Treeeeems!

Tiny crafting supplies make me happy. 

In fact, they nearly make me as happy as finding fantastic online craft suppliers! 

Stabby stabby stabby!

So we got another awesome parcel in the post yesterday, with some superb kit for the lab from the lovely Jo! It contained a bag of fuzzies for needle felting, a very exciting stabby hobby that I had yet to try.

Fuzzies!

Needle felting seems to involved (as I see it) ramming a sharp pointy object into a soft fuzzy object and making shapes that are kind of not soft and kind of not fuzzy.

Of course, the first thing to do is break one of the needles.

Muppet.

But then I started to get the hang of it, and without stabbing my fingers more than the once, made Mr Sinister Acorn Dude!

Acorn, check. Sinister, check. Yup. Sinister Acorn Dude. 

I think I need more practice! Thanks Jo! :D

We're all alive!

The human's having a rough time at work at the moment, so we're behaving ourselves and getting the lab fitted out for winter.

Here's us, looking glamorous!

We're hiring!

Which is to say, Plink's talked me into getting her a lab assistant from the shiny new 'cruel summer' Makie release.

Apparently she spent today making a list of essential and desirable qualifications.

Why do I think more mischief than science is going to be occurring in my home?

3 days to go...

...until my first day off in just over two weeks! Cannot wait.

Apologies for the languishing blog; I'm on a 96 hours working week and my priorities in the evening are currently 1) Get home 2) Eat 3) Sleep.

Eurgh.

Have a photo of some meerkats in silly costumes.

Long time, no sees...

Umm... I'm still alive, honest. Really, I am. It's end of Real Job rotations at the moment, so that unfortunately means that time is on the short side as there are loose ends to tie up, and there's also an unfortunate rota collision in the works that means I'm working two weekends in a row (boo hiss)

To cheer myself up, I went online fabric shopping. The first parcel was waiting for me when I got home today; a gorgeous hairbell print floaty light rayon, a silky jersey dragonfly print and a soft blue jersey. I'm thinking two comfortable dress-them-up-or-down tops and possibly a jersey skirt... We'll see how brave I'm feeling!

Bwahahahaaaa!

Saw this Re-Ment set on evilBay and couldn't resist.

Now she can make her own clothes!

Reunion!

Huzzah and hurrah, the sewing machine and I have been reunited and it seems to be working perfectly again, yaay!

The other exciting thing that arrived is my copy of Alabama Studio Sewing and Design, which is (believe it or not) a guide to making couture jersey fabric clothing complete with full patterns. Although this was entirely purchased with my clothing needs in mind, Plink has been eyeing it up already... as well as the 2m of blue jersey in the stash upstairs.

Well, it's all going to have to wait. I'm on nights the next couple of days and I've still got to finish this dress for Saturday's wedding. Perhaps I could persuade Plink to do some hemming?

Experiment

Room-Clearing Properties of Popular Music
Professor P Makie and Dr D Monster
Welsh Institute of Makie Research, Monmouthshire, Wales

Abstract:
This preliminary study demonstrates the power of certain kinds of popular music to remove a) felines b) humans from the standard domestic living room. Subjects were exposed to visual and audio stimuli via a television set playing “Tina Turner, live in Amsterdam” (2005). Feline response time was fastest, resulting in hiding behind the sofa after 3 minutes and 35 seconds of exposure. Human response time was slower, yet more complete, leaving the room and taking the cat with him after 12 minutes and 23 seconds. Neither returned to the room whilst stimulus continued for a further 12 minutes. Parallels are drawn with exposure to reality TV shows and discussion focuses on possible ways to use this aversion to manipulate behaviour.

Oh dear...

Looking wistfully at pattern drafting stuff, cuddling her scissors?

DO NOT attempt to wrestle the tape measure.

I think I'm about to be made to create something.

In which...

...Plink is perplexed by the free graze.com cardboard cactus.

Finished blouse :)

To the accompaniment of a particularly nasty episode of CSI, I finally put the collar and snaps (and TINY BUTTONS) on Plink's blouse.

Quite pleased with the fit, but I think I could go even smaller in the back for a more fitted version. May have to start figuring out some darting at this rate, which will make my head hurt.

In other news, realjob is looking like it's going to be a hell of a week. Expect light levels of posting and occasional outbursts of swearyness.

I am disappoint.

Tonight, I had hoped to bring you a lovely luscious unboxing shoot of my Makie. Or at the very least, an "I'm picking her up from the depot tomorrow!" post.

Unfortunately, although DHL's tracking states that she's been delivered, I've got no idea where or to whom... It's certainly not to myself or my immediate neighbours.

Anyway. Whilst I'm mentally preparing an atom bomb to drop on the godforsaken courier company tomorrow if they don't call with the exact location of my goods, you get to enjoy a picture of my cat.

This is Bagpuss. He is grumpy. Much like I am.

Why have fabric...

...when you can have Liberty Tana Lawn?

Well, given it's around £12-20 per metre is one excellent reason. But where the human has had a past (shall we say) indiscretion, the Makie shall profit. This glorious print featuring little acorns is called "delfie" and although it's not current, it still crops up on the bay of e.