tiny happy

may days

Some May projects and places!

Autumn is fading into winter now, but we are still having some beautiful crisp and bright mornings. I was at an early-morning meeting by the water last week and the world was so bright and true! I had to take these pictures from my walk there. The quote is from a poem by Lauris Edmond, who died in the year 2000. She lived on a Wellington hillside, and lots of her writing was firmly placed in this city. 

Despite setting up a little designated space at home (complete with some of my favourite pictures on wall) I haven't done much sewing lately, but I did manage to make a new top to wear to work (shown in the top photo above). For this, I used a piece of grey silk crepe fabric found at Fabricabrac the day before, and the Papercut Patterns 'Pinnacle Top' design. It's sheer and loose and a nice thing to layer over a camisole or dress.

I've also included photos from my current knitting project, in two stages. The first was after a week of evenings' work (!) and comprises just the back yoke of Tom's new jumper. I kept making mistakes and having to start again. I have the hang of it now (I hope!) so in the second photo you can see I'm getting there. Because I only have a bit of knitting time in the evenings after work, my progress is slow. I really hope to finish the body this week though and will report back soon!

The Moby Sweater is a pattern by Petite Knit and I'm making this for Tom from a cone of possum/merino sport-weight yarn from Woolyarns. My Ravelry project page is here.

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Other lovely things from this past month include:

Heading to Featherston Booktown with my friend Juliet. We listened to artist Robin White speak with curator Courtney Johnston and a group of historians and writers remembering the injustice of Parihaka.

Reading The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O'Farrell - what an intricate world it describes.

Listening to Tiny Ruin's gorgeous voice and sweet songs in a little country hall. I recommend this album wholeheartedly...

Wishing you all the May happiness,

X X X X X X 

 

plant-inspired reading, tables and tattoos

Kia ora dear reader.

This blog post is brought to you by plants! Autumn is my favourite season, and around here it's marked by walnuts and feijoas from our family orchard, marigolds in the garden and neighbourhood walks to forage blackberries and bits and pieces for the table. Last weekend was Easter, and we had three little nieces staying for the short holiday. They helped me collect various cuttings from the garden for our Easter lunch table, including dried toitoi, kawakawa leaves, ferns, tiny daisies and bits of tansy and rosemary. I had to take a photo for the blog!

It was the perfect time of year to read Helen Lehndorf's new memoir, A Forager's Life. I adored it and found myself rationing pages to make it last longer! If you're interested in medicinal plants, gardening and gathering, I think you will enjoy it. As well as being a personal story about Helen's life as a daughter and mother, there are recipes and activities to expand your plant knowledge and experience. I found it was like reading a letter from a friend and I suppose it was! Helen and I were pen-friends for years while our kids were small. Helen also mentions a book called Street Flowers by Richard Mabey which I realised I already owned. When I opened up my copy, I found a five-year-old letter from Helen, explaining that she'd found it in a book sale but already had a copy, but thought I'd like it. I do - it's beautiful!

I wanted to mark my 40th birthday literally with a tattoo and it took me a couple of years to actually do it (due to Covid lockdowns and various other things) - I"m now 42! I settled on a marigold design because they've always been one of my favourite flowers - as a kid I had a little book of birthstones and flowers and marigolds were October's. These flowers have become a kind of symbol of my childhood in my mind, representing long afternoons spent outside playing and collecting seeds. The smell of the seeds and flowers instantly transports me to early childhood.

I was scrolling on Instagram one afternoon when I saw that Caera of Perpetua Studio was starting out with marigold tattoos and the next day, a friend visited and brought with him the huge bunch of orange marigolds you see above. So I felt that it was my time to book in and get my permanent marigold. Caera did an excellent job (the photo above is also by her) - I highly recommend her work and she also specialises in botanical silk printing which is very beautiful. Look at these pillowcases, for example!

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I've not made tons of time for sewing and knitting lately. I have lots of plans though, so watch this space! I have included at the top of this post some pictures of a dress I sewed up a few weeks ago. I made this to wear to work and based it entirely on a dress I saw someone wearing on the bus. I had 2 metres of a beautiful soft green linen-hemp from The Fabric Store and had to play around with the bodice shape a bit before I was happy with it. I must admit, it did remind me that I prefer the ease of sewing with a pattern. But the finished dress fits me well and I've already had a lot of wear from it - I like it with a plain black top underneath, pinafore-style.

