A walk in the woods

Today has been, still is, such a BEAUTIFUL day here in the West of Ireland. 

We are being blessed with the most stunning September I can ever recall.  The skies are just the most perfect blue and the sun is beaming all day long.  I'm still wearing my summer clothes and sun glasses every day, it's just bliss!!

I was lucky enough to spend my morning with a lovely friend on a leisurely (hmmm maybe not so leisurely) walk (make that hike!) through Doughill Forest up Sliabh Ban mountain.  We checked it out on the map and estimated it to be 6k which is what I've been walking a lot lately but over three hours later we decided the map must be wrong :O) 

Hard to believe that this is only a couple of miles (or as they say in Ireland "a stones throw") from my cottage and yet I have never been here.  That is all going to change.  It was just glorious! I can't wait to go again. 

It was truly magical.  I don't think we could have chose a better day.

There is nothing on this earth that can make you feel as good as a walk in the fresh air.  It blows away all the cobwebs and I always come home bursting with ideas and enthusiasm. 

I got a little over excited in the moment and burst into song at one point !

After three hours we finally made it to the summit .... 

Can't say the summit itself was worth it, actually a little disappointing, but the walk up and back was most definitely worth it.  

I was so glad I had my camera.  Not only for the pics but for the fact that I finally worked out how to take a panoramic shot !!

Overall a truly fabulous day!

Have a great weekend peeps xx

My week in photos

Hello my lovelies

Hope you all had a super Easter!!

I know it's been yet another few weeks since posting and I need to accept the fact that that is just the way it's going to be.  I'm busy busy with work, being an Auntie and now that the sun has come out, pottering in my garden :O)  I hope that's ok.

However, I do update my facebook page and instagram regularly with snapshots of what I'm doing.  Are you on there?  Do pop by and say hello if you are. I particularly love instagram and sometimes I think pictures are just enough, you don't need to hear me rambling on in the background really, do you??

Here's a snapshot of my instagram account from the past week ...

* Making bloomers - yes I made them (tutorial to come as it seems lots of people like bloomers, who would have thought)

* Paddling at the beach.

* Making Dolls (soon to be available in my shop)

* Making Bags (soon to be available in my shop)

* Watching Gogglebox - cannot tell you home much I just LOVE that show

* Drinking vino

* Enjoying the Sunshine

* Pottering in my garden and sewing alfresco

* Making smoked salmon roses and scrambled egg

* Deciding whether or not I should paint my kitchen shelves

* Spending time with the new love of my life ... my beautiful niece Sienna

* Potting up geraniums whilst patiently (not) waiting for flowers to bloom in my garden

* Tidying my kitchen as I was being filmed for a TV programme

* Decorating my easter tree

* Flat out like my teddy bear tidying 

How about you? What have you all been up to? 

Home Sweet Home

A lady after my own heart.

I love being at home ... 

When I worked in an office I longed for weekends to potter about at home 

I'd much rather be at home than go away

I'm sure it's not just me and Jane 

Do you love staying at home too??

Dreaming and dreams coming true

I'm a big dreamer , are you you?

I love disecting my dreams in the morning and 

more importantly, seeing them come true

i keep notes of my dreams in my diary

and tell my dreams to friends ... sometimes

I love how they can be tangled and wiry

but so thought provoking when you read between the lines.

My dreams are what got me where I am today

I didn't think of them as airy fairy

I let them lead the way

I dreamt of my cottage in the country

of living a crafty life too

I'm living the crafty life in that very cottage

My dreams really did come true. 

**********

Do you dream a lot?  

Do you write them down? 

 How about dreams coming true?  

Would love to hear from you 

New Year on the beach!

 Happy New Year everyone!

Wishing you all nothing but fabulousness for 2014!

I decided to start the year where I hope to end the year ... on the beach.

It wasn't sunny though ... far from it.

It was a bitterly cold, blustery wet, wild and windy day 

but the perfect way to blow off the cobwebs (and post New Year's celebrations fuzzy head)!

The photos are taken on Clonea Strand in Waterford (Ireland) one of my all time favourite beaches.

My first selfie of 2014 

Needless to say there weren't many on the beach that morning :O)

How did you spend New Year?  Did you make any resolutions? 

 I'm brimming witht them (as always) and working away on my vision board.

See you soon !

Cosy crochet

Currently loving

Dark & rainy days (great excuse for fairy lights) 

Afternoon coffees by the fire
Chunky Crochet  

Reading books in bed

LOVE LOVE LOVE 

November

I'm a Cover Girl

Me ... a cover girl !!

If you follow me on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram you will already have seen this and are probably saying "Oh not again!"  But for those of you that missed it I made it as a cover girl last week!

I was interviewed by the lovely Maria Moynihan from Irish Country Living (a supplement of the Irish Farmers Journal) and photographed by the lovely Carol Dunne a few weeks ago for what I thought was going to be a small 'piece' in the supplement.  However, the day before it hit the shelves I was met with a picture of my kitchen shelves on their Facebook page and a hint of what was to come.  

The next morning my mum was up at the crack of dawn and arrived at my house with three copies, and crusty rolls and cooked sausages.  Gosh we were far too excited to cook breakfast!  The kettle was switched on, Dad was called in from the shed and we all flicked through the pages to read my article.  I have to admit I was totally shocked when I opened the paper and seen a page and a half spread, as if the cover wasn't exciting enough!  

As with all these interviews one does feel slightly nervous coming nearer to the publishing day as you never quite know how what you have said is going to be interpreted.   I need not have a worried a second.  Maria wrote the loveliest of articles and nothing was embellished nor wrong.  Everything was just as I had waffled on to her on the day she came to the cottage.  As for the photos, Carol was spot on.  It;s funny, not one of my friend's could work out the where the rusty red galvanised background was!  Everyone is so used to seeing me in my kitchen or at the front of the house.  My Dad was quite pleased with himself at getting mentioned in the first few sentences and my boyfriend slightly embarrassed, but I'm sure equally chuffed all the same at getting a mention.

