Tag Archives: cowl

Spring

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MAKING Still crocheting my coastal colours cowl. I haven’t done a lot of anything crafty recently, April was ‘a bit of a month’ to use typical British understatement! I’m focusing on it now, and then will try to finish the Coast blanket next

LIKING Sitting in a holiday cottage crocheting and watching the lead up to the Coronation from 9:30am, just for a little while before going out. Then, it absolutely poured on and off all morning and so plans to walk, or go anywhere were shelved until the afternoon. Crochet, tea and the whole of the Coronation service (though not the balcony and fly-past) followed. I really enjoyed it all

COOKING Tray bake fish with olives, lemons & cherry tomatoes. I swap the fish, sometimes using haddock, or cod and last week it was salmon. I eat the cooked lemon too. See John Torode’s recipe

BAKING Sourdough rosemary focaccia. Woah! This is so good, it’s left to prove in the fridge in the tin overnight so develops an amazing texture. So good I made it twice in as many weeks

SIPPING I did Dry Lent once again and since then haven’t really drunk much alcohol at all, unless you count last Friday night’s spiced rums? No, we probably don’t count those, as it was holiday refreshments

READING A novel I saw recommended in Good Housekeeping magazine. I’m not entirely sure about it at the moment as it’s quite chick-litty, not my usual genre really. It’s One Moment by Becky Hunter

LOOKING A bit funny? Woolly slippers, no socks, joggers and one of my favourite bright pink patterned tees. Open windows and a rather cool day, but too lazy to go fetch a hoodie

Cowslips are everywhere, we’ve recently walked alongside a field full

LISTENING to Weightless by Elbow, on my liked songs playlist on Spotify

WISHING for free train travel for a year, including the sleepers. I’ve wanted this for ages, since someone once said they get it through their job working for a rail company

BAKING Sourdough pitta bread regularly now. I have now stopped buying any and freeze half of each batch. It’s always handy to have emergency bread in the freezer. You can defrost them in the toaster then warm them. I can’t recommend them enough. So much tastier with the sourdough flavour, than the supermarket equivalent

Part of the first batch, now I make them half them the size, weighing the dough for accuracy still

ENJOYING Warmer weather, it’s very on and off at the moment but my flowers have doubled in size in the garden

Parsley seeds are growing well on my sunny windowsil

BUYING A variety of seeds, plant labels, thr May issue of Gardeners World magazine mainly for the 2-for-1 Garden Card, a sprouter (actually this was with the last of a birthday garden voucher), pots, bottle top waterers, propagators, compost, top soil, plug plants … it’s that time of year again

The Cotswold Sculpture Park has reopened, hurrah! GW mag 2-for-1 card still accepted.
‘Despair’, the detail on this is incredible

OBSESSING Over seeds and sprouts and microgreens. I’ll show you a few pics, but if you’re interested go to highlights and keep an eye on stories for progress pics on my Instagram

Look at the roots on these microgreens! Grown in a hydroponic sprouter, they have replicated the pattern on the base of the section in which they sat
Mung beans in a soup mug covered with muslin, after 8 hours soaking. I think we’ll eat them before the roots grow so long this time. When they looked like tiny tadpoles they were at their crunchiest and sweetest, that might be the time to add a few to salads

APPRECIATING Salads for lunch again with home sprouted beansprouts! Delicious with this dressing and toasted pumpkin seeds

MANAGING To produce mouldy and rotten peas, instead of pea-shoots, in the new sprouter. So I’ve gone back to growing in soil, I’m not sure about hydroponics for those. I have put my first lot of lentils (puy) in it today though, we’ll see how they do

WONDERING If you know that sprouted lentils are meant to be good for chickens too?!

Mustard, mizuna & beetroot, they are packed with so much good stuff. You’re going to be seeing grown microgreens and sprouts for sale and I predict there will be an explosion of sites about how to grow them
For sale from the shop pictured below, in Chichester. Spotted on Monday

EATING More chocolate, Easter always gives me a taste for it again. The less I eat, the less I fancy any

WAITING for my pea shoots! They’ve just starting to show. I can’t wait to eat them

WATCHING Annika. (I’ll generally watch anything Nicola Walker does, apart from the Marriage thingy with Sean Bean.) I’ve only watched the first episode on UK TV Play, it’s free with ads, and Annika breaking the fourth wall, quoting literature is refreshingly different. Have you seen it?

WATCHING Would I Lie to You? But nearly at the point where we watched the latest series, it’s the best thing after an urgh day. It makes us laugh so much. (Newer series is on the BBC Iplayer. Old ones on UK TV Play for free, with ads)

Bluebells

HOPING for sunnier days please, today we had everything: a dramatic hailstorm, torrential rain which was so heavy I had to stop the car, then weak sunshine and super fluffy white clouds in a blue sky

NOTICING A MASSIVE spider by the bed this morning. The spider pot (an old ricotta tub) and birthday card was fetched from the bathroom cupboard, along with Someone to pop it outside as I was only wearing a towel. Then I peered out anyway, as it was walking along the garage roof. I warned it not to even think about coming back in again

FOLLOWING The weather forecast

Inside The Gothic Temple at Stowe, a National Trust property. It’s a holiday let and this was an open day so visitors to see what it’s like inside
Stunning. Spooky at night I would say

SORTING Seed packets. Oregano, carrots, beetroot and lettuce need to be planted soon

GETTING Teased by a friend, Lucy, for taking my beansprouts away for the weekend

West Wittering beach

COVETING Raised vegetable beds

FEELING Pressed for time. I need to add photos, change and go to take someone for their Covid Booster (and ummm collect the 34 tomato (including a few which look suspiciously like pepper or chilli) plants which were babysat for the long weekend. I thought taking a freshly baked fruit cake for a Coronation Street Party would be a fair exchange. In retrospect it went as well as I’d anticipated, haha

HEARING What’shername – Self Esteem, this song

A nice pot of lemon & ginger tea in a super dooper cafe we came across in Chichester: Real Eating Co

How’s your spring? Busy and productive? Happy and calm? Are you managing to keep all the balls in the air?

