Granny's Little Helper

In a usual start of the year attempt to get my craft room tidy, I have been going through a big box of bags of bits and bobs. On this journey I have found many small bits of fabric that will need to be turned into brooches and hair clips and I have found a large amount of colourful dk yarn. As it is the end of winter (well feels more like the start) I didn't feel like knitting some girlie scarves but fancied a bit of crochet.

Now I can make all sorts but crochet has never been my forte. Crochet in my crafts is a bit like risotto used to be in my cooking, a bit stiff and not very successful. Fortunately I have found the perfect risotto recipe so I master that one now and was quite keen to get another skill mastered in 2012. Off I went to the library as the web wasn't much help. Lots of people trying to sell their patterns but no-one explaining how to make a granny square. That was the one I wanted to learn, I could do basic but that's a bit dull. Lucky for me I found the oracle on my local library shelf.

I tried a couple and settled on the one that I felt would work best for a throw on the sofa (or girl monkey's bed as she confiscates anything I make).

I was quite chuffed that after a few nights of working on these I had a basket full of colourful grannies set in white and started to sew a few together.

Boy monkey was equally chuffed with the squares and played with them to make lovely patterns. He's seen me doing knitting, sewing, embroidery and now doing something with one hook so he was most intrigued. And bless him as I went to get myself a well deserved cup of coffee he'd laid them all out, made a nice pattern and ..... cut off the little threads as neatly as he could.

Imagine the look of horror on my face. And then on both monkey's faces. They'd realised quickly that something had been done that shouldn't have been. I clearly didn't master the "Oh aren't you a good boy helping mummy" but instead went into a panic checking if any of them had become undone, as I hadn't finished them properly. Ungratefully I then gave away those that could not be salvaged. Don't think I've encouraged the little man to take up this craft. Think I will have to make it up with a lovely knitted scarf.....

Knit Wit

I've got a snood in the making for a little superstar in the making. And one day I will get through this endless supply of pink & red.

Girl monkey herself has also taken up knitting. She'd tried before but patience does not run in our family. She's very proud of her achievement and joined the school knitting club. I think the knowledge that actors knit on set whilst waiting helped the cause. I am very proud though. Next project is a scarf for dad, bless.

A cheerful New Year

Happy New Year to all my lovely readers. I hope this year will be a healthy, peaceful, loving and successful one for you all. Personally I am also wishing for inspiration, time for crafts, reading and seeing a fair share of new art and contemporary craft. To start the new year I have brought back a cheerful notebook from Holland to brighten up an otherwise corporate black desk. Thanks for following me and hope that in 2012 my life is back in full swing and I will be able to update you all far and away about my musings.

Love, peace, crafts & happiness. X

Souvenir from Zeeland

I know that I am not alone in buying souvenirs from places I love and visit. However I have never been one to buy the typical souvenirs, the ones that my children love, emblazoned with "I love Wales" or "I was in EuroDisney". I'd rather buy a subtle reminder of where I was and one of the things I brought back from a visit to Holland was this lovely stone pear. I noticed it immediately as I walked into this beautiful antique shop in Veere, located in a former church. Apparently the lady who made them had done two but the shop assistant at De Pagter informed me that one customer had, rather disappointedly, bought a single one, breaking up the pair. Much to my delight I must say. I love the grey concrete colour and the rusty stem. It reminded me of the canal house I lived in a long time ago that had bare walls, concrete floors and wooden and steel beams showing everywhere. The pear also reminded me of the Dutch still life genre, whether it is the sincerity of the 17th Century Masters or the almost spooky Realism of the Twentieth Century artists.

I also nearly bought some prayer chairs but they were child size and I wondered how long we might be able to use them; the monkeys are growing fast and although I love the design I realised it was better holding off until I found some adult size ones. Instead I picked up this shoe mold. I have always loved them but never acquired one. Not sure if this is going to be the first of many but at this point that is totally irrelevant. This one will always be a reminder of a lovely visit to Veere.

Photographic Fortune Cookies

Earlier this year I was at the National Photography Symposium at the Bluecoat in Liverpool as part of Look11 the photography festival and picked up a couple of fortune cookies that were pinned on washing lines around the Bluecoat courtyard. I admit this was in May but as it happened I found them this week as I was tidying up the dining room after Christmas. I suppose I could have waited another couple of months to write about these for Chinese New Year and I imagine everyone thinking 'how come you didn't notice these the last 8 months?'. I do not exactly live by the mantra "a dusted home is the sign of a wasted life" but things do get put in drawers and corners where I do not look every week.

The couple who put up these fortune cookies were Leila Romaya and Paul McCann. The project was called Hui Yi Lu (Notes from the past). "Hui Yi Lu" celebrates Liverpool's Chinese community and came together following a series of photographic workshops within this community. Twenty large scale photographs were displayed throughout the city centre but then there were these miniature images enclosed in delicious fortune cookies. I was debating whether to open them or not as it felt somehow barbaric to destroy these lovely parcels but it was the monkeys' persuasive skills that made me, not so much because they were curious about the story but they'd fancied the biscuits!

Inside them we found two miniature images one of a boy inscribed 'travelling by sea' and one of a girl inscribed 'Martha'. Boy monkey is very keen to keep his find, perhaps I should suggest to keep it in his special box and one day we might find out more about these children. I managed to get a small bite of the cookie and I must say they were the best ones I have ever tasted.

