macro Monday

Thru the oven’s door is a secret bake for our next Virtual Tea Party . . . tastes good so wins approval.

🧙‍♀️ silly saturday 🎃

Happy Hallowe’en ! ! !

     🧙‍♀️     👻     🎃     🎃     👻    🧙‍♀️

 

Riffing . . .

. . .  on Nana Cathy’s Monday post, Morning Pages, in which she refers to Julia Cameron‘s book, The Artist’s Way.

In her post Cathy asks how people cope with their inner critic. She  also talks about a newer book (by Cameron) that I haven’t read, The Artist’s Way for Retirement: It’s Never Too Late to Discover Creativity and Meaning.

This newer book’s title is something I’ve promoted forever, so there are searches going on . . .   expect further comments anon.

Getting back to that inner critic — those are the bits I chose to write about in my older blog.

[Older blog?, I hear you ask.  Let me explain . . .

Before I started writing about sewing, I blogged about classical singing, because I’ve spent my life studying, teaching, and coaching classically-trained singers and musicians.

When I switched to sewing I decided to keep some of those earlier blog posts, and that’s how Del’s Other Stuff was created. Later, I also used it for the WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge, which eventually ended, may it  R.I.P.  😿]

Please understand — the posts I’ve listed below were written from a classically-trained musician’s point of view; however, I think you can easily replace music with your own area of creativity.

Going back to Cathy’s query, ‘how do you deal with all the nagging negativity?’

You turn each statement around and replace it with its’ opposite, the positive. Do that firmly. Repeatedly. LOUDLY!

Stomp around and yell if you have to! Just be sure you’re being positive. That’s the only way the other leaves: It’s forced out and replaced with the truth.

Which might explain why a brisk walk can sometimes be a good thing. 😉

In no particular order, below are some of my older posts on Cameron’s The Artist’s Way. I hope you find them useful.

• Cameron’s “The Artist’s Way” – handling an artistic life
• Performer vs. introvert: handling both
• Feeding One’s Soul & Mae West
• A Singer’s Mental Work

Squidgy package ! ! ! 🤗

And just so’s you know there’s still fabric and sewing and all assorteds going on here, I’ve included a sneak peek at the next stage of my current soft furnishings project. . . . . he-he!

Hope all you lovely readers are keeping going with your own creative pursuits. Being constructive is a positive activity, with all sorts of positives attached for yourself and others.

I’m looking forward to reading your thoughts and comments!

Can you spot the third fabric hiding between those gorgeous top and bottom layers?!

 

Macro Monday

A few close-ups to keep up my interest for the next phase of the French connection soft furnishings project. . . .

. . . . whilst awaiting squidgy package .   .   .   .   😬

 

silly saturday ~ soft furnishings

The fronts

A minor achievement this week: 2 small pillows stuffed, sewn up and completed.

Ta-dah ! ! !

These are the fronts.

Love that hat, but ain’t too keen on the corset. But it’s red, so that’s okay.

A bit of searching round t’internet and I found this panel is actually part of an entire quilting series.   Hmmm .   .   .    .     .       🤔

A bit more thinking about it, as we know we do with something we really want to enjoy to its’ fullest potential  .   .   .    .     .       🤨

Taking a deep breath, ignoring my fierce promise-to-self not to buy any more fabric, I decided to acquire just a teeny bit more.

But only so’s the whole rest of the original purchase could be used and enjoyed to the full, instead of always regretting I hadn’t used x or y instead — y’know what I mean?   🙄

Next week a small squidgy package is due .   .   .    .     .

The backs – a bit boring, aren’t they?

My favourite!

At least it’s red…

 There’s more to come, Lovelies!  🤣   😆   🤣

wordless Wednesday

Silent Sunday

Silly Saturday

A pile of Oatmeal Chews

Also Known As  the Virtual Tea Party continues!

For several reasons.  First off ~~~

I forgot to thank Cathy (nanacathy2) for her suggestion from several posts ago that I look for the telly program Heartbeat.

