February...ing

Just a quick fly in today as we have just got back from holiday and things are all over the place. Have you enjoyed February? Sometimes I think it is the worst month because Winter feels so long but this year it has flown by with family, work, sewing, knitting and our ski holiday.

Travelling - to Austria for our first family ski holiday. Things are different from when Bloke and I used to ski every year, sometimes twice in our 30's. We all have to wear helmets and priorities are different. We wanted a location that we could take walks, mooch and visit when our legs were aching from ski boots. Gone are the days of skiing, getting drunk and skiing on repeat with a hangover all in a woolly hat.

Eating - street waffles with chocolate sauce in Zell am See and...

Copious amounts of ham and cheese.

Loving - the bright days, exercise and the feeling of freedom. It makes you feel really alive.

Knitting - some socks on holiday. It is my go to project for travelling. 

Wearing - my new sweater. I love it so...

Sewing - my second Marnie Blouse by Tilly and the Buttons. My first one has gone to a friend and I sized down and made this one with a smaller sleeve in double gauze. The right fabric choice is key to this pattern.

Admitting - that we all missed Beano immensely while we were away. He was so pleased to see us and lay on the huge pile of dirty washing when we got back for ages.

Arriving - back to a tidy house. Thanks mum. She even cleaned the fridge!

Getting - stilettos for my cutting table. Bloke made me these leg extensions for my table so that I can cut out without having a sore back. Genius eh?

Attending - an overlocker course at Guthri and Ghani in Birmingham. It was brilliant and I learnt so much. It was a bit of a busman's holiday - a day off sewing to learn about more sewing!

Marking - the first week of the flower vase challenge I set myself last year. How long can I have a vase of flowers continuously throughout the year from either hedgerow or garden? I think I am already a few weeks up on last year when I started in March. Today we have hellebores, daffs, and euphorbia.

Leaving - you with the view of course. It doesn't matter where I go in the world I am always ecstatic to get back to this, I think it is engrained on my retinas.

Chat soon. Jo xxx

Winter Knitting round up

 I have had some quite successful knitting projects of late. I find knitting kind of goes in waves for me; sometimes fantastic, sometimes farcical. 

Bloke bought me a lovely new book for Christmas called Ready Set Raglan. If you like knitting top down jumpers is a must have book. It acts as a kind of pick and mix book where you choose your neck finish, hem finish and size followed by the kind of raglan pattern you would like. I love these kind of books because I like a long sleeve and short body fit. 

I chose a split hem because I was trying to trick my jumper into NOT flipping up on the ribbed waistband. You might notice here I am holding it. It is to stop it flipping - it is flipping annoying! 

I blocked the edge which stopped it happening but I think I need to go down more than one needle size when I rib my knitting. It happens on everything I do.

Anyway, the raglan is joyous and so easy to achieve. When I knit another one out of the book, which I surely will, I will do the German short rows at the back neck to make the front neck a little lower but I am really 'knit-picking'

The yarn was a huge hank I bought in a bargain bin at WonderWool last year. My usual shenanigans - you know the drill - no ball band, no washing instructions, no yardage...no idea. But it felt enough for a sweater. It was quite a light mustard colour so I ran a strand of Isager Kid silk mohair from Ippikin (not a bargain!) with it and the resulting fabric was suberb. It fit the gauge requirements, is super soft and warm and took the tone of the yellow down a peg or two.

Next up to ease the budget a little after the Isager purchase I made a birthday present for a two year old with some bottom-of-the-basket left overs. It is one of my favourite tops to knit called Like Sleeves which you can find on ravelry here. It is two rectangles with a row of decreases at the empire line and the sleeves you see are purely an optical illusion! I striped it out to get the antique rose yarn to go the distance. All wrapped and ready to go.

OK, wait for it.....

I finished my tank top and bought a shirt to go underneath. I was due a new white shirt because the two I owned had turned the colour of old chewing gum. I decided now was the time to finally yay or nay the monster top from 2022. 

When I see it in the top photo, I really like it. When I see it below I don't like it because it is all uneven but you know what - I will wear it this spring and see, nobody knows the armholes are different depths. I simply couldn't leave the one armhole unfinished therefore I added a small row of rib. 

I mean weird shape or what?

Finally, I have crocheted a jumper. I am a little late on the show and tell for this little number. I made it over Christmas but it is really ready for Spring. I have a craft group and a few people wanted to make a jumper so we have been making them together. This is stylecraft bambino which is delightful against the skin. This jumper came in at under £20!

We are going skiing next week to Austria. I always like a little portable project for the airport and on holiday so I have cast on a new pair of socks. 

Any knitting/crochet success of late? Jo xxxx

January...ing

Hello there, long time no posting! It has been a busy month of getting back to normal after the festive season in some pretty dreich weather but I always find there something to pick out as a positive in life. Lets poke around and see what we can find...

Trying - to make the most of the bright days by getting out with the dog.

Sewing - With lace which is not as hard as you think. This is the Montrose top by Cashmerette patterns.

Making - A flouncy wrap dress for my birthday party. This is Simplicity 8637 in Minerva Exclusive Viscose Challis.

Inviting - my favourite people to a pudding party at home. We put a tent on the side of the house, my girls ran a bar and we made our house like a pub for the night! It was a special birthday for me...the big 50. We were not able to celebrate building our own house in lockdown so it was a great celebration to invite people round who did not know where we had moved to. It is a shame that in January, people could not see the view but hey ho.

