It's a beautiful sunny day here and lovely and warm in the conservatory, but pop outside and you get hit by a chilly wind! We are enjoying watching a pair of blue tits nesting in a box we put up on the fence which has honeysuckle growing over it so they are slightly hidden. We get a perfect view from the conservatory and look forward to welcoming some babies in time.

My weeks progress on my Stitch Journal. At the moment I am working through some feather stitch variations.

My granny squares are now a cardigan but still a way to go on this.

I have had to make some adjustments while putting together as it was going to come out far too wide. I have also ordered some more yarn as I wish to make the cardigan longer than the pattern says and also need extra for the front edging as the pattern was for a jumper. As this will not arrive for a couple of days I shall not get a finish for the end of the month. However, I am looking forward to seeing which number Deana pulls for the April Chookshed Challenge - I am hoping for something simple off my list to allow for finishing my cardigan.

Having had a mostly dry week we have been working in the garden - I have painted the new gate we had put in at the end of last year and oiled up the wooden garden chairs. Next up is to paint the matching table and chairs that sit by the greenhouse. Annoyingly the day we had earmarked for going out turned out to be damp, grey and windy! Hopefully better luck for next week when we are meeting friends at Killerton for the day.

Wishing you all a happy, stitchy week.

FNSI for March

 Friday was a beautiful day - Yes! the sun has been shining this week and we have had lovely temperatures, even warm enough to sit outside. So we have been busy in the garden cutting and tidying. Also we bought some new plants at the beginning of the week and most of them have found their new homes. I will get out and take some photos before my next post. So Friday was either spent in the garden or catching up with some admin.

I did get a little break after lunch to add to my Stitch Journal. Here you can see my week with Friday's addition, the snake like couching on the left.

In the evening I worked on my crochet cardigan. All the squares are now made and I have started putting them together. Two sleeve panels are now complete and look like this.

Here is the last batch of squares just before they came off the blocking board.

As you can see I 'splurged'  (haha) and bought the smallest board I could get away with - my squares are 4". Hopefully I am on track to finish by the end of the month as this is my Chookshed Challenge.

I am off to enjoy some more of the sunshine - have a great week.

The Middle of March Already!

 The year is starting to fly by again. Only a couple of weeks until we change the clocks and it will really start to seem like spring. Well the sun is shing today, in fact it is a beautiful day, if a bit chilly, but I don't mind that. Good to get windows open and watch washing blow in the breeze. Shoots of green are appearing all round the garden and the tulips are showing signs of imminent flowering as the daffodils start to fade. We are being visited by lots of goldfinches this year and they are enjoying the sunflower hearts I put out for them.

There are often three or four on the feeders at once.

My stitch journal continues.

and I have been hooking away at my granny squares at every opportunity. I have now completed seven of the eight sets of eight that I need before I can start to put the cardigan together. So hopefully some joining pictures next week. I bought a blocking board and have been blocking a batch of eight at a time. It does make a huge difference to their appearance.

Have a great week.

March Chookshed Challenge

 The number for March is #2 which for me is a Retreat Bag. Now I have had the pattern for this bag, along with frames for both sizes, for some years now and have never got around to making it up. Could this be it's time? Well no actually as for some reason I have no great yearning to crack on with this. So instead I am making the crochet cardigan kit my project for the month. The pattern is for a jumper but I am splitting the centre blocks to make a cardigan.

So after last months frantic hooking and stitching I have slowed right down and am taking my time with these. My blocks so far.

Also catching up with some reading. My Book Club book of the month is this one. 

Not an easy read but somewhat appropriate considering the current actics of that awful man across the ocean. And then for something lighter lol

Well, you can't beat a good murder mystery.

My Wildshore blanket was finished on Friday - the border turned out lovely.

I am very very pleased with my blanket.

Well, of course I have been sewing and my Stitch Journal has it's first entries for March.

Here are some pictures of my finished section for February.

It has been a fairly dry week for a change and we have had two trips to the seaside. I had hoped to have some nice pictures for you but sadly the sun declined to shine! More rain to come this week.

That's it from me for this week. Happy stitching.

Chookshed Challenge February

 And yes, Ms Rabbit is a finish! Last stitches added this afternon - the scary bit, adding the ears! However, nowhere near as scary as anticipated thank goodness. So here she is.

