Knitting club

Yep, I've joined 'knitting club' at work. I certainly don't need any more hobbies - I am already a busy lady, but this one is just for me :) Along with the knitting, I get to socialise with our sister company who share our building. I've worked at the company for years now but still only know 'the ladies downstairs' to say 'hi' to. Today was my 2nd club meeting. The 1st time I just flicked through knitting books, chatted and ate biscuits! I've not knitted since I was a child and back then knitting frustrated me - I couldn't help but knit super tight, making it so bad it squeaked. Safe to say, knitting and I fell out.

I was at my mum and dad's place last weekend so I asked mum to help me re-learn the basics. It is so much easier being shown something than trying to decipher a book - not sure if she would agree as my teacher... bless her heart, she stuck with it and showed me how to cast on, knit and purl correctly (I'd been knitting alright but making the purl stitch up!). We didn't get round to the casting off so I will have to get one of the club members to show me that.

Anyhoo, I've been practising, making mistakes and unravelling stuff this week, so I didn't make too much of a fool of myself at today's meet! I also bought some knitting needles (some on ebay, some in a charity shop) and some lovely wool. I think with any craft you need to be inspired by your materials :) The wool I picked for the blanket I am going to make is super-soft and just what I wanted - a natural-looking chunky tweed wool with colourful flecks.

Today I tought myself a new stitch. I tried out 'double rib' - knit 2, purl 2. I can manage that! Looks and feels fab and it grows quite quickly. I knew the wool I was using was perfect for a snuggly blanket when one of the ladies at the club couldn't resist touching the knitting to her face to feel the super-softness! I managed about 2 inches in 50mins during lunchtime, then tonight I carried on in front of some films. Ta da!


I also got my knitting book through the post today which I read at meeting #1 - it has lots of stitches in it which I look forward to trying.


This throw looks lovely - I am following the dimensions for this for my blanket but not the stitches.

Not sure when the blanket will get done but I intend to keep the pressure off and just enjoy myself :)

Internet find: Sarah+Bendrix - Heart Pics

* Internet find of the day *
Just spotted these pretty pictures on the Decor8 blog by Sarah+Bendix. Such a simple idea but so effective. I particularly like this one on black...

Twitter tweets

Well, I've decided to give twitter another go. Not sure if I will keep it up but I'll see how it goes. So, to keep up with one-liner descriptions of my day to day life, follow me here:

https://twitter.com/timefortweets

Internet find: Karen Thurman - Felt

* Internet find of the day *
Another lunchtime find on the net - the lovely, colourful, funky felt work of Karen Thurnam. I adore her use of colour, shapes and pattern. Just my style :)

Take a look at her website or buy from her etsy shop.

* * *

Still nothing new from my studio. Lots of ideas though so I'll probably get going the weekend after next on some new designs :)

New book

Another one of those shopping trips yesterday when I go for one thing but come back with something else! I went to look for some polka dot ribbon but wasn't satisfied with the quality of what I found - blobby dots! So, no ribbon bought, but I spotted this sewing book. There are lots of projects in here I'd like to try. Most sewing books I look at there are only one or two. I've snapped some of the pages of things I'd like to make...

curtain tie-backs

floor cushions

fabric boxes

outdoor cushions

Internet finds

Well, right this moment you may have noticed I'm not making much. My studio is still in a state of chaos post-Xmas. I hosted this year and had to use it as a bedroom so lots was packed away. I've not put it back to rights yet so nothing glassy from me for now.

I've been doing other things around my home - putting up some kitchen shelves to display my vintage/retro items, as well as reorganising my bedroom. I've lived in the same place for about 8 years and never really arranged my bedroom in a cosy or pleasing way. 'Stuff' was just put in there. Other priorities meant it never really got sorted out as I spent the least of my waking time in the bedroom. I kinda wish I'd taken before/after photos. New curtains and a furniture rearrange and it is much improved. I have a space above my bed now that needs some art. I really need to get making something I've wanted to make for ages - a large multi-coloured version of my 'nugget' art. Well, if I ever do it, I will blog about it!

My new curtains are a bit on the puffy side at the mo but I'm hoping they will calm down eventually. The painting on the top left is only up temporarily until I get my 'above-the-bed' art sorted. I even got myself a new plant which I think I will call 'Spike' for obvious reasons! ;) It needs a pot though.

Right now, I'm spending my lunchtimes reading blogs and browsing products, as I usually do. Whilst glass-making is quiet, I'll share what I am looking at. This pastime influences what I make on occassion, so it is appropriate fodder for this blog :)

* Internet find of the day *
Today I spotted a Danish company called Rice. I love the styling and the bright colours. Those who know me know I like my bright colours!

This led me on to looking up Rice stockists - The Contemporary Home. Lovely stuff!

Stay tuned to see what else I've been looking at :)

WOOHOO! Tax return done, finally (& snow!)

Tax returns are always a bind but this year's has been extra painful. It is my fault - leaving all the data entry for an entire year (well, year and a half if you include up to date records). That is A LOT of receipts, %s of bills and sales that need to go into my spreadsheets. The photo shows my dining room table covered in paperwork as I worked through it all. I used the online return this time around and it took a little while to do but I felt more confident I'd filled it out correctly. Last year I got stuck on one box on the paper return, which caused a lot of stress - all I had to do was copy a number from another box but this was not clear on the so-called helpsheets. A phone call or three sorted it out. Phew!

So, that's it for another year. Thank God! I am now free to focus on making glass and being creative. HOORAY! It is about time I updated my website. It is looking rather empty, compared to usual.

It has been a bit of a funny week so far. I was back to work designing kids' books on Monday, post-Xmas. I was enjoying getting back into my routine. However, this was pretty short-lived when super-snow was forecast for Tuesday lunchtime. I got a call from my dad to warn me of the weather headed my way and I should've set off when he called about 11am. I did not leave work until 2pm as it was nice and sunny in Oxfordshire - none of us thought it could be that bad. By the time I reached the Oxfordshire/Gloucestershire border I was in a blizzard! I made it 30 of the 35 miles home, then had to turn around as the roads were super snowy and the traffic stationary. I didnt want to spend hours in the middle of nowhere in the snow - I heard on the radio it was v bad further down the hill. I drove all the way back to work and had to stay over at my friend's house. I dug my car out of about 6" snow yesterday and the roads were slushy, snowy and slippery. I got home about 12.30pm to a heavy blizzard and about 8" of snow!

I have been stuck at home since then. The snow is still thick on the ground and the freezing temperatures are making the roads like ice rinks. Scary driving conditions. Weather eh!

Finished with ribbon

I love ribbon. Ribbon makes such an effective yet simple finish to any gift. I re-discovered this gorgeous bi-colour ribbon and used it to finish off these jewellery boxes. I hope my commissionee is pleased with the finished result.

Each box contains a simple, elegant, lilac glass pendant with a rich deep pink copper heart within. To finish each one I've used a ribbon and cord necklace which matches perfectly. I'm really pleased with these :)