WOYWW 491–Knitting and Pet Service

On Saturday my hubby took me to the Range, and I bought a few bits and pieces. That’s all that’s on my desk this week, I’m afraid. A pack of craft card, a brush tool thingy for removing bits from detailed dies, and a couple of packs of refills for my hot glue gun.

It always amuses me when my hubby takes me shopping. He leaves me to my own devices for a while, so I can browse around, and then he finds me and the first question is, “Are you OK?” and when I reassure him, he goes off again, and the next time he comes back, he says, “How are you getting on?” and I say, “Fine, thank you,” and off he goes again, and then comes back with the final question, “Have you nearly finished?” when I know that he is thoroughly bored and wants to go home!!

Knitting

I finally finished unravelling the purple and yellow spotted knitting – and what a pain it proved to be! The fluffy yarn in particular was very hard to undo. I ended up with an enormous ball of yellow – really too big to handle! and a slightly smaller purple one. I created a tension swatch using the same circles pattern as before. Unfortunately I couldn’t find the original pattern from the garment I unravelled, and I had no note of the needle size I’d used, so I’ve had to start again from scratch.

I’ve done a small graph of the circles pattern repeat and now the tension swatch is done and measurements done, I have been able to design the pattern for the jumper I want to make – just a basic shape with nothing fancy – the colours and textures of the yarn will be enough. Using different yarns and needles, and each time making a tension swatch, this should be an easy pattern to follow in future.

This will be a lovely project to keep me going through the winter – nice to have something not too complicated to work on while watching TV.

Finishing the knitting of the peacock scarf.

Sourdough

Again, not a desperately successful loaf this week – not sure what I am doing wrong, but the colder weather may be something to do with it. As usual, it tastes fine. It’s just that it isn’t rising properly.

I also made more brown baps this week – again, very successful – and more sourdough crackers, which have become a staple in this house – I don’t buy crackers any longer. These are tasty and nutritious and filling too – you don’t need so many, which means we are also eating a bit less cheese which is probably a good thing for our weight! I’ve discovered they are also delicious with marmalade. I usually have oatcakes with marmalade (fabulous) and it made me wonder whether I might be able to adapt the sourdough crackers recipe with the addition of some oatmeal, for a change. I must do some research.

Kitties

Lily and Ruby had an adventure on Sunday, when we took them to the annual Pet Service at our church when we gave thanks for our furry family members! As usual, there was a large preponderance of dogs, who were mostly very well behaved apart from some competitive barking before the service began. (The lady on the right in the picture brought along her gorgeous little tiger stuffy!)

Apart from Lily and Ruby, only one other kitty, called Amelia.

She’s an old hand at this and just sat quietly throughout.

There was also Karen, the guide dog, who of course is always well-behaved.

Finally, here are our two.

My hubby had put newspaper in the cat carrier and of course Ruby had to tear this up. They were a bit nervous at the beginning but soon settled down. They had each other for moral support. We had a bit of crying from Lily in the car on the way there, but on the way home, not a peep – they know when they are homeward bound!

The trouble was, they were both very naughty when we got them home! Blowing off steam, I suspect.

The service was lovely with lots of singing, a thoughtful little sermon from the minister about our responsibility to be good stewards of God’s creation (I thought a lot about a horrifying programme I saw recently about the levels of plastic pollution in the oceans and its impact on marine life), and then a short talk by one of the representatives of our local Animals in Distress charity. This year she spoke about a rescue cat called Bomber with spinal problems, who has recently been rehomed. He had a CT scan on his back which showed that despite his wonky spine, he’s in pretty good shape. You can see his Instagram pictures here which show how happy he is in his new home. Animals in Distress is currently engaged in a massive fund-raising operation to build a new, purpose-built centre.

Lily and Ruby were very much admired and lots of people who hadn’t seen them since last year’s service were amazed how big they were! They were only a few months old last time.

