The Good Life...Ish.

 Hi guys :) How do you like the blogs' new look and layout?  I fancied a change :) The socks on double pointed needles are going well! After a few hiccups with turning the heel (it got ripped out about 5 times!) it is finally beginning to take the shape of a sock! I must admit i am starting to get thoroughly sick of the colour brown! I tried it on after turning the heel but as the needles are straight they wouldn't fit over the instep so i had to quickly transfer them to a long circular.  It turns out knitting with DPN's is easier than it looks once you get into the rhythm of it :)    Today is looking gloomy and miserable, so no chance of putting the washing out. So i thought i'd share some sunnier pictures from the past few weeks This is the view about 1 mile from the house, i often wander down there to get some peace on nice days  On the way home i saw these beautiful horses, they saw me and started running and playing :) Tak

Hi Guys :) Thank you all for your kind words and advice after my... meltdown  minor setback, last week, it was very much appreciated. I have trimmed down the leeks to stabilize them, and am looking into setting in a hedge at the back of the house. I went to the local textiles group this afternoon, for a break, and i found this on my table when i came home. He bought it to cheer me up after my meltdown minor setback Ain't he sweet :')  I've been busy sorting out what used to be the pantry. Remember the lovely pantry? Well... (another sodding thing wrong with the house,  to add the list!!) it turns out that cupboard is too cold to store food and had started to grow mold on the shelves and warp the wood.So, all of the food has been moved back in to the tiny kitchen, and i have turned it into a coat room instead Bags on one side, hats in the middle  our most used summer coats and hats on the other   and my most used shoes in the baskets, and th

Hi Guys.  My poor leeks are looking limp :( the past few days have been so windy i'm not sure if they are going to survive! Does anyone know if you can stake leeks to give them a bit of stability? and I've just noticed that bit of concrete about to fall down, i'll fix it in a minute. It's really the one thing i'm not happy about living here, such high winds and unpredictable weather. I'm starting to doubt my plans to have a fully working veg garden :( Sigh. Sorry to sound so miserable. I'm normally a cheerful and optimistic person, but this is starting to get to me Nothing much exiting to report, apart from i'm still working on my second sock, and i made some rather pretty watercolour cushions.  What are you up to?

Hi Guys :) Remember my crocheted toe sock? Well...here it is! It isn't the prettiest looking sock, but as i used DK yarn it is super cozy and warm!  I've had to sew up a few places where i've dropped stitches, and i can see a few in the photo above that i have missed,  but never mind. I have to say, once i got started , it was pretty fast to work up, the heel was quite scary as i had never done one before, but it turned out to be pretty easy, i didn't work to a pattern, i  just halved the rows and worked back and forth, slipping a stitch at the start of each row. In hindsight, i wish i had decreased a few more stitches on the cuff, as it is quite baggy, and added a few extra rows, but i can easily rip it out and add them, so it isn't the be-all and end-all. I've already started the toe of the next sock and threaded it onto the needles, i did it as soon as i had finished, this way i don't get second sock syndrome haha :) In garden

Hi guys :) Today i am joining in with the Yarn Along :) (slightly late lol) I am declaring myself a genius! for weeks i have been trying to knit socks on 9in circulars, and i couldn't get it right. I cast on from the cuff and it was always too loose, so, i pondered for a while, threw it at the wall. And then suddenly it hit me (the idea, not the yarn bouncing off the wall :D )  Crochet the toe! I can't get my head around DPN's, they are far too complicated for me and so is the magic loop method, so this way is perfect! I can get a nice neat toe and can try it on as i go to get the length right, so off i went, and then threaded it through the needle and just went on knitting! So far it is working perfectly! I am currently re-reading The Perfect Match, by Katie Fforde, now i absolutely adore this author, I have all of her books but the very latest one: A Vintage Wedding, but i am still looking in charity shops, so finger crossed :)  Her books are a pe

Hi guys :) I am finally attempting to get myself organized. It was only when i realized i had forgotten to ring the plumber (yet again!) to reattach a radiator to the wall that i finally decided to take action. I need a system. Post it notes! I'll admit it, my memory is terrible, so, for now, i have devised a post it solution until i can get myself a proper planner. There are so many free printable ones online, but, as usual, the printer has ran out of ink and right now we can't afford to replace them. Also, this way is more eco friendly. I am also drawing myself a calendar, we have one in the living room, but this one is going to be for the craft room/studio thingy, i am only drawing from July to December , then i can draw a full one next year. What else? Oh yes, i decided it would be a fun idea to clean out and rearrange the pantry. I went to pull forward the bookcase, to clean behind it, and i had forgot that the shelves weren't fixed, so the

Pssst! Hey! I wrote a  New blog  over here! Go see! :)

My Empire Of Dirt: Patience Is A Virtue (apparently) A Tour Of The Cr... : Evening all :)  Sorry for it being so long, this week has completely nuts, I've barely had a chance to breathe! I've been at...

Evening all :)  Sorry for it being so long, this week has completely nuts, I've barely had a chance to breathe! I've been attempting to organize my craft room. On Monday we finally got a double bed for our room ( we were sleeping on a double mattress on a sofa bed), at a bargain price of £5 :) So, we had to move the sofa bed into the spare room (that was fun!) and, up until now, the spare room was just used for storage until we got the house sorted. Let me introduce you to...The craft room! Woohoo! By the way, this is tidy by my standards! A lovely squishy sofa to curl up on and draw or read, and the spare duvet in case it gets cold and my knitting machine in the corner . (by the way, if you ever have the urge to put a knitting machine back in its' case, it is advisable not to! You need a degree in physics!) My cobbled together drying rack (and the sad looking hand made dress form in the corner) baskets of yarn and my sewing machine. Ugly