Using My Sewing Machine

One of my February challenge was to learn to use my sewing machine and this is what i knocked up, a felt bag. I made this for my friend's daughter, it's her bithday soon.

                                                     I stiched her initials KH free hand.

I decided to put a flower to make it more pretty. The camera didn't capture the red and black very well, the colours look much better in real life. I enjoyed this little project as it was not so time consuming and i sort of got the hang of using a sewing machine.

I had never used a sewing machine before and was quite interesting, the only problem i found was that when sewing i couldn't maintain a straight line. Any hints and tips will be greatly appreciated.

Hope everyone had a lovely day, i am enjoying the long days and can't wait for the summer. xx

This Weeks Meal Plan

Sunday- Salmon with potatoes
Monday- Rice cooked with kidney beans and beef stew
Tuesday- Sausage and mash with vegetables
Wednesday- Cous cous with smoked mackerel
Thursday- Steak and ale pie with potatoes
Friday- Vegetable pizza with salad
Saturday- Burger with homemade wedges and salad

My Treasures...

This is the first item of clothing i have bought for myself so far this year...

Bought this dress from the YMCA charity shop on Thursday. It's from All Saints and it cost me 4 pounds and 99 pence. I wore it on Saturday to my friends birthday dinner. There was an all white dress code and i wasn't going to follow it because i couldn't justify spending a small fortune on one night then i saw this dress. It would have been rude not to buy it. I actually love it and will wear it other wise my previous post would have been a waste. Please ignore the headless/ faceless model


  
I love books and at the moment i am reading self help books. I am on a small mission to improve my life and everything around it. They now know me at my local library. The first 3 books were from ageUK a pound for the three and the last one was 99 pence from YMCA. It's entitled Naughty But Nice The No Excuse Guide To Getting What You Want, it's a self help book. I love the Chicken Soup books and even though i am far from being a grandmother i know there are some useful things in there. Linking up with missielizzie @ me and my shadow

Enjoy your day.xx

Decluttering...

Since the New Year started and like everyone else i have had to cut my spending and that has meant not spending money unnecessarily. I used to buy things simply because they were on sale and hope that one day i would use them and most of the time i never. With my spending habits in mind i also started to think of the many items of clothing in my bedroom that i never wear, i realised that some things hadn't been worn for years because they had been replaced by something new.

This past week i had a few days free so i decided to declutter my wardrobe, i discovered that i own 7 coats, 6 winter scarves, 4 pairs of gloves, i couldn't count how many pairs of socks many of them new, 3 morning gowns, countless handbags and belts and many items of clothes that hadn't seen the light of day in years. I felt so bad because, one i had wasted money and two it shows that i am a greedy person, wanting more than i need. I have bagged the items that i do not need and am sending them to the charity shop. I am going to go through my wardrobe one more time because i know i will find other things that i have missed.

After i had finished my bedroom i decided to tackle my kitchen, i have a lot of gadgets and gizmos and general kitchen equipment that i bought in two's just incase. Just incase what i wonder. While i was working in the kitchen i decided to clear my food cupboard, i discovered foods that date as far back as 2009 i cringe just writing about it, spices that had been bought to try a new recipe, half used packets of stuff and the like. I still have the baking cupboard to sort out and i think it's worse than the food one.

I am glad i sorted this stuff during lent, it has given me time to reflect on how easily i get consumed with earthly possessions, how i buy without thinking whether i need it when i could be putting my money to good use helping the poor and needy or even saving for my own and Master T's future. As a christian and as a mother i am embarrased and ashamed to have discovered the extent of my greed. Gluttony is one of the 7 deadly sins.

Don't get me wrong i am not saying i will never spend a penny again because i bought myself a dress on Thursday, but i am going to think about whether i really need an item before i buy it.

I hope you all had a good weekend.xx

Meal Plan 12-02-12 to 18-02-12

Sunday- Fish and Chips
Monday- Pasta bolognaise
Tuesday- Going to a friends for tea
Wednesday- Eating out
Thursday- Turkey curry with rice
Friday- Salmon and steamed vegetables
Saturday- Burger and Wedges

Just a quick update on my February challenges. Most of them are going very well except the photo a day challenge, it's proving to be more challenging than i thought. When i first decided to take up the challenge, i hadn't put into consideration that i leave home @ 7am most mornings and don't get back until after 6pm and somedays as late as after 9pm so i do not have time to take photographs. I am not known to give up so easily so i will try my very best to keep at it. One good thing has come out of this photo a day challenge, i have discovered that my camera takes better photos outdoors probably has something to do with the lighting. Anyway onwards and upwards with my other challenges.

Meal Plan

This weeks meal plan is as follows

Sunday- Burger, roast potatoes and salad.
Monday- Cous cous and Mackerel.
Tuesday- Beans on toast or something.
Wednesday- Egg fried rice.
Thursday- Roast chicken pieces, salad and garlic bread.
Friday- Homemade Tuna and red onion pizza for me and cheese and tomato pizza for Master T.
Saturday- Pork belly with something.

I am finishing late on Tuesday so i will be too tired to cook and Master T will have been fed so beans on toast will do me just fine. Friday's meal is an idea i pinched off Scarlet.

Feb Photo A Day Challenge. 1st-5th Feb

 Your view today

This is my everyday view when i am walking Master T to school. As you can see it's dark, it shows how early we have to leave for me to get to my placement on time

Words

 I am sure you can guess who wrote this one. Master T of course. It's probably about two years old and i keep it on the fridge.

Hands

 Master T's cute little hands.

A stranger

 Stranger's more like, took this at the park.

10am

 Not the best photo

Hope you have all had a good weekend.xx

February Photo A Day Challenge

The reason i chose this challenge is because i need to learn to use my camera. Said camera was a gift from a wonderful friend. It was given to me as a Christmas gift in 2010 because my previous camera which i loved so much and used to take great picture without much effort from me had given up on me. The previous camera was also a gift from my sister and was the first digital camera i ever owned.

My present camera is a small casio and if you have had a look at the photos on my blog you will see that i take terrible photos and this challenge will hopefully help me do a much better job. It would greatly help i am sure if i could take the time to read the manual and learn all the tricks. Unfortunately i am one of those people who buy flat pack furniture and try to assemble it without reading the instruction. Anyway on with the challenge.xx