Capture and Share #22 - Creating Warm Lines

A sniffle, a cough, time to rest a while and create warm and snuggly lines of crochet loveliness!

Postcards of Summer

Hellooooo everyone!  I hope you have all had a good summer (and winter for those in the Southern Hemisphere).  It's the end of August... HaPpY sKiPpY dAnCe as I say to my good friends!

The lead up into September and then stepping into my favourite month is my time to come out of the doldrums and embrace each and every day of Autumn (I count 1 September as the beginning of my Autumn).  The trees start to turn, the conkers start to fall, the nights draw in, the shops are full of delicious orange from pumpkins and trick or treat goodies and I can start to enjoy the early evening sunsets once more.  A happy month indeed.

The trouble with having a blog break, and one that has been so long, is where do you start?  The organisation of a blog post and editing photos become a little out of sync.  You forget just how long it takes to post something, the nerves of "is anyone going to read this?" as you hover over the publish button and hoping that the content is true to you.  Well, after days of unbelievable humidity and me in the grumpiest of grumpy moods as a result of it, I now type this with thunder and lightning performing an amazing show outside, the air is cooler with a very welcome freshness and, I've just noticed, a welcome darkness outside (I do love a good storm).

So, what have I been up to during August?  ... Well, there's been trips to my London town...

... and the climbing of a very steep hill in Lincoln! ...

... a start of a new job (in the same place but different responsibilities).  The view is slightly different but still in a wonderful medieval setting ...

... catching up with family at the seaside ...

... and of course, walks with little Tia ...

... and enjoying capturing the growth and then the early harvest of the surrounding fields ...

... there's also been some creative crochet and I am sorry to say that I gave up on the CAL as the different patterns had different gauges from the variety of lovely ladies that wrote them.  I couldn't get on with it so had to frog all the squares I made and decided to use the colours in one of Attic 24's Cozy Striped Blanket patterns instead.  I do love these colours.

This summer holiday has felt different to ones of the past with me just having one week off and not being needed for the rest due to the Teens now older and having their own interests.  The new job has come at a good time as change is forefront in my life and I am embracing all that is new, so with the Teens doing their own thing, I am able to get my head around what I want to do.  (By the way, the GCSE results were magnificently positive for Miss Teen!!)

So, this has been my postcards of summer.  I know some of you will say, did we have one?!  Well, I certainly felt it and will be glad to start breathing cooler air on my dog walks with Tia and out and about with Big Bertha (the camera).

I have missed my little corner of Blogland and the connection with you all, I'm really glad to be back!

Autumn's nearly here and I am SOOOOO happy!!

Five on Friday - Views of my Week

And in the blink of an eye it's Friday again!  Time to look through the camera card to look and see what I have captured. I am absolutely delighted to share with you a few photos of another trip down to London on what was the beginning of a sun shiny day.  My trip this time was work related and involved entering the House of Lords at Westminster.  Normally no photos can be taken here but out on the terrace (the part you can see from Westminster Bridge and the opposite side of the river) I was able to capture a few extra special moments.

So, No. 1 of my Five on Friday is the view from the House of Lords Terrace.  Looking over my favourite river towards Westminster Bridge and the London Eye.  The perfect place to sit with colleagues and enjoy a cup of coffee.  A very happy view indeed.

Scaffolding above us for the maintenance of such an iconic and beautiful building.  The red awning to signify the Lords area and the green for the Commons.  Big Ben striking the hours and the quarter hours above us.  A very special view.

After walking through the incredible rooms and halls with paintings, chandeliers, ancient books on tall bookcases lining the lush corridors (oh yes I was in heaven!), old clocks above ornate doors, we were shown into the Lord's Chamber and stood near the throne.  Solid gold and incredible beauty surrounded us.  A place that is so surreal and hard to believe I was standing there.  

2.  After lunch (House of Lords fish and chips were incredible!) we had to leave before the House sits and this is when we realised the sun had disappeared as it did last week when I was in Greenwich.

Then, thunder and lightening of epic proportions!!  TAXI!!!!  This is the view from the taxi window as we passed Westminster Abbey!

3.  From the City to the Country and the hustle and bustle of London is a long way away.  Here on the Fen me and Tia walk amongst the wildflowers look up at the enormous skies.  The contrast of my view from one day to the next couldn't be any different.

