Pretty Things

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I’m currently having a few days in Wellington with my eldest, it’s her birthday month and we are making the most of it.  The Official Photographer went first and spent several days helping the celebrations get off to a good start…..

"Oh," she said "this photo makes my glass look bigger than theirs ......"

“Oh,” she said “this photo makes my glass look bigger than theirs ……”

Then she came back to baby-sit

Siddy Jan 16

He misses his mumma when she goes away.

Prior to deserting my boys, I was playing with beads.

I put some new light catchers in the shop, including this little beauty ‘Marine’

1 2a 3a 4a

Which is just chock-a-block with crystals and shimmery goodness – I’m a little in love with this one!!

I made some bracelets

Single strand crystal rondelles & acrylic pearls

Single strand crystal rondelles & acrylic pearls

Single strand mixed acrylic beads and charms

Single strand mixed acrylic beads and charms

Stretch Bracelet Double layer with acrylic flower

Stretch Bracelet Double layer with acrylic flower

 

four layered, natural pearls & seed beads.

four layered, natural pearls & seed beads.

Bracelet 5 Bracelet 6 Bracelet 7 Bracelet 8

As I like bracelets, and they are the only jewellery I wear these days, I’m learning how to make simple ones that are robust, don’t fall apart and are fun to wear.  I’ve been wearing this selection for over two weeks now, gardening, housework, playing with puppy – so far so good.

The knitting was blocked.

I discovered a rubbery – foamy kit-set type of mat at Mitre10  [local DIY store] used for kneeling on in the garage, lining the car boot [trunk] or the children’s playroom or suchlike and did my best Archimedes “Eureka!” impression  [minus the bath tub].  And Lo ……

Blocking

You get a pack of four jigsaw sided pieces, each about 50 cm square so you can use what is needed to meet whatever shape you are making.  It works brilliantly.

All the parts were blocked separately, then sewn together, washed again and laid out to dry – someone said  ‘Oh, for me …..how kind………’   Sigh

b'day present 2016 w Tig 2

The project was finished on time despite attempts to sabotage – wrapped in pretty paper and delivered to ED who kindly modelled it for you despite having on her red sneakers and standing in the baking heat of Wellington

Model jumper

And now I’m working away at my crochet project a very fine alpaca and silk scarf, currently about one third assembled – destined for the birthday girl sometime after her birthday, but hopefully before Christmas.  Please note the careful colour matching………Shawl

If I’m missing from your posts, please forgive me – I’ll be back to normal in a few more days.

Thanks for coming by today, I love that you did!

104 thoughts on “Pretty Things”

  2. I love your sweater it looks great on your ED! Your crystals are so dreamy:-) I love dark beer:-)
    Spring has sprung here in the middle of USA and we are enjoying a warm-up the next few days. It must be time for you to be pulling out your sweaters for cooler weather? I don’t remember what hot feels like, but I a sure it will be here sooner than I want-lol
    Always fun to stop by for you inspire me to create. I hope after I grow, distribute , and plant out all the seedlings I can start working on my creating space ( I have one outside now too)— I put in a dwarf peach tree last week, a few aronia bushes, and final berry bushes. I am finally done with fruit in my small space. Time to create!You always inspire me for your hands are creating every moment—what a great way to live life!

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    • I’m glad to hear spring has made an appearance in your part of the world. I’m noticing the mornings are cooler now to accompany the darkness, though our days are having a run of clear and balmy weather that is most enjoyable. I am always ‘creating every moment’ 🙂 It’s a lovely way to spend my days. If I’m not actually engaged with something my mind is chugging through some design issues to make something bigger and better 🙂 With the garden changes you have planned, you might find you have a little time to spend creatively now. That will be wonderful for you. I’m looking forward to seeing what springs forth from your creative well 🙂

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  3. Pauline! It feels so good to be visiting your blog!
    Sometimes, life just seems too full and gets in the way of time with friends, especially my blogger friends.
    So glad you had a fun, productive time in Wellington. The results are beautiful!
    I miss you, seriously!

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  4. Happy Birthday to ED! I am glad to be back reading your lovely posts and delighting my eyes with your creativity. Like you, I enjoy wearing bracelets. I especially like the stretchy kind because my wrists are small and regular bracelets fall all. Thanks for visiting my blog earlier and leaving your insightful comments and best wishes for me. Enjoy your day, Pauline.

