When life gets in the way
It has been, frankly, a pretty shitty day. I tend not to talk about work here, as it’s a public blog and I’m not that daft! Suffice to say work reached a whole new level of cack today, with just a small glimmer of hope popping up at the end of it. To add insult to injury, I had to go straight from the office to a Girlguiding committee meeting. Usually these things tend towards the dull and worthy, with the odd giggle thrown in. However tonight we were looking at planning for the future and developing guiding beyond the end of Centenary celebrations next year. The woman who led the discussions was inspirational and has really got me thinking in a whole new way, particularly when it comes to putting the girls first. After all, without them we’d be a bit stuck! I mostly love being involved in Girlguiding (there’s the odd Monday when the girls are rambunctious and I’m shattered) and the experiences and skills it has given me are invaluable. However, all this is a roundabout way of saying I didn’t get anything crafty done today. I did however do a bloggy catch up, including the welcome return of the fragrant and well-hot Eileen. She was trawling for ideas of way to pep up her blog and encourage readership. It’s a train of thought I’ve been on too – does anyone really get anything out of reading this? I don’t sell anything, I haven’t really done anything in the way of tutorials, so what’s the point? However, taking on board some of the suggestions, here’s a pretty picture….
I know, I can’t understand why I’m still single either!
Twittering posts cropped up as well – I do this and you lovely people can follow me – I’m @emma_pad, you’ll need to send a follow request, as my updates are protected. Be warned, I swear like an absolute trooper which I find to be both big and clever, but if you don’t it may not be for you.
Asking questions is also an important one too, so I leave you with these queries….
1. If you were a Brownie or Guide, what was the stuff you really enjoyed? What games, songs etc were the big favourites?
2. Can anybody recommend some good online bead sellers? With their own websites or perhaps ebay shops?
3. If you were marooned on a desert island, what one craft would you want to do? And what would your book of choice be? (As per Radio 4 rules, you get the Bible and the complete works of Shakespeare)
When in doubt, cook potatoes!
It has been baltic up here over the last few days, going down to minus -1 at night. I don’t know about anyone else, but this kind of weather makes me reach for the carbohydrates! So partly thanks to this – and partly thanks to Pennie, who decided to have a bash at all the recipes in a Delia book a wee while back – tonight I made Corned Beef Hash with Fried Egg. It’s from How to Cook Book 1 – you can also see the recipe here. My efforts are a little different from Delia’s……
Nomnomnom
..however this is proper winter food. Stodgy, comfort eating. I made a couple of changes to the recipe, using olive oil because that’s what I had and frying the egg in the same pan, because I don’t see the point in giving myself more washing up than is required! My next dish will be baked eggs, because I feel it’s high time I learnt to make a few more quick and simple savoury dishes.
Incidentally, I am cracking an Irish/Potato joke with the title, in case you were wondering……
The production line continues…
Having pondered the many doves I folded last night, I decided I liked the green starry version (paired with red ink, once I get a chance to go to Hobbycraft when half the North East isn’t in there) the best, so I got to work this afternoon and this was the end result..
There'll be greenbirds over, the laminate floor of Paddy
The only problem is, that’s all the paper I had in that pattern used up. So far, the only other origami paper I’ve seen has been either one colour or very busy patterns, so my task now is to try and find something similar.
Today I have also cast on the final part of a knitting project I could – and should – have finished months ago. I also finally met the lovely Chrissy of Spoilt Pig fame – frankly the only woman you need for all your resin needs! I’d urge everyone to check out her shop, but by all accounts she had such a corking day at the Airyhall Craft Bazaar it might be a bit sparse just now.
However, before I did any of those things, I went here…
Now, I’ll admit this is taking things off in a completely different direction, but it’s something I’ve been thinking about for a while, so today I decided to go along and see what a meeting was all about. Mostly I just got frustrated at my complete inability to empty my head and stop my crazy train of thought from rattling off at a hundred miles an hour. Only one person spoke today, but it addressed exactly that subject and provoked a pretty strong emotional reaction in me. I’ve got a few booklets home to read and I plan to go along to a few more meetings. I might talk about that a bit more here, or I might take it to LJ - I don’t know.
Origami production line
This is what I’ve been up to this evening….
This is just the start of the doves I need for my Christmas cards, I now have sore fingers! I’ve also been playing about with a Christmas star model..
