...and a Happy New Year!

Sorry that it's been a while since I last blogged- I've been so busy knitting and making things in the run up to Christmas that I've hardly had time for anything else! Over the last few weeks, I've made over twenty button bracelets, knitted two hats, a baby jumper, finished a shrug and I've even started a commission for three sets of knitted cats for my friend Corinne. The cats are from a children's book published by Walker Books and you can download the pattern here.
Christmas itself was lovely, spent with David's brother, his wife and four-year-old son, before moving onto my sister's place for Boxing Day. (When we met her new Deerhound puppy Loki!) I even managed an MSN webchat with Mum and Dad in India on Christmas Day, it was quite hard to keep up as my sister was online too and I'm sure that there were at least three conversations going on at the same time. Since then I've received three emails and a lovely long letter, detailing their life over there- which is certainly very different from back here.

One of my favourite gifts was a fabulous green and pink Clothkits skirt covered in pictures of cars from my sister, which I'm really looking forward to making up. I think I'll need to go back to my parent's house to borrow their sewing machine though, as I wouldn't fancy my chances of doing a good enough job by hand!

Before they left, Mum and Dad had a bit of a clear-out and I've inherited some rather lovely Aran and eight balls of an orange acrylic curiously named Torpedo Fluffy! I'm not quite sure what to actually do with them, so answers on the back of a postcard please...Finally, I've bought yet more buttons, this time two packets; one of packet of peacock coloured buttons and also a beautiful ruby red selection. I just need to get some more twine and I'll be back in production before you know it.

Christmas is Coming...

I've had an eventful few weeks saying goodbye to my Mum and Dad, spending time with friends and getting ready for Christmas.

I saw M&D both last weekend and the weekend before, in Walkern at my sister's place and then at their home in Gloucester. It was very precious to have time with them before they set off on their awfully big adventure, and I still can't quite get my head around the idea that I won't see them until June next year! They flew out to Hyderabad on Wednesday, and so far I've had a secondhand text that came in via Amanda. They've lost one of their bags on the way over, and unfortunately that was the one with the laptop power cable in, so all of our MSN practice hasn't actually come into use yet!

Work has been busy, and I've sold nearly twenty of my button bracelets to various colleagues. This has been an absolute godsend as it's meant I've had much more money to spend on Christmas presents than I would've had otherwise! I've been pretty busy with my knitting for various gifts. Angie's mittens are very nearly finished, Amanda's shrug is only six inches away from being ready to finish off and last night I cast on yet another Odessa hat for Tamsin. I've also spent today making some little gifts for the lovely people in my department at work. They're very, very handmade looking- but I hope they'll like them anyway! Last, but certainly not least, I was lucky enough to get my dear friend Libby in a Secret Santa of all the girls that I used to work with at Ottakar's and I have got just the most perfect present for her... (I'm not saying anymore in case she reads this before I see her!)

Other news, is that Feefer and Rob had their baby this week, so her baby blanket will hopefully be in use right now! Oscar was born on Thursday after a very long labour, weighing in at 6lbs 1oz and is absolutely perfect! I've seen a picture of him and I can't wait to meet him in the flesh...

Anyway, I must dash as I really do need to write some Christmas cards now. Have a great week all- hope that you're really feeling festive!

Christmas Presents

This week has been quite a good week for knitting as I've managed to finish my first present for Christmas, a baby blue Tammy beret for Corinne and I'm cracking on with a second. (I'm halfway through the second of a pair of mittens for Angie.) It's also been quite an interesting week on the IT front, as I've switched from Safari to Firefox so that I could run MSN Messenger on my lovely old Mac.

The need to update has come from the wonderful event of my Mum and Dad heading off for a grand adventure in Southern India for the next six months. The plan is that Mum, Dad, my sister and I will all keep in touch through a weekly webchat. I'm quite tempted to set up a blog for them, so that everyone back here will be able to follow their travels. In fact I think that could make an interesting Christmas present for them as I know that they won't be taking much with them and that's a present that wouldn't weigh anything at all!

I've also set up a group on Ravelry called Kids Lit Knits for knitters working in children's publishing. It's mostly made up of the lovely knit-chicks from work, but we have had a couple more people join already.

We're holding our charity craft fair at work this week, and I've just finished my last button bracelets. I've made four with larger buttons and twelve with smaller ones. Everyone who's seen them so far has been really flattering about it, so here's hoping that I can sell some of them and make a little bit of pocket money to buy Christmas gifts with.

