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It was Fergus’ 23rd birthday this week and he had an important gig in Glasgow but I missed both. It felt a bit weird not to be with him on his birthday for the first time and I did not make a Dalek shaped chocolate cake. At least he got to to spend time with his sisters – they are all so close at the moment which is lovely.

At work I finished a couple more customer quilts that will go to their recipients by Christmas. 

Speaking of Christmas, I had a long weekend and did some festive shopping at last ...

Not only was it a busy week at work finishing a hexie quilt, supervising part two of the DIY elephant quilt and being on hand to help with classes, each evening I forced myself to paint my bedroom. I had to keep shifting the bed out of the way to avoid getting paint on the quilt which is protected from Nessie by an old, cotton bedspread in dire need of a good wash;)

There was a big blowy storm and I was worried that the roof might leak onto my new paint but so far all is well. I can ...

I had a busy week supervising a DIY quilter whose first ever quilt was an ambitious foundation pieced elephant. She did really well but did not quite finish after 3 days so she may have to come back to finish the job. She left me with a family heirloom hexagon quilt to complete with a dense feather design.

Each night I went home, got changed, had leftover spagbol, took Nessie for a walk in the park then painted the rest of my sitting room green. It was a tricky job because bumpy wallpaper makes it difficult to cut in neatly ...

I have been keeping myself busy at work long arming and doing some tuition, as well as making teas and coffees for people on courses. In the evenings I put on my DIY dungarees and have been continuing to tart up the cottage. I am slightly dreading moving my belongings in because they will just clutter the place up.

I was meant to meet Mel from Looe and visit a Christmas Fair in Fowey but the weather was stormy so I had a 3-day DIY weekend instead. I painted just about everything I could see. The back bedroom is finished ...

Get a scruffy cottage and give it a lick of paint… I can confirm that after 3 days of painting using a huge free tub of white paint, I am over that notion. I ran out of paint and energy before I got to the bedroom ceiling. I have just had a quick look and it looks like it needs yet another coat, groan. The problem was that the room seemed to have wooden walls, covered with a textured wallpaper and some damp spots. It does look better but I obviously have more to do. 

I had better success with ...

I am gradually “cottagifying” my new place. It really needs a lick of paint but even just moving things around makes all the difference and I have not even got much of my own stuff here yet. My chum, Mel (who moved from Banchory to Looe) came for a visit and we mooched around the Pannier Market, posh shops and charity shops. I found some useful curtains in the Sue Ryder shop.

I had help to strim my overgrown grass and had fun getting a bit carried away with a pressure washer. I ran up some basic gingham curtains for ...

It has been long time since I had a room all to myself that was just for sleeping in. I had a room in Scotland but it was also an office, sometimes a music room complete with piano and drum-kit plus a sewing machine.  

I got the keys to my Tavistock cottage on Monday then had a dreadful, dark drive back to the caravan in the rain so I decided to throw some things in the car the next morning and just move straight in. It is fantastic just to have a 10-15 minute commute to work. There is a ...

 For anyone wondering where I have been… I was working this weekend at Malvern Quilt show – will post properly when I get time! Nessie had a lovely holiday with friends. Did not get slow worm house but will take the wee cottage in Tavi;) update to follow xx

I now know lots about the Accuquilt cutting system and think it is great. I bought some cotton duck fabric for my new kitchen – woodcut style whales and sardines. I am not exactly sure what to do with it but have not bought any fabric for ages and just fancied it!

Here ...

I spent Sunday morning being interviewed by a prospective Landlord and am now having second thoughts about a house that I thought was ideal. I have to make sure that the endangered Slow Worms and Newts in the garden thrive. I am not allowed to paint anything even if it is scruffy and can be evicted at short notice if the garden is not correctly maintained. On the other hand, I also saw a Bedford Cottage in Tavistock which is rather small but the Landlady is considerably more relaxed;)

I don’t actually need to rush into anything at all ...

My main focus at work this week was messing about with the L890 Overlocker so I can make samples for a forthcoming Masterclass. It is a great machine and easy enough to switch modes from overlocker to overstitch but when experimenting it would be great to have about 3 machines all set up for different settings. I aim to come up with some kind of project that includes gathering, rolled hem, zips, quilting and fringing.

