Happy Valentines day to you...

Wishing you a very Happy Valentines day.
My table is set for a little hearts and flowers celebration supper...
Some little heart related goodies for the children and some yummy cakes, all to spoil ourselves. I think my little family need to know how much love is in this home of ours and how special we all are to each other. So a roast dinner is being prepared with our favourite treats plus a few extra gifts to make everyone smile. So what ever you are doing I wish you a little love and happiness on this Romantic day, a day to show you care...
In the sewing room the romantic feeling is reaching in there too. Another feather cushion...
Just working on a matching blue one... Oh busy making those lavender hearts...

Happy Valentines Day to you.

Spring is in the air...

Usually at this time of year I am looking forward to and planning a holiday with my boys at half term, I stay at a working farm, I have this done for the last ten years, to me this means lots of fresh air and walks, we pack up our wellies and waterproofs and in case of lots of rain I am usually in the process of enjoying putting together a craft basket for the children. The great thing about our little cottage is there is a little bit of luxury, a swimming pool, let me tell you there is nothing better than a dip in a warm pool after a cold winters walk (except for drying off in front of a fire with a mug of hot chocolate). Sadly this year I will be unable to go at half term with the children, aah that thing called money really is a pain!!!But what this break means to me is the start of spring, its usually when I see the first snow drops, the sky starts to to be a little brighter and often blue with white 'Simpson' style clouds. Yes, it marks the end of the winter, I know there are usually still a few winter weeks ahead, but it lightens my heart and takes the weight off my shoulders from those short grey cold wet days... it fills me with hope, the garden starts to come to life and it loses that look of looking like a field after a war, black and bare.
So with thoughts of spring and knowing we are missing out on this special break this year I have been thinking a lot about the changes in the season and how I can capture that feeling on our little break at home. So I guess its not really a surprise when I look at the work I am making at the moment, it definitely has a feel of spring about it.
My two biggest sellers here at Dotty Red are simple lavender hearts and cushions, previous to my Dotty Red shop I knitted as a hobby so I have lots of odd balls of yarn around, so I like to mix the two things up a little and use the yarn along with the flowers. For Christmas I made little crochet Christmas trees on cushions and for Valentines day its been hearts and now with spring on my mind I am making little daisy type flowers to decorate my cushions.

I love the mix of textures and of course crochet work is very popular at the moment, so you will find me in the car at the few minutes before school run, in the line at the post office, at the kitchen table whilst I am waiting for the children to finish their supper... you will find me hook in hand and a little pile of cute flowers being made...
Remember the book I got the other weekend, well I felt so inspired I made a little house from the book, of course I changed the size and generally fiddled about with the pattern, I have even stuffed the roof with lavender to make it a practical thing of sweetness...

Once I had made one I went on to make a whole little village of them, which with my thumb recovering from the surgery was no easy task I can tell you. LAVENDER LANE...
I actually had a moment when I realised I couldn't sew, knit, crochet or even hold a pen to write... I suddenly realised how precious our hands are to us. Still a few pain killers later and ignoring the surgeons advise to rest...
I sewed away. Might pay for that later as its not really any better than before it was messed with!!!
Shhhhhhhh... I have a guilty secret, I bought some yarn. In my present financial position I have not bought myself any yarn for a long time, occasionally I have bought a few balls for Dotty Red but for pure self indulgent knitting or crocheting just for my own satisfaction, well its not happened. Then I saw a blanket I wanted to make, but to make it with the chosen yarn of the designer it was going to cost Eighty plus pounds. Mmmmmm eat or buy yarn, well I gave up on the dream, then a friend told me she had used cheap yarn, the sparky stuff. Its usually the stuff I get a bit snobby about... oh a yarn snob, yep that's me. A few months went by and I kept thinking about this blanket...so I priced up the sparky stuff and realised not only could I buy it and feed the children and myself that week but I could even buy it in one go, seriously under twenty pounds... can you imagine my delight when the post lady brought it to me this morning... I cant wait for tonight... boys in bed, jobs all done, I am going to sit myself down in front of the fire with a pot of tea and a cream cake and I am going to start my blanket... Its the simple things in life that really make us happy...

Mommy the skies turned pink....

