A Little of This, a Little of That

Sitting down to write the occasional blog post seems to require more self discipline than I've had of late. I've been puttering around, mentally writing a "To Do" list that needs to be transferred to paper, something tangible, looking at me with an expectant air.

Yesterday, I had plans. A drive in the country should have resulted in a bit of blueberry picking. I didn't note, before leaving home, that the concession road dipped south before heading east again. There will be no Mason jars of fresh jam in this post. Not that I've ever made jam, but I'm willing to give it a whirl. No jam (yet), but the countryside was beautiful.

 

While wondering what I would write about today, I found myself thinking about the "Sunlit Sunday" meme I run in the wintertime. My mind wanders there when I see scenes like these; I never tire of the dancing light, the crisp shadows, and the patterns created by the interplay of the two. If a lace curtain happens to catch a summer breeze and billows out like a delicate gown, so much the better. A little bit of fancy is good for the soul.

Blog posts have been infrequent, but some photos I've shared on the My Little Home and Garden Facebook page, here.

A bit of baking,

a bouquet or two,

now and again, a question.

  
Also, of late, I have spent some time attempting to deal with this yarn. One hank, 800 metres of lace weight alpaca. It looks innocent enough, but I've never (in my limited knitting experience) used such fine yarn before.

It had an identification number which I looked it up and found that the colour name was, appropriately, "Lavender". I'll not confess how many times I've attempted to start a project with it. The Ravelry site has plenty of ideas for "easy" patterns. It's a humbling experience, people!

Time for a cup of tea. 

Tomorrow, it will be camomile and plenty of it. Here's why:

This, my friends, is a desk. 

It's bound to go together easily, right?

After all, it doesn't involve skinny knitting needles and lace weight yarn!

Thank you for visiting.

 

A Little Knitted Baby Sweater

Although I've completed a couple of scarves this winter (here and here) some knitting projects have been lingering in baskets, incomplete. For a long time. For a very long time. Don't ask, just think back to when dinosaurs roamed the earth.

One piece of work was a baby sweater, known to me as "Neglected-Knitting-Project-1". It didn't get completed before the birth of one little girl and was put away. This week, I picked it up and sorted out where I'd left off, way back when.

There wasn't too much to do. A second sleeve was finished, then all of the bits and pieces of diamonds and ruffles were ready to be assembled.

The seams were sewn,

and the buttons were stitched into place.

Here's the result.

All I need now is the right little girl to wear it.

On to "Neglected-Knitting-Project-2"!

Does anyone else have a neglected project of some kind?

Note: This pattern is from a Canadian booklet published by Paton's, entitled Red, White and Blue. The sweater is called "Peplum Jacket". 

A Quick Knit

I'm feeling the need to provide a bright hue at the beginning of this post, as the photos that follow are much more subdued.  

Linger a moment, drink in the colour.

While I was away, I decided I needed a little project to pick up now and again and then finish at home. A couple of women were chatting in the yarn section of craft supply store, discussing scarves. I guess I missed the bit about how the ribbon-like yarn gets pulled across its width before you work with it. I had thought you knit it right off the ball; who knew there was another option? (Plenty of you, no doubt, but this yarn was new to me.)

Fortunately, I read the label before I began. 

A ruffled scarf is the final result.

It's not what I had pictured when I purchased the yarn, but I think the ruffles are growing on me!

Sometimes, it just feels good to make something.

Next up, knitting and purling a couple of incomplete baby sweaters 

(they have some colour)

and a cozy pullover for me.

Are you making anything these days? 

I'd appreciate the inspiration!

Thank you for your visits, comments, and "follows".

I'm pleased to be linking with Home at Rose Chintz Cottage.

Little Things

Here are a few Christmastime photos. 

They remind me of the value of "little things" .

Especially now.

a lantern from a special friend

some lights from my tree, which is placed by the window 

and therefore enjoyed by my neighbours

a  completed, knitted gift

 

a bit of baking, 

here

and there

and more to share

Thank you for taking the time to visit.

A Little Sheepish

"I think I could sing and shear a few sheep at the same time."

Robert Plant

Louis Vuitton wool sweater dress and Carolina Herrera skirt

"After all, the wool of a black sheep is just as warm."

Ernest Lehman

Welsh Landscape with Two Women Knitting, dating from 1860,  by William Dyce

"Every man can tell how many goats or sheep he possesses, but not how many friends."

Marcus Tullius Cicero

Dutch Painting in the 19th Century - Haverman - The Knitting-Lesson.

"I am more afraid of an army of 100 sheep led by a lion than an army of 100 lions led by a sheep."

Charles Maurice de Talleyrand

"I love the lambs, not the sheep."

Roger Peyrefitte

piccsy.
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