My Greenhouse Friend

It's been really cold here the last few nights and yesterday afternoon at 5pm the thermometer in the greenhouse was showing -1C. Time to light the paraffin heater!  I have to use a paraffin heater as the greenhouse is over 150ft from the house and has no electricity installed.  Not that I mind having to use a paraffin heater - infact I love it, I just love the smell of paraffin!  It's no hardship having to walk down the garden each morning to turn the heater off, as the smell wafts towards me as I get to about the pond.  I don't know if the neighbours appreciate the subtle smell which must permeate into their gardens too, but they've never said anything.  I know my friend Fran shares my love of this "unusual" smell, as does my Dad (who was once known to try and make toast with a paraffin blow torch!) but I wonder how many of the rest of you do too?  I'm guessing it's probably abit like marmite - love it or hate it!  

 My trusty friend

Seed Head Inspiration (2)

The weather has been very grey here today so I thought I'd share some more colour with you in the form of my other textile creation inspired by seedheads.

 Poppies on Garden Fleece (click to see the detail)

 The poppies on the top layer (made from garden fleece!) were formed by stencilling on gesso and then painting the whole layer with fabric paint.  It was then machine stitched onto the bottom layer of painted pelmet vilene (which had more poppies stencilled on with oil paint sticks).  Free motion stitching with sparkly metallic thread is not something I've cracked yet, and I shouted at it many times as it jammed and snapped and missed stitches etc!  After all that I got the heat gun out and blasted it - the fleece disintegrates VERY quickly!  Finally I distressed the edges (I don't like straight lines) with the solder iron.

Well, if nothing else, it livens up a dull day when even I won't venture into the garden!

Splash of Colour - November

I've decided to join in with Silverpebble's wonderful Splash of Colour project.  The idea (for any of you who don't know) is to post a colourful photo at the begining of each month from November to February to combat the greyness that's outside.  

This is my offering for November, the jumbled and higgledy contents of my thread box.

She's set a flicker group up so you can pop over there too to see lots of wonderful bright colours!