March

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Making: Ummm I’m not sure how this happened, one minute it was a ball of Hayfield Spirit and the next it’s half a cowl! Addicted to bobbles still

Cooking: spicy chicken with tomatoes & peppers, lots of mixed spices

Sipping: water, tonic, lemonade, lime & soda (Dry Lent)

Washing on the line, cyclamen in lots of corners of the garden, mid-March

Reading: Landlines by Raynor Winn. Nearly finished. It’s her third walking book and I’ve loved spending time with her and Moth again

Waiting: for my parcel delivery

Spot the daffodil? A bit invisible and crunched up to the others, but the people coming through on the double deckers will be able to see!

Looking: at all the spring flowers in the garden. So many anemones this year and the heathers are really vibrantly pink

Listening: to Conversations from a Long Marriage (BBC Sounds) Hancock (ditto) my latest Radar playlist on Spotify

Wishing: I planted my chilies, peppers and tomato seeds earlier

The leaves have been munched, but the hellebore flowers are looking good. The garden needs a good spring clean and tidy up

Enjoying: sunny blue sky days which seem slightly more frequent. Today’s one of the best in ages

Appreciating: blossom, daffodils and the smell of flowers’ perfume on the breeze

Eating: an epic goats cheese, onion chutney & rocket sourdough toasty in a cafe on Friday. I earned it!

Liking: my bed, I’ve got into the habit of heading up about 9:30pm to have lots of reading time. Then I wake at 1200/0100/0200 (latest so far: 0215) glasses on and Kindle in sleep mode, bruised side of nose from glasses! A huge D’oh!

Loving: watching Lockwood and Co. On Netflix

I took this photo on the 14th, now the pot is absolutely brimful of viola again. Best autumn purchase I’ve ever made! It’s been a really nice sight from the kitchen window over winter

Buying: local free range eggs (as always.) I’m having another phase of fried and scrambled for lunch

Baking: (this morning) mixed seed sourdough, what a great crust! It’s always a much deeper colour and crunchier, from the oils in the seeds probably

Managing: to get out for more walks lately, dodging the rain storms. It’s been really good to get up to the fields again and not have to wade through ankle-deep mud. It’s a bit slip and slide, but so far I haven’t…

Watching: The latest series of: Unforgotten, Vera and planning to start the new David Attenborough soon

Hoping: for peace, easier financial times for all …so much… positives for the environment, the homeless and disenfranchised …the list seems endless at the moment

Watching: films…Everything, Everywhere, All at Once (or as I called it “A lot of Biff Boff”) Billy Elliot (a modern classic, so worth rewatching!) Brian & Charles (well worth renting via Prime, particularly for those who like quirky British films) Empire of Light (Sam Mendes latest. We really, really enjoyed this at the weekend.)

Saturday. It won’t be long before the trees are in leaf again

Wearing: one of my favourite Seasalt tops. It’s green

Noticing: leaf shadows on the curtain

Forsythia just coming out in flower at the beginning of March

Following: an arrow shaped cloud tracking across the blue sky

Sorting: bits for the charity shop

Future conkers!

Getting: a list written for the next groceries order, it’s one of those big order weeks. Why do all the tissues etc all run out at once?

Coveting: Spotify premium, mine’s just run-out

Feeling: the need to move again shortly

Photo bombed on Saturday

Hearing: the clock tick, the birds chirp, someone on a call, the fridge click off

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The clocks went forward this weekend, that loss of an hour can be so discombobulating! I woke up Sunday morning, asked what the time was and when I heard 9 o’clock, I nearly fell out of bed! And then of course I realised that really it was eight. Or, so my body still thought. I wish we didn’t have to change the clocks, although I suppose the extra long hours of daylight until October are good. I’d like to have a year where we try not moving them, just to see what it’s like. I was going to ask if anyone remembered before British summertime began. Then googled it, thank goodness, otherwise I would’ve looked a right idiot! It began in 1916.

To save energy and help the war effort, the Summer Time Act 1916 advanced the clocks in the UK for 1 hour from May 21 until October 1 in the same year. Summer time, or DST, proved so popular that it was named British Summer Time (BST) and the seasonal practice kept

From TimeandDate.com this has some good nuggets of information, although I admit ‘Time Zone History of the United Kingdom’ isn’t exactly a catchy title.

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Tell us a few things, what have you been up to during March? What are you making, enjoying eating, reading or watching on TV?

Bobble cowl – finished!

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I’ve enjoyed crocheting this bobbly cowl. It’s definitely been a slow project as rows of mostly double crochet do not grow at all fast, but there was absolutely no rush to complete it. I took my time, I have to do that these days anyway.

I saw this pattern in Simply Crochet magazine issue 128, it was one of those challenges where they give two designers the same yarn and set them to make a blanket, an accessory, or a toy. And Sue Pearson’s bobble cowl jumped out at me. I’ve long enjoyed making bobbles, as I love the texture that they give to accessories in particular. Long-term readers might remember the bobble mitts (see here) which I made years ago. Cor, they were featured in Simply Crochet issue 10. I’ve read the mag since the beginning. (Nowadays through Press Reader or Libby library apps for FREE.) It made my day that those mitts later sold in a Cats Protection charity craft sale.

I’ve never done reverse double crochet before, also known as crab stitch. Have you? It’s perfect for a firm, attractive edging. That’s definitely going on my do-again list. If you wanted a simple edging for a blanket, it would work well.

