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Category Archives: craft

Concert, Charities and A Badge

For the song we were singing, Sithi Malweni, when this photo was taken at the concert last night at the Eco Park, I had left the tenors and moved to the sopranos as I love their part and it’s not too high for me.

We were collecting for our charities last night, ShelterBox, Penhaligon’s Friends and we raised an amazing £931! What a wonderfully generous audience and choir. We also collected items for the local food bank. These trollies are full of what we collected.

Here are the flowers, card and special badge that we gave Claire. The stitching on the badge, ‘Lead in love’ is from one of our songs, “We Shall be Known” and is the way our wonderful leader, Claire, leads at all times.

2 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on October 20, 2025 in community, Cornwall, CPR Foodbank, craft, Food Bank, Penhaligon's Friends, Postaday2025, ShelterBox

Oranges and A Poem

16 Oct

Next week I’m going to a Bay Leaf Wreath Workshop and I’ve been dehydrating orange slices for added decoration. This is my first batch.

I found this poem today. It’s called Jigsaw and is by Matt Goodfellow. Regular readers will know we like doing jigsaws but more than that, the philosophy expressed here beautifully simply is so needed right now.

3 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on October 16, 2025 in craft, Postaday2025, Uncategorized

Tags: Matt Goodfellow.

A Letter, A Book Club and Threads

15 Oct

I wrote a letter to The Guardian yesterday in answer to someone belonging to a book club but who couldn’t read each book in only four weeks. They published it today, and I discovered this evening that 15 people have joined the ShelterBox book club as a result of reading my letter! I am delighted.

I needed some red thread to mend my red leather wallet so went to my Mum’s cotton collection and found one to match, of course! I have kept the drawers from the sewing cabinet my Grandpa made for her to her design when she was eighteen. That was in 1933 – I’ve never worked that out before. Almost every reel is wooden and one has the price on it, 23p.

4 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on October 15, 2025 in family, Postaday2025, sewing, Uncategorized

Tags: ShelterBox, ShelterBox book club, The Guardian

Cake, Scarf and A Poem

13 Oct

We had a few bananas in the freezer that needed using up so I made a Banana, Pecan and Raisin Cake for tomorrow.

As Nancy suggested, I decided to make a scarf with the lovely sprkly yarn I showed you a while ago..I think it will take me some time!

I found this piece the other day . It’s a good philosophy to live by!

7 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on October 13, 2025 in baking, craft, knitting, Postaday2025, Uncategorized

Tags: @sheonthetipofhertongue, Banana, Pecan and Raisin Cake

Yarn, More Yarn and Moussaka

04 Oct

One of my favourite shops in town has started to stock wool and I went in today to see the new shelves – lots of gorgeous colours!

I couldn’t resist buying some very pretty multi-coloured wool and am now thinking of what to make with it!

I like to bake a big dishful of whatever, have some for tea and freeze away several potions so that we have ‘ready meals’ always available for when we don’t feel like cooking. Tonight it was a big dish of Moussaka. .

8 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on October 4, 2025 in knitting, Postaday2025

Tags: the craft collective

New Topper, Shadow and A Poem

21 Sep

There’s a new postbox topper on our street, four frogs fishing.

The evening sunlight lit up our lovely boat sculpture and threw a pleasing shadow.

I came across this poem, Rhapsody by William Stanley Braithwaite, today and wondered why I had never read it before. It’s in the book, A Poet for Every Day of the Year edited by Allie Esiri.

By William Stanley Braithwaite 1878 – 1962

4 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on September 21, 2025 in art, Cornwall, craft, Happiness, knitting, Postaday2025, sculpture

Tags: A Poet for Every Day of the Year, Allie Esiri

Park, Ducklings and Tea-Cosies

05 Sep

After a lovely breakfast with friends in Truro, we took a short walk in Boscawen Park. The flower borders are still looking lovely, I like the design of the signs and I loved watching the ducklings.

Afterwards when shopping I saw some quirky and very attractive tea-cosies made by Poppy Treffrey, a maker and designer I have only just become aware of but whose website is a delight. See it here.

August 30th and 31st Catch-up

02 Sep

Saturday August 30th
We lost our broadband on Saturday and it seems we won’t have it back for some time as there is a break in the cable underground. Our lovely neighbour is very generously letting us use hers so I can catch up with everything.

I spent much of the day baking and having a lovely time baking cakes to be sold at Roots tomorrow when it will be Apple Day. I made a Ukrainian Apple Cake and a Spiced Toffee Apple Cake.

Ukrainian Apple Cake

Spiced Toffee Apple Cake

Sunday August 31st

And then it was Apple Day! And what a day – so many apples were chopped and pressed and juiced, bottled and pasteurised, so many cakes were enjoyed, so much Roots Ratatouille eaten for lunch, and many Dorset buttons were made – altogether a very busy and very enjoyable day.

Apples!

The process

Local varieties

Washing

Chopped apples now in the scratter

Layering the scratted apples in the press

Attaching the handle

Winding the press

Juice

One of the activities available was learning how to make Dorset buttons and as regular readers will know, I love making – so I had a go and made a button of an apple tree.

Thanks to M for being such a brilliant teacher.

2 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on September 2, 2025 in community, Cornwall, craft, music, Postaday2025, Uncategorized

Tags: Apple Day, community roots, Dorset buttons, juicing

Buttons, Knitting and Some Advice

20 Aug

I found both the patience and the time this afternoon to sew up another of the little jackets I am knitting for babies in Ukraine. I have three more knitted and all in pieces but so dislike sewing up that they’ve been waiting a while. Happily the truck going to Ukraine isn’t going for a while. I am using the mother-of-pearl buttons that were my Grandfather’s sample ones when he was a button salesman in the 1920s so they are 100 years old! It gives me enormous pleasure to handle them, to sew them on and to make every little jacket extra special.