Weekends

Last weekend Josh went off with Nanny and Grandad and I went to London with a friend.  We had a lovely relaxing day despite having to get up early to catch the train.  The plan was to do a bit of culture and then a bit of shopping.  I think the culture bit might have been skipped and we ended up shopping.  We treated ourselves to posh coffee out at Fortmum and Mason with the most delicious chocolate cake that lasted no time at all.  And then we had a mooch around the shops.  Oh and of course we had to pop into a yarn shop or two.  We went into Liberty where the new Rowan Mode was available and yes I did buy something (so I think one of the garments from this is next on my knit list).   We looked around the rest of the haberdashery department as well as looking at several other things. We also popped into John Lewis to have a look there.  But resisted buying anything there.  After exhausting ourselves I think both of us were glad to get back on the train and rest our feet and to plan our next and several other trips after that.

My Life

Ok so knitting, the dog, my family and being outside are all part and parcel of my life.  As a family we love having a dog as it gets us out no matter what the weather is doing you have to take them out.  He is also good company and great fun to be with.

My family will tell you I am addicted to knitting, most evenings and even during the day I can't sit down without some knitting to do.  I am very grateful for the designers and yarn producers who let me knit things for them especially when I have so many sweaters for myself that the drawer where I keep them is full.  (Yes I need to cull some!)  At the moment the sweater I am working on (and I am trying to work only on this) is called Olive Leaf Pullover by Hand Knit Life (@Ririko) and is for Linda at @Kettleyarnco whose yarns are amazing.  There are so many designers and yarns out there now than when I first started knitting that I could add and add and add to the things I want to make.

Sundays

Sundays are for spending time together as a family.  We have recently bought Josh a new bike as he had outgrown his previous one.  So with still shiny new wheels (it has been used a little already but only short journeys) we headed off on a family cycle.  It was lovely to get out and go a little further than we normally would.  I think all in all we did about 20 miles.  Thankfully the weather was perfect for cycling not too hot, cold or wet.  Mind you there were a few drops of rain and I did wonder if we should have brought coats. 

So now for a relaxing evening in front of the television and doing some knitting before the new week begins.

So Long

Can't believe how long it is since I posted on here.  I guess things just get in the way of posting and so it never gets done.  Sometimes it is just easier to post one picture and think of a short caption to put on Instagram rather than write a long post.  But I still like to think I have a blog even if I don't post anything or anyone else reads it. 
Perhaps I should get back to blogging regularly, maybe more about what we have been doing rather than just about what my latest knitting / craft project is.  (Mind you there have been plenty of those recently with various commissions for designers and wool dyers alike, keeping my fingers busy!).

Let's see what the future holds and see if I can get back to blogging a bit more regularly.  But I will try not to bore my readers if I have any left.

Knitting

I do this a lot.  Just ask my family.  But recently I have been trying to decide what to really make and what makes me really happy.  Putting a little more thought into what I am making and not just jumping on the band wagon because that is what others are making.  This past week has seen me rip back nearly a whole sweater and cast on a new one.  I was not happy with the sweater and the more I knitted the more I kept thinking that it was not really what I wanted to be making.  So off the needles it went and I casted on some different.  I decided to go back to knitting a designers design that I knew I would want to knit and wear.

I have never really thought that much about my knitting.  I know I am more comfortable knitting things flat and sewing up.  It is just the way I like.  I don't mind knitting in the round but I am happier knitting flat.  Also there are some designers I just know I like the garments - they tend to be the more classic designs. 

So for the time being I am going to make sure I stick with what I am happy with.  Surely the less pressure we put on ourselves the better.  Life and society put too much pressure on us already to fit in.  Let's relax and knit, do what makes us happy.

(Martha by Kim Hargreaves in Felted Tweed dk)

Saying Goodbye

Saying Goodbye is never easy.  Unfortunately we are having to say goodbye by to our beloved dog. Rusty.  We have been through so much together and it is a hard day.  But it will be better for him.  He is nearly 15 which considering what he has been through at the start of his life and more recently is a miracle he has been with us this long.  He has meant so much to us all, both friends and family.  Always there to greet people when they come to visit.  Always a friendly lick.  Just being there and having someone to share your woes with and  not answering back.  Always getting you out of the house when you don't really want to and making you feel so much better for doing so.  Sharing runs in fields and lanes, walks, hikes up mountains, playing frisbee, helping clear the plates when we can't finish our food, cleaning the kitchen floor of crumbs.  (Oh my goodness I shall have to sweep the floor more often now).  These are just some of the many things you have done for us but now is the time for you to go and we understand that even though we may be sad we still love you and will miss you terribly.

Yarn Along and end of silence (maybe)

I have not been on here for such a long time.  Knitting has been going on and reading has happened but I just haven't felt the where with all to blog about it.

I have been doing lots of sample knitting, knitting for others and pattern testing lately.  I have been enjoying this even though I do wish I had more knitting time during the day so that I could knit so much more but real life just seems to get in the way.  There always seems to be something else that needs doing and it always seems to take longer than I think.

