Where did October go??

It has been crazy busy A-Go-Go here this month. After a recent trip to Brighton, The Prince & I did some post Olympic forward planning & decided that a move from London would be conducive to our health & happiness. Fast forward to today & after massive negotiations that would put Kissinger to shame, we are preparing for a move to the West Sussex coast. Seriously, I could pop over to the Middle East & have it sorted before elevenses!!

Never one to do things by halves, I am planning the move from London at the same time as arranging for the shipping of our stuff from Australia & starting a new business. Crazy?? Yes. Probably. Meh. What else is new?? In like you mean it.

In quilting news, I have finally completed my first bee blocks for Sew-Euro-Bee-An. Helen has been so patient & I hope she is not disappointed with the results.

I was trying to evoke thoughts of the sea & soaring gulls with my flying geese. Not sure I pulled it off. They are 1 & a bit inches wide x 3/4 ish inches high finished.

The side pieces reflect the colours of the sand then the sea then the sky. Arty huh?? LOL

I also managed to get my act together & choose a block for my month & send the fabric to the other bee members. I have already seen a couple of the blocks & they look fantastic. I am really looking forward to putting this quilt together.

My block prior to trimming. I sent a scrap to suggest colour but am looking forward to seeing what comes back.

The light has been very grey here so the photos are very dark. The Prince has been suffering with some kind of infection & has been joined by Diego in the sneezing stakes. They have both been in bed for days, closely supervised by Dr Flynn, medicine cat but seem to be on the mend thankfully.

In between researching for my business idea I have been working on a simple top made from some flannelette that has been in my stash since the 90's. I know. I consider it to be "well seasoned". LOL

Loving what I do & really looking forward to living by the sea. Sending out good vibes to those affected by Hurricane Sandy.

Lush x

Wales, at last!

I can't believe how busy we have been, Wales already seems so long ago & I have not even posted the photos yet!

The converted barns where we stayed were fantastic!! So comfortable with the thickest walls I have ever seen. Built of course before central heating so designed to keep out the unrelenting winds coming straight off the sea. Daisy has discovered a new love - open fires!! LOL We went for daily walks on the beach just down the paddock with the dogs & she would rush back into the house & head straight for the fire. Then at JB's she decided that the gas fire would be good enough.

The miracle was waiting for some bean to fire it up!

My phone booth. Need I say the reception was not the best? The sheep were very friendly.

View from the farm

The South of Wales in Pembrokeshire is a beautiful part of the world. We were very struck by how familiar the landscape felt. It is no wonder New South Wales in Australia was named after the place. It was kind of like driving around Kiama, Jamberoo & Gerringong.  The beaches were fantastic, so remote & windswept. Sand beaches not shingle like in other parts of UK. We went to the beach where they filmed scenes from Harry Potter. (Where Dobby died for the fans).

High up on the dunes at Dead Dobby beach

Loved this beach

Under a Mackerel sky

We had a very relaxing time cooking & driving around the area. The Prince was able to do some writing, I managed to stitch a very little (the light at night was not great) & we all had long walks with the dogs.

Loads of square towers on the churches in Wales

Huge fort on the beach at Tenby

Huge cave on the beach at Tenby - That is JB & Big Daisy the Border Collie

Nature as filled in by Humans

Daisy - just a little shagged after a day in the sea air with a huge walk at Tenby

 

 

We spent one day driving out to see St David's Cathedral. We stopped & had lunch at Solva in a great pub. St David's is today incredibly remote but would probably have been much busier in it's heyday. The decor is amazing! Tiles on the floor, paintings, stained glass, carvings. Just breathtaking the skill of the craftspeople.

On the way home to London we were heading for Bristol but missed the turn & ended up going cross country headed for Sailsbury. What I didn't know was that we were going to go past something that has been on my bucket list since I was a history obsessed child. I can't tell you how excited I was to finally be in the presence of such a wonder. I had the same feeling when I was standing on a bridge in Paris. I really did not believe that I would ever see these things & it is so moving to be here. I know everyone says this but seriously, if anyone had told me 5 years ago that I would be living in the UK I would have had them certified.  I feel so blessed to be living the life I am even if it has been very stressful of late. Mind you I can hear my besties saying, "What's new??".
The experience has made me decide to actually write the list & get onto doing everything before I am too decrepit to enjoy myself. Don't worry, there will be no throwing myself out of or climbing anything.

Being there at sunset just made it all the more special. I know they have done it to protect the stones but it is such a shame the you can't touch them anymore. Who knows though? One day it might happen. After all, I have touched a Monet.

I know. I'm bad. Still glad I did it.