Here are us two, enjoying a cup of tea afterwards. (No, I’m not really trying to hide the cake…)

Talking of animals, my hubby found this brilliant Youtube video last week, about a whale who showed its gratitude to the people who rescued it from some fishing net.

Health Update

I had a letter from my surgeon on Saturday, confirming what I already knew, that the hernia has returned. He wants to see me to discuss options, so no doubt I’ll receive an appointment in due course – but it will probably not be till next year if I know the NHS!

Also, on Monday, not having heard anything further about my pants, I phoned up for a progress report and someone else returned my call, saying that the machinist had been out of the office and they hadn’t even made a start on my pants! I said this was simply not good enough because I’d been promised by the rep that my order would be given top priority because of the mistake that had been made. I expressed my extreme annoyance at their inefficiency and that I was not at all happy. I also told them that I had now had confirmation of the hernia having returned, and that this order was urgent as it needed the support. Goodness, I’m fed up with all this nonsense. They promised the pants would be in the post tomorrow, but I’m not expecting miracles. If they don’t fit yet again, I am sure I don’t know what I shall do!!!!!

Finally, after my recent “relaxed carrot” photo, another wonky veg to make you smile. It arrived with my grocery delivery last week. I think it looks a bit like a seahorse!

Pet Service at our Local Church

This afternoon we attended the Pet Service at our church. When it was being planned, my hubby said we must take Lily and Ruby but at first I was reluctant to agree to this, thinking the experience would be too frightening for them and I didn’t want to add stress to their happy little lives, but eventually he persuaded me, and as it turned out, they were pretty relaxed!

They have had lots of visits and are used to people, and are remarkably unfazed at the vet’s. Several people from the church have seen them, but for the others it was a lovely opportunity for them to meet our two girlies for the first time, and they were universally admired!

The service was short, and consisted of a hymn or two, a reading (which I did, from the Book of Genesis, the account of the creation of the animals and mankind on the same day, and how God saw that it was “very good”), some prayers, and a lovely talk by a representative from our local Animals in Distress charity.

Here are our two babies enjoying their first visit to church!

Amelia, who was responsible for inviting us all to the service, and who belongs to one of the churchwardens. We had heard so much about her, and it was lovely to meet her at last. I stroked her through the bars of her basket and she rubbed her ears against my hand and purred and purred!

Cats were outnumbered by dogs.

 

One very special dog was in attendance, helping her owner.

The lady from Animals in Distress giving her talk.

She told us all about the puppies who had been in the local news recently. Someone came to them with a cardboard box that they had found abandoned, containing six tiny puppies, clearly only about 24 hours old. The staff at Animals in Distress fed and cared for these tiny babies around the clock, bottle feeding them. All but one have survived, and they are all now going to their new forever homes. How can anyone be so cruel as to abandon these defenceless creatures in this way? All they had to do was to hand in the box to Animals in Distress or one of the other rescue centres – the staff receive all animals in a totally non-judgemental way, and all they would have asked was the whereabouts and welfare of the mother.

An offering was taken up for the work of this charity.

This young lady had lots of photos of the puppies which were handed around afterwards when we all gathered at the back of the church for tea and cakes.

This was such a lovely celebration of our beloved pets. As we often see when we go out, when dog walkers talk to each other and to other walkers – animals bring people together. Everyone there had such special relationships with their fur babies, and were proud to show them off and introduce them by name for a blessing. Such a happy afternoon!

Our two little darlings survived their first outing to somewhere other than the vet’s very well indeed, and they were very quiet and well-behaved throughout. I am sure it helped that they were both together, keeping each other company. We had a few tears in the car on the way home and they got a bit cold going to and from the car because there was a very cold wind today, but once they were home again, they soon snuggled up together and got nice and warm again before it was time for their supper. We were very proud of them for behaving so well!

