tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-87171934440968498362024-03-18T22:48:23.595+13:00Camellia RoseGardening, craft and making life beautifulRuth @ Camellia Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17129384344777788376noreply@blogger.comBlogger513125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717193444096849836.post-52952513123783866752017-01-09T15:29:00.000+13:002017-01-09T16:53:09.916+13:00Snapshots - December 2016<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Welcome to December in photos! It's the end of the year, the start of summer, and the middle of Christmas. I'd been working on this crochet tree skirt, and as soon as I finished it I put the tree up. I got a white tree this year and I'm so glad I did! It's a full sized tree and I took it out of the box to have a look at it. My two little helpers materialised and were ever so fascinated... and I realised that it wouldn't even last an hour before it lay in tatters on the floor! Fortunately I was able to take just the top part of the tree and put it in the stand on top of the hall table. And there it has remained safe and unmolested by cats.</div>
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I used all my pink ornaments and realised I needed more, many more. As always, when you go to the shops with a specific colour of ornament in mind you can't find anything, so I decided to crochet little ornament covers. They turned out really well. I will need to make a whole lot more whenever that time comes that I can have the full tree up!</div>
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Pink, white and silver... my favourite Christmas (and any other time) colour combo!</div>
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Another thing I love about Christmas is setting up little displays around the house. Whether temporary (until you eat the mince pies) or more permanent (with fairy lights for grey evenings).</div>
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It is summer though, and there are lots of beautiful roses to photograph.</div>
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The garden has been just gorgeous this month. The grass has grown in, and there are poppies, dahlias, lavatera and roses in shades of soft pink and lavender.<br />
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The lavender borders are full, framing the potager, glasshouse and flower gardens.</div>
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This is a gorgeous cupcake made of soap which I gave as gifts to my workmates. It was coconut and lime flavour and smelled as good as it looked!</div>
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After Christmas I spent a few days in Timaru catching up with family and friends. Then my holiday at home began! I've got so many fun projects lined up for myself starting with dyeing yarn. I tried three different coloured skeins and it will be fun to see how these work up. I also finished my Vanilla Latte socks, with my first batch of hand dyed yarn! I really enjoyed working on them and watching the colourway develop.</div>
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Here's a shot of the summer mantel, with a bit of Christmas mixed in. I later mixed in some Christmas lilies when they came into bloom... lovely!</div>
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And this is my top nine photos from the year on Instagram. Happy new year to you all!</div>
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xxx</div>
Ruth @ Camellia Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17129384344777788376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717193444096849836.post-33866774656416685822016-12-07T21:10:00.000+13:002016-12-07T21:10:09.281+13:00Snapshots - November 2016<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Hi again everyone, and welcome to my November update! I'm finally back on track with my goal of updating each month at the end of the month (or a few days into the new month which is usually what happens!) I wanted to show you the main reason I went MIA for most of October/November, and that is this lawn! It had been getting on my nerves as it was pitted and uneven, and there were patches of grass that was shaggy and a different colour to the rest, plus a trench where a pipe was laid and when the trench was refilled, the soil they put back in was so bad that nothing would grow. So... I sprayed all the grass, removed the turf by hand, levelled it by hand, and reseeded it. It's so easy to type that in a sentence but nothing was easy about that project! If you plan to redo your own lawn, I strongly recommend hiring professionals who have machinery, and then rolling out Ready Lawn. But if you're on a tight budget you can do it yourself like I did... just be prepared for about 6 weeks (weekends and evenings) of nothing but digging up turf till you're ready to collapse, then breaking up and raking clods till the surface is smooth, checking it from all angles and redoing it, then sowing seeds and watching as cats and birds ravage your carefully smoothed surface and feast on the seeds.</div>
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Disclaimer, I did know this would be hard! I also knew it would be worth it and I feel very satisfied when I look out the window and see the green haze that is more vivid every day. Soon I'll have to go through and pick out all the weed seedlings (yay) and sow some more grass to fill the gaps. And we have a hot dry summer forecast (though I'll believe that when I see it) so keeping up the watering is a must.</div>
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While I worked on the lawn the rest of the spring garden grew and flourished. I also managed to plant my beans in the potager.</div>
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Peony season arrived! I have about nine peony plants and four of them flowered this year. Three plants had one flower each. Precious little darlings, aren't they? The peony above is Pink Hawaiian Sunset which is a coral coloured bloom which fades to this lovely soft peach. It lasted about 2 weeks inside and was gorgeous the whole time. I also picked a lovely bunch of Peace roses.</div>
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I finished my second pair of knitted socks and immediately cast on the next pair using my own food colouring dyed yarn. It was very exciting to see how the colours worked up! This pattern is the Vanilla Latte socks.</div>
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I did a little bit of work on my Circlepuff Square crochet blanket, not a lot I'm afraid but I did block the squares that I finished.</div>
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Now at some time during the month there was a supermoon. It was a cloudy evening and I don't see the eastern horizon from my house so I didn't see it rise, but at about 9.30 I wandered out of my house and saw a glow in the clouds. I went down the street a little way and saw it rise out of a bank of clouds. My photo isn't very impressive but it was certainly big, and very yellow! After I took the photo it continued to rise and soon disappeared into the heavy cloud cover. So yeah, that's my supermoon story.</div>
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In other news, Pod and Ini continue to be cute and love to help in the garden (especially Ini who is pictured above testing a pot for me).</div>
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I eventually got round to taking a photo of my stripey second pair of socks! They fitted well thanks to some tweaks I'd made in the pattern. I decided to try using smaller needles for my third pair, and they have improved my gauge a lot. However it means there's no point referring to these notes as I have to work it all out again with a tighter gauge! Oh well, it's not like you stop at just one pair of socks is it?</div>
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At the end of the month some Christmas crafting sneaks in... I'm crocheting a Christmas tree skirt. Nothing could go wrong with two cats and a Christmas tree, right? </div>
Ruth @ Camellia Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17129384344777788376noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717193444096849836.post-7965219206116997082016-11-30T21:30:00.001+13:002016-11-30T21:30:21.365+13:00Snapshots - October 2016<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg551AU1jIiQxcRZwuI3uiQtWyhu4RfxtiM2J9MhyphenhyphenBs7nLsZ53FnTrm2MFrtxdUPEUv204aqAYSR5Y-ohnIKKndnV7NHs5rw3uFcc-gx642TMJoeYojGSV9UwNfKga0ElH8t-QsDlY6hok/s1600/snapshot+10+oct+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg551AU1jIiQxcRZwuI3uiQtWyhu4RfxtiM2J9MhyphenhyphenBs7nLsZ53FnTrm2MFrtxdUPEUv204aqAYSR5Y-ohnIKKndnV7NHs5rw3uFcc-gx642TMJoeYojGSV9UwNfKga0ElH8t-QsDlY6hok/s640/snapshot+10+oct+01.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
Welcome to October! This is the month when spring really kicks in. The weather was up and down which became the norm for spring - our weather in winter was much more settled! A bit of rain is always good for the garden of course and luckily the blossom trees still bloom no matter the weather. The hellebores continued to flower steadily and looked pretty next to silver-grey lambs' ears.<br />
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I made a couple more Jan Eaton squares.<br />
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The bright colours of spring begin to show! Left is Cercis Forest Pansy and right is rhododendron Mrs GW Leak.<br />
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And I had more tulips. These frilly ones are just amazing! Even more amazing to me was the way the petals age, becoming more beautiful and antique looking as they dry. Next year I really need to plant all the tulips.<br />
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I tried my hand at yarn dyeing early in the month. It's so much fun and I'm quite happy with the results given that I used food colouring! And just a cheap supermarket packet at that. I really can't wait to try some different colour combinations and techniques now, and hand dyed yarn knits up into really fun socks!<br />
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Peony season began this month! On the left is a Pink Hawaiian Sunset variety. Of my nine or so peony plants, only 4 actually flowered this season. Most of them were transplanted the winter before last, so it would seem that they are taking their time to get established.<br />
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On the right is a little posy of tulips, clematis and snowball viburnum. The clematis was looking great and covered with flowers bursting open. Then it suddenly wilted. I read about clematis wilt, which can suddenly afflict a healthy plant (usually when a young plant puts on a big growth spurt, and it grows too big for the root system to send nutrients to). The advice was to cut the plant back to the ground so it can grow back. I cut it back and there is absolutely no sign of anything growing back... boo. RIP my fancy clematis.<br />
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This month went fast as I spent the bulk of my spare time working on reseeding the back lawn. Not a fun job, or easy, or quick, but I deemed it necessary. At least I had all the spring pretties to look at!</div>
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I'll be back soon with November's update.</div>
<br />Ruth @ Camellia Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17129384344777788376noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717193444096849836.post-32942068094373495382016-11-29T21:41:00.000+13:002016-11-29T21:41:00.111+13:00Snapshots - September 2016<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Hi again! It's been a wee while hasn't it? Poor little blog, I had somewhat forgotten you (although I've still been compiling the photos). I keep thinking I'll do it this week, perhaps tonight, but then I pick up knitting or crochet and open up YouTube and the night disappears. Gentle inquiries from family members have reminded me that others read here occasionally, so I'm making a bit effort this week to bring things up to date!</div>
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And so we begin back in September, still in that transitional phase between winter and spring, where the light is bright and hard and contrasty, and you still need candles in the evening.</div>
