I’m really pleased with myself because I’ve worked out how to make these little leaves to go with my little flowers. I looke
d at a couple of online patterns to get an idea of how they might go but in the end worked them out for myself. The leaves are made from a silky yarn called Sirdar Flirt which is 80% bamboo viscose and 20% wool; I found an odd ball in the remnant bin of a local shop. I’m liking this yarn not only because it feels smooth because the leaves lie flat whereas I suspect that the flowers will benefit from blocking.
Amaryllis week two
This is the amaryllis (or hippeastrum as my mother tells me) in its second week. It is making progress but slowly at the moment. This one lives in my office; I have another at home which seems to have decided not to flower this year. The home amaryllis has huge and floppy leaves but no sign of a flower bud.
Amaryllis: the beginning
This is a series of photographs that I have wanted to take for some time. The amaryllis is now in its fourth year and I am fascinated by the speed with which it grows from nothing to a magnificent, towering flower. Today, the first shoot is just peeking above the bulb.
Scissor keeper
Because the ‘first flower’ was made from scrap yarn it doesn’t fit with the rest of the project so I turned it into a scissor keeper to try and stop my scissors getting lost at the bottom of the bag. These scissors, by the way, are Tommy Tippee baby nail scissors which are ideal for air travel because the blades are blunt-ended and less than 6cm long. They also very cheap (£1.50 at ASDA) and widely available so it’s not a great loss if an over-zealous official confiscates them. I’ve flown several times with these scissors in my hand luggage and they have gone through security screening without any problems.
A face in the rain
Walking home in the rain I saw this little face looking up at me from the gutter. I’m intrigued by the way the pattern of water and road surface gives it ghostly shoulders.
The first flower
I have a project in mind that will require some crochet flowers (using up leftover yarn from the well-travelled blanket).In this month’s Simply Crochet magazine for a throw with five-petalled flowers inside squares so I worked the flower part of the pattern using some scrap yarn and it came out like this! I am so delighted! I like it so much that I have attached it to my scissors in the hope that it will stop them falling to the bottom of the yarn bin.To make the flower, I had to learn a new technique – the ‘magic ring‘. I love the way that the ring pulls closed completely so that there is no hole in the middle of the flower.A well-travelled blanket
This blanket started life in July on the Hot Aire! Belgium tour. Squares were also made in Canada, Thailand, Laos and en route in France, Amsterdam and Qatar. There are 100 squares and it measures 150 x 150 cm (approx). For some of the time I was working on two blankets simultaneously (the other is in this post) because the first blanket was in the process of being made up and therefore too large to carry around). I am really, really pleased with this blanket (and so is Rosie); the colours glow with warmth and it is extremely snuggly.
There are two main types of yarn in this blanket: the solid colours are Jarol Heritage DK which I bought in the local market. There is also a lot of Yarnfair Stripes DK which I bought from Wilko and a single 100g ball of a a stripy DK yarn in fairly dark shades that came from a nearby yarn shop.
Aisha x
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Separating the personal and the academic
All academic posts have moved to www.aishawalker.com. I have changed the name of this blog to ‘Cosy Rosie’ and it is for personal material only.
Little bits of happiness
1) Time for fairy lights: I bought these lights last year because I loved the colours and now that it’s December I can bring them out again. It gives me a little burst of joy to come into my office and see these lights glowing on the mantelpiece.
2) Christmas banding has started – three events yesterday (although I played only two) with the first Smiling Morn and the first mince pie of the season.
3) Foreign parts: last week I went to Thailand and Laos. It is a real privilege to have a job in which I can do that!
2) Christmas banding has started – three events yesterday (although I played only two) with the first Smiling Morn and the first mince pie of the season.
3) Foreign parts: last week I went to Thailand and Laos. It is a real privilege to have a job in which I can do that!
This week’s blessings
This week I am grateful for…
- Friends: Last Friday we had a celebration and thanksgiving for Dinah. The crematoriam chapel was so full that people were standing around the edges. The eulogies from friends and family reflected Dinah’s thoughtfulness; her creativity; her sensitivity and her wit. Her coffin was beautiful, made of cream felt with an embroidered label for her name and dates. Dinah had chosen music that expressed not only her personality (“I was Born under a Wandering Star”) but sent her final messages( “The Rose”). Also, the day provided a chance to catch up with many, many friends
- Completion: I finished the crochet blanket that I was making. It’s full of mistakes but I think it ‘s turned out OK.
- Autumn: I don’t remember many autumns that have lasted as long as this one. There are still traces of green on many trees and even though we have had strong winds recently, trees are holding on to their leaves. Crimsons and oranges are increasing in intensity and each day contains heart-stopping moments of colour. When I flew back into Leeds-Bradford a couple of weeks ago every tree seemed to be standing in a little pool of gold.
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