This is quite a fidgety one to do, whereas the doves are very straightforward. Both are from this book which I love! Very easy to understand instructions and some great little projects.
The roar of the greasepaint, the smell of the crowd
One took a break from crafty pursuits tonight to go to the theatre dah-lings! One of the guys I used to work with was in a production of The History Boys. Cracking evening and a really good play. God bless Andrew, if it wasn’t for him I wouldn’t see any plays! Totally shattered after a week on earlies, hoping to get on with a bit more crafty stuff this weekend.
This entry is brought to you by ‘I need to write something to keep up with NaBloPoMo and my brain is custard after a week of 4.45am alarm calls’
OMG! Some actual crafting!
Yes, try not to soil yourself with excitement folks, but having thrilled you all with pictures of a shopping centre and my random wibblings about boys I fancy, I am now ready to get back to the matter in hand – crafting! I’m aiming to make this as handmade a Christmas as possible and my first port of call are the cards! I was keen to use my origami skills, in particular the dove shape I made many moons back. I also wanted simple, clean text. Those are not words which could be applied to my hand writing, so I decided to invest in a set of ink stamps. Much googling ensued and I kept coming across these babies……
Ooooooh!
God bless ebay, that’s all I can say! The stamps arrived today and mere moments ago, I knocked this up….
Well?
Obviously it’s pretty rough around the edges – my folding wasn’t as neat as it could be and I didn’t leave myself quite enough space for the Peace, but this is really just a first attempt to see if what I saw in my head worked in real life. I’m leaning towards red or green ink as it’s more festive and I want to source some patterned origami paper – I spotted some funky stuff in Hobbycraft the other day – any recommendations for good online stockists? What are your thoughts?
Baking, achievements and crushes
For the first time in ages (translation – about a week and a half) I’ve been baking. It’s my boss’s birthday and while he’s not one to make a big fuss I feel the occasion deserves a cake. My first thought was Nigella’s Chocolate Guinness cake, which I *love* but it’s a bit of a fidget, so I decided to go with Kirsty’s super easy all in one chocolate cake. You can see the full recipe here. It’s very straightforward and believe me, it is taking every ounce of self control I have not to get tucked into this cheeky little number….
Chocolatey goodness!
He’s also getting the new Kasbian album and Little Miss Sunshine on DVD – how great am I? – and yet no-one else wants to employ me 
Onto the achievements. As I’ve mentioned before, I’m a Brown Owl and Guide helper and one of the many things I’ve ended up doing are pack holidays and camps. I did my first residential just over 2 years ago and I took my First Aid and Health qualification. Finally, finally, finally, last night I got this…..
The little green one is the important one!
I’m terribly pleased, not least because I’ve done First Aid-er on at least a dozen holidays and to realise I wasn’t qualified would have been a bit of a blow! I will have to re-sit in a year and I also found out last night that parts of my Pack License qualification (which allows me to run holidays) aren’t complete, so that still needs sorted. I’m feeling pretty upbeat about all things Guiding though – it’s the Centenary year and I’ve got places for some of my kids at special camps in Peebleshire and at Lorne. I had my pack holiday there, but it’s got to be at least 20 years since I was last there, so I’m really curious to see how much it’s changed.
Onto to crushes now. Well, 1 crush and a bit of fangirl action. I should warn you, gentle reader, there’s likely to be a fair bit of this this month. I am terribly for getting crushes, generally on people no-one else fancies! First of all, we have Gary Lightbody, lead singer of Snow Patrol…
Yes, I am well aware they are not the most credible of bands and I remember them in the days before their anthemic stadium status, when they were raucous regulars at the QMU during Freshers’ Week, but I have a well documented weakness for musicians and this guys writes songs which make my heart melt….
He’s Bangor born and bred, like me, and I just imagine him singing those gorgeous songs only to me with those dark eyes and scruffy hair……………
ANYWAY! While I’m in the confessional mode, I’ve gone all fangirly over an internetz person. I won’t call her a fellow blogger, because she is well out of my league, but I am proud to admit I worship at the alter of Kitschycoo. Amanda is funny, clever, makes amazing clothes for kids and is one of the best bloggers I have come across. Also, according to my good mate Von aka BlottedCopyBook, she’s a top lady in real life too. I knew things had reached the point of no return when I was in Asda yesterday, browsing through the George section and a little voice in my head said ‘Amanda’s stuff is much nicer than any of this’. Oh deaaaaarrrr.