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I finished my In The Yarn Garden cushion. I had put it aside for a little while as something about it wasn't making me feel the joy. I realised that it was the size - it was going to be quite big for a cushion, much bigger than my other couch cushions, and it just wouldn't work for me. So I decided that instead of working a separate back piece and joining them, I'd put some extra rounds on the front piece to enlarge it a bit, and then fold it envelope style and join at the back. That worked well and it was the perfect size. I added tassels to the corners for extra drama and I now call it my boudoir pillow. I made a second cushion from my original back piece, but I cheated and sewed it on the front of an existing cushion cover! So basically I got two for the price of one... gotta love that.</div>
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Spring blooms! I always love getting out my glass bottle collection and filling them with tiny blooms and blossoms. I used hellebores, anemones, stocks, spring stars, osteospermums, and my favourite foliage Jacob's Ladder.</div>
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I had a week off work too, to work on the garden of course! I dug a new bed lining the back lawn, and I had some trees and shrubs to put in. Naturally the weather was iffy for at least half the week. But I did get to enjoy the first blossoms of the season on the almond trees, along with the first tulips (also the first tulips I've ever grown - but not the last!), and at last a flower on a market-purchased hellebore (bottom left) that is perhaps the most striking hellebore I've seen. Now to try breeding it with a double...!</div>
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Here are a couple of videos from my phone... I haven't tried adding a video here before so I hope this works!</div>
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When I wasn't gardening I was crocheting, and I even organised my yarn stash into a chest of drawers (right). It JUST holds everything. On the left is my Jack and Lydia project bag, which is big enough to hold several balls of yarn plus a few smaller project bags for things like socks. It's helping keep my work station (the couch) much tidier!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCR9rW4BSce6qkLf3wuA2jUau1e2WAtmjQod_jNFklsGOQTLO2qvMHSb7Shrf3R-XT5cvTeT3CUKhgXdFWt5V5nyO_dk8KLrufUHe3N1Eft3VaQsFRPxvea37Sa2WlyfMHqx24rMPbjmY/s1600/snapshot+09+sep+07.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCR9rW4BSce6qkLf3wuA2jUau1e2WAtmjQod_jNFklsGOQTLO2qvMHSb7Shrf3R-XT5cvTeT3CUKhgXdFWt5V5nyO_dk8KLrufUHe3N1Eft3VaQsFRPxvea37Sa2WlyfMHqx24rMPbjmY/s640/snapshot+09+sep+07.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Here's another project I completed quite quickly, a crochet capelet! I just love this and it's perfect for chilly mornings. The pattern is called Chanson en Crochet and you can find it on Ravelry. Make sure you print the errata as well, as it's fairly complex! I found it a lot of fun to make with all the different lace patterns, and it became lovely and drapey when blocked.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxt6uNOhDRXnhRdNioALkI25o0ku8Rmii-LMmXEvnbhJi7IaF13PzqwO-lIU6eW-O-Kh11fPTFiZZVcCS99t_0YjCt2OH2fl82Wzv429CtMEUJg3BE1v17seitEVZRdtIMAGh3ZHWPhl8/s1600/snapshot+09+sep+08.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxt6uNOhDRXnhRdNioALkI25o0ku8Rmii-LMmXEvnbhJi7IaF13PzqwO-lIU6eW-O-Kh11fPTFiZZVcCS99t_0YjCt2OH2fl82Wzv429CtMEUJg3BE1v17seitEVZRdtIMAGh3ZHWPhl8/s640/snapshot+09+sep+08.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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I found these pretty gold metal candle holders at Kmart so I redid the mantelpiece with lots of glass and light metal (and lights). I really love it and for once I don't feel the need to redo it!</div>
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And I started knitting another sock (my second pair). Will they fit better than the first? Stay tuned to find out!</div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dyfHcW87UZylDV1gpVSw0JFWCn0p3kvNhjUDG_rmPHfucHzwx-zgE4lJtiRGiaGIqcItvMdZWT-aFOLrbQ4Kw' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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Here's a video showing the new bit of garden I created (with furry help of course)</div>
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See you soon for October's update!</div>
Ruth @ Camellia Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17129384344777788376noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717193444096849836.post-20281252000678016582016-09-11T17:19:00.001+12:002016-09-11T17:19:08.702+12:00Snapshots - August 2016<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibwWUDYLP_n-Mek0OJRX5hhvHP-NRwyfZIJmkswoTSMSg4uhJDxZwFDgCq5ulxMq_nF0bJrDoyZjIejtCcZH414_m7dri7jsFT2Y5ankwKhU36zyt1E4q-xFPDva7qT0rnKslu-l09TKk/s1600/snapshot+08+aug+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibwWUDYLP_n-Mek0OJRX5hhvHP-NRwyfZIJmkswoTSMSg4uhJDxZwFDgCq5ulxMq_nF0bJrDoyZjIejtCcZH414_m7dri7jsFT2Y5ankwKhU36zyt1E4q-xFPDva7qT0rnKslu-l09TKk/s640/snapshot+08+aug+01.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Hello again! I'm late with this month's edition of snapshots, but you were expecting that, weren't you? August again was a very mild month. We really got off lightly this winter. There have been plenty of beautiful blooms in the garden, including the camellia Fairy Blush which lines my driveway, and looks absolutely stunning when the low sunlight illuminates the petals. The hellebores are in full swing as well and I have several different varieties now. In the picture above you can see most of my different ones. The only named varieties are the two in the middle - the white double is Mrs Betty Ranicar, and the purple anemone is Tutu. The camellias and hellebores have been great for picking, and all have featured heavily in my Instagram photos this month.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_46xy-4sf4iEtEZkoed0CEjA1VffyVdCpj-ZiLWrsvobD0fdfO9ZLusFj0SVX_3Uz-d-s748Dbkb06RIABK3mHvKMs_rPCsIhQ_vpz-TLpxgIK_GKmOSY0tx-2I9cRi8HEHT_bJMCwxA/s1600/snapshot+08+aug+04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_46xy-4sf4iEtEZkoed0CEjA1VffyVdCpj-ZiLWrsvobD0fdfO9ZLusFj0SVX_3Uz-d-s748Dbkb06RIABK3mHvKMs_rPCsIhQ_vpz-TLpxgIK_GKmOSY0tx-2I9cRi8HEHT_bJMCwxA/s640/snapshot+08+aug+04.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
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Here is a couple of flat lays I did with some hellebores (and also a lovely print by my Instagram friend @atelier_cocon_m). And also, a pair of crochet cuffs I designed and made. I'm really happy with the way they turned out! I'd had the design in my head for quite a while, and to have them actually work out the same way is quite a feat! I do intend to write up the pattern and publish it here eventually, but it will probably be a while... you know me!</div>
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My other exciting crafting achievement this month is this - I knitted my first pair of socks! I'd been wanting to do this for ages, but always felt too intimidated to try. I'd seen a few people recommend the <a href="http://winwickmum.blogspot.co.nz/p/sockalong.html" target="_blank">Sockalong </a>tutorial by Winwick Mum, so eventually I decided to give it a go. Well, it worked a treat, and I discovered that actually, knitting socks is not that difficult! The Winwick Mum tutorial has lots of photos and clear instructions for different needles (I used long circular, also known as Magic Loop).</div>
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Now, I'm not saying these socks are perfect or even very good at all. They are in fact quite bad. The second sock I knit turned out baggier than the first, and I realised (I hadn't even noticed as I was knitting) that my tension had gotten really loose. Tension in knitting seems to be a lot more difficult to control than in crochet. I had this trouble with my Linus shawl too - some rows are really loose, and with others I was struggling to get the yarn off the needle!</div>
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So there are plenty of areas to work on before I can be a good knitter. I have cast on another sock though, so hopefully there will be a bit of an improvement with my next pair!</div>
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Another project this month was my In The Yarn Garden cushion. I started making the back piece, but didn't get much further than this.</div>
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Podrick (red) and Ini (blue) have been as cute as ever this month! We got them a climbing tower (thanks Kmart!) which they love to play on. It wobbles quite a lot, but that doesn't deter Podrick from climbing right to the top platform and curling up on it to sleep. Sometimes he'll have a lovely big stretch and roll right off. (He always manages to grab onto the pole on his way down!) Ini gets into the box to sleep. And they both love chasing each other right up to the top, clambering up the pole like little monkeys.</div>
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All right, that's it from us this month! Spring has now arrived... and I'll tell you all about it at the end of September.</div>
Ruth @ Camellia Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17129384344777788376noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717193444096849836.post-15642610900769128072016-08-07T21:53:00.000+12:002016-08-07T21:53:06.224+12:00Snapshots - July 2016<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixwpy2_NOHC8YpKl8QqaAJ-nBFowt251OZveWSbxU1RJZfQ7lbx1vgWuRs0nljSmWzveGksKiAzuCkg9MUcqxneM1yF0y-NnsT5sgQyPVXgLUGKFX2SSiNpFeI7X56NeJvBA1Wr9iGIT4/s1600/snapshot+07+july+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixwpy2_NOHC8YpKl8QqaAJ-nBFowt251OZveWSbxU1RJZfQ7lbx1vgWuRs0nljSmWzveGksKiAzuCkg9MUcqxneM1yF0y-NnsT5sgQyPVXgLUGKFX2SSiNpFeI7X56NeJvBA1Wr9iGIT4/s640/snapshot+07+july+01.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Hello again and welcome to my July recap told through snapshots from my phone! At the start of the month I was busy with my Jack and Lydia project basket. I'd made all the squares for the sides and finished up with a large multicoloured granny for the bottom of the bag. Possibly a waste of time since it won't be seen, but enjoyable all the same! Then one cold and drizzly morning, I sat inside with the sewing machine and whizzed up lining squares, of interfacing covered with a pretty floral print cotton. I even made pockets. And after that I carefully hand sewed each lining inside the square (not as tedious as it sounds, since I watched lots of awesome crafty podcasts while I did it). The sewing was the hardest part of the whole project - crocheting the squares was fun and easy, and joining them will be a breeze. Oh, yes I did say "will be"... I have a really terrible habit of getting a project finished to at least 90%, so close that I can almost see the finish line, and then losing interest and moving on to something else. So here at the end of the month, these pretty squares are still sitting in a stack, just waiting for me to join them all together and make the handles. It will be so quick and easy, and yet I am not remotely interested in doing it right now. Oh well.</div>
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I wanted to practice my knitting some more, so I knitted a very basic square in stockinette. This was going to be sewn up in the shape of a toy bunny, according to something I saw on Pinterest. The knitting itself went well even though the yarn (a chenille from my stash) turned out not to be the easiest to work with (there's absolutely no give in chenille!) but I didn't really measure, and when I came to sew the bunny it turned out to be a lot bigger than I had thought. And just like that I didn't like it any more! So that's two project fails in one month... not a great start!</div>
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Weatherwise it's been cold and frosty, but aside from that pretty settled. A lot of the country has been having rain and/or storms, but it all seems to have been going around us here in Christchurch. Most weekends I've been able to get outside and work for a few hours doing a bit of cutting back and tidying, and I got my garlic planted.</div>
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I also finished planting and weed matting the front garden. I'll do a proper photographic tour in spring when it's all filled in a bit. But to sum it up, there is a climbing rose planted next to the arch (it's one I took as a cutting, and I may or may not keep it depending on the colour.) I also have some star jasmine cuttings to plant on the other side, but they are very slow growing, hence the rose. The maple tree in the terracotta pot is probably temporary until I find a better small tree. There are three rose bushes, a snowberry bush, a small rhododendron and some peonies in the bed. A penstemon in the middle and a camellia that I transplanted from the back garden.</div>
