Words, Weekends and Wickerman

Why do I always seem to find more to do when I already have a list as long as my arm? As if I didn't already have a queue of things patiently awaiting my attention, I decided to sign up for NaNoWriMo. For those not in the know that is short for National Novel Writing Month and it is happening now.

I must admit I have always wanted to write a novel but never had the motivation. This seemed like the perfect way to get started. You have a clear goal (50,000 words in 30 days) and plenty of support if you join in on the forums and events. What you write doesn't have to be blindingly brilliant, it's just a first draft after all. Four days in and I'm just on target, my hubby has read chapter one and says he wants to read more (always a good thing to hear) and I have a rough idea of where I want the story to go (although I neglected to do any advance planning - oops!).

Unfortunately there are side effects I had not counted on. My eyes seem to be losing the ability to focus due to spending hours starting at a blank white page. I have a head that feels like it's stuffed with cotton wool. I feel guilty if I do anything, including eat, before I've at least managed to write a few hundred words for the day. And I'm beginning to worry that I won't manage to leave the house for the whole of November.

At least I spent my last weekend of freedom (for a month) out in the fresh air at Archaeolink and just to prove it ...


(Did I say fresh air? Better change that to flame-filled.)

Autumn Madness

No new photos to share and the bag tutorial has been put on hold while the house undergoes a good clear out and some re-organisation. Everyone talks about spring cleaning but I find that autumn is when I get the urge to completely re-vamp my home. I guess it's a preparing for winter instinct (like hibernating animals stuffing themselves to build fat).

There will be some great benefits when I'm finished though. I will finally have all my fabric organised so I can actually see what I have and start to plan some projects. There is currently a pile of storage boxes waiting to be filled, but this will require getting ALL my fabric out so I can sort it by colour (OCD here we come). I will also have a little more space as I've steeled myself to be ruthless and actually give away items I will probably never use. Mind you, this will most likely lead to an uncontrollable urge to buy more to fill the gap.

I also have a small flurry of sewing alterations that have just come in. All of these customers have been looking for someone to do this for several months at least. It seems strange to me that so few people offer this type of service, especially when it is mostly just taking up hems. Oh well, at least it will keep me busy.

Roman Food Evening

Well, another victory for the Romans. On Monday I was involved in a Roman Food Evening at Elgin Museum that turned out to be rather a success.

Tickets for the event had sold out some time before the night, making me rather nervous to say the least. And, unlike the brilliant Museum Curator, David, I am not in the habit of speaking in front of an audience. Hence this rabbit-in-the-headlights picture of me taken by my lovely husband just before the event began.


I think I only put one person to sleep during my talk and everyone seemed to enjoy the food tasting afterward. Shona, the chef from the Beach Bar in Lossiemouth, had done a magnificent job with completely unfamiliar recipes and some unusual ingredients.

All in all, a successful event, although I doubt this is the beginning of my worldwide lecture tour.

Random Rambling

Where did August go? I'm positive some sneaky individual hit the fast forward button while I wasn't looking. If it was you, take note, I'm on the lookout now and you won't catch me out for September.

For anyone looking forward to the Tote Tutorial, I have a little progress report: I have taken a photo of the cut out pieces of fabric. And that's it! Aren't you just amazed at the huge amount I have accomplished towards this project in a mere four and a bit weeks. With my speed and prowess I'm sure I could revolutionise the world in the blink of an eye (or maybe a few centuries).


I did manage to corner my poor husband and force him to play photographer on one of those rare sunny days we had. So I finally have some shots of my polymer clay lentil necklaces on a model (only me, I'm afraid). Due to the wonders of Picnik I was able to take some rather oddly lit shots and come away with decent pictures. I'm particularly pleased with the one below because it's the first image I've been able to get of this necklace where the colours look right.


But now, fair readers, the lists call and I must away.

Handmade Quilts to Support Children with Cancer

As the curator of the McEtsy blog, I have had an event brought to my attention that I think deserves a mention. Michelle of Rubarb & Ginger, has made a commitment to help children with cancer by making quilts. Individual, customised quilts will be made for children at Ninewells hospital plus extra quilts will be sold to raise funds for CLIC Sargent.

Michelle has asked anyone who has spare fabric (or suitable craft materials) that they would be willing to donate or anyone who would like to help make squares for the quilts to please get in touch. You can check out the latest news about the event on the Rubarb & Ginger blog.

I think this is a really worthwhile endeavor and want encourage anyone who can offer their support to contact Michelle.

Not For the Fainthearted

I recently managed to get registered with an NHS dentist, after being without for 5 years. The dentist assured me that my teeth were fine, but I would need to visit the hygienist after such a long break. Today was the day and I'm sure you'll be quite relieved to discover there are no photos accompanying this blog post.

As I lay back in the chair, I was advised that the water syringe could be a little cold and if I wanted a break I could raise my hand. I can handle cold, I thought, I like the cold. What I got was an experimental form of water torture. It may be called a water syringe (although I wouldn't trust my memory on this) but it feels like a pneumatic drill. Firstly my face started to spasm, but I closed my eyes and concentrated on breathing calmly through my nose. As the pain increased I tried to calculate how much of my mouth there was left to do and if I could make it all the way through without biting the hygienist's hand off. I was afraid if I asked her to stop I wouldn't be able to let her begin again, so I lay there clenching my hands over my stomach and trying desperately to keep my mouth open wide enough for her to actually finish the job.

Finally she stopped and asked if I was fine. I gargled unintelligibly. The hygienist correctly interpreted this to mean I needed to rinse and spit before I could manage human speech. I was concerned at this point that I was on a compassionate break, due to all the face twitching, and I was going to have to lie back for more. Relieved to find this was not the case, I discovered that now it was time to have miniature bottle brushes forced between my teeth. In comparison to what had gone before, this was almost pleasant, even if not painless. After testing a couple of sizes, the hygienist informed me that the brushes should fit when the swelling had gone down and not to worry about bleeding for the next 7-10 days.

Thinking that my ordeal was over, I started to relax, only to be cheerfully informed that I'd had a general clean and that next week she'll be going under the gums. As I sit here, hours later, nursing an aching jaw, I wonder if it's feasible to give up eating and drinking altogether so I don't have to go back.

Sew, Sew, Sew Your Tote

First up on the list of sewing jobs must be the tote bags I've had cut out ready to put together since the beginning of the year. And that brings me to a good tip if ever I had one (although I admit I don't remember if it was my idea or if I borrowed it from someone else): hang onto those heavy duty plastic covers that sheets and duvet sets come in and use them to store your sewing projects. I even included thread and buttons in a couple of the bags (how organised am I?).


I'm looking forward to finally seeing these completed, mostly as an excuse to start cutting fabric for new projects. Fortunately this should only take me a day or two (allowing for the spate of interruptions I can guarantee will occur as soon as I switch the machine on) as you can also see my pile of men's shirts awaiting transformation in the background.


This is what the finished article should look like, and this design is fairly simple to put together. If I'm very organised I'll have my camera ready when I'm putting these new ones together so I can post a tutorial sometime in the near future.