Measuring Cards - Sewing

We made these little measuring cards at school in needlework. I must have been about 12 years old. They're only cardboard (with a little fabric bag to keep them in) but they've lasted over the years and I still use them frequently.

Being an Imperial sort of Mrs F they're in inches. They go from tiny 1/4" through 5/8" and up to 1 1/2" with other measurements in between. Some are double ended.

You can see their use in the photo below. Perfect for marking a hem or seam line and much easier than flappy old tape when there is a hot iron involved.



If you do a lot of sewing then I'd recommend you making yourself a few of these ( metric would work too of course) using your most common measurements.

If mine can last over 35years then I think my old sewing teacher taught me well.

Pie!

I just fancied making a pie! Its filling is a savoury mix of onion, mushrooms, broccoli, a little celery and some dabs of goats cheese.

New plot season

Now the weather has improved somewhat - ok its not that warm yet but at least its not snowing or raining currently - I've been able to get up the plot and make a start on some new projects up there.

We've had the allotment some 7 years I suppose, and some areas aren't working as well as they should.

• My cutting garden wasn't so good last year, gladioli and dahlias were poor and the gravel path I'd created was a weedy pest to maintain.
• We'd only ever part fenced off the plot, part due to cost, but the rabbit/deer/pigeon problem has got worse over the years and that also needed a rethink.
  
• And thirdly having played around with polytunnels after being able to 'borrow' space in a neighbouring one, we would rather like our own. There are now bargain ones available on the likes of eBay so its within our reach price wise.
  

So over the last few weeks when its been too cold to really do anything up there we've taken the time to walk around the plot and have a bit of a re-think.

Its clear fencing the whole plot is the way forward. Working out how to do that when its 180ft long x 25ft wide has taken some musing, not least of which is working out if and where to put some gates so that you can work on say a middle bit with ease. We've probably amassed enough netting to do the project but some investment in more fence posts is going to be needed. Today I pulled up the last of the old fencing in the areas that were enclosed and have begun marking out new edges starting from the far end of the plot.

The cutting garden has been laid bare for the moment. I've pulled up the fence around it and it needs a good old dig over. I've still to work out how I'm going to create and display that part of the plot. I still want a cutting plot very much; its more a case of revitalising the area and trying out some new ideas.

There is plenty of space for a polytunnel and we can see exactly where it needs to go so I've started to clear the space ready. Not sure when we'll order one but I want to be ready!

The two large bays we have near the shed end will stay, as will the fruit bushes bay and the strawberry patch as they work as they are. Need a post winter tidy ( I've started by pruning the fruit bushes and canes) but other than that they're fine as they are. The big bays will be used for space hungry crops like potatoes and squashes. The rest I'm considering dividing up more; perhaps in to raised beds of some sort.

Everyone has different ideas on plot growings - some like great areas full of lots of the same thing; like 20 cabbages or 6 rows of carrots. I'm interested in doing some smaller areas with a bigger variety of crops in it. Just because I can grow a 20ft row of turnips doesn't mean we need such a glut at once! In large areas I found it hard to do small rows of successional plantings - it looked messy somehow. The idea will evolve as we go on and will probably depend as much on what we find to create the beds with.


Above photo was taken across the width of the plot at the far end - last summer it was full of pumpkin plants and comfrey -its a perfect spot for a polytunnel so Tim was measuring to see what size we had room for. You can see other plot holders tunnels in the distance and it was these that gave us the idea.

Perhaps need to apologise for the top photo - it was taken on my phone on a freezing cold day so I was trying to be quick and put my gloves back on, hence the slight odd angle..

Fiddlesticks Fashion 4

This is my big skirt for wearing when its cold. Its a gagara skirt from Denny Andrews. Its made of a heavy weight cotton and has a simple drawstring waist. As Denny says its cut in such a way that its not bunchy and is very comfortable. I like wearing it on a winters day to tuck my feet under when curled up on the sofa - definitely a 'nesting' skirt. Its quite warm enough to wear outside on a country walk too. Denny still sells these skirts but colours and patterns may be different now.

The fleece top is one I wear everywhere but more especially up on the plot. It came from an outdoor clothing sale at the local garden shop.

And the scarf is also a Denny Andrews one. Below you can see more detail of the fabric pattern on both the skirt and the scarf.


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