6ichthusfish

Recycled bag-lady and newly 16 year old son...!?

This post has been linked to Homemade Thursdays at the blog Ship Full O'Pirates.

 

Roman had a fairly quiet day on his Birthday.  He opened his presents & cards and was pleased with everything.  The pic below shows his new electric razor.  Husb gave him a chat about the ins & outs of shaving then Roman charged it up & had his first shave.

Chef gave him a £10 voucher for the shop 'GAME' and Tiger-girl & Smurf bought him choccy.  There was quite a pile of paper with the Queen's face on it which Roman is going to put in his bank account.  We'll get some new clothes too.  I'm not sure how I feel about having a sixteen year old son.  Husb was joking with him about being old enough to get married... I was busy thinking how recently it was I taught him to tie his shoelaces and do long division.  We go by what it says in the Word (Bible) about a parent's job being to train a child up in the way they should go & when they're old they'll not depart from it. 

  

I made a bag.. a tote bag to be precise. 

 

It is made from re-cycled kitchen curtain fabric and is lined. I adapted it from this pattern which I found on the internet.  I wanted it to be simple, strong & recycled.  Chef took the pic below when I was pinning the handles on... super-strong because the handles go right down under the bag.  I used up the whole 50 metres of  strong thread. 

   

I have also finished the top patchwork of the frog quilt.

 

Matching together all the points was a labour of love.  After my matching up disaster of the first quilt I made... I was very careful to match EVERY SINGLE PANEL because a half centimetre 'out' at the start, can become ' a whole lot out' by the end.  It took some time but the quilt is now ready to 'baste'.  I bought another charity shop quilt cover to be the backing fabric... it's very colourful and looks almost new.  More re-cycling or I think the correct jargon is 're-purposing' but I could be wrong  ;)

 

 

I took the children swimming last night.  The leisure pool is open till 9pm and I swam too.  I went on both flumes and raced Smurf around the rapids.  The wave machine is the best ever.  Husb has a new job and his shift finishes at 7pm so the days seem long without him.  Hence the ... "Hey guys, let's go swimming!" which shocked them all as it was dark & takes two buses to get there.  Husb picked us up at the pool so it worked out pretty well.  Good to keep the chidlers on their toes    :)

Ice-skating...meals out...& Star Trek cake..!

Roman is going to be sixteen tomorrow.  Husb and I took him out for a meal on Friday night.  We went to a place which has Chinese, Indian AND Thai food (all you can eat).  It was the first time we'd only taken out one person but Husb booked it and although I felt like a meanie leaving the other 3 at home... Roman seemed to enjoy all our attention.  Co-incidentally the final confirmation of his home-school 'General Level Certidicate' came through on the same day, so it really was a double celebration.  He got 4 A's  3 B's and a 'C'.  We talked about his future (still wants to be a doctor) and his past (day he was born etc).  He rode in the front of the car sitting next to Husb & I sat in the back.  We honoured him.

We posed for a couple of snaps before we went so I could leave the camera at home.  Father & son.

   

My big boy (he calls me 'small mum' when I say that). 

Awful pic of me ;]

We met up with Nanny & Grandad on Saturday to take the children Ice-Skating, as a birthday treat.  Chef wasn't that keen and was happy to be in the spectators group.

  Tricky to get a good shot!

Afterwards we went for a Carvery.  This boy loves his food!  (I was still full from the night before!)

 

Chef & Nanny who makes the fabulous cakes.

 

Tiger-girl lit the candles on Roman's cake.  It was the Star Trek 'Defiant' ship from 'Deep Space Nine' ...(yes we are closet Star Trek fans!) 

Apparently, mixing up all the grey was not much fun but Nanny built the 3D shape of the cake with her own drawn templates, sketched from the Video cover that Roman had sent her.  She will have a 'go' at anything the kids can dream up. 

I'll let you into a little secret... I had to get Roman to pose/pretend to be blowing out his candles because I'd missed it several times due to my camera not being that quick.  Father Christmas may be getting me a new camera for Christmas.  But don't tell anyone...  heehee

 

The cake was delicious.

