Who is ready for Operation Speak Out?

Just a quick plug for my day of speaking out TOMORROW.

Please come and join us as we fill the web with comments and encouragment.
The task is simple. Every blog you visit during the day, comment on. It can be two words, it can be half an essay, whatever.
Lets praise each other for what we are writing, making and photographing.

More details can be found here.


** It has also come to my attention that when blogger changed its settings, one that was automatically added was word verification. This means you have to type in those fiddly little phrases in order to post a comment.
I TOTALLY see why this is needed but it does slow commenters down and in my opinion you still have to sign in to post anyway so is it really needed?
There are so many pros and cons over whether it is right to keep the word verification. It is entirely up to you but I think it is something we need to be aware of. I didn't even know mine was switched on until I was told. Oooops! (to switch it off/on just go to your blogger settings on the dashboard) **

Thanks for stopping by

Abi

Wordless

Each week. One photo. One captured moment. No words.

Storytelling Sunday- The story of the reluctant poser

Hi

It's the first sunday of the month and yep, you guessed it, it's Sians storytelling sunday! hooray!

These are two stories, which do have a small link, (I promise)

I am very aware that I often post pictures of the boy and they look lovely and finished and nice. Well the previous 20 are not like that so here documented is a typical conversation the boy and I will have on a typical dog walk and the resulting photos

Him: "You've brought the camera."

Me: "Yes." (Why wouldn't I have my camera?)

Him: Audible sigh

Me: " You love it really!"

Him "mmmmh"

Me: " Look around please"

Me: " seriously? the dog or me?!"

Him: "ok" Poses " better?"

Me: "yep, thank you!" "hang on!, we're not done!"

Me: " Just walk away from me and when I call your name just smile."

Him: finding this all very amusing.

Me: " just smile will you?!"

Me: " Oh my word, not with the chuckie!!!"

Him: " here, give me the camera, I want to take some photos."

Me:  Throwing the ball for the dog "Yes!! Did you see that throw," waving the chuckie in front of him. " You didn't just take a photo of that?"

Me: "YOU DID!"

Him: gleefully holding onto the camera.

Me: "ok, take a picture of both of us."

Him " Oh I hate this whole hold the camera in front of you thing."

Me: "Yeah well your tallest, I always chop our heads off."

Him: " Now it looks like you are pulling my neck off."

Me: "oops, yeah let me hold it."

Me: "Finally." "Hang on, T." He looks round

"Got it!"

Could there be a more reluctant poser?!


The second story concerns something the boy told me the other day. "Darling" he said, " A friend of mine showed a picture of me and some others to a girl in her lecture." "This girl asked my friend, whether the boy in the picture (me) was famous?" "My friend looked very surpirsed and said, no that is just one of the boys who does Geography in the first year."

Turns out this girl follows my blog and had seen pictures of the boy on here and therefore recognised him! If you are that person, please please comment because that is the funniest, craziest most rad thing that has happened in a while!

Thanks for stopping by. Please do check out some more stories on Sians blog because there are some amazing tales out there!

Abi

Operation Speak Out

Hi

The other day I was trying to explain blogging to my father. By and large he gets it. What he doesn't really get is the comments. "Why doesn't everyone comment" he asked and then to me "do you comment on every blog?" The honest answer was no.

So, he said "How about you have a day when everyone is encouraged to comment on everyones blogs."
Father is a genius!

Commenting is something I think everyone appreciates but I believe there are a few reasons why we don't do it...

1. We haven't got enough time.
2. We think that that blogger has so many comments she won't possibly need/ recognise/read mine.
3. We don't have anything to say.

I think these are all VALID and GOOD reasons. But hand on heart there are blogs that I check most days yet comment on less than once a month.

I know it isn't always possible to comment but I think it is important that we encourage one another for each post is full of heart and has taken time.

So.. this is my propasal...

On Thursday 5th April I am going to make it my mission to comment on EVERY BLOG I VISIT. Just for this one day I am going to speak out on these blogs. Blogs big and small. I will write a comment.

I would love love love it, if some of you joined me in this. Feel free to use the button at the top of the post. Pass it onto others, so we can have one day when the internet is awash with people sending words of encouragment and praise.

 "Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing."

  1 Thessalonians 5:11

This is something that is really on my heart and I am so excited for, thank you for reading!

Abi

Tutorial Tuesday- how to change a dress into a skirt.

Hello

Another tuesday and another tutorial. This is probably the most simple tutorial I have posted and has such fab results.

A few years ago I bought this dress. A few years later the dress no longer fits me. But.. it is the most gorgeous material and there is a lot of it. So... in about half an hour I made it into a skirt.

1. Cut the top off your dress. Aim to cut it fairly high so there is plenty of material left to play with.

2. You should now have a circle of fabric with a seam and hemmed. That is two jobs you won't have to do. All you need to do is make a waistband.

