Spring Blanket

♥

 

Oh phew, oh phew

... and breathe ...

... and relax....

 the randomness is done !

 

And, after all my worrying, it really didn't end up having to be that random at all, quite possibly because I very un-randomly and probably rather predictably made the same number of squares of each colour plus one extra pink one to make the numbers work.

 

It was very much a get down on the carpet and just go for it moment.

I started top left and worked my way down one row, up the next and so on following

the colour pattern pink, green, cream, grey and look what happened...

a pattern developed..

yay for patterns and symmetry and all things ordered.

And so with a little pinning...

 



... and stitching...

 

 and the adding of a double crochet border ,

finished off with bobbles..

 

 

the Spring blanket is complete.

And I really am rather taken with it.

 



 

I am also surprised by how much this small blanket has shown me .

Firstly that I'm loving the combination of colours and should quite possibly extend

my colour boundaries a bit more often .

 

Secondly that having thought knitting in garter stitch was just for making endless
teddy bear scarves when learning to knit, that its actually a lovely textured
stitch which I have fallen in love with.

 



And lastly that I think I may now have a bit of a thing for bobbles again as I adore the edging of this blanket that just sort of evolved as I went along.

Needless to say, in my head, I am already planning the next patchwork blanket.

 

♥

 

This week seems to have whizzed by with preparations for a houseful this weekend.

Of course an Easter tree was needed and this was

definitely easier said than done.

Who'd have thought that trying to find branches with the right amount of

hangy bits would prove to be so challenging.

Anyway, got there in the end after a fair bit of foraging in the hedgerows

and the eggs and rabbits are now well and truly hung.

 

 

 

You might notice that underneath the vase is a Mandala .. my first !

As you will all fully understand, despite there being a million and one other things to be done it was absolutely vital this week that one needed to be made.

Having been following Chrissies Mand-a-Long I have been thinking I should give it a go and whilst not fully embracing the colourful patterned variety I thoroughly enjoyed working on this very simple version and then adding a bobbly border in keeping with a bit of an Easter egg theme.

 

Of course one thing led to another and the next thing you know 4 more have been made.

Oh Chrissie - what have you started ?

 

These 4 are soon to be packaged up and sent off to Skipton as a Birthday present
 for my bestest friend . I hope you like them Jane xxx and that they will find
 a home in your beautiful Narrowboat Emily.



♥

And so from now until Monday its pretty much going to be all about chocolate, cakes,
chocolate, and just that little bit more cake.

Beth is home from Uni and the oven has been on pretty much since she walked
through the door.

Diets are out of the window for the foreseeable future.

If you get a chance drop in to Beths scrummy Blog  .... My Own Bake Off.

 



 

Here's wishing you all a very relaxing and a very chocolaty Easter weekend.

 

♥

Ribbons and shoes ...

♥

 

Anyone who knows me will tell you that I am a bit of a one for ribbons and bows.

Always have been ... probably always will be.

 

Standing in front of a display of ribbons quite definitely makes my heart beat that

 little bit faster and like a child in a sweet shop I can never walk away without

having made a couple of small purchases.

( Yes, I even had a Pinterest board devoted entirely to ribbons )
 

In the 80's I was never without a large Madonna bow in my hair and even

had one as part of my veil on my wedding day.

 

 

In the 90's my three beautiful girls (for as long as they would let me ) would have a ribbon

 tied in their hair to match what they were wearing.

I found the rebellion for 'no ribbons' kicked in at about aged 6 !

 



And then last year I came up with a little idea that allowed me to indulge in not

 only my love of ribbons but of shoes too - perfect !

So the other day when a very exciting box came through the post there was

 nothing for it but to do it again...

 

 

The shoes ? Converse, denim blue.

 

 

The ribbon ? Blue spotty Grosgrain.

 



Lovely from the front, lovely from the back ....

but there is a little strip of canvas covering the back seam that is

 just crying out for a certain something .

 

First I stitched a piece of ribbon directly on to the fabric of the shoe,

making sure it was firmly attached,

 

and then I finished off with a small bow, also stitched in place.

 Ta-dah !

 Summer shoes with a bit of a unique pootle added.
 

 ♥

On the yarn front I'm pleased to report that after a couple more

evenings spent knitting this week

the squares are all finished and ready to be stitched together....

bit nervous ... as there could be a bit of randomness needed , not my forte,

trying hard not to let the panic sink in !

 

 

I'll let you know how I get on.

♥

Pretty pastels ...

 ♥

Having so enjoyed working with the soft pink and green on my egg cosies last week I

 suddenly had a real urge to start something else with a similar colour scheme.

A quick dip into Pinterest found these three heavenly pictures ...

 

 

♥

 

 



♥

 

( ... adore this picture - how cool to be able to get away with wearing something like this ! )

 

... and that was it - the seed was sown, and my mind was made up.

 

A little spring coloured patchwork blanket was quite definitely needed.

( a new project however was not, having three on the go already -

but hey, sometimes you just have to go with the flow. )

 

 

A rummage through the wool stash turned up some rather scrummy

Sirdar Baby Bamboo in cream, pink and green and I was off...

 

 

 

I ordered some of the same wool in a soft grey to add a bit of depth and I think the

colours all sit perfectly together.

Nothing too complicated, just squares of garter stitch.

I am quite in love...

 

 

Something about this colour combination makes me think of sweet shops, fairy tales, 

sticks of rock and of course, mini eggs !

 

 



What's not to love ?

 

 

I'm not yet sure how I will place the squares when I have enough to start sewing them together, and I have to confess to being a little nervous about this what with my neatness and symmetry obsession - but I'm sure all will become clear as it happens.

 

I have a few more squares to go yet, its not going to be a big blanket, I think I will aim

for a lap size square.

 

 

♥

After a week off from work its all back to normal from 7:00am tomorrow morning,

and I have to confess to just wanting to stay right here on my sofa and knit ...

and how perfectly do these little badges sum that up ?

 



♥

The other thing that has been calling me this week is the book I am reading at the moment - its got me gripped, I'm having to make myself put it down other wise nothing would get done. 

I have now read several of JoJo Moyes books and I can honestly say that I have felt

like this about every one.

I love her style of writing and each of her books have been quite different in their themes and characters.

 

 The first one I read was Me before You, and it completely blew me away.

The research and detail she puts into her stories is so thorough that you cannot help but get totally engrossed in what she has written.

The Girl You Left Behind opened my eyes to things I had never even considered before.

It was quite breath taking.

With all of her books I find myself still thinking about them for a long time after having read them -  the ultimate sign of a good book I think.

 

♥

 

Just a quick note to say it has been lovely to have lots of you following me on Facebook for those smaller Pootles that don't quite justify a whole post to themselves. If you would like to do this just click on the icon up on the right hand side bar and this will take you to my Just Pootling page.

 Have a good week everyone.

 

♥