Friendly Plastic Wings

A few days ago I made some more of the pairs of wings with a heart from the mould I made from the metal embellishment I got from Ebay. Nice steampunk look! The first one I made had only one, or possibly two, coats of the Dylusions paint on the heart, and this paint is very fluid and I realised it needed further coats.

Over the past couple of days I’ve been adding another coat of paint each time I was passing – they now have 3 coats and are well covered and nice and red, and a final coat of acrylic gloss varnish just on the hearts, and they are looking much better.

The wings actually look more gold than this in real life – it’s strange how poor the camera is in picking up shiny or glittery surfaces. I am pleased with how the hearts have turned out. The wings were just coloured with gold gilding wax (Treasure Gold) over black gesso.

I finished them off by giving the backs a final touching-up coat of black gesso to cover up any bits of red or gold that had crept round the back, and they look nice and neat now.

Here’s the first one I made, with the angel wings from the moulds I made from the very thin metal ones I have.

You can see that the red heart looks a bit duller. It is much improved with more paint and a coat of shiny varnish.

This is a very nice embellishment and I’m glad I made the mould because I can now make as many as I want, and another advantage is that they are a fraction of the weight of the original, which is solid brass.

These were all photographed on my second sheet of A3 faux leather which I kept for photographic backgrounds. Although I made a mistake and painted it with gel medium to give it a semi-gloss finish and it came out rather milky, this doesn’t seem to show too much on the photos so I can still use it. The other faux leather sheet is being used as a masterboard and is being cut up for other projects and already it is quite diminished in size!

The Big Reveal of my mystery projects is just around the corner! Not long to wait now, if you can contain your impatience for a few more days! I’ve been working hard at them and I am well on top of them.

Less than a week to my next chemo – this 3 weeks is flying by at an alarming rate, but at least the time is going quickly and it will soon be October when my chemo comes to an end, and will hopefully signal a fresh start, and a cancer-free life. Spare a thought for all those who do not have such a positive outcome to look forward to on their cancer journey. I count my blessings daily.

Cookies

Is anybody else getting as profoundly irritated as I am with the recent change regarding cookies? Every blog and website that one visits has the cookie warning which obscures the top of the page and you have to click on it to get rid of it – and it appears again if you visit another page on the same blog. I am getting so fed up with this!!! I wish there was a way to click once on some sort of blanket agreement that you accept the use of cookies so that you don’t have to keep doing it again and again and again ad nauseam… it’s driving me NUTS.

A Quilty Hug

Recently, I gained a new online friend in the form of Maria, who started commenting on my blog. I mentioned how she has donated quilts to a favourite charity in the USA, Happy Chemo! in my last post. She contacted me and said she would like to send me a quilt for comfort during my chemo sessions. As you can imagine, I was overwhelmed by this kindness and accepted with alacrity, although I felt I did need to remind her that I was located in the UK and that the postage may prove too much, but this did not deter her one bit!

Today, my beautiful quilt arrived, and I was so excited that I could hardly contain myself as I struggled to open the box and reveal the treasure within!

Here it is.

Isn’t it stunning and beautiful? I am so, so thrilled with this marvellous gift.

In with the parcel, Maria had put this hilarious postcard for me – a little education for an ignorant Brit, from a full-blooded Southern Belle, on how English should be spoke!

I hope all y’all are as moved as I am by my new friend’s generosity and kindness. She knows only too well what it is like enduring the rigours of chemo, and how much a quilty hug can mean. Hop over to her blog and just take a look at all the beautiful quilts she has made. Not only is she a very skilled quilter, but I love her turn of phrase – she’s an excellent writer too!

Reading about her, and about Happy Chemo! challenged me to do something to bring a little cheer into the lives of my own fellow chemo sufferers, which is why I have started making my little lavender sachets to give them, to bring them the healing and comforting scent of English lavender from our neighbour’s garden.