 

Quick look back...

I went into labour at about this time sixteen years ago & I remember that we didn't have a phone in our first home (let alone such things as a mobile phone).  Husb went out to the phone booth up the hill from where we lived no less than 3 times before we went off to hospital at about 11pm.  Roman was born at 8pm tomorrow (sixteen years ago)... and he was 8lb 4oz.  Love that boy   :)

 

 

Jasper's Found.

      We have been very concerned all week because Jasper went missing on the 4th (the day before firework night).  We went out calling him in all his usual haunts but no sign of him.  Finally today, Tiger-girl made some flyers about him with our phone number and we got 3 calls!  The third call led to us going to fetch him from a local farm (where he had chased a duck apparently!)  He's snoozing on the upstairs landing outside Roman's bedroom door.  I am relieved.

 

He loves to be outside so we don't see that much of him but he's part of our family.

He was such a cute kitten, not much bigger than his best pal 'Blue Monkey'.

 

His favourite toy was a green pom-pom and he loved playing in cereal boxes (he still likes a box even now).

 

 

 

We love this cat  :]

 

 

Art at Half Term...

We took Chef & Smurf to Wolverhampton Art Gallery for an afternoon during the half term break.  Roman & Tiger-girl had to stay & do their paperound.   I had originally written a long post about this but it was lost into the ether & I was too crotchety to re-write it back then, but I want to share some pics as we enjoyed it so much...

There was a contemporary national portrait competition being exhibited, called the 'BP Portrait Award 2008'.  They billed it as the most prestigious portrait competition in the world.  We enjoyed it.

 

 

We spent some time in an exhibition called 'Supermarket Pop: Art & Consumerism'.  Husb & I enjoyed looking at the brands of foods & clothing etc. that we remembered as kids.  Smurf & Chef were drawn to the interactive computer activity where you get a web-cam snapshot of your face & alter it into the style of Andy Warhol etc.

   

 

 

I'm not sure how much the boys understood about artists like Andy Warhol being influenced by branding & advertising aswell as their interest in 'mass production' in their art, but hey...our family had lots of fun.

A third visiting ehhibition was called 'The Northern Ireland Collection: Fresh Perspectives' and related to 2008 being the ten year anniversary of signing the Good Friday Agreement. Smurf was thoughtful when looking into the work below, constructed from old jail cell doors, with an interior full of 'teardrop' shaped glass.  This work led to some interesting questions from both boys.  I suppose good art does make you question.

  

We always love the 'Sensing Sculpture' room which is totally interactive.  The wood/metal sculptures below, with names like 'uncurled',  bounce & bob about on springy mounted wire.  Some make noises & have smells too.

 

Smurf's favourite sculpture hung down from the ceiling.  It was made of leather & velvet and the scale of the piece was impressive.  The work was supposed to trick you & it did trick us which the boys loved.  Basically it LOOKED really heavy the way it hung down etc but it was really LIGHT! 

 

 The boys, especially Smurf, explored it from all angles. 

 

One of my personal favourites, is a collection of ceramic drawers in a wooden casing.

 

Each drawer hides/holds a surprise that can be fiddled with.  Ultimate cool storage or what?!

 

We always cuddle the huge, leather 'breathing' cushion piece.  It seems alive (which was the artist's intention I expect). 

I'm not as keen on the 'smell-filled-clothing' piece of sculpture.  The word 'grotty' springs to mind, but who kows if that's what the artist wants you to feel/think?  Chef likes it though...

 

 

 

 

I came away refreshed & buzzing with ideas.  Love it.

 

Quilt panels & Gingerbread...

There was some excitement and joy in setting out all the quilt panels.  The lime-green-bogey colour & dark purple hour glass panels certainly create a cool optical illusion when alternated with the chunky churndash panels.  Chef has been intrigued with the clever effect.  Smurf and Chef patiently arranged & re-arranged the panels & it was quite tricky getting the colour combinations to sit nicely together.

 

Here's the final lay-out... 

I'm pretty excited to sew it all together  :)

During this time Tiger-girl baked-up a batch of Gingerbread cookies... 

