Sitting down to write this post with knitting and wine beside me is the most normal thing that I've done for a while. I hate the word 'normal', along with the word 'should' - as my patients rapidly discover when I ban both abominations from their vocabularies. But whatever on earth normal is, these past few weeks have not been it. (This whole year hasn't been normal, of course, but you've doubtless noticed that. And if you haven't, then I really don't want to be the one to burst your Continue Reading
Friday News
Ahhh, it's Friday. I've been at work seeing patients, and then later I was at home, reading bedtime stories to the twinnage, and now, still home, I'm on the sofa with yarn, wine, and very little intention of moving. It's been gloriously warm and sunny here these past few days... ...which feels slightly surreal, because exactly one month ago today, I took this photo whilst I was out on a run:- Meanwhile, the Stoic Spouse has been perfecting his patisserie skills, and each weekend lately, Continue Reading
Free Pattern Alert! The Cowl Is Done!
I've been in a bit of a frenzy to finish designing and making the fiery sunset cowl, since so many of you said such kind things about it. I knitted round, and round, and round, so very fast that I was almost flung backwards across the room by the centrifugal forces. Anyway. It's done. And I've typed up the pattern for you. But first, a message. Mother Twisted was enormously touched by all your lovely comments about her cathedral window quilting, and she sends you heartfelt thanks. I think Continue Reading
Knitting A Fiery Sky
Hello. There's a stretch of motorway that I drive often. If it's dusk and there's a half-decent sunset, the view is stunning, with sharp conifers and rolling hills silhouetted against the sky. Often, I see deer. I've long wanted to show you this view because I know you like colour, but stopping on a motorway to whip out my camera would be both illegal and stupid, so it hasn't been possible. But then something happened that meant I could at last show you... in knitting! Because look what Continue Reading
‘Head Over Heels’ Sock Yarn Review
See these? These are happy feet. If it weren't for the fact that they're pointing skywards, then they'd probably be dancing. Badly. So be glad that they're safely away from the ground. The reason for their joy is no doubt obvious. It involves some splendidly colourful new sock yarn. You may have heard already, but a few months ago, Stylecraft launched a range of 4-ply sock yarn called Head Over Heels. It's 75% superwash wool and 25% nylon, and it comes in six different marvellously Continue Reading
Foraging
What’s a girl to do on the hottest day of the year? Well, besides writing up the pattern for a nice warm, fluffy cowl, I celebrated the road-melting heat on Wednesday by putting on the oven to bake courgette cake and beer bread, before going for a 9-mile (that’s 14.5km) run in the blazing midday sunshine. Stupid? Possibly. But the really stupid thing was being so obsessed with drinking lots of water in the hours pre-run that I forgot to eat. “Oops,” I thought, forced to stop as I waited to Continue Reading
We Have A Winner!
And........................ STOP! Please put down your pens. (Just re-traumatising anyone who's ever taken an exam, there.) The Burrow And Soar giveaway is now closed. Thank you muchly to absolutely everyone who entered, you indie-yarn-lovers, you. So, shall we have a look at the results? There were 233 entries - wa-hey! (173 people made the 185 comments on the blog post, and 60 people commented on Facebook. 173+60=233, number-fans.) I reduced each and every one of you fine fibrous folks to Continue Reading
Yarn Giveaway!
THIS COMPETITION IS NOW CLOSED. THANK YOU FOR YOUR ENTRIES. RESULTS WILL BE ANNOUNCED IN A BLOG POST SHORTLY. Who'd like to win some beautiful hand-dyed yarn, regardless of where in the world you're knitting/hooking? And for those not quite lucky enough to win, who'd like a stonking great discount off said yarn? Do I perchance hear a 'yes' at the back, there? OK, well first let me tell you a little about the yarn in question, because I realize that you're too discerning to grab at any Continue Reading