OUTDOOR MAT?

 When we were at the Tamahere market last weekend I noticed quite a few of the stall holders  had big mats on the ground.

Hmm.  It looked so much nicer than just the grass/dirt.  I didn't think to ask where they got those mats from though.

But I think they are probably from one of those Asian import places.  We have a few of them around this area, and also at The Base.  So today I am going to look for one.

I only want one that's about 2 m X 2 m, so it fits down the middle of me stall.  AND fits in the car.

Once home again, I suppose I shall get back into the sewing room and churn out a few more Zippered Pouches.

Margaret B:  I don't think I shall make any with Christmas fabric, as that restricts the 'time frame' that people will buy/use them.  I like that they are suited to all sorts of people, at any time of the year.   But Thank You for the suggestion anyway.

12.33 pm:  And well I've had a lovely morning shopping!

I decided to ask Bex if she'd like to come with me to look for a mat, and she said yes.  So I had some nice company for the morning.

First up, mat shopping.  We went to:

All the Asian shops.

Mitre 10. 

Briscoes.

The Warehouse.

KMart.

David's Emporium.

And finally, Bunnings.

NO ONE had anything remotely like I wanted, except one Asian shop which had a large plastic beach mat type thing.  NOT quite what I was looking for.

After the hunt, we had morning tea at the Base before going to Bunnings, the last place we visited.

And I managed to find a few things there that were not exactly on my mental list.  But oh well.

After dropping Bex back home I did a quick visit to the supermarket too.

Today's shopping:

ABOVE:  an Azalea for the front garden.

ABOVE: Three cute vege pods... might just grow some summer veges!  No bending down, awesome.  And these were a really good price compared to some I've seen.

ABOVE: Weed mat pegs, to hold the soaker hoses down.

ABOVE:  Yeah.  Coco.

ABOVE:  Another good reason to take ya daughter in law shopping.

HANDY.

ABOVE:  The makings of tonight's salad.

ABOVE: And lastly for now... this spot.  I thought it was the perfect place to park me car at KMart!

Like, me little car fitted there so well.

But spoil sport BEX said it wasn't a park and made me move!

Pffffft.  

I'm gunna put all the stuff away now then have a light lunch before going into the sewing room for the afternoon.

Gosh I did enjoy this morning.  So much fun making Bex embarrassed in the shops!  And it's so easy to do.

I've spent the afternoon cutting out more Zippered Pouches.  I will need to make a visit to Spotlight soon for more zips.  But not today.  It's now almost 6 pm, and I need to start dinner preparations.

Our dinner was just lovely!  Rissoles, scallop bites and my beetroot and feta salad.  So, so yum.

Now, wind down time.  Oh and I still need to do Wordle and Quordle.  Might do that now, then I can put me feet up and just relax.

RIP QUEEN ELIZABETH ll

 I stayed up until midnight last night so I could watch part of the Queen's final funeral service.

Once I'm up I will watch the rest of it, it's probably on YouTube by now.

Then it will go back into the sewing room to see how many Zippered Pouches I can get done today.

I'm going to build up my stock of them... I want HEAPS done before all the pre-Christmas markets.

And of course, they really are fun to make.

ABOVE:  I made this one late yesterday, again using some old patchwork blocks.  I think they look rather funky!

So that's me for the day really.

Could be fairly quiet from now on.

How about YOU tell me what you are doing today?

Anyone going shopping?  What ya shopping for?  I love shopping, but sadly I really don't need a damn thing.  That's sucks.

ABOVE:  9.20 am, making a good start on the day.  This one is just darling! 

ABOVE: That fabric was too cute not to use a 2nd time.
 

ABOVE:  This one would suit someone who doesn't really want a bright, in ya face one.

I have finished watching the Queen's funeral now.  It was a very dignified, solemn event.  Very glad I watched it.

ABOVE:  1.10 pm:  I do seem to be on a roll eh?

Time for a break I think, I'm starting to see double.

ABOVE:  Right, last two for the day.  I'm done.   Funny how just changing the zip and tag colour changes it eh?  Those two are done using the exact same fabric.