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Other very good things from this past month have been:

Making this super simple, lemony loaf for friends and family. I reduce the sugar a bit but make extra hot lemon syrup to pour over the top as soon as it comes out of the oven. So good with a cup of tea!

This beautiful Laura Marling album. I love this song the best.

This entire collection of Nancybird clothes, using artwork by my friend Lizzie. I'm still deciding which piece I'll buy!

Seeing Kurt Vile live here in Wellington with Tom! I love Kurt Vile. That is all.

Eating fresh feijoas every day and dreaming of winter knitting projects.

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I hope you are finding time for the projects you have in mind. I wish you a very happy April and will see you again here soon.

Love,

Melissa

faded petals + watercolours

Hello! This Saturday morning post is brought to you by strong coffee, autumnal morning light streaming in the window and a vague sense of guilt that it's been ages since I last wrote here. I hope you are very well and have found time for the things you love lately.

Here are a few snaps from my February and March life, the season of dried hydrangea petals - aren't they beautiful? I started a new job at the end of January, and it's been taking up nearly all my energy and thoughts - even dreams! But it's wonderful to have a new challenge and I'm getting to know some excellent and interesting new people and ideas.

Sock knitting has been my crafty companion over this time - I made a pair for my father-in-law's birthday. For these, I used my usual favourite 'sock recipe' - a 3 x 3 rib, Kitchener toe and heel flap and gusset. I almost always follow the largest size in this free pattern (Ravelry link) - it's a classic and hard to look past, in my opinion! Here's my Ravelry page for this project. I used good old Regia sock yarn and some leftovers in different colours for a colour block effect.

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It's been a year since I started watercolour painting classes and I'm trying to keep up my practising when I can. I find it so relaxing to do in the evenings. I've included photos of a few of my paintings from this month above - I'm still trying to capture the sky outside my bedroom window, and documenting places and plants in my watercolour journal. 

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A new job means a few new office clothes, too - I recently made a Hope Woven Dress, which is a pattern from Style Arc. I used a black silk-cotton blend from The Fabric Store and made a few changes, including a longer skirt and a tie at the back neck (rather than zips or any other fastenings). The dress is slightly sheer, so I wear a black slip underneath (made using this pattern from Papercut). I have plans for a few more handmade work clothes this winter - watch this space!

Another thing I've been loving lately is listening to records (the picture above shows my Kate Bush collection - how lucky am I?) We recently got our turntable repaired after a few years of it being out of action. There's something so luxurious about putting a record on and sitting down and listening properly all the way through, in a way that Spotify playlists can't really match. I went to see Kae Tempest when they were in Wellington a couple of weekends ago. It was an amazing concert - completely absorbing. I had to buy a copy of On Connection the next day - it's a longish essay about how creativity helps us be less alone. I recommend it!

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Wishing you a very happy weekend, and thank you for visiting me here. 

XX M

 

tegna, sun prints and crackers

Kia ora friends, I hope you're keeping well! And if you live on Te Ika-a-Maui (our North Island) you're staying warm and dry in this cyclone.

Here are a few of the things I've been making and doing lately. First up: my finished Tegna top knitted over the course of the summer. I'm so glad to be finished with it and I love the end result - it's a nice and comfortable piece to wear! I used the Tegna pattern by Caitlin Hunter and some DMC 'Natura Linen' yarn in a muted green shade.

I made a few adjustments to this pattern, including picking up extra stitches around the armholes (I hate tight sleeves!) and blocking it very vigorously to get the fit I was after (loose and drapey). The finished garment has already been useful in my work wardrobe - I've worn it with a high-waisted bias-cut skirt and over a sleeve summer dress a few times. It's so nice to wear that I'm now thinking about a winter version (perhaps from mohair-silk and with longer sleeves and an even looser fit?) More details on this one over on my Ravelry page here.

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You'll also see above some more cyanotype printing I've been doing. This is always a good time - I never seem to get bored of planning and laying out my prints, and experimenting with different techniques. This time I used soap bubbles to create an interesting, ethereal texture to my botanical prints before I exposed them to the sun. I wrote a few notes about cyanotype in general in this post, in case you're new to it, but there are also lots of resources online.

Another project that's been completed around here is the painting of our hallway. I must give most of the credit for this to Tom, as it was 'my idea' but his hard work that made it happen. We chose a light calming green shade (actual Dulux paint name: 'Calm Green'.) Our hallway had beautiful Laura Ashley wallpaper with a frieze along the top and I loved it, but it was quite marked up and discoloured. The new look lifts it and I was so pleased with it I ordered two giant paper globe light shades (from this amazing Auckland store). 

