I've been missing in action

Sorry I've been gone so long.

I've just been feeling a bit quiet.

I've been knitting but unfortunately no photo's to show.

I've been watching Sex and The City and crying every time I watch it.

I've been to see Kung Fu Panda and loving every minute.

I've been reading Jane Brockets new book and feeling nostalgic.

I've been watching Gossip Girl and coveting the outfits.

I've been planning my holiday and deciding if I should take some knitting?

Two weeks no knitting will I be OK?

I've been catching up with friends and realising they are really good fun, I should make more time for them.

I've also been lurking.

I'm having a further break for the next 3 weeks but then I'll be back and sharing again

A new wedding website

This post isn't knitting related but I thought I'd share with you the fantastic new site my brother has just launched.

It's a place to keep all your wedding information together from the venue to table placing, your gift list and more.

Here's the link go and have a look and if you've any feedback let me know and I'll pass it on.

http://www.thisisourwedding.co.uk/index.html

Finished knitted bits

I've managed to get some pictures of some finished knitting at last. This is meant to be a knitting blog after all.

Firstly my new cashmere cushions for my lounge in pink and pale blue with a shot of beige. I did knit these up a while ago but didn't get round to finishing them. Now they are decorated with a grey satin finished ribbon and assorted buttons all sourced from Mason Mills in Matlock Derbyshire. Now all I've got to do is stop Mr LCD using them as trays when he has his dinner...

Next a tea cosy in black and white decorated with white buttons sourced from eBay. It has a pearly king and queen feel to it and made my Dad laugh out loud when he saw it on Saturday.

Finally another Tea Cosy in teal, blue and grey decorated with blue buttons and a blue pom-pom.

I'm feeling quite please with myself this week lots of finished bits and pieces have now been cleared out the way. I'm now ready to start new projects.

I'm going to have to hold off on the cashmere cushions with big turquoise flowers as I've managed to hurt my back again which means I can't use my knitting machine for a while.

I've started knitting myself a scarf using yarn I picked up in Venice a few years ago I was saving it to use on a really special project but I've decided since I love it so much it'd be nice to use it for something I'll wear every day rather than it sitting in my yarn basket for 3 more years.

I've started knitting a black evening bag ready for a wedding I've got in May. I also want to do some more quilting I've got the fabric I just need to find the time...

I'm back

I'm sorry I've been gone so long life took over and I neglected my blog.

Since I last posted I've had a birthday, my brother gave a cocktail party for me, a wedding anniversary (six years if you can believe it), my ghd's broke and have now been replaced, I managed to put my mobile phone through the wash, I've had a trip to Bath, I've visited the Continental market in Derby and finally I got soil for my garden.

I had a lovely birthday with family and friends. My brother arranged for people to come who've I've not seen for years which was a lovely surprise. I've no pictures of the party or cake which was very sophisticated until the boys who were the bar men of the evening started drinking shots and Tiff my brothers puppy managed to eat my birthday cake, the dips and Becky's chocolate brownies.

I also got soil delivered for my garden at last I've been waiting to order it since last summer but it was so wet and miserable all summer we didn't get round to doing the garden. I'd ordered two tons of soil which Mr LCD and my Dad thought might be too much to fill my one raised flower bed. It arrived, I paid my money and when my husband saw what had been delivered he had a fit. I will freely admit I've no spatial awareness. I cannot park in small car parking spaces even through I've a relatively small car I think I need enough space to park a limousine. I'd actually received about seven tonnes of soil which maybe no problem if you've an acre to fill but I had one raised bed. My Dad came to help Mr LCD move the soil and I phoned everyone I'd ever met to offer free top soil, We eventually managed to get rid of all of it but I did come very close to crying that morning especially as it was the morning after my cocktail party and because it kept raining and hailing on us.

I've had a trip to Bath with my Mum where we had a lovely day being proper tourists, we traveled on the open top sightseeing tour visiting all the sights and shopping. We visited the Cath Kidson store where I treated myself to a new book. It is worth noting that Nicolas Cage has just bought a house in Bath and Johnny Depps kids go to school there so it maybe worth going just in case you spot both of the most attractive men I can think of.

I wish I'd taken more pictures as it is a beautifully town and I'd like to go again but stay for a couple of days rather than trying to fit it all into six hours. I think Mr LCD and myself will have a weekend away in the summer as he'll love it.

We had a continental market in Derby this week. As well as international sellers there were independent farms from England. My Mum and I really treated ourselves and had the most lovely lunch. We started with home made Greek bread filled with feta and herbs.

Olives filled with blanched almonds. Hand made smoked cheese, and peperoni sausage.

I also treated myself to some purple sprouting broccoli from this stall;

And for dessert a lovely walnut layer cake from this stall;

Have you ever seen muffins so big I was very very tempted.