I'm off to put me feet up for a while.  7 pouches done today.  I'm happy with that.

It's been a nice quiet evening here.  Takeaways for dinner as I'm knackered!  I certainly won't be staying up until after 1 am again in a hurry.

Catch ya tomorrow.

TIDY UP

 I need to resign myself to NOT doing any more painting... for the time being.  I simply do not  have the time to do it, and paintings DO NOT SELL at markets.  One day I will make some for gifts, but not right now.

So, I am going to put away all my canvas's.

ABOVE:  Stew was the one who suggested I find somewhere else for them, so I can use that space for finished patchwork stuff (Market stock).

I've found two really big suitcases we simply do not use, so I will put my canvas's in them, and then Stew can put them up in the attic (roof space).

That is my job for today.

Once that is done I will head into the sewing room to make more things for the next few markets. I have (all going well), 6 markets up until Christmas, then two more in January. So, 8 in the next 4 months.

I'm starting to really enjoy the markets again.  I was kinda over them back in 2019, before Covid struck and stopped them all.

I thoroughly enjoyed all the compliments I got on Saturday for my products, it made my hours and hours of work so worthwhile.

The money I make is NOTHING compared to that.

ABOVE: Our pink Azalea, flowering like a mad thing!  It's the 2nd year I've gotten to see it.  I missed it in 2020 because I was in Australia with my Mum.

It's such a beautiful shrub, and flowers for ages, we even get random blooms for months after it's 'main' bloom.

I might try and get a few more for our front garden, we have some gaps still.

I will get up soon and get the washing on.  I've probably got 2 loads to do, maybe three (this is a weekly wash).  Stew and I seem to generate quite a lot of washing all on our own.  

I can't imagine how much I did when we had 6 kids at home!  I think it was at least 2 loads A DAY.  

11.30 am, and that tidy up job is done.

ABOVE:  hopefully it stays looking that good.

ABOVE:  I'm now sorting out fabrics to use for more zippered pouches.

But first I think I will get some lunch, so I can work through the afternoon without getting 'hangry'.  😂😕

ABOVE:  I found 10 patchwork blocks sitting in a box in the garage.  I made them years ago when I was learning how to do traditional blocks.

So I thought, why not use them for pouches?

So I did.  The one above is the first two blocks used.

ABOVE: this one is just from some of my stash of fabrics.

I don't know if I will make another one today or not, I'm not feeling 100% right now.

Just a bit off.

11 pm:  Watching the funeral of Queen Elizabeth ll.  Very lovely service I must say.

I AM WHO I AM

 Like me.

Love me.

Loathe me.

Your choice.

I can only be true to myself.

I know I've annoyed/pissed off people lately.  But I'm like a dog with a bone, once I decide to take on something, I don't leave it alone.

I wish I was different, cos it's not fun being me sometimes.

So that was me just airing my feelings really.  I would say SORRY, but I'm not sure I am.

Sunday sleep in.... and I'm still in bed.  And I might just stay here a bit longer.

Today we have no plans... just a lazy day here I suppose.

Catch ya later.

We now have plans.  I have been thinking about it since yesterday.

We are going to put the gazebo up in the driveway and try to work out a better way to hang the runners from the sides.

It's been so long since we used the gazebo, I forgot how untidy, and not so good using big, chunky tie downs was.

Butch, who was next door to us at the market, even commented on how we were hanging the runners.  He was polite though and didn't say it looked like a dog's breakfast 😂😄😅😖.

So we are going to experiment with different options, to see what works best, is easiest and fastest to put on the gazebo and hangs nicely.

I hope we can come up with a solution.

2.40 pm:  Well we put the gazebo up in the driveway, sussed out various options, then went to Spotlight for what we needed.

ABOVE:  I won't be cutting and joining anything today.  I'm tired.

Stew and I went to Taco Bell for a late lunch, then had a drive around some newer areas near us, then came home.

We plan on spending the remainder of the afternoon being utterly lazy old farts.

ABOVE:  I hope this shows a bit better why we wanted to change the method of hanging the runners.