The above knit is a sweater that I am knitting up as a sample for A Yarn Story in Bath for their shop.  The pattern is Stasis by Leila Raabe and is knit in Brooklyn Tweed Loft.  This is the first time I have used this yarn and also knit something by this designer.  I am loving both. 

As for reading I am reading 'A Respectable Trade' by Phillipa Gregory, an author whose writing style I really like.

Well, not much more to really say this time other than that I hope to blog a little more in 2018.

A knitter's life

 Sometimes I have lots of knitting to do and other times very little.  At the moment I have no test knitting or samples to do so I am getting on with a cardigan for myself.  I am on the first sleeve.  The plan was to do 2 at a  time but I cast on the first one and decoded to just leave it at that.  (The pattern is Daffodil by Helga Isager and the yarn is Isager Highland wool).  The yarn I am using is very light but looks as if it could be incredibly warm.  It is the first time using this yarn but I am sure it won't be the last.  In fact there are other designs by Helga that I am looking forward to making.  They are classic designs and are just the sort of thing I like to wear.  I had planned to have this finished but with a few test knits and samples that needed doing with deadlines this got put on the back burner.  But hopefully it won't take too long to knit the rest and I can wear it.  The weather here is still cool enough in the mornings and evenings to need an extra layer.

Life

Life goes on.  It's hard to know what to say following the results of the American election.  But the only thing to say is be kind to one another.  Think before you speak, make sure the words you say are kind words.  I was going to post yesterday but couldn't think what to say.  I read several craft blogs and other blogs and each one I read yesterday talked about loving each other despite what the world throws at us.  Wise words, so I think I shall leave it at that.

(I need to post an update on knitting progress soon - or I will finish my projects, if only.  Knitting with tiny needles and thin yarn is slow but there has been progress.)

Beauty in Autumn

I'll let the pictures do the talking.  The last couple of morning walks have been misty and foggy.  It is very beautiful and atmospheric.  The weather is set to get colder so who knows what we will be greeted with first thing in the morning when we open the curtains.

Autumn

 I love autumn.  It means I can get out the Woolly jumpers and feel warm and cosy.  I like the changes in the trees.  Autumn colours are great.  On our dog walk in the mornings I find it is a great time to really think before the hectic rushing around for the rest of the day.  I find it is my calming time, my me time to think or not think (sometimes) to just be me.

On the needles at the moment is a test knit for Sabine - @frisabiknits (on instagram).  They have been a really quick knit and fun to make.  I have knitted them in Rowan felted tweed dk as that was all the dk yarn I had in my stash.  (I try not to stash too much yarn).  I'm not sure what to knit next but I know I do have a sock on the needles that I need to frog because I think it is too small and I had almost finished the first sock as well - I knew I should have tried it on before now.  Shall I re-knit the same socks or do a different pair or even make a shawl out of the yarn.  It is very pretty yarn from Hedgehog fibres.   Choices, choices.

Early mornings

 I love our early morning walks at the moment.  The skies have been great and I have taken so many pictures it is hard to decide which to keep and which to not.  We are so lucky to live where we do.  We have the countryside on our doorstep but also towns and cities nearby.

In resurrecting my blog I am thinking of a name change and maybe having a play as my blog no longer just reflects what I make/knit.  I shall still include the things I do make, such as these socks that I have recently finished.

( Delbert by Rachel Coopey and are knitted in Opal Yarn that I bought when visiting my mother in law and almost ran out of knitting!)

So long

 Didn't mean to leave it so long between posts.  Summer has gone and Autumn has definitely started.  I love it though, the changing of the seasons.  The leaves changing colour.  The amazing skies first thing in the morning and last thing at night. It is also the time to start getting the woollies out and also my needles get a bit busier in the run up to Christmas but I love the feeling being creative gives me.

At the moment I have a Brake cowl on the needles which is designed by Donna Smith and in some lovely yarn (Town End yarns Alpaca with Merino)  I picked up from Wild and Woolly on a trip to London with some knitty friends.  It is very soft and silky.   The yarn is not really the pinky colour in this picture, it is more of a red/pink but it seems to be a difficult colour to picture.  

Cotton Wool head

Terrible photo. it is a picture of some doodling I have done recently.  I seem to have lost my creative spark at the moment.  I guess sometimes it goes like this.  There are good and bad days but I just feel that recently I haven't really been very creative.  Yes I have had knitting on the go but I am following a pattern and not diverting.  I feel I am not using my creative side as I would like.  Problem is I can't see a way forward at the moment.  My head feels as though it is full of cotton wool.  Have you every felt this way?  And what did you do about it?

So Long

It is so long since I have put anything on here, it is not for having nothing to put but just that I couldn't think how to put it.  Does that make sense?                                            

During the Easter holidays we went as a family to Rome and had a brilliant time.  We packed so much into the small amount of time we had there.  We stayed in a airbnb apartment 10 minutes walk from the Colosseum and was perfect for our stay.  It had everything we needed and the owner met us there and gave us a few pointers to make our stay the best. 