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  6. From way over here, you look to be filling your life with wonderful moments. So much love in your post Pauline. Including time with your girls and that adorable photo of Siddy. The hair on top of Siddy’s head makes me laugh, just perfectly disheveled and those eye brows are a hoot too. I bet you’re a fantastic team. The two of you together out on the beach, in your courtyard garden or in your art room, what a happy life together with handsome Orlando to love you both dearly.
    Your art room must be aglow with rainbows. I see these lovely works, as reflections of your own shining spirit Pauline. Your inner light is profound I think. When we talk about life, I feel like I’ve climbed to the top of a mountain to find the wise ONE. Life must be agreeing with you, when we last Skyped, you looked beautiful. xo Shine on K

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    • Oh, what a beautiful comment you left for me to find – I feel all warm and fuzzy 🙂 You are a most generous soul ❤ Siddy goes for a haircut on Thursday – he will return looking half the size and distinctly 'heveled' 🙂 I'll try to remember, organise myself and post a photo on fb 🙂 He will be 2 years old on the 4th April – I missed his first birthday on account of swanning off to spend time with you, so we will celebrate in fine style this year! There are rainbows galore through this house – every room gets to sparkle sometime during the day and I am constantly inspired and trying new ideas. Life is good! Is spring making a good showing for you yet and areyou getting busy in in your garden? xoxo

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  8. ED should really model clothes! Such a beautiful knitted sweater, Pauline! 😀
    Your time with daughter sounds amazing and fun. ❤
    Your necklace, bracelets and sun catchers are gorgeous danglers!

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  9. How gorgeous, Pauline. No wonder you are contented, being able to make these beautiful things. I love your marine light catcher, and your bracelets are beautiful too. Happy birthday to the birthday girl. I’m pleased to hear there is a month of celebrations! Her glass does look bigger! The sweater is amazing and she did a great job of modelling it. Thanks for sharing your wonderful handiwork.

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  10. Your diligence in blocking paid off – the jumper is perfect and looks beautiful on her! I noticed the colour matching before reading your comment; it’s funny how the little details catch your eye, isn’t it? Hope you’re having a lovely time:)

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    • I had a lovely time thanks Sheila – it’s always good to get some quality time with your kids isn’t it. This was my first fully blocked knitting project and it made me a convert. I won’t confess to how many years it’s taken 😀

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  12. Hi Pauline, it sounds like you are having a wonderful time in Wellington 🙂 You have been super busy in the lead up to your trip. I just love the new lightcatcher, especially the addition of the shell charms. Now that Spring is here in the UK my rainbows are returning on sunny afternoons and it’s just lovely to have them back!

    Your bracelets are very pretty, especially the one with the big flower. And your finished jumper is a triumph, and beautifully modelled too! Those foam mats are great aren’t they? I’d be lost without mine. I also have the same cat issue with knitting. I only have to put it down for a second and one of them will have claimed it…they are funny aren’t they! x

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    • The big flower looks quite pretty on – but is really a summery type bracelet and ’tis definitely autumnal here. I’m so glad you like it too. I thought I was so clever finding those foam mats and had no idea everyone else had done so before me 🙂 Nice but dim!! 🙂

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  13. It’s taken me awhile to get to the bottom. You have an amazing group of readers here and wonderful fans, too. It’s hard for me not to read all the comments as I go.

    The jumper (sweater) on ED is perfection. I love that length too. She’s a good sport putting in on in the heat but I’m so glad she did. Darling model.

    Siddy is a treat for the eyes, today and always. I know they miss you when you’re gone, as we miss them, but I’m so glad you got away.

    I love the aqua light catcher. My favorite colors. You’ve been busy doing things you love. What a happy state of affairs. xo

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    • t seems I spend a lot of time affirming that I am a fortunate being Alys – it’s a simple life, one that once I would have thought to be mind-numbingly boring – and now am incredibly grateful for. Funny how a person can change in the course of a life. Danella is taking good care of my boys, Siddy is getting lots of outings and attention and O is happy, but I am ready to get back to them. Jo and I have had lots of long talks and sitting in the sun time – it has been just lovely! Simple pleasures! 🙂

