Have done some baking though.
Anyway, June... what happened? Pies were made and consumed - excuse the phone photo but that's all I took. It's a Squab and Apple pie but instead of the alleged squab you use lamb instead. This one was particularly good.
I went to the Love Vintage and Retro market and scored 2 metal pie tins (one seen above), a dress pattern and a orange Tupperware jug with the top that seals on - the one with a star burst pattern underneath on the top. I'm using it for felting because the start burst pattern is an excellent tool for rubbing the wool!
The children are doing fine at school. Mr8 has started piano lessons which he seems to enjoy. Miss5 got graded for her yellow belt in karate and passed. She isn't wearing it in the photo because they ran out of belts in her size and she had to wait until they sent hers to the dojo.
I read some books. These are the ones that are recorded on my reading history but I've read more via the Overdrive ebook provider through Auckland Libraries and some from work.
The painted lady / Maeve Haran.
Sixteen-year-old Frances Stuart arrives at the Restoration court to find her innocence and beauty are highly-prized commodities, envied by the women and desired by the men. Before long, King Charles II falls passionately in love with her and will stop at nothing to make her his mistress. But Frances is no conventional court beauty.~ from the blurb. Lovely writing, interesting story.
The man who broke into Auschwitz / Denis Avey with Rob Broomby.
The extraordinary true story of a British soldier who marched willingly into the notorious concentration camp, Buna-Monowitz, known as Auschwitz III.~ from the blurb. Worth reading to get a perspective not often written about.
The skin map / Stephen R. Lawhead.
When Kit Livingstone learns that Britain's "ley lines" are not legends but pathways to other worlds, he's determined to find a map tattooed on a piece of skin in order to travel to the dangerous realms. But are the intricate codes more than they seem--can they really begin a quest to regain paradise? ~from the blurb. Am enjoying getting into sci-fi again after a long break. This one is a nice mixture of alternative history, sci-fi and adventure/quest.
The cat's table / Michael Ondaatje.
"In the early 1950s, an eleven-year-old boy boards a huge liner bound for England - a 'castle that was to cross the sea'. At mealtimes, he is placed at the lowly 'Cat's Table' with an eccentric group of grown-ups and two other boys, Cassius and Ramadhin. As the ship makes its way across the Indian Ocean, through the Suez Canal, into the Mediterranean, the boys become involved in the worlds and stories of the adults around them, tumbling from one adventure and delicious discovery to another, 'bursting all over the place like freed mercury'. And at night, the boys spy on a shackled prisoner - his crime and fate a galvanizing mystery that will haunt them forever. As the narrative moves from the decks and holds of the ship and the boy's adult years, it tells a spellbinding story about the difference between the magical openness of childhood and the burdens of earned understanding - about a life-long journey that began unexpectedly with a spectacular sea voyage, when all on board were 'free of the realities of the earth'."-- Publisher description. Recommended by the uber-boss of our unit at work. Can't say I really "got" it. It was interesting writing and a great vingnette of ship life and the characters involved.
The moon maze game / Larry Niven and Steven Barnes.
Offered a dream job escorting a teenage heir on a fabulous moon role-playing vacation, Scotty Griffin, a personal security specialist, becomes embroiled in a violent reality game involving armed terrorists, psychological tests, and a large audience.~ from the blurb. Good old sci-fi yarn set on the moon.
In love and war : Kiwi soldiers' romantic encounters in wartime Italy / Susan Jacobs.
Non-fiction. It was interesting to read about the experience of the NZ soldiers and their romances in Italy and those who brought their girls back to NZ.
Here's a skirt I sewed (Symplicity 2411). I really like this pattern but I think I should have used the view without the pleat in the front for this particular fabric (brown denim).
Yesterday I made some hand warmers. My felting teacher had given me the instructions ages ago but I hadn't yet made some. It was a bit of an experiment since I had to remember what she had said based on the diagram she'd drawn for me. The purple ones I made via her instructions. I ended up having to sew in a gusset for them to fit over my arms since they turned out so long.The sewn seams add a nice feature to them though.
The teal ones I made using a resist and in some ways I prefer that method for the simple reason I don't have to sew anything but it does mean more work to shape them and there is less room for mistakes in the fitting. They are a bit thicker though - I must have laid out the wool a bit more generously and this means they are a bit less flexible. Will need to watch that. Still, they are going to my sister and she will appreciate their warmth.
Hoping to get some more felting done before I go back to work next week! But now, the fire needs to be lit... it's a foggy, grey day and I'm cold.