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I'm looking forward to seeing it all filled in a bit! I'm also pleased to call it finished for now, so I can move around to the back garden and the new bed that's been dug there... hopefully I'll have more of an update for you on that next month.</div>
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Early in the month I became aware of a crochet along being hosted by Charlotta of <a href="https://intheyarngarden.blogspot.co.nz/" target="_blank">In The Yarn Garden</a>. I've always admired Charlotta's work so I ordered some yarn from <a href="http://www.woolwarehouse.co.uk/" target="_blank">Wool Warehouse</a>. It's a mixture of Drops cotton Love You 6, Love You 7 and Safran. I'm using a 3.25 mm hook.</div>
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The project turned out to be a cushion cover, and a new part was released each week. I worked fast to keep up so I could share my progress on Instagram, and here is my progress over the month.</div>
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Here are Podrick and Ini looking all sweet. In fact they had tired themselves out after being complete monsters! They woke me up early by jumping all over the bed and ultimately knocking over a lamp. Then all morning they chased and fought and jumped on each other, clawed furniture, knocked the things I was working on off the table. I tried shutting them outside and they sat outside the screen door and scratched it. Then I heard odd bangs at the door and when I looked outside, one of them was climbing the screen door! Honestly... children! I got ready to go out and that was when they decided it was nap time.</div>
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I also had another lovely yarn club delivery from <a href="https://www.littlewoolliemakes.com.au/" target="_blank">Little Woollie</a>. This is Cascade 220 Superwash, a DK wool. Another great stash enhancement!</div>
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July flowers are some of my favourites. Pretty pretty camellias and hellebores.</div>
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It's always magical to see a butterfly on a warm winter's day.</div>
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I contributed some squares for #Jennysblanketofhugs - a project being organised by Kate at <a href="http://justpootling.blogspot.co.nz/" target="_blank">Just Pootling</a>. This is a blanket to show love and support for Jenny, daughter of Amanda (<a href="http://www.littleboxofcrochet.co.uk/" target="_blank">Little Box of Crochet</a>) while she undergoes radiotherapy treatment.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0cYqqBYbT0-BA58WzWNIYYUgv8YlHTrX-NUygn0bYZm0nQ7b7RHbeLmH_6rf1hJq5r_7HTfmFLqnapSVgfSpBPzgKaWsn6BAdpKUsb2d9fjGLQlazVFNKFCHAI2xXNujF0qp0av15J_w/s1600/snapshot+07+july+10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0cYqqBYbT0-BA58WzWNIYYUgv8YlHTrX-NUygn0bYZm0nQ7b7RHbeLmH_6rf1hJq5r_7HTfmFLqnapSVgfSpBPzgKaWsn6BAdpKUsb2d9fjGLQlazVFNKFCHAI2xXNujF0qp0av15J_w/s640/snapshot+07+july+10.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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I also made myself a hat as the one I have is too itchy! This is just a cheap acrylic but it doesn't make me itch so it's a win. The pattern is <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/hyde-park-hat" target="_blank">Hyde Park Hat</a>.</div>
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That's it from me this month! See you at the end of August with the next edition.</div>
Ruth @ Camellia Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17129384344777788376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717193444096849836.post-8931102053493198552016-07-10T19:43:00.001+12:002016-07-10T19:43:37.975+12:00Snapshots: June 2016<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT-XV-RImkA62MuFuyaT7nAecQU27m_JvGHmAxcG8kqxj-f_y7YISI1sRNnlV9gPc6LfMC-b_1GYif-5a3k02tNT7bc1foZWlkm5h0Qo3RwvnyJQWnXybZ_0iBukNNrZXZtu6nj48vzfY/s1600/snapshot+06+June+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT-XV-RImkA62MuFuyaT7nAecQU27m_JvGHmAxcG8kqxj-f_y7YISI1sRNnlV9gPc6LfMC-b_1GYif-5a3k02tNT7bc1foZWlkm5h0Qo3RwvnyJQWnXybZ_0iBukNNrZXZtu6nj48vzfY/s640/snapshot+06+June+01.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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All right, I know I'm late with June's update! To be honest I don't even know where the month disappeared to... July was here before I knew it. I'm not struggling with winter this year and I think the reason is that I feel so busy! I have multiple projects on the go including craft and garden plus all sorts of things I want to get started on, and the days just aren't long enough! Luckily most of my craft projects are good for working on at night. Let me show you what I've been up to...</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0NOfvDy1WWYIldV6sQISjJ4fJndix8r1ua2pbibaxShPnO2-hVEhwvmbjea1r1_1RNkRnh2vqHU6wMBu0al99n9F3pV11PdQ9lIqONZ7UBPeirnAlT6kkgDsAUoVHo82vnVpf2Tg6HGo/s1600/snapshot+06+June+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0NOfvDy1WWYIldV6sQISjJ4fJndix8r1ua2pbibaxShPnO2-hVEhwvmbjea1r1_1RNkRnh2vqHU6wMBu0al99n9F3pV11PdQ9lIqONZ7UBPeirnAlT6kkgDsAUoVHo82vnVpf2Tg6HGo/s640/snapshot+06+June+02.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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At the start of the month it was all about knitting! I finished the <a href="http://bunte-wolle.jimdo.com/anleitungen/linus/" target="_blank">Linus shawl</a>, my first ever knitted garment. It certainly isn't perfect but by the end of it I felt quite comfortable holding the needles in the Continental style, and my stitches were a lot neater (and I wasn't dropping them nearly as much!) I'm still not keeping a very even tension, but hopefully that will improve a lot with practice. The lovely self striping yarn (King Cole Riot in Funky) does help detract from the mistakes, and I finished it off with a crochet picot edging. I'm very happy with the shawl, and it's been lovely to wrap around my neck when I'm gardening on a cold winter's day.</div>
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I got some wonderful happy mail this month - a beautiful pair of hand knitted socks! These are from Sue in Wellington. How lucky am I - thank you so much Sue! When I come to try and knit socks myself, I'll be able to tell if I'm on the right track :)</div>
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Well, there were some days this month where warm woollen socks were a must, but other days were warm, as evidenced by the sweet peas and roses still flowering in the garden.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcYxP0lPyPac4ekWOeWJTrcflfqVxC8di3HXGOqUAu1reVO0iNxymBc54qgo4h0T7ur5B3olC0theskkTG5BIfnOYD5_eqAShBdkbc2VBz6YWgSQHjnL8P7p7cIXDUw5d5qwKMOzvjJ_s/s1600/snapshot+06+June+04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcYxP0lPyPac4ekWOeWJTrcflfqVxC8di3HXGOqUAu1reVO0iNxymBc54qgo4h0T7ur5B3olC0theskkTG5BIfnOYD5_eqAShBdkbc2VBz6YWgSQHjnL8P7p7cIXDUw5d5qwKMOzvjJ_s/s640/snapshot+06+June+04.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Another of my projects is reclaiming my craft room, from the piles of junk and clutter that have overtaken it. Slowly, as the budget allows, I'm planning to put better storage in there. I started with some tall white bookshelves, since my books are overflowing the one bookcase in there already. After I moved some books, I also had room for the crochet blocking board and my wips - so it's made a difference already! The next plan is for a chest of drawers to put my yarn stash in.</div>
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When I visited Mum this month we (of course) hit the secondhand stores and I found some sweet little shabby chic treasures! I'm always adding to my vase collection and can't resist pretty salt and pepper shakers (which can also be vases with the tops removed). And I had some more happy mail with a yarn club box I subscribed to from <a href="http://littlewoollie.blogspot.co.nz/" target="_blank">Little Woollie</a>. It contained four balls of lovely wool yarn as well as some other little goodies like buttons and special tea bags. I'm looking forward to finishing off some projects, so I can make something with this gorgeous wool!</div>
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Here are my Jack and Lydia squares! As I mentioned last month, these will be sewn together into a cube to make a project bag. They have been such fun to make, just playing with pretty colours and different combinations of stitches.</div>
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One thing I love about Instagram is the opportunity to put a group of pretty things together and take a photo. Here are a couple of my favourite pretty photos from this month. Camellias and hellebores make such good photo props... I hate to say it but I think they might be better than roses!</div>
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There was a particular morning this month where the early sunlight was golden and it illuminated everything so vibrantly... trees, houses, birds flying overhead. Magical light like that makes me want to spend all day in the garden, but it's mostly too cold... 3-4 hours between 11-3 is usually enough! I am still working in the front garden (as you can see in the photo bottom right) getting the ground dug over and the bed shaped the way I want it. Then it will be weed matting and planting. I aim to have it all finished and tidy for spring!</div>
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Oh, and how's this for a winter harvest? Apples, lemons, leeks, silver beet, and even a couple of tomatoes and strawberries from the glasshouse! Also herbs, daisies and roses. </div>
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July is rocketing by, and I'll be back before you know it with my next update! Hope you are all having a good winter/summer!</div>
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Ruth @ Camellia Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17129384344777788376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717193444096849836.post-79376412841330850082016-06-07T20:45:00.002+12:002016-06-07T20:45:49.162+12:00Snapshots - May 2016<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc4jS-jJhCL_rAmltUNHSbvX-BF8hg_x7P_hzX2W-Iyq67skaV4T1PLFw6L-eMS0aoQZp9W5RaV9NwpI8ZqBelC-Wy56wh0Hcgt6STtsfZWLKxs7i9To07gd5NGEvPY8Butw_QLx1rzd4/s1600/snapshot+05+may+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc4jS-jJhCL_rAmltUNHSbvX-BF8hg_x7P_hzX2W-Iyq67skaV4T1PLFw6L-eMS0aoQZp9W5RaV9NwpI8ZqBelC-Wy56wh0Hcgt6STtsfZWLKxs7i9To07gd5NGEvPY8Butw_QLx1rzd4/s640/snapshot+05+may+01.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Hi again, here we are at the end of May to go through the month in snapshots. The weather this month was unusually mild and even summery, and it was lovely and often quite hot to be outside. We took plenty of strolls around the garden looking at things. I thought about the work ahead, to do when the weather is a bit cooler and the growing season has stopped, and the cats chased things and climbed trees.</div>
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It's really been a beautiful end to the season. There are autumn leaves and colour everywhere, and the last of the roses to be picked and admired.</div>
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There's also been plenty of crochet this month. I got some Circlepuff Squares completed! (Still plenty to go.)</div>
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Some more gorgeous autumn scenery... left, the fernery at the Timaru Botanic Gardens, right, Queen Elizabeth rose in my front garden.</div>
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Kitten pics! The boys continue to grow and be adorable.</div>
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It's time for bringing in leaves and seedheads and making autumn arrangements.</div>
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Some more of the month's crochet. I painted my blocking board and used it to block Circlepuff Squares. I also made and blocked more Jan Eaton squares.</div>
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I guess I didn't have enough projects on the go, so I started a new one. These squares are Jack and Lydia from the Sophie's Universe blanket pattern. I'm absolutely dying to make a Sophie one day, but in the meantime these squares were perfect for this project, which will be a project bag. A simple cube with a square for each side and some handles on top, and each square will be different aside from the central motifs. So they have been a lot of fun to work on, mixing and matching colours and stitches for each round.</div>
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Also in this collage is some autumn garden beauty - camellia Elfin Rose, and brilliant blue viburnum Davidii berries.</div>
