Your head is where the Hapiness is (or coping with Adulting)

I mentioned on wednesday that I was out of sorts and was going to enter 2 competions next year, to prove to myself that I can go out into the big wide world too.

For those of you that don't know me you are probably thinking, aah she's a stay-at-home mum. Well, NO, I've worked most of my adult life and only gave up a few years ago to improve my health and help my eldest daughter with my granddaughter.(Bundle of joy and mischeif, slightly old photo, she's nearly 3 now)

I just find more and more that I'm not me anymore, so this is now my new journey of discovery, and you are welcome to join me.

I have had real troubles with being creative recently and that is definitely NOT normal for me. And that is when I heard the alarm bell ring "NOT normal for me".

Most of us go about our lives with the odd alarm bell going off but we carry on and ignore it, and that is a thing I have done in the past to. When we're younger life is hectic and busy and full of all sorts of things that don't always allow us to stop and take note of ourselves. 

The big question is "Do you hear yourself sometimes?" 

Now I don't mean a comment you have made to someone that maybe you shouldn't, I mean YOU do you hear YOU?

 Because if we listen every now and then, we will hear ourselves say "this isn't normal for you". 

And it's not talking about you doing some extreme activity or streaking through the cricket match with your top off 

(no, sorry to disappoint but I've never done that, I'm affraid an over-the-shoulder-boulder-holder is required at all times 🙈),

 it's talking about all the little things you love but you're not doing. The things that normally bring you joy.

SO.....challenges were needed......hence

Quilt & Stitch Village contest

&

Foundations Revealed competion

 

I entered the Quilt & Stitch village last year ( this post ) but I don't think I put my whole heart into it, but this time it has to be. I would so love to win a ribbon (a third place would be fabulous, I'm not greedy).

The hardest part of any challenge is where to start, for those of you who follow my blog you'll know I  have a little design book where I make scratchy sketches of what I want to make. Show you those next friday.

OUT IN THE BIG WORLD part I - Then comes the "finding fabric" part of it, I was hoping to go to Abakhan in Stoke-on-Trent yesterday with my sister-in-law (she's nutty-as-a-fruitcake and I love her to bits), unfotunately she got all her times muddled and we couldn't go.  

If you've never been to an Abakhan and there is one nearish to you I highly recommend you go. They have bins of off-cuts that you purchase by weight and I can honestly say, I've found some fabulous bargains.

So I trotted along to The Sewing Barn, just off the A52 near Ashborne. It was a lovely little shop

Daughters room is Kiwi Crush and Javan Dawn 3 (blue and green for us lesser mortals). I had a colour swatch with me and the lovely lady helped me find these. 

So I'm going to work on my design sketch of how I hope this will look.

BUT REMEMBER - if you aren't doing the little thing that brings you joy then try getting back into it, the world won't stop because you decided to spend an hour doing something that bring calmness and joy into your day/week.

And if motivation to do that thing is the problem then enter a challenge/contest/competion. Maybe it's just the motivation you need. Plus doing something that scares you is highly liberating and deeply satisfying.

If you like the idea of making this a regular sharing post then leave a comment below. Together we can achieve anything.

Hugs & Happy thoughts

Buffy xx

Autumn is coming

I know I haven't blogged in a while but we have had a lot going on, more of that later.

We are fast aproaching cooler days and darker morning/evening which can only mean one thing

 Autumn

And this is our theme over at Fab'n'Fumky challenges

We want to see your lovely designs in  autumnal colours, all those lovely russets, golds/browns/oranges/yellows

I have gone mainly single layer, except the wee boat.

I started with the sun and slowly worked out from there, remebering to add the suns subdued reflection in the water. I blended the colours out to give a subtle autumnal evening feel.

 The hanging leaves were multi-stamped to give depth, I only used three inks as I didn't want to overpower the central theme.

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrrgh I forgot the boat's shadow. I don't believe it 🤦To late now, I posted it half an hour ago😭

I'm going to blame the fact that I have been out of sorts for weeks now. 

We put our youngest daughter on a plane to Japan the other week, she will be at university in Sapporo for the next year. I know she is perfectly capable of look after herself and that she is pretty fluent in Japanese, but it's a big change. Her Uni here is a 2.5 hr drive away, so if she desperately needed something or was really ill it was quite easy to get there.

Before anyone says it I know she'll be fine and I know I have to stop worrying. This is what being a mum is about, teaching your kids to go out into the big wide world. What's that quote...

 "No one said motherhood would be easy, just that it would be worth it"

And well that is true (ok it's not the actual quote but maybe my version is better) 

So I'm going to enter 2 competions next year to try to show myself that I can go out into the big wide world too. (More about those on friday)

Hugs & Happy thoughts

Buffy xx