last day of may ....

throwing stones and shouting are the best!
its the last day of may, will you vote for my blog using the wigdy on the left there?
tomorrow its june and im giving something away - yippeeeee!
so come back tomorrow too ....

for Caroline ...

who wanted to see more of my little pig, who is now finished and on the menu ...
i made is as part of a plush team challenge then decided to make a fish instead ...
i do like pigs tho ...

old, old ben ....

old Ben was born in 1984, so you can see he is doing quite well for such an old rat, dozing as he is in one of the more intellectual corners of the dining room. he reminds me that i must use spell checkers more often...

i sewed him all by hand from only three pieces of fur, and raided the kitchen draw at Fletcher's drive, burscough, to get some twist ties for his teeth. the sellotape i covered them with to make them shiny is yellowed as an old rats teeth might well be...

my great uncle George saw this rat a few years later, and had fun playing with it. then he asked me to make him one. i had no pattern and sat with a piece of fur and some scissors trying and failing to make another rat like Ben. in the end i made the ultimate sacrifice and handed Ben to uncle George. they worked hard together scaring lots of grand children until after George's death, Ben came back to me in 2001 when i visited aunty Ivy in burscough.

now he lives a gentler life, with his lopsided ears and tatty old fur. he has never had a bath, but he has always been well looked after. he was known as THAT RAT at George and ivy's house.

a padded and hand embroidered pig hanging

a padded and hand embroidered pig hanging
Originally uploaded by RaggyRat

this work was produced many years ago when i was a degree student, in my third year when i explored animals in both my careamics and my machine embroidery ... this pig also has acrylic paint applied and hand stitches, and is quite haevily padded, he is more of a flat soft toy than a hanging i ithnk !

the back gound is unfinished, and the edges are raw ....

i am going to give him to a friend today ...

Cat and Mouse ....

did i ever tell you i put the whiskers on the mouse fursuit head?
and here is a fun poem a friend wrote about the fursona !

Cat and Mouse

A mouse! A mouse?
Big as a house,
So proud and sleek,
Not mild and meek.
It stands erect;
That’s not correct!
A lovely tail,
So long and pale.
It starts to pose
With upturned nose;
No whiskers though
Are yet on show.
What does it eat;
Just cheese or meat?
Where’s its hole?
Bless my soul,
If ever a cat
Gets after that
I’d like to bet
‘Twould soon regret
The adverse scale
And turn its tail.
Its eyes don’t glint.
I’m not convinced
This mouse is real;
In fact I feel
Its Raggy Rat
And made by Cat!

Chris Slade 17/3/9

sometimes it is hard to get sewing done ....

when little ones try to 'help', it can slow me down ...

and then of course there are other distractions ... especially if the weather is nice...

vote for me .... please....

if you enjoy my blog would you vote for it ?
im planning a giveaway soon, so i'm not just asking for things all the time!
i'd love to win the blog of the month award ...



dorset cerials are made on my doorstep, well not actually on my doorstep, i would have trouble getting the buggy out of the house ... and they are very tasty ...