Updating - the state of our sofa cushions and a wonky lampshade that was damaged in our move 3 years ago. I love covering a new lampshade in fabric. The kit is reasonably priced from danells and the fabric was given to me by a friend so really just some sewing time needed for the new cushions. All that fabric has gone now which makes me happy.

Sharing - some sewing tips for adding waistbands. I absolutely love my job with Minerva as a videographer and have become a better sewer as a result. You soon get better when you are filming yourself! This is the Ness Skirt by Tilly and Buttons in a beautiful china blue cotton sateen. It has some stretch so a fitted skirt is the perfect match to this skirt pattern.

Knitting - a sweater from my new raglan knitting book which bloke bought me for Christmas. I am running a mystery DK mustard yarn with some isager mohair silk and the colour and texture is gorgeous. That is a chocolate orange in there not a ball of yarn!!

Cutting - out my latest vintage pattern find. The 1970's patterns look really current at the moment. Those long pointy curved edged collars from the 70's never made a come back did they!?

Watching - as the view from the kitchen window changing minute by minute on Monday evening. I struggled to choose the best one for you.

 I have been woefully bad at blogging this month what with school closures due to no hot water, getting back into work mode and planning a big party so I am off to check out what you have all been up to. Thanks for checking in. Jo xxxx

Knitting

 Happy New year to you all! My yarny adventures are back on track after the (still debatable) disastrous tank top project. Here is a little round up of positive wooly goodness. 

This is an easy peasy crochet scarf made solely of chain stitch. If you have a burning desire to learn to crochet then this is  fab starter project because the rhythmn of chaining helps you to fins some muscle memory for how you are going to hold your hook and yarn. It will create your crocheting style. Three people at my new craft group all made one and they wear them with pride. The very simple pattern is on ravelry here

My mum had one ball of yarn left over from my cosy tank top request so I whipped up a hat for our ski holiday which is in February. I used a bit of colour to work the pattern and again, this is a super pattern for beginner colour work fans which you can find here.

My last project from over the holidays is a sort of fail turned triumph. I started making some reindeer socks for myself. I was using two double pointed cable needles but the nay bit at the top seemed too big but I knit on enjoying the colourwork. After the reindeers, I decided not to add the sock part but to add some rib instead and make wrist warmers. 

I loved the process of these; mindful Christmas knitting but I did wonder how much I would wear them. It turns out they are really wearable especially for sitting to read, working on the laptop when I don't have the heating on and for wearing with long sleeved tops and my coat. 

The girls and I have continued to enjoy craft club in which we have taught lots of people to crochet, help to read their knitting patterns or share inspiration for future projects.

The bauble project was to encourage everyone to read a crochet pattern and switch between the stitches they had learnt. "What is a treble again!?" was what I mostly heard that evening!

Sometimes we take quick snap photos of each other to share on a gallery. This one was the turn of my big girl nearly finishing her first sock. My teens sit and chat easily with the women who are all over 50 which makes me very proud. The girls chat and interject with ease and I often ask Heidi to sit next to a new crochet learner to help them along. 

I might have had enough of a break to go back to that sleeveless sweater now...I will keep you updated of course!

Best Wishes for 2023. Jo xxx

December...ing

 Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you all! We have been busy, busy...of course, but nothing too stressful.

Catching - our last few lettuce except one before the first frosts of early December but I am pretty proud that we were still eating homegrown salad until at least the 1st December.

Trying - a game pie for the first time ever. It took three days! Marinating the meat first in port, constructing the pie and then leaving it overnight to cool down before adding aspic the the third day. It was delicious.

Working - my last edit for Minerva before the Christmas break. I made a bunting tutorial with Christmas fabrics.

Sewing - a Winter themed Rosa shirt dress. It was great for Christmas day and many events during advent. It took me a long time to make because of the piping detail which also hampered me being able to fit it easily but I like wearing it. I also made a simple jacket in boucle which feels more like a cardigan so I can wear it with my jeans too.

Watching - Panto at Shrewsbury theatre. I wore my winter outfit and enjoyed an afternoon out with the girls. I thought they might find it a bit odd being older but we all enjoyed the performance.

Admiring - the decorations and skill involved in producing such creative installations on a mansion visit to Attingham Park. Each room was decorated in the theme of a craftsman, trade or service associated with the house. Lots of artefacts not normally on show were used in the displays. Just a couple to tantalize you; the upholsterer and the carpenters tree.

Recreating - a few little things which inspired my girls at the Mansion. Big teen worked out how to make the paper Christmas trees we saw in the library decorations and made a few for us.

Decorating - our own Christmas tree and the house. We don't have outdoor decorations and our decs are pretty low key - mostly little things we, or our friends, have made.

knitty things...

Crochet things...

handstitched things...

wooden things...

Receiving - a beautiful door wreath from Beth who grows her floral display flowers on my small holding. She makes such wonderful individual wreaths every December and she always makes me one as a thank you for the year. This year I had cones, pheasant feathers and ivy.

Baking - Christmas cakes for Gran and Grandad, Uncle and a small one for me. Little Teen decorated her grandparents one with royal icing and ribbon. I'm all about the actual cake so Big Teen glazed mine with fruit and nuts.

Walking - with our dog Beano in all weathers. Spaniels need soooo much exercise otherwise they go even more loopy than normal. 

Eating - Christmas dinner with my husband, girls, my mum and my Aunt. Then playing a few games in the afternoon.

Checking - in with the view for you folks. The frosty weather threw up some superb views including one with the moon and quite a few with a warm purple/pink haze.

Relaxing - today with some blog reading, spot of crochet and and an afternoon cake bake. Where did all the other cake go???

Jo xxxx