sew-nice.

a few weeks ago le boy and i had a conversation that went like this:

him: hey babe, if we got you a new good sewing machine how long would it last? 

me: hmmm about 20 years. 

him: let's go tomorrow morning. 

and when we went to john lewis and spoke with the lovely and helpful sales lady, she informed us that yes, they do last 20 years, in fact they last longer :) i was pretty certain about what i wanted (a jonome) le boy, being the consummate value for money man, asked a lot of questions, maybe more questions than most men would ask in the sewing department, and definitely more than a man who won't ever actually touch a sewing machine should ask. but i kinda love that he did, because it means that he cares about the stuff i care about. (ok sappy portion is over). in the end we walked out with a janome, of course we paid for the privilege. 

so what else to do but put the new baby to work? 

and work she has!

wanting to dress up our bed i made a few quick throw pillows. the basic how-to for cushion covers is here with a great measurement guide for the most common sizes. 

i wanted to dress them up a bit and turned to martha for some ribbon inspiration.

for the loopy centre pillow.

and for the rosette.

i just pintucked the ruffle until i liked it and sewed straight down the centre of the ribbon.

all very easy and very very quick!

and for the thing i'm currently most proud of? the console table slip cover! an ikea expedit bookcase turned on its side and covered now provides oodles of hidden storage. the instructions and genius behind this is found from in the sept 2011 canadian house and home.

(and isn't the new chair pretty?) we're ambling our way toward finishing up the living room. in my dreams i'm sewing the curtains this weekend...

scotland.

there will just have to be two posts for this. not because the pictures are unending, even if they are. but because i've been too lazy to transfer the pictures to my laptop...that's right people. but the nights have been filled with knitting and cookie baking and the weekends have been filled with sewing and friends. these are good things. and required more attention than a post about scotland.

but here's a quick recap.

we flew. we drove. we slept. we ate (super amazing food here.) we 'walked' which in british parlance means we hiked our butts off up a fairly significant 'mountain'. we saw (loch ness). we bought wool. (i bought wool, we were in scotland, after all). we visited friends. i'll give it more words another time. for now, enjoy the instagram tour.

weekend plans.

this weekend i will:

• host dinner tonight for a few good friends, i prepped much of it this morning. i'm doing a lentil & tomato salad from ottolenghi's plenty, this broccoli & bacon salad by jamie oliver, and bbq'd sausages and chicken with our new favourite (and spontaneously created by me last week) sauce: tomato ketchup,  worcestershire sauce and red wine vinegar.
• meet some old girlfriends for picnic (hopefully) lunch - haven't seen these girls in years! 
• buy a new sewing machine, mine has bit the dust and it's time to replace it!  
• go to the movies with my guy 
• sew a slip cover for a bookcase-cum-sidetable 
• enjoy a free day while le boy is in an incredibly long cycle race, luckily he doesn't ask me to attend as well 
• go to evening church and enjoy the late evening light on the walk home 
• listen to podcasts 
• chat with the fam 
• read more of my current (and excellent) book: canada by richard ford 
• block my recently completed cardigan! 

happy weekend. 

june.

i was distracted this past week (the beginning of june) with a four-day weekend, courtesy of the queen. liz, of course, has been on the throne for 60 years, and true to form, the brits celebrated their monarch, with what else? a bank holiday. the country was good enough to coincide the jubilee with what is normally the second may bank holiday - for a fabulous four days off! we took the cue, stayed in the country but headed north. way north. nearly all the way north, but not quite. a full recap will come. suffice it to say, the highlands are superb, and we're already talking about how to make this jaunt northward an annual event.

may recap: 

spiritual:

• worked on memorising jeremiah 31:3 
• god has been really teaching me some interesting stuff that i'll share as things progress, but it's been a great journey 
• started reading and using the power of a praying wife - what an excellent book - giving specific words to my prayers for le boy it  is such a fantastic resource. 

mental:

• the london train by tessa hadley - a nice read, although about an affair which i must confess, i have a hard time reading about, i'd prefer not to be necessarily exposed to those thoughts :) 
• the sweet life in paris by david lebovitz - another food memoir, it's wonderful and full of recipes, but i find with food memoirs that i can pick them up and put them down easily, each chapter is a stand alone story, i like for this reason and find them intolerable for the same.
• crazy love by francis chan - i'm stuck in the middle of this, it's a slightly uncomfortable read, and i want to take my time, but slowly we'll get there. 

physical: 

• i started and stopped a diet plan. and i'm counting this a success - the diet made me intolerable, and intolerant, i've decided that i need access to all food groups, everyday. so carbs are back in, just fewer of them, and i'm enjoying what i eat and trying to be conscious of my overall health and diet. 
• i'm seeing real gains in my strength and fitness - i can leg press more than 100 kgs! which is a huge step forward in the recovery land. and i went for a short run the other without a need to stop, which i feel means that my cardiovascular fitness is starting to return also. 

creative: 

• i didn't bake more or finish the cardigan, but it's almost finished and the baking, well, it can wait for this month. 

::june intentions::

spiritual:

• my memory work has really taken a hit this month, my goal is to make up for it over june and july and get back on track by memorising 6 scriptures over two months.

mental: 

• work is at its height in june, so i might just try to immerse myself in some good fiction reading that keeps me coming back for the sheer enjoyment of story 
• i'm also loving podcasts (as always) and i want to make sure i'm thinking while i'm listening to them. 

physical: 

• we have signed up for a 5 km run in mid-july, i'd really like to make it round the course without stopping, i don't care about my final time, but this means a little bit more running training 

creative: 

• consolidate my projects and finish ones that have been started and not finished. i'm terrible for this. i'd also like to start an ordered list of what project to do next - so that i'm not just caught by fancy, but regardless, this will be high up on the list.