The yellow and red lines on busy London streets are replaced by the green and blue lines of the dykes.  The yellows and greens are now being interrupted by scrumptious reds of other flowers popping up.

With occasional flashes of vibrant fiery red in amongst the luscious green wheat swaying in the Fen winds.

4.  With my past two trips to London having me dancing in the rain, it is only right that I show you my progress so far with the Sheepjes CAL for this blanket.  I am way behind, but loving the new stitches I am discovering and viewing while resting in the evenings.

5.  Lastly, well it has to be a little view of my Tia.  One year ago I met this little girl after she had been rescued.  One year on she has survived so much change, being spoilt, tooth loss and long happy walks making new furry friends along the way.  She still hates cats but there are none on the Fen so she can safely trot off with her little friends and incredibly happy.  Here she is on the swing enjoying the sun!  I have never known a dog to love the sunshine so much, she practically sunbathes!!

So that's my five views of my week to share with the lovely Amy at Love Made My Home's Five on Friday.  Go along and read some lovely blogs showcasing their five too.

Have a lovely weekend.

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Blood, Sweat and Tears... Ta Dah!

At last!  I can reveal my latest blanket which has been a labour of love, hardship, frustration and unbelievable unpicking.  Yes, I have felt that I have shed blood, sweat and tears when completing this one.  While writing the words to this post, I look outside and the heavy clouds mock me.  Today of all days I need it to be sun shiny and tikety boo so that I can show you the work I have put into this project.

The Janie Crow Lily Pond Blanket was her CAL from last year, but when I saw it after finishing the Painted Roses Blanket from Cherry Heart, I thought it would be a good progression to learn new stitches and to push myself.  That I most certainly did!

Yes I was going to throw in the towel and just call it a WiP, but no, I continued, weaving my hook in and out of the different colours and hook sizes, and then it all started to come together.

So, I am writing this on a Sunday morning and then hopefully by the end of the day there will be some sun shiny shots for you to enjoy and appreciate the work that I have been doing for the last three months.

Hubby's reaction... "it looks like a pond".  Well done that man!

I'm going to miss making this blanket now that it has been completed as it has been something I can vent at.  But I need to have some calmness restored in my life, some nice easy lines, some nice easy squares, some nice comforting colours.  Well, I've already received this gorgeous box of woolly scrumptiousness after looking for my next project to get me through the summer months.  

Some of you know how much I love to walk in the rain and my love of the autumn and winter.  It's my happy time, and when I feel most alive.  The camera helps me capture those different moments that are more interesting than sun, sun and, oh yes, sun.  The water droplets captured on a rose, the dew on a spider's web, the reflection of a building from a puddle, the happy faces on children in welly boots being allowed to splash, the frost enveloping anything that it can hug.  Well, this project is going to be a happy one.

This is a CAL that has already started - Sheepjes CAL 2016.  The main one is Last Dance on the Beach, but I have gone for the comforting colours reflected in Dance in the Rain which just sings to my heart.  The CAL was designed by the late Marinke Slump (A Creative Being) who was designing this project when she sadly passed away.  Twelve of her online friends and bloggers completed the design and the CAL is in Marinke's memory and as a tribute to her work.  Please click on her link in this paragraph to understand why so many people are doing this in her memory.

It's only fitting that I am seeing this as a happy blanket and one that I am going to enjoy and think about the good things in life and what makes me who I am and what I want to achieve.

Right, post written, now where's that elusive sun??!!

Snippets of a Bank Holiday Weekend

It's a Bank Holiday in England and Wales and true to form the rain returns.  Bank Holiday = Rain, we should just accept it.  I sit here tapping at my keyboard just as the storm 'Katie' taps away at the window panes.  I think it's going to be a cozy day inside.

At the end of a very busy week at work, I needed to get my home looking more like a place to live rather than a place to collapse.   Luckily I knew Good Friday was going to be a good weather day so the housework was done, the washing had been line dried, the ironing mountain had been conquered, the surfaces were polished, Tia had been bathed and the weekend was now mine!   I had such plans for each day, but the only good weather day was Good Friday and another ridiculously 'named' storm was coming our way - those of you around the world that have real storms stop laughing now (why the met office have had to feel to name them I don't know).  Knowing that this would make the Fen a very soggy place to walk, I took full advantage and me and Tia enjoyed the firm pathways before the storm hit - nothing better!  The daffodils are about to turn, so seeing them still dancing in the fields and against the backdrop of the ever swelling ditches was satisfying to see.

