jumping ship

after a rather longer than planned break from this little space i've jumped ship & started afresh - please hop over & join me on my new blog 'with needles & pins'

happy post

i just love getting letters & parcels in the post & was really happy to receive some happy post this week from the lovely Jo over at 'three stories high' she's just started writing her blog & as a sweet thankyou for being her first commenter she sent me a felt keyring & a card which she'd made herself, thanks Jo!

52 weeks of happy

{19/52}

love has most certainly been in the air around here this week!

1.some extremely yummy biscuits, made for a valentines themed school cake sale - the recipe was from my Rachel Allen 'bake' book, she had made them as christmas biscuits, but i thought they'd go down well as a valentines treat too

2. a sweet card from my littlest bunny

3. some beautiful flowers bringing a smile to my face whenever i catch a glimpse of them {i love how flowers can do that}

4. & no photos but i can't let the week pass without expressing my pancake related happiness - i love love love them! i make them quite a lot for weekend breakfasts round here but we all welcomed them as a weekday treat too

52 weeks of happy

{18/52}

1.playing around with my fabric scraps has resulted in an obsession with making a scrappy stripy quilt top! this one might take a while, but i get a big smile every time i catch sight of those fabric scraps

2. lazy Sunday morning, pancakes for breakfast = very happy

3. having to get up early on a work day was made a lot happier by catching a glimpse of a pretty moon & the most beautiful coloured sky

4. sorting through the baby clothes, this is a double edged sword, i'm going to become an auntie again which makes me very happy, but it also means no more babies for me, i must have a big clear out - but  being able to pass onto someone special certainly eases the blow

peasy with a twist

i decided to revisit the sweet peasy pattern after casting off the last one, i knitted the same size {5-6} but with a dk & a 3.5mm needle, much better this time round, although whilst knitting i tweaked the pattern to turn it into a jumper, this was easier than i thought it would be & worked out well, the colour of the yarn is a little bright, but it was recycled from my frogged brompton cardigan, so it felt good not to have brought any new yarn for the project, i'm still not 100% happy with it, not sure i like the 3/4 length sleeves, however it should work as a jumper for spring, & it does look quite sweet on her & she seemed happy to wear it {it stayed on all day} details found over here

52 weeks of happy

{17/52}

1. hello february its nice to see you & just as nice to see the snowdrops peeping through

2. easy peasy muffins - cooking with the littlest can be fun {& easy!} with this great recipe from attic24, we went with apple & cranberries for ours, but sure we'll be making more 

3. an extremely wet dog walk today, was cheered up by the wearing of my knitted socks, they did a great job of keeping my feet happy

4. BBC 6 musics greatest hits top 100 countdown has had me dancing round the kitchen whilst throwing dinner into the slow cooker this morning - which is always good fun

52 weeks of happy

{16/52}

1. although i'd be quite happy to wake up tomorrow to find it all had melted, it still makes me happy to find the beauty in all that white stuff we've been getting

2. a bright & cheery new table cloth, a fab bargain in the cath kidston sale, i was lucky to find some of this in the chichester store as they'd sold out online, my last one had lasted years & years but had a few cuts in {mostly my fault!} but there were enough of them to mean that wherever i sat the smallest ones they always managed to spill their drink right on one of the parts with a hole in!

3. one a penny, two a penny, i love hot cross buns, even better are the discovery of the M&S apple & cinnamon ones {i'm also really keen to try out their belgium chocolate ones too, thanks to the tip from mrs biddle!} 

4. i've totally loved watching the great british bake off for comic relief this week & have been rather obsessed about making a bakewell tart since, it was an itch i just had to scratch, so i made some bakewell slices this afternoon, timed perfectly to be ready when we got in from school - they are every bit as yummy as i had hoped {i used the recipe from my very well used rachael allen 'bake' book}

dresden plate pillow

amongst some of lovely books i was given this christmas was the Cath Kidston 'patch' one, it's quite a sweet book, with some patterns & ideas i'm sure i will make in the future, but it also comes with some small fabric squares to get you started on a project, so whilst leaving the snow play to the little kids & their big kid {oops i mean dad} i set about to re-cover a small pillow, i really enjoyed this porject, it was just the right mix of hand & machine sewing, & small enough to get finished quickly, i used some fabric i already had from yonks ago {i think it came from Ikea?} to make the pillow slip, then just sewed the dresden flower plate to it, the pillow is the perfect size for little O, it would however also be the perfect size for my desk chair, luckily enough i have another pillow the same size in need of a new cover - i'd better get started then!

