A green and pleasant (and muddy) land

At New Year I headed out to the farm to stay with the boy.
There is something about tramping through the muddy fields in a big pair of wellies that is good for the soul.

We walked right up onto the hilltops and got these stunning views across the rolling hills.

I managed to perch my camera, rather precariously, on a gatepost and in just one take captured a new favourite.

The light that day was just beautiful. The mist was settling in the valley but up at the top, the midday sun was making everything sparkle.

I don't think I'll ever got bored of walking around the farm. Even on a horrible day it is soothing to pace the hills, splash through the puddles and squelch in the mud.

The boy and I always have the best conversations on these walks. He shares stories from his childhood growing up here and I ask questions about this special place.

A green and pleasant land. That it is.

The Project Life Book

A huge thank you to so many of you who read, commented and joined in with the the one photo & twenty words meme. It is always daunting officially starting a meme but it was such a joy to see the posts popping up and reading your carefully chosen words. Thank you. If you haven't joined in and want to, the link will stay open all week so there is plenty of time!

Yesterday I shared a sneak peak at the project life book and thought it would be fun to follow up today with a good look inside...

Details: 

• I ordered this book through blurb. I have used them a few times before and they are very professional and the book arrived in less than a week. 
• It cost quite a lot to order but considering I hardly spent any money on supplies in the year it was definitely cheaper than going down the paper route. 
• The book is 110 pages long and 12x12 in size- a bit of a whopper really! 
• I upgraded the paper from the standard paper to the premium "lustre" paper. It has a slight sheen and is that bit thicker. After spending so much time making the spreads each week, having decent paper seemed sensible. 
• I used the booksmart software from blurb and one of their simplest templates- a large square photo with a little bit of border. 

I chose simple grey endpapers and, on the first page, wrote a little blurb about my process with project life in 2013. 

The title page. 

My only quibble with blurb books are that they don't lie flat. I'm not too fussed about this though. I kept a border around each spread to make sure that there wasn't too much content in the "gutter" of the spine.

These pages are big! I think 12x12 is the size to go for though. The writing is all clearly readable and the pictures are a decent size. 

I was so excited when I saw the way some of the big pictures turned out.

The colours turned out fairly accurate. I think they are slightly darker than what they were on the screen but I guess that is a risk of printing anything out that you have done on a computer. 

End page. 

 

The back cover

I am so so pleased I decided to do this project in 2013. This book of memories is such a treasure. I am already reading through each week and being reminded of conversations, journeys and things that happened that I would surely have forgotten otherwise.

I am sold on the digital style of project life and am also glad that I chose to print my spreads into a book. I can already see this being something that will sit on the coffee table for years to come and get flicked through in idle moments. 

Project life in 2013. Done. Onwards friends! 

One Photo & Twenty words

Unassumingly it arrived in the postman's hands. One box containing one book and fifty two weeks of memories. My 2013.

...................................................................................................................................

My challenge for you today. Find one photo and choose up to twenty words to tell its story. Jot it down and link back here. 

One Photo & Twenty words- how its going to work

Thank you to everyone who replied saying they enjoyed this meme. I really enjoyed it too last year!
It seems that everyone is voting in favour of a linky so that will definitely happen, however we are split into two camps about setting a date.

I'm going to try and strike a middle ground here...

For those who wanted a date:
I will post the meme with a linky on the 9th of each month

For those who wanted a bit more freedom:
I will post a reminder the Monday before (today) and you are welcome to join in with the meme from here on in until the linky closes.
If you publish before the 9th i'll make sure I add your blog to the linky list when the meme goes live on the 9th.

I hope this strikes a balance with everyone. If you are a planner, pencil in the 9th, if you want some freedom, wait for the reminder to ping in your reader and then join as and when you feel like!

So, on Thursday I am setting a challenge...

Do join in if you want or stop by and read some of the entries. If they are anything like last year there are always some fun tales being told in just a few words!

Also, by popular demand, the teapot will be making a return in 2014! I am excited that so many of us want to sit down and share our hearts over a cuppa! Again, for those of you who like having a date, the meme will still take place on the 27th. 

Weaving

A new adventure.
Playing around with a rigid heddle loom.

I am so excited by the potential of this new toy.
The setting up is quite lengthy but the actual weaving is relatively simple.

You tube videos were invaluable for my first time weaving. There really is a whole new world of weavers out there and a whole dictionary of weaving terms.

It's a relaxing craft this weaving process. From warping the loom to the weaving process. There is a lot of repetition involved, a lot of feeding soft wool back and forth and watching something transform in front of you.

In many ways it is like knitting but on a much larger scale and with much quicker results. I like that the results can be unexpected. That you are constantly combining colours to create something new, as the warp and the weft come together.

I am excited to try out new things with this craft. New colour combinations and new patterns. There is a lot to learn and a lot of work to do to try and correct all my wonky edges but there are oh so many possibilities.

Have you tried a new craft recently?

Just a quick question...

When talking about my blog plans the other day, Jacky reminded me of that little meme I started up at the end of the last year:

One photo & Twenty words. 

I really enjoyed seeing these pop up all over blog land and am keen to carry them on this coming year. I think it's a great way to get back into blogging if you are stuck in a rut.

My question is:
1. Would you be interested in joining in with a linky?
2. Last year I just threw this meme out fairly sporadically. Would a set date each month work or is it one of those things that needs to be done on a whim? 

Opinions please!

Thank you so much for the words of support I received on my last post. I love planning what will happen in this little space and I love connecting and sharing with so many of you. 

What to expect from the blog in 2014

And just like that 2013 is out the door!

I like what the new year can hold though. I like that I have an excuse to think big and plan. 

I am excited to try out and share some new crafts and develop this little slice of the web. 

I am very conscious that the end of last term was dominated by pressure. Pressure to finish PL pages, write blog posts and keep up work wise. Pressure I on the whole put on myself. I am determined to relax a bit more this term. A bit more pre scheduling over here, a bit more cutting some slack and perhaps a slower pace! 

So, in the spirit of planning and thinking and all that resolution jazz, here is where I hope the blog will be going in the coming year and what you can expect...

The Old Timers:

I like monthly memes. They provide structure in my blogging schedule and provide pin points to work around. 

This year I will be carrying on "time for tea" as I love sharing my heart with you each month. If there is still interest I will open up the linky so you can join in too. 

I am also wondering out loud whether Alexa will continue with "simply a moment" because if so I will be joining in. 

I'm sure new memes (or "new to me" memes) will pop up as the year progresses too so I am keeping the options open!

Personal:

What with "time for tea" I think there has been a lot of sharing on this old blog in 2013. I really value honesty and keeping it real and I'm still keen to share my thoughts and (some) of my heart in this little space.

The going's on:

Each year the balance of the blog shifts. Whilst I shared a lot of thoughts on the blog last year there was less of the, "what is actually going on". I like the idea of sharing some around here posts again and some everyday photos. I also want to get into the habit of recapping events or even just an ordinary weekend. Some of you lovely ladies do this very well and I'm keen to learn! 

Updates:

lists and goals and projects and reviews. I love a good list and Sian's posts about "five things" could be a great bouncing point this year.

Creativity:

I have already discussed that I am going to share my PL pages every other week. I am also excited to share new adventures into crafts (weaving anyone?) as well as a spattering of tutorials and maybe a few more videos particularly featuring photoshop.

Exciting times are ahead! Do you know where you want to head with blogging this year? Are you still interested in link up for "time for tea"?