BritBox carries it, but only the first season.  😡  However, there are more episodes listed on YouTube.

Huge Thank You’s, Cathy — I loved it! Both for the scenery and for the look back at how restrictive the 1960’s were for women. For instance, there’s no mention of the brave Dagenham sewing machinist women at the Ford plant, and their strike for equal pay for equal work.

For those who don’t know about Heartbeat, Wiki says, “Heartbeat is a British police drama series set in 1960s North Riding of Yorkshire based on the “Constable” series of novels written by ex-policeman Peter N. Walker, under the pseudonym Nicholas Rhea, and broadcast on ITV in 18 series between 1992 and 2010.”

The other reason to celebrate is New Zealand’s re-election of their Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern, who’s been a shining light through the C-19 crisis. So many of us outside New Zealand are delighted for her, and for all New Zealanders!

October’s Virtual Tea Party

Nothing beats a hot cuppa & a bickie on a rainy morning!

Tautimai! (Welcome!)

Today may be dark & dank outside, but inside it’s bright and cheerful, with the kettle steaming quietly in the background as friends drop by virtually for a cuppa, a nibble and a natter.

After visiting Su’s glorious tea party yesterday down in New Zealand, it’s nice to share some of that conversation with friends up here, and catch my breath, so to speak. 😉

Toast & apricot puree ~ yummy, if I say it meself. 🤣

We seem to have a “normalising” in the whole wheat flour production industry up here, so I’ve splurged a bit and made an extra wholemeal loaf for everyone to enjoy. Also on hand is an apricot spread I pureed as part of an experiment. 🤫

The homemade digestives are in the tin, and there’s also a plate of oatmeal chews for those with a sweet tooth (the recipe is here.)

Yummy, chewy, with almost a caramel flavour.

Visiting with Su (Zimmerbitch) creator of our virtual tea parties, I learnt Americans aren’t the only peeps worried about elections.

The NZ election for their Prime Minister is this Saturday (our Friday, so today), and they’re sounding a great deal like many of us up here.

But we’ve got three more weeks before our official election day. (Although several million of us voted early).

How’m I coping? By almost totally not watching telly. I do check several online newspapers each day (headlines only), local online news (mostly for weather), etc. And for entertainment, I’m leaning more and more on BritBox shows with absolutely no mention of anything political.

For example: Has anyone seen a current program, Shakespeare and Hathaway? If you haven’t you can read about it on Wiki here, and do a bit of watching over here. I like the actor playing Hathaway and that led me to watch the first episode.

Then I became intrigued with the other main cast members, not the least of which is the town (city?) of Stratford. I haven’t seen much architecture from Shakespeare’s time, so I’m watching more than just imaginative costuming. (Why do the British love dressing up so much?!)

On another note, somewhere around late Spring I discovered, from one of my lovely blogging mates whose name I don’t remember (sorry, luv!), Kate from The Last Homely House. Do you know her? She’s a crafty, gardeny, cooking sort of person living up on a Northumberland farm.

I find her YouTube videos calming, humourous. and thoroughly addictive. If you don’t know Kate, sit yourself down, click over to her YT channel, pick out a subject and begin watching. (I’d recommend this one , which is a charming introduction to herself and her videos.)

Thank you for coming round today for our little tea party. Sit yourselves down, have a hot cuppa, we’ll toast you some bread and pass down the digestive tin and the oatmeal chews. They’re virtual, so no calories or allergies, and no worries about indulging yourself at the end of the week.

#virtualteaparty2020 for anyone on Instagram who wants to post images over there.

And so, on with the conversations! Any good programs to suggest? What do you think about the ones I watch? D’you think the chews are too sweet? I shorted the sugar, but don’t trust my un-sweet tooth which thinks they’re still too sweet. (Remember, I drink my cocoa without sugar, so . . . 🙄)

Thank you all for coming and being such delightful guests! Until next month, everyone please be safe, take care, and come back soon! xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Wordless Wednesday