Conversation in our house this morning:

Small boy: What are these in our cupboard? (referring to freshly cleaned pantry)

Mother: They're water chestnuts.

Small boy: Oh. Why are they in the cupboard if they are for your chest?

Two Blouses

Not brilliant photos, but you get the idea. I used Simplicity 4177 for both of these garments. The first is made from a panel of fabric I found at the local St Vincent de Paul's op shop, cost a whole $2 (Aussie dollars, so about $1.50 US). I used this fabric for the first go beacuse I wanted to try making the pattern with a design running around the bottom hem, in preparation for the following version. I didn't have enough fabric for the long sleeves, so went with the short sleeved version C.

The second blouse is the 'for good' version, made with broderie anglaise and pretty ribbon for the detail. It's actually a combination of versions A and B. A had the detail on neck and sleeves, but no frills on the sleeves. With the pretty scalloped edge of the fabric I decided to put B's sleeves onto A's torso.

This one has been christened with a trip to the movies with a dear friend. We saw The Duchess, which I enjoyed very much, though now I have to drink Earl Grey tea all the time, and I'll probably never think of a Devonshire tea the same again. The costumes were spectacular. As soon as I got a moment I googled Duchess Georgiana of Devonshire. There were a few liberties taken with the plot, but in general I felt it was a very interesting movie. Life was so different for women in the 18th century.

Other school holiday fun

Our spring vacation time was a fortnight of unstinting laziness. Other than our beach day, we went nowhere further than a nearby shopping centre.

Mud pies occupied a whole morning.

The crystal garden grew in a day, though the snow covered mountain took another night.

Other than that, I did a bit of sewing, a redwork piece for a friend's birthday, a couple of blouses for myself.

Sometimes the quiet times are the best times.