As I endure the rigours of chemo in the months ahead, I know that as I look at my beautiful quilt and feel its texture and warmth, and revel in its colours and patterns, I shall be comforted and lifted out of myself, and even when I am feeling at my most poorly, to know that I am loved and cared for, and that people all around the world are praying for me, and I have more blessings in my life than I could possibly deserve, and how impossible it is to count them all.

When we hear everyday on the news of all the awful things that people do to each other in this world, it encourages me no end to know that not everybody is like that, and that there are people who reach out across the world and perform acts of kindness to bless others that they hardly know. I have been challenged a lot of late with the knowledge that I really do very little for other people, and how I could be using my own God-given skills and talents to bring some sunshine into the darkness of the lives of others. Thank you, Maria, not just for this wonderful quilt, but for giving me the push I needed to start doing this in a small way. May God bless you.

Remembrance 2014

Today we remember the fallen of the two World Wars and all the other conflicts over the past century. This year is particularly special because it marks the centenary of the beginning of the First World War, which was hoped to be “the war to end all wars.” Those of us who enjoy a life of freedom and democracy should always be grateful for the sacrifice of our servicemen who gave their all to that end.

Here is the remembrance page I made in my art journal.

Let us also remember those who will live the rest of their lives suffering from the wounds they received, serving their country, and their families, and the families of those who did not return.

My grandfather, who served with the Royal Engineers in World War I. He had two very close friends and they all volunteered together. Their plan was to start their own engineering works after the war, but my grandfather was the only one to survive.

We will remember them

Christian Bereavement Card

Recently, a good friend of mine finally lost her battle with cancer and passed away at her home, surrounded by her family. She was so young and full of life, and was a wonderful Christian believer, as are her husband and two children – in fact I was privileged a number of years ago to witness the whole family being baptised together. She and her husband were part of my Bible study group for several years, and we had many wonderful times of fellowship together.

I needed to make a very special card for this very special family, and have given it some considerable thought and prayer. For Christians, although the loss of a loved one through death affects us as much as it does non-Christians, and we have to go through exactly the same grieving process, the Bible gives us hope of everlasting life, and reunion with those we have lost, and I wanted to reflect both these aspects in my card.

1 Thessalonians 4:13-14 says, “But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus.”

One of the songs we used to sing together was “We will dance on the streets that are golden” – a picture of the heavenly Jerusalem, and I decided to use this as the theme for my card.

The first step was to make the golden pavement and draw a dancing figure on a piece of recycled watercolour paper. (This drawing was adapted from an image I found online.)

The golden pavement was made from a piece of gold mirror card. I drew some perspective lines on the back and then hand-embossed the card from the back with a large embossing tool, and picked out the lines between the paving stones with a smaller embossing tool from the front, working on a piece of fun foam. I outlined the drawing with a waterproof black marker pen and then added some colour with my Derwent Inktense Pencils, blending them with a water brush.

The next step was to cut out the dancer. Here is a mock-up on the white base card.

I then began work on the drawing on the base card, to form a “Heavenly City” background. I added a few Zentangles, notably “Float Fest” to give the suggestion of more domes extending into the far distance, and began colouring it with Inktense pencils as before.

At this point I got a bit carried away and forgot to stop and take any photos! The next photo shows the finished card front, complete with an emerald rainbow (as described as being around the throne of God in the Book of Revelation), and the addition of little spots of Stickles glitter glue in various colours to represent the jewelled foundations of the Heavenly City showing through the transparent gold paving. I also made a separate banner from the recycled watercolour paper, with the words “Dancing on the streets that are golden” and stuck this down. For the banner and for the dancer, I used Scotch Quick Dry adhesive, which is a good strong wet glue. As usual, the photo doesn’t do justice to the golden, glittery effect!

As this is a bereavement card and I wanted to convey my feelings for their loss, the front of the card needed to reflect this, and although the above shows my friend in glory, free at last from all pain, and carries the hope of reunion in the life to come, the present also needs to be addressed.