52 weeks of happy

{ 15/52}

1. SNOW, so much snow, this has made me happy for a number of reasons, but it has certainly made the kids & dog happy, little Barns loves it! he's made me chuckle every time he asks to go out & run around like a loon in it

2. slippers, these make me happy every single day {if i'm home they are on} but i've been especially appreciative of them lately

3. some happy colourful knitting, a very quick belated birthday present made up for a small person, based on a basic mobius cowl, knit in garter stitch in left over yarn from another project - i've enjoyed knitting this

4. a new print for the littlest one, from the absolutely brilliant mr printables website

my sweet peasy

here is the latest finished knitting project, a sweet peasy for my little O, although she is rather too little for this knit, i'd followed the 5-6 years instructions, thinking it may only be a little big, but it's actually quite a lot big - still at least she'll grow into it so not all is lost, it might make a nice school cardigan {for next year!} the pictures where taken pre blocking, i just had to grab the opportunity to take some when we had a little light, she's getting the hang of this modelling lark & is happy to goof about infront of the camera when needed, i knit this up in some cotton rope i'd brought from kemps {at a super cheap price} the yarn is lovely & soft, i just hope it stays the same after a few washes, it was also not too bad to knit with, i used this pattern, whilst i didn't think it was the easiest pattern to read it was an easy knit once i'd got the hang of it, so not bad value for money as it has quite a wide size range, the buttons are vintage ones i found from having a rummage in my button tin, i think they work with the grey, my project details can be found here

52 weeks of happy

{14/52}

oh dear, i seem to be getting later & later with my happy posts, this weekend seemed to creep up ever so quickly, which was a blessing really, this week was rather a shock to the system, but one which we all managed & are now grateful for a few days respite  {i've not been taking many photos lately, partly because of the grey skies, but also i've either been too busy or just too tired really}

1. a finished knit, oh how i love that feeling of sewing in the last of the ends, adding the buttons & then ta da, this ones come up a little big - opps, i'm still happy with it, will be back later in the week to share the details

2. dusting off the sewing machine & {almost} completing something, again i'll be back in the week with the details, as soon as i've finished off the hem!

3. as strange as it sounds but the drop in temperature here in the uk is bringing a smile to my face, an excuse to wrap up extra warm & get maximium usage of all the hats, gloves & woollen goodness {& fingers crossed there might even be some snow}

4. a trip to the panto with my kidlets tomorrow, a weekend treat

big bow

i always have a number of knitting projects on the go at any one time {& always more in the planning} these are often projects that take a while & i can pick up & knit a little when i find the time, well we all need a little instant pick me up now & again, that buzz you get when finishing a project, so i picked a super quick & easy project i could finish in a day, & what a cute one it was too! i think she had fun showing this one off {i also had to get the new trainers in too - they won't stay that box fresh for long}

in case anyone else fancies a quick fix, the pattern is this one, the details for mine can be found here, it was such fun that i might just have to make myself one!

52 week of happy

{13/52}

i've found getting to the end of this week mostly more un-happy than happy, mainly because i've loved being surrounded by my family this christmas, the hubs took off the same holiday as the children, which has been just lovely for us all, as he normally works alot!, i also know i have to spend some time this weekend sorting out the school / work clothes, PE & school bags etc & will get that sinking feeling sunday night, we've had a quiet few days so when i take time to think about it i have many small {but important} things to be happy about, i did manage to capture a few pictures on the phone

1. fire lit, feet up & knitting - my happy place

2. my bandit girl print from the black apple, i'd been wanting one of emily's prints for such a long long time, when she had a little sale before christmas i couldn't resist, she took an age to arrive - so long so that i thought she'd lost her way, but she's now in the perfect frame & where i can look at her everyday

3. Hestons mince pies for waitrose, not like any mince pie i've ever had before but ever so good

4. a super quick knit for the littlest one & super cute on her too - pattern details found here

seeing in the new year

what a beautiful start to a new year, we saw the new year in with good friends, all the little folks stayed up too! don't think they could believe we let them all stay up that late, then today out to watch the morris dancing {as is tradition in the village} so lovely to see a clear blue sky & feel the warmth of the sun as we watched, it felt such a treat