For Phoebe

I knitted this for Phoebe from Louise Harding's Miss Bea's Rainy Day, a beautiful little book of Rowan children's patterns that makes most of my younger friends want to start a family straight away. I used Jaeger Matchmaker Twill DK pure wool in a lovely shade of bluey gray with flecks of red, orange, purple, turquoise and green. I initially thought the wool, which I was given a while ago, was a bit dull but seeing it in daylight the tweed effect makes it interesting and lively so I'm glad I didn't embark on a complicated pattern, there's just a bit of cable at the rib.

Phoebe is my virtual niece, the daughter of my youngest brother's ex wife, Heidi and her new partner. Fortunately for me Heidi has always kept in touch, remembered my birthday and included me in Phoebe's life. She is almost three now and because we have never met (I hope one day we will) knitting for Phoebe has been a stab in the dark, but accommodatingly she has fitted into everything I have sent and been excited about the parcels. The photograph I got back when she received her little Opal socks was a delight, no one could fake that enthusiasm. Phoebe is adorable, a proper little country girl growing up in Yorkshire with horses and dogs. I hope she enjoys wearing her sweater and its fine by me if she does so feeding, mucking out or whatever animal duties she joins in with, though I may surprise her next time with something pink and girly.

For my next trip

Hurray, now that my holiday deficit is just about cleared, Mr FF has booked flights from Edinburgh to Pisa on the new Ryanair service, so convenient, such good timings, splendid destination. We travel in 3 weeks time for a 7 day break and friends have kindly offered us the use of their house on the outskirts of a little town in Tuscany. I know the weather can be tricky there at any time of the year as the town nestles amongst the mountains but we shall be comfortable and well equipped. We once spent 14 days in Tuscany in July, it rained for the first 10 and I'd run out of books after about 7. I can remember driving down the motorway to Siena in the pouring rain, windscreen wipers thrashing away, the car all steamed up and the crazy Italian drivers either overtaking at 100 mph or sitting on our rear bumper flashing their lights for us to get a move on.

And amidst the excitement I have agreed to travel with hand luggage only, which means that the total I can take with me (apart from what I wear or cram into my pockets) is 10 kilos. Usually my toilet bag weighs about that, so I really am going to have to work on this. Coming back won't be a problem as I can leave things in the house for our friends but getting everything I need out there could be. Having said that I've already checked on the net where the nearest yarn shops are, Lucca and Pistoia both of which will merit a visit. Maybe just a few balls of interesting sock wool to bring back then.

Snowy Sunday

This was the garden scene this morning so no work outside today. The spring bulbs have taken a bashing, just as well I photographed them yesterday.

Erythronium

I love these erythronium dens-canis, the dog's tooth violet so called because their fleshy white corms are said to resemble a dog's tooth. The mottled foliage is interesting and the pink purple nodding flowers are delicate and delightful. I treated myself to five little corms when I was first establishing the garden and I remember thinking how expensive and indulgent they were at a time when I needed to buy so many plants. They have repaid me many times, increasing year by year to provide colonies all over the woodland part of the garden. In fact I've even been able to pass on plants, I swapped a pot of dens-canis for this yellow relative from the erythronium family, it too has established and increased well.

They all flourish happily under the trees and benefit from both the leaf litter in autumn and a top dressing of compost from the heap in early spring.I also have these, which again were a swap. I can't swear that they are from the same family though I believe they are. Not quite in flower yet but I couldn't resist snapping the emerging bud, it sums up this time of year, so much happening and so much to look forward to.

Mr FF has scarified the lawn getting rid of the moss and old grass, we both spent time working outside despite the snow and hail. Typical springtime weather though today's April showers have been a bit extreme.

The Sock I'd like to Stab

I know this is wrong and children must never try it at home, but its how I feel because getting the size right with the available yarn has so frustrated me. I eventually cast on 44 stitches, worked out the heel and gusset shaping myself, which I agree was a good and useful exercise, and ended up with an ordinary acceptable sock. But the journey, every weekday night spent knitting and unknitting and all because I didn't work out the tension before I started. Now I have to make the second one and I can't wait for it to be finished. I may never bond with these socks, we have too much history.
Lets be more positive, look at these lovely lambs, fibres of the future. They live down in the village beside the main road and are attracting lots of attention. As soon as I went to photograph them this morning they all came trotting over and posed so nicely. I may be a farmer's daughter, I can recognise a Swaledale or a Leicester (the latter because when I had my 1970s curly perm my brother said I looked like one), but I'm not sure what breed these are, may be Shetland, I'll try to find out. Whatever they are, they are adorable and have so much potential, my love affair with yarn certainly isn't over its just a little tiff.

I think I've lost it

I thought I was on a roll after knitting two pairs of little socks and using up a couple of the part balls of wool cluttering the stash. I found about 120 g of dark blue 5 ply Guernsey pure wool that seemed ideal to knit socks for Mr FF. I am now into day 4 of knitting and version 4 is on the needles. The first attempt with 64 stitches was far too big and using up far too much yarn, I stupidly started again with 60 stitches, ditto 56 - same problem every time too much sock not enough wool and not once did I really look at what I was doing until I had turned the heel. I am now knitting with 40 stitches and telling myself I am making socks for me, the poor wool doesn't know whether its coming or going and neither do I. Why do I persist with this, why don't I give up and pass the wool to the charity shop? Its the same when I read a book, no matter how bad it is I have to finish it and I can't be beaten by 120 g of Guernsey. Even worse, when I was having a rootle about in my wool store (a large old wicker laundry basket just like the one that the dead guest gets put in on Fawlty Towers), I found a whole carrier bag of part used balls of Opal that I'd forgotten about and now I'm feel I must use that up too. Lets hope the weather is good at the weekend, I need to get out in the garden because my battle with odd balls isn't going to make good blogging.

Ennui at Easter

I didn't blog over the Easter weekend as nothing happened. I don't work Fridays and I went into the office today to help redress the holiday deficit, so really it was just a normal weekend for me. No bunnies, no chicks, no egg hunt. There are some pretty lambs down in the village that I meant to photograph but every time I stepped outside the snow came down. Very little gardening done and while I did go out with my camera to record progress, there was none. I noticed today in Edinburgh that lots of blossom has come out since I was there last, but here at sleepy hollow time is standing still.

I have been reading, knitting more little socks and carrying out my domestic duties. And I had a big bake in on Friday, quiche, bread and rock buns - even they look a bit dull.