I've had to close my knitting shop. I decided it was for the best as it wasn't really financially viable (the knitting was taking hours to do...precious hours that I could be painting) and I'm not able to keep up with my orders at the moment. My pregnancy is making me very tired but I am also itching to make things for myself and my home. My sister is laughing at me cause she thinks I'm 'nesting'...grrrrr.
I want to make decorations for the house such as a Christmas tree skirt and a mantel piece decoration. I have bought all of the material I now just need my mum to help me get my sewing machine up and running again. Every time I go to use it it jams!
Last Christmas was pretty stressful with the amount of glove orders I had so I'm looking forward to a more peaceful one. I plan on coming back to Etsy next year with a new shop, but selling something that is quicker to make, but the ideas can wait until the new year.
The Christmas lights get turned on the Saturday in Paisley and the reindeer's (yes real ones) come to town and I'm really excited cause I every year I am working and always miss it. So there are benefits to being self-employed :O)
Hope everyone is well and enjoying the cold weather. I had left my washing out over night on Monday and when I went to collect it it was rock hard with frost. I couldn't even bend it to get it in the washing basket! So we had puddles of water all over the house as it defrosted! Not the brightest thing I have ever done.Love L x
Finally finished my two paintings that are going into the Christmas Exhibition at scotlandart.com's Edinburgh gallery. The exhibition opens on the 28th November so feel free to drop by and have a nosey if you are in the area of Stockbridge.
I am proud to announce that the Smith family is expecting a new addition to the family next April.... I'm doing good. Just a bit tired and getting annoyed that I can't do as much as I want to. Grace is so so excited and kissing my bump every day!
I am also officially self-employed. I'm just waiting for a letter from the tax man so I can open up my business bank account. I'm very excited but a bit daunted by the whole tax thing but I'm sure that my mathematical genius of a husband will help me out.
As promised here are my three new items that I have added to my shop today. Still more to come (I hope!). I have possibly two craft fairs coming up in November/December so I had better get knitting!
Oh and something scary from the weekend! I spent most of yesterday feverishly sewing and making Miss G's costume but it was all worth it. Grace went trick or treating with her wee pals and came back with a booty of sweets like I have never seen before! She then sat on the kitchen floor dividing the sweets into ones that she likes and ones she doesn't like...all the more for me x
Thought I would share some new tunes that I am into at the moment.
First is Alexi Murdoch. Born in London, brought up in Scotland, but now lives in California....such a gorgeous voice to listen too. He really came to my attention when i went to the movies to see 'Away We Go' by Sam Mendes who uses Alexi Murdoch's tunes throughout the movie. I thought it made the movie and I highly recommend it. You can listen to some of his songs on his MySpace page and I urge you to listen to 'Orange Sky' and 'All of My Days'.
The next artist to catch my attention is Regina Spektor. I just heard her on the radio one day and fell in love. You can either listen to some of her tunes on her MySpace page or here is a couple of my favourites of hers from YouTube. Happy listening x
...and the winner is...... Kelly Ann. Hooray! Well done you. My lovely assistant drew the name out of the bunch. Snow White always scared me...along with Pinocchio. I'm much more a Aladdin or Little Mermaid kinda girl and Singing in the Rain is definitely way up there in my top 5 movies of all time. Thank you to everyone who entered. I promise I'll have another giveaway soon.
Here's a sneaky peak of something new that I plan on adding to my shop soon. I'm now off to watch Masterchef the Professionals....Happy Monday x
Just spent the last three days enjoying clear blue skies and chilly climes on the East coast of Scotland visiting my Mother-in-Law in Forfar. We went for a couple of lovely long walks out in the countryside and I had so much fresh air I was going to bed early every night!
On Thursday we all went for a two hour walk around Brechin (not so clear skies but very mild). Grace did a grand job and only really complained about being a bit tired and hungry towards the end, but a story of Cinderella told by mum kept her going!
On Friday we went out for lunch (which took FOREVER to be served to us!) then went for a walk along to the Reekie Linn waterfall. The walk to the waterfall is a very narrow path with a 120ft drop down to the water! So daddy had a tight hold of Grace there and back. Such a lovely walk and such a wonderful view.
PS. This post is dedicated to my fantastic sister whose birthday it is today....happy birthday sis xxxxxxxxxxx
Well when I was growing up, from about the age of 6/7 years old I watched Star Wars every day without fail. That is until we got rid of our Betamax Video player and switched to VHS (a very sad day)...then no more Star Wars until it was on the TV again and I recorded it once more! I was born in 1977 (vintage year). The same year Elvis died, Apple Computer, Inc. becomes Incorporated, The Queens Silver Jubilee AND Star Wars was released. I grew up in California and my mum and dad took me to see it when I was only months old and I slept all the way through it (and I think I peed all over my mum!), but I can say I was there and saw it on the big screen. Every so often I pull out my DVDs and put them on in the background wondering if Grace will take a shine to them too, but she's too much of a girlie girl. I guess it takes time to appreciate the finer things in life.