For some reason it was taking me far too long to translate the instructions into leftie crochet terms. I realised part of the problem was I couldn’t think through how I do double crochet, going in the usual direction, let alone in reverse. Without actually doing some double crochet my brain couldn’t grasp it. If you get what I mean? So, I undid a few switches of the previous row, double crocheted them again and straight away it clicked. I realised what I had to do, only of course going backwards, from right to left as a left hander.

Happily I have quite a bit of Hayfield Spirit, autumn, leftover, so I can make some more granny circles (see my last post, here.) First I need to carry on crocheting my little flowery contribution to a spring yarn bomb. I’ll show you those very soon, as they need to be with the organiser by Wednesday the first. Next I’m off to make some stamens. (It’s not everyday I find myself typing that!)

Have you just, or nearly, finished making something? Or are you surrounded by too many half started projects?

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Post could also be titled ‘Reverse double crochet for a left handed custard brain’

The best flatlay background ever

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Do you remember the Early Morning Cowl I made and sent to a friend last January? She has a crazy number of dogs: big dogs, huge massive furry things, middle sized ones and little happy yappy ones. She walks them very, very early in the morning in fields near her home. She often text me at that time and I always replied that I was snuggled in bed, with a cup of tea! She was the ideal friend to send a cosy knit. Not that many people suit mustard and it really suits her. I have a photo of her wearing that first cowl, it was straight out of the envelope with post dog walk crazy hair, her smile is huge as I hadn’t told her it was done and posted. It’s a really lovely pic. But I don’t think she’d appreciate it being beamed around the world!

Here’s another more sedate version in soft misty grey chunky yarn. I started it (eek!) last January when we were deep in our third Lockdown. Now I love you all, you know I do, but reading that post again, I now can’t help wondering why someone, or even a handful of you didn’t say: “BUT Rachel, that’s not the only four WIPs you have, is it?! Why have you started more?” I seem to have become scattered, starting and not completing many. If you’ve read for the last decade (and I know some of you very patient lovelies have, thank you!) you know I always used to have a couple of things at the most on the go, finished them and then thoughtfully decided on the next. Now, not so much!

Perhaps continually starting new makes reflected my lack of concentration during that stressful period? Or trying to get some variety in a very dull time. Due to the Stay at Home rule we mostly all stayed indoors, apart from tramping round the fields during daily exercise sessions and tried hard to restrict the baking-eating-baking-eating habit. That left craft and reading, along with unfulfilled intentions to learn Italian, write a book and stop biting my nails.

The bees were buzzing around in the heather flowers, such a welcome sound
Tiny tete a tetes in front of a lavender bush

This year I’m really determined to focus on one thing at a time in a bid to finally finish makes and cut them down to probably just THAT SOCK.

Green shoots on the lavender

I wanted to blog today, because it’s been a week and I felt like a chat, then I realised that you really, really don’t need, or probably want to see the Star Blanket yet again. That’s what I’ve been crocheting this week. So, I decided that it would probably be okay to have one crochet and one knitty thing on the go. It’s still keeping focus and not flitting madly about. That’s why I delved into one of the top layer of my project bags and found this cowl. I added an inch or so to it after lunch, before doing an hour’s tidying and pruning in the garden.

All the colour out there is so pretty now. I spotted lots of new growth which feels an encouraging sign of Spring. It was a real pleasure to be out in the sunshine, tidying up stray leaves, branches and twigs that blew down in the storms and to prune back some of the perennials. I cleaned the bird feeders too.

Someone spied flowers on the rosemary bush. Pretty pale mauve, aren’t they?
Anemones
Cyclamen with a cheeky anemone which has come up in the middle of the clump
Hellebores are so elegant
Many clumps of tulip leaves all around the borders, I can’t wait to see the flowers

I’ll share the Early Morning Cowl pattern shortly. It’s a little iffy timing as we’re heading into spring here, but some peeps in the Southern Hemisphere are heading into cooler temps. Plus I guess there’s plenty of time to knit one, or a stack, ready for autumn. It’s a really easy knit.

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If you’re feeling powerless and crafting helps to feel like you’re doing something to help the people of Ukraine, there are lots of ways to join in to raise funds for charity. Today I saw a gorgeous free sunflower pattern which Carol, aka Dansnan, on Insta has designed. Here’s the pattern. It’s a good use of brown and yellow oddments of yarn.

Mother Hookers are a crochet group based in Doncaster, which is in the north of England. I love following their community crochet projects. They are currently asking for sunflower brooches which they will sell in order to raise more money to send to the DEC (Disaster Emergency Committee.) They state that the Government has pledged to match donations up to 20 million pounds. All the details are on the MH page, linked above. Or perhaps you’d like to sell some within your own community?

And I finished it!

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I finished the Granny Chevron Cowl last Sunday. There were lots of ends to darn, but I’ve always found the sewing bit quite relaxing. Such a nice achievement to start AND finish something in the same month.

You can just see the join-as-you-go row, where I’ve slip stitched along after each group of trebles, into the spaces. It’s a really neat and quick way to finish. Who wants to join by sewing, when you can crochet?

I hung it on a branch (or is it called a cane?) of fuchsia to photograph. It was really blowy last weekend as we had the tail end of Storm Malik, so it swung and forwards. I stood still capturing these two photos as it moved.

Details

Pattern On Ravelry from Zeens and Roger blog, by Rosina Northcott.

Yarn Paintbox chunky mustard yellow (323) & misty grey (303)

Hook 6mm

Height 24cm

Width 32cm

Circumference 64cm

Weight 135g, so used less than 2 balls of 100g chunky yarn

Tips

I did 8 pattern repeats, so 8 sections of colour, instead of the pattern’s 6 to get the required circumference. Remember you need to end on colour B rather than A; otherwise you’ll have one big one coloured section and it will ruin the pattern.

