Back to the 60's

That is denier tights, after a few warm days and thin tights this morning was chilly enough to get the thicker ones out again. It did warm up as the morning wore on, but not enough to warrant changing.

The dentist trip was a bit like a University challenge question, it was a starter for 3. The SO has a filling next week and possibly an extraction the following week. There is the choice of paying through the nose for another root canal procedure (the last one has failed miserably and is now infected) which may or may not work, or waiting 18 months for an NHS appointment with the same prognosis. 

I have a suspicion that he will plump for the extraction as he has had 2 procedures on that tooth already.

I have taken pics of the socks but because I used a speckled yarn the pattern has not come out very distinctly

I love the yarn, it came from Rosie's Moments and is called Sprinkles. It is an 80/20% superwash merino nylon blend .

The pattern is obvious in real life, I will be knitting a pair for Francesca in a solid colour yarn, I just have to pull some from the stash.

This is the stitch pattern, it comes from The Knitter's Bible Stitch Library by Claire Crompton. I love this book and my other knitting books and intend to look for a few others as they all have different patterns.

I had a look in the Library this morning but the choice was abysmal, 12 very elderly tomes that were sadly out of date.

Possibly because there are few knitters in the area, there are a couple of yarn shops fairly local, one is a reasonable high end and the other more of a warehouse type shop. I have not been to either, I am happy with Deb's shop and anything that Deb doesn't stock I can get online.

I have made a small investment in the past few days, you know that I like to watch podcasts and one of my favourites is The Bakery Bears, well as a treat for myself I have become a patron. This gives me a discount on all Kay's patterns on ravelry and everything in her Etsy shop. Even better is a steady supply of free patterns, I have knitted a few and each one is wonderful.

I am not a toy knitter but fully intend to knit up her Bakery Bear patterns, there is a Mr and  Mrs Bear and lots of clothes for them. There is a Fox and a Giraffe as well, I may become a convert to toy knitting.

I will take this cost from my craft budget and believe that it will be a saving. 

All is trundling along as usual, the Easter Chocolate Mountain has shrunk to a molehill, the freezer stock is being used albeit slowly. I have curtailed my weekly shop and the shelves are becoming less stacked. I can not say more empty as it will take a month or so to get down to the level that I am aiming for. As well as volume I want to reduce the variety, I am a self confessed foodie and have far too many spices, sauces, flavoured vinegars and so on.

Simplify is the name of the game, and I need to play it for a while.

Dinner tonight will be Pasta with a spicy sauce, mostly from the pantry and using up some sausages and bacon. I am trying very hard to plan all our meals to use what I have rather than shop for new things. I did a small shop on Sunday and it was mainly veg, fruit and perishables.

I am experiencing a little difficulty in my crafting. I have fallen into a pattern of all knitting or all sewing and that really does not work well for me. I am going to try to devote a period each day to sewing, I hope that this will become a habit and help me to enjoy my sewing, I have been guilty of sewing for hours and ending up with back pain, a stiff neck and head ache. 

It has been so bad that I found myself contemplated selling my sewing cabinet and big Janome. If the new idea does not work it might come to that.

Any how, enough of the whinging. I have some time this afternoon to sort through the fabric that is strew about the sewing room, and then some more cutting to do. I am going to spend an hour sewing tomorrow and then pack up for the day. I aim to fit that in so that I will then take the dogs out for a walk and the exercise and fresh air should do me the world of good.

I am off now to perform said sorting chore, followed by some ironing. sigh.

              TTFN                                                Pam