3. To neaten up the raw edge you have just cut, very quickly go along it with a zig-zag stitch. It stops it from fraying.

4. Turn the skirt inside out and grab your elastic. You will need to fold the top of the skirt over to make a tunnel for the elastic. Very easy, measure it up and pin, making sure your tunnel is the same width all the way around the skirt.

5. With a straight stitch sew up along the bottom of the tunnel. MAKING SURE YOU LEAVE AN OPENING FOR THE ELASTIC.

6. Grab your elastic and attach a nappy pin to one end. Start feeding your elastic through the tunnel, letting the fabric gather.

7. Making sure you are holding the end of the elastic tightly, try your skirt on and pull the elastic to the required size. Cut and sew the ends of the elastic together.

8. Turn the right way around and put on your new skirt making sure the gathers are even.

If the dress has been made up initially in a circle, making the tunnel could be tricky. Don't worry if the material gathers under the sewing machine foot as it will be gathered anyway when the elastic goes through!

If you want to change the length, cut it off the hem.

Thanks for stopping by

Tutorial- Kite Mobile

Hi

This tutorial is something I have been dreaming about for several weeks after seeing this photo below.

 Source

Kites are just so beautiful and with the arrival of balmy spring weather, they seemed like the perfect thing to make. They are also super easy!

Equipment:
Cocktail sticks
Patterned paper or fabric
Sewing machine
Bakers twine/ string/ ribbon
cotton thread
thin branch

1. The basic framework for the kite is two cocktail sticks in the shape of a cross. Lay these out on an old piece of card and draw your kite template from this. It needs to be as wide as the horizontal stick and as long as the vertical stick.

2. Start cutting out your kites. I used pretty paper and fabric to make the mobile interesting. You need two shapes per kite.

3. Sandwich your pieces together and sew around the edge. This is a very important step. When you get to the points ie, where you will be pushing the cocktail sticks through, lift the needle out of the paper, lift the foot and then turn the paper to sew down the next edge. This means that point is not sewn closed and therefore you can push the stick inside.

4. Push the horizontal cocktail stick between the two pieces of the kite

5. before you push the vertical cocktail stick through you will need to add the tail of the kite and the white cotton to hang it. The best way I found to do this is to use sellotape. One one end of the stick sellotape a length of bakers twine for the tail and at the other end sellotape a chosen length of white cotton.

6. Push this stick carefully through the kite so that the end with the cotton is at the top and the tail of the kite is at the bottom. (you shouldn't be able to see the sellotape.)


 7. Voila! One little kite. Keep making these until you get bored! Add sweet detail like little bows!

8. Find a light, interesting branch and attach your kites onto this.  I then balanced mine on two nails on my wall. The white cotton becomes invisible and the kites flutter in the breeze and typically get their strings muddled! So pretty.

Thanks for stopping by

Life as I know it.

Hello

The blog break really wasn't intentional. It was a combination of the end of term and lack of sleep. But.. I am back with a vengeance and this is life as I currently know it...

Running.

I am not a runner. I do not run, but, I have two friends who do. So naturally I was encouraged pushed into going with them. And, believe it or not, I enjoyed it (not so much after a day of being unable to bend my knees!). So, the long and short of it is, in these beautiful sunny spring afternoons, I have been running. The most so far is four miles, which I think for a novice is pretty good.

Incidentally I was chatting to the boy about the benefits of running and why he chooses to run. He says it is the only time he can actually think about nothing and clear his head. I run because it gives me time to think and I can fill my head with music. What do you know...chalk and cheese.

Flowers.

The end of term brings sweet gifts to teachers and none more so in the spring than flowers. I have no problem with this except my finger, rather than being green, is black. Yep, dead flowers. But, I kept them alive for a week and enjoyed the colour it brought to my room. You can never have too many daffodils.


The end of a term.

Five words. This is our washing pile.

Revision

After three years of seeing my littlest brother not revise whilst I slogged away over the easter break, it gives me great satisfaction to see a reversal. I will not be smug, I will not be smug, I will not be smug (because it will all change next year.. uni.)

Nail varnish.

Nothing is nicer than a new nail varnish, no? especially in a shocking colour. This was met with dissaproval by the parents. I look at my hands and feel happy. This is surely a good thing.

Home baking.

Scratch the last bit about nail varnish. There is nothing nicer than coming home to cake cooling on the side.

Sun, sun sun.

What is up with our springs in this country? They are just glorious! I am astounded by the good weather. Loving wearing a t-shirt without a cardigan, rejoycing in the back door being left open all day and smiling every time I hear the sound of a cricket ball making contact with the bat. Amazing.

Bleaching T shirts.

I found this tutorial on A beautiful Mess. It is so easy and so effective. I have spent most of my day in the sun messing around with bleach. For fifty pence, this is genius.

This is life as I know it nearing the end of March. What has your month brought you?

Thanks for stopping by

Loves