My New Trends for the Year

February has been quite an eventful month, so far; I've been rope swinging, pitching tents, lazing in hammocks, fire starting (sounds quite dubious, doesn't it?) pancake and popcorn making on an open fire at the local university, as part of my in-service training with the company Grounds for Learning. Oh! To be five again.  I could have sploshed, squelched and trudged through mud all day. I reeked of smoke, and I looked like I had been dragged through a hedge backwards, but I was grinning from ear to ear and talking so much about my experience that Paul had to ask me to stop, take a breath and talk slower.  I know from experience that little ones don't go out as much as I did as a child. Heck, I just have to look at my own neighbourhood and listen to my nephews to see how much things have changed.  And I know there are different theories for this (I studied this topic for my research piece) and I know I'm not going to alter children's play overnight, but I am hoping to take my training back to work and put it to good use; get the little one's out and about in the local area, even, if it is just for an hour at a time. That's my plan, anyway.

This year (this is not a new years resolution....honest) I also intend to make more time for me; so that I can enjoy the little things that make me happy.  A few things I have in mind, one is to block my knitting Pebble Beach Shawl  as soon as possible (not leave it for six months on the back of a chair). And, the second is to make a conscious effort to read more blogs; new and old, and also pluck up the courage to leave comments, if I so wish.  I know in the past I have lurked; I've enjoyed looking at peoples beautiful crafts, and I feel I've had an incite into to their little corner of the world, all of this just by simply reading their blog. Some blogs have made me laugh out loud, others have inspired me to try something new, and one or two have reduced me to tears, in a good way, though, I may add.
So far, I have left comments on three blogs, one I've been following for a while Ozzy Blackbeard, and two new blogs that I have never left comments on before (I know, how brave am I?) Susan B. Anderson. On Susan's blog, she has a beautiful new hat pattern fairytale winter. Now I'm not pretending I'm a follower of fashion or that I'm trendy, but I'm loving the whole faux-fur pompom thing that is going on with hats just now, and if I crane my neck one more time trying to stare at someone's pompom hat I'm going to go insane.  So, when I happened upon this pattern, I knew I had to make a purchase. I have finally found my pompom hat, and I think it's safe to say, that my days of staring and searching are now over. Yipee!
The other blog I have commented on this week is Knit and Tonic. I've been following this blog for some time now, and I usually read and then go, but today I thought I would leave a comment. Why? Well, the subject matter brought back a memory of something I had forgotten about. As some of you may know, from reading my blog I have suffered from PTSD and was successfully treated with EMDR about four years ago now. I'm going to explain crudely the treatment as;  putting traumatic memories into the filing cabinets in your brain so you can't relive them over and over again. Anyway, this has also affected other aspects of my memory, and sometimes I find myself remembering things from my past that were not traumatic at all.  This either sends me into fits of laughter or a smile as I remember something really good, but this morning this memory hit me like a light bulb moment.  You see, I was a part of an online knitting group called Phoenix Knitting Forums and during my time as a member I participated in a blanket swap;  I sent and received two squares a month for a year and at the end I was supposed to make a blanket, but I never did.  The squares have been sitting upstairs in a bedroom cupboard just waiting on me rediscovering them again.  So Wendy, from Knit and Tonic,  I thank you for helping me remember. I'm now off to look for the other bag of squares I have stashed somewhere, and hopefully I can finish this blanket once and for all.

Oh! I nearly forgot I also made a purchase at Ikea; fabric pens, which were reduced to something silly.  I don't know why I bought them or why I even needed them, but I came home and then remembered I had bought fabric crayons at Christmas Time.  Hopefully, soon I will remember what I bought them for. Lol!

Twit-Twooooo!

Did I ever tell you that I have a fascination for lots of different wildlife and some insects!  Few of my favourite animals include sheep, highland cows, elephants, giraffes but my all time favourite apart from my dog -who is wild, ( I will tell you about that later) is the barn owl.  The barn owl is mysterious, and that's what fascinates me about these beautiful sharp featured birds. The barn owl is....

Elegant, calm, confident and truly stunning.  Quite Regal looking in a sense.

And powerful.

So what better way to celebrate my fascination for this beautiful creature- than to cast on a pair of mittens, not just any old mittens though, Owl Mittens by SpillyJame. I've decided I'm not going to make the full mitten but the fingerless type with just one owl on each hand.

I'm also a tad thrifty, the yarn on the left is the remainder of the skein I was using for Norie- mmm! Yes, I did finish it in one day, and it's blocking while we speak.  I will post photos of that tomorrow. Now back to the owls, the other yarn is Schoppel Wolle Zauberball in Cranberry, beautiful rich reds, delicious to knit with.

