By Stephie, on Thursday 10th December, 2009 at 02:18 am
There’s a lot been going on in my creative space this week, hence the chaos of my workspace! It’s all been about making gifts for Christmas, which I love, love, love doing! But why do I always seem to leave it ’til the last minute, or invent more complicated things to do in the last few weeks? Do you ever do the same? I bet you’re all super organised and not like me at all! I look forward to popping over to your creative space to find out! And don’t forget you can see plenty more over at Kirsty’s place Kootoyoo!
 Organised chaos? Nope. Just chaos, plain and simple! And yes, that IS my kitchen work-top.  If the cat sits there long enough she's likely to be sewn into something!  The relative order of the ironing board, aka another makeshift work-surface! I’d like to show you some of the finished products, but that might give the game away for the intended recipients! I’ll certainly give you a glimpse though, and once the big day is over I promise to show you what all my self-imposed stress has been about!
Thanks for stopping by, look forward to seeing you again soon!
By Stephie, on Thursday 26th November, 2009 at 23:41 pm
I’m so happy! Finally, I’m getting back on track – after what, four months off the beaten path?! I do apologise if you’ve missed the odd peep into my creative workspace for a while. I’m hopeless and simply couldn’t get it together on a regular basis when I wasn’t feeling so good. But today’s different. It’s Thursday and this was my creative space today!
 Someone likes the quilt anyway! I was all set up with the quilt on my lap, stitching away and feeling pretty pleased with my progress this afternoon (quilted around 11 stars now, woohoo!). But, someone decided she wasn’t getting enough attention. She wormed herself onto my lap 3 times before I gave in and let her stay – I could tell I wasn’t going to win this one, when Lily’s made up her mind she wants attention, she’ll make sure she gets it come hell or high water. I guess she knows that there’s nothing much nicer than a cat and a quilt on your lap on a wet Thursday afternoon in November!
Hmmm, just thinking that I’m sure Lily’s featured in My Creative Space in the past… I’m certain this isn’t the fist time she’s tried to sabotage my sewing. Maybe she’s trying to tell me she wants her own quilt?
BTW, check out at least 99 other creative spaces over at Kootoyoo’s blog!
By Stephie, on Friday 26th June, 2009 at 00:52 am
Wooohooo! My creative space has a very welcome addition this week. See if you can guess what it is…
 Oh, go on, it's not difficult! Yes, after endless months with no sewing machine, I decided it was time to enforce a fabric buying embargo until I could afford to get my trusty old machine all fixed up. And sixty pounds later, here it is!
 My sewing machine! Of course I had to give it a test and I’m pleased to report it hasn’t sounded so good for years and years. In fact I’m beginning to feel a great deal of affection for this old machine, so much so that I’m thinking of giving it a personal pronoun and a name. She will be female, of course, but any suggestions of a name will be most welcome.
Her stitching is perfect: no more fiddling with the tension every 5 seconds; no more getting a tangled up bobbin; no more screams of rage and frustration at yet another broken needle. All she needed was a little tlc. I got out my stash of soft furnishing oddments and decided I’d give her a proper work-out. Since Kim’s daddy got custody of the picnic blanket when we parted company, I thought it would be the perfect project to get going on. Just think, summer in the garden or on the beach on your own custom made ‘blanket’; no more ubiquitous tartan! I had just the fabric for the job.
 Here it is part way through and being tested for size. Trouble is, I had a bit of a brain wave and decided to try it on the garden table as well. And boy do I like it on the table! Which means I’ll have to make another picnic blanket. Oh and some matching seat cushions. Of course.
 Strawberries and cream anyone? Come back during the week to see how I get on with finishing the cloth! And don’t forget to check out Kootoyoo for more creative spaces this week.
