All things wooly

Finally after about 18 months I have got round to finishing a scarf I was knitting for myself. I'm really chuffed with how it came out, especially as I'm a bit crap at knitting. I, unfortunately haven't inherited my mums knitting skills and I just look awkward, but I get there in the end \o/. I've also been inspired by Violetta's cowl scarf so I think I'm going to do the same and put some big buttons on it. I also hate it when scarves unravel themselves and you keep having to rewind it so this should fix that problem \o/.
I'm also crocheting more and have finally got round to using some wool I picked up from a craft fair last year. I'm making a small purse so will post pics when I've finished that.

Alone but not lonely

I spotted this via Reddit and thought I'd share it. I thought it was something we all need to be reminded off from time to time.

Odds & Ends

Earlier this year I voted in a competition to choose the best Garden Centre in the Country. It felt a little liked I'd fast tracked my way to pension day as most of the folk filling in the forms were a tad older than me. I voted for Burstons as they sell yummy cake, have an excellent selection of information leaflets (one of which saved our Cyclamen) and the staff are always helpful and seem to know a thing or two about gardening (always helpful :) ). A couple of days a go I got a thank you letter from Burstons and some vouchers :) so armed with my vouchers we paid them a visit today and picked ourselves up a few bits and bobs for the plot. We now have a Budleia which I've wanted for ages, so tomorrow I'm going to head down the plot and attempt to plant it. I want to put it near the shed so it grows across the shelter out the front. The plan is that as it grows it will hang down and make the area smell nice and we'll have lots of butterfly visitors :) We also picked up an odd looking plant for the balcony. The leaves are corkscrew like and long and we figured it looked pretty cool and was coming home with us. We also picked up some feed for our Orchid and some more composty stuff so it could be repotted. The best bit was, with our voucher, we only spent just over a tenner :)
I've also been making a few other bits of jewellery to put in the shop. I got some really cool wool a while back from one of the charity shops in Borehamwood. I've been playing around with it recently and have made a necklace. I'm really chuffed with how its come out. I've also been playing with some fringed wool and having a bit of a crochet.

I Love.....

I've been sent an invite by Violetta of Violet Elephant to play 'I love'. The idea is simple, you just list 10 things you love. I think I can manage that :)

1. My bf, family & friend :) :)
2. Harribo - the sour ones are my absolute favourite
3. Lush smellies
4. Cake & puddings in general - favourites: - Battenberg, Bakewell Tarts, Syrup sponge, Jam Roly-poly
5. Cats
6. Making stuff and all things arty
7. The internet - if you want to find it it will be there, you might just have to look for it
8. Bats
9. Butterflies
10. napping

Makings & Tidying

I've been having a bit of a creative spurt recently and have been working on some more jewellery ideas for the shop. I've been using some stamps I picked up last year and using them with fimo to make some new pendants. I've used pearl effect fimo and then coated the cooked pendants with a smear of water colour paint, a coat of glitter glue and a coat of varnish. I'm pretty pleased with how they are looking so far. I plan to hang them on ribbon and managed to pick up a mix of colours today from TKMax.
I've also been doing a second round of clearing the wardrobe and ironing pile. So far I've gathered a binbag full of stuff. I want to get my wardrobe back to a basic level so I've got space to pick up the odd nice thing if I see it. I've also been trying to simplify things. I've been partly inspired by the Uniform Project where one dress was worn everyday for a year. The clever bit was how the dress looked different every day. Sheena, the original blog author, uses all manner of accessories to create a different look. This is a bit too fashiony and girly for me but it did get me thinking. I don't need thousands of clothes, just a few basic bits. I've got a ton of jewellery and other bits and bobs. It would also save me a whole ton of ironing, which I hate with a passion. This can only be good :)
In other news, I've finally got round to finishing 'Two Caravans' - that was such a brilliant read. Every bit as good as 'A History of Tractors in Ukrainian'. I've now started my new Sean Stewart book. He's probably my favourite author and I'd been putting off getting Cathy's book for ages as it was a change of direction for him and I wasn't sure if I'd like it. Its written for teens and so far I'm really enjoying it. I decided not to write it off just because it was written for a different age group, Before I Die was too and that was amazing. Exceptionally moving but brilliant.