Blue and Red Hooded Baby Jacket

I am trying, once again. to make inroads into my small ball stash. Every time I make something I think that's some wool less but my stash doesn't seem to go down at all. I swear someone adds odd balls to it during the night. My friend Sylvia is one of the culprits. Every time I visit she adds a few more balls to my stash. I use these for her (and her friends) foster babies so I don't mind that bit.

The pattern today is another free pattern from Ravelry. Baby Hoodie by Bonny Jacobs. I had to alter the pattern as my version was coming out huge. That's the trouble with using US patterns I am still never sure quite what their wool weights mean. I managed to salvage it and it looks reasonably like the pattern except that I didn't have any multi colour that toned for the sleeves and I ran out of red wool for the hood so it had to be striped. Still that's the beauty of crochet. You can always salvage something by amendments. It was constructed in a strange way. I had to make the yoke and then the hood before I added the body and the sleeves. I suppose that was because the button placket stitches had to be incorporated into the body.Thankfully I had printed out this pattern whilst I still had a working printer. I really do miss not being able to do that at the moment. I will have to ask the family for a new printer for my Birthday in November. If I want something large then they all join together instead of several small presents.

My red wool came from Violet Green today. I would have preferred the wool to be variegated as it is for a shawl but after the episode with the hand dyed yarn that was patchy I decided to go with a commercially dyed yarn for safety. I sent them a note saying that I was disappointed with their other yarn but I can't be bothered to send it back as that would mean a long walk to the Post Office plus a long wait in the queue. I will just give it to Sylvia's daughter who does a bit of dyeing and see if she can re-dye it and use it up somehow. She also spins so perhaps she can twist it together to make it thicker.

I was asked this morning by an online friend who is in his 30's. Why is life so hard? I couldn't really answer him on that one. Life has thrown me some curve balls in my lifetime and sometimes, at the time, I have thought that life is a bit unfair. All in all though when I think of my Parents and Grandparents and their struggles with poverty, ill health and of course two world wars then I think that I shouldn't complain as much. Although I am in pain I do have modern medicines to help with that and the promise of modern surgery to make my life easier. The one thing that old age has taught me is to be thankful for what I do have and not be bitter about what I don't have. I don't have a lot of money but then I don't have the kind of lifestyle where a lot is required. I still have my faculties mentally (although some would argue about that one) and am able to immerse myself in doing something that I love which is crochet. Whilst I can still do that I am reasonably happy. Yes I would love to own a car, go on holidays abroad and stuff like that but to me they are luxuries and not the necessities that today's younger people seem to think that they are. My Parents and Grandparents had very little in the way of luxuries but yet I grew up surrounded by love and that, to me, is more important than any luxuries.

Today is a bit cold once again so the old knees are complaining. I am going to take a warm shower and then settle down in my new chair, if I can beat Buster to it, and have a relaxing day as per usual. I think I am half way to being a recluse Ha Ha. I do get to sit in the window and wave at my neighbours and I do have a lovely view of trees at the back when I am in my garden so it could be a lot worse.

Laceweight Has Arrived

The laceweight from Violet Green arrived today. I am absolutely thrilled with the colour of the Blackberry and the wool Grignasco Merino Silk 2ply Lace Yarn. I am not very happy with the other colour or the wool. That's the trouble with ordering online you never seem to get exactly what you think that you ordered. The colours are actually far deeper than the photo and the Titiana Cashmere/Merino/ Silk Gossamer in Midnight Red is actually more of a maroon. The bit that I am unhappy about is the patches of cream that seem to have missed the dye altogether. It looks like where it was tied hasn't taken the dye plus is looks a bit ruffled up and unravelled looking in my opinion. I think this wool will get stashed and I will choose another colour for the shawl. The red cost £4 a skein more than the purple and yet doesn't look as good a quality. It is so thin that I will probably use it doubled for another project and hope that the cream bits get hidden in the work.

Today has been a busy morning. Not only did the postman arrive but the order from Tesco did too. Fortunately Buster was in the garden digging his way under my steps as his ball had gone underneath them and defied all attempts to dislodge it. He didn't notice that I had closed the patio door on him and he didn't see the delivery men as they didn't ring the doorbell.