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The cosmos has finished in the front garden, and its seed heads have been picked clean by finches. It's time to clear out this new bed in the front, so I can plant it up properly. I really did enjoy the sense of enclosure created by the bushy cosmos, so I'll definitely try to create a screen with shrubs, but I hope to keep it from getting too dense like it has along the fence line. We've just chopped out some shrubs and trees that were past their expiry date, so I have room for quite a bit of new planting and I'm excited! But more about that next month :)</div>
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For a few years now I've had it in the back of my mind that I would like to learn to knit socks. Hopefully, this will be the year that it happens! I've been following the YouTube podcast <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdVVw4ogNhqjUUi_hsvazRw" target="_blank">Crafternoon Treats</a>, and the host Kathryn is in the similar position of being a crocheter wanting to learn to knit. She recommended the <a href="http://bunte-wolle.jimdo.com/anleitungen/linus/" target="_blank">Linus shawl</a> pattern as being a good one to start with. So I found the pattern and ordered some yarn and needles, and I've been knitting away, very clumsily at first! I'll go into my knitting more in another post. This yarn is from <a href="http://www.woolwarehouse.co.uk/" target="_blank">Wool Warehouse</a> in the UK, and I really hope I like sock knitting as I have a good stash here! Even with postage and the exchange rate, it was cheaper and a much better selection than we can get here in NZ, so I'll be ordering from there again.</div>
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I had another piece of happy mail at the end of the month - a beautiful ATC from my talented friend Mayumi in Japan. It's been handpainted and stencilled with the lovely pansy design. I love the vintage style of it and had great fun laying out this wreath to photograph!</div>
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It's been a pretty good month really - good weather, plenty of craft and pretty things. Let's hope June is filled with more of the same.</div>
Ruth @ Camellia Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17129384344777788376noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717193444096849836.post-31278409136299117362016-06-05T18:57:00.001+12:002016-06-05T18:57:35.982+12:00Circlepuff Square Crochet Pattern<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXRpRl0N7BfXGODavXWAL7uGxYJhw_mTyRdPo5SuHigeuD572UFZkJoiBh8rSbSHpOQTzwIPvprJqa7kuDT-CHTNI0J8WQfqAUbpNm77xIEXwhwmqeJWPt0QcmlYS1LS5DY7niJu9ANj0/s1600/circlepuff+square.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="638" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXRpRl0N7BfXGODavXWAL7uGxYJhw_mTyRdPo5SuHigeuD572UFZkJoiBh8rSbSHpOQTzwIPvprJqa7kuDT-CHTNI0J8WQfqAUbpNm77xIEXwhwmqeJWPt0QcmlYS1LS5DY7niJu9ANj0/s640/circlepuff+square.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<b>Circlepuff Square crochet pattern - US terms</b></div>
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Round 1: make 16 tr in magic ring.<br />
Round 2: join next colour between 2 tr. Ch 2, make puff stitch in same sp (*yarn over, insert hook* 4 times - 5 loops on hook. Yarn over and pull yarn through all 5 loops - puff stitch made.) Ch 2, puff stitch between next 2 tr. Continue around - 16 puff stitches.<br />
Round 3: join next colour in a ch 2 space. Ch 2 and make 16 puff stitches as in round 2 - but yarn over 5 times for each stitch, and ch 3 between puffs.<br />
Round 4: join next colour in a ch 2 space. Ch 4, 2 tr in same sp. 3 dc in next sp. 3 hdc in next sp. 3 dc in next sp. 3 tr, ch 2, 3 tr n next sp (corner made). Continue around, finishing with 3 tr, ch 2 in same sp you started in.<br />
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<i>Tips for puff stitch</i>: pull your hook up a little each time you yarn over to keep the yarn fairly loose, so it is easier to pull through on the last yarn over. Try not to wiggle the hook too much as you pull through so it doesn't catch the loops.<br />
When sewing in the ends, give a good tug on the end from the beginning of the round as this makes the ch2 at the start as small as possible.Ruth @ Camellia Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17129384344777788376noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717193444096849836.post-68652802689030297872016-05-11T19:38:00.000+12:002016-05-11T19:38:02.389+12:00Snapshots from April 2016<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Hi all, here is the update from the month of April! Weather wise it was a perfect late summer month. If daylight savings didn't end right at the start of the month and the dark evenings start creeping in, you wouldn't realise it was autumn! Ok, well looking around the garden might give you a clue. All the late summer favourites are there... dahlias, cosmos, hollyhocks... but berries and seed heads are also starting to appear, marking the seasonal transition.</div>
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I bought three packs of tulips from The Warehouse - they had a great selection this year. I planted up a couple of pots to go outside the front door, and I'll put a few amongst my spring bulb selection lining the driveway.</div>
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The beautiful weather lent itself to sitting on the deck relaxing at wine o'clock. Even when it rained (which only happened a couple of times) it was beautiful. The downside of course is that everything is very dry, and I find it hard to keep the garden well watered when I don't have that extra time in the evening to do it.</div>
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Kitten pics! Podrick often appears out of nowhere and flops himself down on me for a cuddle. In the above left picture, he is reclining on my left hand which was holding a book open. And in the above right pic, he flopped on top of my crochet. Luckily we all agree that kitten cuddles are much more important than anything else you could possibly be doing!</div>
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Inigo (left) and Podrick (right).</div>
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This month I crocheted a sock! I lost track of how many attempts it took... four? Five? But at last I made one that I could get on my foot. The really funny thing is, when I made Sock #2 to match I somehow miscounted the stitches even though I thought I had them right, and when I tried to put it on, it was significantly smaller than Sock #1. Hilarious! I may try again at some stage, as I really want to be able to make wearable socks. Apparently the type of yarn affects the stretch factor though... so practising with cheap acrylic may not have been the best idea.</div>
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In other crochet news, I worked on the last colourway for my Circlepuff Squares blanket. The next step is to add the grey to make them square.</div>
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Here is a square being formed! And a shot of a particularly pretty moonrise one evening.</div>
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Oh, I also made a new pair of fingerless gloves. But they are currently stalled because I'm trying to come up with some embroidery designs for them. And I made this little poppy for Anzac day.</div>
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At the end of the month, the garden is looking full and floriferous! The first camellias are blooming, accompanied by the last roses, and even a late flush of clematis. I need to soak it in because winter is coming... but surely it's still very far away?</div>
Ruth @ Camellia Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17129384344777788376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717193444096849836.post-74987847071214778412016-04-06T21:39:00.000+12:002016-04-06T21:39:27.387+12:00Snapshots from March 2016<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrd8waMg1hS-lvIxga4FWHP4r7rok3e39iBAmKBjahVPHvEynNq5vAEqkGBJmJsTwX0DJW7crZC_NQ7jf0mBCwJhenBkyCzk_twFnytRdk77JGHHRuMXYfZ9wJMziyrtrNUqhQ6aYrZGE/s1600/snapshot+03+march+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrd8waMg1hS-lvIxga4FWHP4r7rok3e39iBAmKBjahVPHvEynNq5vAEqkGBJmJsTwX0DJW7crZC_NQ7jf0mBCwJhenBkyCzk_twFnytRdk77JGHHRuMXYfZ9wJMziyrtrNUqhQ6aYrZGE/s640/snapshot+03+march+01.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Hi friends, here is my little update from March in phone photos. These first photos were actually taken earlier in the year in January, when I had an ATC swap with a lovely lady in Japan who I met on Instagram. I hadn't made ATCs in a few years and it was fun to sit down and play a bit with papers and pencils. Styling them for photos was just as much fun. I didn't want to share them until she received them, and then of course I forgot about the photos for a while! So, here they are.</div>
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We had beautiful warm weather throughout most of March. The garden thrived with the warmth and a few evening showers from the sprinkler. Cosmos, roses and dahlias are rampant.</div>
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And of course, Podrick and Inigo arrived this month. They are settling in most beautifully and entertaining themselves and me with lots of things around the house. (They were very enthusiastic helpers when I had some beans to shell.)</div>
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I made a few more Jan Eaton squares. The idea is that each square is different, so I feel free to play with different colours and patterns. It's fun and I'm enjoying working the colours together. The squares are really big too so it should have a nice patchwork feel.</div>
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I've also done some more of the centres of my Circle Puff Squares. I'm really enjoying this project as something I can just pick up to work on any time without having to think too hard... I love the colours and the pattern so it's always enjoyable. I have one more colourway to do and then I'll add the last round in grey to turn the circles into squares.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjLNMhyphenhyphenuoXTgyGi5QD9rMgRgtyldFHV0PdINIuLb1Sb_hyphenhyphen8LTs6UW_mNZuI1aBElD37YwuD4uhVrhNXUw8NKMuwv55EctUz5ZUsRhuICxn0EGxzTlr-T-mp8P1eQzM8nz_j3iiPvzK6Sk/s1600/snapshot+03+march+07.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjLNMhyphenhyphenuoXTgyGi5QD9rMgRgtyldFHV0PdINIuLb1Sb_hyphenhyphen8LTs6UW_mNZuI1aBElD37YwuD4uhVrhNXUw8NKMuwv55EctUz5ZUsRhuICxn0EGxzTlr-T-mp8P1eQzM8nz_j3iiPvzK6Sk/s640/snapshot+03+march+07.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Easter fell at the end of the month. I got my Easter branch out and hung my decorated eggs. I then felt the need for more decorated eggs, so I got some more plastic eggs and applied some gold Peelcraft stickers. I coloured them in with Copic markers and finally varnished them with Glossy Accents, to give a faux enamel look. Seam binding ribbon gave the finishing touch.</div>
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I haven't spent a lot of time at my computer this month, hence the lack of posts. I've been busy with plenty of other things like reading, crochet, drinking coffee, gardening and playing with my kittens. It's been a great month though - hope yours was too.</div>
Ruth @ Camellia Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17129384344777788376noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717193444096849836.post-13007997427765912662016-03-22T21:17:00.000+13:002016-03-22T21:17:26.735+13:00Kittens!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7bHIbbsws1A4wVevJDB6ksqdwgeD_4LCOIHdSiN6SfIH-4QJKmLhtL4Pb11wPR6eyUavazLT0gRkJ9FTXQU3FlVA_3R4vej0T9rVnTbyWmaUyGQ3iRL1gQUMQOqcyPltK_1pFTfO2ZPs/s1600/05+March+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="444" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7bHIbbsws1A4wVevJDB6ksqdwgeD_4LCOIHdSiN6SfIH-4QJKmLhtL4Pb11wPR6eyUavazLT0gRkJ9FTXQU3FlVA_3R4vej0T9rVnTbyWmaUyGQ3iRL1gQUMQOqcyPltK_1pFTfO2ZPs/s640/05+March+2.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
