petting zoo

Time spent with pets is always a pleasure.
Even if some of them do make my eyes incredibly itchy.

As well as seeing these guys at the weekend I also went to Birdworld where I got to stroke baby goats and rabbits, and hold a tiny mouse. So soft!

A bear for a baby

Here's a crochet rattle I finished off last week for a little fella named Rory.

I went on a shopping trip and bought lots of different noisemakers for putting inside toys. I couldn't decided between a squeak, a rattle, a bell or a sort of shaky bouncy noise, but I settled on the rattle as I thought it would be least annoying on repeat. I'm well equipped for future toy making now though!

Here's the pattern from Ravelry if you want to make one too. There are also more animals to choose from (although I think the bear is best).

Look at him go!

blog hop

My good pal Lucy tagged me in a little blog hop scheme last Monday. The aim is to share some of your favourite blogs and create a little hopping journey from site to site.

Do hop back to Lucy's blog and check out her stuff! She has an ace mix of photography, illustration and craft projects and tutorials and her blog is a treat for the eyes.

Now, to the questions....



What have been the doings/makings/scribblings at your desk/making table in the last week?

I've got a few different projects on the go at the moment - although most of them are 'in progress' and yet to be completed.

I've been playing around with watercolour a lot lately and have made a couple of cards for friends and family in the past week. And I've also got a couple of knitting projects on the go - one is a present, so I can't share it yet, and the other is a cardigan for me. I'm knitting it as one piece on circular needles which is a first. I hope it turns out ok...



Where are you currently finding you inspiration? 

I get a lot of inspiration when I'm out and about - I always try to take my camera, and sometimes a sketchbook, on day trips and outings to capture the things I see.

There's also a lot of inspiration right on my doorstep. The photos above were taken yesterday on a lazy Sunday stroll around Brighton.

And like a lot of people, I tend to have a have a look at Pinterest most days. It's a great place to collate inspiring images and ideas.



How important is being creative to you and how do you blend this with your work/life/family balance?

My 'day job' is in digital design so creative projects are a big part of my life. Having said that, the type of projects I work on in my spare time and showcase on my blog allow for a different kind of creativity to my professional work. The projects I work on in my free time are more hand-crafted and tactile, such as knitting projects, drawing, painting, or collage.

Finding time to make and create is something I sometimes struggle to fit in these days, but setting myself mini-projects to fit around the rest of my life like this drawing challenge are a good way to encourage myself.

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That's enough about me. Here are some blogs I would recommend you hop over to next, all from lovely people I have the pleasure of knowing in person:

What you sow - This is a delightful blog is run by Lyndsey and is full of gardening and craft-related inspiration and tips. Lyndsey takes beautiful photos and shares a whole host of ideas and projects that will make you want to get creative both indoors and out.

Peggy Jobbins Thrift Mistress - This is a fairly new blog from Hannah, and I've been really enjoying having a read. It's a lovely mixture of thrifted finds, craft projects and stories from nice outings around Sussex, and beyond.

Stitch & Crumb - Alison's blog is a feast for the eyes, and is full of great photography, stories from her travels and time living abroad, cookery and craft projects. I've been really enjoying delving into it recently.

Emiliabird - Another treat of a blog from a pal of mine. Emily is an extremely talented knitter and dressmaker and shares lots of her lovely projects on her blog. She even set herself the challenge one year of not buying, but making all her clothes. Lovely stuff.

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Happy hopping!

walking and windmills

On Friday we walked in the sunshine along the coast path to Rottingdean, and then back over the hilltops, via the windmill.

It was a lovely time.



Oh, apart from the hayfever attack on the way home.

lambing

I've been taking a film camera on some of my trips for the last year or so, which I enjoy a lot as it encourages me to be very pretty selective about the photos I take - the 'every photo is important' mentality. I also like the fact that when I get a film developed it tends to include a collection of outings, sometime spanning seasons, with photos cropping up that I've almost forgotten I took.

The only downside is that my photojournalism ends up being several months out of date by the time I have the photos back, which sometimes puts me off sharing them with the world.

I couldn't resist sharing these photos though - look at the little lambs! I took them back in April when Ben and I went to Coombe's farm to see the lambing.

I can't say I 100% enjoyed the whole experience (there was the odd moment when I felt like the sheep might be having a better time if they didn't have 50 adults and children crowded round them) but we got to see two tiny lambs take their very first steps, which was definitely a treat.

They're probably huge by now!

Watercolour dots. A mini series.

I painted some watercolour postcards this week. I wanted to put some bright colours down on paper and didn't really have an idea of what I wanted it to look like.

I love the way watercolours change as they dry. The bold edges and the colour blending within the shapes leave me with a feeling of great satisfaction.



Does anyone want me to send them a postcard?

making on a small scale

I'm not sure what's changed but I've been having trouble finding time to make and draw recently.

Luckily, at the weekend I had a few hours to spare so I made some beaded necklaces, and had a play with the watercolours.

I must do this more often.