I ♥ Buttons

Here's a photo of my button box:


I've got a bit button-crazy over the last few weeks. We're holding a Christmas Craft Fair at work on the 2nd of December, so I've been beavering away at making some button bracelets to sell. I can make a couple of bracelets on each train journey into work and so far people really seem to like them, so here's hoping that I'll sell a few on the day...


It's been great fun going through my button box and sorting them all out into colours that compliment each other:

On the knitting front, the Walker Knitting Club have finished the baby blanket for Fi's baby. She came in this week and we presented it to her. She was absolutely delighted, which was just brilliant! I'd spent most of last weekend sewing all of the different pieces together (which was quite challenging as they were all in very different tensions!) and adding a cream border to bring it all together and finish it off properly. I'm afraid that I didn't manage to take a photograph of it, but here's very poor quality photo from my phone that gives you an idea of what it looked like!
(Back row from from left to right: Sarah, Cheryl, Jenny, Gemma
Front row: Me, Fiona, Angela, Stephanie
Missing from the photo: Judy, Caroline and Jenny J)

New York, New York

And what an amazing city it is!

From the taxi journey in from JFK to the top of the Rockerfeller Centre, David and I had amazing few days in New York. There is something quite wonderful about seeing the New York skyline for the first time. It's really breathtaking, and yet at the same time there's something incrediblt familiar about it. I managed to keep our destination a secret right up to check-in (which quite frankly amazed me) and I'd give anything to see the expression on David's face all over again!

Our hotel, The Gershwin Hotel was brilliantly located in midtown, two blocks up from the Flat Iron building and just a short walk from Greenwich village, where we ate most nights in some really wonderful restaurants.

We crammed a lot into our four days in the city, visting Central Park, the Guggenheim, Battery Park, Greenwich Village, Macy's and Bloomingdale's. We saw Times Square, travelled on the Staten Island Ferry, went ice skating in Bryant Park, watched a Little League game and took the lift all the way to the 'Top of the Rock'.

Top moments for me were, the ice skating, listening to Bach's Mass in B Minor at St Paul's Chapel (near Wall Street), seeing raccoons in Central Park, eating pizza by the slice and drinking the most fabulously extravagant Apple Martini in Tavern on the Green in Central Park.

Here are a couple more pictures; one of me in Times Square, the iconic telescopes that are on top of the highest buildings and a long exposure shot of the ice skating, with the Empire State Building in all her glory in the background...

Gone to the Dogs!

Well, what a lovely weekend! I’ve been staying at my sister’s house in the middle of nowhere looking after her two fabulous lurchers; Max and Tiggy. We went for four walks (two long and two short) and had a number of adventures including catching a rabbit (bleurgh!) and a scientific experiment to see if you really can get two human adults, two very large dogs and a small but fluffy cat into a standard double bed. (And the answer is yes, but it gets a bit cosy!) Unfortunately, I was far too busy with the dogs to make anything with my buttons, which have arrived already.

On the knitting front, I have started off quite a large project at work. My dear friend (and fellow founder member of the Walker Book Knitting Club) Feefer is due to have a baby just before Christmas and I’ve adapted this log cabin blanket pattern so that everyone can knit their own piece then I can sew them together and knit a border to finish it off. So far I’ve got three pieces in, so nine more are due. We’re keeping it a surprise and I can’t wait to see the look on her face when we present her with the finished article!
Speaking of surprises, David’s birthday trip is this weekend. I’ve managed to keep where we’re going a secret since May, but just keeping the destination under my hat for this last week is proving most challenging!

It's Been a While...

Autumn is really setting in now, and I'm slowly getting used to the change in season. It's hard leaving the house in the dark and getting home in the dark, but I'm sure that once it's properly dark and I'm used to it, I'll be back to my normal cheerful self...

I have been out and about since my last post; picnicing with my old Ottakar's friends, visting Claire, Nig and Oliver in Devon, back to Stourhead with Martin and his new wife Melanie, and down to Christchurch to meet up with my parents for dinner in their campervan.

I've also been a bit crafty; making my first Christmas present for this year, continuing with Flicca, starting a new project called Glister and trying to organise a special baby blanket for Fi at work, that will have a square knit by ever member of the knitting club at work! The Social Committee at work are organising a Christmas Craft Fair, so I've ordered lots and lots of buttons from The Button Company to make some bracelets to sell for Christmas presents.

