Happy Hooker

When you write a blog you sometimes get asked to review stuff. Ive been sent things over the years that just haven't grabbed my interest or wouldn't be right for what I chat about.

A few weeks back I was asked to review a crochet book by Michelle, Sylvie and Cecile Delprat, printed by David & Charles.

I immediately loved the fresh style of the book and it looked a lot of fun. Some books are just too fussy or full of stuff I wouldn't want to make ever never.

Hooked is stylish and has motifs to make for the grown-up you and the kiddy inside you.

The white backgrounds and great colour choices really appealed to me too.

A few bloggers have and will write about this book too as we're part of a blog hop to review it.

If you press here you can go and find out just who they are.

I was supposed to make something from the book you know, that makes sense really if I'm reviewing it doesn't it. Well I did and I didn't.

I used the flower pattern in the book to send a few tutorial pictures to Adabea who was struggling with making flowery things. She then solved my how to blog on your ipad dilemma by telling me about the blogsy app. I'm still learning (this is my first time with it) .

Back to Hooked book.

I thought about making a ring as I love to wear a big ring.

Then I thought I might make a cupcake and turn it into a brooch.

I had quite a few ideas, but with all that's been happening in my life nothing has been made I'm afraid

That aside, I know I'll be making all sorts of things once my creative mind comes back properly.

One of my favourites is this bow garland. It makes me think of sweeties all in a row. I know my girls would love this one.

Now something very exciting for you lovely lot is that there's a chance to win a copy of the book and a bundle of crochet goodies.

Follow this link to find out more.

 

Now I've reviewed Hooked, I'd like to say how touched I was by your thoughtful comments. They made me feel very comforted I must say. As always I'd love to reply to each of you, but now even more than usual I'm finding it hard to get everything done that I plan. This post is later than I was supposed to write it. Life feels calmer, a new understanding has been reached, my girls are happy and I am too in so many ways.

I've been blown away by those of you here and on Instagram who talk of me inspiring you. That builds me up no end you know, but to be truthful I'm not sure how, but I believe you all the same. For the little girl who felt her face didn't fit to the woman who stopped caring if it did or didn't and just became me I feel so uplifted when I hear that I make some sort of a difference. So thankyou, it really does mean a lot.

Right I'm off to press send and hope I worked out how to do the links properly.

 

 

 

 

Posted with Blogsy

Where Am I?

One evening after school we were in Waitrose. Our food was paid for and we were chatting away, heading for the car. 

A lady came up to me and said hello, I read your blog. 

Sometimes people do this and it's lovely to see the people who read the words I write, who look at the pictures I share of our world.  All the happiness in my life is for the most part what I want to focus on, celebrate and share. That's what a creative life is to me.

Well this lady then asked why I haven't blogged so much. I gave her an honest answer and I will give you one too.

I told her my marriage had just ended and so I hadn't found much I wanted to write about.

The next few months will be hard, there's a lot of change that has to come about from all of this.
Some will be good of course, some is scary and some completely unwanted. All the same, we've got one choice my girls and I, and that's to make the best of it.

With that big news spoken aloud, I'd like to get on with the talk of creative whatnots to be honest. Ive not felt like making anything these past few weeks, but I've still been busy hatching plans and continuing with projects.

Some of you might recognise these pictures from Vanessa's blog do you mind if I knit?

Well an idea grew after I set up the online memorial to her. A few people on Instagram asked if there was a way of raising money to go towards mental health, as Vanessa suffered from this as so many people sadly do. 

A conversation grew and the idea of a collective blanket that would then be raffled off came about.

Colours were discussed with my friend Penny of PlanetPenny after I'd come up with the design based on a scarf of Vanessa's. We wanted to keep to her palette of colours so a lot of thought was given to them being as near a match as possible. Then I got in touch with my mate Jane at teawagontales to create an id badge for this project.

Colours were then releaased with details on Instagram, it's such an immediate format almost like being on the phone with everyone at the same time. From Saturday to Monday all the squares had been taken and I'd had to increase the size twice to allow everyone who wanted to take part join in.

The squares have been popping through my door every day lately, the next step will be sewing them all up and then selling the raffle tickets. That's the plan you see, to give everyone the chance to win the Do You Mind if I Knit? blanket and raise much needed funds for MIND.

It's brought a lot of people together to share and chat while they hook their squares.
My apologies for not bringing it into the blogosphere but it would have been so much harder to organise, especially with my world falling around my ears.

In the middle of all this I had a week off work with exhaustion. 

Turns out I'm very anaemic, not surprising for a veggie who misses loads of meals out. 

I sat on the sofa every day, after all the school running back and forth. I watched endless films and found a project to keep me busy.

I'd seen a pattern for a floral heart on Lucy's blog Attic24 that seemed a perfect sofa days make.

