Glorious weather, so good I ran out of fabric conditioner. If seeing a colourful line of washing all a-dangle on the line is a joyous sight, then I was in raptures. The bed got stripped, washed and hung out. I just absolutely love an evening shower and a freshly made bed. Sweet dreams.
The heat made any real exertion too daunting for me although Mr T is out there now mowing the lawns but it is evening and much cooler.
Nothing stops the bees from being busy though.
There was enough energy to sit an crochet a few squares today:
Butterfly Garden – I’ve done a few of these now and posted the link a few posts ago.
I can’t remember what this one was called!
The Victorian Lattice Square (again, I posted the link to this one a few posts ago)
The latest one to catch my eye was this one from Haafner. I think she calls it her Smitten blanket (she made several squares and joined them together). She based the pattern on a vintage design she saw. It’s really lovely. Lots of popcorn stitches, lots of yarn. Luckily, it measures 6″ square like my others so will join up with them eventually when I make my blanket. That way, I can mix and match it with my favourite designs. For information, my square is made with Baby Bamboo (Sirdar, I think) and a 4.0 hook.
I was also asked to make a pot for somebody moving into a new home. This is something I love doing and I keep a box of metallic acrylic paints at the ready for these happy commissions:
I used lots of copper and gold to give it lustre and contrast against the cream paint on the pot (it’s an ordinary terracotta pot beneath its makeover).
While I was painting I dropped the paintbrush onto my new jeans so had to dash to get them under the tap and into the washing machine. Luckily that hot sunshine soon had them dry and no evidence of paint on them anywhere. No rest for the wicked, they say.
I work in Dublin close to a little park and like to go sit there on a warm lunch break. I’d love to know what this shrubby thing is that grows there – the leaves are so pretty.
When the weather isn’t so great but not raining, I go for a walk and explore little side roads. The main roads all lead to the Quays and are very busy. I’m just minutes away from the Facebook office block. On my wanderings one day I came across a cafe called Lolly and Cooks and it has the most wonderful windows:
They look like paper cuts. Super funky designs.
They look like they’ve just come off one of our cutting machines. I love the bee having a cuppa and the snail carrying a cupcake on his house.
Talking of creepy crawlies…
When I was in the the land of Bakewell Tarts and Yorkshire Puddings, I noticed my host’s cat staring out of the French Doors at a slug, of all things.
Just what was so fascinating? Here he is in a close up for you. I’m not a fan and they eat my lupins every year. One year I followed the advice of my neighbour to make a beer trap. Disposing of the slugs caught was gruesome and disgusting. I won’t tell you what I thought the fat, swollen slugs looked like.
I remembered that I’d bought this little thing in the UK as well. I collect hearts. I think I’m a not-so-secret romantic.
I thought I’d show you an accidental photo of the contents of my pencil case at work. Just looks a kind of cool shot. The ‘Made in Japan’ pens are from Muji and are 0.5 gel pens and come in lots of colours.
Reading is big with me at the mo. Have re-read several Philip K Dick. Have just finished The Obesity Code – well, quite an amazing tectonic shift in my core beliefs, I can tell you. If he’s correct, and I am persuaded by his evidence, then it truly is a diet revolution and a total paradigm shift. For decades I totally believed that all calories were truly equal regardless of their origin, they all represented energy and energy in should equal energy out for homeostasis. Net gains or negatives in either direction resulted in fat stored or fat lost. Now, it seems, the whole system is much more complex, physiologically, but paradoxically, supremely simple, in terms of actually managing your physiology and allowing your body’s systems to get back into a healthy state.
I’m just starting The Owners Manual for the Brain – so far, it’s very interesting. I’ve also skimmed the beginning of The Game of Logic by Lewis Carroll or, by his real name, Charles Lutwidge Dodgson. I want to have a go at the games – they are intriguing.
TV is so dull. Nothing but reality shows and many of them with the usual panel of celebrities. Gah. That said, I do like project runway. That whole fashion forward stuff has a language of its own – I just don’t understand it and secretly think they speak pretentious sweaty dangly things but it’s entertaining, nonetheless. Best comment this week was that an outfit looked like something a gay priest would wear on a yacht. Loved the expressions on Fabio and Jay (?) faces when they were told they would be designing outfits for a gay couple’s first date. Had to rewind and watch a couple of times and laughed out loud at them. I think Fabio or Dimitri is going to win, btw.
Well, that’s me about done. Nothing more to see here, folks.
