Some Country Retirement Socks

At long last I have some knitting to write about. This summer has been very busy, and knitting seems to have been put to the side. But whenever I have had time I have been working on these socks for my husband. He retired over the summer, and we are hoping that later in the year we will be spending a lot more time in the country. Some cosy handknit socks might just be what he needs.

The main part of these socks are knitted from Drops Fabel Long Print (colour 917). I love this sock wool, which I bought to put together with another order for a cardigan, which I have not yet started. Adding them to the order just nudged me into the price bracket where there was no postage to pay, so it really came at no cost. 

The pattern I used is called Elementary Watson, and is a free download on ravelry. The pattern has this name because it was inspired by Dr Watson's cable pullover in BBC's Sherlock. Like most of the socks I knit they were toe-up, which I just find less stressful than cuff-down, where you always have the worry that you will run out of wool before the foot is long enough. As it was I had quite a bit of wool left from my two balls, but I did use a constrast wool for the toes and cuffs. It meant that my husband could have the socks the exact length he wanted.
 

Just a reminder that there is still plenty of time join in my Ginx Woolly Linx party for September. Click on the photo above or at the top of the page to find the party. I would love to see what you have been working on this month.

Tie Dye Cushions and a New Bedroom

I've been writing a little about our house move, and thought you might be interested in seeing my daughter's new room. Actually despite the hard work of moving, it does seem refreshing to have less possessions. Twenty odd years of accumulated stuff had to be moved out, and as well as getting rid of some (to charity shops and the dump), quite a lot of is in store. It feels quite freeing to have less things around us.

So this move seemed a really good opportunity for my daughter to have a slightly more grown up bedroom. We have tried this before, to get rid of some of the toys, and have an overall colour scheme or look. But previously there was always too much stuff to fit in, and we always seemed to go off plan with the colours

She decided she would like a very minimal look, with a palette of grey, white, black, and some green plants to tie in with the blinds that were already there. Before we moved we had a go at tie dying an old sheet, and I have made new covers for some cushions that we already had, and some velvety grey fabric (bought in Fabricland). 

As usual the pets all seemed to want to get in on the photos.

I was a little unsure about the new plain grey duvet cover (from Ikea), but it does work.

This shows most of the room. Not a great photo, but I hope it shows the look, and how nice and green it is outside. We have been restrained with the pictures on the walls, which are two paintings on silk that my husband bought in Thailand. You can just see the piano, which we had thought we might be able to have in the living room. But it seemed to fit better in here, and goes with the black/white/grey theme. You can also see "Brie" - the cheese plant, who has now been joined by "Fred" the fern.

The only new piece of furniture is this dressing table and stool (from the Futon company). It give a bit of extra storage, and we both liked the way it looks leaned against the wall.

Yes, and all our pets fit in the colour scheme.

 

Just a reminder that there is still plenty of time join in my Ginx Woolly Linx party for September. Click on the photo above or at the top of the page to find the party. I would love to see what you have been working on this month.

Ginx Woolly Linx Party September

Well summer is nearly over (at least for those of us in the the northern part of the world), and it is the time of year when us knitter and crochetters start planning new projects for the autumn and winter evenings. Perhaps you will find some inspiration from these projects from the August Party.

I loved these cheerful summery crochet magic socks from Lilia of Lilia Craft Party. I don't know if these is a reason why there seem to be fewer crochet socks than knitted. These ones look superb.

Gema of Hebra de Lana has made this beautiful kimono style baby jacket and booties, as a gift. I love the wrapover jacket, and the pattern is shown off to its best with this simple light grey. 

Michelle of My Bijou Life has made this pretty little bolero. She says she is a newbie returning to crochet, and has been very honest about the problems she faced. The finished garment is very inspiring, especially to a fellow newbie who has never attempted a crochet garment.

and finally Nephi Handmade has made an adorable tiny teddy bear. So cute.

I am looking forward to see what you make in September. I have been very unproductive (in knitting terms), and have been plodding away on a pair of socks to keep my sanity, between packing and cleaning. But the house move is done, and the socks are nearly done. My wool has actually been sorted by colour, which has never happened before, and I have some ideas brewing for new projects.

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Goodbye - Our House

A few years ago, acutally quite a few years ago, I wrote a post called Our House. I had knitted a version of the house where I live, and thought I would now show that knitted house, with the real house. 

I mentioned that we were moving and I would not have much chance for knitting, and have just had the phone call to say the sale is complete. I think we left the house cleaner than it has ever been, which I felt I was doing both for the new people and the house itself. I know that sounds a bit mad. I have loved this house, which I have lived in for 21 years, and would say they have been the happiest years of my life (so far ...)  

But life moves on, and new adventures ahead.

Just a reminder that there is still plenty of time join in my Ginx Woolly Linx party for August. Click on the photo above or at the top of the page to find the party. I would love to see what you have been working on this month.

Pink Echinaecea Fairy

And finally here is the Pink Echinaecea fairy. Well done to those who identified her. Once again the only flowers I could find were in my local garden centre, although they aren't yet in bloom, the plant behind her really was a Pink Echinaecea. And below is a photo to show you want they look like at their best.

I will not be posting much for August, and might be found at the bottom of a packing case under a load of bubblewrap, but hope to be back with lots more posts in the Autumn.

Just a reminder that there is still plenty of time join in my Ginx Woolly Linx party for August. Click on the photo above or at the top of the page to find the party. I would love to see what you have been working on this month.

Ginx Woolly Linx Party August

Hi everyone! Are you having a good summer. I have not got much done crafting, as our house move is getting closer. Contracts have been exchanged and movers booked. I have realised that I am a terrible hoarder. Maybe that is part of crafting, as it is easy to think that something can be reused or repurposed at a later date. But strangely I am quite enjoying the decluttering and cleaning. So I am not sure you will hear much from me for the next month, although the party will keep going.

I really enjoyed looking at your projects for July, and my favourites seem to be a mixture summer fruitfulness and romance.

I adored Fanny of Yarn Around the World's blanket.  Beautiful pastel colours, and it has a real 3D-quality. She should be very proud.

Cat of Crochet Cloudberry has made an adorable little strawberry gnome. Follow the link to see her gnome. I loved the simplicity of these little strawberry flowers.

Au Fils de Marmita has made some cute little pineapple earrings. There is someone in my family who would love these.

And finally, but not least, Alexandra of Eye Love Knots has made her own wedding dress and bouquet.  Doesn't she look fantastic. I am hoping she will tell us more, perhaps when she is back from her honeymoon.

Please try and visit each others posts and comment. I don't want to one of those parties that sets rules, but it is nice to share the love.

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

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Remember if you were picked as a feature you can put the "I was featured" button on your blog. 

Black-Eyed Susan Fairy

Here is the second of my fairies, and she is called Black-eyed Susan. I've found out that there are two types of Black-eyed Susan, and the one she represents is the black-eyed susan vine (Thunbergia alata). I really like this plant, because it looks a bit like a flower drawn by a child. I was hoping that my fairy's black eyes would be a clue. Not many of these plant in my neighbourhood, so I had to take this photograph at my local garden centre. Yes, that is what the strange lady with a camera was doing between the flowerbeds. 

Just a reminder that there is still time join in my Ginx Woolly Linx party for July. Click on the photo above or at the top of the page to find the party. I would love to see what you have been working on this month.