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Hi friends... it's about time I introduced you to the 2 newest members of the family! Meet Inigo and Podrick, 14 week old identical twin brothers. They've been living here for about 2 1/2 weeks which is the main reason I haven't blogged in that time as they have been taking up all my attention.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjVYiJAYVK8-nf-QA6UauG95NKhu372OVknzG48gNkPwI6xx78AoUHsJ0UR42q3ZXm-s14glWfJRzitD8UP1j4l54-8IYTp6fkyLxORsoy3p_APWIVKOF_2Qq0-5VjSp6FCDCfak1Rr8w/s1600/05+March+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="444" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjVYiJAYVK8-nf-QA6UauG95NKhu372OVknzG48gNkPwI6xx78AoUHsJ0UR42q3ZXm-s14glWfJRzitD8UP1j4l54-8IYTp6fkyLxORsoy3p_APWIVKOF_2Qq0-5VjSp6FCDCfak1Rr8w/s640/05+March+3.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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I got them from <a href="http://catrescue.org.nz/" target="_blank">Cat Rescue Christchurch</a>, a great organisation which neuters and releases stray cats, and rehomes abandoned cats and kittens. The mother of these kittens was a stray who was neutered and released, and the kittens were raised in a foster home until they were ready for adoption. When I emailed Cat Rescue to see if they had any kittens available I thought it would take weeks to arrange, especially since I'd heard there was a kitten shortage in Christchurch. However they replied straight away that these two had just been listed, and I adopted them the following weekend.</div>
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I always wanted two cats, and when the time came to get another cat, I decided it would be a good idea to get two kittens at the same time. I figured they are still young enough to adjust to living with another feline, and would be good company for each other. Even better, these two are brothers and they get along with each other as happily as I'd hoped! They play together all the time, sleep together, eat together and even use the litter box together! So yes, they are great company for each other and while they love playing with humans, they also run and chase and tumble together which is great for burning their enormous stores of energy!</div>
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We are using the lounge room as their base for eating and sleeping. Before they arrived I tidied everything up and put some things away in this cabinet. Naturally, one of the first things they did was to go behind the cabinet, find the small hole in the back for cords, and wiggle through it. Of course as soon as one kitten was through the other was hot on his heels and they were both into my basket of yarn! I fished them out and stuffed cushions behind the TV cabinet which luckily put an end to that.</div>
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This is Inigo Montoya (named for a character in The Princess Bride) - Ini for short. He is a bit smaller than his brother and we originally thought he was timid. It's actually more that he thinks before he acts, so he hangs back and observes before charging in (unlike his brother). He wears a blue collar, and has a slightly wider nose and heavier brows. He loves to sit in the window and look out.</div>
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This is Podrick Payne (looking very surprised in this shot) - Pod for short, named for a character in Game of Thrones. He's rounder and heavier than his brother and very curious and confident. He doesn't think very hard before he rushes into a new situation, so hopefully Ini can teach him some restraint! He has slightly more delicate features and a cute walrus moustache with lighter cheeks, and he wears a black collar.</div>
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I can't believe how much these two have grown in the 2 1/2 weeks they've been here. They are settling in well and enjoying daily life. And it's so nice to have not just one, but two cats around the house again.</div>
Ruth @ Camellia Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17129384344777788376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717193444096849836.post-34790790908064255632016-03-04T21:55:00.000+13:002016-03-04T21:55:14.548+13:00Snapshots from February 2016<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0twhGenwrfN96vy4xu1IcwDiOMtiZLIwn8jMS4iVrQlsACs96bHleXA4ZZAxwKmwHcXwOS-cQPYOe3UfgYz4lgaj1ppsI7x_6w_ovMKln_qoDQSfq5RRA_-sptc5eoKQV1o8vFXtscIY/s1600/snapshot+02+feb+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0twhGenwrfN96vy4xu1IcwDiOMtiZLIwn8jMS4iVrQlsACs96bHleXA4ZZAxwKmwHcXwOS-cQPYOe3UfgYz4lgaj1ppsI7x_6w_ovMKln_qoDQSfq5RRA_-sptc5eoKQV1o8vFXtscIY/s640/snapshot+02+feb+01.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Here we are looking back at the month of February. If January was rainy and unsettled, then February was the complete opposite with an incredibly regular schedule of warm summery days. It was pretty perfect actually, exactly what summer should be like! And after our cold start to spring (with some of the coldest November mornings on record) it turned out that February was the warmest on record. I guess that is climate change for you, and one day it won't even be unusual to have such extreme temperatures.</div>
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Dahlia season is in full swing. I like how dahlias can't help being bold, even when their colours are soft! I also love the faded petals on top of the lambs' ears leaves.</div>
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As usual I made time for reading and crochet.</div>
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I changed up the kitchen shelf display to some summery colours. The day after I put these teacups out, we had a 5.7 earthquake. Amazingly the teacup stack didn't topple, although everything on the shelf shuffled closer to the edge! It seems we'll never be free of these earthquakes, never quite be able to relax from the idea of having to always be prepared. So I stuck everything down again with Blutack. It's annoying when you want to get things down and use them, but at least it keeps the pretties safe!</div>
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These are a couple of projects from this month. I finished a cover for the kitchen stool, and continued with the centres of Circle Puff Squares.</div>
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My brother helped me put up some boards in the hallway, and then I mounted hooks on them. The boards line both sides of the hallway. They are great for hanging flowers and plants, and keys.</div>
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I also had an ATC swap with a lovely lady from Japan, who I met on Instagram. On the left is her beautiful ATC. </div>
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More crochet! I want to finish the Circle Puff Blanket, and I enjoy working on the pretty pastel circles. But suddenly I needed to do something different, so I started making some random squares. They are from Jan Eaton's 200 Crochet Squares book. They will go together into a sort of patchwork blanket, eventually.</div>
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Some more dahlias, in remembrance of 22 Feb 2011. And another random square for the blanket.</div>
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Can't believe we're in March already! I'm having trouble finding time to blog lately, but I still have some garden updates to get out... hopefully I'll get to them soon! Have a great month everyone.</div>
Ruth @ Camellia Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17129384344777788376noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717193444096849836.post-62230898589919010182016-02-25T21:05:00.004+13:002016-02-25T21:05:45.357+13:00Potager, Summer 2016<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Here are some photos from my summer potager. These photos were taken a good month ago but it's taken me a while to get them edited and uploaded! Still, the garden looks mostly the same (just fuller, bushier and more rampant) so let's have a stroll through the potager.</div>
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The lavender hedge attracts tons of bumblebees. They are such funny little garden companions, going about their harvesting business and not caring at all how close I get or whether I shove a camera in their face! They also love the bean and zucchini flowers.</div>
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I have Sunset runner beans planted on both arches. The pink flowers add the finishing touch, especially when they mingle nicely with the pansies.</div>
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In the First Quarter is a Kumato tomato plant - the only variety I bother growing outside the glasshouse now. Even with very little care besides staking (I haven't even remembered to trim laterals for a while) it's growing strongly and has plenty of fruit. Still, I better get in there and trim some branches so it can ripen! To the left is some broccoli and a cauliflower. To the right is a bare patch where I harvested the garlic - I've since planted bright lights silver beet and more broccoli in the space.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF6NNOWXVUuAgkHaKmcLhwzcTVdo-KJBbW82y29VmqP7aBY29iQSqxYSNhj1sxPzVUweJ9vchZ9CQcW4rjx9Mht4ug71kTRkACWxhGLrOm32DAqsXnmOXPRvLw10Q1aRXsntxHHl8dtpI/s1600/potager+january+8a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="462" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF6NNOWXVUuAgkHaKmcLhwzcTVdo-KJBbW82y29VmqP7aBY29iQSqxYSNhj1sxPzVUweJ9vchZ9CQcW4rjx9Mht4ug71kTRkACWxhGLrOm32DAqsXnmOXPRvLw10Q1aRXsntxHHl8dtpI/s640/potager+january+8a.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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The Cheddar caulis that I sowed in spring did really well and I was able to harvest them at a good size, before there were any caterpillars around to do damage.</div>
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On the right in the Second Quarter is sweet corn. It grew strongly from seed but is a bit smaller than previous varieties I have grown, and each plant is only averaging one cob. They taste good but I'd prefer it if I was getting double the yield. I also planted heirloom beans between the corn plants, and there are self seeded pumpkins in there too, bursting out of the garden and hugging everything in their reach. The pumpkins are doing surprisingly well too, setting fruit and all. I've grown pumpkins before, both self seeded and purposely planted, and they never seem to manage to either set much fruit or get it very big. So I'll keep a cautious eye on these and hopefully they will continue to surprise.</div>
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Leeks are growing next to the corn. If they can continue to withstand the attack of the pumpkins, there will be a good stash here for winter!</div>
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Words to the wise.</div>
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Here in the Third Quarter are Borlotti beans. Since taking this photo, the leaves have started turning yellow meaning that it's nearly time to harvest. After that I'll put the bed to bed for winter.</div>
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Looking through the arches, past the beans and the pansies and the pumpkins and the rosemary. </div>
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At the very back is my apple tree Monty's Surprise, which is so heavily laden that it's bent right over and I had to tie it to the cherry tree to try and hold it upright! I guess I will need to dig in some really good stakes over winter.</div>
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In the meantime there is plenty of harvesting to do - beans, tomatoes, zucchini, spring onions. Time to finish this up and get into the kitchen to deal with some of it!</div>
Ruth @ Camellia Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17129384344777788376noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717193444096849836.post-887434380011237432016-02-16T21:52:00.002+13:002016-02-16T21:52:42.254+13:00February flowers<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguDDRPW0f08uPzRMynreWIJqYCHCShl7DgISLAs_IqL1elCZZLg1UR7P5sM3W9ZavvLc4asnw8De4aQqIYZb1lGkyk3qghZ6hK5-drDwpeVpGFGpbTGvybvSUsbEovm3VJQrJVMyDngk4/s1600/02+February.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguDDRPW0f08uPzRMynreWIJqYCHCShl7DgISLAs_IqL1elCZZLg1UR7P5sM3W9ZavvLc4asnw8De4aQqIYZb1lGkyk3qghZ6hK5-drDwpeVpGFGpbTGvybvSUsbEovm3VJQrJVMyDngk4/s640/02+February.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Welcome to my February flowers post! I noticed as I uploaded this that it's my 500th post. I've also been doing Flowers Monthly for almost 6 years! Far from finding it repetitive, I enjoy the monthly ritual of photographing the garden and flowers and collating them into this mosaic to represent what's been in bloom during the month. I go back and compare with previous years, and even though a lot of the individual blooms are the same, each collage has its own personality. It's a reminder that the garden is always changing and evolving even though the same seasons always follow each other.</div>
