November Slowly Beckons...

Hello lovelies

Thank you for popping by last weekend.

It was lovely to know so many of you enjoy my little Fen ramblings on life...

So, today sees the official start of

the darker season after turning back the clocks last night...

Did you remember?

As Autumn continues to swish and  twirl in her silky petticoats as she performs her much rehearsed daliances, she's leaving a beautiful veil of misty cobwebs all around us her in the Fens as we watch the Earth slowly dying and decaying in between the nooks and crannies.

I know for some of you all this may seem a sad time of the year but I believe it is a wonderful time of year.

For me, Autumn is always a season I welcome.

It always means it is a time for reflections...

It's time to allow our bodies to slow a pace and take time to take notice of the stillness in the air as Winter is preparing to start off on her journey and is meandering our way...

Have you ever thought about how the trees never want to cling on to their leaves,

they simply watch them tumble towards a new path.

I think Autumn is a generous lady who allows us to release the old to make way for the new

in our own little way...

We all have a story to tell of how life has ventured during the year.

I for one won't be sorry to say goodbye to this year in many ways 

and yet I am really looking forward to that new path ahead..

This year has seen me travelling up and down the motorways more times than I've ever done in my life before, for both happy & sad reasons.

I'm a firm believer in things happening for reasons often unknown to us at the time so I usually try to find the positives that sit alongside their negative playmates...

So, what's my reflection on the outcome of all that travelling?

Well, for one as a driver who isn't really that confident I can now hold my own on a motorway with the white van bully boys, I can now understand when Sat Nav Simon says keep right he doesn't actually mean turn right he means keep straight (and yes we have had words over that description with each other many a time!) and finally I have learnt that despite building up the number of miles on my little car's speedo, I in fact still absolutely hate motorway driving with a passion!

On a positive of course all that driving has enabled me to work in a many new venues, meet loads of beautiful people, watch my book being turned into a reality and

enjoy seeing a little more of Britain that I haven't seen before.

And so...

the first day of Autumnal darker days sees me finally snuggled in at home with my sparkly lights aglow again (I LOVE sparkly lights!!!) looking forward to a new season of so many sweet things... but that's another post!

For now I'm just chuffed to be snuggled in my cosy home with Mr T ,

 slowly stepping toward our festive celebrations...

Until we natter next time folks...

Toodle-ooh for now

Tilly 

x x x

Slower Autumnal days ahead...

Hello lovelies...

Gosh what a blustery 'ol weekend.

Storm Brian seems to have had his say on things as he sped by here in the Cambridgeshire Fens. The flat landscape surrounding my little home is a perfect place for fast spiralling winds and howling gasps that are often so ferocious they can take your breath away as you step outside.

At this time of year things should be slowing down a pace or two but, with all the storms and hurricanes of late, we seem to be in a continual whirlwind of daily life battling with Mother Nature.

As the days start to begin to get shorter concentrating on slow living is more appealing.

It's a time of year to take stock of what is happening all around us, what I want to 

get done in the following months and a  good way of filling my days with sunshine 

in a creative way.

As the crimson autumnal hues line the Fenland horizons they help to bring us a

beautiful ombre of golden gems that sparkle in the dimmed evening light.

A glory of gold

And russet and grey

The tree-tops old

Glow in the day

And, one by one

The dry leaves fall

And the Autumn sun 

Smiles on them all

Every Autumn, I usually like to have a few things 

on my 'To Do' list to keep my fingers busy over the dark grumpy months ahead.

Alongside my usual slow stitching that keeps my little Fen digits tingling 

I love to have a couple of warm snuggly yarn projects on the go at the same time. 

I'm a lover of both crochet and knitting. 

I'm quite excited as this year,

 as I thought I'd re-visit a style of knitting that I loved doing many years ago 

when my boys were young.

Fair Isle Knitting

Fair Isle knitting is a magical world of glorious designs

dating back to a golden vintage age.

If you've never dabbled in the world of Fair Isle you'll be amazed

at the beautiful patterns on offer.

Intricate patterns closely woven together with just two needles

create a gorgeous marriage of colour and textures..

The secret ingredient is patience...

So as time is slowing down,

 my mission for Autumn is to find some beautiful vintage patterns to use for inspiration

and create a few snuggly designs with all the wool from my stash.