A few more shots.

So pleased to have finally made up this rabbit - many thanks to Julie for sharing the pattern and to Deana for organising the Chookshed Challenge. I am looking forward now to finding out what our challenge for March will be.

I have spent most of my time this week working on rabbit but I have kept up to date with my Stitch Journal - just a gap left there for todays entry.

I will share the whole month next week when it's had a good press.

I have also finished the shell rows of my Wildshore blanket and thanks to some cricket yesterday afternoon, I made a start on the border as Lucy released the instructions yesterday morning.

I mentioned last week that Stylecraft were sending a replacement ball of yarn - the yarn I used for the original socks was no longer available so I chose something from a different range. On Monday a large package arrived from Stylecraft - not just a ball of yarn but a goodie bag!

Two balls of yarn which is called Sacred Earth, two pattern books and a tiny tin of stitch markers. Very nice, thank you Stylecraft.

In the pattern book I spotted this advertisement for Ammonite Yarns

and thought, that's a nice jumper! Maybe I could use the leftover yarn from Wildshore for the flowers in this jumper. So I wrote to Ammonite asking if they had the pattern and back came the reply - yes, and we also have the kits. Well, before |I knew it I had ordered the kit! Whoops. Oh well, I do love it. However, I am planning to split the front to make a cardigan for the summer and will order some dark yarn to make a winter jumper using the leftover Wildshore yarns.

Right, that is enough waffle from me, have a great week and I will see you soon.

Chookshed Challenge and sock update

 I have been busily stitching away on my rabbit - my Chookshed Challenge for the month. Here is my progress so far. The front which just needs the addition of some features on the head section

and the back which needs a lower border - todays task.

The scarf will cover the upper part of the wisteria so it won't look like it is sprouting out of nowhere! Next up will be the ears and then hopefully I can get her all sewn up before the end of the month - fingers crossed!

So my Wildshore blanket has taken another backseat this week but as I am not far from the last few rows and as this is a catchup week, I should be ready to start adding the border when the pattern comes out next Friday. 

My Stitch Journal activity for the week.

I wrote to Stylecraft regarding the strange repeat in my sock yarn and inviting their comments. I received a reply with a long explanation about knots in the yarn ( I didn't see any) and disruption to the dye sequence. At the end however, I was offered a replacement ball of yarn which I understand is winging it's way to me as I speak! So I am happy and hopefully I can show you what I receive next week.

We had a nice drive out this morning - partly in sunshine and partly misty rain - to deliver some books we no longer need to someone who collects for the Watchet Community Bookshop. The Bookshop is closed until the end of March but it was good to be able to clear away some unwanted books. Anyway, the journey involved narrow backroads with grass down the middle - always a good rural sign - lots of running water and a partly flooded road. Evidently had we wanted to visit earlier in the week we would not have been able to due to flooding. Anyway, the point of this is that it was so lovely to see masses of snowdrops and daffodils happily flowering despite soggy feet. Just beautiful in places.

So that is it for now, I must get back to my embroidery and there is a football match this afternoon to listen to and snooker to watch. Goodness, there is rugby too - well at least I can get my head down if that is on as it makes no sense to me whatsover! Happy Saturday.

A Quiet week (another!)

 Starting off with my Stitch Journal and we are halfway through the month already so here are my entires for the month so far. Jo suggested that I add an umbrella as we have had so much rain - happy to oblige Jo. And today we have had a mornings worth of sunshine so thought that was worth celebrating.

I have added some more rows to my Wildshore blanket but not many. Next week is a catchup week before we tackle the border so have plenty of time. The reason though that I have not done so much is that I realised the deadline for finishing the socks I started befoe Christmas was fast approaching. So I have spent quite a bit of time this week knitting. However!

This is the sock I finished before Christmas.

Rather an odd colour repeat I thought but heyho. So I wound on the wool to get to the yellow/navy and cracked on with the sock. All went well until I had turned the heel and then look what happened!

Oh well, I am not changing anything and as it is the foot it will not notice inside a pair of shoes but such an odd repeat. I will look out the label and add it when I post the finished socks as I shall be avoiding this maker in the future.

Small progress on my Chookshed Challenge, not worth photographing - I shall get back to it as soon as the sock is complete.

That is all from me for this week, happy stitching.