Whoosh...this is the summer going!

Hello,

Have you noticed? Or is just me that feels the summer, as always, is flying past! 

My job is a '52-weeks-a year' job so I do have to work over the summer, although I try to 

save as much of my annual leave entitlement as I can for the summer. I find myself trying to squeeze in days out and away with family and friends around work commitments. 

I do love the summer, I relish the opportunities to sit outside to eat meals  - eating 

breakfast outside feels so decadent, especially at 6am before I go to work, why is that?

I have to make the most of the longer (and hopefully warmer) days and spend as much
time as I can out of doors.

I am having fun knitting Rachel Coopey's Hartwith hat using Baa Ram Ewe's 

Titus yarn in Goathland. This is 4 ply yarn so for me it will take a while to complete this

 knit but there is something very soothing about knitting this cabled pattern.

 I have almost completed Susan Howatch's 'The High Flyer'. This is the second in a trilogy 

but silly me read book three first so I have in effect nearly finished the trilogy. It has been 

an interesting read although I have found the end of book 2 a bit laborious and tedious. 

This trilogy is being passed to a friend when read so that will be 3 more books off my 

shelf - YAY!

.I am joining in with Ginny's yarn along - please have a look at her great blog. 

Happy summer holidays to you all

xXx 

Five on Friday.....treats!!

Hello

We've all seen these blog posts before - a parcel of yarny-goodness arrives which sends 

the  recipient into raptures! I'm happy to admit that I am one of those people, a ball
of yarn makes me very happy!

So, this is a bit of a warning, if you are not into yarn-filled parcels you may wish to 

finish reading now

So....this week I attended a 2-day course in Oxford, and I returned home on Wednesday 

evening to two parcels, yes two parcels. The first was a bit of an extravagant buy. I had 

seen the making bookzine on blogger and instagram posts and thought it looked great

but sadly I couldn't find anywhere in the UK with copies still in stock so I decided to 

buy a copy from the US. It arrived very promptly and beautifully packaged and it 

hasn't disappointed. It's one of those bookzines I can just browse numerous times, 

without even making anything from it! 

Making has some beautiful knitted, cross stitch, needle felting, sewing projects and even

 more...with, as you might expect, some beautiful photography. 

Two of my favourite projects are this cowl

and this cardigan and hat. 

I'll have to make sure that I am a bit quicker off the mark with hitting the 'buy'

 button when making no. 2 is published!

My second parcel was from Meadow Yarn. I have been eyeing this book Toasty volume 2 

by Rachel Coopey for some time offering a selection of gorgeous and fun patterns for hats, 

and the odd scarf and pair of mittens. 

I also bought 2 more skeins of Baa Ram Ewe's Titus yarn - this time shades Aire and Filey. 

And ooo, how lovely my new shades look with my Titus remnants, lots of ideas in my head. 

And looks my holiday knitting might almost be sorted.... but on the other hand there are 

some lovely new Titus shades just launched!

I'm joining in with Amy's Five on Friday - thank you for hosting Amy!

Are you expecting any parcels? It is fun to receive them isn't it? 

Have a good weekend. 

xXx

Yarn along....stockings and The Heartbreaker!

Hello,

Well I've been a bit quiet recently but I'm still reading and knitting, and today I'm joining

 in with Ginny's yarn along. 

Here I am reading 'The Heartbreaker' by Susan Howatch.  I've had this book on my shelf 

for a while (as you can see from the photo it is looking a little jaded) and as I'm trying to 

have a de-clutter I decided this was a book I would read and then pass on. I am quite 

enjoying it but I certainly would not bother reading it a second time so I'm just happy 

that I know this isn't going back on the shelf - yay, a bit of space cleared! 

The only downside is that I was about half way through this book when I realised that it is 

the third of a trilogy and that I have the two earlier books also on my shelf and of course 

haven't read either!! Doh! I was too far through this one to put it to one side to start with 

the first book, so I am resigned to reading them in the wrong order, oh well....

As for my knitting, I've just started my 4th (of 5) Osen Christmas stocking. Each is knitted 

in a different colour way in gorgeous Titus yarn, although I'm not sure this is quite an Osen 

stocking as I have changed the Fairisle pattern to my own design. Hopefully, as it is only 

just July, I should get stockings 4 and 5 completed in time for Christmas!

Happy knitting and/or reading!

xXx

And here we are, 2016!

Hello!

Happy New Year to you all!

And here we are back to work/school etc. 

Although there is a distinctive holiday mood still lingering in our house as both sons are
still at home from University, albeit that we hardly see them, except when they need food,
as one has 3 assignments to finish and one is revising for exams. 

Compared to some universities, term (or semester) is late starting, but then they did 

finish late, on 18th December. 

 (I spotted this primrose in the front garden when I was taking down the fairy 

lights on Sunday morning) 

As with others, I do not make new year resolutions but I do like to take stock of 

the past and forthcoming years. 2015 was a pretty stressful year for various reasons but 

much of that is in the past now. Reports have been written, submitted and in some cases 

published and working hours reduced temporarily at least. 

