Shawls

The items I most enjoy knitting are shawls.  Sometimes I get so carried away with them, that I forget to stop, so they end up being ridiculously long in relation to their width.  I think it's that, once I've mastered the pattern, I just like to keep going.  Today, I've finished two that have been sitting in my sewing basket - they are both completely different, but equally as lovely.

I think this one might be my favourite so far.  This piece of gorgeousness is made in a very VERY fine yarn and I've knitted it with a very VERY fine gold thread running alongside it.  The whole thing is so lightweight that I dug out the kitchen scales to see just how light - less than a hundred grammes!  Beautiful.  Not really big enough for a shawl - I need to play about a bit more with the stitch count - but could be worn as a jaunty tied-round-your-neck scarf.  I've a feeling it probably won't get as far as the shop - I think it might find its new home in my wardrobe! 

The second shawl is a very different item.  Made of heavyweight linen/ cotton mix yarn in a gold/ caramel colour.  Just right for cooler summer evenings ..... if we ever get a summer of course.  It's Easter Sunday today, tomorrow is 1 April, and this morning we had another sprinkling of snow.  I digress - just needed a little whinge about the weather.  The shawl is a good size too - 21 inches wide and 48 inches long.  I think I've worked out the stitch count for this one and the length is just dependent on how much I want to start a new project.   If I'm undecided about what to make next, the shawls tend to get a wee bit longer! 

Colour

I had a conversation this week with one of the ladies at work about clutter/ colour versus minimalism/ beige.  Until that point, I hadn't associated clutter and hoarding as being bright, but, since then, I've been looking around my house with different eyes.  The man says I hoard - I don't consider that I do - but I do have a lot of bright and beautiful things in my house, so perhaps that's what he means by clutter?  I will have to remember to discuss this with him when I next see him - he works away which means he isn't always here.  No doubt I will have forgotten all about it by the time we next meet.

So, today, I took some photos of lovely things on my coffee table - some flowers, a beautiful display that Amanda gave me for Easter and a couple of Easter cards I have received. 

If these bursts of colour are found in just one place in my house - on the coffee table - then imagine what the rest of the house looks like!

After a morning of running around concentrating on chores, I've taken advantage of another miserable day - snow showers on and off all day - to sit and concentrate on my latest project, another baby blanket.  I wasn't very pleased with the one I have recently finished - it had fourteen colours in it and I think it was too lary, even for me!   So the one I am making now has just five colours - two shades of green and two shades of blue, tied together with cream.  Very subtle for me!  I have also made a few more granny squares to add to my collection. 

And all the while, I've shared the sofa with Finn, keeping me warm while I've been working.  Perfect afternoon.

Good Friday

Today, I have been very productive and it's not even elevenses time yet.  Finn and I were up bright and early - as usual - but at seven thirty our peace was shattered when Sid came to play for the day.  Amanda is working today, so Sid comes to play with us. 

I used my early start very wisely - I had chopped down a tree, cut back the roses, done some weeding - front AND back garden - and filled up my brown bin, which signalled an end to garden destruction, unless I wanted a trip to the tip.  I didn't. 

All this had been accomplished by nine thirty so I stopped for breakfast and to plan the rest of the weekend's activities. 

I won't even bother to list the plan here because we all know that I never stick to them! 

Since stopping work in the garden, it has turned noticeably colder, so I think the rest of the day may very well be taken up in knitting and possibly a bit of crochet practice. 

Here is my first attempt on my own, without a teacher.  At least it's the right shape!

Satisfied

I cannot begin to describe how happy I am right now.  I have had my first crochet lesson and managed to make a granny square, which was actually ..... well ..... almost square!  I had been told to expect a bit of an irregular shape for my first, but I don't think it's half bad.  Judge for yourself.

The class was held in The Craft Room, Bryony's lovely shop in Norwich, by Sarah, who makes all sort of lovely things, including knitting needle bangles, crochet blankets - obviously - and adapted crochet hooks to stop your hands seizing up while you're working.  My fellow learners included Mavis from work and two young girls finishing up their degrees at the Art College.  We were all complete novices but all managed to produce these little squares of gorgeousness, thanks to Sarah and Bryony being very patient with us.