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  15. Wow, Pauline! You certainly have been busy. The light catchers are absolutely gorgeous. I love each and every one of them but when I got to the bracelets I got crazy excited. I too love bracelets and it is often the only jewelry I wear. The one with a little charms on the end was my favorite. Isn’t there something about wearing bracelets and having them clang and jingle that make you feel fun, young, and all girl? The sweater is really nice and the model looks pretty terrific too- even with red sneakers. You did a great job on that project. You are so multi-talented. I have to agree, by the way, her glass did look bigger in the picture! Nothing wrong with that is there??😄

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    • We share a delight in clinky wrist wear – it is so much fun isn’t it. YD’s glass was bigger – she was trying to pull the wool over our eyes. i actually had one of those large glasses of Belgian lager last night when it was my turn to go to the same place for dinner. It is smooth and chocolatey and most enjoyable. 🙂 We have decided a trip to Belgium may not be out of the question 🙂

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  16. Good heavens, you have so much going on! All the creating and making looks fab–bright and shiny and woolly and wonderful! I had to laugh at Orlando–one of my cats just did the same thing on a stack of towels I just finished weaving and hemming–how do they know??

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  17. Oh just look at Siddy’s sooky la la face! Made me giggle :D. Cats are just so comfortable where ever they shouldn’t be eh… lovely. I love the bracelets and the Marine hanger, so pretty. The colours are just beautiful, no wonder you’re in love with it. Must be hard to sell something you create that is loved. You have been quite busy haven’t you…

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  18. I need to buy a bracelet for my wrist – but a man’s one… so nothing too Michael Jacksony – something with a bit of Oomphhh, I shall pay for it – and wear it

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  20. I love that dangler. Water and light. Your ED looks fabulous in the sweater. Wow. Enjoy your trip, Pauline. We’ll look forward to having you back soon!

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  21. Wow – you’ve been BUSY! I’m feeling like a slacker! So much fun stuff. Love the sweater – with and without the cat! Lovely motivation to get back to some of my abandoned projects – thank you! Hope you have a wonderful visit with your offspring!

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    • Thank you Frank – I agree, it would be better if you were not be seen in any of these things. Belgian Dark Ale [Leffe Brun] – dark, chocolatey and most delicious. As we weren’t driving the girls had the larger than normal variety and the driver had a half size. Worked well we thought 🙂

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  23. That is a great idea for blocking. Brilliant actually. The jumper is a triumph and the collar so pretty. Orlando is a great “help” and dear Siddy such a sweet boy. The bracelets and light catchers are all lovely. i enjoyed looking at them as part of my Sunday morning. Have a fun break and happy birthday to your beautiful daughter. ❤

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    • After I had used the mats for blocking I saw a blog post where the writer uses children’s play mats as blocking boards – same stuff as mine are except they have pretty pictures on. 🙂 I love the jumper too – I’m thinking I will make a long sleeveless open vest for me in that stitch. Thank you for your kind comment ❤

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  24. It’s a wonder you have time to breathe let alone post Ms Pauline, your SO busy! That jumper would have taken me a year to make. 6 months to learn how to knit and 6 to battle my way through it and no-one would have been willing to be photographed in the end results. Your skills are multitude and the results are sterling you talented little lady you :). Happy Birthday to the birthday girl and that scarf (so carefully colour matched) is going to come in handy. They say that with this El Nino “effect” we are having, our winter will be freezing cold and dry so lots of frosts etc. You might want to make another one of those lovely jumpers for yourself…just sayin’…

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    • It’s so hard to believe that our summer – which was constantly interrupted by the return of winter – is all but over. Nights and mornings are noticeably cooler and days obviously shorter………….. We had a wind storm a couple of nights before I left home with winds read at over 150 km before the wind reading thingy got blown down. It was so noisy but my little house seemed to stand firm against it …….. though poor Siddy was a bit concerned by it and didn’t know whether to tell it off or come and cuddle up with me………. 🙂

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      • You sound like you are in the Northern Hemisphere! I think I might have to move to N.Z. It has been unseasonally warm/hot here with high humidity. No rain to speak of, just threatening clouds on a daily basis. Empty dams, politicians futures hanging on a limb and powdery mildew and white fly king of everything. We are still sleeping under sheets at night time and last year, Brunhilda had been on for a few weeks by now. I doubt she will be lit before May this year. I did get rid of our rat problem (for now) and the tropical seeds I planted all took off and should make it through winter in the glasshouse. Always look for the silver lining. I hope Siddy is OK now. Earl and Bezial could care less about thunder and wind but we get so very little of it these days it’s hardly surprising.

