Happy Yarn Shop Day 2015!

Just got back a couple of hours ago from a lovely week's holiday in Bamburgh (again!) But rather than talk about that at the moment, I want to celebrate Yarn Shop Day cos it's today!

When I realised we'd be travelling back on Yarn Shop Day 2015 (organised by Let's Knit and Let's Get Crafting Magazines), I was determined to support at least one yarn shop but didn't know which one to go to. I consulted the list of those participating and read out the location of every one in the areas we were passing through to to my ever-loving and supportive MTM and he told me how far out of our way it would be to call in. When we got to Treacle Wool Shop, Morpeth, it was only just off the A1 and so we had a winner!

We arrived in the lovely town of Morpeth just before lunchtime. Treacle Wool Shop is located amongst other wonderful shops in the Creative Quarter of Morpeth. The two ladies photographed, Kym (left, the owner) and Stephanie (her wonderful assistant and sock tutor) greeted me warmly. Tea and cakes were on offer for Yarn Shop Day. This a well stocked shop, a great variety of yarn and accessories, it's also full to the brim of enthusiasm and charm. There's a lovely welcoming room upstairs with a big table and chairs where they host a variety of knitting and crochet workshops.

I came away with a bag of yarn (how can I resist such a lovely selection). The bag in the photograph shows my purchases. When I discovered there was 35% off Drops, there was not stopping me! As the tenth customer, I got a free Drops Knitting and Crochet Design magazine and every customer got to choose from a basket of lovely goodies, I chose a 12mm wooden crochet hook, I've never owned a crochet hook so large, I'm looking forward to giving a try so thanks very much Kym! I had a super time in your shop and look forward to visiting again. I wish I live nearer but as you can order on-line from Treacle Wool Shop's website, I'll definitely be ordering more yarn from them in the future.

Just one complaint though ... through the clear plastic bag, my other half could see exactly how much yarn I'd bought, plain opaque bags are really a better choice for those of us who have to try to play down how many balls of yarn we've bought when our partners already think we have enough in the house to last for at least two lifetimes!

I hope Yarn Shop Day was a big success for all the shops who participated and in particular for Treacle Wool Shop!

Perfectly matched socks

Well these aren't really perfectly matched are they? My latest creation using some self-patterning yarn bought in Oakham (Drops Fabel Print if memory serves). I have been using self-patterning or self-striping yarn to knit socks since I started knitting socks a few years ago. 

We're on holiday at the moment and naturally I bought plenty of things to knit, crochet and read along with me. One of the books I bought with me is At Knit's End by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee (aka The Yarn Harlot). Until I read this book, it never occurred to me to try to knit exactly matching pairs using self-patterning yarn, On page 75 she says "It can be fun and interesting to work with, but be warned. For those inclined to be obsessive , it can lead to a dangerous fixation with making the two socks match". Obviously, since the subject has been brought up, now I'M obsessed with doing this. 

I must have dozens of mis-matched ones in my sock drawer. As someone who considers herself to be quite a good knitter, I have only just now realised how lazy it is not to at least try to match the pattern on them both. How often have other sock knitters been looking at my socks and laughing?! 

I have some Opal Sweet & Spicy yarn with me, also purchased in Oakham, I'm going to try to knit two identical socks with it ...

Here goes .... Wish me luck!

WIPs increasing instead of decreasing

I have finished one of my Works In Progress! It's always such a feeling of achievement when you've made something you're really happy with. This cushion cover on the left, uses short row garter stitch was a joy to make using Sirdar Crofter DK in Thatcher 0065, the short rows and variegated yarn creates the interesting zig zag effect without any changing of colours - s'easy! The pattern I used is the Zig Zag cushion cover from Deramores, you get three other patterns with it so it's good value, I'm definitely tempted to make the Log Cabin one as well.

So my list of WIPs is decreasing ... wrong (of course). I have started not one but two more! I have zero discipline, I know the key to finishing items off is not to buy new yarn and then I won't be tempted to start anything else but just look at this lovely two ply from Lamington Lass!

These squares are going to be joined as I go along and will become yet another lacy scarf (I love lacy scarves!) I've also started an orange one in a different style but not much to see on that one yet.

On top of these new projects, I still have to sort out the edging to this hexagonal version of the rainbow spiral blanket,  I've done this one in more subdued colours so it can be used in my lounge and I wanted a different edging to the hexagonal one to the squares but I've used too many stitches, specially along the half hexagons and so it's gone a bit wrong.

I kept going on it telling myself (like I did when the edging went wrong on the square one) that blocking would take care of it but with every row, it got more and more wobbly. In the end I had to come out of denial and rip the border out.

May all your edges be straight and true. Talk again soon!

No more extreme hoovering for me!

