iDonate.ie | Support Sarah McGloughlin's fundraising page | iDonate.ie - Online Fundraising and SMS Donation

iDonate.ie | Support Sarah McGloughlin's fundraising page | iDonate.ie - Online Fundraising and SMS Donation

Irish Feet

Ok, so I know in my previous shpeeel I promised not to utter a word about the bad weather again….well, I lied. I am going to bring it to your attention, and unapologetically so!

Let’s face it, it’s what we do as Irish people; complain about the weather outside, have a cuppatea, listen to the weather forecast on the radio, have another cuppatea, pop down to the post office and discuss the weather, then… have another cuppatea, watch juicy Jean after the 6 o’clock news give us the latest update and sure it wouldn’t be the same without…. ANOTHER CUPPATEA!!!

Ok, so I am probably stereotyping here (and I am fully aware that I am more idle than most this summer!), but I exaggerate only to accentuate how often weather in Ireland can bring an air of despondency. We have been promised (as they say in the west of Ireland) bad weather for July and August and not only does this have an impact on the insane amount of tea we consume but it also has a knock on effect on the state of our feet (women in particular)! How, you may ask?

Well, what with our feet tucked away it seems like a waste of time (and money) to be heading down to the local beautician for a pedicure! Ok, ok, maybe I am speaking for my lazy self and so, from here on in, I will just express the way I feel in relation to this suggestion/implication/accusation!

Quite simply, bad weather in the summer means that I a) must wear socks and b) must wear shoes. In the winter, at least I have the freedom to dream about the summer: imagining myself dancing and skipping bare foot around fields or, with a spring in my step, heading into town wearing a pair of light pumps (that’s not what I actually do-creative liberty!)

You may ask why I think my feet suffer from this bad weather. Well, quite simply, I reckon the nail varnish on my toes has been there for 3 months!! (I considered inserting a photograph of my feet at this stage but I thought it would offend you!) The nail varnish is indeed chipped, but with the slim chance of the general public ever getting to see my naked feet (as they sit modestly in my warm socks and boots) how am I expected to give these tootsies the TLC they deserve? Some of you will read this in disgust yet, some of you, regrettably, can empathise!!

Those of you who know me well, have identified in the past my fondness for my footsies. Now, with the “promised” rain looming, I fear for my fragile feet and wonder when I will get to wriggle my toes unashamedly in public again?

Yours feet faithfully,

So-U….. Think You Could Buy Some Nail Varnish Remover!

The Summer Sounds of the Sweet Tweet Tweet

It is nearly mid July, the middle of our so called “summer.” Grey is the colour trending or skyline this summer. The tone of grey varies from a white/light grey to a more intense charcoal colour with some speckles of blue, white and occasionally pink in the morning or the night (warning/delight!). I wish I was describing a dress I saw in Zara, because it sounds quite wearable but this skyline quite simply wears you down! Nevertheless, I will not allow the lack of summer sunshine rain on my parade. I pledge to complain no further about the weather and to look for the positives in our Irish summer. For instance, it was bright until 22.30pm last night!

There may be fewer birds tweet tweeting this summer. We must forgive the birds for taking the initiative to seek finer weather. What has replaced the sweet tweet tweets of the cuckoo and the martins that used to visit us from South Africa in the summer season is the sound of a Tweet update on our smart phones. There are comparisons between bird watching and Twitter one must acknowledge.

According to the Oxford Dictionary Bird watching is: the practice of observing birds in their natural environment as a hobby. Dunne describes bird watching in the book Pete Dunne on Bird Watching as being the observation of  birds as a recreational activity. He continues by explaining that It can be done with the naked eye, through a visual enhancement device like binoculars and telescopes, or by listening for bird sounds. Bird watching often involves a significant auditory component, as many bird species are more easily detected and identified by ear than by eye.

Hmmm…this sounds exactly like the act of Tweeting. We follow/watch/monitor every move of the Tweeter/the Bird as a recreational activity. The smart phone replaces the binoculars and telescopes used by the traditonal bird watcher. This one piece of equipment can do the work of both the binoculars and the telescope. Twitter allows us to analyse and scutinise the Tweets of the birds we are watching. The Tweeter invites us into their nest and allows us to classify ourselves as a member of their bird family. Does this seem like a natural act? Bird watchers study the species to monitor their migration trends and their role in nature. Need we do the same with the likes of Katy Perry who has nearly 23 million followers! 23 million! Imagine if 23 million of us followed one poor little Blue Tit around the world! The bird would have more sense than to let so many people jump into its nest!

Now, it may seem that I have assumed a position of snubbing Twitter, but alas, I find myself, like all recreational bird watchers, becoming intrigued by the hobby. How does one find a balance within this apparent paradox? Maybe I should practice the traditional method of bird watching and Tweet when I see a rare classified bird…..I kid you not when I tell you that a beautiful orange breasted chaffinch just flew up to the window. Perhaps that is enough of a sign to not “practice what you preach” but quite simply “practice and Tweet!”

This Chanel coat took 3,000 hours to make - Telegraph

This Chanel coat took 3,000 hours to make - Telegraph

Dip dying

Dip dyed clothing and accessories can be seen in high street stores at the moment but why not try it yourself at home..its rather simple and can bring a bit of life to clothes or bags you were considering to discard of!

Lovely simple block printing!

Colouricious, Inspirational Ideas for Textile Art, Fiber Art and Quilting Art: Block Printing: At Colouricious we adore to design our own fabrics, we use wooden printing blocks. These blocks can be bought from The Indian Block Company....

Visit my shop through my facebook page!

Am I alone when I feel immediately exhausted when I enter a word into the Google search engine?
Has the domain of http://www.google.com/ helped us manage time for the better or the worse?
I for one have come to the conclusion that the "we will help you find what is relevant to you" search engine is like somebody presenting you with lots of different cup cakes (which are made from the same baking mix) with just a different coloured icing ontop...hmmm.
What has ignited this rant? well, in searching for crafty websites/bloggers/online stores through Google, I entered the word craft only to be presented with 43, 800,000 results....when you say that figure aloud it is even more overwhelming than its numerical representation!
Am I alone with this time consuming/thought provoking quandary?!............Back to the search engine I return to ask Google to answer my question!

Yours,

So-U