It’s worth watching Rosina’s You Tube video, linked to on the pattern’s blog post, for handy tips such as trebling around the first stitch of the previous row, instead of going into it at the end of each row. This saves a lot of fiddly stuff.

Before you do the join as you go row you could fix the beginning and end together with stitch marker rings (see below), it helped me to see how it was going to fit together. Finding the middle ensures you match it up accurately. I left the markers and took them out as I joined the two edges.

My poinsettia won’t be featured in every blog post for much longer, since it’s losing leaves quickly now

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And now I need to crack on with the finishing the Star Blanket, because I have a cunning plan for it. Except, I’ve just seen something that’s inspired me to try something else….oops!

What are you making at the moment? Are you feeling busy and productive, or are you in hibernation mode? I think either is good at this time of year. Here lately it’s mostly staying around 4° all day every day. If you’re in the Southern Hemisphere, what are you up to? Sunshine and warmth….lovely!

The brightest cowl in the world

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Done! That’s three completed things, and now onto the next…

It’s not quite as luminous and glary as it comes out in photos, but it definitely isn’t a subtle colour.

What are you making at the moment? Have you just finished anything?

Definitely not grey!

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Knitting: I’m currently finishing off knitting the ribbing on my Heinz cowl. It’s obviously named for their brightly coloured tomato soup….

It’s most of a ball of leftover Stylecraft Special DK matador from the William Morris blanket I made for Mum five years ago. I didn’t want to incorporate it into my knitted stripy blanket and this will keep someone’s neck cosy.

It’s plain knitting and was again started when I was searching for something easy, which wouldn’t make my hands hurt. Once again surprise-surprise there was no such thing and so I don’t think you’ve ever seen this either. It was definitely last year, if not before, because I asked one of my nieces if they liked red. I thought she might want it. Without even seeing it or knowing why I was asking, her nose wrinkled and she said “No, not red.” Ask an honest question, get an honest answer! No worries. I know where I’ll pass it on.

Thanks to my friend Phil, here’s the pattern I used, for an easy guide as to how many stitches to cast on.

Reading: although the last book in the Scottish Bookshop series was full of typos and had a complete lack of editing, (including the wrong character’s name in a sentence!) I have returned to Jenny Colgan. Her books are warm and cosy. You know exactly what you’re getting and they’re just so nice. After reading a thriller, full of terrorism, multiple gory deaths and a shed load of swearing, I fancied something light and nice for December. So, I’m reading 500 Miles from you.

The beginning surprised me rather and I wondered if Jenny is out to totally change her blueprint, but it’s settling down into very familiar territory now. There’s an important message there about signing up to something which might be vitally important for others, but I’m not giving you any spoilers.

Joining in with Ginny’s Yarn Along.

No wonder I felt relieved!

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 I’ve got something to show you, something else I’ve finished. I’m on a roll! I’ve finished two things this month.

I thought I’d started this cowl maybe last autumn, then I checked on my Ravelry account and OH MY GOODNESS… that can’t be right can it?

I started it in November 2018?!?!

Ahhhh…but my issues with my hand had started that spring, and I would imagine this second Cozy Cowl was another hoping-for-a-miracle make which I could crochet pain free. I think we both know the answer to that one!

I wonder if I blogged about it way back then? Hang on I’ll just have a look…

…there’s a little mention on a post from 5th December Yearning Along It’s actually quite a sad reminder of how adrift I felt being told not to do any craft, this turned into months and months. I notice that I optimistically still tried, then accepted the situation, and so that’s why the cowl languished for a few years.

Anyway back to feeling buzzy and happy, because here we go:



It’s my second grey make of November, suits the weather perfectly.

I really like Stylecraft Life Aran; it’s a good mix of wool (25%) and acrylic (75%), which works up well with a 6mm hook. It’s definitely cosy when turned into a cowl.

Pattern details for the cowl are on my Ravelry project page above. I had borrowed the book from the library, when I made the first cowl for a friend way back in May 2016! It was to keep her neck warm when she rode her motorbike.

This time I still didn’t make it in one piece; because I really like the way the ribbing looks. I added a row of double crochet to each edge of the body of the cowl and one side of both ribbed strips, then crocheted them together. This was far more satisfying than sewing. I have a feeling it might be a stronger join too. I single crocheted into the inside loops only which made a smooth seam.

I wonder who will end up wearing it?

The Big Issue North recently requested knit and crochet hats, scarves and gloves on Twitter, to keep their magazine vendors warm. The Big Issue North is a well respected charity, have a look at what they’re about here. There’s some interesting articles on the website.

I usually buy the The Big Issue magazine if I come across a street vendor, I have done for years. It’s not pure altruism as although you know you’re helping someone, you’re also getting a good quality read. (Big Issue North is actually a separate organisation to The Big Issue down here, the same premise but BI North have been independent since 1996. It’s all good stuff.)

If you have any spare knit or crochet accessories I know they’ll be gratefully received. It’s cold now.

Send them to:

Big Issue North,

463 Stretford Road,

Manchester,

M16 9AB

UK

Taking Stock – November

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Making: I’m crocheting another ribbed band for my cowl and thinking of what to make next. Finish or start…?