I find myself purchasing the odd ball of yarn here and there,never knowing what project they will end up in and at times they seem to gather nothing more than house dust,

but, every now and then I get a burst of enthusiasm to get

started again on a new project...

Is anyone else inspired by a love of Fair-Isle knitting?

I'd love to hear your tales...

What projects do you like to create?

Did You Know?

Fair Isle is named after Fair Isle, a tiny island in the north of Scotland, 

that forms part of the Shetland islands. ... 

Watch this space to see how I get on...

I wonder if I'll actually manage to get something finished before the 

harsh wintry weather sets in?

I will let you know!

Will chat again soon my lovelies.

Do leave me a comment below if you have five mins

as I'd love to know who pops by my little door!

Toodle-ooh for now...

Speak again soon

Tilly 

x x x

A Few Autumnal Thoughts...

Hello my lovelies!

Gosh it has been months since I set foot in my little blog home...

It's a little dusty with a few cobwebs hiding in the corners 

but the familiarity is making my heart sing.

Oh how I've missed saying hello!

It's a little like returning home after a holiday and having that wonderful

warm fuzzy feeling of home.

As some of you may know this year has been a box of all sorts of flavours 

for all sorts of reasons

... some very sweet moments hidden under the many varied layers of very sour 

cheek-sucking gems.

Blogging seems to have slipped by the by simply due to time.

Finally though after a very tough time, I do feel as if I am finally able to do a little meamble swim towards the surface for a few bubbles and Autumnal gasps...

So I thought I would take sometime to reflect and refresh on a few thoughts.

Autumn is usually my most favourite time of year to do all kinds of gorgeous things

 but this year, I think I will just be grateful to sit and watch the leaves simply fall around me 

while I rest my weary bones.

It will give me time to stay still and let Mother Earth sing her gentle lullaby while time

slowly glides past at a pace I feel I can handle.

And so... although feeling exhausted and 

having to rest, there is a positive, 

as resting brings me back to my little home of blogging and allows me time to 

slowly catch my breath again which I am delighted about!

It's my little holiday home of calm to capture my Fenland meandering thoughts on life.

I've been blogging since around the beginning of 2007.

Originally, it was my little hideaway safe haven whilst coping with everyday life, learning to live with an invisible illness to many, that was relatively never mentioned and very little was understood about the cause or treatment.... Fibromyalgia

Over the years I've learnt to live with my invisible siamese twin Fibro 

with every waking moment of each day.

Our intense relationship has managed to work together for over 20 years despite

the many arguments.

I learnt back in the early days of diagnosis that taking each day and staying positive was only the way forward to survive.

So I know I'm very blessed that I can still work doing something I love...

 And so, back to the here and now....

My first blog post in a very long time...

Work wise, despite this year being a bit of a clanger I have learnt how to...

- take a selfie and be brave enough to post it! (I hate my pic being taken!)

- wandered along a path with my creativity that I feel is beginning to finally reflect my true self which sounds crackers after being creative since the year dot!

-win an award for first prize at a major event

-write a book.

My first ever book ,Stitched Memories will be published by Search Press early next year and launched in the sunnier months of early Summer (she says grinning like a cheshire cat!!!)

It is my book of Inspirations on how to capture your ever day moments and treasured memories through a selection of slow stitching and free motion embroidery projects.

...my way of leaving a little trail of stitched stories for my future family members showcasing my loves in life and what makes me tick on a daily basis!

I've wanted to write a book since I was a small child and have several stories written but never thought it would be a book about crafts that I would see sitting on a shelf!

So, having done a little stock take of life in the Tilly Rose world I guess what I'm saying a long winded affair is that I feel I can begin to face the dreary cold Fenland months with a little creative smile after all.

Sometimes I think it is good to see the positives in front of you when having been faced with a few negatives of late...

Over the next few months I shall be updating my little cosy home with a few alterations so keep in touch if you fancy seeing the results.

Nothing like a grand makeover but just a few paint touch ups if you know what I mean!

In the meantime 

I will say toodle-ooh for now.

Happy Autumnal Blessings folks!

Looking forward to speaking again 

with you all soon

Tilly x