Today I've been making a birthday present for my sister Amanda. Here are some pictures of how it looks:

Back to School

Well, September really is here, which means that I really need to get a move on with my Flicca cardigan. The scale of Flicca is ambitious and I've been making progress, but to date, I still have one sleeve and the collar to do and I really, really want to start wearing it as soon as it gets cold.

David and I went to Stourhead for the first time in a while yesterday, where we saw these beautiful hydrangeas. We had a lovely walk around the lake and saw five cygnets and our first autumnal leafdrop. Stourhead is one of may favourite places to go and I can't wait to see the place in all it's autumnal beauty.

I do love autumn. I love going for walks in the afternoon. I love it when it's cold, but the sun is shining. I love the colours out there in the world. And I love being safe and warm at home on those cold dark evenings.

A Pair of Odessas!

...and on the knitting front, I've been none too lazy either. I started an Odessa by Grumperina in a lovely grey alpaca bought from my favourite wool shop, I Knit London last weekend and managed to finish it in a couple of days. It's proven so popular I've already made a second for my friend Helen, who is celebrating her birthday next week. It's such a great pattern- really easy, great fun to knit and incredibly satisfying in the speed it knits up. I also love how impressive the finished object looks, and how nice it is to wear.

I shall have to get a move on with my Flicca now and try not to get distracted by any more projects, especially if I want to have it ready to wear before it starts getting cold. Brrrrr!

Beautiful Cambridge

Last weekend was a busy weekend, firstly at a fabulous party entitled Shrewfest hosted by my dear friends Piney and Jez in their new(ish) house in Shrewton, then on Monday David and I went to beautiful Cambridge. Most of the day was spent just wandering through the alleys and strolling along the river, we even had the treat of being punted along from Magdalene College down to Queens. In the evening we dined at The Cambridge Chop House, where we had one of the most wonderful dinners I think I've ever eaten!



I was so taken with Cambridge that I took nearly fifty photographs- here's just a couple of my favourites...




David and I are off to Parklife right now (a party in a park very close to where we live) but hopefully I'll manage another update on my knitting progress over the last couple of weeks.

Knitting in Public

I've had a lovely knit-filled weekend; starting one project and finishing another. Leah's jumper is all finished, and I'm just waiting for it to dry so that I can wrap it up as a brown paper parcel and send it winging it's way to Fi and Paul's.



This afternoon has been spent with a picnic in the Close of Salisbury Cathedral, where I got stuck into Odessa by Grumperina. It was really nice to be able to sit out and David took the opportunity to get some study in for his dissertation, in what may well be the last of the summer sun...


On the book front, I've just started A Man of Property the first book in the epic The Forsyte Saga series, by John Galsworthy. Set in Victorian London, these books are intelligent, witty, lavish and simply wonderful. I'm really looking forward to reading every last word in the series!

A Week of Rain

It seems to have rained pretty much non-stop since we put in out our little seating area last weekend. David and I have managed only half an hour outside today, which is a shame (especially for August!) but hopefully we'll be able to make up for it next weekend. By which time, I should also have finished little Leah's baby jumper.

On the up side, I've read a lovely book this week by Justine Picardie called My Mother's Wedding Dress. It's a collection of essays on life, family and social history; all told through the story of clothes and fashion. I'm not usually a great reader of non-fiction, but this was a pleasure to read!

Other treats this week have been lunch with my sister, who gave me a rather delightful metallic pink bag called Amore from my favourite bag company, Ollie & Nic.

I've also stayed with my dear friend Shona in her new house in North London. We had a very girly night in, putting the world to rights with some pink fizz and a movie! The next day we went out to the local Aquadrome to walk Tali, the weimararner, before heading back to some warming tomato and mascarpone soup with cheesey herby scones. Yum!

A Lovely Long Weekend

I’ve had such a lovely long weekend of it that I’ve not really had time to post here, so here’s a quick update of what I’ve been up to.

My weekend started early, with Mum and Dad meeting me on Thursday night to stay for the weekend. It was great to see them and they were wonderful in helping me start to get to grips with my very overgrown garden! After no small amount of digging, twenty sandstone slabs, nineteen bags of garden refuse, eight bags of pebbles and some very odd sunburn, David and I are now the proud owners of a little seating area. It’s been raining pretty much non-stop since we put the garden furniture together, so we’ve not really had the chance to sit out yet, but it’ll be lovely to sit out in the evenings through the summer.