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Anyway, this month the garden is still fresh, but starting to take on its full, slightly overgrown and overblown look. Roses are still in full bloom, but hydrangea petals are starting to speckle and the first autumn berries have appeared. Above, from top left we have: a pretty striped cosmos; snowberries; a new hydrangea called You and Me; clematis William Keay (in his second flowering flush, yay!); osteospermum; pink penstemon; white frilly fluffy begonia; white echinacea; dahlia Cupcake; swan plant flowers and happy munching caterpillar; rose Sexy Rexy; cactus dahlia. In the middle is a little bouquet featuring a Compassion rose - gorgeously scented and grown from a cutting. I have a post planned soon to tell you more about this season's roses and how the cuttings went.</div>
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For now I will sign off and add my post to the list at <a href="http://www.maydreamsgardens.com/2016/02/garden-bloggers-bloom-day-february-2016.html" target="_blank">Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day</a>... have a look for inspiration from all around the world!</div>
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For previous Flowers Monthly posts click <a href="http://ghostmyst.blogspot.co.nz/search/label/flowers%20monthly" target="_blank">here</a>.</div>
Ruth @ Camellia Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17129384344777788376noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717193444096849836.post-39983351955671687442016-02-07T10:42:00.000+13:002016-02-07T10:42:08.059+13:00Snapshots from January<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNas3gxuBTFIfqw_-bbxPxb1C-vgGGPfCsbr9ESeaB8yNHVZj4_xoQz46nfjcgW6UqK6t6ChJ5hyphenhyphenxnXdRE5LVZ1HTR5wFVdEUcil-4j-e-Ijy_AmLlB8lLJ2TPb18_vtqUkBY1838Y0-Q/s1600/snapshot+01+jan+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNas3gxuBTFIfqw_-bbxPxb1C-vgGGPfCsbr9ESeaB8yNHVZj4_xoQz46nfjcgW6UqK6t6ChJ5hyphenhyphenxnXdRE5LVZ1HTR5wFVdEUcil-4j-e-Ijy_AmLlB8lLJ2TPb18_vtqUkBY1838Y0-Q/s640/snapshot+01+jan+01.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Hi friends. Here is my first lot of phone snapshots from the new year. The weather was all over the place, keeping a semi-regular schedule of its own... A few day of hot temperatures, then a couple of days of cloud. Some rainy days. Then repeat from the start. The garden (and weeds) are flourishing, and as long as we keep getting the warm temps, I'm not complaining too hard.</div>
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I started the year with a quick project for my niece's 4th birthday. She wasn't super impressed with the handbag to begin with (as she opened it, she muttered to herself, "oh, I hope it's not a hat!") but I'm hoping it will find its way to the dress-up box and be useful in the future! The pattern is from Tangled Happy - if you want to disappoint a 4 year old in your life, you can find it <a href="http://www.tangledhappy.com/2011/04/spring-inspired-boutique-bags.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</div>
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It was an exciting day when I picked the first tomatoes of the season! These Juliet cherry tomatoes were ready on the 5th of January and they were quickly followed by Orange King... I'll go into more detail about tomatoes in another post, but they are all doing quite well this year.</div>
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I continued working on my Greg blanket. Once all the squares were completed it didn't take too long to join it up, and it was a good way to spend a few grey afternoons.</div>
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Before I went back to work after my summer holiday, I spent a few days with Mum in Timaru. On one day we drove down to <a href="http://www.riverstonekitchen.co.nz/" target="_blank">Riverstone </a>in Oamaru. This is a restaurant surrounded by lush, mostly kitchen gardens. They grow all their own produce for the restaurant and visitors are free to wander around and take it in. It's quite a drive to get there but worth the effort! We had a lovely wander around the gardens, before sitting on a sheltered bench with coffee and a punnet of delicious locally-grown cherries.</div>
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This is another vista from Riverstone. And a view of my propagation station (set up on the top of a compost bin)... I've said before that you can never have too much lavender!</div>
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Back in my garden, the bees are getting busy. My garden flourishes mostly thanks to the efforts of bumblebees. There are a few honey bees around, but as we all know they are in decline so I'm glad for the work of my bumbly friends!</div>
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I finished The Luminaries on my second read. It was good, but I think could really have been edited into something a lot slicker. There was a lot of unnecessary epilogue stuff at the end, filling out plot points that had already been explained. I also finished Greg (details in <a href="http://ghostmyst.blogspot.co.nz/2016/01/greg-crochet-blanket.html" target="_blank">this post</a>).</div>
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More tomatoes in my harvest basket - also spring onions, zucchini and beans. The glasshouse is in full on production mode and becoming more of a jungle with each day!</div>
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And the month ended on the saddest possible note with the passing of Mr Lui. Still missing him like crazy, but taking heart from these pictures showing him enjoying the everyday pleasures. He mostly had a very happy month.</div>
Ruth @ Camellia Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17129384344777788376noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717193444096849836.post-19746330921393285782016-01-28T21:07:00.000+13:002016-01-28T21:07:02.010+13:00A post about Lui<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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This morning I had to say goodbye to my beloved boy Lui. We had a normal start to the morning where I got up, greeted him, gave him his breakfast and had my own. But when I went to get ready for work I could see that he was not well, so I took him to the vet where they could immediately tell that he had developed a blood clot, apparently caused by an unknown heart defect. There wasn't much to do apart from ease his suffering, so that is what I chose. I brought him home and we laid him to rest in the garden. </div>
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<span style="text-align: start;">I'm feeling quite devastated but I want to record some of my memories of Lui. I had him for 12 years, ever since my 24th birthday when my friend Carol asked me what I wanted for a birthday present and I replied, "a kitten!" At the time Jon and I were living in a flat where we weren't supposed to have pets but luckily my landlord was forgiving and even installed a cat door for him. The first night I decided to set some ground rules of not having the cat sleep on the bed, so we shut him in the lounge and I warned Jon not to give in even if he cried. Well, he did cry and I lasted all of ten minutes before I got up and let him into the bedroom. He was so happy as he launched himself at the side of the bed and pulled himself up on little kitten paws. He slept where he pleased after that.</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: start;"> I have to say that having a warm furry presence curled up next to you is one of the best parts of cat ownership. Lui liked to get right under the covers and curl up in the crook of my elbow with his head next to mine. He could stay there all night taking up half the bed and of course I would let him... easing my arm gently out from under him if it started to go to sleep.</span></div>
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He always had an obsession with food. When he was young a vet told us he was overweight and to put him on a diet. We got quite strict with weighing his food and the meals always seemed quite small. Lui thought so too, and so began his obsession with getting more food out of us any way possible, usually by pestering with loud and annoying meows. He would scavenge from rubbish bins, even our neighbours had to weight the lid of their bins to keep him out! (Fortunately he stopped this habit as he got older.) He also loved to be in the kitchen while anyone was cooking and would move in swiftly on the dirty dishes as soon as we sat down to eat. (I ended up turning a blind eye to this in the end, if the dishes were soon to be washed anyway, and one of his nicknames was 'Busboy' since he got them so clean!) We relaxed the diet after a while but food remained one of his life's pleasures. I'm so glad he ate and enjoyed a normal breakfast on his last morning.</div>
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Lui was fairly sedentary, so to help keep his weight down I'd encourage him for walks around the property. I'd often pull a dead leaf from the flax bush and pull it along for him to chase. We live on a quiet street, and sometimes in the evenings (preferably after dark) Lui and I would go for a walk along the street. He absolutely loved that. I would walk slowly along and he would follow behind at a distance, pausing to sniff fences and look up driveways and investigate under parked cars. We'd go a little way up the street, sometimes to the corner, and pause a minute or two, then turn around and head home. That was his favourite part and he would trot along close behind me, until we got almost there and then he would dash past with a "prrrrrraow" to get home first.</div>
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His meal times were breakfast and an afternoon meal. It was supposed to be late afternoon but due to the persistent pestering, it gradually got earlier and earlier till it was about 1.30pm! After that he would find somewhere to sleep for the afternoon, and this spot would vary depending on the season, the weather and his mood. The first thing I always did on arriving home from work would be to look for him in his various possies, and say hello. He'd raise his head and let out a happy "prrraow", and I'd spend a few minutes scratching him under the chin while he purred. Then I'd go about my chores, and we'd meet up in the kitchen to cook tea.</div>
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My darling boy, I miss him so much and I don't honestly think there was a more loved cat in all the world. He was happy and content his whole life and I'm grateful I could give him that life. Lui has been a staple fixture on this blog since I started it - my mum once said that he is a very well-documented cat - and he inspired my occasional series "Weird Cat Behaviour". All my older posts about Lui are found under <a href="http://ghostmyst.blogspot.co.nz/search/label/lui" target="_blank">this tag</a>. As you can see in these photos he loved to sleep, and he is sleeping peacefully now. Thanks for reading. xx</div>
Ruth @ Camellia Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17129384344777788376noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717193444096849836.post-36003244999393569162016-01-27T20:49:00.002+13:002016-01-27T20:49:41.006+13:00Greg crochet blanket<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Hi everyone, I'm so excited to show you my latest completed blanket. I've been crocheting for about eight years and I honestly don't know what I'd do with myself without it these days! I'm constantly driven by the need to create but I don't always have the time or energy to plan something brand new, so having a big project on the go that can be worked on in little bits is the perfect use of creative time. Last year I was working on a blanket (of my own plan), but then I came across this crochet along and just had to get in on it. A crochet along (CAL) is when little parts of a pattern are released across a period of time, usually giving you a couple of weeks to complete part A before part B is released, and so on. It seemed to me to be a good way to finish a decent size blanket in a decent amount of time! </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj154W9ABKmD5msCMszP1-rY3T62e8egbJUUI-QVgTlsPpSrvZrhs9rC_B0XURsKdRDDGz1HWDQzLo12gy_jLCRjvzSUghXE4U00YuvRikZ_QbNGrFvPx67TIpQ9cPSVhoDR95pm__ad5U/s1600/finished+blanket+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="446" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj154W9ABKmD5msCMszP1-rY3T62e8egbJUUI-QVgTlsPpSrvZrhs9rC_B0XURsKdRDDGz1HWDQzLo12gy_jLCRjvzSUghXE4U00YuvRikZ_QbNGrFvPx67TIpQ9cPSVhoDR95pm__ad5U/s640/finished+blanket+3.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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This CAL was hosted by Shelley at <a href="http://spincushions.com/" target="_blank">Spincushions</a>. The name of the pattern is Greg, and each individual square has a name - Tom, Joe, Tim, Ian and Bob. These brothers are rather handsome, I'm sure you'll agree. I decided on Shelley's suggestion to work my blanket all in one colour, which I love as it really highlights the texture in the squares. I hadn't made anything so textured before and I love it - I'll be coming back to these stitch combinations in future projects I'm sure! I also really appreciated the advice on how to construct the square so the start of each round is as invisible as possible - really good tips that I'll utilise in future.</div>
