Monthly Meanderings - July (Part One) 2019

So now to July, where I films so much I had to break it down into two!

~ Eisteddfod & The Isle of Wight ~

So in part one of Julys vlog, we take a trip to Wales for the opening of the Llangollen Eisteddfod, where Benn has a warm up set and we get to see Jools Holland!

Benn found a traffic light he proves of  // Oxalis looking fabulous // demure as always! ;P
Jools Holland and the Selecta!  // The Needles // Benn keeping us in time

Then there is a holiday to the Isle of Wight, where we visit Ventnor for food and sea side relaxation, Shanklin for Record buying, Sandown for Glass blowing, Ryde for charity shopping, Freshwater Bay for relaxing and Haven Street for a Steam trip, before returning home to a blossoming Oxalis Plant!

Monthly Meanderings - June 2019

So its June now in my round up of well overdue videos, the internet round here is no better than before!

~ LDN & MCR ~

Planting herbs //Oxalis bulbs // Benn on the decks
Phillip //  Euston Station // Quarry Bank

In this video there is a day trip to London to catch up with my wonderful friend Phillip, where we stroll around and get lost! Theres a little planting of herbs and new bulbs and...

I ended the month with a trip with Benn to Manchester, for a spot of DJ'ing and a Birthday day out to the beautiful Quarry Bank Mill!

Things mentioned:
• The Doric Arch
• Monstera Deliciosa'Taueri 
• Oxalis Trangularis
• Jamies Jungle Instagram
• Soul Sauce DJ
• Quarry Bank Mill

Monthly Meanderings - May 2019

Hello, its now May, well it is in the round up of my over due Volgs - which happens to mean quite a bit is going on! 

~ Foliage & Festivals ~

Planting up my succulents // my dishevelled moosh //
Benn doing his DJ thing // Suede giving off their 90s best!

In this video there is a bit of DIY, some plant shopping and a lot of plant waffle, some vintage shopping and the Bearded Theory Festival 2019!

My Boston Fern has started an indoor plant obsession, oops!

Not having had a garden of my own for quite a few years now and being a hopeless but passionate gardener I was finally able to get a few plants from the garden centre, which was very exciting, I bought a few indoor plants not something I have really dabbled with much and can feel a new hobby/habit forming!

We also go the chance to visit the Vintage Home Show which is held a few times a year in Coventry, usually we are away or busy the weekend that it arrives but this time the stars aligned and we were able to pop along and snag a few, very green as it turned out, bargains!

We finished the month with a 5 day festival extravaganza, at the Bearded Theory Spring Gathering, Benn had been booked to DJ the VIP bar and invited along the legend that is Martin the Mod, together the ensured that the staff and artists we kept well tuned with their mix of Soul, funk and 60s classics. It was a great weekend and even better that I got a chance to sneak off and watch a teenage favourite Suede!

Things mentioned:
• Lucy's Lock-up
• Monstera Deliciosa'Taueri 
• Boston Fern
• 'Plant these save the bees' T-shirt
• Vintage Home Show
• Bearded Theory Spring Gathering
• Soul Sauce DJ
• Martin the Mod

Monthly Meanderings - Jan-April 2109

Hello everyone, its time for another one of my monthly vlogs, we have finally made it to 2019 and we have four months in one, so we will nearly have caught up very soon!

We have a trip for work to London and another one to Glasgow, a house move and a little look around my current home, well... mostly the garden as in April there was not much more than a mess to see inside the house!

Monthly Meanderings - December 2018

I know it's way too early to talk about Christmas, but what about Christmas 2018!?!

~ Christmas Shopping & Sewing ~

Beau // Hinckley's Lights // My first Project //
Difficult sewing decisions // Lefunk! @ the Woodstock Stockpot

So in the December 2018 edition of nonsense Wendy got up to, we have a little bit of sewing, some difficult decisions- prompting a whole lot of waffle, a quick view of my fabric stash...obviously that's what airing cupboards were really made for.. a trip to Liverpool and Stockport for Christmas and lots and lots of Benn being very clever with the band he's part of!