Bryony had originally asked me why Amanda wasn't teaching me, but Amanda had already warned me that things might get violent as she'd get frustrated by my lack of coordination and very short attention span. 

I'm glad to report that tonight's session was completely peaceful and non-confrontational.  I'm hoping to book the intermediate class at the end of April, but have been told that I need to have at least six granny squares made before booking.  Better get the hooks out then, hadn't I?

Surprising ...

Today, I've had a lovely surprise looking at my payslip.  At the beginning of March, I dropped my hours at work to spend more time being creative.  I had been wanting to do this for ages and plucked up the courage before Christmas to ask my lovely manager who immediately agreed that I could do so.  However, because of the usual office politics, people going sick, etc, etc, this only started up at the beginning of March - and, since then, I no longer work Mondays.  Heaven!

Today I got my first payslip following this change and I was rather dreading it.  But I have been very pleasantly surprised - because I'm paying less tax, less National Insurance, less pension, it has made very little difference at all.  Which is now making me wonder if I can drop my hours further!  I. must. not. think. like. this.  Hard not to though! 

I actually have an interview later today - for a job I didn't apply for.  Long story, but an agency I signed with yonks ago ring me every now and then to try to entice me away from my four day week for more money.  I have to admit that I'm tempted by the money, but I will probably have to give up my Mondays off.  And, for me, I think time is actually far more precious than money.  I knew I should have turned down the interview!

Hexipuffing

When you knit as much as I do, then you end up with an awful lot of odds and ends, scraps which are too small to make anything of any substance.  When you crochet - which I don't* - you can use your scraps for granny blanket squares.  But, when you knit, you have to be a bit more creative - either that, or you end up throwing it away.   And I hate waste, so this is not something which I would endorse. 

What I would endorse, however, is hexipuffing.  These are very gently padded little hexagonal bits of loveliness which take about half an hour each to make - I'm using double knitting for these.  I've seen them (only in photos, mind) sewn together as blankets or dog beds, but I'm thinking cushions.  I'm thinking dining seat pads.  I'm thinking lovely pillows for your bed. 

Better get started then .....

This was my first evening's work. 

On Day Two, the pile had grown a little.

By Day Three, we were rocking.

I realise that these colours do not really go together.  If you want your seat pads to be classy and matching, then you'd better get yourself to John Lewis or Dunelm Mill.  But if you want something a bit more original and creative, I would heartily recommend these little beauties.  They really have become my latest obsession.

* I start crochet classes on Tuesday - and am wondering if it's wrong to be this excited about it! 

Socks

Today I'm rather in limbo.  Although Monday is my day off, I was up bright and early to take my car in to the city for its MOT.  Of course, this is always fraught with anxiety as I'm never really sure if the garage will finally pass it, or whether I might be reading it the last rites.  To take my mind off this predicament, I have come home and finished off some socks which have been sitting in my sewing basket for a couple of weeks.

I'm very pleased with the way these have turned out.  I love random wool - I love the way it makes you a pattern that you have no control over.  It's cheat's knitting I think - I just knit the basic pattern and let the wool work itself out.  Perfect for a lazy knitter like me!

Spring

As I type this, the rain is pinging off all windows and doors, and the roof of the outhouse.  It's been another weekend that I haven't been able to get out in the garden, so I've been making my house beautiful inside instead.  I did manage to dig up an ice cream tub's worth of spuds earlier this week, before the snow took hold once more. I still have seven more big potato tubs to harvest - and I really do need to procure my seed potatoes too for planting.  I'm very behind this spring.

