Domestic Goddess?

I've had an odd sewing urge. I have been doing difficult leotard sewing - B & J have their first competition in a weeks time - and thought that since all the sewing stuff was out I would do something for me. So, using stash fabric (from Ikea), I made Amy Butler's Domestic Goddess Apron (from Five Valleys Designs - thanks Kirsty). The main fabric was really a little heavy, but I love it so I used it anyway. It's bizarre - has goats on humpbacked bridges, and snow topped mountains. Anyway, I was really pleased with the finished product - it's a very detailed pattern, which took quite a lot longer to make than I had expected, but I will make it again.

Possibly not most flattering modelled over a heavy handknit sweater, but it is winter....

See, I do actually have a waist, honest! And several chins....

Do you like the mountaineer? And the fighting goats? Mental!

Will post pic's of the leotards when I have managed to make 2 pairs of matching shorts ( don't hold your breath!). Was in Ikea today, and saw another mental print, with a huge red fox, pink squirrel and a red-eyed rabbit. I plan to make a bag with that......

1st shawl of 2010

Finished! More of a scarf really, although someone with smaller shoulders than mine could wear it as a shawlette. But it's a gorgeous dark olive green, in beautiful soft baby merino lace yarn (Mmmm, mmmmalabrigo......) and I'm pretty pleased with how it looks.

This is last night's snow deposit, and it was still gently snowing when I took the pic. Schools open though, for now. Yippee!

Now I just have to decide who to give it to. Or if I should keep it for myself!

Snow Day

A snow igloo (not made by us!)

A giant snowman in the background of the giant snowball fight

B & J's snow castles

J's not-so-giant snowman

I decided that it was the perfect day to make a new hat. The matching cowl is on the needles.(Yes, P, I did borrow your coat - Thanks!)

And I made Nigella's Snickerdoodles. There were lots of them, but they were too delicious to wait until they had cooled. Yum x

10 shawls in 2010

As 2009 ended with a challenge - to submit a picture for a calender for the LSG group on Ravelley. This is an online group of knitter who are not exactly your stereotypical granny. Swearing happens. A lot! The calender picture had to include something yarn-related, but otherwise anything goes. And my picture was voted in - I am Miss October! If anyone wants to check out the calendar (not if you are offended by nudity), the link is here.

So my challenge for 2010 is also a Ravelry challenge - to knit 10 shawls in 2010. As I knit my first shawl last year, I was really keen to sign up to this. I wasn't sure how I would get on with doing 10. Then I checked my last years projects and found that I had done 8 last year. So I should be able to do 10 this year.

The shawls I have cast on for 2010 already are:

Citron, from http://www.knitty.com/  - simple shawlette in malabrigo lace

Scheherezade from pink lemon twist.  Gorgeous, challenging stole in Natural Dye Studios angel lace, 1200m per 100g

The other 8 are subject to whim! This is a great challenge, and there are some gorgeous prizes available - both on a monthly basis, and when the year is up.  So it looks like my knitting obsession is going to carry on...

New year, new decade - what will happen next?

Well, another year has passed. Blogging has been sporadic.


We had a quiet new year, to say the least! But, as I sat with P & M, I remembered New Year 10 years ago. We had rotten colds and we saw the millenium in whilst lying in bed with our 10 week old baby watching the fireworks on TV. This year the same 3 people saw the fireworks on TV, all with rotten colds! There was a certain symmetry to it, that I appreciated! The twins hadn't quite managed to get to midnight, and it was the first year that M did. It's been a life-changing decade, going from one brand new baby to 3 ever-growing boys, from full time worker to full time Mum, from Lancashire to Gloucestershire and from poor to comfortable to poor to poor to even poorer to ok to comfortable again! P has gone through nearly a job a year since the twins were born, and it's given him strengths he wouldn't have had otherwise, but a bit of same-ness would be useful now!


I hope this decade will give us a little more stability. We are starting with change - P handed in his notice just before the New Year and will start his new job after his notice period. We might even see him sometimes now!


So all in all, despite all the challenges we will face, I am optimistic that the next decade will be the best yet.


I hope your New Year brings you all the joy and happiness you could wish for x

Perfect Autumn Day

My friend and I have been walking to get fit. We went to the deer park today. It's been there for hundreds of years and seems timeless. The trees are starting to turn, the slight mist was burning off and the day was turning crisp and clear. Then we turned a corner and saw the very big deer with the enormous, multi branched antlers staring at us, and we remembered rutting season was about to start. They are big, intimidating and incredibly beautiful and I have never seen as many in the park before. Literally hundreds. There are Red Deer and Fallow deer, and they are all absolutely free and wild. The fallow deer are the bambi type, and have such pretty markings. The Red deer are the big, Monarch of the Glen types and we saw lots of very impressive males - the females are not as spectacular or generally as pretty as the fallow deer, but they are lovely in motion.

In the top part of the park, we were lucky enough to see lots of white deer too - at least a dozen, ranging from white bellied with pale fawn backs to pure snow white. Just stunning. And me without my camera! I will try to get photos another day.


On one of our walks last week, part of the route took us along the canal.  There used to be a rail bridge that went across the canal and across the Severn, and this is one of the supports that are left. Not a bad view to start the day!

Last weekend's niece fest

I had a lovely day last Sunday. Went to London to see my sister and my two nieces. Mum was there too, and my Dad & Stepmum popped in for lunch so it ticked lots of boxes! Both E & G were adorable. G shown above at 1 week old. E is 23 months. It's a joy to be able to sit and snuggle a new baby. They are so soft and utterly trusting. Lovely! I gave them a haul of presents, some made, some bought. For Ravellers, you can see the baby blanket and cardy here, along with the cot toy.

For E, I made the owl hairpin - modelled above by sis - that I blogged about before (10 minutes and it's done!) and the megahit of the day, Teddy. She slept with Teddy and we played ball with Teddy and Teddy kept getting lost. Luckily in the same place so E kept on rescuing Teddy. Phew!

Aren't the girls lovely? So nice to be able to give girly things too. A change from my boy-dominated life!