Links to bits mentioned in this Vlog:
• NewLook 6619 - only available second hand Ebay
• Secondhand Rose Worcester
• LeFunk! Stockport


Wendy x

Sew It - Vintage Hair Bow Tutorial Part 2

So here is part two of my Hair Bow Tutorial, the written out version, to see the video click here!

~ A Vintage Hair Bow ~

For this tutorial you will need:

• 1m of double-sided satin ribbon

• Matching Cotton thread

• A Hand Sewing Needle & Pin

• A Ruler or Tape measure

• Clear nail polish or Fray Check

• An Elastic Hairband

• A pair of Scissors

1. You will need to cut your ribbon in to the following lengths

• 1 x 2.5" strip
• 1 x 12" strip
• 2 x 13"strips
• 1 x 14" strip

2. Once all of our strips have been cut we need to see the ends, to do this we need to paint the raw edges of the cut ribbon with Fray Check or clear nail varnish, once you've done this you'll need to let them dry for a few minutes before moving on to the next step!

3. Now you're going to need to take one of your 13" strips and place the 12" strip on top. Centre it up so the ends are evenly spaced, as seen at the top of the picture. Now you need to grab your 14 inch strip and fold it in half so that the two raw ends meet in the middle.

4. Pin the bow you have just created with raw sides facing downwards into the centre of the two ribbons you have placed on top of each other, and then stitch these three layers together. Finish by pulling your needle through to the top of your work.

5. Next take the longest piece of ribbon that you have left and fold it in half. Place it over the stitches that you have just made and then sew through this layer and the others a couple of times to attach it to the rest of the bow.

6. Once you have done this take the needle and wrap it around the centre of the bow a couple of times to draw everything together at the middle.

7. That done it should look like the image above, secure thread and cut off.

8. Next you need to attach the short piece of ribbon you have left to the centre of your bow, this can be done with a simple overcast/whip stitch as it will not be visible when we are done.

9. Time to add the hair band, loop the band through the tab you have just created and wrap the ribbon around twice (this will depend on the sickness of your band, a thinner band may need more) until the raw edge is on the back side of the bow.

10. Stitch in place with an over cast stitch, secure thread and then paint the row of stitches with a thin layer of nail polish to secure.

11. Done, time to get your 50s screen starlet on and wear with abandon.

Wendy x

Sew It - Vintage Hair bow Tutorial Part 1

It's time for a little tutorial, this is one I started back in 2016, shocking I know, but it seems to have become a trait of mine of late!

So I am posting this in two parts; Part one is the video tutorial, for those who find watching someone create something more helpful, and part two with is the pictorial version for those who prefer to read the instructions, just choose which works best for you!

I love this bow, it is really reminiscent of Brigitte Bardot and Audrey Hepburn and gives you an easy-peasy touch of vintage glamour to any outfit! I have worn my lots since I created this tutorial back in 2016, its such a quick way to give your outfit that 60s beat girl vibe which is something I have spent most of my life trying to capture!

You don't need any sewing skills at all for this, you could use a hot glue gun if sewing is not your thing and to make it up will only take about 15 mins, so really you have no excuse for not giving it a go!

I hope you enjoy this video, and if you make one do let me know!
Wendy x

Monthly Meanderings - November 2018

So there is a hint crispness in the air is it that winter is here already or does it mean we have now arrived at November 2018 little vlog!

~ Shopping...(meh) & Jazz...(niice) ~

Record shopping / Side eye at the thought of clothes shopping /
Filming is blooming hard / Leicester Cathedral looking all fancy / The Art Blank Combo educating me in Jazz

In Novembers video, we have a shopping trip to Leicester in an effort to have some clothes that don't need repairing (spoiler, I didn't buy any I'm too frugal or too fussy) I visit the Warley Model Railway Show for work, attempt to film an introduction to a 'proper' Youtube Video and as an early birthday treat I go to Wales to see Benn play with the The Art Blank Combo.

Wendy x

Ps. As before I have added subtitles for those who find them useful!