Cooking: spicy fish and chickpea stew, a delicious one pot recipe

Sipping: Assam tea, without milk

Reading: Simon Mayo‘s Knife Edge, it’s a thriller. In the first chapter lots happens and the tension isn’t lessening as it goes on (don’t read if you’re feeling anxious about stuff)

Waiting: … aren’t we all? We’re in the second week of a four week lockdown here in England. It’s partial at best, as all schools and universities are open. No one really knows how effective this strategy will prove to be, but this is an unprecedented time. I do know an increasing number of friends who have the virus, or are recovering from it. I’m feeling lucky we are able to be based at home

Looking: like I’ve been pulled through a hedge backwards this morning

My version of Shakshuka, using up roasted vegetables with a good pinch of chilli flakes and cumin thrown in before I added leftover passata

Listening: to Deacon Blue’s City of Love album

Wishing: to be a superfast knitter. I see so many gorgeous makes online that I want to make them all, in a day. Probably repeating myself!

Enjoying: Listing 30 plants that we eat a week. It’s really good to get you thinking about what you buy and cook. I also love writing lists. This came as a result of a link my friend sent. This podcast. In a nutshell we need to eat a variety of at least 30 plants a week to keep our gut microbiomes healthy. These include: fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds and legumes (a plant with a pod with an edible seed: beans, peas, lentils etc.) Professor Tim Spector is no quack – have a look at his Twitter profile here. His feed is very interesting, although from the UK POV it’s rather grim reading at the moment

Appreciating: good bright days for walking

During yesterday’s swift five miler

Eating: cinnamon eggy bread for breakfast with melon slices. I am v suggestible; a friend sent me a picture of her eggy bread this morning…I made mine with toasted crumpets because I didn’t want to use freshly baked sourdough – too crumbly. Not pretty, but very tasty!

Liking: Dolly Alderton’s debut novel Ghosts. I’m listening to the audiobook

Loving: that I finished my HWB cover and passed it on at the weekend. She loved it and told me again: “I can’t sleep if my feet are cold!”

Love how the bobble edging finishes off the top neatly. I chose the Textured Bluebells pattern from Jan Eaton’s 200 Crochet Blocks for the body. The rest was a mix of trebles and half trebles to join and shape the pieces. Easy stuff.

Buying: locally produced eggs. They are eggcellent (Soz! I can’t help myself)

Managing: to cram the fridge with fruit and veg from today’s delivery

Watching: Truth Seekers on Prime. So good. SO GOOD. It gets better and better as you watch

Hoping: I can finish my crochet cowl soon as I have an idea for another that I maybe want to knit

Ridiculous! Cute!

Wearing: comfy scruffs

Following: Count Arthur’s exploits. There’s a couple of episodes on the BBC Sounds app here. I’ve heard The Beeb are gradually releasing all the Christmas specials through November and December

Noticing: birds on the feeders now it’s colder, the robin comes daily

Love these bud vases

Sorting: papers, I need to get shredding

Getting: restless. London! Pubs! Bars! Cinema! Theatre! Restaurants! Lunch dates! Air travel! Friends & family overseas! Live music! Singing in person, not Zoom! Travel! Weekends away!

Bookmarking: this Harissa chicken & white bean bake. I’ll make it this week

Coveting: a step-ladder. Don’t ask!

Feeling: full of cinnamon eggy crumpets

Hearing: the sound of Someone making lunch

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Please Tell Me 3 Things?

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PS: If you follow this blog on Bloglovin’ there was an issue displaying my last post: Why I Still Love Blogs

10 from this week

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1. We can put our food recycling waste in any kind of plastic bag now, rather than having to buy the compostable ones. I know in other areas you can simply put it straight into the recycling bin, but sadly we can’t. This is at least a good way to use some of the plastic packaging that comes with everything. At least it’s being reused for something, rather than going straight to the rubbish bin.

2. My sourdough bread baking fever continues, albeit with fewer larger holes then I would like, but I’m going to go back to trying the second prove in the fridge overnight, and maybe doing a no-knead version, folding and stretching the dough instead. I asked Kat Goldin (sourdough baker extraordinare) about the secret to good holey SD and she said that you don’t want it too holey or the butter gets out! She’s my kind of girl.

3. This was my amazing Monday find. It kept me smiling broadly for at least another two days after that. You know when you pop into a charity shop, not really looking for anything in particular but just wandering? Well I turned away from the bookshelves and saw this beautiful cast-iron pot. It’s my favourite colour red and completely unmarked. I grabbed it as fast as I could, instinctively. I couldn’t see a price on it and didn’t want to put it down, (mine!) it was love at first sight. I asked the assistant how much it was and I nearly dropped it on both our feet when she located the label and told me it was £3. I’ve never moved to a till so speedily! It’s 24 cm across and the 28 cm version of this brand sells new for around £45. I’ve never come across such an amazing charity shop find. It’s pure treasure. I’ve already road-tested it by cooking a one pot chicken and rice thing on the hob and oven. It’s absolutely superb, what a bargain.

Incidentally I’ve had my personal Facebook account since 2007, in that time I’ve posted all sorts of really important life events and celebrations. But do you know which post garnered the fastest likes/loves ever? Yep, it’s these pictures which I excitedly took when I put my treasure into the boot of the car.

4. Another find in another charity shop on the same day, not that I bought this, but my it brought back some memories. It’s just like a set my family had when I was very young. I have seen Kiln Craft on old TV sitcoms, but I don’t recall coming across a whole collection. This was priced much more realistically at £28 for the set.

5. A quick walk through the library and the cover of this book just jumped out at me, it made me chuckle.

6. I thought you’d like to see my Edenvale Cowl after blocking, it makes such a difference to lace. This weather is perfect for blocking and drying thick items. I’m really pleased with this knit. I did try it on and was thinking about doing a photo, but really it looked ridiculous as I was wearing a spaghetti strap top with bare arms!

7. Naughty, naughty Wednesday morning breakfast but these sourdough pancakes are delicious. I took the recipe from Tastes of Lizzy T blog. It’s good, too good. If you know what I mean.