I blogged a couple of months ago about how life is changing here as children develop and grow into independent adults. I do feel it is time for a change - we have been doing the childcare/work/family thing for almost 22 years (in 16 days time!) so it is about time. I'm not suggesting anything too drastic, after all family is still the most important thing for me, but it is time for me and DH to start considering new opportunities, new places, new ideas - it all requires some creative thinking, but I'm always doing that anyway. Usually my ideas are dismissed as unworkable and a bit far-fetched!!

But maybe now the time is right for some of those 'crazy ' ideas......

(Finishing off a HUGE bobble for my second cabled, bobble hat on New Year's Eve) 

So for a start (and representing a relatiovely small change for now) I have applied for a new job today - not to replace my current one but as an extra day. I currently only work 2 days so I can easily fit in a third day. It feels quite empowering to start the new year with a new job application! Who knows where it might lead - especially as it is based some distance from home (remote working is allowed - I'm not suddenly considering a huge commute). Fingers crossed that I get an interview!

"Word of the year" seems a popular idea and I do like Angel Gem's word 'aspire'. Justine's word is 'simplify', which I also like, and I thought I should go for a combination, even if this only means I 'aspire to simplify'! (I know, a bit corny isn't it?)

I have written a diary for many years, and as the years have passed I have chosen bigger

 diaries, finally for the last few years buying A5 size diaries with one page per day, as 

I found I had more to write each year. 

But last year I struggled to keep up with it. It became more of a burden and a 

chore to be completed at the end of each day rather than a pleasure. I'm even attempting to go back and fill in gaps, hence all the pieces of paper stuck in it, reminders of events that took place on particular days. 

So this year I bought a smaller A6 size and I feel so much happier with it already. Each page is full at the end of the day (although to be fair we have only had 3 full days of 2016 

so it's a bit early to start boasting at how well I'm doing at keeping up with it don't you think?)

This diary travels around with me quite a lot, especially when I go away, so how much easier it will be to carry this smaller one! There, that's my first,tiny step to simplyfying!

Here is my final make of 2015 - and this is what that big bobble was destined for!! 

It is identical to the one I knitted earlier here, but in a darker grey. The first one I gave to 

younger son's girlfriend as a Christmas present. I was unsure whether she would like it but 

younger son visited her over New Year and very kindly sent me photos of her wearing her 

hat when they were out saying that "she loved it"!  

It is a lovely pattern to knit, the hat seems to expand to fit any head size, and I do like the wool so I doubt this will be the last that one I knit...

watch this space!!

And as to my current 'on the needles' project, well that will look familiar as I'm knitting 

another Osen Christmas stocking! We were chatting on Christmas Day and the 

children/young people decided that as of Christmas 2016 when we will have no 'children' 

in the house )all aged 18+ years), they felt they would like to do things a little differently. 

As the first Osen stocking was so well received in our house and is big enough to take several gifts (even if not strong enough, it has to be laid on the floor once gifts are added),
the children decided that next Christmas we should buy each other little gifts to go into
stocking and then a large secret Santa gift for one other person.
So I then received orders for 4 more stockings!! 

I thought I'd better get started! I realised by swapping the red and green for
main/contrasting colours I had enough yarn to knit another stocking and then I will have to
buy some more titus yarn to knit 3 more and mix and match colours.
I'm looking forward to see what colour combinations we arrive at. 

And finally for today ....

I do love drinking tea from an elegant cup that keeps my tea warm so on my birthday recently, when I spent the day in a local city, I treated myself to one of these PiP mugs. 

Look, it even has some of the design inside the mug!!

Now I really am in love with this mug - but not so much the family as it is neither 

dishwasher or microwave proof. 

So when I next visited the city with my daughter to have a mooch around the sales, I didn't buy anything n the sales, but a matching mug came home with me!

Just perfect!

Best wishes and wishing you all a good week.

xXx

Yarn along!

Hello, 

Today I'm joining in with Ginny's 'yarn along'.

 I'm making some progress with my Osen Christmas stocking knitted in Titus yarn. 

This yarn is so soft that I think I will be wearing this Christmas stocking, rather than 

hanging it up hopefully on Christmas Eve! 

Progress on this has slowed recently because I've been distracted by crocheting 

little red Christmas gift bags.  

I am making even less progress with 'The Full Cupboard of Love' - I just don't 

seem to be able to concentrate on reading at the moment. 

Looking forward eagerly to my next book!

xXx

PS Thank you for all the lovely messages left on my last post - and for all the offers of drives on which to park my campervan! Fun times beckon!

November

Hello, 

November, what an unseasonably mild month it has been. 

November, means it really is time to crack on with Christmas crafts. This Osen stocking 

is proving a lot of fun to knit. 

I'm using Baa Ram Ewe's Titus  yarn. I also used this yarn for 

my Whitlam Cowl and maybe I just had a dud skein of Yorkstone but 

I was a little unhappy with it. The yarn had been spliced several times and I 

ended up with 4 balls of variable sizes. Not particularly satisfying.

