Buns & Roses WI

Hi everyone!

Now this is something that not a lot of people know about me, and at first I was a little bit hesitant about mentioning it here because a lot of people (me included, before I found out differently) have a preconcieved idea of what the Womens Institute is all about, and I was slightly embarrassed about joining, and attending the meetings, so I kept it quiet.
The WI brought to (my) mind older ladies with blue rinsed perms, wearing twin sets and pearls, sitting around in a village green-type setting, straight out of Midsomer Murders, making jam and speaking in snooty voices.

Nothing can be further than the truth (except maybe the jam making bit!) and since I went along to my first meeting back in November, I have been hooked, I am even joining the Book Club!
Everyone at my particular meeting, is around my age group - members ages range from 19 to 45, have similar likes and interests, (there are a few fellow bloggers :) and all make a newbie feel accepted and at home from the minute you step inside the door, showing you straight to the bar area (incredibly cheap drinks!) and point out the all-important 'cake table' my personal favorite!

Some of the Buns&Roses members

It feels great to be able to talk 'crafts' all night long (outside of Blogland) with like-minded people, who not only know what you are talking about, but get passionate about it!
There are  various crafting or arty activites going on at different tables, with a member teaching new skills or crafts, as well as people doing their own projects while having a natter, a cocktail (or coffee) and a cake or two! What more can a girl want? :)
Everything from sewing, recipes, art projects, baking, knitting, card making, quilting and blogging have all got a mention at meetings, and Buns&Roses even has its own Facebook page, to keep everyone updated on the latest meeting idea's, wine or tea party dates, book club info ect.
Just to give you an idea of what else happens at the meetings and workshops, here is the Buns&Roses 2011 diary and workshops:

Workshops 2011

6 January - Decorate a bag for life

3 February - Card making

3 March - Cake decorating

7 April - Sushi making

5 May - Illustration

2 June - Fascinator making

7 July - Flower arranging

4 August - Quilting

1 September - Knit a cake

6 October Decorate a tea cup

3 November - Sock monsters

1 December - Christmas crafts

Meetings 2011

20 January - General meeting

17 February - Makaton

17 March - Science of baking

21 April - General meeting

19 May - CROP

16 June - Origami

21 July - General meeting

18 August - Home accessories

15 September - Skills swap

20 October - General meeting

17 November - Accessories

15 December - Christmas party

As I will be attending this weeks Winter Warmer Tea Party and (hopefully) all the above meetings and workshops, I will do a regular post after each, so you can follow my new-found skills!
If there is a WI near you, check it out, I bet its nothing like you imagined!

What are your thoughts on the Womens Institute? 

New Year's Resolutions

Hi everyone!

As tomorrow is the start of a new year, I thought I would do a post of things I hope to achieve in the next year, (im hoping that seeing them on screen will help me stick to them!)

I have the usual:

• Lose the post-Christmas bloat (and the rest!) and ditch the ready meals/takeaways and cook from fresh.
• Drink more water (this is a resolution EVERY year)
• Establish (and stick to) a good skin care routine
• Starting driving lessons (finally!)
• Save Money - and stop squandering it on things I dont need and wont use - mini trampolene anyone?
• Burlesque lessons as mentioned in a previous post

The actual resolutions that I REALLY, REALLY hope to achieve this year are mostly more creative or crafty related (surprise, suprise!) and I am determind to follow these through:

• Learn to knit (again) -  I remember being taught how to knit when I was really young, but I didnt keep up to it, so sadly its a forgotten skill.

• Begin a correspondance Writing Course. writing (properly) is something I have been wanting to do ever since I can remember, mainly the creative style of writing - I was forever starting to write 'books' when I was young, only to discard them half finished to start a new story!                                        

•  Homemade Presents - making homemade gifts is something I really love and enjoy doing, and Im hoping that next Christmas, the majority, if not all, of the gifts I give are homemade, as I think they really show the thought and effort behind the gift, which, to me, is what gift-giving is all about. Who wouldnt like to recieve that?

• Learning New Crafts - (kind of important for the Homemade Presents resolution!) Inspired by Kirtie Allsop, and fellow bloggers, I really want to try my hand at soap making and bath bombs ect, among other things, so watch this space!

There are a few other skills that I would like to get under my belt this year, but I dont want to try to achieve too many things at once, the cost would be astronomical (and this post will go on forever!)

What are your resolutions/hopes for 2011?

Snow Days and a Homemade Wreath

Hi everyone!

Since my last post, the weather here in Leeds has been extreme! There has been a near constant fall of snow, bringing everything to a standstill - bus's and trains all stopped running, cars abandoned willy-nilly, shops closing/not opening, people were panic buying in Tesco, it was all a bit, well, manic!

Both Lucy and I love the snow, so on my half-day from work on wednesday, we went for a walk (I say walk, it was more like a work out, the snow was that deep!) Needless, to say, we had great fun! I decided to detour to the park and see if we could come across any pinecones in the woods, so i can make a festive/wintery wreath. ( I have fancied having a go at  a wreath for a while now, but never got around to it, but I finally decided there is no time like the present!)
 After plenty of foraging (in my case, digging, in Lucy's!) we managed to get quite a decent amount - plenty enough for several wreaths I would imagine!

Once we had dried off, and let the pinecones dry out a bit, I set about making my wreath. I started by drawing a circle on thick cardboard by drawing around a circular tray (for the outer) and a side plate (for the inner).
I then cut out the inside of the inner ring, and cut away the outside of the outer circle, and Hey Presto! a wreath shape!
The next step was loading up my brand new glue gun (purchased from Ebay) and picking up nicely shaped cones, and randomly glueing them down (you can arrange the cones anyway you want to, I just liked the random effect)
Continue like this until you have covered the entire ring. As I thought the wreath looked a little plain, I decided to add a few cinnimon sticks, for a bit of contrast, interest and a scent that smells just like Christmas!  (Not forgetting to add some looped string to hang the wreath up!)

You can add anything to your wreath - holly, berries, faux snow, baubles, mistletoe, whatever comes to mind!

I am quite pleased with how my first attempt at a wreath came out, so im even more determind to make a start on my patchwork quilt (my first pack of 50 assorted 4'' squares arrived today, hurrah!)

Here is a sneaky peak at some of the patches you will see in the finished quilt :) Cute, arnt they?

What is inspiring you this season? let me know your thoughts in the comments box below :)