 

Warm gingerbread straight from the oven, hot tea and a short break reading a quilting techniques book...  One happy Mama....

Remember, Remember the 5th of November...

We had such a fun time at a local bonfire & firework show tonight.  My camera doesn't take good pics of fireworks, but I got a snap of Husb & the chidlers on the walk home... 

Totally rubbish (rushed) red-eye removal...sorry...but it captures the idea. 

Everyone remembers the story about Guy Fawkes hiding under the Houses of Parliament, with barrels of gunpowder & the whole 'plot thing' being foiled & Guy & his mates being caught etc.  But I do wonder if people know why was he hiding in the dark with a primitive bomb?  Well... (as I understand it) the King at the time was James I, and it was him they were really after killing.  Why? because James I wanted to translate the Bible into English so's ordinary folk could read it & understand it for themselves.  James I  lived & went on to 'authorize' an english Bible which is now what most folk call 'the old King James Bible'.  We call it the King Jimmy version.  History always has it's 'slant' and that was mine    :)

The handsome rotary-cutters assistant...!

Phew!  Many, many triangles have been cut to make up the 'Hourglass' panels for the quilt.  We nipped out to the quilt shop to get the wadding (padding) and 3/4 of a metre of darkish plain fabric to complement the lime green (bogey) green that will make up the hourglass panel.  Smurf came too and keenly had an opinion on the colours.  In the end a dark purple was the best choice.  Smurf wasn't that pleased as he thinks purple is for girls (!)  Husb had to convince him it was macho enough!

Husb helps me when I'm cutting with the rotary cutter and quilting ruler.  (A labour of love tonight as he'd had a long day at work.)

 

   

Totally LURVE this ruler... it is so clever... there are lines ruled all over it so you get the right angles & seam allowances etc.  Seasoned quilters may laugh but I cut my last quilt with scissors and an old 30cm ruler.  I feel so posh!

 

 

The blue, bubbly fabric strips piled on the right are (probably) going to end up as a border.  There's something about the necker on a boy scout that reminds me of this panel... hoping it'll look good when it comes together.

I was at the dentist (again) today... brief saga is that he took some more x-rays last time after the root canal teeny plastic rod/filling malarkey & said he'd call & let me know if all was well etc.  Anyway, there was a call & I had to go back as he didn't like the look of the x-ray.  I feel hunky-dory in the teeth department and was pain free when he investigated.  Gotta go back in 3 weeks for another look-see.  It is well.

Tiger-girl & Foxy Whiskers...!

Husb & the younger 3 enjoyed their visit to Wales.  Watching a firework show standing on the beach... what's not to love (not to mention all the home-cooked goodness from Husb's Mum, Nanny!)  Roman & I rented a coupla DVD's ate Chilliheatwave Dorrittos by the crate & had ice-cream for breakfast.  Anyway, Nanny has made Tiger-girl a (fake) tigerskin body warmer.  She modelled it holding Jasper, our Foxy Whiskered Gentleman...

 

Quilted panels...

I have spent many happy hours today quilting up the 'chunky churndash' panels of the frog quilt. 

 

 

 

The panels are spaced out because there'll be another different panel in between.

Get your shades on to view this quilt!

A new sewing machine!

I have been on the look out for a new sewing machine as I had been borrowing my friend Jane's machine for some time.  I still love my old SINGER but it won't free-motion quilt.  Anyway, while in Birmingham we saw a little traditional sewing-machine shop & popped in for a look-see.  Yes, we did walk out with a big box.

 

Isn't she pretty?  and yes I will be naming her.

So, the patchwork has been up and running again on my second quilt ... very bright & boyish!    :)

The frogs will go in the centre of the panel with bugs in the corners, then I'll make another batch the other way around.  See the panel below...

 

 

The above panel is called 'Chunky Churndash' from a pattern over at the quiltville website  look here .  Each panel should measure about 9 inches square.

  There's also some lime green fabric and dotty fabric to 'go' somewhere.  Having lots of fun!  Just need a quiting buddy.