A sunny day at Hampton Court. Ducks out on the river.
I was curious to see if there were hoards of joggers on the bridge and river banks but there weren't. Last week's joggers must have been part of an event and not just what people do on Sunday morning.
After breakfast I got my packing organised (not finished), then settled down to finish my Applique piece from yesterday. I had two and a half leaves to finish.
It didn't take long. It is faster working without a hoop for this kind of work - fly stitch and chain stitch and my tension was fine.
I also went over my couching of the flower edge and added a few couching stitches in places where i hadn't quite covered the edge. I can see that the tricky bit of this kind os work is managing the fray. It's easy to exacerbate it when covering the raw edge.
The piece is now finished and in my suitcase. I have really enjoyed doing it and will make it into something useful on my return. It seems a shame to cut the piece much smaller than it is (about 10" square) as the background fabric shows it to such good effect. Maybe another bag????
When my stitching was finished I completed my packing. I was a little surprised that I needed the expander. I have abandoned my Qantas pyjamas, my spencer and a pair of trousers, added two tops a few small gifts and a few (small) stitching supplies. It doesn't matter - I won't be carrying the bag on board, but I had thought I'd balanced out losses and gains. I had to open it again when I realised I didn't have the grey thread I need to stitch my seagull on the plane!
I went for a final walk next door to Gardinarium to check for any new stock or anything I'd missed. I hadn't.
The crowds were out again. Sunday is obviously the day for Hampton Court visits and the Mute Swan was packed.
My car arrived a bit early and it was a relatively easy drive to Heathrow. Check in was fast, security not too bad (probably took 15 minutes all up by the time I had been screened for my titanium knee).
I rarely do any airport shopping but decided to spend some remaining £s on a new watch and some nail polish. My watch died in the Lakes District, not long after I arrived (I only noticed because an observant fellow student asked me if I kept my watch on Australian time!) It may just be a battery problem, but since I had my battery changed in January, I suspect not. I bought it at Auckland Airport at 15-17 years ago - so I can't complain. These days I check my phone so regularly, I can manage without, but, it's much easier to use a watch on a plane. As a wise friend said to me recently, "Who goes travelling without a watch?"
So I bought one. The twenty-something sales woman assures me it is a very modern-looking watch!
I didn't bring a manicure set with me and my nails are now quite long. I prefer them painted when they get this long, but it is too much trouble to maintain, remove and repair the polish when travelling. I therefore indulged in some nail polish and painted them in the BA Lounge. I arrive home on Fionn's birthday and need to look my best.
So here I am, in the BA Lounge at Heathrow, ready to board QF002 in just over an hour's time. This is my final post from England. I will make a final post from Adelaide in about 33 hours time.
My thanks to all the people who helped me make it a great trip.
I was curious to see if there were hoards of joggers on the bridge and river banks but there weren't. Last week's joggers must have been part of an event and not just what people do on Sunday morning.
After breakfast I got my packing organised (not finished), then settled down to finish my Applique piece from yesterday. I had two and a half leaves to finish.It didn't take long. It is faster working without a hoop for this kind of work - fly stitch and chain stitch and my tension was fine.
I also went over my couching of the flower edge and added a few couching stitches in places where i hadn't quite covered the edge. I can see that the tricky bit of this kind os work is managing the fray. It's easy to exacerbate it when covering the raw edge.
The piece is now finished and in my suitcase. I have really enjoyed doing it and will make it into something useful on my return. It seems a shame to cut the piece much smaller than it is (about 10" square) as the background fabric shows it to such good effect. Maybe another bag????
When my stitching was finished I completed my packing. I was a little surprised that I needed the expander. I have abandoned my Qantas pyjamas, my spencer and a pair of trousers, added two tops a few small gifts and a few (small) stitching supplies. It doesn't matter - I won't be carrying the bag on board, but I had thought I'd balanced out losses and gains. I had to open it again when I realised I didn't have the grey thread I need to stitch my seagull on the plane!
I went for a final walk next door to Gardinarium to check for any new stock or anything I'd missed. I hadn't.
The crowds were out again. Sunday is obviously the day for Hampton Court visits and the Mute Swan was packed.
My car arrived a bit early and it was a relatively easy drive to Heathrow. Check in was fast, security not too bad (probably took 15 minutes all up by the time I had been screened for my titanium knee).
I rarely do any airport shopping but decided to spend some remaining £s on a new watch and some nail polish. My watch died in the Lakes District, not long after I arrived (I only noticed because an observant fellow student asked me if I kept my watch on Australian time!) It may just be a battery problem, but since I had my battery changed in January, I suspect not. I bought it at Auckland Airport at 15-17 years ago - so I can't complain. These days I check my phone so regularly, I can manage without, but, it's much easier to use a watch on a plane. As a wise friend said to me recently, "Who goes travelling without a watch?"
So I bought one. The twenty-something sales woman assures me it is a very modern-looking watch!
I didn't bring a manicure set with me and my nails are now quite long. I prefer them painted when they get this long, but it is too much trouble to maintain, remove and repair the polish when travelling. I therefore indulged in some nail polish and painted them in the BA Lounge. I arrive home on Fionn's birthday and need to look my best.
So here I am, in the BA Lounge at Heathrow, ready to board QF002 in just over an hour's time. This is my final post from England. I will make a final post from Adelaide in about 33 hours time.
My thanks to all the people who helped me make it a great trip.
No comments:
Post a Comment