I've been working on Ruby's quilt this weekend and would have finished it if the sun hadn't been shining quite so much (I know, such an inconvenience).

We had one of those weekends where everyone was just chilling and doing what they wanted. Our kids and the kids next door spent the weekend hopping from our garden to theirs and back again. We were never quite sure whether we had 6 kids about or none!

Because everyone was happily doing their own thing, I snuck some guiltless time in the attic and pieced together the quilt. I actually thought Ruby would be able to take it to bed last night but that didn't quite happen. It was one of those gorgeous evenings so all activities were temporarily halted when we decided to stroll up the road to our local Pizza Express.

A shared bottle of wine later and children not in bed at a decent hour stopped any further progress being made last night. Since I had nothing pressing to be done this morning I decided to finish what was almost completed so at least tonight Ruby would have it.

Translate that to mean a bribery to get one overtired little girl into bed at a reasonable hour, after her galavanting about far too late the night before.

We are almost coming to the end of the Hoop Up Swap on Flickr and it is amazing to see how diverse the pieces that everyone has made are. Each group had about 6 people who all decided on their own theme that they wanted the group to work to.

It's been fantastic to see everyone's interpretations and final Hoops. Go take a look at all of them here to see what I mean. There are some really stunning pieces and I have picked just a few of my faves here to show you. Check out whose is whose here.

I have a busy month coming up with countdown to Samuel's Bar Mitzvah, so I don't think I'll be doing another Flickr swap for a while. But it's been wonderful to be part of this one...meet some fab talented people...and I'll certainly be following the progress of the next swap even if I abstain from taking part.

I seem to have kick started myself back into action. First the blog post, next doing something with the cut out squares for Ruby's quilt that have been lying on the studio floor for several weeks.

Maybe it's the weather. Maybe it's waking up from my little hibernation.

Maybe it's not having to make any more paint/wallpaper choices (don't mention the carpet/curtains/rugs/wardrobes...)

Whatever it is, hopefully it will hang around a while as this quilt still has a long way to go.

With everything that is going on around here at the moment, I feel like I'm neglecting my blog somewhat. It's very easy to quickly get out of the rhythm of blogging.

But I miss it. I miss posting. I miss the contact with you out there. I miss your feedback, opinions, news.

I am determined to get back to more than a once a week pop-in to say hi. And as beautiful as my latest fabric purchases from Saints and Pinner are, I promise to give you more reasons to stop by very shortly...

...including a fab giveaway for my 2 year Blogiversary...

Watch this space ;-)

The Hoop Up Swap on Flickr that I've been involved with for a while now is finally coming to completion.

I have to admit that it has been quite a challenge to fulfil. I go through phases when I am able to sit and embroider and also when I am in the mood to do so. I don't think everyone has received my best, as some of the pieces I've felt under pressure to complete when I haven't been wholly in the mood.

It has however been good to be taken out of my comfort zone working to someone else's brief and do some pieces that I may not have thought about doing. I have also met some great people along the way whose paths I may not have crossed.

(stitchery adapted from www.incywincytogs.blogspot.com)

So I shall take the positives from the experience and look forward to receiving and sharing with you, the pieces that others have kindly and thoughtfully embroidered for me.

As always happens when the weather changes and we spend more time outside, I realise how our outside space needs some tender loving care...a bit of prettying up. I find it all too easy to neglect the outside, especially in the cold dark winter when we rush inside and hardly glance at what we have.

I dragged Matthew to the garden centre yesterday and we picked up a few bits. I bought a fabulous Allium plant that I just can't wait to see bloom. In the meantime, I'm really pleased with the pot that we bought to plant it in.

Next on the row is some sweet peas that I have planted in some rustic pots by the front door. I meant to do it last year, but it didn't quite happen. I'm hoping we'll have a continuous supply of beautifully scented pretty flowers to greet us as we go in and out.

I spotted these Black Eyed Susan's and thought they also would add a bit of sunshine to the deck. I have never bought them before and have no idea how long they stay flowering for, but they look very pretty at the moment.

The last in the row here is my pride and joy peony plant. This is right next to the front steps and gives me insurmountable pleasure when it is bloom. It is the most stunning dark pink-red. It pops its head up from nowhere after sleeping underground all winter and fill me with ridiculous anticipation until it is in the bloom. The downside is it doesn't stay in bloom for long. You have to catch it while you can.

I had to get these lavender plants - one in the front and one in the back. I love the shape of them and again think they will provide lots of scent and calm tranquillity.

It's amazing how the sunshine and a few plants can perk your mood right up. Simple pleasures.

Ode to Orla

As you well know we have finally been getting on with the pretty stuff after the mayhem of putting the subsidence back together. And as you well know Orla has been featuring rather heavily in the whole process.

I didn't really mean for the house to turn into quite such a homage to Orla. But in many ways it does mean there is some unity to the house. It feels cohesive.

I'm not even sure which is my favourite Orla room. I absolutely love our bedroom. When we decided to use the wallpaper there, I was slightly hesitant, but it seemed like a good idea to save the compromise on style we would have had if we had gone with any of the others. And it's actually alot more restful than you would think.

I am totally in love with the living room. Again, it works. The grey pulls the room and the house together and the wallpaper with the fireplace is just a dream. I am convinced I am in someone else's house when I look at it.

The final Orla touch is the towels in the bathroom. This wasn't exactly planned. I was buying this phone for Matthew's birthday, when I happened upon...as you do...the towels. As you can see they fit in perfectly and to be quite honest, we had been wanting new towels for ages, so it wasn't quite as impulsive as it looks.

The house is just about done. The hallway is to be completed (no Orla there) and quite a few finishing touches are needed, but I promise, for those of you who don't quite share my love of all things Orla, this will be the last posting on the subject.