Felt iPhone Cosy

The iPhone 5 is so new that there aren't many cases around for it yet. It lives in its own pocket in my bag, but I was a bit worried about it scratching. So, I made a thin felt sleeve for it, using Woolfilz felt (in light grey) from Purl Soho and some red pearl cotton. I measured the phone, added about 5mm all the way around, then sewed the two pieces together with a blanket stitch. Super easy and cute!

My plan for the afternoon was to quilt the rest of the baby quilt that's due next week (baby arrived on Tuesday and has a name, which is now on the quilt), but I ran out of thread five minutes after I started sewing. Oh, bother. I can run across the street to the department store tomorrow at lunchtime and get more...it's just that the plan was to do the quilting today.

I think the selvedge on A Walk In The Woods (which is the backing for this quilt) is absolutely adorable - don't you?

Full pictures (hopefully, including Baby!) to follow in the next few weeks.

New iPhone day!

I got an iPhone 3 for my birthday in 2008 (and blogged about it, obviously). It has been exceedingly useful over the last 4 (!) years, but has gradually slowed down and become rather grumpy. Oh, no, you didn't really want to look something up on a map or listen to that podcast, silly! It's much better to just look out the window. Ahem.

So, with the release of the newest Jobsian Fondle Slab (mini), also known as the iPhone 5, I betook myself (and the Husband) to Norwich to wait in the Shortest. AppleStore. Line. Ever. Seriously, I was second in line. And the person ahead of me disappeared into the store after 25 seconds. I waited about 10 minutes, total. And, of course, was handed a bottle of water, lest I die of dehydration. Sometimes, it's good to live in the boonies.

Here's my reservation card, in front of the store:

The happy Apple employees got me all set up and running (surprisingly painless, thank you), and half an hour later, we were ready to go!

We tried to go to Frank's Bar for lunch, but they were running their v. limited Sunday brunch menu (and were quite crowded) so we decamped to Wagamama. Mmmm...Wagamama. I had a spicy coconut soup with noodles and chicken - it was really good. John had my usual: chili chicken udon, and it blew his socks off. Spicy!!

And then, to celebrate, I took a picture on Instagram of my train arriving out of the mist this morning at Stowmarket.

The iPhone 5 verdict so far, coming from a girl with a 4-year-old iPhone 3:

- OMG it's SO fast. Like, it has loaded whatever app before I've even realised I wanted it. Zoom! (This is WiFi we're talking about. Internet speeds in rural Suffolk are...erm...rural.)
- SHINY.
- Thin! And light! And all squared off at the corners!
- The headphones are really good, and the integrated microphone works really well. I walked along talking to the Husband all the way to the station from work, and despite the road noise we could hear each other perfectly well.
- I'm not bothered about the new connector - I have no plug-in-dock thingies (except for the speaker for my extremely ancient iPod that lives at work), and the iPad and the Stepson's iPod both use the standard charger. No drama.

David Pogue says it best, really. If you have an iPhone 4, meh. If you're like me with a geriatric iPhone, you'll love it!

Review: The Thread

I ordered Victoria Hislop's new novel, The Thread, (I've read her first two) from the library. Somehow, the copy I received was a signed copy. Um, what? Why was this at the Stowmarket library? Oh, well. In any case, I enjoyed it.

I found it a little bit predictable, but not in a bad way. It's told with a present-day introduction, before flashing back to 1917, where it progresses through history until the 1960s, and then jumps back to the present right at the end.

A few of the characters were flat, but on the whole, it was historically interesting with a good storyline and immersive writing. I hadn't realised how far back the problems in Greece go...it was interesting to have a historical backdrop for the current economic issues.

Also, Downton Abbey is back. Not that I managed to stay up for it on Sunday night, or anything, but ITV-streaming meant that Monday night was rather good. Just had to avoid Twitter for any spoilers...

Pickles!

We have had a glut of friends with a glut of cucumbers. "Please will you take some cucumbers? We can't eat any more!"

Having seen this pickling recipe on TheKitchn, I was relatively confident.

I didn't have any dill (and made a smaller batch), but these pickles were AMAZING.

So I made more! They're seriously crunchy and garlicky, just how I like them. I can't believe it was so easy...and that I hadn't done it before.

Kanga took us to sea

John has wanted to go to sea since we bought Kanga. I've been...er...slightly more reluctant.

The North Sea. Big, bad, scary, and to be ventured to in a ferry, as far as I was concerned.

Well. We planned and plotted, and picked our day. Reasonable breezes, good tides, and no weather to speak of.

Here we are, going past Felixstowe port - you can see the sea out ahead of us.

We managed to get all the way out of the mouth of the river, and were looking back at Felixstowe. It was odd to be on the other side of it!

Our expert helmsman (with lens flare):

It was startling how all you can see is horizon. I thought the container ships made me feel small...this was MUCH more impressive.

And a shot up at the sail, in the clear blue skies. Was this summer? Is it late? Will there be more next weekend?

Special thanks to Husband (who instigated the trip) and Father-In-Law, who said we should be back by 5 (the winds have REALLY picked up).