I have also been knitting I got my mums vest finished and the lavender cupcakes I'm half way through a new tea cosie and I'm thinking about cashmere cushions in beige with great big turquoise flowers for my lounge.

I'll have pictures at the end of the week which I'll share I promise I won't be gone so long.

A new blog

Sara at http://all-about-eden-saraeden.blogspot.com/ has asked me, very kindly to contribute to the new blog shes set up.

It's called http://northernbellescrafts.blogspot.com/ and this will be a place to find out about craft fairs , fabric shops and all those things you find out about in the North that you think others may like to know !!

The aim is to include all the little shops and design resources crafters use and share information about them. I'm very excited and looking forward to writing the pieces about the places I like to visit.

Also after Sara had visited the Manchester Art gallery for their button display I couldn't help being inspired to decorate my Tea cosie with vintage buttons sourced from EBay, charity shops, my mother and grandmothers. Drop Sara a post if you to would like to be inspired.

Current projects

I've managed to get some photo's taken of new bits and pieces I'm working on. The first is a tea cosie design based around my cupcake designs.I'm not 100% happy with it yet it still needs lining. I'm thinking a pale pink cotton jersey. I'm going to decorate it with with beads or tiny buttons. I'm thinking a knitted flower for the center. Ill make a decision later tonight when I can sit and think in my studio.

Next are my new Lavender Cakes. I've six in the pipe line ready to sew together decorate and stuff with lavender. I'm thinking of doing my cakes with different fillings depending on the colour of the icing, yellow icing lemon smelling cakes, pink icing raspberry's... you get the idea.

Next my mums mothers day present still not finished but I've promised mum it'll be all finished by Sunday. I've not much to do... just finish knitting the front, knit a half belt, find 3 buttons and sew hook and eyes all up the front to fasten. Luckily Torchwood is on the BBC tomorrow night so I'm looking at a serious push to get the knitting part of the project finished. Oh I forgot to mention my new needles from Loop which I'm using to get it finished, it makes such a difference knitting on pretty needles.

Finally here is the new hat I finished at the weekend the pattern was from 101 designer one skein wonders. It was an quick knit taking me about 3 hours with just 3 pattern repeats. I did have to concentrate on each row but it used less than one skein of yarn. I'm now left with one and a quarter skeins to make something else maybe a littel scarf in the same lavender lace pattern. The yarn I used was, ggh wollywasch which is 100% pure wool and is £3.00 for 50g from loop it was lovely to work with and comes in very rich vibrant colours. It can also go through the washer at a 30 degree wash.

I'm leaving you know with a picture of my mum modeling my new hat.

Happy Easter

I know I'm a bit late but I was whisked off for a long weekend in London by Mr LCD.

I hope everyone had a fabulous weekend and received lots of Easter Eggs. I received 3, a malteser one from work. From my husband I received a butterscotch green and blacks egg (yum, just what I'd been nagging for) and a little princess egg, which was in the sale when he popped to sainsburys on Monday morning.

You may gather that this weekend wasn't a diet weekend.

I did complete lots of knitting this weekend. I finished one front of my Mum's mothers day preset but had left the rest of my yarn at home, so I've still not finished it. I started knitting a pair of socks and made myself a beanie out of the lovely yarn I purchased from Loop. I also read a book called Divas don't Knit which was a fun easy read.

The reason I got so much reading and knitting done was because we were visiting Mr LCD friends and family. They are kind and make me feel very welcome but they do talk in Albanian for the most part and watch lots of Albanian t.v which consists of lots of Albanian singing and not that funny comedy sketches. Every time we visit I take little projects to do after I spent one very long weekend feeling very bored and neglected.

We stayed with Mr LCD's cousin and his family who live behind this very fancy door;

I have fallen in love with his 5 year old daughter. She wore the bunny ears we got her all weekend and cried on Friday night when she had to get changed out of the outfit we'd got her into her pajama's. She is the sweetest child I've ever met and if I could guarantee my child would be like her I'd have 3 now. Her English is also fantastic since her Mum and Dad only spoke Albanian at home I did worry that when she started school she'd be behind the other children in her class but she's clever and funny and has fitted straight in at school with no problems.

We did have a day by ourselves on Monday where I got to go shopping and visit Liberty's and Covent Garden. Then I managed to leave my Debit Card in House of Frazer so that stopped my shopping in its tracks much to Mr LCD's relief..

It also snowed pretty much all weekend but it didn't settle unfortunately.

I also managed to drag my husband into loop on Friday, he was very surprised at how busy and lovely it was. I bought 2 new sets of needles and some lovely wool, which I'll share in the next blog as what I made is in the washing machine.I think I may be changing his mind about me opening a little shop selling wool and bits and bobs. There is nothing in Derby/Derbyshire that would compare to loop. The shop in town sells lots of acrylics but isn't the kind of place you'd go to look for beautiful yarn.