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To join the squares I used <a href="http://www.lookatwhatimade.net/crafts/yarn/crochet/crochet-tutorials/joining-crochet-squares-part-2/" target="_blank">this </a>technique. (sc, ch 1, skip 1) I couldn't do the diagonal join because the squares are different sizes, but the actual joining stitch was super quick. I will definitely use this technique again in future.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1DWlztYxcLVtrOSWm5Eyz54G4jRm-Qi9uz5EWGqDczKE1CMrueL0R72_szb9nBj5rZbdFVx8is3MzTvD-oP6XkAK46u52JSur-ArFqnmzFOcv9vxlE0ZSC6Qs3m6gzHcFi0OaKQj8Jy8/s1600/finished+blanket+5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="446" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1DWlztYxcLVtrOSWm5Eyz54G4jRm-Qi9uz5EWGqDczKE1CMrueL0R72_szb9nBj5rZbdFVx8is3MzTvD-oP6XkAK46u52JSur-ArFqnmzFOcv9vxlE0ZSC6Qs3m6gzHcFi0OaKQj8Jy8/s640/finished+blanket+5.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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There is a border pattern given as part of Greg, but I decided to repeat the pattern from Bob (the largest squares). I liked the idea of repeating it and I especially like the V-stitch row! Lastly I edged it with a row of hdc in aqua yarn.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHR4UAyEGXC2lPL6NSjemECxHQr6P-bXaEDKSlR1czGfFor7LKySc4GqwX27_0WtuqKAwbuMaGAb3o4_hPUr9ueREQjLmRXYbIAJUm1E63ckVyVY0wXXcxoftfU7zys5QoFnk-rQMmoLo/s1600/finished+blanket+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="514" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHR4UAyEGXC2lPL6NSjemECxHQr6P-bXaEDKSlR1czGfFor7LKySc4GqwX27_0WtuqKAwbuMaGAb3o4_hPUr9ueREQjLmRXYbIAJUm1E63ckVyVY0wXXcxoftfU7zys5QoFnk-rQMmoLo/s640/finished+blanket+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Here is Greg in all his splendour! He has turned out a decent size for a lap blanket, and perfect for a throwing-over-the-back-of-the-couch blanket.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6A8RwL-MNQFjTATjuTAmvJ8uR0Bd4tCuG0cqjizDjRJCjAhwB9cvj4osSw3J-ige3mbDkhj3T09lrzEO5nnBi2PScJnC_Se69gWyeNnqdv_TW8vNGU4UVOertBNUvpgLysxjne7Ha_-g/s1600/blanket+outside+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="446" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6A8RwL-MNQFjTATjuTAmvJ8uR0Bd4tCuG0cqjizDjRJCjAhwB9cvj4osSw3J-ige3mbDkhj3T09lrzEO5nnBi2PScJnC_Se69gWyeNnqdv_TW8vNGU4UVOertBNUvpgLysxjne7Ha_-g/s640/blanket+outside+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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I had to take Greg outside for a photo shoot too. Doesn't he look lovely draped over my park bench? </div>
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The CAL finished up before Christmas, but life got in the way and I worked on him a bit less for a few weeks. But he's finished now, and I still consider four months for a blanket to be very good time!</div>
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If you want to make a Greg of your own, you can find all the information at the <a href="http://spincushions.com/the-greg-crochet-blanket-pattern/" target="_blank">Spincushions </a>website. I have also updated my <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/ghostmyst" target="_blank">Ravelry </a>page with details of this project.</div>
Ruth @ Camellia Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17129384344777788376noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717193444096849836.post-27020251015595157122016-01-15T21:29:00.000+13:002016-01-15T21:29:01.658+13:00January flowers<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Welcome to January in my flower garden! I've still got a lovely selection of summer flowers which I'm pleased about, as sometimes in previous years I'm in a bit of a dull patch about now. I planted some lily bulbs last autumn and a couple of them are flowering, and the roses are still mostly doing well. The poppies are moving into the pretty seed head phase and the dahlias are starting to open.</div>
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Above, clockwise from top left: one of the new lilies (scented, and pink, double yay); lavatera; astrantia; cupcake dahlia; hollyhock; carnation; sweet pea; Christmas lilies; poppy seed head; dierama (grown from seed which I thought was pink but it's come out more red sadly); lacecap hydrangea; pelargonium. Centre: Claire Rose makes a beautiful statement in a vase.</div>
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I'm joining in with <a href="http://www.maydreamsgardens.com/2016/01/garden-bloggers-bloom-day-january-2016.html" target="_blank">Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day</a> where gardeners from all around the world share what is blooming in their gardens.</div>
Ruth @ Camellia Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17129384344777788376noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717193444096849836.post-26976148171824648712016-01-05T21:17:00.000+13:002016-01-11T21:32:55.869+13:00Snapshots from December<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHJ2WyLNCAB4dhsY2NrLQm4PQD-M7C2i7wudr06Vr115dEt0PNZyNw9zNjbBRUGPtOY2bSkNNrIXLd67e_pXTXXODXO1bcCTcatPcavzhq99Qkndf2nodKSLOES1JVmWW7W3uMGXYRdC4/s1600/snapshot+dec+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHJ2WyLNCAB4dhsY2NrLQm4PQD-M7C2i7wudr06Vr115dEt0PNZyNw9zNjbBRUGPtOY2bSkNNrIXLd67e_pXTXXODXO1bcCTcatPcavzhq99Qkndf2nodKSLOES1JVmWW7W3uMGXYRdC4/s640/snapshot+dec+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Here are some of my phone snapshots from December. It's such a beautiful month for flowers and decorating, and the trick is to try and find the time to stop and appreciate it. I had the last of the bright vivid peonies to admire, and roses and sweet peas moved to take the spotlight as the peonies faded. </div>
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I usually try to go for a subtle look when editing my photos for Instagram... but sometimes I just can't help myself and go all out with textures and colour washes. I love the dreaminess of the rose above. My favourite editing programme is <a href="https://pixlr.com/" target="_blank">Pixlr</a>, which has lots of options from simple to dramatic.</div>
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Of course that little thing called Christmas began to slip in and the decorations came out. My favourite little glass baubles ornamented many an Instagram photo.</div>
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I made several doilies for Christmas presents. In the above left photo, the doily at the bottom right is called the Passionflower Doily and you can find the pattern <a href="http://makemydaycreative.com/2014/05/23/passion-flower-doily/" target="_blank">here</a>. There was something wrong with my first attempt at the doily (not the one above) and I wasn't happy with how it turned out. So I began to work out another design, roughly based on a vintage doily from my collection. The first couple of attempts are in the left photo and the blue doily on the right is how it turned out. Hooray! In the meantime I attempted the Passionflower doily again and realised I hadn't made the right number of stitches to start with, which had thrown out the whole thing. So I started again and this time was very happy with the finished result.</div>
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These pictures mostly sum up the December crafting... doilies and blanket squares. </div>
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My friend Caren and I had a swap in December for 12 Days of Christmas. We each sent the other 12 little gifts to be opened one each day in the 12 days leading up to Christmas. It was such fun to open a present each day and really made Christmas feel exciting. Caren sent me all sorts of delicious treats such as chocolate, fudge, organic vanilla, coffee and drinking chocolate. She also sent beautiful Christmas ornaments and the little house above... it is lit from within by a battery tea light. I do love adding a little house to my collection.</div>
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Lui enjoyed getting into everything I was doing this month! Here he is testing the blanket squares for softness, and photobombing my carefully styled shoot! He is 12 years old now and very companionable. When he was younger he wasn't really interested in hanging out with me too much, but these days (when he isn't sleeping) he is quite happy to accompany me around the garden or through the house. I love his company.</div>
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Let's end the month with some more dreamy flowers! The Cecile Brunner roses are always lovely in a vase. Poppies don't last as long so I take close up photos of them in the garden... lovely!</div>
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Happy new year to you all. xx<br />
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Oh and just for fun, this is my #2015bestnine (ie most popular Instagram photos). It's interesting to note that it's all crochet... well, those are some of my favourite photos too!</div>
Ruth @ Camellia Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17129384344777788376noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717193444096849836.post-51687893628346434722015-12-29T21:57:00.000+13:002015-12-29T21:57:07.378+13:00The Christmas mantelpiece<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEherMI5W_2jTpEwJcAw8NrXptTk1If2LuSmg1JjTzYwl2MkZ5T2L6DjP5UdpbhmveDMzdyVrRmvI88k8NGGFFUsUMNtzKkkhaWjt__C4nT5eiJ7Tk6j-YheHQAKJ-aO5teIKvbdZRsrsOM/s1600/Mantelpiece+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="446" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEherMI5W_2jTpEwJcAw8NrXptTk1If2LuSmg1JjTzYwl2MkZ5T2L6DjP5UdpbhmveDMzdyVrRmvI88k8NGGFFUsUMNtzKkkhaWjt__C4nT5eiJ7Tk6j-YheHQAKJ-aO5teIKvbdZRsrsOM/s640/Mantelpiece+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Hi again! Christmas has been and gone, and I thought I'd better share these pics of the Christmas mantelpiece before they become too redundant. I meant to do this a couple of weeks ago but the silly season got away on me, as it generally does! There is quite a lot going on here with the advent calendar in the background but I kept the colours soft and calming. I would have liked to finish it off with a big sign or star at the top of everything but I didn't come across anything exactly right, and as I said the time got away from me... I'll improve on it next year!</div>
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One thing I like a lot about this display is that I kept my plants in it! I also added fresh garden roses.</div>
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There is a little light-up Christmas tree along with some glass baubles (and is that Santa I see peeking out of the door?)</div>
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I finally got around to glittering some little houses to use in my village scene. </div>
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I really like this calendar! It's called the <a href="http://www.bookdepository.com/Silent-Night-Advent-Calendar-Schroeder/9781558584372" target="_blank">Silent Night Calendar</a> and has such sweet illustrations. One of my favourite childhood Christmas memories is opening the doors on the advent calendar, excitedly waiting to discover what the little picture would be. We didn't have chocolate advent calendars and I didn't care. These days it's so hard to find a calendar that isn't licensed to Disney and full of chocolate crap, and I was super happy to find this one. It's been as thrilling as I remembered to open the little doors, and I intend to put it carefully away so I can bring it out every year.</div>
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I made this retro ornament garland in soft colours to tone in with the calendar. The pattern came from the <a href="http://persialou.com/2015/11/crochet-retro-ornament-garland.html" target="_blank">Persia Lou</a> blog.</div>
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It's nearly time to take down the display in favour of something more summery, but I think I'll enjoy it for a few more days first. Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and holiday time! xx</div>
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PS I'm also going to count this as my last Styling the Seasons post for the year! Styling the Seasons is a monthly styling challenge hosted by Katy at <a href="http://www.apartmentapothecary.com/wordpress/">Apartment Apothecary</a> and Charlotte at <a href="http://lottsandlots.blogspot.co.nz/">Lotts and Lots</a>. Find out more by searching the hashtag<b> #stylingtheseasons </b>on social media.</div>
