We Have The Power!

The power of electricity that is! Electricity that we didn't have from 10.30am Thursday until 2.30 pm Friday! It all started when I noticed smoke coming from the cupboard that houses the electric meter and fusebox thingy. I was very calm and switched off the electricity at the mains, then got on the phone to Ian and squealed like a girl!

An electrician was summoned, but as it was 5.30pm by the time he arrived, he could only make things safe and promise to return the next day. So out came the candles! OOhh, lovely I thought, a quiet evening knitting I thought. Wrong! How the Victorians managed to do their delicate, intricate needlework by candlelight I don't know, I couldn't see a thing! So an early night was the answer......to SLEEP of course!!

Finally by 2.30pm the next day we were back on the grid. Little did we know that another problem was brewing. It was discovered by Kate, who desperate for a shower, dived in that evening. All I heard were the screams, as the freezing cold water hit her!! Somehow, the electrician had managed to wire us up wrongly, which damaged a circuit in the boiler, which meant a plumber joined the happy family on Saturday morning, to fix the boiler!

Thankfully we are now sorted. Very grateful that I was in when the smoke appeared and even more grateful it didn't happen overnight.

While Ian was sorting out the boiler problems on Saturday, I went off for a girly day with Carrie Anne, Becky and Bev to MIMA, a modern art museum in Middlesbrough. We had a wonderful day in the company of Felieke van der Leest, a brilliant artist who uses crochet and knitting in her jewellery.

This pic was taken during the afternoon workshop, which followed the morning lecture. It was a great way to explore freeform crochet, and we had a good giggle too!



This was the 3D heart I crocheted without a pattern, just making it up as I went, it's not great but I enjoyed the process. The cafe in MIMA was lovely and we just had to have a couple of visits!

I even managed to get a few rows of sock knitted while I was there, so all in all a brilliant day! This is the very sock, though I am much further on than the picture now.

I'm also really enjoying the Pirates hat, thank you for your helpful fairisle tips. I started off poorly, mainly because I didn't read the instructions! And because I didn't read the instructions, I tried to follow the chart in the same way as I had in previous lace patterns and then couldn't understand why the pattern wasn't working out! Duurrrrrhh! Then the penny dropped, I was knitting in the round! After a few choice expletives and reading of the pattern, I managed to get going.

It was so exciting to see the skulls appear! So, so far, so good! Eventually!

I don't know if anyone has seen the Walls sausage adverts with the dog trying to pinch the sausages, but I love it cos the dog is a Border terrier, the same as our beloved Alfie. So when I saw they were giving away an inflatable 'Grizzler' as he's called, I just had to have one. I waited over 6 weeks and it came today. I blew it up........and was horrified! I have never seen such an ugly, frightening thing in all my life! It's horrific!

It actually doesn't look too bad in the photo, but it would frighten kids in real life! Just to show what it should look like, I took tried to take a photo of Alfie and Grizzler, but Alfie was scared of it!

So it's been quite an eventful week, though most of it I'd prefer not to repeat! Hopefully I'll have a bit more time ( and electricity) to catch up with everyones blogs and plenty of illumination for knitting!!

Happy Easter!!

Warning: LONG BLOG AHEAD!!
Long time no blog! Where does the time go?
The garden has been calling the loudest these last few weeks. I think the sunshine definitely helps. Ian and Tom have got most of the veggie garden ready for the new growing season, and yesterday saw Ian plant the tatties, just before going to watch Newcastle Falcons rugby team win!! Woohoo!

The veggie garden is never pristine like some gardens, like our neighbours gardens ! But I don't like it perfect, I prefer it a bit rough around the edges, more lived in. We grow the veg organically and in the photo I see I've captured the bucket of chicken poo!! Nice!

My brother and sis-in-law visited on Saturday, and we went down to the Food Festival in Auckland Castle. What a fab morning we spent, wandering around the food stalls and craft marquees. We bought organic meat and veg from local farms and some yummy cakes, breads and teabreads, most of which we ate the same day, as another one of my brothers called with his girlfriend . I think they smelled the food cooking ! We spent a lovely afternoon, having a BBQ, in the sunshine, eating gorgeous food and slugging some wine, with some pleasant company. Bliss!

All the yomping around the Food Festival, plus the pathetically small amount of weeding I'd done on Friday, meant I was out of action yesterday. But every cloud has a silver lining and I cracked on with my knitting.

I FINALLY finished my second sock. The Piece of Beauty yarn was a dream to knit and I love the Boathouse colour. I'm desperate to start my STR, but I've also got 2 lots of Jitterbug that I got before the STR yarn and I would like to try that too! Decisions, decisions!!

I also started the border on the shoulder shawl I've started from VLT. Now I've had real problems with this, but I think I've finally cracked it. I know as a novice knitter there are loads of things I don't know, but I thought that there would have been clearer instructions about attaching the border. I think it's the one thing about VLT that I'm disappointed about. I think I may have knit it on back to front, but I'm carrying on anyway!! I'm just round the point, so it should soon be finished.

I was up early yesterday due to the various aches and pains but I was rewarded with a beautiful view from the back door.

Well I apologise for the photo-heavy post, but I MUST put some photo's of 'the boys' in. They have had a whale of a time in the garden this weekend and have slept like babies each evening!


This is Alfie, after he found some shade, and Paddy is drying out after a pond dipping session!





All those with of nervous spinning disposition, look away now! This is the result of my first spin on the wheel. It's very slubby, but I did get better as I went along! Not that you'd notice! But I plied it up with some yarn that was on a bobbin that came with the wheel when I got it and this is the result.

It actually doesn't look as bad as it does in the photo, but I wanted to document the NUMERO UNO, no matter how bad!

Oh I forgot to say, my DH has ordered me a swift for Easter! I think he got sick of holding the skeins. So along with the woolwinder I got from E-bay, I should be able to wind some tidier looking balls of yarn!

And finally, I promise this is the last photo! Last but not least.

My Dad died in June 2004 and I miss him so much. So when Tom found some'forgotten' about photo's, I was overjoyed. They were taken only a few weeks before he died and despite him being very frail and in pain, he still smiled and joked as usual. So I'll leave you with my Dad.