Saturday night, the boy and I went to an eighties party, which was huge fun and then on Sunday, Fiona Pine-Marten and I went to meet the beautiful baby Leah. She really is just the most delightful little girl and I hardly wanted to give her back to Fi and Paul. I have almost finished knitting her little baby sweater, but after blocking and pressing it would appear that she won’t be able to wear it for at least four months! (At least it’ll be colder by then…)

Exciting News...

Very exciting news this week is that last Sunday Fiona and Paul had their baby, a beautiful healthy baby girl called Leah. I'm hoping to see them next weekend, so have started another Debbie Bliss Raglan Sweater in pale blue Sirdar Supersoft Toddler Aran.

It's been quite a busy knitting week for me, and I finally managed to finish something! Elegant Drape, an asymmetrical summer cardigan in dusky pink Debbie Bliss Cotton Angora has been a delight to knit- and now it's a delight to wear. I modelled it last night at Claudia and Simon's fabulous summer barbecue, where it was greatly admired!

I've also created an online photo album for my sister's big walk last weekend.

Other news, is that I have moved departments at work and am now working in the Novelty Department, which means I'll get to work on some fabulous new books- really looking forward to helping with some of our fabulous pop-up books!

Midsummer Madness

I've had a crazy weekend helping my sister complete a madcap challenge called Trailwalker in aid of the Gurkha Welfare Trust in conjunction with Oxfam GB. She and a team comprised of Liz, Nerys and Gary walked an astonishing 100km of the South Downs Way in 28 hours and 1 minute, to raise over £4000 for the Gurkhas.

The indomitable Daz and I (along with Latifa and Ali) acted as support for the team; proving food, respite and hopefully a bit of cheer as the team bravely struggled on through the day and the night. I managed to stay awake for a staggering 37 hours and even managed to get a bit of knitting done in the support van, casting on the first sleeve of Flicca!

I've also blocked my pink summer cardigan and am hoping to have it all finished by the end of the week. I really would love to wear it before it gets cold!

A Lovely Gift

One of the lovely designers from work who sadly is leaving the company, was having a clear out of her desk area and found this fabulous set of needles. It's such a shame that she has to leave, so I'm particularly grateful for her incredibly generous gift, especially as I'll remember her everytime I use them. I have spent a happy evening this week cataloguing my needles for my Ravelry page!

An Excellent Week

I've had such a lovely week this week, starting off with my Race for Life, which took place last Sunday. I raised over £300 and managed the 5k course in just over 33 minutes. The race was pretty emotional, not to mention hot and tiring, but I was pretty proud of my time. Doing something like that gives me such an enormous sense of well-being. Not only am I achieving something for myself, but I'm also doing something, no matter how small, to help others in this world.

Another treat has been the book that I've been reading this week, Excellent Women by Barbara Pym. It's been a long time since I've read a book that I have enjoyed quite so very much. Every page included a treat- an absolute delight to read. Barbara Pym manages to make the ordinary life of a spinster in the late 1940s, really insightful, witty and frankly extraordinary. Every word is to be treasured and I now want to devour her entire backlist!

Yesterday, the boy and I went to Henley Royal Regatta care of Members Day at Henley Management College (where he is studying for his MBA). The sun shone gloriously for our trip along the race course on SS Alaska, the oldest passenger craft on the Thames, and we enjoyed a very gentle cream tea on the lawns of the college.

On the knitting front, Flicca is coming on a pace. Knitting Club at work has started up again, although I was so busy chatting, it took me six rows before I figured out that I was doing the left front, not the right... Oops! This lunchtime, I have been enjoying my regular monthly session of knitting in public at the Big Band Brunch by Centre 17 Big Band at Salisbury Arts Centre.

What I'm Up To...

Hello again!

Having finally joined Ravelry (and learned how to add links), I thought that it really was time to put fingers to keyboard and start writing again. My friend Libby is a brilliant blogger and she has something to say pretty much every week. I can't promise I'll be that prolific, but I am going to try and make a bit more of an effort...

Since I last added to Sparkleknits I did manage to finish a few projects. I made a pair of mittens for Piney, a baby jumper for Jen and Neil's gorgeous baby boy, Sam and a second one for the fabulous Oliver Rufus, who was born to Claire and Nigel in March. I have done everything except the blocking, pressing and making up of a pink cardigan for myself.

The main project that I'm working on right now is a Flicca cardigan from Anna Bell's beautiful collection of patterns to buy on My Fashionable Life. It's a slightly unseasonal project, but at the rate I knit, I might actually finish it for when this wonderful weather runs out.