I decided to make an overlay from translucent parchment paper with a message on it, but through which you could just glimpse what was beyond. Looking through my stash, I was delighted to find some parchment that I had printed for another project, and made the mistake of not choosing the “borderless” option on my printer, which left an unprinted border, so I couldn’t use it. It is fine for this project, though, as I had already decided to make a paper border to cut out and stick down around the edge of the parchment, which will cover this unprinted part. You can see that it is a subtle blue colour with some butterflies on it.

Working on the border. I chose a piece of A4 100 gsm copy paper which has a lovely smooth finish, and folded it in half. The back could be cut away to leave a small amount to stick down onto the back of the base card and form a hinge, and this would also hold the parchment piece in place. Again, I used my waterproof black marker pen to create a text border. I chose a verse from one of my favourite hymns, which we had for Dad’s funeral last December, “Teach me, my God and King” by George Herbert. The verse I chose is as follows:

A man that looks on glass,

On it may stay his eye;

Or if he pleaseth, through it pass,

And then the heaven espy.

This is so appropriate for the situation! We can look at our circumstances and our loss, and we can also look through it, and see the hope and beauty beyond. The parchment paper can act as the “glass” which we can look at, or we can see, “through a glass dimly” as Paul says in 1 Corinthians 13, the golden bejewelled image beyond; and in our case, we can also turn the page and see it in its full glory.

In the next photo I am working on the border. Between each of the words I have used a tiny drop of bisque Liquid Pearls – this stuff is gorgeous!

Here is the finished border. At this stage I had not yet applied any distress ink because I was waiting for the Liquid Pearls are dry. The next step would be to cut out the middle, and stick it down onto the parchment, and then create some slips of paper with some Bible verses on them.

Here is the text border complete, having been distressed with Old Paper Distress Ink, using an Inkylicious Ink Duster – these large soft brushes are ideal for this kind of thing because they are so gentle and do not snag the edge of the paper. Laid on top is one of the text pieces that would be attached to the parchment overlay.

Here is the parchment overlay with the first text, which I have hand-written direct onto the parchment, and the other cut-out piece ready to stick down.

For the main text across the centre of the overlay, I spent some considerable time selecting and cutting out a series of letters from magazines and newspapers (like a ransom demand!) and arranged them into words. In this picture I am beginning to cut the words out. I was quite pleased with the result because the letters added a bit of colour to the front of the card.

Here are the words stuck down onto the parchment overlay. I used 3M spray photo adhesive – a recommendation I found online – but it wasn’t easy to get the pieces to stick initially, and once the glue was dry, I had to apply a small amount of Scotch Quick Dry adhesive with a cocktail stick to make sure each piece was securely adhered. Parchment paper can be quite difficult to deal with.

Here is the parchment overlay together with the text frame, both of which have now been trimmed down the left side, ready to apply to the base card.

On the inside of the card, I wrote the Aaronic Blessing from Numbers chapter 6, and afterwards embellished it with some more bisque Liquid Pearls, and wrote the greeting on the other side. Having thought long and hard about what text to add to this card, in the end I felt that the Bible said it better than I ever could!

I attached the text frame to the parchment overlay with 3M photo adhesive spray, and this was attached to the base card using the red-backed ultra-sticky double sided tape.

Here is the completed card. You can see the golden picture underneath the parchment overlay. You can see that I have also added some embellishment with a black marker pen around the cut-out words, directly onto the parchment paper, to give the design more cohesion and to link this central text with that at the top and bottom of the card.

The finished card with the overlay turned back. I wish the photo did the gold pavement and the Stickles better justice, as it is very shiny and sparkly.

I feel very privileged to have had this lady as my friend. She was such fun, and so full of life, and had such a strong faith. She and her husband brought up their two children in the love and fear of the Lord, and they are now being launched into the world in their chosen professions, well equipped to be good citizens, and to cope with everything that life will throw at them, with God’s help. My love and prayers go with them all.