Cats in the Kitchen, Flora in the Garden

Opposite is a photograph of my parent's wedding. A few posts back I said my mother had given me her wedding hat and I was going to freshen it up a little bit. My mother said when we were looking at the hat that she had always thought it was bigger than it is now and it does look small. I thought maybe because she hadn't seen it for a while she had forgotten its size, but when I look at the photograph the hat is bigger. I am beginning to wonder if straw can shrink with age and whether if I steam it will the straw expand again. Does anyone know or can anyone help me? Apart from reshaping it just needs the ribbon stiffened so it is upright again, I need to find a bunch of fabric anenomes to replace the ones that are missing and I need a little navy veiling. Then it will have pride of place on the bedroom wall where I hang my straw hats. The hat is navy blue, the shoes are navy blue suede and the dress and jacket were duck egg blue, she must have been a very stylish bride in 1950. I know the jacket is no longer in existence, I had it dyed purple when I wore vintage clothes at art college, It was a light crepe fabric, quite delicate and I wore it until it fell to pieces, but the dress is apparently still packed away somewhere.



I am just so excited,I have been very busy the past couple of days designing a range of items I want to make, I used to make various bits and pieces and sell them at fetes, fayres etc, and have decided I have the time to do that again, the small items I used to make look good again after all these years and won't be hard to do. Apart from these items I have designed a new range of dolls, not for playing with more as art or ornament. They are stuffed fabric and material and fabric paint. I am in the process of making protoypes which will probably take a week or two until I get them right, when I am just about satisfied I may photograph them and post about them. There are three types I have copyrighted, Daisy Faes, Lupin Elfs and Daisy Gals. I am talking about them now because I find the way to make sure I complete these tasks are to talk about them on my blog so blog readers know and then I would be too embarassed if I didn't finish the task. Heehee, isn't that fiendish? Daisy Faes are girl faeries, Lupin elfs are obviously elfs and Daisy Gals, ha ha, these are my favourites are sort of goddess ladies and wise women of a certain age. I am really excited about these mini Daisy Lupin family.



We had the most beautiful full moon last night, high in the sky very heavy looking and a rich golden yellow, causing an aura in the sky around it. It was a windy night and the indigo clouds were scudding past it in fury. I watched it for ages, it was almost a harvest moon, I think the next one will be one, you know low in the sky and an incredible orangey pink. I have been so full of inspiration and designing energy the past few days, scribbling in one of my little notebooks now and then right through the days. I am sure it is the result of sleeping with the waxing moon shining on my pillow and face as I sleep.



After posting about my ghost cats yesterday I thought I would mention the two best books about cats I have read. I don't know if they are still in print but they were published in the 1990's and are called The Wild Road and The Golden Cat by Gabriel King, they are fiction books and the animals talk but just like we would. I am not quite sure who they are aimed at young adults or adults but they have some very pertinent things to say within the story about the destruction of the earth by not being green enough and the effects of big business and experiments on animals. They also tell the history of cats in myths and how the cats in the book relate to their history. They are wonderful books.