The man has been here this weekend and we've recycled an old bookcase that had fallen apart.  Mum and Dad had given me a beautifully made bookcase as a replacement for mine - they are able to afford furniture that doesn't come as flatpack!  They are downsizing, so are finding new homes for their lovely furniture - I had a bookcase (which WAS flatpack) but the back had come apart, so I had (rather ingeniously I thought) turned it on its side and put lots of fabric boxes inside it and was aiming to use it as a sideboard.  It never really worked.  Anyhow, the man and I took the bookcase apart, my little window in the kitchen was duly measured and the wood was sawn accordingly and, voila, I now have a drinks/ spice rack - which looks gorgeous and takes care of a previously wasted space.  I'm thrilled with it. 

This was all achieved on Saturday morning, which left us the rest of Saturday and all of Sunday for relaxing - watching rugby, eating, drinking, chatting.  The man was happy to sit and watch sport on TV, with me beside him, knitting away and feeling very homely.  This is the view from my knitting spot on the sofa and these are the flowers that the man bought me this week. 



On a personal note, I have been struggling with weight issues forever it seems!   This week, I had good news ..... I have lost my first stone since starting back at Weight Watchers in September 2012 and was duly rewarded with this little stone as a replacement.  I am hoping for a proper collection at the end of this ordeal!



Snow

Today, all my plans have gone awry, but actually I quite like it.  I was due to head up to north Norfolk this morning to help Rat and Pam (brother and sister-in-law) pack up their house to move to their new place.  However, the snow laid overnight and we've had lots of squally snow showers this morning and, as I'm a very nervous snow driver, I have cried off.  The other two things I had on today's list have also been cancelled.  I really do have enough food in my freezer so no need to pop to Tescos.  And Amanda is not well so has taken the day off work, which means I don't have to go and collect Sid either.

Instead, so far, I have dusted upstairs.  Thrown a load of stuff out which was in the loft.  I've moved all the junk out of the spare bedroom to new homes throughout the house.  And now I'm having a coffee and a feet up before starting on downstairs dusting.  I'm actually quite enjoying it.  I have the ipod blaring out and am listening to some tunes I haven't heard for a long time.  It's cool.

I'm aiming to have all housework done by lunchtime so I can spend the afternoon and evening catching up on TV, knitting, and generally just snuggling with Finn on the sofa.  I can protest all I like that I hate this weather and being cooped up indoors.  But I think everyone's probably realised that's when I'm at my happiest.  I'm not really kidding anyone, am I?!

Parents

Today is Mother's Day.  Normally, I get a card from my very intelligent dog, but this year he forgot.  The man has had bronchitis though, so has had a lot on his plate, trying to get better.  I won't mention it next time I see him.

We don't really do Mother's Day in our family.  Well, we do cards but I don't remember EVER getting Mum a present.  However, I finished the lovely pair of lacy bed socks that I had made yesterday and I thought they would be perfect for her.  And it turns out they were.  In fact, Dad took one look and requested a pair too - minus the lace obviously.

I picked my sister, Amanda, and her dog, Sid, up this morning and we drove through the sleet and snow to see Mum and Dad and were surprised when we got there to find that Mum had included us for Sunday roast - bonus!  We really DO have the best Mum in the world.

Shamefully, though, I had not realised that yesterday was the 25th anniversary of our Nan (Mum's Mum) dying - it was only through Amanda's and my cousin Sam's posts on Facebook yesterday, that I was made aware of it.  I did have a little weep, remembering her, but for all the fun stuff. She was a formidable lady.  And I should have done the decent thing and rung Mum for a chat about Nan.  But that's another thing we don't do.  Talk about the things that matter.  I did speak to Mum later but we chatted about the usual rubbish - wool, craft fairs, my wayward brother, etc.  As a family, we're good at not dealing with the painful stuff. 

PS.  The man sent me a text later to apologise that he had forgotten my Mother's Day card from Finn.  Definitely no need for me to mention it now then!

Loft

Today, I have been thwarted.  I had hoped for a full day working in the garden and had produced - over the course of the past few days - a list of chores I need to do to get my garden looking half decent.  However, it hasn't stopped raining since yesterday afternoon, but now our rain has turned to snow. 

