my little helper

June 27, 2011 Julie (little Cotton Rabbits)23 Comments

Thank you, thank you, thank you for all of the wonderfully wise comments on the previous post. I suppose I was looking for a little reassurance that my parental compass wasn't completely out of whack! It is incredibly reassuring and heartening that so many people feel the same way about raising children. I loved reading all of the comments especially since they were from such a diverse group of women and yet echo the same strong maternal instincts to protect and nurture. Thank you again x

Amy's enjoying stretching her wings gently and has been out for a bike ride with friends over the weekend – it's good to give her freedom to do fun stuff with her friends that doesn't involve wearing too much make-up!

Over the weekend the temperatures here have soared and since this comes hot-on-the-heels of a rainy week, everything is growing well in the garden. I expect the first harvest of french beans in a week or so and we've been enjoying fresh picked lettuce for a few weeks now. The strawberries are also at their best and I've been picking a delicious bowlful every few days.

Thankfully I've got a little helper living in the strawberry patch who has been keeping the slugs in check for me.

Isn't he a sweetie?

crafts & knitting

coloured pencils

June 20, 2011 Julie (little Cotton Rabbits)46 Comments

Thanks for the kind comments about the latest batch of knitted animals and about my little sitty-knitty corner on the last but one post. A couple of people asked what I use my collection of coloured pencils for. To be honest, not so much these days – they had most of their use nearly 20 years ago when I was at college and then when I worked (briefly) as an illustrator / graphic designer. I used to paint in gouache and then work over the surface in the caran d'ache watercolour pencils. Things like this…

(If you wanted to see more of my paintings there are a few more on flickr.)

These days the pencils mostly come out for shrinkle making with Amy, though I do sketch out ideas for clothing for the knitted animals from time to time. I did a few paintings for the children's rooms when they were little, but the last time I painted properly was when Amy first started school and I made this Little Red Riding Hood costume for a fancy dress competition.

These days it's mostly knitting rather than painting that fills my free time – it's easier to pick up and put down and so fits in much better with having the children around. But thanks for asking about the pencils and giving me the chance to drag out my paintings again and remember how cute Amy was at five!

general stuff

happy father’s day

June 19, 2011 Julie (little Cotton Rabbits)10 Comments

Happy father's day to all Dads out there, most especially my own.

Thanks for keeping the felt glasses case that I sewed for you when I was seven – despite the fact that it was never fit for purpose, thanks for putting up with my teenage years, for keeping me on the right path in life and for always being there when I need you.

Love you Dad x