although I'm not so sure it'll work! Oh, to be competent at these things...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sb-SVPJM4L4

It's all about me!

I have been given this award by the superbly creative Jem , I have to tell you five things about myself. No doubt I will put the most mundane things possible and then think of better things later so I might well do a shady edit!

1) I have been regularly using a sewing machine since the age of four (that's 39 years folks!) and even now everything I sew is a little bit wonky.

2) At the age of twelve I measured in at 5'10" and pretty much stopped growing.

3) I like to eat mayonnaise by itself.

4) I have an absolutely shocking memory and it regularly pisses people off, especially when I accuse people of omitting to tell me something.

5) My style of dress has been described as 'an explosion in a charity shop' and that doesn't offend me.

I would now like to pass this award on to

apassingcloudinthesky

kandipandi

giddylittlemiss