oxford

A sunny Sunday afternoon and a quiet meander through some of Oxfords pretty back streets.

I hope you've had a good week and have some nice things planned for the weekend.

A few nice things from my week;

I've been really enjoying the BBC Four series 'what do artist do all day'

Making this delicious Beets and Greens tart from the Green Kitchen Stories website. I can't wait to give this Mocha black bean mousse cake a go, looks delicious!

Gathering bedroom decor inspiration on Pinterest . Here's a snap of a corner of our bedroom so far.

tote bag tutorial & a seasonal recipe

I love shopping at my local farmers market and produce store, so I thought my next sewing tutorial for BraintreeClothing would be a classic tote bag, perfect for filling up with seasonal goodies.

Braintree kindly sent me two lovely striped men's shirts to upcycle into this tote bag. You could of course use any fabrics new or old.



Materials:
Fabric (I’ve used two different striped linen shirts)
Cotton webbing  (Navy 2 lengths 3 x 122cms)
Cotton thread (cream & navy)
Sewing machine
Scissors
Pins
Tape measure



How to: 
To start with, cut out your pattern pieces.
You will need two body pieces (pale stripes)  41 x 46cm , two lining pieces
(dark stripes) 41x 46 cm and 2 pocket pieces, 21 .5 x 35 cm.
I've cut my fabric out of two men's shirts, using the front, back panels and sleeves.

Hem the top of the body and lining pieces by folding down the top (short) edge by 2cm, Iron and sew along the top, repeat this with the two pockets.

Sew on the pockets.
Centre your pockets by Ironing the two body pieces in half lengthways, do the same with the two pockets. Open out  a body piece and lay the pocket  on top, matching up the creases and bottom raw edges.  

Pin and sew on the pocket, leaving the top open. Repeat on the second body piece.



Sew on the handles.
Take one length of webbing  (122 cm) and with the body piece facing up, align the webbing to the bottom raw edge, keep the webbing straight and cover the pocket seam until you reach the top, pin as you go. At the top make a loop for the handle (40cm appox) making sure you don't twist the webbing, carry on down the other side to the bottom raw edge.

With everything in place sew around all sides of the webbing attaching it to the fabric.

Repeat on the second body piece.

Sew the bag together.

With the body pieces face to face, match up the handles and the edges, pin it all together and sew around the three raw edges.  
Turn inside out and with an iron press sides and corners.



Lining
Put the two lining pieces face to face, neat hem at the top. Pin and sew around the raw edges.
(Do not turn out.) Insert the lining in to the bag, matching up the side seams, to attach the lining pin along the top and sew around the opening.

Give your new tote a press and you're ready to shop...

Remember to share any of your makes with us by uploading your images to Instagram including the hashtag #BThoughtful_Makes
  

This is 2 North Parade Produce Store in Oxford. Co-owned by my boyfriend Pete.

 'We work closely with local farmers, producers and suppliers who focus on the quality, integrity and provenance of their produce. Giving the customer the fresh taste of every season and the best artisan foods for your table'

I asked Pete to share his favourite seasonal recipe..

At the moment it's the asparagus season, we have freshly picked local asparagus delivered to the shop every morning, it's fresh, delicious and makes a great, quick, seasonal supper.

There are so many great ways to eat asparagus; with homemade hollandaise, butter and lemon, in a risotto, tossed in a mixed salad with mozzarella, but my favourite is the fresh, rich, salty contrast of asparagus, eggs and bacon.

Asparagus soldiers with soft boiled eggs.

You will need:
12 medium asparagus stalks, woody ends removed
12 slices of thinly sliced pancetta or bacon
olive oil
free range eggs
sea salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 220C. Wrap your asparagus stalks in the pancetta (or bacon) with the tips poking out, and place in a roasting pan. Drizzle with a little olive oil and roast in the oven for 10 mins, until crispy.

While the asparagus is cooking, Carefully place the eggs into lightly salted boiling water, for 5 minutes, drain, cut off the lids and put them in egg cups. Serve with a good pinch of salt and pepper.

