Return to Blogland, Blog Redesign and Crafting for 'Baby'

Hello friends!

I've had a little break from the blog as I've been busy studying for exams in my masters degree. I've finally finished my last exam for a while and have a little bit of breathing space for the minute. If all goes according to Hoyle, in that I pass all subjects for which I have recently been assessed, then I will have only one subject left in the degree before I am a Master of Laws. Keep your collective fingers crossed for me, I'm well and truly sick of the student life. My husband and I worked out only the other day that I have horrifyingly spent the last ten - yes, 10! - years, without a pause, studying at university in one form or another. As you can imagine, I'll be glad to finish up by the end of the year!

I've also returned to discover I have a fabulous 10 followers, which is quite an achievement for my quiet little blog! Welcome, new friends!

Anyway, since my last post I have done a lot of cooking, about which I plan to blog over the coming weeks. I've also slowly gotten back into the world of craft - taking baby steps. I have big plans but am easing my way into it with a few crocheted granny squares and the rediscovery of my sewing machine.

This last weekend, for example, I wiped the dust off my machine and set about making a blanket for Camilla the Cat. Before you all laugh at me, let me just say that my little cat has been with us for almost 7 months now, and, for 6 1/2 of those months, has refused to sleep on anything resembling a designated pet bed, instead sprawling on the sofa, the kitchen table or - shock! - our bed. Otherwise, if locked out, she will sprawl on the cold tiles outside our bedroom door and howl for hours. When we first talked about getting a cat, the one thing I said at the time in a vehement voice was that I Will Not Have a Cat Sleeping On My Bed. Unfortunately the little grey minx had different ideas, and I am of a weak character. We bought her the super-dooper Cat Igloo, which she hates. We tried to make it more appealing with the addition of a hot water bottle and a blankie - she continues to hate. It is now gathering dust. The other week, after saying that she would have to learn to love the Igloo, I caved, and bought her a $12 leopard print bed from Lincraft. I really thought this might be it, but the effect was amazing. It was as if the new Lincraft bed was comprised of hot coals, such was the reaction she had any time I sought to plonk her on it. Her paws had no sooner made impact before she was leaping away in horror and disgust. Finally, in my last, half-hearted attempt, I flung a scungy old bath towel over the cheap bed, a towel we've had since moving in together, faded and complete with bleach spots as a lasting reminder of my husband's overzealous bathroom cleaning attempts. And, amazingly and miraculously, the obnoxious spoilt grey cat finally slept in her cheap Lincraft bed! On top of the towel. Alas, I apparently have a snobbish cat, afraid of synthetic materials.

In an attempt to make the whole arrangement slightly more aesthetically appealing, I sought to make her a cosy little blankie (which would look a lot nicer than her oversized, multicoloured towel). Also at Lincraft, I recently picked up a couple of metres of snuggly soft 'minky fleece' in a light beigey-coffee colour, and some rich brown blanket binding. I simply sewed a couple of squares of the fleece wrong sides together, before enclosing the edge seams in the satin blanket binding and finishing the edges wtih my machine's blanket stitch (but a zig-zag would be fine). Easy to do, for cat or for baby!

I had spoken to my mother on this project prior to starting it and I could hardly talk to her, such were her hysterics at my 'sewing for baby'. She was, in between guffaws, curious if I had bought fleece complete with nursery prints, before suggesting I should source some blanket fleece decoratedwith little fish images. Oh, har har, have your fun. (I did remind her only half in jest that as yet I haven't any children to sew for, so I have to make do!) Anyway, whatever the case, I think Camilla likes her little snuggly 'baby' blanket:

It's lovely and soft - I'd rather like one in human-size, to curl up with on the sofa whilst watching the telly!

Otherwise, I spent some of the weekend just gone playing around with the new 'Template Designer' in Blogger, before cursing myself for changing something with which I was already happy! After spending hours trying to fix my changes and then redevelop design into something resembling the picture in my mind, I think I'm finally satisfied with the end result. There are still a few things to tweak and a few static pages under construction, but you get the gist of it. What do you think? For those of you who look at this blog in Reader or similar, click here and have a look. Tell me what you think :)

Meanwhile, back to the recipes tomorrow - with luck!