Instead of moping about it and beating myself up that I haven't done what I had hoped, I have turned my attention to house stuff instead.  I have been up and down in the loft all morning - I have a rule in my house that whenever I go from one floor to another, I have to move things.  That makes my house sound very grand, but I have a downstairs (obviously), an upstairs and then I have a loft, which is accessed by a proper staircase and not a rickety dangerous loft ladder.  It's marvellous and, daily, I thank the previous owners of the house for having this staircase installed.  So, going back to my rule ..... if I'm going from downstairs to upstairs, I have to take the spare loo rolls, or the cleaning stuff.  And if I'm coming back downstairs, I have to bring the bins for emptying.  The most carrying I do is from upstairs into the loft and out again.   There is too much stuff up there which hasn't seen the light of day for four years since I moved in.  If I haven't needed it in four years, then it can probably go to the tip/ charity shop/ ebay. 

I am in the middle of transforming my loft into a craft room - and have been given two sewing machines, which seems a little excessive, seeing as I don't know how to use one even.  I have "enrol on sewing class" on another list.  At the moment, I'm a little obsessive about my knitting and the craft fairs we have planned this year - two confirmed so far and one in the offing - so am spending too much time running up and down stairs with balls of wool and patterns and things I've made.  So, it's into the loft with lovely things and out of the loft with bags of junk for sorting. 

This is what has been occupying me today.  It may be cold and gloomy inside, but my house - and more especially my loft - is full of colour.

Dog

I like to think that my dog is the happiest and best loved dog in the world. I'm sure all dog owners feel the same. But the dog is genuinely very happy and affectionate. He loves everyone. He loves me, my family, other dogs, children, babies, joggers and even cyclists. He doesn't particularly like the postman or workmen but I suspect this is more to do with the hi vis jacket, rather than anything personal.

However, put the dog on a lead and he becomes a snarling, aggressive wolf. I'm sure it's because he's protecting me - after all, I'm on the other end of the lead. This morning, we had an episode at the vets - he bit another dog. Who was also a snarling, aggressive wolf - albeit about a third of the size of my dog. I immediately did the sensible thing and cried. The vet assured me that this is normal in his waiting room. And the owner - who I hung around afterwards to talk to - also tells me she has the same issues. She, very caringly I thought, considering my child had attacked her child, took my hand and told me not to worry and, another time, it might be the other way round. Bloody dog. Afterwards I took him over the marshes to try and run out his aggression, but, of course, off the lead, he hasn't got any. He played with all the other dogs on our walk and reverted back to the playful creature he usually is. And he's been an absolute angel all day back at home while I've been working.

The day improved considerably - I even felt like a proper craftswoman as I went to the post office to send some of my wares to West Sussex and to the shop to talk about what sort of stock is needed.

Needless to say, having managed to achieve to much since we got home, I've obviously forgiven the dog.  Until he does it the next time.

Procrastination?

I'm rather behind with everything at the moment - it's 3 March, but my to do list is stuck on 11 February. I can't decide if I'm lazy, distracted, putting things off. Or whether it's simply that there are too many things on said list. I've a few excuses - I always have some in stock - which, to me, are valid, but once I try to explain them to others, I can see them thinking that I'm making it up. And then I get cross that I'm even TRYING to explain them to others, when, frankly, it's none of their business. I guess I'm trying to make myself feel better about being so lazy. I should stop talking about my chores and just get on with them. I have changed my working hours so now have an extra day off every weekend - which should, in theory, be plenty of time to get these chores done. We will see. I've started to read a few blogs from crafty types who seem to be living in beautiful houses, with beautiful children and friends, and plenty of time to be creative. Whilst I am very envious of their beautiful lifestyle, they seem a wee bit too serene for me. I like my days to have a bit of chaos every now and then, to shock me out of my complacency. I think I might be bored if things were too calm and organised. I haven't written this blog for nearly two years - again, I've been putting it off. Same old story. But I'm starting this up to monitor whether there are certain times that I become extra lazy or distracted. Or whether it's an ongoing process for me. I suspect the latter. Signing off for now. Let's see how long I leave it until posting another entry!