Keira is off to university soon and so we are 'looking after' her beautiful little shelf and heart-shaped mirror, both handmade by her grandad Dave over the years. They look quite lovely in the hallway - thank you Dave and Keira! 

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Lastly, I just had to share my latest baking discovery (shown in the last photo above, before breaking up and pairing with cheese! I finished reading local food writer Annabel Langbein's memoir Bella last week. It was such a good read - I loved her stories and all the recipes scattered throughout! She's had a really interesting life. Upon seeing the recipe for 'sesame lavosh', I knew I had to make some. We're quite into crackers and cheese around here - sometimes for dinner, even.

I made a batch of Annabel's crackers and knew they were going to be a staple in our pantry. If you're also a cracker fan, you can find her recipe here on her website. In the book version, she has an excellent tip that isn't mentioned on the website, but I think makes a huge difference to the process. It is this:

After mixing up the sesame dough, divide it into four portions. Take a sheet of (good-quality) baking paper that fits your tray, and spoon one portion of the dough in the middle. Cut another piece of baking paper the same size, and place on top. Use a rolling pin to smooth out the mixture so it is evenly spread between the two layers. Annabel says to spread it very thinly, but I preferred it to be a bit thicker, so the resulting cracker is a bit more substantial. Slowly peel the top piece of paper off, and slide the dough, already on its paper, onto the tray for baking. Voila!

See you again soon, take care,

M

january dreaming

So many pictures of flowers in the sun! But when I got home from my summer holiday, that was pretty much all I had on my phone, because I had tried to capture ALL the flowers. The first photo is to show you a small midsummer display I collected on the solstice. Little shells (we used to call these witches' hats when I was a kid), pebbles from the beach, honeysuckle, alstroemeria and hydrangea petals. There's something so lush and bright about the top of the South Island in January. Everything was blooming and buzzing and beautiful.

I hope you have had a happy summer (or wintry) Christmas or New Year break if you were celebrating. I loved spending lots of time with family and friends. It was a treat and one that will keep me going now we're back at work in the city.

I was lucky enough to fit in some good reading time over the summer. Tom and I found ourselves housesitting for some friends in a beautiful wee spot in the country. Our only tasks were watering a garden and feeding an (admittedly big) flock of chickens. I finished a couple of books while there, including The Dutch House by Ann Patchett and Exit West by Mohsin Hamid - both were excellent reads.

Around Christmas, I read Claire Keegan's Small Things Like These, a small but perfectly formed novella about one of Ireland's Magdalene Laundries. I highly recommend all these books, and more - and feel so happy that my reading 'bug' has returned (it lay dormant for quite a long time in my adult life). In the spirit of spreading that enthusiasm, and because I always enjoy other people's recommendations, I've started sharing the books I've finished this year over in my Instagram stories (I did the same in 2021 and 22). Fingers crossed I will keep it up as the year gets busier!

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A small amount of making took place over the summer break. I was working on a Tegna top (a knitting pattern by Caitlin Hunter) and knitted most of it in the midsummer sunshine but have been finishing it here at home. Hopefully, I will show you the finished piece in my next post.

I also knitted a few more mushroom ornaments to give as gifts over the holiday, sewed up a dress and cooked some new recipes too, including this Vegan Wellington for Christmas day that I was so pleased with! Very simple to make (I used pre-made flaky pastry) and delicious too.

I have lots of projects planned for this year (beginning with a bit of a daunting one: a cabled sweater for Tom - if I start now it might be done in time for winter?) and a few clothes to wear to the office. I'd also love to sew my way through my current fabric scrap stash. I have two big storage boxes filled with small pieces of fabric and I am going to try and think of fun projects to make from them. Will document my progress here, of course.

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2 albums I've loved listening to lately: Troy Kingi's Ghost of Freddie Cesar (especially this song - my favourite!!) and Big Red Machine: How Long Do You Think it's Gonna Last?, especially this track. What have you been listening to, making and cooking? I'd love to hear from you in the comments if you have time to leave a message.

Sending you lots of love and see you again soon,

Melissa

wrapping things up

Kia ora, hello! How are you doing through these busy December days? I've been trying to wrap things up - finishing up various bits of work and other tasks, packing to visit family over the summer break, and literally wrapping things too, of course, in the form of Christmas gifts.

I thought I'd share a few things I've been making along the way. I had grand plans (like I do every year) but only made a few things in the end. 

