All Fingers and Thumbs

Yippee - it's that time of year again . I got all my in progress socks out to enjoy the sunshine, celebrate the start of their favourite fest and meet a new member of their clan. They're telling me I could focus on finishing some socky WIPS this month but that sounds too worthy and not sockily indulgent enough, so I thought I'd join in the mystery sock KAL from Through the Loops . I enviously watched the beauties appear clue by clue last year and really like the anticipation of seeing what emerges. Happy Socktober!

With a whoosh we're at the end of September. I am about a month behind the year, I could just about believe I was ready to start September not finish it. So if anyone else is feeling life is running away with them you might appreciate these words of wisdom selected by my amazing notebook customiser : T made a beautiful, suitably autumnal, cover for the notebook she converted to an illustrated book of days which will commence with October. I hope that it will help me savour and create the greatest number of good hours (and some lovely recipes too!) Thanks again for my wonderful parcel, talented T, thanks again to QoftF for organising a lovely swap and thank you all for the compliments on my first faltering steps in embroidery. Here's to a wonderful October, I'll be back soon with tales of a trip to Brighton, reports on stash enhancing and reducing and maybe, even some knitting, one day.

I've been dabbling a bit more with some embroidery these past few weeks. I bought the Jenny Hart book and kit some time last year but never really got going with it. Then suddenly, lately, it's been a craft quite irresistible. Queen of the Frogger's summer notebook swap was the inspiration I think - adding an embroidery to the cover seemed like a fun customisation: Since then I've made several little embroideries to attach to cards and I'm enjoying myself immensely, it feels like colouring in but with more sophisticated results. I'm not very skilled as yet but I've ordered a lovely felt ornament kit from Posie (to go with the one I barely managed to start last year ) and I'm hoping they will inspire me to master the french knot which seems somehow pinnacle-ish in the embroidery stitch world!

Under a month to go now until our holidays, a trip that has been booked for so long I was beginning to feel it would never happen! All that lead time should mean every last detail is sorted but of course they're not, though I like to think that the important things have been - like the travel knitting project - everyone knows socks are a perfect travel project and for a longer trip - take longer socks: Amanda (if you've never visited with Amanda click this link to see her BEAUTIFUL Aeolian Shawl) asked whether I thought they'd stay up - as written I had my doubts so I added in a line of eyelets just above the ribbing so I can add a pretty ribbon garter. I'm having a hard time resisting knitting these but I want to make sure I have a good long stretch of knitting to go for the airport and flight time. (I also like to imagine that I need to stop at this point to make sure that there is enough knitting in hand so that I won't finish the project before the flight home...

The sequins are back! What fabulous knitting time Strictly Come Dancing is. During some pretty dedicated watching of the last couple of series I've developed my own special dance ranking system, the knit freezeometer. For me quality/entertainment factor can be precisely measured by the time it takes me to pick back up the knitting. I pause for the start of each routine and if it's fab-u-lous then I can't take my eyes off the screen till the end, if it's D - U - double L then the knitting can recommence. The only downside to Strictly is the lack of 'spot the natty knit' sport, sometimes they're barely wearing a dress let alone a nice cardi! Though talking of spotting the knits I was shocked to see the otherwise fabulous new Miss Marple in what looked suspiciously like a machine knit the other week, scandal in St Mary Mead! Ah what joy the autumn tv schedules bring to this knitter's heart.

There once was a cardi named Patti, The start of the knit was quite ratty, Then the karma got shifted, The curse it was lifted And our friend the knitter felt less batty.

The sun has been quite shy all summer which is making seeing it all the more delightful this weekend. It's my idea of weatherly perfection. There's a freshness in the air and a mellowness to the warmth of the sun that made being in the garden the obvious choice today (unless you were my one true beloved, in which case cycling to Cambridge was it). Panda agreed with me. The leaves are starting to colour and fall but there are always flowers to enjoy. This little nasturtium has had a hard fight to bloom this summer. The seeds sent from my Mama's garden were still in their envelope when they should have been in the soil and I had little energy at the time to do anymore than cast them on stony ground and trust that they would find a way to grow. Thanks to my Mama and Mother Nature for this golden treasure. These cyclamen don't know how easy they have it.