So there I was all cosy and warm in my bed, the radio alarm had just turned itself on to stir me out of my sleep at the start of a new day, I slowly opened my eyes... when suddenly... my little one bounces on top of the bed, throws the covers right off and at the top of his voice shouts "Mommy get up, get up... the skies turned pink, look, look..." by this stage I was staggering across the room feeling the chill of the air against my skin, screwing my eyes up as my son pulled back the curtains...Indeed the sky was pink, a little orange too. Just beautiful, the sun comes up behind the hills at this time of year and against the silhouette of the hill and the bare branches of my garden, it is indeed a sight for tired eyes. It did manage to put a smile on my face as the two of us stood at the window and with his camera and mine we both took pictures...
So the weekend was a busy one, my 'to do' list didn't get completed and has gone over to the next weekends list. However I did take a little time out for some silly sewing, I have been playing with felt a lot in resent days and I have been reading a few craft books on felt, I was inspired by a set of mice finger puppets and after a few tries of playing with the pattern, I made my little stuffy mouse. I forgot to sew in his tail, a mistake which pleased me as I added a little heart button to add to the cuteness of it.
Once I had made one I started a little production line and an hour or so later of self indulgent sewing time I had a little row of the critters. Which then resulted in me HAVING to go out to the fabric shop to buy more felt...I adore felt, its such a great medium to work in plus its so cheap, so when money is an issue and you have to have that 'fabric fix' felt is a good option.
Can you imagine my delight when the post man knocked on the door with a parcel...the book I had been waiting for what seems like ages had arrived, so I curled up on the sofa and had even more self indulgent time with a coffee, cake and devoured this fabulous book. I love the simplicity of the patterns, the fact the patterns are the correct size and don't need to be enlarged, the colours of the fabric... my oh my what a wonderful book. Alas though, I was a good girl and once the coffee and cake was in my tummy, I put the book down and finally got on with some jobs, I cleaned, washed clothes, dried clothes, ironed clothes, I tidied up, I cleaned out the animals, cleared the garden, sorted my accounts out and food shopped...
and then baked...
Yes my Saturday evening (along with a bottle of wine for company) was spent in my kitchen. I had to bake some fairy cakes for a friend, once that was done I pulled out a cookery book I had been wanting to use for a while. I was put off by the Americanism of it, I had never cooked using cup measurements. Anyway I had a bash... Banana, ginger and chocolate cake...
Delicious....

Had a little minor surgery on my hand yesterday, a little worried that I can not even hold a pencil today let alone sew...this is a little bit of a problem as I have college work to hand in tomorrow and I am working on an order for lavender hearts for valentines day...tea and paracetamol I think! Have a good day.

Today is a good day...

Today is a good day, I awoke to a brightish room despite the earliness of the hour, Friday is my busiest day of the week. But the brightness made me think I had overslept even though my two children cuddling me assuring me they had another ten minutes of cuddle time I still worried. I managed to pull myself out of bed and pull the curtains back and the bedroom was saturated in light. A feeling of excitement rumbled in my stomach. The thought of spring, the signs starting to creep in that January is nearly over and soon the grey days will be turned into warm and energy giving light days, yes indeed they are nearly upon us...
OK I am not talking summer here but the change in the light had a significant effect on my mood and well being. I wrapped my dressing gown around me a little tighter as the chill was still nipping at my skin which was still warm and cosy from being curled up in my bed. As I walked into the kitchen the sunrise over the moors was reflecting on the kitchen wall, it made me smile, what is more it made me want to quickly get my camera and capture the moment...So we (the boys and I) sat around the table and discussed the day ahead whist we munched on our cereal and toast, I have to confess that we also snuggled up next to the heater as indeed the chill was causing us to have dragon breath, swirly streams of breath as we chatted and eat before we all went our separate ways for the day.
Shhhh the end of the day is now near, the boys asleep and I sit in the kitchen on my own...looking at this tin waiting to go in the recycling bin, only its not made its way there and was a present from a neighbour for looking after her home whilst she was away, an empty box the contents long ago eaten. Mmmm why have I kept it. I looked at the container, I looked at my basket of spare wool by my chair in the corner of my kitchen. I looked again and started to put a plan together whist I waited for my supper to cook. Forty minutes later... Tah Dah...
Yes the day has ended on a note to match the morning, a happy one. My new vase of flowers on my dressers.
Making plans in my head for the weekend with my to do list getting a little silly...

- Work on a sewing order

- Work on a couple of cushion designs

- CLEAN AND TIDY UP!

- Make some cakes for a child's birthday

- Try to manage a couple of hours of studying

- Food shop

- Washing, drying and ironing the children's school uniforms

- Clean out the Rabbit and Guinea pig plus cut their nails and give the bunny a good comb out as he is matting up his winter coat.

- A wool shop visit, needing some more yarn in particular colour for knitted cupcakes.

- Tip run

- Re plant the pots by my front door with primulas

- Take the children books to the library

- OK, NO MORE THOUGHTS, MY HEAD IS STARTING TO HURT AND THERE ARE ONLY SO MANY HOURS IN THE DAY.

Time for a glass of wine, a little sewing in front of the fire and then a good nights sleep.

What ever you are inclined to do this weekend I hope the sun makes an appearance and fills your day with joy.

Love Letters...

OK is it is just me or is this month just flying by? Usually January is the slowest month of the year...Already in the short four weeks since Christmas day I have done so much, in fact so much that I have had little time to blog. Being a student is proving more challenging than I care to admit and I am finding I am studying into the early hours and on Friday I had my first and largest assessment, the preparation alone was over six hours written work and I don't even want to tell you about how nervous I was. I am pleased to report that everyone around me was extra helpful and I felt a real sense that my work colleagues really wanted me to do well.
In the Dotty Red household I have been busy with all things romantic... as I progress through my first year as a little creative enterprise I am learning a lot and I have found I need to be more organised and plan ahead a lot more, but this is what my sewing is all about at this stage, its all about learning. Any helpful hints you can pass on would be greatly appreciated.
So today after a busy day getting the house cleared and staged for the Estate Agent to come in and take pictures, working on a order, school run then preparing supper for my children... we all took a moment out of our busy day and sat around the table with a jug of Hot Chocolate and some cookies, a pile of new felt tip pens (100 pens from Asda £1.20) selection of paper, a mass of chopped up bits of felt and glue. Whilst the boys got busy cutting, colouring and sticking I had a little play with the felt...
Which resulted in a cute pile of fabric love letters... little padded felt hearts, blanket stitched together and sealed with a kiss. A special little pocket added to hold a little paper heart for you to write your own secret message. Now of course these are for your loved ones, for romantic or even cheeky little messages, but the Mom in me also thinks they are a sweet thing to pop into your child's lunch box and leave a little message to let them know they are loved...
How I love these creative times around the kitchen table and how I love sitting in my newly decorated kitchen... happy days.