On our first day, we had a guided walking tour of the Colosseum and the Forum.  This tour was 3 hours and a little bit long for J.  But after some much needed sustenance we felt much better and also went and looked at the Pantheon.  We also managed to squeeze in a little bit of traditional food while there - pizza and pasta.

Day 2 saw us visiting St Peter's Basilica and the Vatican City.  We spent a lot of time looking up at ceilings or looking at mosaic floors.

We seemed  to walk for miles but we did also use the metro as well which J enjoyed.  After spending most of our second day at the Vatican city we were all starting to flag and headed back to the apartment to make yet more pasta .

Evenings were spent either sitting on the balcony drinking wine, beer or juice, running along the balcony (J - five floors up was a little worrying) .  One last visit we did was to see the Colesseum lit up in the dark.  J was very happy to be allowed to stay up late but was a little grumpy and tired the next day as we had to be up very early to catch our flight back to the UK.

What a memorable trip.  There is so much to see and take in that maybe another trip in the future is required. 

(This is only a small amount of the photographs that were taken, I think in the end I took nearly 200 and A took nearly 1000! So may memories made that we still talk about it now.  For ease and to try and avoid too many queues we booked tours and tickets before we left the UK)

Still Here

It is so long since I last wrote on here, it is not that I have not had anything to put on here but that I just haven't.

Life has just been plodding along.  Josh has started at a small village school about 5 miles from home with only 65 pupils in the whole school.  At the moment he is in a class of reception, year 1 and year 2 but there are less than 30 pupils.  Next year he will go into a class of year 3 and 4 and there will be 20 at the most.  He seems to be settling in very well with only 1 or 2 wobbles so far.  So that is good and he is generally happy to go to school each morning which is such a relief.

Craftwise again life is ticking over with both sample and test knitting happening.  But also leaving me enough time to knit myself things.  Hopefully I might get around to posting some pictures soon.

Books, books and more books

Joining in with the Year in Books.  This is my book for December.  I last read this when I was doing my exams at school.  In fact it was the book that made me fall in love with the classics of Jane Austen.  I have read most of Jane Austen's novels and enjoyed them all.

It has been a while since I really blogged about a book that I have read/been reading so I thought it was about time I did, sometimes other things just get in the way or I am just too tired to read - especially as most of my reading is done in bed just before falling asleep.  I have really been enjoying joining in with Laura (http://circleofpinetrees.com/year-books/ ) for 2015 and plan to join in again next year.  I may not have joined in every month but it is the sort of thing you can dip in and out of.  Also once a month we have a chat about books over on Twitter (https://twitter.com/hashtag/theyearinbooks?src=hash) and have added to my want to read list so much.

Autumn

Not long now and we will be talking about winter.  The leaves have fallen off the trees.  We have  had a few frosts.  I do like this time of year, well parts of it.  I love it when the leaves are changing colour.  I love the sunrises and the sunsets.  I think the majority of my recent pictures on instagram have been pictures of sunrise or sunset.  They are so beautiful.

In home life change is also happening.  We are reconsidering a different school for little one, he is not happy or are we.  He relaxes Friday night but then by Sunday he is very anxious again.  Not good for one so young (he is 6).   I  told school about 2 weeks ago that I would not be able to do casual supply as of January and I am going to start persuing my creative side - I think I need this break as well.

Roll on the Christmas Holidays when we can all relax a bit and enjoy spending time together.

So long

I can't believe it has been so long since I last wrote on here.  It is not that I have been that busy, well no more than usual.  I just have not been sure what to write.

Recently I have been doing a bit of cycling and it has been lovely to venture a little bit further than I would on 2 feet.  On Saturday a friend persuaded me to go out with the local cycle club (all very serious), it did mean getting up really early - 6.30am early!  Something I am not accustomed to at the weekend.  It was a lovely cycle despite the rain but I think I need to get in some more practice with big hills before I go again.  I have also made the decision to try and get my running back on track rather than being very ad hoc as it has been recently.  I need to set aside some time each week when I know I will go for a run.  I would like to try and alternate a cycle and a run if I can.  I am hoping that once I have got this under my belt I can then get back into doing some races.  Mind you perhaps I ought to book the races to provide me with the impetus to get out.  Oh well, here goes, let's give it a go.

Filling my time

Joshua has now gone back to school and seems to so far has settled in well in his new class and likes his new teacher.  Phew!

So now I am at home by myself during the school hours and filling the hours seems to be no problem. I am hoping to get back to doing a little more exercise each day as well as the usual bits of housework and maybe the odd bit of knitting.   So far I have cycled and done some running and it feels good.  The endorphins from exercise make you feel so good.

But I do miss the constant background chatter of the little one and look forward to picking him up each day and spending some quality time together after school and before bedtime.