Hobbiton double wedding ring. I may be nuts.

One of the things I do when I'm a bit sad or overwhelmed is disappear into Peter Jackson's films of Tolkein, so recently I've been watching a LOT of the Hobbit.  It's not hard to explain why it's a comfort (provided you don't watch quite to the end).  It's got magic, and swordfights, and several outrageously hot sons of Durin, plus a Bowman, and beautiful scenery, and cosy hobbit smials.

I dunno about you, but I certainly would.

And while I was thinking about Bag End something struck me.  Hobbit architecture is mostly based on circles - rings, if you will.  I've never attempted a Double Wedding Ring quilt but it's been on my bucket list for a while, as I suspect it is for most Quilters.  It's one of those things You Should Do.

What better quilt for snuggling under in my own pseudo-smial than a nice hobbitish double wedding ring?  I dug out all my green and yellow scraps, those being the preferred colours of hobbits according to J.R.R, and got stuck in.  Paper piecing is a very soothing pastime so it's doubly perfect for me right now.



...I am vaguely thinking of piecing in one plain gold ring in the bottom right hand corner.  Is that too geeky?  Oh, who am I kidding.  As if there were any such thing.

International Cat Day

Seems like a good time to return to my poor, poor neglected blog.  There are, as ever, lots of reasons why I haven't been posting but one of them is more important than all the others:

This is Deeley, and she was The Best Cat.  For 14 years she was my best friend, and then on 20th July she was hit by a car just outside our house and suddenly I was stroking her side and sobbing as she took a last few breaths.

It is very quiet around here without her loud meows and chirrups, and a bit cold too without her sleeping on our bed, always rolling in so close she nearly pushed me out of it.

Many years ago I had the idea to get a little black cat tattoo - in fact I planned to do it on my 30th birthday, but then I was 8 1/2 months pregnant at the time - but I never got around to it.  The day after Deeley died, I went to a very nice, friendly tattoo parlour called Painted People and made my appointment.

So now I have a little reminder of her on my left shoulder, just under my collarbone.  I'm pleased with it, of course, but I'd rather have Deeley back.  Her ashes are in a little wooden box on the sitting room windowsill, in a sunbeam where she liked to sleep.  She was The Best Cat.