We had pieces of rope tied to the corner poles, then ratchet tie downs hooked to the rope.  It meant there were areas where the runners didn't sit well and gaped.

Right, I'm off to put me feet up till it's time to sort out dinner.

I didn't do dinner.  Stew had some left overs.  I just wasn't hungry after our lunch.

Been watching the telly as per usual. 

Catch ya tomorrow.

THIS LITTLE PIGGY WENT TO MARKET

 It's 6 am and we are up.

Very reluctantly, cos I am NOT an early morning person.

But, it's necessary to get to market with plenty of set up time.

There's not a cloud in the sky but its damn cold outside.  I'm taking my blankie with me today, cos it's going to be cold all day I reckon.

I'm not freezing for no one!

Please cross ya fingers, toes, boobs, balls and anything else that works for ya... so we have a good day.

I'm not wanting to make me fortune, but some money would be nice.  And of course, both Stew and I really enjoy the social side of being at the market.

...

ABOVE: All ready. Brisk start. Low fog. It only took us 12 minutes to get here which is amazing! Thank goodness for the new expressway  being open.  

ABOVE: Stew bought me some new earrings.  Rather appropriate... and BLUE.

2 pm:  And we are home.  Rather tired but happy.

It was an excellent market for September!

Lots of people, smiling faces and sunshine.

We did very well today, and I am going to have to sew more Zippered Pouches and Bowl Cosy's.  I sold lots of them today.

Plus some runners too.

Feet are up now, time to relax.

ABOVE:  My friend D from Cambridge popped in to say "Hi", which was lovely.

I also saw a few other friends, but no photo opportunity.

Gosh so tired now.  I woke at 4.30 and have been awake ever since.  Doing an easy dinner for Stew and I this evening, just sausages, coleslaw and wedges.

7.00 pm: Our dogs spent the day with Steve and his family.  They were just returned home, tired and so happy.  They had a blast by the sound of it.

Such a relief knowing they were taken care of while we were out all day.

Thanks family, Dad, Coco, Marley and I appreciate all you do for us.

It's been a long day, so I won't be long out of bed tonight.  Looking forward to a big sleep in tomorrow.

ARE YOU SHITTING ME?

 I was reading an article on STUFF late yesterday.

(https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/129895827/hitandrun-driver-who-stank-of-alcohol-and-killed-woman-after-running-red-light-at-120kph-spared-jail)

It was about a man who drove while drunk, sped at double the speed limit through a red light and hit an innocent woman's car, killing her.

It was his SIXTH drink driving conviction.

And he got HOME DETENTION, so he can sit at  home and still get drunk.  WTF is wrong with the 'justice' system in this bloody country?

You drink and drive, you run away from the scene after KILLING SOMEONE and you get home detention????????

In MY OPINION that is just wrong on so many levels.

I don't give a fuck that he has an alcohol addiction, he CHOSE to get behind the wheel of a car DRUNK, speed, run a red light and KILL SOEMONE.

He should have been thrown in fucking jail and have the key thrown away.

I am constantly dumbfounded at the 'soft' sentencing in this country.

Makes my blood boil in fact.  Am I alone in feeling this way?

Obviously there is nothing I can do except have a little rant about it!  

Moving on.  I have no plans for my day.

I might mozzie on over to Cambridge and visit a friend who's recovering from surgery.

Better ring and make sure she's up for it first I suppose.  

12.55 pm:  And I'm just in from my morning tea in Cambridge.  I spent 2 hours with my friends S.T. and S.D.  Yakking, laughing and just hangin' out.

S.T. had an operation last week to get a knee replacement...

ABOVE: She is heavily bruised from the top of her leg to mid calf.  But, she's getting around wonderfully I think, for someone who is not even a week post-op.

ABOVE:  S.T. is another person who uses Melamine trays!  Very pretty kitty cat one, sadly I left it there.  lol

ABOVE: S and her husband T have a very lovely garden, this corner caught my eye.  The pukekos are so cute.