Remember to tell me what your favourite film was when you were growing up in my previous post to be in with a chance to win a pair of my camel brown fingerless gloves....can't wait to hear every one's choices. x
....dust yourself down, start all over again. Pure dance heaven but only watch if you have a spare 7 minutes!
Sorry I've been out of action for so long. Since being made redundant I have no idea where my time has gone to. Grace has been busy at school and I have been trying to finish some paintings. I have finished one of my commissions and have started two new paintings for the gallery I used to work in for their Christmas exhibition in their Edinburgh gallery. Very exciting.
Here is the commission I have finished of Richmond Bridge in London.
To celebrate my coming back to blogland I am going to have a blog giveaway of a pair of my best selling fingerless gloves.
To win a pair of these beauties all you need to do is tell me what your favourite movie was when you were wee kiddie? I will draw the winners name out of a hat on Monday 19th October (7pm GM time).I'll tell you my favourite film tomorrow.Hope everyone is well and can't wait to be in touch with everyone again. L x
Well, it's all change in the Smith household. I was made redundant on Saturday and I have decided to be a full time mum and concentrate on my painting and knitting. I was offered a couple of days work with a pay cut but I just decided I would take this as an opportunity to do something that I've always wanted to do. If we start to struggle or I go a bit mental from being at home all the time then I'll start looking for some part time work, but we'll give it a good go. My first week has gone pretty wall and have made a good start on both my painting commissions and the dirty washing mountain! My lovely husband said that he would introduce me to the washing machine (cheeky git!).
So here are my paintings so far (both not finished...especially the top one. A work in progress so watch this space)......
and here is my groovy 80's chick who again dressed herself! Absolutely gorgeous :O)
I've just made my second banana bread in just over a week and boy is it yummy! So yummy I thought I would share the recipe with you. I'm not sure where I got the recipe from so apologies for not giving credit where it is due.
100g butter (unsalted, soft) 140g light muscovado/brown sugar 2 large eggs 3/4 ripe bananas mashed (depending on size of bananas) 50g pecans, roughly chopped (or any nuts of choice) 50g raisins or choc chips 150ml buttermilk or crème fraîche 280g plain or wholemeal flour 1 tsp bicarbonate soda
Cooking time 75 minutes Oven temp: with fan 160 degrees C/without fan 180 degrees C
*cream butter and sugar *beat eggs and add gradually to butter/sugar mixture *stir in mashed bananas, pecans, raisins and buttermilk *Sift flour and bicarb soda on top of banana mixture *fold in, don't over mix *spoon into tin and level top
It is soooo easy and very tasty. I have done this recipe three times and haven't have ANY problems. I have done choc chips, pecans and bananas....and raisins, pecans and bananas.....and this time I did it with wholewheat flour and all have been great. I always use low fat crème fraîche as I like healthy-ish x
Miss G got home from school yesterday and I sent her up stairs to get dressed and this is how she came down! I think the odd socks really set the outfit off!
I know I wish I did. My hubby found this article in the New York Times as it is the most expensive apartment/house ever to go on sale in Brooklyn. I in love and it reminds me of the apartment Tom Hanks gets in the movie Big and what a view! WOW x
There are some more photos and you can read the rest of the article here.
I wasn't sure what to blog about hence taking so long to blog again. So I have decided to blog a bit of everything. I'm still knitting away and having fun with new colour combinations. I've had this red ribbon in my box for about a year and have finally added it to a pair of my gloves. However, I think I need to re-take my photos again and I definitely need a model for my gloves. Someone to show my gloves off to their best potential....any takers?
I have also had a commission to knit some arm cuffs for a lady in America who is in the process of having blood transfusions and wanted to have the top of her arms covered up and this is what I came up with. Very soft, pretty and feminine....do you think there is a market for these as I think they are lovely?
Last Thursday Grace and I went to a friend of Grace's birthday party...what a cutie x
Don't even ask me what I have been doing the past few weeks as I have no idea! Time has just flown by. Anyway sorry for neglecting blogland.
Miss Grace had her first day at school on Tuesday. I say day in the loosest sense as her first day constituted of a whole hour! and again yesterday, then almost three weeks of half days after that. Breaking them in gently I guess. Anyway all was fine and she enjoyed herself and she looked so so cute in her summer dress.
I want to make decorations for the house such as a Christmas tree skirt and a mantel piece decoration. I have bought all of the material I now just need my mum to help me get my sewing machine up and running again. Every time I go to use it it jams! 