Ruth @ Camellia Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17129384344777788376noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717193444096849836.post-81117181463301350382015-12-19T12:47:00.003+13:002015-12-19T12:47:51.418+13:00A summer hailstorm<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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My lavender bushes are at their peak right now, loaded with fragrant purple sprigs. The best way to spend a summer evening is out in the garden with snips and basket, harvesting bunches and hanging them upside down to dry. They only take a week to dry and then it's just a matter of crumbling the dried buds into a container and hanging some more up to dry. When I've harvested all I can, I'll fill lots of little organza bags for under-the-pillow sweetness.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcSPhpspeydnz5HVWiQcgxU2Lb69TwqUhGExQfCoXqMxPFdFYrsgJpq5jQsMphp_n5nar9dSUFJEhHUjLMtVk4ZgyTAOf-cpp0rozV7t3hhCOyOFTPEd0sP5onhKBgqXkjc7bCH-uYaGA/s1600/lavender+dec+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="446" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcSPhpspeydnz5HVWiQcgxU2Lb69TwqUhGExQfCoXqMxPFdFYrsgJpq5jQsMphp_n5nar9dSUFJEhHUjLMtVk4ZgyTAOf-cpp0rozV7t3hhCOyOFTPEd0sP5onhKBgqXkjc7bCH-uYaGA/s640/lavender+dec+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Of course I'm not the only one who likes the lavender... bumble bees are very busy getting in there and gathering pollen. I must say I enjoy the company of these hard little workers and I find them very obliging in getting out of the way as I pick my bunches, although they do often continue to harvest the flowers in my basket!</div>
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The plants on the deck are filling out as well. </div>
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In fact everything was looking pretty good, until last Sunday when a rather bolshy thunderstorm blew in. Rain and wind lashed the garden, and then hail pelted down. It was rather heavy and rather loud.</div>
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Not to mention cold... brrr! This looks like a nice coating of cherry blossom, but it's actually hail. Fortunately more rain came along after this and washed most of the ice away.</div>
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This is not as bad as the big storm that lashed Sydney, but it was enough for me and my garden! </div>
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Most of the damage was sustained by big-leaved plants which are all looking battered and tattered. I was sad to see the damage on the Cercis Forest Pansy (top left) because I love it's heart shaped leaves. The hosta my neighbour gave me (top right) really took a pummelling. I might be able to trim and feed it to convince it to grow some new leaves. </div>
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In the vege garden, the beans mainly bore the brunt of it (bottom left), but luckily they have only just started producing flowers so there weren't many to be knocked off. My apples have been the main casualty (bottom right), with lots of little apples knocked off (I'll consider this nature's way of thinning them out), but the rest were badly pock marked. I'll still use them for cooking and cider making, but I feel bad for commercial growers who have probably lost entire crops.</div>
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So that's the latest from the early summer garden! How are your summer/winter gardens going?</div>
Ruth @ Camellia Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17129384344777788376noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717193444096849836.post-84772032602288802462015-12-17T20:50:00.000+13:002015-12-17T20:50:17.228+13:00December flowers<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaz4KSAsTj8-Yal7_bRJXVMxYgG6U1pjRLq5tw-zphf1ImxAIc9aY2wZDRvQT68L2cdQjDc267su8qQG8nDCd1sdC49NU3kvpcbEocHezmApCRToexAOX96aj7wsV_NQpg0fxYWf_sV8A/s1600/12+December.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaz4KSAsTj8-Yal7_bRJXVMxYgG6U1pjRLq5tw-zphf1ImxAIc9aY2wZDRvQT68L2cdQjDc267su8qQG8nDCd1sdC49NU3kvpcbEocHezmApCRToexAOX96aj7wsV_NQpg0fxYWf_sV8A/s640/12+December.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Here we are in the December flower garden. Rose season is in full swing, and I have to say the roses have never looked better! All that watering at the start of the season has led to strong foliage and lots of flower heads. Take note for the future, self! </div>
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Above, clockwise from top left: purple poppy, pink gypsophila, The Fairy rose, Claire rose, sweet peas, Queen Elizabeth rose, pink peony poppy, Peace rose, a little pastel pansy, lavatera, Sexy Rexy rose, Queen Anne's lace. In the middle is a grouping of sweet peas and roses in little glass bottles... a lovely scented centrepiece.</div>
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This area in the garden always gets a bit wild over summer as everything grows tall and bushy. I like the pastel tones of the lambs' ears and lavatera but I realised recently that something had always struck me as jarring about the scene, and that something is the pink penstemon. It's a really hot coral pink (more so than this picture shows I think), and just clashes too much with the surroundings. So I'll leave it be since the weather is too hot to shift it now, but next winter I'll whip it out and replace it with something more pastel.</div>
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Everything looks much prettier when viewed from the other side! I'm enjoying the poppies while they last too. They are self seeded from last year and about every third plant has reverted back to red, so I pull those ones out, and hope I'll still have some pink seedlings next year!</div>
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It started to rain while I took these pictures, so I popped into the glasshouse and spied on the sparrows in the feeder. I love hearing birdsong in the garden.</div>
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That's it for today! I have some more garden pics to show soon along with some Christmas decorating. This month is flying along so fast!</div>
Ruth @ Camellia Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17129384344777788376noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717193444096849836.post-50099432982504322352015-12-02T20:07:00.003+13:002015-12-02T20:07:36.973+13:00Snapshots from November<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Hi again - it's time to recap November in phone and Instagram photos. Greg the CAL blanket has been my constant companion, although the Tim squares above gave me a bit of trouble! I ended up switching them with another block pattern so I didn't have to make so many.</div>
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I got a lot planted in the potager at the start of the month - October was cold so I waited a couple of weeks past the usual time. Then I planted beans, tomatoes, leeks, sweet corn, chillis, zucchinis, spring onions and capsicums. The picture above shows some of my heirloom bean seeds, I just love the variety they provide. Anyway, Mother Nature had some more winter up her sleeve which she threw at us in the start of the month - there was even a frost or two! Luckily most of the beans weren't up yet and everything else was sheltered by taller plants, so there wasn't any vege garden carnage.</div>
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At the beginning of the month I was still picking anemones. Catmint and lambs' ears also filled vases.</div>
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Rhododendrons and roses... Mrs GW Leak (left) and Peace rose (right). Peace goes a dark pink on the outside when the weather is cold.</div>
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In the middle of the month the long-awaited moment happened... I finally had a bloom on the Sarah Bernhardt peony! Just one bloom, mind you, and I'd been waiting four years, but at least she finally knows what to do. Moving her to full sun obviously did the trick.</div>
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And I made some more squares for Greg - these are the flowery Ian blocks.</div>
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Cecile Brunner roses were next in the flowering schedule, and look sweet combined with aquilegia and catmint. I'm happy to report that the weather warmed right up and we've had some lovely hot days already! Hopefully this is a taste of the summer to come, as long as there is enough water to go around the garden.</div>
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And not long after, the rose season began in earnest. In the basket above I have Peace roses (yellow), Queen Elizabeth roses (pink) and one pink Claire rose - you can see her better in the vase pic to the left. My roses are performing better than they ever have. I replanted their bed in early spring, mulched, weedmatted, and watered regularly which I haven't really bothered with before... and this is the result. It's clearly worth it!</div>
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Towards the end of the month I put Greg aside to begin some Christmas crafting. There will be more to show as the decorations go up!</div>
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Let's end this post with some dreamy petal perfection! I just love my early summer garden.</div>
Ruth @ Camellia Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17129384344777788376noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8717193444096849836.post-25161543284842656762015-11-19T20:42:00.002+13:002015-11-19T20:42:33.221+13:00Urban Jungle Bloggers: Plant Shelfie<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9wFz7wGJ0TpaxDIykYxFMdhhy_eBfYv-W8CEsqgvYl12YL0WNZDATJejtr5mlu2ieSKGwHN667sYjYTboXaqCsakL6APQNq0yz2PnAeSOURgzLPlC9_jWSDWZ_iu3UEGXhI2mA0BlR0Y/s1600/November+Plant+Shelfie+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="446" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9wFz7wGJ0TpaxDIykYxFMdhhy_eBfYv-W8CEsqgvYl12YL0WNZDATJejtr5mlu2ieSKGwHN667sYjYTboXaqCsakL6APQNq0yz2PnAeSOURgzLPlC9_jWSDWZ_iu3UEGXhI2mA0BlR0Y/s640/November+Plant+Shelfie+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Hi and welcome to my latest post for <a href="http://www.urbanjunglebloggers.com/" target="_blank">Urban Jungle Bloggers</a>! The theme this month is Plant Shelfie. I'd just shifted this vintage wooden ladder into a new sunny position, mainly so the plants which live on it could catch a few rays and stop growing leggy, and it was a good chance to get out my camera and take a few shots for this post.</div>
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The maidenhair fern at the top is one of my favourite houseplants, even though it reminds me a lot of Sideshow Bob. It needs repotting and after that I'll probably shift it to a less sunny position, this is just a temporary holiday for it!</div>
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Here are two of my favourite lady face planters. They are called Rapunzel and Mrs Blossom. Rapunzel is growing a single long strand of string of hearts... I wonder if it will ever sprout a second string? Mrs Blossom is hatless right now, but she quite often likes to wear a camellia or other large bloom on her head. </div>
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There is also a succulent, some goldfish plant, and a couple of cyclamens on their off season. This little corner is very calm and relaxing to sit in, basking in the evening sun surrounded by greenery.</div>
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I've also got some plants on the kitchen wall opposite. (This kitchen shelf was the subject of my very first <a href="http://ghostmyst.blogspot.co.nz/2014/11/my-kitchen-shelfie.html" target="_blank">plant shelfie</a>, a year ago!)</div>
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Here's some more string of hearts, trailing past a little cup of succulents. </div>
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This dried hydrangea has been here a while! Soon I'll have fresh new hydrangea flowers to bring inside.</div>
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That's it for today. Soon it will be time to decorate for Christmas - the vintage ladder is in the spot I normally put the Christmas tree, so it will need to be shifted again! Unless I just throw tinsel over it that is... could be a fun option!</div>
Ruth @ Camellia Rosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17129384344777788376noreply@blogger.com0