So much to tell this week!

Well, it has been a really great week.

On Friday I had coffee with a new friend I met at the craft workshop I did last year - she loves dolls too! We had a really fun time and are arranging to meet up and do some crafting together, which I'm thrilled about. Our weather has been fantastic (although that's no consolation for all the poor Brits stuck abroad because of the volcanic ash cloud, I do feel for them!)

I managed to do some gardening and today I'd intended to start Linda Misa's "Believe" doll, but it was so nice we went for a walk instead.

This is the historic village of Frampton on Severn, which is a couple of miles from where I used to live, so it is my old regular stomping ground! Frampton Village Green is supposed to be the longest in England, it's about 22 acres, and they play cricket on the Green on Sunday (very Miss Marple, it's wonderful!).

We walked around the lakes bird and butterfly watching, with a couple of bunnies skipping about too!

Here are some piccies:

This is Frampton Court (back view from the parkland) do click on the link to see the front and the amazing rooms where you can stay. It's fabulous!

This is the Orangery, known locally as Rosamund's Bower, local legend has it the fair Rosamund Clifford was born here, she was supposedly mistress of Henry II, and Eleanor of Aquitaine, being jealous, had her poisoned. Probably utter twaddle, but a great story - and isn't this place gorgeous? I always want to paint it.

Some gorgeous marsh marigolds posing for a picture!

Mrs Swan, cosy on her nest on the Green, as she is every year. They even put updates in the local post office, and everyone keeps a careful watch on the nest site!

One of the views across the lake, sadly no kingfishers today, but there are loads of wildfowl to watch.

And more good news. I have been lucky enough to win another giveaway, this time from Melissa at Ardea's Nest. I love Melissa's blog. She is an amazingly prolific crafts person and she does so many different things. She's always involved in wonderful swaps, and she covers loads of different issues in her blog, I don't know how she does it! Please pop over and visit her.
Melissa is also very generous and her latest giveaway was for 4 different packs of goodies. I have been lucky enough to be the recipient of four doll patterns. I'm so excited. Thanks again Melissa!

I am embroidering again - sitting on my comfy sofa at last! I can't show you the piece yet, as it is a gift for someone, but I will very soon. I can also now finish the big piece of work I started after Christmas. Next Friday we are going away for a little break, so I will be taking stitching and sketchbooks etc with me, and I hope to have something to share when I get back.

And finally, I finished my first Cloth and Clay Doll. Here is Alicia-Felicity!

Yes, she's completely different to the other girls isn't she? She turned out to be such a precise little Miss, and was so specific about her name that it really surprised me. She wouldn't stand for any nonsense - you will notice quite a bit of "real" sewing in her costume. She is actually quite small, and her head turned out to be only about 2 and a bit inches! This was probably not a good idea for your first sculpt with paperclay, but I thought, if I could have a go at that size then anything bigger would be ok!

I really loved making her, but sadly the only UK supplier of Creative Paperclay is not stocking it any more as there isn't enough call for it and it's just too expensive for her to carry on. Grrr, the UK craft market is rubbish! It only caters for scrapbookers and cardmakers (oh, and knitters) because that's all that is "fashionable". I'm not being unfair, we just don't have the crafting tradition here that there is in the USA and Australia, and it's very sad. There are a number of products I want to get hold of, but I'll have to buy them from the States, there's absolutely no chance of getting them here.

Anyway, sorry- enough moaning about Britain! I'm cheery really. Now I need to do something crafty before supper time.

Have a wonderful week. x