A fun project was knitting up some mushroom ornaments, inspired by my friend Lizzie who sent me the link to the pattern for the wee 'charming mushroom ornament (the one with the hanging loop, pictured above). You can find it here. The other two mushrooms are little soft sculptures really, but I might add a hanging loop to those, too. The pattern is by Claire Garland and can be found here.

I made a big batch of fruit mince (using a Nigella Lawson recipe similar to this, but with cider and brandy added) and then baked a batch of fruit mince pies every few days for visitors, guests and to have with our afternoon coffee! I think I will give mince pies a rest until next year now. But I do love them!

Other little gifts made this season include:

• fabric pouches sewn from favourite leftover cottons and linens (I also used leather scraps to make zipper-pulls for each)
• little drawstring bags, personalised with children's initials (find my tutorial for those here)
• a set of pillowcases (but I forgot to take a photo before wrapping them up - oops!) made from my own tutorial found here
• tote bags

I haven't made these, but you might like the following projects if you're gift making:

• natural perfume, two ways
• jars of fresh lemon curd
• peace dove ornaments
• Jenny's fruit cake (this would make a lovely holiday gift if you pressed almonds into the top and wrapped the finished cake in brown paper)
• calming eye pillows
• lemon + honey or rose lip balm
• seashell mitts (if you're in the Northern Hemisphere!) or the super-simple Keira's fingerless mitts

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Whether you're in a making mood or not, I wish you a very happy festive season if you're celebrating it! I'm heading to the South Island for a short while to catch up with family and friends. Thank you so much for reading my blog this year - it's lovely to have your company in this space!

Lots of love, and see you in the new year,

Melissa

about two different dresses

Here we are in mid-December! I had good intentions to write more blog posts this year, but the months have really whizzed by this year. Something to aim for in 2023, perhaps? 

I hope this finds you well and enjoying the end of the calendar year, however you celebrate it where you are. As always, our December has been filled up with end-of-year concerts and gatherings, as well as much work to be finished up before the summer break. It's been a happy time though, with Keira finishing her high school exams, and Arlo coming home for the university break. Both will spend time washing dishes this summer and saving their pennies for next year's study. 

In this post, I was tempted to write about gift making but I think I'll try and do another post in a couple of days about that. I've been doing a little sewing and knitting in the evenings and have a few things to share in that department! I had wild ambitions to make many of my Christmas presents this year, but as it turned out, I've only managed a handful. But that's ok! I'll share them in my next post, along with some ideas for things I wanted to do, in case you are looking for inspiration.

I spent a few evenings sewing a dress for Keira to wear to her end-of-year school ball (like a prom/formal) last month, and realised I never got around to sharing it here. Partly that's because I didn't snap any good pictures of it - the day she wore it was rainy and she got ready for the event at a friend's house. Anyway, it was fun to make her something special like this, and I thought the finished dress looked fantastic on her, despite not having much photographic evidence!

I used the Papercut Maya Cami Dress pattern and made a toile first, which prompted me to do some major fit adjustments to the bodice pattern pieces. They were too wide and gapey, we decided. I re-drafted those pieces to better fit Keira but kept the body pieces the same, except to make them longer, so the dress is floor length. For the final version, I bought some viscose crepe fabric from The Fabric Store in a beautiful forest green shade.

I love the Maya pattern but have found the same fit issues when I made it for myself (as a black slip to go under other dresses). I might try re-drafting the cup pattern pieces for my size too, and having another go. The skirt part is cut on the bias and is pretty perfect, in my opinion. 

And because this is a tale of two dresses, I'm including a couple of photos of a dress I sewed for myself recently. I didn't use a pattern, but rather drafted my own by measuring a favourite second-hand dress I've loved wearing but needs replacing. The result is a super breezy and loose-fitting cotton dress for the summer.

I'm looking forward to swanning around at the beach, wearing it with my new sandals and a big sunhat!

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Recently I invited a dear old friend of mine around and we spent the afternoon drinking coffee and painting with watercolours. It was the best! I highly recommend it for a relaxing time, especially if you can schedule such a meet-up before the Christmas busy-ness begins. The evening before, at my request, Tom had cut a huge branch of roadside roses for me - I expect they were going to be cleared by council workers otherwise - and we set them up as a dramatic cascade on our fireplace, inspiring our watercolours.

And finally, I wanted to share some very lovely baking - almond fingers, which is a recipe originating from 1947 that I found in Ladies a Plate by Alexa Johnston (someone has shared the recipe here). They were slightly fiddly to make, but so worth it, I think, if you like almonds as much as I do.