In the distance the wind farm stood steadfast waiting for the winds to start.  It was already blowy and the sails were all turning, along with the waves of yellow rippling like the sea.

The wind was blowing Tia and her gorgeous long ears.  She loves this place so much, including the car journey to get here.  The back window of the car gets rolled down and from the wing mirror I can see that happy little face looking out with ears and jowls dancing in the air as we make our way down to the Fen.

The horses at the side of the path were far too busy enjoying their lunch to notice any changes in the weather.

Mind you, they did look cozy in their coats.

Saturday was going to be Mother/Daughter time and lunch was decided in Peterborough at the Handmade Burger Co with Miss Teen followed by some retail therapy.  We don't get enough time together lately so we thoroughly enjoyed lunch and then hurriedly searched for Easter eggs!

Being the bad mum that I am, I had sorted everyone else out with Easter eggs but Mr Teen and Miss Teen!  All the major stores were telling me that they had sold out (hmmm, I thought, let's see how many magically appear on the shelves on Tuesday!).  Luckily a smaller store had a couple of little beauties left, so panic over!  Yes, yes, I know, they are old enough to survive without this level of sugar on Easter Sunday, but traditions are hard to let go sometimes for this mum.

... along with a bit of baking!

Unfortunately this holiday means that Miss Teen will be at Easter School.  Each day she will have to go in and study with her fellow GCSE class mates.  I know it is a good thing for them to do, but she is so tired and with no break now until after her exams, it is a little unfair.  Other schools have study leave, but not her one.  So, early mornings and late nights for the homework to be completed is just too much and I feel that many will burn out before their big days.  She will eventually be an Art student, and I am going to do my very proud mum moment and show you just one piece of her art work for her GCSE project.  Every piece she does has me speechless, so talented.

And so, before another busy week, I will my third cold of the year to pack its bags, and settle down with the blanket that is driving me slowly mad, and make lists for when the weather actually cheers up a bit.

Have a great week - here comes the storm!

Five on Friday - Unwrapping

I am so glad it's Friday.  The cork in the wine bottle will be released this evening and sipping the contents will be very welcome.  This time of year flies by to the extent that I haven't even opened by lap top to read and see what is happening throughout the world in blogland.  I have so much catching up to do!  My camera battery also expired after Mothers Day and the charger wasn't working so I missed out on so many shots including the group of twenty swans flying overhead, what a beautiful sight and very windy!  However, the camera is back up and running and I will be out and about this weekend catching up with my technical 'friend'.

So, my five this week has to start with a lovely little package from Amy who hosts Five on Friday at Love Made My Home.  Unwrapping the tissue paper revealed her crocheted hearts which are a joy and now adorn my dresser that has so many things that make me smile.  Thanks so much Amy, they will be treasured.

  

Mothers Day was full of surprises, and this one was very specially received .  Now that my camera is working again I will go into detail at the weekend and show off this beautiful piece of machinery.

 The weather has been differing each day but I have to say we had a real pea souper last week with the fog.  The Cathedral looked as though I was viewing it through tissue paper.

 Earlier that morning as I waited for the bus, I felt very aware of the eerie stillness of the morning as the fog cloaked the graveyard near where I wait.

Unwrapping the contents of an envelope and my first trip to London for this year has been booked!  Oh I can't wait!  I feel like I have a bungee rope tied to me and London is pulling me so hard to get back.  Those who have been reading my little corner of blogland will know just how much I love to get back to my home town.  This trip will take me to the Shard so that I can breathe in the missed polluted air, listen to the sounds of the City and marvel at the high vantage views across my City - let's hope it's not foggy!!  Then off to Borough Market for a bit of shopping and anything else along the way that takes our fancy. 

Unwrapping the mind with the Lily Pond Blanket that I am currently putting together (Janie Crow's CAL project last year).  It has been a little frustrating, but persevering to focus my mind.  I am getting there, but have seen her latest CAL which begins soon.  Hmmmm, shall I just have the Lily Pond as a WiP in the basket??! 

  

So that's my five.  Now, let's grab the camera and take a closer look at the Singer!

Thanks so much for your comments over the last couple of weeks, and in fact all the comments and visits I have received over nearly four years.  You are all a great comfort and deeply appreciated by me.

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