I changed the colours to suit me and worked the centres in white instead of adding buttons as Lucy had.

To make it easier to sew the hearts on, I covered the pipe cleaners in a strip of fabric.

I was really pleased with how this turned out..

It's been the last thing I've made for a while, I do feel the urge to get my creative head working again.

First thing I've got to make is something from a beautiful new crochet book Ive been asked to review. 

The book is soon to be released and so I've been asked, along with a few other bloggers to take part in the blog hop. That means there will be links to win goodies too for my readers. 

I'm booked to write that post on the 16th February, so if I'm not back before then, then I will definitely see you then.

Bobo Bun's 2014

Blinking heck. 

Do you realise I've been writing this here blog for six years now?

January 2nd 2009 I sat down and started rambling and sharing with who ever happened to stop by to read or even to say hello.

Today's post is my end of year catch up.

A collage run through 2014 before we begin 2015.

I loved looking back over the last years photos and all the memories captured in them. 

I hope you do too.

Regular readers of my blog will know how much I love to be creative. 

I get an absolute thrill out of looking at colour and print. Being in a yarn store, fabric store and most especially hunting for vintage fabric make me most happy of all.

I'm drawn to textile arts mostly so this is a collection of all sorts of makes from felt brooches, to patchwork, to embroidery. 

I also love tidying up our home and renovating the bits I find at the car boot, in charity shops and at fleamarkets.

This year I've felt the urge to take my dressmaking skills one step further. 

I didn't watch the first Great British Sewing Bee, but was absolutely hooked on the second one. 

From here on I challenged myself to develop my skills more. I wanted to learn to draft patterns and attempt things I hadn't done before. 

 

Miss Millie asked me to apply for a place in the Sewing Bee for this coming year.

I thought no way would I cope under the pressure of the time constraints so I didn't. 

She asked again and this time I thought why not, it's be great fun and I could learn so much more.

I applied, but sadly I wasn't lucky enough to get in. 

There's always other years to try again.

Dressmaking is a boon when like me you're too tall to fit most of the dresses in the shops. 

I'm the wrong shape for most of the vintage dresses I love too so making my own has certainly expanded my wardrobe favourably. 

This year I want to have a go at making trousers. I last tried that when I was at University so I imagine they were pretty awful.

Sitting anywhere crafts are always of the yarny type.

Crochet things generally get finished as this is quicker for me. Knitted things are a bit hit and miss as to whether they'll get finished or not.

I did finish a pink cardigan this year mind you of which I'm most proud. I'm just a slow but tidy knitter and that's how it is. Hats and mittens tend to get finished so maybe I should stick to them.

My last collage for 2014 is a collection of lovely days. Places we've been, things we've seen and just happiness. I realise now I forgot to put Alfie Blue, Lily, Pip and Olly in here too.

Starting the year with a wonderful but freezing visit to Duxford and ending on an equally chilly Cromer Pier for the Christmas Show.

 There then, that's my end of year review. 2014 all wrapped up and on to the new.

This year I've a project planned in memory of Vanessa which will also hopefully raise money for a chosen mental health charity.

I'm trying a new approach to food, mainly to try and be more economic.

I really want to start running those workshops I've talked about for so long.

I've a meet up with some lovely IG/blog mates planned.

Oh and so much more. I do like the sense of new goals and ideas for the coming year.

My main wish though is to Laugh so much more. 

Worries and the stresses of life have stopped a lot of the laughter and so we made sure we relaxed this Christmas and the fun and laugher has been wonderful.

Happy New Year to you all.

Do you Mind if i knit?

The Vanessa Cabban who shared her life with us in blogland and through her art was a colourful, generous, warm, funny, inspirational and hugely talented person.

Today at 11am it is her funeral.

A day when we will be thinking of her family and friends.

We will also be remembering her in a way that I hope she will approve.

I posted my idea of a tribute to Vanessa on Instagram a couple of days ago which you can find here.

It would also be wonderful if you could do the same via your blogs. 

As a mark of our online friendship and out of respect for her memory I will be posting a photo at 11am today under the heading Do You Mind if I Knit? #vanessacabban.

Post a picture of something you're making, it doesn't matter if you can't knit. Vanessa made clothes, crocheted, created papier-mache sculptures, brooches, painted and illustrated books. It's the act of being creative and finding happiness there that's important.

What she did do was to make sure she had time to knit a few rows every day to set the day right. 

Penny of Planet Penny has shared this also via her blog, facebook and twitter feed. 

In Memory of a remarkable woman.

Merry Christmas

What a busy old time of year this is indeed. 

Plans to relax sipping festive drinks and gazing into the fire remain a dream still to be had.

Well presents are all wrapped (nearly), handmade gifts finished (almost) and the cake's still waiting to be iced!