Thank you, as always, for reading! I hope you are having a lovely week, and see you again very soon,

M X

simple drawstring pouches - a tutorial

This is a tutorial I've been meaning to share for a long while. I'm often asked for my pattern or instructions for these bags that I've made (and shared online) over the years. I'm finally doing it!

This Christmas I have an idea to use some fabric scraps and make little pouches for my nieces, each personalised with their initial. I intend to put some sweets, card games, or lip balm inside each, depending on the age of the child. The larger bags might even fit a small chapter book. I'm lucky enough to have 13 nieces! So I might not complete all of them this year. In any case, it's a fun project and I hope you enjoy making one, or a few, as the case may be.

In this tutorial, I've given measurements for a small child's pouch. But because the template is so simple, you could use it to create all sorts of pouches.

Size up to create a knitting project bag. Or cut the pieces even bigger to make reusable wrapping for a book or other gift. Large drawstring bags make useful travel companions - you can keep shoes or laundry separate in your suitcase. A tiny one, cut from velvet or silk scraps, would be nice for jewellery.

Take this 'recipe' and make it your own. Happy making and gifting!

You'll need:

Fabric scraps - I recommend something like linen or heavy cotton for the outer bag, and silk or finer cotton for the lining and casings

A ruler or tape measure, pins, iron, sewing machine, scissors, thread, safety pin

2 x lengths of 22" of a thin cord, narrow cotton tape or ribbon  

Embroidery thread, needle and hoop (optional)

Method (for child-size pouch):

Cut out the bag pieces. You'll need:

2 x outer pieces measuring 8" wide X 7" tall

2 x lining pieces measuring 8" wide X 7" tall

2 x casing pieces (this could be the same as your lining fabric, or different) measuring 9.5" wide by 1.5" tall

Press all fabric pieces. To make the casings, fold each short end in 1/2" and press. Fold in another 1/2" and press again. Then fold the whole piece length-wise and press once more. Set aside.

If you'd like to decorate the front of your pouch, now is the time. You could embroider an initial or something else, or applique or add ribbon... whatever you fancy!

Place outer bag pieces right sides together, pin then stitch around the sides and bottom. Repeat with lining pieces. Clip corners on both, and press. Turn outer bag right side out, push out corners and press again.

Take one casing piece. With raw edges together, pin casing to right side of front of bag outer. The casing should be slightly shorter than the front of the bag outer itself. Centre the casing so there is a small gap at each outer bag side seam. If it's too long, refold the edges and press again.

Stitch the casing to the outer, as close as you can to the raw edge. Take the second casing and repeat the process on the bag outer back piece. It should look like this:

Place the completed bag outer inside the bag lining, right sides together. Match side seams and pin in place. With a 1/4" seam, stitch around the entire top of the bag, catching all the layers together. It should look like this:

Turn the bag right-side out through the gap you left in the lining base. Press everything and check the casings were sewn neatly. Push the lining inside the outer and press the casings so they are pointing up and away from the bag outer. Hand-stitch lining gap closed.

Cut one piece of ribbon and attach the safety pin to the end. Thread it through one casing opening, then through the second, and tie the ends in a secure knot. Insert the second piece of cord in the same manner but in reverse, through the other casing opening. All done!

 

assorted treasures

So many treasures to share with you in this post! It was my birthday recently and because I'm very spoiled I received some beautiful gifts, some of which I've shared above because I think you'd love them too. 

My friend A gave me a beautiful wee bud vase by Wellington ceramicist Wundaire. The design is called Fleur, which just happens to be my middle name and the colours in the ceramic are derived from plant dyes, I think! I love it and it was the perfect home for the last freesia of the season. My sister Tamsin sent me the most beautiful little suncatcher for our kitchen window. These are made by Hydrangea Ranger in Auckland. Aren't they beautiful? (As an aside, I love all things HR and have bought many sets of earrings from her for gifts!)

Do you know the Shetland Wool Adventure journals? I've admired them on Insta but not actually leafed through one of them until Arlo and Kee included issue #3 in my birthday gift. It's a beautiful wee book, with lots of knitting patterns that I'm keen to cast on. You can see all six here on this Ravelry page. I think I'll start with the 'Blosta Hat' (pictured above) - in hopefully exactly those colours!