By Stephie, on Thursday 11th June, 2009 at 22:27 pm
 Letter and my notebook A letter arrived on my doormat one morning this week. It was different from the usual brown envelopes: it was transluscent and hand written. I picked it up and felt its smooth surface – and a flutter of excitement. I knew who it was from. I’d been hoping, waiting for just this letter, but I had no idea what would be inside. I just knew instictively that it would be beautiful and deeply personal. I looked for the opening and found that it was taped tightly closed. I didn’t want to rip it, I wanted to preserve the envelope just as it was. So I headed straight to the kitchen table, my creative space, to find a scalpel. I sliced through the layers, imperceptibly, to find a sheet of folded paper wound with thread. I slowly untied it, unfolded the handmade paper and stood like Vermeer’s woman in blue; still, contemplative and lost in another world.
 There were lines of poetry  and a bird furled in its shell.  Now the letter waits, with my notes and thoughts, until I have something to send on its way back. Letter by Chantal Brooks for Unspoken. More Creative Spaces over at Kirsty’s place.
By Stephie, on Tuesday 9th June, 2009 at 00:18 am
We had glorious weather last week so I decided to take my creative space outside. I thought it was time I got on with Kim’s star quilt, which is way, way behind where I’d planned it to be by now.
 Apologies for the legs, just try to focus on the patchwork! Think the sun might have gone to my head though…
 Can you spot the not deliberate and really rather irritating mistake? Grrrrr...  Time for a cup of coffee, I thought, before I unpick that lot Unfortunately, within the few seconds between lifting the mug to my lips and taking that first delicious sip, I managed to spill it all over the basket of sewing you can see in the picture above. So, no coffee, no unpicking; instead I made an urgent dash to the kitchen sink to find the washing powder. I rinsed it all out so hopefully there won’t be any stains…
 Drying in the late afternoon sun After the ‘coffee incident’ I decided the sun was obviously trying to tell me something: stop trying to do stuff, lie down and enjoy the moment – you never now how long it’ll last!
By Stephie, on Friday 29th May, 2009 at 01:28 am
I was caught out last week and missed My Creative Space by about 5 days. Not a huge margin of error; more like a chasm! So rather than post last week’s offering exceedingly late, I thought I’d give you two weeks in one, you lucky things!
 Busy bee - Kim at work Last week I felt that my creative space wasn’t all my own. The table was cleared each day for meals and at other times me and my patchworking activities were relegated to a corner. The young one needed plenty of space so that he could make plasticine models, based on one of his beloved video games Patapon. Now, you may think I’m biased, but you have to agree (surely!) that these models are brilliant for an eleven year old to have made without any help?
 Kim's Patapon scene, including characters and a fort  A Viking style character, with a very unfriendly looking weapon!  A fine plasticine steed!  Kim's inspiration - low and behold, it's a video game! I think they’re fantastic. And, given enough plasticine, I’m sure Kim would give James May and his plasticine garden for the Chelsea Flower Show a run for his money. Will Daws, Executive Producer on James May’s Toy Stories, said in a Telegraph article that “Hopefully it [the plasticine Garden] will inspire people to put their computer games away and use toys where you actually have to use your imagination and create something.” Hmmm, think Kim may have something to say about video games and using your imagination. It would seem that the two are not as mutually exclusive as Mr Daws may think!
This week my creative space has been on a journey or two. I’ve packed up various patchwork projects into a bag that’s travelled with me to my bedroom, the garden, a coffee shop in Falmouth, and today to Perranwell village hall for a meeting of local quilters. My bag and I enjoyed being there very much – and have had quite a good week!
 Here's the bag on an excursion to the garden. Would you like a peek inside?  I spy...a cutting mat, some scissors, a lovely red quilt that hasn't got that far, and a load of other rubbish...  What's that you say? Oh, sorry, my mistake, it is of course a load of other UTTER rubbish!  A right comedian gave me this notebook, and I have indeed been filling it with rubbish (aka my feeble excuse for 'sums'!)  along with the odd idea or two, I promise! Want to see some more Creative Spaces this week? Then you need to pop over to Kirsy’s blog Kootoyoo, where there’s at least another 60 or so you can have a poke around in!
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I'm running a 28 mile marathon in memory of Josie this February. Come and find out why.
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