8. A new lunchtime dish I made: it’s baba ganoush. You grill whole aubergines until the skin is blackened then scoop out and chop the soft flesh. Mix with tahini, olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper. Delicious with toasted pitta or flatbread, a few olives and salad.

The recipe is from Paul Hollywood’s Bread book which I’ve borrowed from a relative. It’s got a good range of bread recipes, and for each bread there is one for an accompanying dish. The photography is beautiful and I want to make a lot from it.

The ingredients for salmon pate are on my shopping list for next week’s lunches. Needless to say I’ve added the book to my birthday wishlist.

9. A kilo of gooseberries picked from my Mother’s garden turned into my first ever batch of goosegog jam. I’m all about raspberry jam usually in summertime, but I’m glad I’ve made this because it is delicious, as you can see from the mere half remaining of one of the jars, after just a few days of opening. I’ve only eaten it once on two crumpets and it’s going down so quickly that I’ve grabbed another jar and put my initials all over the label! His and hers jam seems a good plan….!

10. Today I’ve baked my first loaves of bread in my 2lb tins for over a month. I’m now calling this doddly bread; as in it’s a doddle with commercial yeast. Does what it says on the tin! Unlike sourdough which dilly dallies. As the kitchen’s so warm, with our continuing high temps, the bread dough rose as fast as anything, sooo easy.

Are you busy in the kitchen? Have you found any treasure lately? What’s made you laugh this week?

Soup & trying to knit weather

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Tuesday

At 0800 it’s -3 on the thermometer and doesn’t really change all day, except to get colder. The so-called Beast from the East, a very cold weather system from Siberia, is blasting the UK. We’ve got off lighter than many areas but it’s very cold. There’s no snow until late afternoon, although the village pond is already frozen solid. The canal is going that way too. As I watch the narrow boat go I can hear the ice cracking! In the time it takes me to click the photo my gloveless hand begins to tingle and hurt with the cold.

It seems a very good day to spend one of my Christmas gift vouchers on some warm West Yorkshire Spinners Shetland Tweed. I’d seen a particular cowl in Loop, Islington last year and haven’t got it out of my mind. I buy the pattern when I’m home, but can’t make head nor tail of it. There is no number of cast on stitches to start with, and more confusion besides. Nearly £5 and it’s a pretty awful pattern, touted as suitable for lace knitting beginners but it’s clearly not. I should have have taken more notice of the zero reviews. I check it’s not me, missing something obvious, and ask a very clever test knitter and designer who I turn to for knitting advice occasionally. She says it’s one of the worst patterns she’s ever seen. You just don’t know this until you have the pdf unfortunately. I email the company selling the pattern (it’s also on Ravelry, for even more money) knowing they have a zero refund policy, once you’ve downloaded the pdf. My email contains a list of issues with the pattern, provided by my contact. I have a full refund and apology by 9pm. Drat though! That cowl has been in my thoughts for ages. My star knitty friend then goes above and beyond. My instagram is suddenly beeping like crazy. She sends me links to 13 lace cowl patterns: “Which are on Ravelry and far better written.” I chose Edenvale. It’s going to be a very warm cowl as it’s in aran weight wool, but I’m hoping I don’t find it too scratchy to wear…

I feel chilly and can’t get warm, so I wear my Holey Cowl over the top of my Mira Cowl. I’ve never worn either inside the house before.

I get my nostepinne out to wind a skein and Someone texts me:

“Stick the oven on, I’m just leaving”

“Argh!!! I’ve got a skein of wool wrapped around my knees!”

Wednesday

It’s -5 at 0742 so I’m staying in bed reading for a while, because I can! It’s so cold sticking your arm out of the covers, even with the radiator full on.

I meet up with Mum and we go to the library and pop to the supermarket for her groceries. When we come out the car park is swirling white with a snow blizzard. It’s hard to see where the car is parked! We go to her home for soup and toast. Barty naughtily sits on the worktop, watching the snow fall.

Thursday

The window thermometer tell me it’s -4 and there are gusty winds with light snow at 10:00. I plan to make chicken soup, update my card details on the national Lottery website (ready for that huge jackpot win) and start my cowl. The heating is on full blast, but I’m still cold. I dig out my Poncho and am so pleased as it instantly warms my shoulders.

I relearn how to do a long-tail cast on. If you’re also a leftie watch Bill Souza teach the left handed LTCO, he’s very good.

Next I need to do a tension swatch, but can I do flat knitting for what will be a circular knit? Instagrammers tell me I can, but there’s a special technique to it. Purl Soho have a good guide. I check my swatch after an inch or so, because my Knitting Answer book says I will be able to tell how it’s going by then. They say to measure 4″ and count the number of stitches, it’s easier than my usual method of the other way around. My tension is perfect for the cowl pattern! Wey-hey I don’t think that’s ever happened before.

I need to cast on 120 stitches. My book describes various methods to decide how long to leave your tail. I choose the one where you allow an inch of yarn per stitch. Someone is incredulous and says “But that’s 10 feet of wool!” and indeed he turns out to be right. It seems the easiest method, so I get the big tape measure out of the junk drawer in the kitchen. It is more than enough, really and truly. My little piece of knitting is destined to have a massively long tail. It’s a waste of good Shetland Tweed. Maybe next time I’ll try another method and calculate the tail measurement by multiplying the circumference of the finished item 3 1/2 times. What do you do? Cable cast ons are an absolute breeze in comparison.

At the end of a mere 5 hours I have relearned the cast on, swatched for circular knitting, cast on 120 long tailed stitches, painfully knit the first round (my CO is so tight that the tweed feels like garden twine cutting my poor fingers) and slowly knit 3 rounds.

