American Stash

A quickie, to show I haven't forgotten my blog...

When we were away, I only managed to do a little bit of stash shopping, and this is, pretty much, what I got... Not much, really. But, I had limited luggage space, and lots of other exciting stuff to do!

I only saw one dedicated scrapbook store on our trip, and that was closed. When we drove by the next day, I did point it out again, but it fell on deaf ears... So, the things I did get, were from stores on the high street - they were pretty good, and covered lots of different crafts. One had fabulous fabrics in, more than we generally get in dedicated fabric stores here. Oh, if only I'd had more time, some more dollars and some more luggage space...

California - Part One

So, you worked it out, then? I spent the last two weeks of June in the good old U.S.of A. Specifically, driving Route 1 from San Francisco to Los Angeles.

And, to quote my Facebook staus - "It was AWESOME!"

We first had the idea for this trip of a lifetime last year, when we decided to sell our VW camper. We decided that, if Mark got a new job, and there was enough redundancy settlement left, and the van sold, then we would book a BIG TRIP... Well, the stars aligned for us, and just after Christmas, we booked our trip.

Now, this was a huge decision for us. We usually camp in Cornwall. We hadn't even been abroad for 5 years, and that was 5 days at Disneyland Paris. And here we were, spending a huge amount of money on a holiday!! But, do you know what? It was absolutely the right decision for us, as a family. Lou has now left school, and starts college in September. So probably won't want too many more holidays with us. And Phoebe is old enough to appreciate the trip. And we now have a catalogue of memories. On the way home, Phoebe told me that "It was the best holiday, ever!" And she was right.

So, how am I going to document this? Well, I did a bit of journalling pretty much every day, and I'm going to put together some sort of journal/scrapbook/mini-book of our trip - it's a bit of a loose idea at the moment. I'll let you know how it's coming along over the next, days, weeks or months...

But, for the blog - I think I'll jump right in with some photos from the first part of our trip.

Our plane...


Our local streetcar stop (we had the pretty streetcars)



Chinatown.



Golden Gate Bridge.



Golden Gate Bridge and San Francisco.



One of San Francisco's hills.



Leaving San Francisco.


Our first view of the Pacific.

Wondering where I've been?

I'll be back soon, with news from my road trip... promise.

A sunny summer saturday

Spent making rafts...


Sending Teeny Tiny Ted to sea...


Adding a sail, some fancy new decking and the obligatory shades...

And then setting sail a little flotilla of boats from around the house...

Before cooling oneself down...


While some sat and made daisy chains...


And me? I sat and supervised from under the shade of the umbrella...

I name this boat...

Want to see one of the things I've been up to during my blogging absence?

I've been making boats. Well, I've completed one, helped the girls with theirs, and started a new one. So, yes, I think that counts as making boats.

I found the instructions for the boat here, and lots of inspiration for future boats. Some of them have the sweetest little birds sailing them. So, of course, my boat needed a bird as well.

I searched for a suitable pattern, but ended up using a pattern I already had, found here, and previously used to make badges. I made it up in felt, with the stitching on show, and think they look pretty good. But I'm still on the search for a "plumper" bird, so if you see one on your travels, please let me know.

And what's this boat called? Miss Belle - one of the characters in the Enid Blyton book I rescued from re-cycling and used for the papier-mache.

bread pudding and bunnies

Oops, where does the time go?

I promise to be back soon. But, in the meantime, feast your eyes on these photos I uploaded on the 30th March(!!!) But never got around to adding any words... I made bread pudding and chocolate bunnies - both for the first time. And very yummy they all were...

stash shopping

Last Friday, I went with my Mom and my sister the the hobbycrafts show at the NEC. It's a show we've been going to for years - but this one was just not as good as it used to be.

Want to see what I bought? From what is perceived to be one of the biggest craft shows this country has to offer?


Impressed? Hmmn, thought so.

But, really, perhaps it wasn't so bad? But, there's a story - isn't there always?

As I was about to make my first purchase of the afternoon - I realised I had left my purse at home.... Thank goodness I was with Mom and Helen. Mom promptly leant me £20.00, and Helen said she'd pay for anything I wanted. Phew! Mom then said, as it's my birthday next month - I could use the £20 towards my birthday present, and Helen said to look for pressies, as well. So, the goodies in the bag above were bought with the cash - and I still have more than £12 left! Yes, the show was that good...

To be fair, I did find some other bits that Helen was going to give me for my birthday - but when I saw how little I had bought, I bought them off her. Want to see???


There were definitely sellers that have been there before, that weren't there this time. I wonder what it is? The internet? Or the economic situation? I don't know, but people certainly seemed to be spending, judging by the bulging shopping bags and trolleys.

I'm sure I'll be going to the next one, as it's not too far from where I live, and it's always better to see things for real, and to be enticed by things that might not be noticed whilst internet browsing. But I do hope that more sellers go back to it...