Oh and finally a little sneaky peek in to the Valentines cushions I am making, using dreamy fabric and vintage lace finished off with a lavender heart tucked away in the fold at the back of the cushion.

I wish you a happy and heartfilled week...

The Bleak mid winter....

So this weekend was the bleakest and most depressing weekend of the year, I heard it on the radio, I read it on the net and in newspapers. As someone that loves Christmas and all it means, its the celebration that helps me through the bleakness of winter and I really am not a winter child in the slightest so I was actually a little worried that I would struggle through this weekend. With the Christmas tree now in its rightful place in the garden, the lights and baubles are all packed away in coloured tissue and boxes and stored away for next year... The Friday arrives and my little one and I have a virus and spend the day curled up in front of the fire nursing our sore tummies, by the late afternoon our bug seemed to have passed and we spent our time reading and snuggling. The big boy came home and after a chat we changed our plans of a weekend away with friends to a cosy time at home. It proved to be the best idea of the week. After a quite night on Friday staying up late, we awoke to the snow all gone, a lazy morning mulling around in our PJs we thought we would wrap up warm and go for a country walk, we headed off and of course ended up in a country pub. After a soul warming mug of Chocolate and a nip of brandy ( Brandy for Mommy only I must add) we headed home to warm our toes up by the fire.
We all ended up in the kitchen and spent a few hours around the kitchen table while a very special friend of ours cooked us a fabulous meal. What a treat. How I love a lazy dinner, when you sit around and chat, sip wine and just relax, yes relax was the word for this weekend, indeed its the most relaxed I have been for a while. Once the boys had finally given in to sleep, a movie in front of the fire which ended in a snooze for the grown ups...
Sunday was much of the same, but a little busier in the kitchen, baking up a storm with some little helpers, the enthusiasm of children cooking always warms my heart. It was baking to finish off all the Christmas left overs and rid the house of chocolate.
Now don't get me wrong, being totally lazy just does not happen around here, yes Christmas might be over but its time to think Love and hearts and all things valentines related... So on the shop front I have been busy putting together the Valentines Dotty Red range. Cushions, hearts and some little heart covered journals. I have got my hands on some fabulous organic muslin styled cotton, little flecks of thread running through a beautiful rough cream fabric, big squishy over stuffed hearts a little label of words of love sewn on with a single cross stitch either side of the label and a loop of matching ribbon to hang it on your door, coat hanger or in the house... your light switches...

Back to normal this week, all well and a dairy that is full, lots of things going on this week...

Homework, work, sewing, a couple of Dotty Red shop visits, solicitors, meetings with Estate Agents and maybe at the end of the week a little more time to relax.

What ever you are doing I hope you have a great week and manage to get all your jobs done and still have a little time left over to take a moment out just for YOU.

Happy New year...

From my creative place to yours I wish you a very Happy New Year...Reflection is a big part of New Year for me, I like to give myself a little time thinking about the past and making plans for the future. Only this year I have chosen not to reflect. Its not been the best year of my life, still struggling with the reality of becoming a single parent, not being able to be the home Mommy I always wanted to be, having to go back to college and work, making my sewing and knitting a business not just a hobby, losing my place by the seaside, some friends finding the changes in my life not compatible with their lives, its not an easy transition. This New year also holds lots of change, this month my family home goes up for sale and my children are finding this part of our family life the most difficult, lots of personal 'stuff' to handle, many many challenges and I have exams to work towards also . . . yes lots of change, so instead of reflecting I am taking a big deep breath and feeling, for the first time in a long time, excited about my future. My life is full of insecurity and worry about my family and our future, but it is also exciting and full of possibilities. My boys and I myself are blessed with good health we are warm and we have food in our tummies and our home is full of love, laughter and so many cuddles plus some very special people that care for us. So no dwelling on the past this year, only looking forward... new designs for Dotty Red, a new creative vibe, a new home . . . my two beautiful children and myself take a great big positive leap into 2011.

Happy New Year

Wishing you love, happiness, good health and wealth... Here's to the future, lets make great plans and ignore those who try and trample on our dreams!

Photograph. My beach boys happy by the sea side. It is my tradition to go to the seaside at Christmas for a wind swept walk along one of our favorite beaches, with our holiday home now gone we didn't manage it this year, so a little memory to help us all along... Soon it will be summer and new beaches will be discovered...