A couple of old bags

Progress on the shrug I am knitting for Lucy is very slow because I am finding it quite heavy going; I don't know why this is as it is a lacy pattern, (interesting to knit) knitted in the round, (plenty of dexterity needed to keep those 5 pointy sticks under control) and the design is being made up as I go along (lots of concentration needed) so there is plenty to hold my interest but it just seems to be taking forever and I felt I needed a quick fix.
So:

This is "Unbiased" from Knitty (smaller than in the original pattern and with a few short rows at the top of each section to reduce the depth of the V in the middle, and lined) knitted with the recycled silk sari yarn from my Secret Summer Santa.
I made the bag smaller because I didn't think I would have quite enough yarn to make a full-size one, but my worries were unfounded as there is still one whole skein plus a bit more left. I think that will make a circular cushion cover for the window seat as I love the colours so much, I want them to be where I can see them all the time. I have yet to find a project worthy of the other beautiful silk yarn that Claire also sent - any suggestions happily accepted.

I also made another bag about three weeks ago - I needed a new bag to carry my work paraphernalia around in as the old one died. I have a large black folder with all the papers, plus I need room for a water bottle, sandwich box and knitting. I hadn't been able to find anything suitable to buy, so, inspired by Sheepish Annie and her tote-making frenzy I got busy with the sewing machine and some inkjet-printable fabric and made this
.
It has so far proved to be suitable for purpose and managed to convey large amounts of stuff around the country during our recent travels.

We're off to a barbecue this afternoon so as it's typical Bank Holiday weather I need to go and find my wellies, waterproof jacket, scarf and gloves!!

As promised............

We have a sock:

No 2 has been started - about 5 rounds of ribbing done on the ferry last week before I got bored and played a very silly game with the girls that involved drawing pictures of animals with your eyes closed. I tried to persuade the girls to let me scan some of our masterpieces for the delectation of the reader(s) of this blog, but to no avail. Suffice it to say that there were some pretty strange looking creatures (a squirrel who appeared to have a bum [ass] on his head and a camel whose legs connected directly to its neck, to name a couple).

We also have a cardi, from Vogue's Knit1

Can someone please tell me why Bethany thinks she looks ugly in this picture? I think she looks great (yes, I know I'm biased but ugly? No way!). This was taken about 3.30pm this afternoon, shortly after she had got up, so she may look a little .........erm........less than wide awake, but definitely not ugly. It is one of my great joys as a mum to look at my daughters and think how beautiful they are, and then to wonder where on earth they get their looks from (not me, that's for sure). Trying to convince them that they should be proud of the way they look is an uphill struggle, but I keep on trying.
That's it for now, can't write blogs on an empty stomach.

I'm back

Did you miss me? Well, I'm back now, having put several hundred miles on the mileometer and having two FOs (Bethany's cardi and one jaywalker sock, but no photos as the girls have the camera and are in London for the day).
We went to Weston-super-LameMare for a few days to stay with an old friend of OH. He lives in a large old house and has plenty of room for all of us and is the perfect laid-back host. He also has a 19-year-old cat called Astrid, who was very friendly and soon wormed her way into our affections.

She certainly doesn't look 19 and doesn't really act it either.
Whilst in that neck of the woods, we visited Glastonbury and all its new-age shops.

I have never seen so many crystals, incense-burners, hemp products, Earth goddess statues, d-i-y pagan shrines, divining sticks, etc etc in one place. Brighton has its "alternative" side, but nothing like Glastonbury! I felt spiritually cleansed and full of peace and lurve after soaking up the atmosphere (actually, I felt knackered and full following a lovely veggie meal in one of the cafes there!). From Glastonbury we went to Wells and visited the Cathedral.

Obviously, this picture isn't the cathedral, it's the market cross (I think). I was taking video footage inside the cathedral and haven't yet edited it or worked out how to put videos on the blog. There were a few pictures of the cathedral and its surroundings, but they seem to have mysteriously disappeared (Girls, is that anything to do with you? You know the one I mean - with the gate and the little picture??).
The knitting of Bethany's cardi was completed in Weston-super-Mare and the sewing up was started (but hopelessly cocked up). Pictures when the camera returns.

After our trip to the West, we ventured north to my parents. My brother has just built a Lean-to conservatory so we had a BBQ there to celebrate the opening of this magnificent new edifice. It's so nice listening to the sound of raindrops on glass whilst knocking back Pinot Grigio and munching carbon sausages. We followed that with a family Sunday Lunch at a local hostelry

This is everyone except me and includes, Ma, Pa, Bruv, Bruv's partner, two nieces, a step-niece, OH and two daughters (in no particular order). I'm thinking of setting up as a photographer, specialising in formal, well-presented family groups; whaddya think?! We also had the obligatory visit to Borders (where I was very tempted to join the knitting group "Knit me baby one more time!") and a trip into the city centre where I got the most amazing bargain - a pair of blue trousers reduced from £45 to £10.80. When I went to pay for them though, they were reduced even further to £6.75 - a useful morning's work, I'd say.

On Thursday the girls and I went to Dieppe for the day. We live about 10 minutes' walk from the ferry terminal and hardly ever make use of it. If you get the 8.00am ferry, you can have about 5 hours or so in Dieppe before returning home on the 6.00pm boat. We had enough time to have lunch,

buy some smelly cheese and some CDs (not smelly, although they do make my ears bleed ha ha) and generally wander around soaking up the Frenchness of it all.

We returned home after a smooth crossing

during which the first Jaywalker sock was completed (having been started in about March) and the second one was started. (I may also have bought vast quantities a small amount of duty-free booze).
There has also been some progress on the shrug I am making for Lucy - it has been started three times and frogged twice, mainly due to a) not enough yarn and b) change of mind about pattern stitch. Version three is progressing well at present...............

A bit more

When I got home yesterday there was a parcel waiting which contained this:

A little crochet bag for holding yarn when you're knitting out and about. This was from Claire/Novice, my secret summer santa, who said that she had waited so long for the recycled sari silk to arrive that she had completely forgotten about it, despite having made it specially. I haven't tried it yet as I've only knitted on the sofa yesterday and today, but I'm sure it will be very useful as I quite often knit in the car and it will stop the yarn rolling under the pedals or getting caught around the handbrake (or getting absolutely filthy from all the sandwich crumbs which seem to have accumulated in the footwells, on the seats, on the dashboard - you name it!) Claire also included the left-over yarn as she thought I might want to dye it and would need to do a test-run, which was very thoughtful. I have never done a dyeing test-run in my life, much preferring to leap straight in and have a terrible shock lovely surprise afterwards. The colour, although not one of my current favourites, reminds me of those long-ago days when I used to pirouette, jete and saute around the dance floor, performing the odd (and I do mean odd) arabesque en route. It's exactly the colour I used to use for darning the ends of my pointe shoes when I did ballet. Aaaah, the memories.

I've now finished my other little crochet project, but still don't know if I should be discussing it or not. In the meantime, a sneak preview:

and
.
I know they're not very clear pictures, but hopefully all will be revealed in the not-too-distant future.

I'm now on two week's leave from work YIPPEEEEEEEEE!
We're not going on a "proper" holiday but we will be getting about a bit. A few days near Weston-Super-Mare (or Weston-Super-Lame, as Bethany calls it), a few days with my parents and of course, mon ami, ze leetle "voyage d'un jour" to Dieppe (eight hours on a ferry for five hours in France. Mad? Probably).
Bonnes Vacances!