Lilys House

getting out

Thought I'd get out and about with the camera this morning, only our usual walk but a change from the wool obsession that is taking over my life at the moment !

I decided to do an outdoorsy post before I looked out of the window..it is very overcast, dampish and just  yuk, for want of a better word.  Mind you I'm feeling a bit yuk too, so that might have something to do with my positive outlook today. I've got a stinking cold which is making me just want to curl up on the sofa and do nothing.  Luckily it's pancake day and the whole family are in agreement that pancakes, only pancakes, will be our dinner tonight.  So I don't have to give that too much thought.

Anyway, here we go..got your wellies on ?

first lets look up.............I love this tree with it's ivy creeper..

 

and down........

 

the dogs were up for it, even if I wasn't.  This is Harry in stealth mode.....

 

and attack...........poor Wilf....

 

all around there are tiny signs that trees and plants are coming back to life - and as much as I love the winter, I'm very glad to see things moving on a bit.

 

This afternoon, when Maddie is back from preschool, I'm going to find time for a bit of snuggling.  I find it very hard to sit still and have a constant 'to do' list swirling around in my head.  Today it will be different...and I think it will do me good.

 

 

monkeying around

I bit the bullet and started some socks.  I figured that if I was going to be dyeing up sock yarn to sell, I really ought to get some first hand experience of how the yarn knits up, feels, and looks.

Cookie A's Monkey pattern  was one I'd been looking at for a while.  I then came across a modified 'no purl' version, dreamt up by Crafty Pancakes.  Aha !  This seemed like good middle ground, not too boring but not too much to think about either.

 

coming along nicely, now I'm into the rhythm.

 

I used some of my 'Buffy' sock yarn - Bluefaced Leicester superwash, Aurora colourway.  Nice to see that there is no mega pooling of colours - it's remained nicely varigated

 

I won't say I'm hooked yet but I can definitely see the appeal ! Just got to avoid second sock syndrome now ......

We've got a nice treaty weekend lined up for M's birthday - hope you have a great one too :)

time flies

Can't believe that my littlest will be 4 on Saturday.  Wow.  That's all I can say.  Such a grown up little thing now in so many ways...but still such a baby. 

Delightful, challenging, cheeky, sarcastic (really), bling loving and oh so full of energy.

She starts school in September and I think she will love it as she does like to be kept on the go.  I'll miss her so much even though there are moments when I just crave peace and quiet ....just for 2 minutes. It's going to be strange.

 

I  woke up today and saw her in a slightly different light.  A little girl, not a toddler.  It's crept up on me all of a sudden.

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On a totally different note and bringing myself back from my reverie, I just wanted let you know that I've added hand painted sock yarns to my Etsy shop, if anyone is interested.  They are very soft and lovely, so if you need some lighter weight yarn, take a look.

I will be listing a couple of new things most days so there should always be something new to see.

I really don't want to turn this blog into an Etsy update vehicle. I do hate it when blogs are all about 'come and buy my stuff' but I guess unless I tell people about it then 'no one will buy my stuff' , so a bit of self promotion can't be avoided! It won't play a major part here but will feature now and then, with sneak peeks into dyeing and colours etc. I'm sure you understand, a lot of you being sellers yourseves.  I'll try to get the balance right :)

i need coffee

The other night I got in from work, fancying a bit of a snack.

 

only to find someone had got there first......looks like the work of Maddie (miss 'drag a chair over and help herself'...)

Then this morning, I catch this sight out of the corner of my eye whilst rushing out of the door..

 

believe me, this is just a fraction of the mess in the front room.  It's got to have been Wilf but the girls knew nothing about it. Of course. Despite the fact that they were downstairs when this happened, as I was having a quick shower. I didn't dare widen the angle any more, as it would show all the mess that is not Wilfs fault ;)  You'll just have to use your imagination.

Kettle is on, toaster at the ready...I'm going to make myself a stiff coffee first and then tackle it and the 6ft pile of laundry to fold. My plan had been to rinse and hang all the sock yarn I dyed up yesterday but as usual, little somethings get in the way !

 

So grab a coffee and take a deep breath.............and have a lovely weekend !

its up .....be nice ;)

 

My first sale from my Etsy shop ! 

 Please go and have a look over there, the link is at the top of the left sidebar......and feel free to point out any obvious mistakes or oversights - seriously :) It gets to the point where you can't see the wood for the trees ! And if my first customer is reading this - thankyou.  It's a bit of a dream come true.

Setting up the shop has been time consuming to say the least but I'm getting quicker with each listing thank goodness. I plan to update frequently, so if it's your kind of thang - keep checking in ! I'm going to be dyeing up a storm over the next few weeks or so, as socky goodness is on it's way to my door as we speak.  What with the shop and Ravelry and Etsy forums....'tis a giddy whirl I tell you.  I'm trying not to get too caught up in in the minutiae and just enjoy.  It's nice to be back in this space with familiarity and 'old mates' ! Needless to say the knitting and spinning is on the back burner right at this minute (however, I am trying to spin up one of my silk blend rovings when I can snatch a few mins - it's coming along nicely but slowly).

Right I'm off to bed.  I was hoping to be able to give this post a little more time this evening but I was called out and now it's far too late.  I did want to share the 'grand opening'  with you peeps though.

Ok - shameless plug over - night night !

better late than never

 

The rest of the country got a load of snow last night  - the worst in 20 years, causing chaos in the capital with public transport at a standstill, 1000 closed schools and  6 million unable to get into work.  Here in the southwest, snow is a rarity but I was very excited when I phoned Nick at lunchtime to be told that the snow was thick where he worked - 45 mins away....

Before long it arrived.  Not exactly Arctic but enough to cause high levels of excitement !  We decided to stop for a play on the way home from school.  The dogs loved it. I suppose it's probably the first time Wilf has seen it.

The morning had been gorgeous...a chilly -4 but the sun was shining....

 

  at this point my fingers were crossed but I didn't hold out a lot of hope......but then......

 it started just before the schools came out, what great timing!

 

This country is so not set up for snow, it's ridiculous really.  I just heard that a plane skidded off the runway at Heathrow, no one hurt thank goodness.  It's snow, yes, but compared to a lot of places this is a light sprinkling.  You'd think there would be better systems in place.  The whole country has ground to a halt.

Still....we are enjoying it and playing in it as much as we can whilst it lasts.  It has really exposed my inner child...and it's great !

More on the way tonight and the next few days too.  I'm very grateful that I'm off work for a week.  Being on call in this would not be so much fun...