Sew cute

Seen in the window of my local soft furnishings shop (also where I arrange to have my sewing machine serviced), this gorgeous cake decorated with a curtain tassel, reels of thread, ruler and pins. Seriously impressive.

One of the wonders of nature

Looking too good to eat, marvel at the swirling geometry of this Romanesco broccoli... fractals in food. According to Wikipedia: 'The head of Romanesco broccoli is a visually striking example of an approximate fractal in nature. The pattern is only an approximate fractal since the pattern eventually terminates when the feature size becomes sufficiently small. In computer graphics, its pattern has been modelled as a recursive helical arrangement of cones.' And the number of spirals is a Fibonacci number. You can read the definition of Fibonacci number here, but although I'm good at functional maths, I stopped at O level.

A wreath is not just for Christmas

Sadly, our trip to New England last month was slightly too early for the magnificent autumn colour show, but there were hints of what was to come... like this leaf I picked up by Lake Champlain in Burlington, Vermont (where the town was papered with posters advertising a wool show celebrating all aspects of the material).

After we came home autumn set in here, and on a walk with friends we all foraged for autumn leaves and berries, and I made a wreath for the door - much admired by the neighbours and the postwoman. As you can see I used berried ivy, old man's beard, hops and autumn leaves, plus some evergreen leaves from my garden. To make it, I used a woven twig wreath as a base, which normally hangs on the wall indoors, and wove in my greenery (and goldery and orangery). As there was no moisture-retaining material like Oasis the wreath didn't last long...

...but that didn't matter because a couple of weeks later the weather suddenly got cold overnight and the little maple tree spat all its leaves on to the ground at once. That vivid red is too good just to sweep up and throw in the compost heap, so I made another wreath, using the same twig wreath base. This one only lasted a couple of days, but it was worth it!

A baker's dozen of tomatoes

Sometimes I don't know why I bother growing tomatoes: here's the whole harvest from a patioful of plants. Pathetic, innit? Still, at least I don't have to deal with a glut! (I'm thinking cherries)

Set in stone: a tailor's measure

This is the 'Plaiden Ell' in Dornoch, in the Highlands of Scotland. As the plaque says, it's a tailor's measure 'for measuring cloth at the fairs and markets held on this site since medieval times'.

Purl and pedals

On a day trip to Whitstable, Kent (a place which has changed beyond recognition from the quiet seaside town I remember from childhood visits; now it's full of what I call knick-knackery shops, and loads of galleries and coffee shops). Sadly gone are the magnificent charity shops of my youth, where I got a Pucci-esque print sundress, and a silk dress patterned with watercolour-style blazing autumn leaves... But there's still lots to like, like these graffiti knit style bikes. So bright, so fun, so gorgeous. Am thinking about how to knit a little cover for mine...

Cherry ripe, cherry ripe...

Cherries are my favourite fruit, but you can have too much of a good thing. My mum rented me a cherry tree... yes, really. A farm in Sussex rents its cherry trees and you get to visit when they're in blossom, and then again when they're in fruit, and you pick all the cherries on your tree. And ours was a small tree, but we had three boxes of the size above... We ate cherry crumble and fresh cherries immediately; I made cherry gin (yum); gave away bagfuls to neighbours; took boxes to work, but they sere still piled up in the kitchen, attracting a light haze of fruit flies. There was nothing for it but to freeze them. I got cherry stoner's thumb pitting them. To freeze, place on a baking tray, not touching, and put in the freezer. Once frozen solid, move into freezer bags. Hard work, yes, but there are now bagfuls nestled in the freezer, which I look forward to enjoying in the winter as a little taste of summer. If you want to rent a cherry tree, here's the farm mine was on (£42.50 a season): www.rentacherrytree.co.uk.
Want to make cherry gin? 
Stone some cherries, squeeze into a clean bottle, add a few spoonfuls of sugar, top up with gin, screw on the top, shake the bottle until the sugar dissolves. Keep in a dark place and shake every few days. Start taking sneaky nips after a couple of weeks, but it gets better the longer you keep it, if you can...

Weaving as a workout

This is traditional weaving, Ecuadorean style. After each row (warp? weft? I can't remember) the weaver leans back to use their body weight to tighten the threads. Imagine the abs!
I bought a length of woven alpaca cloth to patch the back of my alpaca coat, which has worn through. The coat is very light and warm, but doesn't seem to be too hardwearing.

How to customise a denim jacket - no sewing needed

A denim jacket is such a classic, but even an old favourite can do with an update. And with a bit of customising, you get one-of-a-kind fashion. And it's also a great way to use up fabric offcuts left over from something else.

Lisa Brown, creative stylist, shows you how to add pzazz to a plain denim jacket, ensuring you'll stand out from the crowd.

Lisa says: 'Adding stylish trim to pockets, cuffs and the base of a denim jacket, can make a plain denim jacket instantly unique. This pretty Tana lawn fabric from Liberty is perfect with its modern take on a traditional floral pattern.'

You will need

● denim jacket
● Bostik Sew Simple (£3.99, from most major retailers. For stockist details, call 01785 272727)
● 30cm patterned fabric, we used Kinnear Tana Lawn £5.99, (£19.95 a metre) from Liberty
● dressmaker's tissue paper
● pencil
● scissors
● iron

Step 1
For the cuffs; using tissue paper and a pencil, trace off the shape of the pocket top and the button position. Roughly cut out this shape and pin to fabric, choosing the best part of the pattern on the fabric.

Step 2
Cut the fabric and tissue around the traced shape, leaving 5mm all round for the hem. Cut out a hole for the button.

Step 3 
Iron the 5mm hem down all around the shape. Apply a fine line of Sew Simple, smear and glue hem in place. Apply Sew Simple around button hole in the same way to stop the fabric fraying.

Project and photos from Bostik