Dunk your asparagus soldiers into the soft egg and enjoy.

walk

Happy May Day everyone! Such a lovely time of year. One past traditional May Day event I love is that people would get up before sunrise in order to gather flowers and greenery to decorate their houses and villages, in the belief that the vegetation spirits would bring good fortune. 
I have some apple blossom and lilac which I'm hoping will do the trick.



We went on such a beautiful walk the other day, the weather was just perfect.
Down old farm tracks, over wooden stiles, across fields, though pretty villages, into cool musty churches. Hawthorn bushes in flower, lining the way and swathes of wild garlic. We stopped by this lovely stone wall, where the grass was covered in primroses, dandelions and forget-me -nots. It was a buzz with bees and hoverflies. 

I love a nice walk, to slow everything down, to forget about those 'to do' lists and just enjoy the moment. Taking time to notice all the little details of the day. 

Do you have any favourite walks near to where you live? 

spring calm

A few snaps of the little things that have made me happy and content lately....

Beautiful delicate blossom trees in full bloom, now dropping like confetti on the ground.



Having an unexpected Saturday off work and deciding to spend the afternoon making Liberty print cushions listening to radio 4... I'm a complete granny at heart!  I made a cushion in this fabric for the bedroom, which I love.



Picking the last few Hyacinth from the garden, which smell delicious. Now the tulips, muscari and forget me nots are taking their place.



Spending time pottering around in my sewing room. The view from the window overlooks a farm, fields with horses, a donkey and apple trees, I waste a lot of time just staring out of that window.



A moment of calm to read the ever inspiring 'Cereal' (which I actually bought for my boyfriend) with a herbal tea and the most amazing dark chocolate from our recent trip to London .

What little things have made you happy this week?

spring days

Spring seems to give me lots of motivation, must be the lighter, longer days, and recently my days off have been spent at home and in the garden. 

Here's a few things I've been up to...

Working on a very exciting new sewing project...more on that to come. 

I made this delicious Squash and Spinach Tart from the lovely Anna Jones cook book, 'a modern way to eat'. I have never made my own pastry before and it was surprisingly easy. 

Spending time, helping out at my boyfriends produce store. So many lovely things in that shop!

I keep rearranging things at home, decluttering, trying to get a simple, fresher look. I really love white ceramics, the two beautiful white handmade vases are from the lovely Illyria Pottery in Oxford. 
The White SylvaC flower vase I found in a charity shop for 50p a few years ago.  

I'm still starting most days with 10 minutes of meditation using the Headspace app. I'm really enjoying it 

My favourite flowers, Anemones and Ranunculus on the mantelpiece, a gift from my boyfriend.

I'd love to know what you have been up to lately... Have a lovely Easter Weekend.

dancing eyes

We've had a few nice sunny spring days around here. I get really excited, making plans for our little garden. I'm hoping to grow lots of herbs again this year; dill, parsley, chives, basil, mint...I have lists..
We have two vintage white Belfast sinks, given to us by our neighbour, to grow them all in.

 I can't wait to get started on that, but for now, I've just potted up these pretty pink flowers in terracotta pots to go on the living room window sill and then with a cup of herbal tea I sat enjoying the sunshine and admired my easy hard work. 

These words by James Seaton of Toast sum up everything...

I was sorting through all my books the other day to take to my local charity shop when I found this one by Sophie Dahl- The man with the dancing eyes,  I had forgotten how nice it is, love the illustrations by Anna Morris, Definitely a keeper.

Enjoy your weekend

the ethicurean & barley wood walled garden

Last Sunday the sun was shining so my boyfriend and I went on a little road trip to the Ethicurean  restaurant and Barley wood walled garden near Bristol. We've wanted to visit for ages and as you can see it's a pretty amazing place. We spent the whole day wandering around the gardens and through the cider orchards, taking photos and drinking tea on the lawn and then enjoyed a delicious long lunch in their restaurant.

Love this idea of vintage cutlery hung up with brown string.


The best welsh rarebit...I could eat one right now..