Monthly Meanderings - October 2018

~ A Trip Home ~

Woollen Village // Sleeve Knitting // My lovely Mum //
 Pizza Wrap // Struggling with Math whilst having a headache // Beau being Beau

In October 2018, I din't pick the camera up much, the only time I did was when I headed home to Liverpool to spend some much needed time with my Mum and Beau. My Dad was on the Isle of Wight and my little brother was away having yet another fantastic adventure, this time in Peru, and so I had a bit of alone time with my Mum. 

Hard life!! Photo taken by my brother

Beau as you will notice doesn't live with me anymore, this is partly due to him being much less grumpy and very content with my Mum and Dad and the fact that where I was living doesn't allow pets. I miss his grumpy little moosh an awful lot but I know that he is better off with three people fawning over him.

Ok, on to the video...

Wendy x 

UFO Hall of Shame 2019 - Knitting Edition

A few years ago I wrote a post about all of my unfinished Sewing and Knitting projects you can see it here! I made great strides in to finishing the projects, well, that was until I moved away from London, since then I have been in a crafty stasis, I have made very little in the way of new projects and finished very little of those that were already *lurking* half loved in my cupboards.

Recently I moved home for the third time since decanting my self to the midlands, and yet again I was faced with bags of 'one day' projects. This time I knew I would have to explain them to someone else, which made me feel very self-conscious about all the effort and money that was being waisted sitting in these bags, so I knew it was time for another proverbial dirty laundry airing.

This time I've created a video, as mentioned in my September 2018 Vlog (yes another pre-working-internet creation). I actually filmed this video quite a few months before my most recent move, as that ended up being a little more unplanned than I would have liked, long story, but at least I had some idea what was in these bags this time, anyway waffle over, here it is!

Patterns & Projects mentioned:

Debbie Bliss Land Girl Pattern Book

Lavenda Roll Neck Pullover

1940s Womens Land Army Knitting Pattern

Hermonie's Everyday Sock Pattern 

 My Star Trek Socks

Susan Crawford 'Trimmed with Roses' Jumper

Thank you for watching!

Wendy x

* I don't alf, use this word a lot in this video, goodness only know why, maybe anxiety brings out the lurker in me!

Monthly Meanderings - September 2018

So we now have reached September 2018, I know these videos are late but will catch up to present day very soon!

~ Steam Trains, Spuds & Sewing ~

In September 2018 there was a trip to the Churnet Valley Railway, Some vintage knitting patterns, a spot of DIY and some desperate attempts to create a 'proper' Video, the out takes of which lie within the minutes of the below video. All of this and you'll finally seem my gurning face and my voice together for the first time on film anywhere to date...which is utterly terrifying! Please excuse the nervousness and the consequential over editing to create a sentence without the word ERRRM.

Wendy x

PS. Again there are edited subtitles if my mumbling gets too difficult to understand!

Monthly Meanderings - August 2018

Around this time last year I decided to start recording little snippets of the (hopefully) interesting things I got up to, with the intent to make little videos that I could share on here each month, in an effort to get back into blogging, just in a much less wordy way. 

~ Yarn Bombing, Sewing & The Seaside ~

Nina Lee Kew Dress Sewing prep / Appuldurcombe House / The biggest pdf stick together I have ever done /
Isle of Wight Mod Weekender / Barwell Yarn bombing / Waiting for the Train at Brading Station

Unfortunately, though finished for months now it has taken ages for me to upload these videos, partly because I have had no real internet at home for a nearly a year, and partly due to genuine fear of sharing it. The fear has now been suppressed (though I may well delete them in the future when I remember I am too shy for this malarky).

So even though it's mega late I thought I may as well share it, and you get to hear my voice for the first time - all be it my 'phone' voice, which I can't seem to shake when talking to the camera (or myself, clearly). At least my mum will be proud that I've hidden my more cockney overtones*- though they do sneak out here or there!

So here is the first, from Aug 2018, there is Yarn Bombing, Nina Lee Dress pattern waffling and a really lovely trip to the Isle of Wight with lots of Trains!!

Wendy x

* That said, despite my best efforts to be audible youtube has not been able to figure out much of what I am saying! So I have done my best to correct the subtitles to the videos to ensure my anxious witterings make some sense to those not as well versed in mumbling cockney!