I had been disappointed by the lack of response any local letting agents but as soon as I expressed an interest in a terraced house ...

I have completed my official first “normal” week at Quilt Direct, getting up every morning and getting to work on time. The 45+ minute journey is getting easier, apart from the lane leading to the main road which will never get easier. 

Monday was a bit intense with so much to do, stock-taking after the Open Days and not really having a plan. After that I got out my notebook to prioritise what needs doing which is very  much subject to change. I had an all-day pupil on one of my days which was great and she thoroughly enjoyed herself ...

I have no idea how people find time for hobbies in the evening after work. I am getting used to the idea of getting up at early every day, not wasting time on social media, getting ready for the day, going for a dog-walk and making sure I leave on time for work. The journey takes about 45 minutes and the worst part is the single track, bendy, hilly, bumpy stretch until I reach the main road. We had a final burst of summer this week and it was too hot to take Nessie to work if she had to ...

My dear friend, Mo helped me to pack up the last of my things before the van arrived on Tuesday. I always knew that it would have to go in two loads despite the optimism of the driver. It all got crammed in precariously ready to do the trip the next day. I spent the night in Glasgow and left early the next morning. The van man must have really put his foot down because while my trip took 12 long hours – he unloaded the stuff single-handed into a barn then headed back to Scotland and sent me a message ...

I have been in a strange state of Limbo this week with the bulk of the packing done except for last day stuff such as my bedroom and everything else that I may have forgotten. I took some things to the Red Cross shop, some more bits and bobs to the Deeside Vintage Emporium then de-listed everything I still had for sale on E-bay, Vinted and Facebook Marketplace. It was all quite an effort but raised funds towards the move. Apart from all of the packing boxes, my workshop looks a bit forlorn now that the last of my fabric ...

Thank goodness my great friend, Mo decided she would help me get organised for my move to Devon because without her I would be running around like a headless chicken. We always were a good team when it came to us having adventures so we shrink wrapped, packed, chucked stuff out, took things to the Red Cross shop, and did some wheeler-dealing at a vintage emporium. I have also been selling things on Facebook – some very popular items and many where the prospective buyers did not turn up. Gradually though, I have made enough for my van hire!

As if ...

I have taken hundreds of photos this week – of things to sell on Facebook Marketplace. The local rumour mill has been convinced for months that something is more afoot here than me decluttering. When I moved here 24 years ago I said that I would only leave if carried out in a box but things change and I am going to make a huge move on my own. I am heading for Devon to start a new job as the Longarm Expert (amongst other things) at Quilt Direct. It is exciting, terrifying and sometimes overwhelming. To start with I will ...

My journey home from FoQ was not entirely straightforward. I made it to Fergus’ flat in Glasgow with no problems but when we decided to nip to the supermarket my car would not start, just like it did in June. I called the AA just after 9am the next morning and a patrol truck came about 2 hours later and declared that we would need to be taken to a garage. At 1.30pm we got towed as far as Asda in Cumbernauld where we hung around for 5 hours waiting for another  truck to take us further. This was ...

I am trying to sell all sorts of things on Facebook Marketplace. After some to-ing and fro-ing I have at least sold my caravan. This is both sad and a relief. I spent a lot of time and money doing it up but I have not used it at all this year and would only have gone on solo expeditions which I don’t think is as fun. The new owners want to go on occasional trips but mainly use it as a nail salon.

My second longarm machine is also up for sale because I don’t use really ...

Late Summer in Norfolk, Sunlight After Rain

Ian Houston 1934-2021

I spent just over a week with family in Norfolk with very non summery weather. We did not do very much at all – we did not even go to the seaside! It was nice to see them but quite dull really;) I did not take a single photo or even make any amazing junk shop buys. The highlight of my week was attending a virtual speed awareness course after being caught on camera on my last trip, exceeding the motorway limit briefly. I decided not to drive all the way ...

For 2 days I drove a big van around Glasgow helping Fergus and his pals move all of their belongings from the East End to the Southside. They were still shifting their beds from one top floor flat to another top floor flat after midnight. There was a fridge pickup in the middle of the evening after refuelling with a takeaway curry. The boys are delighted with the new digs which have been recently redecorated. Luckily, they are all respectful lads and will make an effort to keep it nice. I thought I was was a great van driver but ...