Cluny needlepoint

Recently I won 2 tapestry canvases on Ebay for a fraction of their retail price but how to work them so that the fine detail shows has been a problem. I considered all sorts of options but have decided that the best way to do them is to use Paternayan and Elsa Williams yarn. I think the final product will look really good because of the ability to split the Paternayan wool. A difficulty is that both these yarns have been discontinued apparently so getting hold of the yarn is dicey. I have enough of the Elsa Williams to do the burgundy background and I am waiting on a response from a seller who may have the Paternayan. Fingers crossed.
Here are the unworked canvases - they include a lot of fine detail so I reckon they should keep me occupied for some time. I would love to see the original Cluny tapestries.

Blog modified

Well the guide to modifying the blog worked well - at least I know how to change my header and backgrounds so from time to time I will be able to change it to reflect moods and seasons. I'm one of those irritating people who regularly changes my forum avatars. I wonder though why it is that we have fabulous web page software (I use Dreamweaver) yet we do not seem to have something similar for making your own blogs from scratch.

Today I'm hoping to get the spagnum moss to complete a couple of terrariums that have been waiting for ages.

Customising my blog template

Cricket is on this afternoon so while I watch it I am going to have a bash at customising my blog - so today this page could look like a dog's dinner. I've downloaded a cheat's guide so we'll see how it turns out.

When I was teaching I used to have dozens of web pages for various class projects - sometimes a page would be put together before school so that the kids could work at their own pace. Since retirement my web site is mostly dormant as it only contains those essential links such as Tattslotto results - Bureau of Met. radar for my area - quite a sad little site. I have not put any time into fiddling with the blog layout so that is the project for today.

Yesterday's yogurt turned out fine, so there's gadget that will not go straight to gadget heaven.
This morning I have put a couple of hours into the garden. I've cleared a bed we had around one of our big trees as it was looking very overgrown and a haven for slithery things. I moved a tree fern and 2 large birds' nest ferns plus a collection of other plants. The big tree has a few huge surface roots which I need to mark that off with something to protect it from the ride-on - I have quite a few bromelliad pups so they should be ideal. I love the sense of achievement you get from a bit of effort in the garden.

Making yogurt

I won a yogurt maker on ebay - it arrived today and I have my first ever yogurt brewing away. I won't find out until tomorrow if it is a success. I seem to use a lot of yogurt these days - my dogs get a spoonful with their dinner every second day and the chooks get quite a lot of it. It will be handy if I can make my own. A downside of living near a small town is everything is a little bit more expensive and there is not much choice as to brands.
Yesterday it was Christmas shopping day so I made the trek into the Gold Coast - glad that's over, it is always lovely to come home to the quiet.

Templates

I have little experience with blogging but I found a site which gives you free templates with instructions on how to change the banners with your own pictures. I'll definitely use that information. Some people seem to be able to do anything with Photoshop - they're so creative and clever. I have Photoimpact but have never seemed to be able to do much with it. I guess I need to set aside some time for persistent and focused learning.
Today is supermarket day - I like to get that over and done with quickly and early so I'm usually first through the doors.
It is very dry here - I have 2 bores and because we did have some rain a week ago they should have enough water in them to run for a while (about 30 minutes each before they start to 'hunt')

My poor, neglected blog I set it up ages ago and then forgot about it. I must be more diligent. During winter I dragged out the tapestry frame and got into that again. Today I should finish quite a large one and set up the next. I rarely get them framed - for me the value is in the 'doing' I find it very relaxing but the framing is expensive so once finished they're usually rolled up in a towel and stored.

Also on the list for today is making pizza from scratch - I use Jamie Oliver's pizza dough recipe. I bought a cookie press this week, so as I have the oven on for the pizza I will put a few trays of biscuits in. I wish I had a pizza oven - but with the dry weather and fire risks I wouldn't have lit it today anyway.

My place

I am a retired teacher and I live in the Gold Coast hinterland. My first project on retirement was to start vegetable growing, mainly because of the convenience involved in not having to rely on supermarkets. I had to clear my small backyard of 3 massive trees that had been planted by the previous owners. The trees had caused all sorts of problems (including the destruction of the sewerage system) so had to go regardless of the vegetable gardens. The one downside of the removal of the tress was the loss of the protection they gave from the afternoon sun - however, the sun is now blocked by passionfruit vines.


The vegetables were going quite nicely until we were hit by a savage storm and everything was shredded by the winds. Despite that setback I still manage to harvest some part of our vegetables from the gardens. So at this point I am reconditioning the beds - I have a section of one of the gardens full of garlic and tomatoes are coming to an end in others (so untidy).

Cooking
Today I am experimenting with cooking an old sweet bread recipe using the breadmaker for the mixing and proving - I'll cook the bread in my bakers oven. For the past week I have been trying to avoid using the electric stove and oven. I bought a bakers oven about a month ago and hope to master it as quickly as I can.

The oven:

This is my bakers oven - it is terrific as I get to cook meals as a byproduct of my room heating. I love it.