Before I tell you all the news of the last month, there's something I need to share with you. I spoke of this on Instagram at the weekend and you can find it on my page at Bobobun68 to read more.

I received the dreadfully sad news of the death of Vanessa Cabban on the 17th December in a train accident. I know a lot of people know her through her blog Do You Mind if I Knit where she shared so much of her incredible talent, joy and life. She also is known through her illustrations of many children's books of which we have a few. 

I got to know Vanessa initially through her blog. I asked her when she started creating her amusing and jolly papier mache creatures if she would create something for my daughter Millie's 9th birthday. I would link to the post but I don't know how (you'll find it in March 2011). Vanessa created this amazing papier mache artwork for us and we will always look upon it with such fondness.

She was a genuinely beautiful woman who will be remembered with love by so many of us. 

Her funeral in on the 30th of December.

 

 How do you move on from such dreadful news? I wanted to tell you at the beginning of this post as Vanessa shouldn't be left to the end, but she would want to celebrate the joy in life too so I shall too.

 

 I'll start off by showing you last months Townie dress I made from Cath fabric. 

Her dresses are too short for me, rather expensive and I don't usually like buying mass produced but this fabric really grabbed me big time. So I bought a couple of metres and whipped up the trusty Megan dress from Tilly's book. The only change was that I made capped sleeves with a pleat at the shoulder.

 

I've loved wearing this, it's my favourite dress of the moment.

I also drafted a pattern from a favoruite  blue linen top to use up some tartan that's been in the stash for three years.

In one rare fireside moment, watching a film with Miss Millie, I brought an idea that's been in my sketchbook for a while to life.

Tallulah the Bugsy Malone Moll Brooch cheers up a day no end with her ringing bell.

I've also inherited a 50 year old Ercol table from my mum. It was a wedding present from my aunt and uncle and now we're the proud owners.

There have been quite a few christmas makes, although the girls ones can't be shown as yet.

 

Brogue Bag for my man's Birthday on the 20th and a hottie cover for my mum to go with all the knitted hangers I'm still working on.

On IG I saw on Carter and Brown's page these wonderful reindeer heads so I went off in search of a pattern. 

Two were hooked up for the girls and instead of going on the tree they've hung them over their beds to wait for the man himself.

 The autumn hedgerow pickings have been decanted into bottles and now there's only one and a half left. yum.

I finally finished Miss Millie's Emery dress (fabulous pattern from Christine Haynes) in time for Christmas. I'd whipped most of it up in a day and then had no other free days for a month. How agravating to an addicted sewer.

She's thrilled with it. There'll definately be more made using this pattern.

 

 One night when I couldn't sleep last week I made this at 1am. There's been so much happening that it's thrown out my sleep patterns so keeping busy helps my mind.

Now we've reached the end. 

There will be much more of me next year and probably even after christmas too.

Have a wonderful christmas won't you. Hug all your dear ones close.

These Have Been mY days

Hello Again.

It's certainly been a fair old while since I stopped by in blogland.

A mixture of a very slow computer that drives me insane and life being busy I believe.

Hopefully you haven't given up on me as I have a fair bit of catching up to don't I, so off we go.

I have to confess I'm on Instagram daily where you can find me at Bobobun68. 
I've taken part in the Retro9 picks above and at the moment have been taking part in a month long sewing challenge with sewers from all over the world which has been great fun.

Alongside my teaching job I've been getting ever more addicted to dressmaking.
I'm pushing myself to improve upon my skills and hope one day to be able to draft my own patterns without a thought.

Critters have been found and brought home. Mischief was rescused by Miss Millie and still waits for his bowtie. We think he's a donkey, although he doesn't much mind as he is very happy to be loved once more.

 

Occassionally I've sneaked a bit of creative into my day job. After being fascinated by Grayson Perry's series on Identity, I thought my students would enjoy making their own self-portraits. In reality it was myself and my LSA who got more into it.

 

I've also been to market again so I was busy making bits and bobs plus a new green Megan dress. 

 

I always prefer prints to plains so this was a real challenge. There was nowhere to hide the odd mismatched seam so I had to keep unpicking until they all matched up.

Here we are on the day itself (photo taken by Miss Millie the shop assistant).

Here she is busy behind the stall ready to begin.

 

We'll be off once more, next Sunday 7 December, to Little Vintage Lover at Holt Hall between 10 - 4. Maybe we'll see you there.

My other crafty obsession of late has been felt houses. 

After falling for the colours in the Cath Kidston Townhouse print I couldn't stop thinking about making a house of my own in orange and deep blue.

 

I love this fabric so much that in the end I bought 2m to make a dress of my very own. 

I'll show you that next time, aswell as my other makes. It'll be a lot sooner I promise as all the pictures are now loaded. 

Thanks for stopping by. Ta Ta for now.