This is my progress so far:

I'm really enjoying this pattern and can't wait to finish them and show them off, oh! and did I tell you they're all for me, cause I'm selfish like that lol!

Oh nearly forgot the wild dog story.  My O/H and I had an appointment very early on yesterday morning, and we never have any problems about leaving the dog alone or giving him the run of the house.

This is the wild thing.

Anyway, we arrive home an hour later and just manage to open the door, and he flies out, nearly knocking us over, he's all panicky. We are then hit with this awful smell of gas that is overpowering the whole house.   I manage to calm the dog down by placing him in the back garden and leaving him there while my O/H investigates the cause of the gas leak.  There's no gas leak, my bad puppers has been trying to get at some food from the work top- now he hardly looks like he's starving- next to the cooker and somehow managed to hit and twist one of the knobs on the cooker to turn the gas on.  I dread to think what would have happened if we hadn't arrived home when we did and thank heavens we don't smoke, or there would be no house, O/H, me or dog.  Thankfully Chievs is ok and doesn't seem any the worst after his hair brain caper, we still have a house, and we are still alive. However, we will need to be more vigilant about leaving food around, and we will need to turn the gas off when we go out anywhere.  Wonder what mischief he will concoct up for next time!!!

Decision Time!

Thank you, everyone, for taking part in my poll. I've decided -well I think I was always going to make it, if not now, then in the very near future. I've decided to go for Norie.  I've had my eye on the pattern for a long time, but  I've had the perfect yarn for longer.  I loved looking at the skein, squishing it, stroking it but just couldn't bring myself to wind it into a cake, just felt too final-that if I wound it into a cake too soon I would have to use it, and it would probably be used for the wrong pattern.  Don't get me wrong I love winding a skein into a cake but it has to be when the design feels right-strange I know- and this one certainly does, I'm thoroughly enjoying it.


The yarn I'm using is by Jon Dunn it's called Gun Metal and is a Merino/Cashmere/Nylon mix. It's beautiful and soft.  I'm not usually into knitting with grey, I prefer bright colours, like reds and purples but this just feels so right.

I can see myself wearing this hat a lot when it's finished.

It's soooo cute. I just love the Cats Paw pattern, close up they really do look like Cats Paws-sweet!  The pattern is so well written,  I can actually see myself finishing the hat today (which is quite embarrassing, as I only cast it on this morning)  as I'm enjoying it so much.

Anyway!  Did I tell you I ordered more yarn! This time it was too big to be shoved through the letterbox.  I don't know why I bought it, I really don't have a project in mind,  I just sort of had to have it.  It wasn't at all expensive, I bought it on eBay from this seller Kingcraig Fabrics  

I bought 2 of each in Verde, Pistachio and Navy.  The yarn -  100g balls of Merino/Angora mix at £3 each.  I think that really is a bargain!  I don't have a clue what I'm going to make with them, even though they have been wound into cakes already,  I bought them like that, honest.  And do you know what, I may even order some more, at that price I would be stupid not to =D.

Squishyness!

I love when I hear the postie pushing, rustling parcels through my letterbox and they land on the floor with a thud.  For one, I know for sure it's not a bill, or two, junk mail.  It's even better when you make it to the letter box, and there are two parcels teasing you to open them. Who am I to keep them waiting!  I already know what's inside them, no I'm not psychic, I've read the labels. Lol!

The first little parcel is from a swap I'm currently involved in, on the Pheonix Knitting Forum.  Everyone participating in the swap has to Knit (or crochet) 2 X 8" squares in the colour scheme of your partners choice. The squares are made up of DK weight yarn, then blocked to exactly 8" so it's easier when sewing them together.  Each month we send to a different person. The swap is ongoing each month of this year, by the end of the year, we will each have enough squares to make a friendship blanket for ourselves.  Which I think is very cool!

Following squares:  Made by Pinkshoes.

My first parcel, beautifully wrapped in pinkish red tissue and white ribbon.

First square. My colour scheme is Autumnal colours.

Second square.  My swapee has advised me there is grey in this square to represent the typical Central Scotland sky- which I have to add is very true.

We also send a postcard of where we live, to our partners, makes it more personal-well it is a friendship blanket you know.

My second parcel of squishiness is from the lovely Jon from Easy Knits.  Once again I am thrilled with the club selection

The yarn is called ember, a mixture of superwash merino and bamboo.

Also included in the parcel- Lush hand cream and a sock pattern.
I'm really in love with the colour of this yarn.  I would have to say- these are all my ideal colours rolled into one.
Well, I'm going to sign off now.  Think I might just sit, oohing and aagh ahhing, squidging and squeezing for the best part of the day. Bliss!!