Last year, I discovered that my whānau on my mum's side has (distant) Shetland Island heritage. Mum's great-grandmother was from born on Fair Isle into the Eunson family, and moved to London as a young woman, probably the first in her family to leave the island permanently. As knitters, it was an exciting discovery! Especially for Mum and I. She had known of Orkney ancestry for a long time, but not specific details. I'd love to learn more about this side of our family sometime, and of course, a long-term dream would be a Shetland trip!

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In the last two pictures above, you can see a bit of patchwork I've been doing. I couldn't close the lid of my fabric leftover box (and believe me, it's a big box) so I decided to pull out some pieces and make a quilt top. I settled on a simple nine-patch design and chose only solid colour fabrics, some of which are dyed with avocado and other plants. It's currently king-sized but I might trim it down a bit to make the next steps a bit easier to manage! 

I do love the way the solid bright colours look together - they almost sing to each other. It would make a great quilt for our bed this summer.

I still love to experiment with cyanotype printing on the occasional sunny weekend day! I've included a snap of some cards I made recently for a friend. The exposure wasn't super successful because the sun went behind a cloud as soon as I took the prints outside. I used watercolour paint to bright them up instead.

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In truth, I haven't been finding as much time and energy for my making practice as I usually do. It's mostly to do with having work and other commitments that are taking up lots of space in my mind! But I'm hoping that with the longer days ahead and a bit of time off over summer, I will get back into it. I've no shortage of projects in mind! Some plans include:

- Finishing the nine-patch quilt, which will involve some simple hand quilting and binding the edge. 

- Knitting up a linen top of some sort for summer (I have some of this yarn in a soft green, and am thinking about the Tegna pattern for it)

- Making some Christmas/summer gifts for friends and family. I still haven't decided what, exactly! Will report back soon...

I'd love to know what's keeping you busy and inspired these days!

Lots of love, 
M

october sweetness

The photo directly above is a bit of a boast. I found all these wonderful books in one recent visit to an op-shop. So lucky! I've started the Lorde collection, finished both the Carol Ann Duffy poetry books (which I adored) and had a go at knitting some of the stitch patterns. The novel by Witi Ihimaera, The Parihaka Woman, is on my bedside table ready to be read very soon. I'd love to know what you're ready these days? 

Now it's late in October - how did that happen? I'm so enjoying the lighter mornings and evenings, even though there is still a bit of a chill to the Wellington air. Tom and I recently walked up a hill in our neighbourhood, and I picked a handful of wildflowers on the way home. You can see them in my first pic above. It was a surprise to find so many beauties, just growing along the side of the road. My favourites are those creamy little roses that grow along hedges.

Also inspired by spring growth, I made a pair of prints for our spare room, which we've been slowly renovating over this past year. I just need to find some frames for them now. I used my cyanotype printing set and pressed tansy and coriander plants picked at the height of last summer.

This month I knitted a vest for myself, using a skein of mohair-silk dyed by Nikki of Dark Harbour Yarn, held together with some Zealana fingering-weight possum/cotton/merino blend. It was a free pattern called the Sara Vest from Ewe Knit Toronto, and used exactly one skein of the mohair with just a tiny bit left - phew! I don't think I'd knitted a vest for myself before but I really like wearing it - it's been handy over dresses and when it's not cool enough for a proper sweater or cardigan. More details about this make can be found on my Ravelry page here.

Crazy hair photo courtesy of Keira and the Wellington wind!

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Another good thing from the past month or so is that I've joined our local chapter of Good Bitches Baking. With the overarching goal of 'making Aotearoa NZ the kindest place on earth,' the Good Bitches join a roster to bake for various organisations and charities around the city, such as homeless shelters, community drop-in centres and other programmes. GBB provides white cardboard boxes that we put our baking in for delivery, as well as a little notepad to write a message and ingredients on for the recipients.

It's a wonderful team to be part of, and I have really enjoyed baking and delivering treats over the past six weeks or so. I love to bake but with no more school lunches to prepare and trying not to eat quite so much sweet food myself, it's a great way to spread the sweetness around to our wider community.

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Other October sweetness has included a trip to the City Gallery to see the Joanna Margaret Paul retrospective exhibition, Imagined in the Context of a Room. I've loved Paul's paintings and poetry since I first encountered them about 15 years ago, so it was real joy to be able to see everything collected together in this way. If you're going to be in the capital before February, 6, I highly recommend you go and have a look.

October is also my birthday month, and this year I was lucky enough to hear some live music to celebrate. A group of friends and I went to hear soul/folk singer Frazey Ford and her band at San Fran. It was such a treat. Here's a song for you.

Take care,
Melissa X