So I bought Chevin (green), White Rose and Wesley Bob (red) with a bit of trepidation - 

but no fear! After balling each of the 3 skeins I ended up with 2 equal sized balls of each colour!

This would make a fantastic festive hat wouldn't it?

Progress has temporarily been halted while I wait for a small circular needle in the 

appropriate size to land on my door mat.

In the meantime I have just started to crochet the first of several small 

bags for Christmas gifts. 

We like to have reading material close at hand to our kitchen/dining table, something

 to fill our brains while filling our stomachs. For months these books and magazines

have sat on the end of the worktop by the table, their untidiness annoying me. But no longer! 

They are now neatly stacked in a wall-mounted magazine rack. I'm really pleased with it, 

and with my new book 'Student World Atlas', a super book full of facts, ideal for just 

dipping into for a few minutes. 

How beautiful our carillon looks through the autumn leaves.

This was built after WWI to commemorate those who gave their lives in the war. 

For the size of our town we have a very large event held here on Remembrance Sunday, 

with poppies dropped from the top of the carillon. 

And for those of you who are interested, here is a definition of a carillon from wikipedia:

A carillon is a musical instrument that is typically housed in the bell tower (belfry) of a church or municipal building. The instrument consists of at least 23 cup-shaped bells, which are played to produce a melody. A traditional manual carillon is played by striking a keyboard with the fists.  

A walk in the city on a Sunday morning while daughter warms up for football. 

We tend to walk the same route as we know where we can buy coffee at the end with just 

enough time while daughter warms up. I love the mix of city life and buildings we see on 

this walk: light commercial, residential, 

and even the empty buildings have some beauty.  

We could be in the middle of the country here, rather than in a city, 

with the tram line passing behind me. 

Ummm, coffee at McDonalds - oh, we know how to treat 

ourselves on a Sunday morning when it's a home match!

November, and the fair has arrived in town! 

And I mean right in the centre of town - how unusual is that!

It brings congestion, confusion, empty shops 

but also bright lights, heart-thumping music, candy floss and happy faces!

November, with a huge fireworks display at the town's University and firework

 toffee made by my husband (ideal for expanding waistlines and removing loose teeth)

 .... yes, I like November!!

xXx

Whitlam cowl

Hello

Earlier this year I bought myself a buff (this isn't a sponsored post by the way!). 

A buff is basically a tubular piece of material, with no seams, that you slip over your head and wear round your neck. There are lots of fancy things you can do with a buff, for example, make it into a head covering but I only wear it round my neck. I bought it 

initially to wear when I am cycling (not that I have done much of that just lately, 

but thereby hangs another tale!). 

Often I don't want to wear a thick scarf when I am cycling because I would get way to 

hot after I'd been cycling a while, but I want something just to keep that cool 

"wind chill factor" from going down the front of my jacket.  

Anyway I discovered that I loved my buff! 

It was so good for keeping warm, and not just when I was on my bike. And as the 

first buff I bought was mainly yellow to match my fluorescent yellow cycling jacket 

I rather naughtily forked out for 2 more buffs - one mainly red and the 

other mainly blue to match different outfits. 

Oh but my love for having a warm snuggly neck did not stop there. 

I saw this Whitlam cowl from Baa Ram Ewe and realised how much use 

I would get out of one of these. 

This cowl is thicker than a buff so would 

be useful in the cooler months but not so thick as to be cumbersome.  

I bought Baa Ram Ewe's Titus yarn (again, no sponsored link). 

Balling the yarn - this takes me back many years, helping my mum to ball yarn. 

Sadly I had no helpers so had to use the back of an old chair that had been discarded under the car port as the seat was broken (maybe I'll have to keep it now for balling yarn?)

The colour way I chose is Yorkstone - a muted, unusual choice for me as I tend to go for 

bright colours but I thought I might wear this quite often and thus I played it safe 

and chose a neutral colour.  

I carried this project around with me in one of my favourite project bags. For me 

the whole experience of knitting/cross stitching is heightened by a pleasing project bag. 

This project even came to Exeter with me for a 2 day conference - I can always manage 

to find a few minutes knitting time, even if it is on the train. 

This was quite a straight forward pattern but I am a bit frustrated because I made

 several silly mistakes which I couldn't rectify easily as it was a lacy pattern. 

I think I just wasn't in the mood for concentrating properly sometimes but 

generally the mistakes are minor and probably, as is often the case, only I can see them.  

This cowl grew quickly.  

I knitted for 44 inches. Blocking it highlighted the lace 

pattern and also softened the wool.

And here is the finished cowl, prior to joining the ends. 

You could use this as a scarf too - it has pretty scalloped ends. 

And here is the finished article in situ - note how I artfully stretch my neck 

to iron out wrinkles!!

 

 And just to prove the neutral colour was a good choice this time, 
here it is with my blue coat.....

my red coat....

and even my turquoisey coat!!

Yes, I'm very happy with it - I know I shall get a lot of wear out of this. 

And I can see me knitting this again. Now which colour yarn to choose next...

Goathland? Endeavour?

They even have one called Filey, one of my favourite seaside resorts. 

Fantastic names aren't they?

xXx