We did manage to retrieve the ball in the end after a lot of fishing about underneath the step with my walking stick and a lot of digging on Buster's part. Fortunately we had just finished before the torrential rain started.

I have managed to finish off the knitted cardigan for the foster baby boy. The wool is Sirdar Snuggly DK shade 0411. I am not keen on the brown buttons but I didn't have the right shade of cream or beige. Sylvia can always change them if she doesn't like them. I made this cardigan a little larger ready for the autumn although with this cold weather the baby has been wearing a cardigan every day. I have started a bit of crocheting as my wrist is aching from the knitting. I also have developed a pain in my arm between my elbow and my shoulder. It's probably because I haven't knitted for a while.

It's time for a coffee and to watch Loose Women. I will have another browse on the net to find a better colour for my shawl. I think that I prefer the Grignasco wool so I will see what other colours they have in that. I don't mind the dark purple as that is for the cover cardigan but I am more of a rich jewel colour type of person and maroon just doesn't thrill me at all.

Fine Wool Crochet

I have been knitting in my new chair as you can see. I am making a baby cardigan and have made the two fronts as well as the back but I haven't taken photos as yet. I love this pattern - well I do until I have to sew in all of the tails! It is so useful for using up those tiddly bits of yarn. The only fault with the pattern is that the cardigan turns out rather short and I always forget this fact until I have made the back. Perhaps I should write on the pattern to work more rows.

I rather like Crafty Andy's suggestion that my chair needs a mini bar. I am sure that the manufacturer could have put one in the arm rest. Perhaps I should write them an e mail with Andy's suggestion. Drunk in charge of a recliner chair - now there is a thought Ha Ha.

I have been studying my Fine Crochet book and have decided today after perusing lots and lots of web pages of stockists of lace weight to order some Grignasco Merino Silk from Violet Green. I worked out the yardage of several lace weights and decided that this one was value for money at £12.99 a skein with 1,400 metres on each 100 gram skein. I will no doubt be suffering from carpal tunnel syndrome again by the time I have wound 2 skeins of this wool. I do have a ball winder but it doesn't like it when the ball gets too large. It starts going all lopsided. Some of the lace weight is so expensive. I have no doubt that the yarns are lovely but the prices are a bit rich for my pocket.

I will probably need a Valium and a couple of glasses of rum and coke to fortify myself when I start crocheting something this fine as I have been spoilt lately by only crocheting thicker yarns. The finest yarn that I have used lately has been 4ply. Gulp.

I went up to the shops today and just managed to miss the down pour. It would rain when I have just paid to have my windows cleaned! I felt sorry for the poor lads as they had to clean a few years of grime off the bedroom windows as it has been a long time since I had a window cleaner or used the hose the wash them down. They were very good and even cleaned inside the porch and the kitchen window for me as I can't reach either of them any more. I used to have to kneel on the worktops in the kitchen to clean the windows so since my knee problems I just haven't managed to be able to do that.

I will let you know when my wool order arrives and post photos on the blog. I had better polish my magnifying glasses for the first chain row and all of that counting. As the order probably won't arrive for a few days I will indulge myself in a bit of thicker crochet and knitting until then.

Buster is supposed to be arriving tomorrow for a week. I still have the old recliner in the lounge so there is not much room for him to chase about. I called in the charity shop today to see if they did want it. They said leave a message with the van man. I said I did that yesterday and he hasn't got back to me. Everyone says Recycle as much as you can but it isn't that easy. No-one seems to be interested in this chair even when it is free on Freecycle. It's a shame as there is a lot of life left in it and it is in better condition than some of the furniture for sale in the charity shop. I am getting Freecycle mails as I am typing and someone is even offering an old brush! I wonder if anyone will want that?

Next door's cat is waiting at the patio doors for me to let him in. I am not letting him in tonight as the last time he came in he sprayed somewhere and I couldn't find it and the whole house stank of cat spray for about a week. Sorry Puss you are not coming in again. I think that I have a sign on the patio door saying all cats and dogs are welcome here. They don't seem to bother anyone else.