I think this cowl had better look half ok, because I’m fighting my perfectionist tendencies all the way. I will not allow myself to unravel a single bit. I can’t have spent 5 hours in total today with nothing to show. Sometimes it’s better to actually use new skills and refine them as you go, while accepting the first item will not be the best. I find this hard. My natural tendency with tricky knitting is to undo it again and again. I lose heart. Decide I just can’t do it, it’s rubbish and then I move on to something easier different. Not this time! I want to crack lace knitting. Hard lace knitting, not mere holes in cowls.

Friday (today)

-4 at 0800 and it’s clearly snowed some more overnight. It’s now about 4″ deep. We decide to go out for a walk and so wrap up as warmly as we can. It’s -2 by the time we go, but the BBC weather app tells me with the wind chill factor it feels like -9. Pretty soon my legs and bottom feel numb. Someone smugly tells me he’s toasty, because he’s wearing his fishing thermals. Wah! And I’m wearing jeans, which I know, I know, are the most useless thing in this weather. My legs are red like lobsters when I take down my jeans, back at home. Luckily I have the brilliant idea of leaving a spicy lentil soup to cook in the slow cooker, while we’re out. I delegate the chopping and initial cooking of spices, onion, celery and carrot while I shower. What a brain wave. It is super (souper!) to smell lunch ready and waiting for us when we return.

Not many are out at all, we see a handful of people with sledges but it’s bitterly cold for the dogs and their walkers. With the icy wind cutting across our cheeks and snow beginning to fall, it’s a big relief to be home.

It’s been snowing steadily for over an hour now. I will knit my 4th round soon. Wish me luck!

My cousin has been holed up in a pub in Lincolnshire for 2 nights. It isn’t that far from where she lives, but the roads are impassible so she hasn’t been able to get home. There are definitely worse places to be stranded; if that were me, I would drop my Dry Lent like a shot.

How cold, or warm, is it where you are? Any snow? Let’s share a weather report from around the world.

Holey cowl

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….Just in time for our current lovely Springtime temperatures! Oh well blink and the weather changes here in England.  I’ll take it away with me to wear during chilly evenings, or for wearing by the sea if the wind blows. 

The yarn looks a different colour in every photo, it’s more red not raspberry. 

The apple blossom should flower soon. It’s so pretty. 

Details – as you might want to knit a holey cowl too? 

I used Louisa Harding Orielle – Ruby (colour no. 12) 

This is a gorgeous wool blend; with 97% baby alpaca and 3% metallic polyamide (can you see the little sparkles?) It’s as soft as a cloud and drapes beautifully. 

I used 4mm needles and sewed the seam at the end. Can you spot it in the second pic? I’m not sure how I managed such a neat job of it, but I did enjoy the sewing. It would knit well on circular needles too if you prefer seamless makes. 

I used 3 x 50g skeins but if you want a longer cowl or a narrower one, the amount would obviously differ. 

Height: 41cm/16″ (I wear mine doubled over, I don’t have the neck of a giraffe!)

Circumference: 61cm/24″ 

Cast on 72 stitches 

1-5 rows: Knit  

6th row: K1, *yo, k2tog and repeat to the penultimate stitch, k1

And repeat until it’s the right height for you. 

Easy! Good pub or cafe knitting if you have a crafty meet up ahead. 

Bunch of pretty 

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On the way out of Sainsbury’s yesterday this lovely bunch of spring flowers caught my eye. They smelled delicious too. On offer, reduced from £8 to £4, I couldn’t resist. 

My lacy cowl is coming on, I think I might see if it’s long enough at the end of this skein of wool. Then I can move onto something else. I wish I could knit faster. Maybe I’ll have a go at continental if I can find a good tutorial. I know I’ve said this before.  

I’m rereading The Camomile Lawn for the nth time. It’s got my name and Christmas 1993 written inside…so it will be many, many times over the years. On the train to London, on Saturday, I asked the girl next to me if I could be cheeky and read the blurb on her upturned book. It was Human Voices by Penelope Fitzgerald. The title and the white cover really attracted my attention. I’m planning to order it from my library. We spent some time talking about the author, books and reading. In return I recommended this and Mary Wesley’s subsequent novels. This discussion prompted me to run downstairs late that evening to reread it, yet again. 

2016

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Here are my makes of last year, well most of them. There are quite a few other things that were started and unravelled, for various reasons. None of which I regret! Despite my intention to knit or crochet smaller makes (including socks) I seem to have hooked quite a few blankets again. Why does that keep happening?!

I’m not really sure what I want to concentrate on this year. I’m working on the Blackberry ripple and that’s not far off from being a good snuggly size. Then I’ve just got to do the darning and crochet a border.

Next I think (and don’t hold me to it) I might use a posh skein or two of wool and knit another sort of cowl. I think I’ve come round to them after wearing the Mira cowl a lot this year. I’ve always preferred wrapping scarves as tightly or as loosely as preferred, but this has been very cosy and you don’t have so much of it stuffed down the front of your coat! Hey-ho, hey-ho it’s off to Ravelry I go.

My friend has sort of lost her slouchy bobble hat (there’s obviously a story there) so I might be hooking one of those again, for her birthday in April. If only she knew someone with a fishing rod, who’s a dab hand at casting, I’m positive she could retrieve hers…

It’s Day 1 of the New Year, where normal non-festive life has resumed and no alcohol, mince pies, chocolate or twiglets have been consumed. I do fancy a hot chocolate though, that’s surely alright? It’s COLD out there.

Yorkshire cowl …ready & warm

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As you know I bought this yarn during my visit to Holmfirth last Monday. I’ve had my eye on it for ages as I just love the colours, especially the aqua blue and turquoise. As I wrote this title, following a discussion about farming, wool and the great wealth which came from wool in Yorkshire during decades gone by, it occurs to me that if this were one of those ‘big blogs’ there might be uproar from the wool purists. My Yorkshire cowl is made from 100% acrylic. It’s named because I crocheted it during a week there, and it’s always going to remind me of walks by the sea and the coastal path. The Storyboards site gives some information about the paths. Yorkshire Cowl

I chained until I was happy with the width (I hung it around my neck as I crocheted!) and then joined the chain to form a ring, no sewing up required!

