Favourite Quotes

" When I can no longer create anything, I'll be done for"
Coco Chanel



a bit of this and a bit of that.....

This week there has been a question on a crochet group I belong to (crochet partners@yahoogroups.com)
asking what other crafts do I do besides crochet. Well....... if you have been reading my blog for a while you will know that I crochet, knit, do cross stitch, make rag rugs, do all sorts of papercraft including greetings cards and scrapbooking. I have done patchwork and quilting, bobbin lace, needlelace, embroidery on paper, tapestry and luceting, watercolour and pastel painting. I have tried various other things such as pottery, basketry, mosaics and silk painting at various craft clubs and evening classes, but not pursued them at home.

But a daily habit of mine is reading, mostly novels, and regularly craft magazines and my life long favourite Women's Weekly. I WAS a confirmed 'real book' fanatic, heard to be saying things like "I will never enjoy an electronic book like a real paper and print one" etc etc. Well I have to eat my words!
Father Christmas gave me a Kindle this year and I LOVE it! So light and portable, so easy to use. So many features, like changing the font size if you have forgotten you glasses, AND the books are half the price of paper ones and instantly downloadable. I have been reading avidly from it all month until a long awaited 'real' book arrived.



This is the eagerly anticipated, very last part of the fantastic Clan of the Cave Bear series that I have loved for years, but the weight of it in my hands when I snuggle up in bed with it is a pain! Give me my Kindle every time! Of course not every book has an electronic version so I will have to switch occasionally, and of course I still love my craft and recipe books for browsing and working from, but this little beauty with a tiny little reading light has won my heart! I am a woman and I'm allowed to change my mind aren't I?


Well, now I've confessed to that here are some of things I have been making this week......

I was given some gorgeous soft squishy Debbie Bliss Baby Merino Aran wool this week to make things for the local children home.I got out my DB book right away and the needles just flew.....Still needs buttons, but all done in a couple of evenings.
A thinking of you card for a very special friend I will be seeing next weekend who is very poorly. She is not a pink and fluffly girly girl so this shabby chic looks is perfect for her.










Whilst on this flying visit of just three days I will deliver two camels and a new scrapbook page to Noah and his Mum and Dad in person, how lovely will that be!


I know, there is only one here, his mate is OTN as we speak... I WILL finish it, promise! (It's just those fiddly thin legs that get to me.... ah well it is worth the effort in the end...)

I have been a follower of Attic24 blog for a long time, she is so inspirational and shares her joy of life and her crochet freely, check it out for the cute little jar/tin cosies she is making right now. These are going to be my travelling project next weekend!
These little crochet sachets are cute for little girls too!









Well, better get back to my yarn sorting (for the cosies) fun!
Have a happy crafting week whatever you are doing! Bye from cold and sunny Spain

On the twelfth day of Christmas.......

...........I had serrano ham on crusty baguette, followed by home-made marmalade, with lots of coffee...
played with my new toys (crafty ones) and made a birthday card......

and with my other half went for a long walk in the woods with the dogs......
watered the pots outside......
ate a delicious fish and chip lunch at David's fish bar in Moraira (the best for miles around).....
soaked up the sun and paddled in the sea at El Portet beach.......


.....a siesta in my own bed......
a slice of Christmas cake with a cuppa......
and there are still 6 hours to go......
leisurely knitting and TV to look forward to.......

Today is the fiesta of the Three Kings in Spain (a bank holiday) know to us as Epiphany, when traditionally the Spanish exchange gifts. Everything is shut and it is so peaceful everywhere. After all the hustle and bustle of our Christmas and New Year, today was a rare treat, a whole day off! Despite a strong wind it was 23C at the height of the day. Don't be too jealous though, tomorrow it could change to 2C and a howling storm with the rain leaking through the roof in buckets!
The lemon tree is reminding me it is marmalade making time again, and just in time, I'm on the last pot.


The sun has allowed me to take pics of one of my WIP's too, a lovely diagonal knit jacket from Twilleys, I'm not at all sure how the front is going to fit, but I am ploughing on and following the instructions to the letter and hoping it will all become clear later. There are no diagrams in the pattern leaflet so I'm working in the dark a bit...It is so soothing to just knit, all garter stitch, one stitch after another with no deadlines, no pressure to get finished....

I've knitted another hat for Noah, the first one didn't look big enough, I added some rows before the shaping, the pattern is here. That will be in the post this week, I may sneak in a lovely crochet headband for his Mum if I get the time....(this is the pattern)

A drink and nibbles have appeared at my side, I will just have to stop and indulge......

What a lovely day.......

Oh dear this post seems to be full of eating, next Monday it's all change, back to the diet.......