Felted Flowers

I haven't done any felting for months but having joined Pinterest and finding some wonderful felted items on there I was once more inspired to root out my stash of merino wools, order some more and get felting.

 I can't show some of the things I have made as they will be Christmas presents and the recipients may read this but here are two flower corsages I have made.

Of course I am still a relative beginner and aspire to be able to make such lovely things as these shown below.

Source: ley-art.livejournal.com via Ruth on Pinterest

Source: etsy.com via Ruth on Pinterest

Source: etsy.com via Ruth on Pinterest

The items below are what is called nuno felting where merino wool is laid on top of silk and the wool fuses into the fabric to give different textures.  I haven't tried this yet but am very excited about having a go at it.  I absolutely love this scarf.

Source: flickr.com via Ruth on Pinterest

Source: etsy.com via Ruth on Pinterest

Source: flickr.com via Ruth on Pinterest

Christmas Chutney

My kitchen smelt very Christmassy yesterday when I was making chutney as the recipe used ground cloves, cinnamon and ginger.  I've never made any before but thought I would try Nigellas's Christmas Chutney as my first attempt.  I halved the recipe in case it all went wrong but I was really pleased with both the look and, more importantly, the taste of the chutney.

These little jars from Ikea, at 99p for 3, are ideal for small quantities and I will definitely be making more to give as presents.