I've recently had cause to pause and think about how precious eyesight is. Here's a tablecloth that I crocheted with mercerised cotton when I was in my twenties (a long time ago now!) I've always been shortsighted but with glasses, my corrected vision (before I had to start wearing vari-focals), was excellent.

I made this tablecloth with teeny steel crochet hooks, either the 0.75 or 1.00mm photographed below, the stitches are so tiny on it, I doubt it was the 1.25mm.

Since I started becoming long-sighted in my forties, I've needed different glasses for reading and distance, the solution to constantly changing glasses is a pair of vari-focals. What I've gained in convenience, has been lost to a some extent as to how well I can see very small typeprint (or very small stitches!) These days, I find the smallest hook I can comfortably use is 1.75mm so I doubt I could make something as intricate as this any more. These days I just marvel at what I used to take for granted.

When I took that week off to do gardening, I was doing some quite strenuous work, digging over, levelling and raking a part of the garden that had become weed infested when it had all those logs on it from the tree felling we had done. This in preparation to reseeding it with grass seed. One lunchtime, I came in from doing that and suddenly there appeared in front of my right eye what I thought was a small spider dangling down from my hair that had hitched a ride from the gardening.

I'm not frightened of spiders at all really but that doesn't mean I want them cavorting about at will in my hair and face. I ran my fingers through my hair trying to remove it but it was still there; looking more closely, it seemed to be actually on my glasses so I took them off ...still there, rubbed my eyes .... still there. Now it looked more like a little circle with irregular edges and it moved about quite a bit like it was floating on the surface of my eye, if I tried to look directly at it, it darted off. I looked and looked in the mirror but couldn't see anything at all in my eye, neither could MTM, it didn't feel like there was anything in there but I could definitely see something and it was blimmin' distracting.

When I went to bed that night, when I turned the light off, I noticed streaks of light flashing down on the periphery of my vision on the right hand side like tiny shooting stars one at a time.

I made an appointment to see the optician again, fortunately he had only just taken pictures of the back of my eye and pressure testing etc so had something to compare with before this thing appeared. He warned me on the phone not to drive as he was going to take a really close look at my eye by giving me eyedrops to dilate my pupil. MTM took me into town and I was there for ages while he examined the eye very closely. He confirmed there was nothing in my eye but diagnosed partial posterior vitreous detachment. Apparently it's quite common amongst people in their early 50s and is VERY common amongst those over 80. It isn't impairing my vision as the thing I'm seeing is only the outside of the detachment which looks like a very thin hairline in an oval.

Over time, it could well lessen or become two smaller "floaters".

The optician has warned me that an individual who gets a PVD is more prone - in the next few weeks - to a more serious condition which is a retinal tear. He's given me a list of symptoms to look out for: increased floaters appearing in my eyes as suddenly as this one, instead of intermittent flashing, the flashing becomes constant or a greyish "curtain" appears over one of my eyes. If I get any of those symptoms, it must be attended to immediately, if it's left untreated you can lose vision or become blind.

Hence my pondering my eyesight, never will I take it for granted again.

Strenuous activity can make a tear more likely and he's warned me to avoid extreme exercise for the next few weeks. We discussed my normal day to day activities in order to minimise my risk, he's advised me not to cut the grass any more (our lawn slopes quite steeply so it is quite hard work. MTM is going to take over responsibility for that (I just KNOW he won't do it properly, sigh!)

Apparently activities where I'm likely to fall over like ski-ing are out (that's the rest of the weekend ruined then!!!!) The thing to avoid is jolting to the head so no headbanging either (I have no concerts booked for next few weeks so we're safe there), he also said dancing, weightlifting and bungy jumping should be avoided (so that's NEXT weekend ruined as well!!!!!)

I tried to claim I found hoovering, dusting, making the bed, ironing and loading the dishwasher all very strenuous and please could he tell my husband that he was to do that for me for the next few weeks but for some reason, I wasn't believed ....

Back to work ... or is it?

Like many people do, I tagged on a few extra days to the Easter bank holiday and was lucky with some really lovely weather to do some gardening tidying up. I managed to catch some kind of cold lurgy which took the edge off it a bit but now MTM has caught it, I've recovered! Get well soon dear!

But this week I'm back to work, beadmaking in my studio. Here's the view from my "office", bird feeding stations with sunflower seeds, thistle seeds and peanuts. The robins, chaffinchs, thrushes, blackbirds and tits all visit regularly and I love to watch them.

I got the radio tuned to Planet Rock and I sing along to the tunes I know, it has to be said that sometimes this does scare the birds off.

On nice days, Missy keeps me company outdoors, she has a cushion outside the studio which she lays on when she's feeling lazy, sometimes she has a chew, but quite often she goes exploring in the garden, sniffing the sniffs and chasing off squirrels and pigeons.

I don't think this can really be classed as work but as people pay me money for the beads I make, I've come to realise, I am a very lucky lady!