I'm working on some nine patches that will be used in the centre of my album variation blocks. They're supposed to be random, but for some reason I'm having trouble with just picking up bits and sewing them together. So I'm doing a rather planned scrap look, and to help me keep track of what I've decided I use an old magazine.

I start about half way through and lay each block out on a page. I flip the previous page over on top of it and plan another block and so on, until I've got as many as I need. Then the whole thing just lives next to the machine and I can turn the page and sew one block at a time without getting all mixed up.
I just seem to be happier with this way of choosing fabrics, and I don't agonise over every decision like I was before. It still looks fairly random to me anyway.

This is a catalogue for a gorgeous English shop called Past Times- I don't know if it still exists as this is from last century, 1995 to be exact. There are so many beautiful objects in here and it keeps me amused as I sew and look at all the things I didn't buy...
I was in the garden today and saw Pippi lying on the lawn, all four legs in the air and enjoying the shade and cool grass. She loves lying like this and quite often goes to sleep in this unladylike position. How undignified...
She came over to me later and I snapped a photo but didn't realise she'd closed her eyes-doesn't she look silly? Oh, that sun was so bright she had to go back and have another nap on the lawn. What a good life our dogs have!