BLESSED SPEEDY

Its hard to believe we are already half way through the second month of 2026! Thankfully this last week hasnt been as hot as the previous weeks - no days above 40 degrees celcius - several in the high 30s but that is bearable Ive finished my first pair of socks for 2026 - I do have plans to make at least 12 pairs of socks - and Ive matched up yarn and patterns to do so, so Ill see how I go The pattern was a test knit and is called Placid Socks with the designer being Heidi Nick I used Circus Tonic Handmade Gathering Sock in the colorway Blazin. Its a simple pattern with just enough detail to keep you interested and would work with all sorts of sock yarns. Heres the ravelry link in case you are interested These will be going in my gifting box which is pretty empty of socks at the moment and also why Im aiming to knit at least 12 pairs this year. Books finished this week Christmas Joy by Mary-Anne O'Connor which I read as a physical book I received this book in the Book Box adve...

Firstly some sad farm news - my number one favorite cow - the Queen - also known as seven went to heaven this week. She was just a few weeks of 15 years old (which is rare for a cow to stay alive in ours and most herds) and as she was so special I had always said she was never to be sold. She was one of the first cows that my granddaughter Mia saw being born and we were all amazed to see the number seven on her head! She had 8 calves in her time with us - mostly all herefords as for some reason she didnt like getting in calf to AI (artificial insemination) and none with the number 7 on their heads She will be missed very much and I could call "seven" and she would come - she didnt like everyone but I like to think that she liked me! After that sad note onto things finished Firstly, and stupidly because it was hard!!! I volunteered to crochet together some blanket squares made by my local group. What I thought would be a fairly simple process was not one as various si...

What a productive second half of the month Ive had! And considering that we have had heat wave conditions - I think 7 days of over 42 degrees celcius in a row, Im pretty pleased with what ive got done Firstly this pair of socks - the yarn and pattern was a gift in the Ravelry Christmas Yarn ball swap - the yarn is Regia sock and the pattern is 7265 estene sock pattern by regia Next is some cards I made at Julianas recent card day and I really like how they turned out - some were quite tricky And finally these two wash clothes that were an easy knit while watching the tennis - yarn is jo sharp 8 ply cotton leftovers and the pattern is Chinese Waves dishcloth (but I use them as face washers) Ive also been trying to reduce my crafting stash and in particular my fabrics and quilting things I have a reasonable size pile of bits and pieces leftover from quilts I have made, I made these tablerunners and place mats from them Even used up some leftover binding and wadding too - so real...