  

So there you go.  I may be the plumpest I have been in all my life (crusty rolls and sausages obviously don't help with that) but I made it as a cover girl! 

I've had such a lovely reaction to the article in the form of emails, facebook, twitter, instagram and over the weekend of the Lamb Festival so many people came up to me and congratulated me.  It's been just lovely. By the way, my dress, as I've had so many questions, was 5 quid in Asda :o) Slapping my imaginary back pocket with a smile. 

But now I must pass the baton on to the next lovely cover lady and look forward, as always, to reading the inspiring stories of fellow entrepreneurs in Irish Country Living.  I hope you do to.

Before I forget the article included a competition to win a weekend break for TWO to Roscommon, with two nights B&B in Gleesons Townhouse + 1 evening meal, including a full day workshop with yours truly.  So if you haven't got your copy you better rush out and get one now to enter.  Otherwise the details of the competition are here:

Thank you again to Maria and Carol for a lovely afternoon and all the lovely lovely lovely people who have been in touch.  The most common question is "Can we come and visit your house".  I'm afraid not.  I'm not open to the public, apart from random events I host.  If you would like to be kept informed of these you can sign up to my newsletter (follow this link).  Otherwise details of my workshops, products and events will appear on my website. 

Ta Ta for now !

Coffee Breaks

The best thing about being self employed is you can take your coffee break whenever YOU want :O) 

I tend to work for a few hours in the morning and break at around 11ish (just 10 minutes to go!!) and love nothing more than a flick through a magazine, away from the sewing machine or laptop or whatever I've been doing. 

I have also taken to a bit of bird watching lately. 

I've always left bread out for the birds but up until now it's ended up being magpies and big crows but this week I've had regular visits from these three. 

I love this photo. 

It looks like the thrush (I think it's a thrush??) is telling off the other guy.  He even looks like he's sulking. 

I got a little carried away with photos using my new camera which I am just LOVING.  My mum got it for me for Christmas but with the pop up shop and everything I just haven't had much time to play with it ... until now. 

So how do you spend your coffee breaks?

What do you have with your coffee?  Would love some ideas.  

I'm a boring coffee and toast gal.  I'm not big on biscuits and never fancy chocolate until evening time (yes weird I know) and have been thinking of making batches of muffins or tray bake to freeze and maybe have a little selection.  Hmmmm thinking about it is so much easier than doing :O) 

Keep Calm and Paint it White

I've decided this is my new motto!

Well not really 'new' as it's something I have always done :O)

I can't help myself.  The minute the paint tin is opened and I've painted one thing I'm looking around to see what else I can paint :O)

Is it just me??

Forgive me?

Hi all

Are you still there?  

Are you still reading?

I'm sorry ... yet again for being a bad blogger of late. 

Is it just me or are the days just not long enough?

I have to say I have been doing a lot of pondering, thinking, soul searching (hmm that might be a bit heavy) about my little blog since my last post regarding the blog awards.

As soon as I hit 'post' I felt "I'm not worthy".

I am struggling to find the time to pin, tweet, post, like, follow etc etc and starting to suffer badly with a #smoverdose (social media overdose).  

I have become engulfed in the world of micro blogging but forgetting about where it all started  .... this blog. What a fickle person am I ?  Seriously!  I'm already eagerly awaiting the "new thing" - what on earth is going to come that is better than all the other sites I spend hours of my days oogling over?  

Well drum roll please ....

After copious amounts of this

and lots of slices of 

I have decided 

that ...

my blog is going to come first.

I must however (I feel I need to) explain for my sporadic posting.  

Aside from taking on other projects that have sucked away my time and ... OK! ...

my adulterous behaviour cavorting with other blogging sites (I'm sorry, please forgive me, you are my first and one true blog love) I ... this is going to be hard to hear but I need to be honest ... 

I was a little embarrassed by you for a little while.

Please don't be mad ... let me explain ...

When I started this blog I lived in New York.  I was in the middle of Manhattan in an apartment a few blocks up in the East Village.  What I'm trying to say is that I knew no-one, no-one knew me, I was anonymous.  Not that I was embarrassed or ashamed - the total opposite in fact.  I was embracing my crafty side and was happy for all to see/hear about it. 

But now 

Now I live in Roscommon, a small (yes Roscommon peeps it's small ... especially in comparison to NY) town in the middle of Ireland.  A lovely town, but a small town.  So small in fact that it is possible to overhear a conversation in a local cafe where two 'ladies' (take a deep breath and move on, leave the 'ladies' and do not replace with another word) are discussing this very blog and how hilarious it is and how they " "go into it just for a laugh and to have a nose at what she's up to".    I kid you not.   Let's just say that conversation hit a nerve, that conversation did upset me and as a result (and some other comments said direct to me) I have found it hard to blog and be honest I have sat and thought about who will be reading this, what will they think etc  

But ... like I said nearly 10 minutes ago (sorry are you still with me?) I'm moving on and sausages to those of you who just come 'for the nose'.   For the rest of you who genuinely visit to see my makes and bakes thank you so much for calling by and especially thank you to the lovely peeps who leave the most lovely comments.  They genuinely make my day.  

Have you forgiven me?

I hope so

I promise to be a better blogger and give you the attention you deserve xx

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day 

to all the fabulous mums out there.

A special mention to my fabulous mum and my nan too xxx

It's all down to them that I'm here blogging about sewing and crafting!