ABOVE: Our mutual friend, S.D., joined us for morning tea as well. And S.D. gave me that glass vase.  It's gorgeous.  It made my day being given a gift, for no reason at all!

We all need people like that in our lives.

I am usually the 'giver', so it was rather nice to have someone give me something.  Thank you so much S.D.

Now that I'm home, I am going to be lazy for a little while, before getting everything lined up, and ready to go in the car for tomorrow's market.

Family shit simmering in the background too.... when someone thinks they have all the power? HA HA HA... no ya fucking don't.

I have a headache. Far too much bothering me.

Tomorrow I hope to just concentrate on enjoying our market and meeting some lovely people.

I don't have to cook tonight. The kids are coming over and we are having Fish 'n' Chips. Yaaaa.

SO HAPPY

 All along I've been holding my breath, hoping that I would get a site at the next Tamahere Market.

There was no guarantee I would, but I was being super positive that I would.

AND I HAVE got a site.  So happy.

AND the weather is supposed to be really nice on Saturday too, so there is no reason we won't be going.

So all my hard work will be on show at Tamahere  Market this Saturday.

If you are in the area, I'd LOVE to see you.  NO obligation to buy a thing of course, I'd just love to see some friendly faces.

I've got two more runners on the go, an adapted 'Kiwiana' theme.  I can't wait to show you.  They are just a bit different from my usual ones.

I am feeling so positive now that I know I have a spot at the market!  It's really boosted my mood.

Right, enough yabber, I'm off to get those next two runners done.

10.05 am:  I'm making good progress on my projects today.

And..

ABOVE:  I worked out a way for the girls to be outside (around the front), so they can get used to being out there.

So far they have barked their heads off at EVERYONE.  Plus they got to see other dogs walking by too.  They didn't like those other dogs, but hey, ya gotta start somewhere.

Normally they can only see from behind the glass doors.

ABOVE:   Kiwiana Runner #5.  Slight twist on it, and I have really enjoyed doing it.  Great way to use up scraps.

ABOVE:  And there we have #6.  And I'm done making runners now until after the Market on Saturday.

Tomorrow is going to be a day of REST.

Said no one ever... can you imagine me doing nothing all day?  😂😅😊

But I will try.

It's now 5.25 pm, and I've come into the house to fold the washing (been putting it off for a couple of days), then I will get dinner.

SHIT!  Just remembered I'm doing rice in the rice cooker, only I've not turned it on yet.

WHOOPS!

OK, it's on now.  lol

It's been bloody quiet here today, so I'm signing off.

Catch ya tomorrow.

WHAT DO YA THINK?

 Late yesterday I started another Kiwiana runner.

I decided to do the stitching with a different coloured thread.

Not too sure about it.

ABOVE:  It's a much darker shade of blue.  

What do ya think?

I will be adding the binding this morning, so you can see the finished result a bit later.

This will be the last Kiwiana Runner I make in a little while.

Any suggestions what my next 'series' could be?

Once I've finished that runner I am going to make sure I have everything sorted for the upcoming market in Tamahere this Saturday.

And there's a bit of housework to do as well... much as I loathe housework, some bugger's gotta do it.

11.56 am: Been sewing all morning.

Got the 4th Kiwiana Runner finished, and then decided to do something with all the scraps.

ABOVE: The scraps, getting sewn into small blocks... think I might try and make them into a runner of some sort.

OR NOT.  I changed my mind.  

I will show  you what those scraps turned into later, if I get it finished today.

I've stopped for lunch, it's 1.45 pm.

5.33 pm:  Well my plan for the scraps has kept on changing!

I had thought of making a set of cute coasters.  Then it evolved into Placemats.  But now I've gone back to the original idea of another runner (or two).

They are not the same as the original Kiwiana Runners though.

I won't have one ready to show until tomorrow now as it's getting late, Stew just arrived home and I must cook his dinner.

Stew enjoyed his dinner of Mince and Bacon Stew, Herbed potatoes, Coleslaw and Mushrooms.

Followed by a little ice cream and custard.

I'm now snuggled in me blankie, watching the TV till bedtime.

Catch ya tomorrow.