not exactly textile

I have been busy during the last days - finishing several things for workshops, cleaning up the mess in the workroom afterwards, some gardening etc. - we received the plastic for the polytunnel - but the weather hasn't been great for putting it up yet. eventually, when I had managed to get past the looming deadlines - I hit a "black hole", where I couldn't bring myself to do anything much at all, apart from the standby's such as sock knitting etc.

but I still had promised one thing - to help Stefan to build the wizard's castle. I bought him a book with cardboard pieces for this at the last guild meeting in the museum of country life - but it turned out to be quite fiddly and time consuming - and patience is a virtue Stefan doesn't really have in abundance! I ended up cutting, scoring and glueing everything myself, down to the last bits like flags etc. all of a sudden I was brought back to my childhood - I loved doing things like that and could spend hours putting together shapes and houses, though I used to draw most of them myself - there wasn't much available ready-made at the time.

and I remembered another project I always wanted to do - building a doll's house! I was never one for playing with dolls, but the building of furniture and putting up the rooms appealed to me! the downside always were the lack of space and the cost for all the bits and pieces a large doll's house includes. of course, making miniature quilts, carpets etc. might be fun too! and where to put this in a smallish cottage - and who'd clean it out every few days with all the ash from the range flying about?:)) it's simply not practical -that's why I decided to do something different: I am going to build a small "shed" like the ones in nativity plays. Stefan has a large box full of real clay bricks to build houses, and mortar for it - everything can be taken apart again just by soaking it in water. I have instructions for the necessary figures, the holy family, the three kings etc. in crochet and there is enough material to be found around the house to decorate this too. the good thing is that everything can be used for something else later - I have enough xmas bits and pieces of deco in all corners and don't want to add more to find storage place for!

of course halloween is coming closer, too! and this time Stefan does not want to be harry potter. so we had a look through a german catalogue of "Fasching" costumes... at first it was an old wizard that appealed to him, then he changed to a ninja outfit. the day I had planned to order fabric and pattern - he decided to be a devil! now I am going to order everything before he can change his ideas again! I have planned to make a large cape in black - this will have to serve for several years. but it can easily be redecorated later. I'll make a red tail, buy some red face paint and ready-made horns and ears. I'll decorate everything with some fabric printed with flames - and he already bought the "fork" in the local supermarket. the fabric should be enough to make a hood too - if lined with the flame fabric that has do be devilish enough for one outing!

and then - christmas! I know it's idiotic, but I am in a more christmassy (messy?:)) mood than a week before the actual celebration. might be the weather - or maybe the fact that I started looking for some patterns and decorations? I still have to frame some cross stitch patterns I made 2! years ago with suitable patchwork fabric to hang them up - or they'll fly about the workroom for another year. and I have to start my "to buy" list for the knitting & stitching show, which is coming closer fast!

I shouldn't really be dithering about - too much to do - as usual. I forgot to mention my trials with the new OLG workshop - nalbinding! not quite so easy, and the results so far haven't been in photo quality to brag about.... more practising might be useful!