Retail therapy
Day 3 in the NaBloPoMo house and I am very tired! I ended up with a free afternoon I wasn’t expecting today – it’s my boss’s 40th birthday tomorrow and I was going to bake him a cake, but he’s decided to take the day off, so that will be Wednesday’s job instead. I decided it was high time I have a bit of a wander around Aberdeen’s newest shopping emporium..
They’ve been planning this place for the whole time I’ve lived here (and then some) and it finally opened last week. It has an Apple store (swoon) but the purpose of my visit was to check out a very different shop…
Yes, I know a lot of it is overpriced and I’m pretty sure this place inspires joy and loathing in equal measure, but I had a great time! I also deserve a freaking medal, because I left without spending *any* money. However, I did have a list of stuff I was going to try and find on ebay instead 
After that it was off to Paperchase to buy a suitably cheeky card for my boss and then the far less exciting destination of ASDA. However, my general good behaviour has been rewarded, as I arrived home to find a delivery from Fabric Rehab. It is the most gorgeous site, packed full of beautiful fabric. My resolve was decidedly weak on Friday night, hence I’ve now ended up with these (iffy pics, blame the camera phone)…
Birdies! Does this make anyone else think of The Good Life?
Frippery Bundle Pink
What exactly I’m going to use it for, I’m not terribly sure, but my life is a prettier place now I have these lovely FQs.
The northern lights of old Aberdeen….
Well, day 2 of NaBloPoMo and I’m still here! An achievement in itself!
Mondays don’t tend to be crafty days as a rule, unless I’ve got the day off having just worked a weekend. The reason for this is that Mondays are Brownie days! This often involves me running around in a complete tizz trying to pick up badges from the Guide shop, trying to remember what on earth it was I’d said we’d be doing that night and killing several rainforests as I photocopy forms galore at work (Ssshhh, don’t tell my boss about that one). There is the odd bit of crafting involved actually – this year we’ve made origami shamrocks for St Patrick’s day and toilet roll butterflies – but generally it’s all about crowd – and volume – control! Today I’m pretty tired, as I’m on early shift this week – 4.45am alarm calls all round – and it was a busy one at work, thanks to the deluge of rain over Aberdeen.
As a general rule, my home city gets a bit of a bad press. Jokes about sheep shagging, all the granite and the rather large crack cocaine problem it has all spring to mind. However, I actually really like it here! Admittedly I used to live in Dundee, so my standards dropped pretty low, but still. The recent weather aside, it doesn’t rain half so much as it does on the West Coast, I live right on the edge of the city, in a pretty little village coming down with tranquil views along the River Dee and there are few sites more beautiful than Balmedie Beach on a sharp, clear winter’s day. True, the seagulls are some of the freakiest things you will ever see, every second person does seem to work for the oil industry and when you’re downwind from the fish processing plants in Torry you WILL know all about it, but it’s not a bad old place. I’ve picked enough of the Doric (local dialect) to be able to follow most conversations and you are never, ever far from a bit of piece and quiet and some amazing views. Plus it’s the only place I’ve ever seen dolphins in real life, so that does it for me!
And so it begins….
I’ve signed up to NaBloPoMo and this is my first post. Hurrah and – if you will – bring on the trumpets! I can’t guarantee these will be exclusively crafty, or that I will stick with it, but nothing ventured and all that jazz. I hope everyone had a truly spiffing Hallowe’en – I spent it with 19 small children on a special Brownie pack holiday. It might not be everyone’s idea of a corking time, but I had a lot of fun – particularly since Hallowe’en isn’t really that big a thing for me. I’m a complete scaredy cat and I cannot cope with any kind of horror films – I struggled to sleep for about a week after seeing the Lost Boys. Believe me, I am aware how tragic that statement makes me, but I think it serves to illustrate my predicament!
Anyway, so there is at least something crafty included here, I present my latest obsessesion..
This was bought for me by a very kindly lady from an online community I am a member of. You pop up your Amazon wishlist, make an anonymous purchase from someone else’s list and hope the same happens for you! I bought some sock yarn and DPNs months ago but kept getting put off by the pattern. This book is full of patterns which work from the toe up (hence the name) which means no grafting! I haven’t actually started anything, but I hope my crafting guru and colleague Kath will be able to help me!
As a first post for NaBloPoMo this is hardly scintillating stuff, but hopefully things will improve!