Leila and Paul also took part in Redeye's Lightbox project and for their group show "Excavating Utopia" they created the most fabulous wall paper from images they had taken of objects in interiors along "Park Road". This road is not so much fictional but a medley of many Park Roads that photographers in the group visited and is a wonderful imaginary picture of how they perceived life in Park Road.

Have a merry green Christmas 2

I am having a flashback as I am writing this. Christmas has come round a lot quicker than expected. Luckily nearly everything is wrapped up but there are still a few presents to get and a shopping list to be made.

I was hoping to make all my presents this year (the usual wishful thinking) but didn't get all that far. I did manage to decorate the house with natural and recycled materials. There are the recycled wreaths from the last few years and natural things collected by the little monkeys.

My friend Juliette Hamilton makes fabulous willow items and I bought this lovely willow heart from her at Christmas Craft Cafe. She does great workshops at Arley Hall for those wanting to try their hand at willow weaving.

I made this basket when she did a demonstration in Paupers Wood for Easter and had put eggs, chicks & feathers in it. It is now re-styled for Christmas with apples & pine cones collected by the monkeys and it looks just as pretty.

This year we have gone mad on trees in the house and they are totaling four!! This sounds more lush than it is. We've got a lovely smelling natural tree in the lounge, decorated with lovely bright baubles by the monkeys. Then there is the little fake one in the kitchen (like everywhere else in the house with red decorations) and both monkeys have got one in their rooms. Boy monkey a black tree with red and silver decorations (to fit in with the Manchester United and Flamengo team colours) and girl monkey has got a pink one with turquoise baubles. I'd never thought I'd give in to a pink plastic tree but I am trying to make her pre-Christmas time as special as I can as she will not be here with me at Christmas. Oh the joys of time sharing kids; she's not best pleased to have to go on a plane when all her friends are here. Anyway, for now she's enjoying the Christmas spirit at home.

As always at Christmas I am keen to bring to the fore the ways we can make this a greener time. There are many ways to reduce, reuse and recycle and I would love to hear from anyone how you'd make this a greener Christmas and any views on whether a real or a fake tree is better for the environment. Opinions seem to be divided but would love to hear your thoughts.

As a token of good will the lovely people at Ecover have got a Christmas Clean Aid kit to give away for one lucky reader. So please send us your tips either on the blog or 'Like' us on the Busy Betsy Facebook group and send us your tips there. Meanwhile enjoy the following tips from the Ecover team:

• Wear and Care this Christmas and add some eco to your festive wardrobe. Why not rock the office Christmas party eco-style this festive season? Visit www.estethica.co.uk for a list of eco fashion labels or check out our favourite Ada Zanditon’s Autumn Winter collection
• Buying a real tree? Visit the Forest Stewardship Council website to make sure your precious pine has been farmed sustainably – www.fsc-uk.org
• Use last year’s Christmas cards to make this year’s gift tags – cut out the pictures and thread through some cotton – hey presto, recycling at its best. Don’t forget to save this year’s cards to use in 2012!
• e-Christmas cards – why not try Facebook, Twitter or email rather than snail mail to send your seasons greetings?
• Recycled wrapping paper is a really easy way to score ‘green’ points at Christmas and doesn’t cost the earth. Try the selection at www.ethicalsuperstore.com
• Turn off the fairy lights at times when you are out of the house or in bed – it’s both safe and energy efficient!
• All of Ecover’s range is now made from Plant-astic – a sustainable plastic made from sugar cane. This means that if you choose Ecover this Christmas to deal with your dirty plates, wash your best table linen, and keep your home clean, not only will your home be free from chemical nasties but also the packaging you’re choosing is better for the world around you too! And it just got easier – Ecover’s online shop means that you don’t have to worry about heavy shopping bags either –www.EcoverDirect.com
• Travel together – try car sharing with friends and family or taking the bus to the shops to do your Christmas shopping
• Once you’ve filled up on turkey, yorkshire puddings and brussel sprouts, wash the dishes with Ecover Washing Up Liquid (Busy Betsy thinks this really smells the very best, honestly I have tried them all!)– you can even use your grey water to feed the Christmas tree!

And the Dish ran away with the Spoon

Wednesday was a day of strike for many people but a day of rest in our household. Forced by school closure we had to stay home for the day. There are many things I can say about the strike but I won't considering the amount of abuse Jeremy Clarkson and others have had (and I am not saying I would have said the same thing, it's just an example!). Anyway I don't think I get any pension at all, jobs in the art & craft world aren't the biggest earners, but at least we are all trying to keep the economy going by turning up for work. Also I won't start on the government but the Teletories don't seem to make it any better. Enough said!

On the positive side we had a lovely time in West Didsbury, home of a lot of independent retailers and food establishments and of course the uber-cool. The monkeys were promised a trip to town but then I realised there were marches along the bus route so I took them to "And the dish ran away with the Spoon" instead.

I am not sure but think the shop had a make over recently, perhaps it was just the Tiffany blue ribbons that caught my eye. This is a lovely little place. In their own words small but perfectly formed, with a lovely selection of cakes, great interior (straight back to Grandmother's kitchen) and lots and lots of old fashioned sweeties.

Boy monkey decided he'd wanted two of each. I'd tried to persuade him that the nice man behind the counter had enough to do but I was given an ultimatum: tears or sweets. What's a mother to do? The lovely man behind the counter, who looked like he'd walked straight out of the "Notting Hill" bookshop was most obliged and served the little man monkey accordingly. This place is well worth a trip if you find yourself stranded in West Didsbury.

And if you are in need of cakes as beautiful as these just give them a call. Details on their website : www.dishandspoonfood.co.uk