Feeling a bit cranky pants....

I will warn you now if you don't want to hear my cranky attitude then look away.  I have been having a C.C.M....a crap craft moment...and I am just cranky with it! 

In the spirit of keeping "it real" (whatever "it" is) I am going to share the moments when I loose it a little...(whatever "it" is) 

I am usually a stoic woman, to those whom I don't know that well. You know when people ask "How are you?" the polite reply..."Yeah, good thanks"......I mean we ask but do we really want to know? Do we want to stay and listen to the everyday aches and pains and ups and downs or do we then reply..."How are things with you?"......and really don't want to know, just being polite!

But there are those people in your life that will just listen, not try and fix you but accept that TODAY you are cranky...for whatever reason, real or imagined. My husband (bless him and I mean that sincerely) has learned that I will have days where I am not always pleasant and he still loves me. We all have those days when all the plans and anticipation of a long running project just don't come to fruition and out comes Mrs Cranky

 Take this little sucker......stitch after stitch I plowed on, I was making me a handbag and I really wanted to wear it ASAP.
I blocked that baby, waited days to see her dry and could not wait to stitch her up.
Well THAT didn't work well at all.....sure she looks straight there but meet her twisted sister

 Note the angle of the handles in relation to the bag side.

 And heres another torturous angle. I sewed her up and she wanted to twist the night away in her own direction. I tried everything to make her follow the right path but NOOOOOO! so I muttered and cursed and was ready to put her 

1. in the time out drawer
2. in the bin
3. send her to a professional straightener
4. forget the whole thing

Her partners in crime.....what a hot mess!
Instead I then uttered the "F" word......FOCUS....(why what did you think I was going to say?)
I breathed a deep breathe and said to myself, "self "I said  "pull yourself together, you going to let a little itty bitty piece of stitching bring you down?" "Yes!" I snivelled, "she is being mean to me"
And not just her. Look at this!

 There were tension issues with this one, a bit of stuff was ripped out. Hey that sorta felt better....still back to the beginning and try again.....back on track ....feeling betterer.

Piping issues. undo and retry again. Patience poppet. 

Fiddling and playing and don't care what happens here, not a lot of time or money invested. The shoulders are dropping 

 Oh YEAH...the cure to all cranky days.

 And because I don't want you to leave feeling cranky I will pop in these calming sunset images. The beauty of nature. 
Thank you so much for staying to chat even when its not all sweetness and light here. But that what life is all about.

Hello There........Remember me?

Its a new year, its a new day.....
I think there was a song with those lyrics out there somewhere.....over the rainbow...way up high......
Yes I am being a tres bit silly but that I feel is my natural state, it balances the other side of me that can be very dour and serious. 

Well 2015 hey, here we are it seems. My son was watching "Back to the Future" and mentioned that in the 1980's...way back...they programmed 2015 into the delorean ...DeLorane, time car thingy and we were all in flying cars and really futuristic groovy. The more things change the more things stay the same. 
I have been around, but Instagram has ensnared me with its groovyness and I have been hanging out there a lot. There is a quick and easy way to snap and load a photo, whack on a filter and get some instant feedback.....whats not to love! But I still hung around with my blog favourites also, it freed me up so I could pour my craft into witty and pithy comments and I have been making some lovely connections. Thus I feel I can balance the two media platforms..(oh listen to me you would think I knew what I was talking about) and share some perhaps more considered musings, as opposed to the "look at me, look at me" action in that other arena.

 I bought a cutting machine recently. I was in a mad state of mind as I has recently firmed up my semi retirement date.....oh joy of joys. I am leaving a job of 12 years to have a well earned break, travel and then try to work out what direction life takes me.
Anyway I felt that with said cutting machine (that I could afford now but not later) I would be able to whizz up many quick quilts to perhaps sell or just make to save my sanity.....I mean what to do when work no longer fills your mind. And before you all roll your eyes, I know exactly how days are filled! I fell for that trap when I first had a child, I mean I was going to have SO MUCH FREE TIME, I could bake bread, make biscuits, spin wool, weave cloth and sew a wardrobe, I mean I said to myself what does one do with a small child at home ALL DAY.  Lesson well and truly learned.

Cutting machine bought and tested, yet to go into full production but has proved useful so far.

 So I will continue on the flower theme. These are from my garden, they are simple sweet roses.

 The plate something I picked up at an op shop (thrift store) and also loved its sweet simple art. In fact I have a thing for plates as I see them as art. I have a wall full of plates displayed but cannot resist buying more. One day I may live in a house lined with plates.

 So then I started trying to capture the full beauty of the rose. I am always drawn to the macro world in photography

Its a challenge to get the light and composition just right.

 A more complex and no less stunning rose

Would you believe these two roses come from the same plant? It starts off as a simple flower and then develops a ruffled overblown bloom.

Another plate and another flower.

This is from my gone to seed parsley plant. I cannot seem to stop the flowers forming in the heat of summer so I have just let it go for now.

 They are quite delicate as you draw closer. Hmm are they ants in there?

 Yes, they are ants!  I have a great macro lens and I am not afraid to use it. And for Christmas I received a tripod so now I can hold a steady shot.

 Not a flower, not a rose but who said succulents didn't have a charm all of their own. Not me.

Its been nice to catch up......and if you want to catch me on Instagram...I am susanc269. 
Till we meet again......dont know where.....dont know when, but I know we'll meet again some sunny daaaaaaaayyyyy