James C. Brett Marble Chunky Yarn Shade MC44

I used 175g of the 200g ball

Width (circumference) 36″

Height 11″

6mm hook

>Chain until width desired, join into a ring making sure the chain is not twisted

>Crochet rounds of trebles or doubles or half trebles (UK terms)

Turning chains should be 1 for DC, 2 for HTR, 3 for TR, 5 for DTR. The turning chain for DC does not count as a stitch, all others do.

All doubles, trebles and half trebles go into the back loop of the stitch which creates nice ridges to the fabric.

>Crossed double trebles add a bit of texture and interest to the cowl: Chain 5, *miss a stitch and DTR into the next TR, DTR into the skipped TR* repeat from * to * . Make a single DTR into the last stitch, join with a SS to the top of the chain 5 from the beginning of the round.

Next time I might make the cowl slightly smaller in width, I think maybe 32-34″ but this is really warm and you can fold the excess at the front and tuck it under the rest. These are to show some the scrummy colours in the yarn. Some people are good at selfies, some are not; especially when in windswept Derbyshire visiting Hardwick Hall.

I took the photo below from the ruins of Hardwick Old Hall looking across to the New Hall. It’s ‘new’ as in built in the 16th Century. If you can visit both I recommend it, especially to see the Elizabethan embroidery and tapestries in the New Hall.What are you making at the moment?

Brian – V Stitch Scarf / Cowl

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A couple of people have asked me what I’m crocheting at the moment. I should be concentrating on my motif blanket, and ripple, but I’m really enjoying simple crochet. I woke yesterday feeling really unwell and today don’t feel much better, and this is perfect. I watched my first Disney film, Tangled, in years yesterday afternoon. Maybe the first since the Little Mermaid? I can’t tell you how much I enjoyed it, that’s a definite sign of my custard brain. The animation seems more like 3D than before, perhaps Disney have had to adapt their technology to keep up with Pixar type films? The characters, especially Rapunzel, looked just like Blythe dolls, all huge eyes and small faces.

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I had some good news – Lang have NOT stopped making Tosca Light it’s just that for some reason I couldn’t find it on their website. I’m so pleased. If you look under Autumn / Winter on their website you’ll see the range of colours. (I know…they should make me a Tosca Light ambassador.) Lang is a Swiss company in case you’re wondering, TL is made in Italy.

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I’ve been looking out for other types of v stitches in my Harmony Guide to Crochet Stitches. I was lucky enough to find it in a charity shop for a song a few years ago. They call this one Three-and-Two Stitch, it’s descriptive but a bit dull…

I’ve run out of yarn as I had only one 100g ball left and my scarves tend to need 150-200g as I like them lonnnng. Time to find some more. If I won the lottery I’d just fill a room with it. Oh, why not a house actually?

I was really pleased to hear that Kate’s (Greedy for Colour) Mum; Mrs A in Australia (Rambling with me) is crocheting a V Stitch Scarf, using my last pattern which you can find HERE. The power of the internet eh – sharing what we’re making with others all over the world. I really love it. I should put pattern links on Ravelry. One day.

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I asked what I could call this scarf and had “Brian” as the answer. Well, why not? I did ask!

Brian v stitch scarf / cowl

5mm hook – if you’d like a lazy, looser type of fabric, but try a swatch and see what you feel. I tried with a 4mm hook and it was nice too, although quite a firm fabric with far less drape.

150-200g DK yarn depending on the length of scarf or cowl you prefer
Lang Tosca Light is 100g/400m a ball 55% new wool, 45% acrylic.

Width: 22cm / 8 5/8ths ”
I’m aiming for – Length: 80″ / 203cm
Will probably be – Weight: 150g -200g

V stitch = 1 tr, 1ch, 1tr (UK)V stitch: 1 treble, 1 chain, 1 treble into same space (UK terms)
ch = chain
tr = treble
v st = v stitch
ss = slip stitch
st = stitch
tch = turning chain
sp = space

Foundation Row: Ch 50
Or a multiple of 6 st + 2 to get the width you want
R1: (Right side) Work a v st into 5th ch from hook. *Miss 2ch, 3tr into next ch, miss 2ch, work a v st into next ch; rep from * to last 5ch, miss 2ch, 3tr into next ch, miss 1ch, 1tr into last ch, turn
R2: 3 ch, *miss 2sts, work 3tr into centre tr of next 3tr, work a v st into ch sp at centre of next v st; rep from * ending 1tr into top of tch, turn
R3: 3ch, *v st into sp of next v st, 3tr into centre tr of next 3tr; rep from * ending 1tr into top of tch, turn

Rep R2 and R3 until desired length. I’m aiming for about 80″/203cm.

If making a cowl join short ends together using ss; bearing in mind before you join the ends that there is a right and wrong side to the fabric. Finish off and darn ends.

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I’ve been meaning to say this for a few years(!) when I get to the turning chain of the previous row I always find it easier to use a 3mm hook to go into and make the last stitch, aiming for the same tension as the rest which I’ve made with a 4-5mm hook. That might be a useful tip if you’re new to crochet and have trouble seeing or feel like you’re forcing the hook through the top of the chain, it depends on your tension and eyesight probably!

Also, when crocheting in rows after I turn I’ve always taken the hook out of the stitch, rather than twisted the stitch. Do you? I’ve always wondered if that’s correct, me being pernickety or just silly?

Happy v stitching your Brian scarf / cowl!