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        • I think the rest of the country may have had a goodish summer – maybe even a harsh one judging by the brown hills and brown verges …… but down south ours was definitely less than average Winter came early last year didn’t it – I turned the heating on before I went to America at the beginning of April. It’s very warm here in Wellington, but I head home tomorrow evening where I am expecting it to be a bit cooler.

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      • Pauline, your winds and weather are really something. Did Orlando hide under a bed with all that wind? Poor Mouse doesn’t know what to make of the rain. He looks up at me as if I could make it stop. Little does he know that even if I could, I most certainly would not. Since our drought is four years in, and he’s only about five, he really hasn’t had much rain to deal with.

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        • Isn’t it amazing to think Mouse may not have experienced rain before…….. This means there will be little children attending pre-school classes who do not know what rain is! That is quite something to contemplate! Orlando didn’t seem to mind the wind, he was quite close to me most of the time though. Definitely poor Siddy found it a tad alarming, but luckily responds to “It’s okay Siddy, mumma’s got it!” which is my stock response to anything that alarms him unduly. I hear we may have to brace ourselves for more ‘wind storms’ it may be a particular aspect of changing climate for us.

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          • What a good mommy you are, Pauline. Those two boys, like your girls before them, are in good hands. Yes, it is remarkable to think how little rain we’ve had and what that must be like for young children.

            So it sounds like these wind stroms are a new thing for you. Wind can be so destructive. Because we live in a deep valley, I don’t think the winds can get too bad, unlike the plains where they get tornadoes. Is your proximity to the beach part of the problem?

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            • I guess as we are long thin islands with so great an expanse of water about us and Antarctica beneath us, the winds get a lot of time to gather strength and zoom in – there’s nothing much to slow them down. I’ve lived closer to the beach, or on the beach, in years past and not had this issue – I think it is new.

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              • That certainly makes sense, but it’s alarming to know how many of these weather changes are extreme.

                There were flood watches in several parts of Northern California during the recent rains. Nothing for years, then a deluge. And the unusual wave patterns caused by El Niño are washing away huge sections of the cliffs in Pacifica, causing permanent evacuation and red tagging of homes along the cliff. I can’t imagine the drama of seeing your home slide off the hill into the ocean.

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  25. Your work is all so beautiful, Pauline. I’m going to have to check out the light catcher. It would fit in perfectly here at the Wabi-Sabi Ranch. Love the red sneakers, too. They look like a pair I own. 🙂

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  26. Beautiful beads. love all the blues. Sweater is fab too and well done on the bargain blocking mats. Had to laugh at Orlando having a nap on it 🙂 Good to see your scarf matching your coffee pot, totally essential.

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  27. What a delightful post. The sweater is great as are all the beautiful bracelets and light catcher. Poor little Siddy. He does so need his momma near. Orlando knew just what to do with a blocking sweater. Talented kitty.

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  28. Someone, besides me, loves the color red! I was going to say how delightful your little triumvirate is, in the way you celebrate special occasions, then I realized that triumvirate refers to three males, not females. There’s no feminine form for that word, apparently, only Jonathan Swift once coined “triumfeminate” when he referred to three “poetesses” who had inspired him. Anyway, you seem to be having a nice sojourn and change of scene, as well as being very productive at your crafts. Your little guys will be so happy to see you back at your usual stomping ground! (love the cat on the freshly blocked..”project”. Are we avoiding the great conundrum of whether to call it a sweater or a jumper?) 🙂 Safe travels…many happy returns!

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  29. I LOVE the sweater you made and it looks wonderful on ED. It would do wonderfully here right now. Rain, rain, and more rain. At least the furnace has stopped running full tilt. I don’t wear much jewelry on myself anymore but love it on my house. I’m ready to decorate it. The red silk and alpaca will make a lovely lacy scarf for the birthday girl. Lucky person they are. I do understand why you’ve been away a bit. We can only do so much with the given hours in a day. You have so many talents, Pauline. Your heart is your biggest one. 🙂 Hugs to all and the furry ones too.

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  30. I’m absolutely melting over the picture of my pal, Siddy! ❤ Such beautiful and colorful pieces, Pauline. You are a woman of many talents. Happy Birthday to your daughter, and enjoy the celebrations! xo

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