A Week Away

We are heading off to the North Island tomorrow morning, where I am hoping it will be a few degrees warmer than here.

We are flying over and NOT taking the ferry this time...phew.

I will be away from the blog for a week and will be away from this quilt that I recently started

and I won't have time to really delve into this book thoroughly,

and I am leaving behind my (recently arrived home) family,

but,

I will be back in a week's time, and I shall enjoy the break away....

see you soon.

Homecoming

A memorable day for us on Sunday when our eldest daughter arrived home ( to stay) with her family. They have been living in Norway for the last eighteen months and we have missed them oh, so very much !!

There has been new growth in these two, adventures and different experiences to be shared.

The last of the feijoas to be tasted, and lots of cuddles to be had,


and boys toys in the living room again. Life is sweet !

A week of

Spinning the fleece

and obsessively, (yes, that is the word I have to use) knitting my way through panel one and halfway through panel two. There was rather a lot of unravelling going on too this week, but it is all fixed now.

Inspiration

I have fallen in love with this beautiful afghan in Issue number three of The Knitter. It is knitted with aran - weight yarn and is made up of 24 rectangular panels of different dimensions, from thick Celtic Knot designs to more delicate twisted cabling.

When I saw this yesterday in my friend's copy of The Knitter, I decided to spin the wool for the first panel to see if I could achieve the gauge needed.

I haven't spun anything this thick for many years, and I rather liked the speed with which I obtained the first ball to start me off.

The rain is belting down outside, the fire is stoked up and the dogs are asleep, their little bodies stretched out in front of it's glow. I have a freshly made muffin and a cup of tea all ready.....now where did I put that cable needle ?

Reflections

Reflections

on the

knitting of socks.

Yesterday I received a request from the newlyweds for some knitted socks. I was very happy to oblige and went to find my needles and some sock wool immediately. Even though I have several much larger knitting projects on hand, I am always ready to put those on hold whilst I knit another pair of socks.

A sock on four little needles sits quite contentedly in a messy handbag and can be very useful to allay the nerves whilst waiting at the dentist. They come in handy when the husband decides to take a quick stop at a farm machinery place and spends more than an hour discussing the merits of John Deere tractors.

Hand knitted socks are the perfect gift for a special person when you want to show them they are loved and thought of, and they last longer than a bunch of flowers.

They are also the perfect project to be knitting when you happen to be watching a particularly romantic movie like " love actually", "you've got mail" or "message in a bottle" of which I have seen recently and sniffed my way through all three.

The knitting of them can be quite addictive !

Sea Green

My sample of weaving.

Initially trying different patterns, I have now settled on a simple twill using fragments of handspun wool and leftover different yarns from past knitting adventures.

I don't know yet what life and purpose this cloth will have, but as I weave I am contemplating it's future !

A first hyacinth to remind me of the coming spring now that we have officially entered winter.

I do enjoy the wintertime though as it gives me the chance to wear favourite woollens and boots, and to snuggle into the sofa by the fire on a wintry evening with my knitting....and to have a break from weeding the garden.

Eco dyeing and feltmaking

I have just had a wonderful three day workshop learning all about eco dyeing and feltmaking.

This is India Flint wearing her amazing coat of many dyes.

India uses plants and flowers, leaves and other vegetable matter to dye her felted wool, silk and cotton pre- loved fabrics. No mordant is needed other than the metal pot or little bits of copper that she finds and recycles.

A piece of felted wool dyed using eucalyptus leaves.

India is showing us how to prepare a piece for the dyepot. The leaves were collected from the ground around our workplace. This fabric was rolled up very tightly and put into a dye bath ( water boiling in a pot with leaves .) Obviously different leaves yield different colours.

My felted "landskin", comprising of stitched prefelted wool, oddments of silk and remnants of cotton and knitted bits of lace.