Loving what I do.

Lush x

Oh dear again!

I am so determined to win a bunch of Momo Oh Dear fabric. Here is another chance with Lynn over at Lily's Quilts.




Love her, she is so stylish!! & friendly & a great quilter. I wish I was closer & could wrangle an invite to the kitchen table. I would bring cake :)

Loving what she do

Lush x

Oh Dear, oh dear, oh dear!!

Cindy over at Fluffy Sheep Quilting is having a great giveaway of fabric from the new Oh Deer! line by Momo for Moda. I am not one to get carried away over "lines" of fabric nor am I a designer snob but I do love these prints!!


 
 Cindy is asking which are your 2 favourites from her whole shop. How can you pick only 2??
I have been gathering pink & brown fabrics for some years now & I definitely need to add some of the pink with brown deers to the collection. My other favourite would have to be the red spotty one. Or maybe the aqua spot. Or maybe the lime spot. Or the tangerine deer. Or, or, or......

See my problem?? I can't even pick 2 from this range!! I will be purchasing a charm pack I am sure.

 
This is one of my other favourites from their site.

Loving what they do.

Lush x

Lottery win!

We were off to Brighton for a friends birthday last weekend. Saturday was fabulously sunny & we had a lovely time laying on the beach watching the waves & examining the rocks. We love rocks & can talk about them for hours. Why yes, we are that nerdy, thank you for asking.

The party was a fancy dress & we went along with the spirit of the event & dressed up in our finest fashions. We had a lovely time catching up with old friends & making new ones. A good time was had by all.

This is kind of what The Prince wore to the party. Cake at Chocky Wocky Doo Dah.

On the Sunday we had another lovely day, albeit colder, freezing our butts off sitting in beach chairs having fish & chips like proper Brits. The weekend was so very relaxing & it was wonderful to be beside the seaside. So much so that we ramped up our thinking about where to move. We need to make a decision soon if we are to move from London & we are very keen on the seaside. We really miss the sea.
So this week has seen us focusing our thinking on real estate & business opportunities. Oh yeah, ain't we been having fun? Stressful? You betcha!! I have been doing some therapeutic mending & button sewing in order to relax.
We are off for a walk in the beautiful afternoon sunshine & then I am going to finish my first ever bee blocks for Helen & try to work out what I am going to request as mine.
Oh and the lottery win?? Six pounds!!! Not going to buy us our luxury Georgian mansion by the sea, hell not even going to buy us both fish & chips by the sea :/ Oh well, keep buying tickets I suppose?
Still loving what we do.

Lush x

Paralympics final round up

Back in January 2011 The Prince was asked to return to the UK to work for the Olympics & Paralympics. A huge job with loads of pressure, massive learning about media & very long days on the park during the games for around 8 weeks.

Taking this job meant we had to decide to move our little family to the other side of the planet.  I am so lucky to have the Prince in my life & I can honestly say I would not make this kind of move for just anyone but I jumped at the chance and it's one I don't think either of us have regretted for a moment. Don't get me wrong, we have had stress & pressure (and still do) but we have had each other to help us get through it all. I wouldn't have it any other way. Well maybe less stress & pressure??

I was extremely fortunate to get a ticket to see the medal games for the Men's basketball. Lovely sunny day, great seats & Aussies up for the gold. Who could ask for anything more?? Well I would have loved The Prince to be with me but that was not to be. So I had to enjoy it for both of us.

So Excited!!!

The foyer of the O2 Arena

Such an awesome game! The Canadians were well up for it.

The Aussies fought hard

Well earned Silver medal

Job Done!!

 Thanks my Darling Prince. For so much.

Loving what I do & especially with whom it is done.

Lush x

More evidence.

It's coming I tells ya!! Not that I mind cause it's my FAVE time of the year aside from SNOW!!!!

I managed to get out of the house early today & took Princess Daisy for a wander around the local park. It did us both the world of good. As much as I have loved having the students here, (and the money earned) today I did not need to make breakfast for them & I really enjoyed being able to get out for a walk before I throw myself into the day.
I find if I get my exercise done first thing, it gets done & I don't end up at 3pm making excuses for why I can't/don't want to go. Same thing with the hand sewing.
The morning was lovely, crisp & fresh just the way I love it.

I am really looking forward to the end of the Paralympics so I can get The Prince back. It really has been quite all encompassing. Thrilling & would not have missed the opportunity for the world but oh I am over the pressure now. I am sure The Prince feels the same. I am very fortunate to have corporate tickets to see the gold medal match of the men's basketball today.  Just a little excited!

Loving what I do

Lush x