Summer At Last

We've finally had some summer in the UK and have had some glorious days at the beach and pier, especially over the bank holiday weekend. You don't realised how much of a difference the weather makes until the sun appears and suddenly your mood just lifts ;)

The lovely weather must have given me the urge to do some cardmaking as I made a whole bunch. Here are just a few. I sold my old Sizzix on Ebay and bought myself a Cuttlebug which I adore. Far more portable and easier to store. I also had a clear out and tidy up of my cardmaking stuff so making cards is a whole lot easier now. I always feel so much better after a good sort out and organise ;)

I held out till just now before placing an order for Snugs as it has to be said, I've been buying quite a bit recently. Not major purchases, but quite a bit anyway. And when you see it all on your blog you kinda realise exactly how much you've bought. Buying in dribs and drabs isn't quite as noticeable is it lol?

After my last post a trip to John Lewis resulted in 2 lush skeins Misti 100% llama for wrist warmers and the Jane Ellison Mirasol book. OMG is this stuff soft. Unreal, it just has to be caressed to be believed ;) The book is great, I like a lot of the patterns though there was very little quantity of the yarns at the time. Hopefully there will be more in stock when I decide which one I have to make.

I have not 1 but 2 FO's for you - and they're both socks! First the much stressed over STR Silkie socks in the not to be mentioned method that caused me so much angst! But now they're done they are gorgeous and I love them. You can't describe how they feel to wear but the silkiness is just so wonderful on your feet. Not that there has been much too much wearing as its finally been flip flop weather, but that doesn't stop me parading round the house showing them off! So thats 2 out of 4 STR kits made so far. Not bad really ;)

And many thanks go to Piglottie for this Knitty link to the easiest explanation of EZ's sewn bind off ever. Having tried the russian, then the crochet, then the suspended, I was delirious with joy and excitement when the sewn bind off produced a TOO LOOSE BIND OFF!!! Who knew such a thing existed? So I redid it normally (I'd left a lot of slack the 1st time) and it is perfect and the best looking bind off I've seen on a toe up sock. I am a convert. For toe-ups, this is the only bind off to use!

The second FO is the pretty Lorna's Laces Happy Valley socks that were started on holiday in May and promptly forgotten about. I'm glad they're done and can't wait till they've been washed and soften up a little. I'd forgotten how different socks yarns can feel compared to STR, which is just the most amazing feeling yarn. And reminds me why I'm so addicted to them!

But remember the gorgeous Cherry Tree Louet Gems Merino that I started on the trip to see my dad. It is soooooo soft........and is now my no. 2 all time favourite yarn. STR being no. 1 of course - no surprises there. I will definitely get some more of this - it is just gorgeous to knit with. And I noticed the normal CT Supersock yarn wasn't as soft as this either........

The visit to my dads was really quite stressful and umm, upsetting too. He is old but it was a shock to see how different he looked. Not helped by his barber shaving his head!!! But he's happy and thats the main thing and he didn't realise I was upset thankfully. It was a long and very tiring day. Thankfully the rest of the Bank Holiday involved beach trips and visiting pet centres and was gloriously hot and sunny. Bout time too!

The fourth STR sock kit arrived 14 days after posting! For some reason no UK members got their kits any earlier. Weird. But better late then never. Can't believe it's the 4th kit already. Where does the time go? Haven't decided whether I'll make the pattern yet. I'll see what everyone does with theirs and decide later on. Maybe I'll do the pattern in a different shade. Who knows? I've got plenty of other stuff to be getting on with first!

OK I lied. I actually have 4 FO's but 2 have been done for ages and were waiting present giving so I almost forgot about them. They were for my friend's new baby boy and very cute he is ;) First we have a wee washcloth and then a lovely cute bib from the Mason-Dixon book. Don't you just love the button on the bib. Too cute!

And this is my belated birthday present I got from my friend. Aren't the colours lovely? Notice how the notepad which has come in very useful already matches the yarn.....too pretty ;)

And the excuse for the much later than usual post (apart from dreadful network problems not letting me upload anything for a whole WEEK and making using the internet a total PITA)? Pokemon. Yup, Pokemon are to blame. No, really! I finally succumbed to a Nintendo DS Lite and have become totally addicted to Pokemon. So much so that I didn't knit for 3 whole days!!! I'm sure normal service will resume soon. I hope.......but funnily enough while playing More Brain Training guess what it also recommends for getting all that grey matter working? Yup, knitting of course. I did laugh, knitting is just everywhere these days ;)