pic'nmix or a single bag

Right now whatever bag I have is overflowing with all your lovely comments and well wishes. People have popped up from all over, many of you for the first time. My lovely band of "regulars" sent their supportive messages and each and every one has been a joy to read.

I do, or used to, have a very high pain threshold but this has knocked me for six. It may just be that anything to do with teeth is always painful. (My Granny used to say that teeth are a pain to get, a pain to get rid of and a pain in between.) Just like ear ache it seems so slow to react to pain killers.

Enough, back to the title.

In most areas I am definitely a pick and mix it up sort of peep.

I very rarely follow a recipe exactly, maybe for the first time.
I feel the urge to adapt every knitting pattern that I have.
I cannibalise my sewing patterns and often make a "frankendress" then add bits of self drafted patterns to it.

I was going to say that I do follow a bread recipe, but that would be a lie. I have a tried, tweaked and trusted formulae for white, half and half and wholemeal loaves, there is also a spelt recipe. But, even they get the mix up treatment. I will add some herbs, seeds, fine diced onion, quartered olives or grated cheese, even diced cooked bacon and any mixture of them.

Bacon, red onion and olive bread is quite awesome, warm from the oven with soup it becomes a feast.

I did draw up lists of sewing and knitting projects that I wanted to make this year. Ha ha, some I rattled off in no time but then got sidetracked and it became a case of, List?what list?

Francesca has a growing collection of knitted goodies, the socks have whatever stitch pattern has caught my eye, the same with hats and cowls. She has a few sweaters, none of which follow a pattern except for the overall shape. 

I have just ordered the yarn for a crocheted blanket for her. I bought the "Attic24"  Hydrangea Pack, complete with pattern, from Wool Warehouse.
I rather fancy making a giant Granny Square so I will be following Sandra's Granny Goes Large pattern. You can find this free on her blog Cherry Heart.

That is not the finish of it though, I want to add some cream into the mix so every now and then there will be  round of cream and then I will add cream into the border. I will also be leaving out the chain stitch between the treble granny clusters, this will give a more solid fabric. 
I will be loosely following the colour order from Lucy's Hydrangea blanket, you can find that on her Attic24 Blog.

At least that is my intention, once I get the yarn pack laid out I may feel the need to add in a different colour or two. Watch this space.

The facial swelling is beginning to subside and speech is easier, but I do have an endearing/annoying lisp. I sound a bit like Violet Elizabeth from Just William.

Soup and very soft foods are the order of the day, I did manage to slurp some runny macaroni cheese down and a pasta/soup/veg mush thing slipped down a treat.

I may be daring tonight and have fish pie, as long as there is plenty of bechamel sauce and the potato topping is soft I should be okay.

Porridge is a no no, it sticks to the stitches. yeukk it takes a lot of swill and spit to dislodge. I just luurve the salt mouthwash, well who wouldn't. It takes a glass of plain boiled water swooshing to get my mouth back to okay. I should probably leave the salt in place, which I did the first time, my subsequent cuppa tasted like brine, stale brine at that.

Yogurt is fine, I just had a thought, Rice Pudding, Yes. I will sling some in the slow cooker in a minute.

On a better note, I found a new knitting podcast from the UK, Knitting Vicariously. There are only 2 episodes out and in the first one she does a comprehensive meet and greet. She says from the outset that she is a "bit sweary" and did swear a few times. Compared to what I often hear when I am shopping it is nothing. I quite enjoyed her style in episode 1 and will possibly be watching the next later today.
She is very chatty, in my home village they would say "that mawther kin tork the hind leg orf a Donkey and thin tork it back on.

It is quite good that she does not sell anything so there is no shop update to tempt the money out of your purse.

I have more than enough projects to keep me busy for the next few weeks, so the further away from temptation I am the better.

Now to some knitty news, I am within 2 rounds of the armhole castoff on Francesca's new sweater. That is now having a day off so I can work on the new Strictly Socks. I am keeping my fingers crossed, just not while I am knitting, that I can get them finished before the urge to start the crochet blanket kicks in.

Oops, just look at the time, it is walk time and gone. Ben and Herbie have only just hauled themselves out of bed and of course want to walk Right Now!
My life really does revolve around that pair. And so it should.

                       TTFN                                        Pam