Grace is Back

Thank you for your kind messages of support for my exam.

My thoughts are with anyone out there who is sitting exams at the moment - what a stressful time.

The exam went (well?) - it went and that's the main thing - so now it's time to catch up on the housework and the pile of ironing!

Just about got the house straight this morning when Grace returned home for the summer.

And this is not all of her stuff.  A van has been hired to bring the rest of her belongings home next weekend.  Where are we going to put it all?

And then, next week Eve comes home for the summer - we need elastic walls.

Freedom - it's nearly mine!

Tomorrow I sit, what will probably be my last exam ever, ever.  I've no plans to carry on with formal studying beyond tomorrow.  I've been studying with the Open University since 1986!  I've studied arts courses- literature and history; I've studied the classics - Latin and Greek; I've studied maths and I've studied sciences - and lately I've been studying geology.

I've mostly done it for the fun of it - but I've run out of courses I want to study and it would be lovely to have a break.

I will never give up learning - it's what life is all about - but formal studying could be all over tomorrow.

One last day of frantic revision (panic) and then, jump for joy...

...freedom is mine.

I feel a Tigger moment coming over me!

My Blanket-Of-Many-Colours

I've been full of cold the last few days - horrendous - so I've been feeling sorry for myself.  My bounce was completely lost.  I've sat on the sofa, snoozed a bit, read a bit and crocheted quite a lot.

I'm a keen follower of Little Woollie.  A lovely blog by Jules which features some beautiful colourful crocheting.  I decided, just before the cold hit, that I would crochet a blanket in her mixed stitch stripey blanket CAL.

Looking on the positive side, the cold has allowed me to work away on the blanket and five days into it, I've caught up with Jules and I am eagerly awaiting the next section instructions.

I've just worked on the basis of grabbing any colour out of the stash bag and taking it as it comes.  It's going to be so colourful and jolly.  It already feels nice and cosy.   It's also great fun to make because of the variety of stitches.

Today my bounce feels like it's on the way back.  I've tackled some tidying in the garden and done some housework.  I think I'll take it easy for the rest of the day, maybe watch a DVD.

To make my day even more special, my study material for my new Open University course has just been delivered.

So exciting, more geology and earth sciences - can't wait to get started - a complete book on plate tectonics - what bliss.

I hope that wherever you are there is something exciting to light up your life.

So Where Was I?

Revision and exam out of the way, I need to get organised and remember all the plans I had made during the revision period.  I must say, revising is a great way to be inspired... for everything other than revision.  I had some great ideas for things to make and do and now I have a fairly substantial list of things I want to tackle.

First of all there's all the work-in-progress that needs to be assessed.

I'm making a granny blanket for Eve for when she goes away to university.  I'm about a quarter of the way through that.

I'm knitting a sweater for Grace for her birthday.

The colouring of the yarn for the sweater is beautiful.

I'm also working on adapting a pattern from the 1950s for a short sleeved top with a cabled peplum.

And finally I'm knitting a cardigan  from my Olivia pattern.

This cardigan is now almost complete, so I'll be able to share the photos with you shortly.

Well that's just the big projects, lots of quick projects are on the list - I just need to find time to fit them in.

At the moment we have football on the the television - Euro 2012 and the US Open golf tournament started yesterday.  This all means plenty of sitting-and-watching-sport time which equates to knitting-and-crocheting time - so no excuse not to make good progress.

Having said that, I'm also back working on my family tree.  This is far too addictive to be true.  A whole day can pass tracing relatives and nothing else gets done!  But it is so much fun and I've made contact with numerous long lost relatives, discovered family members in far flung places and generally learnt so much.  Yesterday I spent working on my American relatives.  So if you're a member of the Parry family and you're reading this in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, hi, we may be related.

Revision - of sorts

The days are filled with revision... only a few more days to go to my geology exam.  Today's agenda is metamorphism and sedimentary structures.

Fossils were the topic yesterday... ammonites, echinoids and trilobites.

Does it count as revision if you knit a trilobite?

Grace found me a pattern for a knitted trilobite, here.  I started knitting it but made some alterations as as I went along and this is what I finished with.

I can name the body parts, pygidium, glabella and cephalon so it must count for something!

Titus the Barn Owl

It's exam time in our house at the moment.  Eve has her first A level exam next week and on the same day I have my Open University exam.  So it's revision all the way.  I've been studying geology this year - rocks!  I've spent most of today trying to sort out and analyse my rock samples - but I still get my dolorite and my diorite confused, and don't get me started on the sandstones - subarkose, quartz wacke, quartz arenite!!!!!!!

Any way, I found a bit of time the other day to test a crochet pattern Grace has written, Titus the Barn Owl.  We did some fine tuning of the face, but otherwise her pattern was wonderful.  And here he is...

I gave my version a sleepy face but I think it makes him look a little snooty - an owl with attitude.

I'm so proud of Grace and her creative abilities, it really is a lovely pattern.  It's available for free over on her blog, here.

Presents for Friends

Eve's friend Michael asked her if I could knit a hat for his girlfriend, Alice, for Christmas. No problem - I've become a bit of a celebrity among Eve's friends with all my knitting and crocheting. Anyway, Michael wanted a hat with a pig face on it (apparently it's a joke between the two of them - I just hope she appreciates the joke!).

This is what I came up with.

I used a basic beanie pattern called Easy Peasy Beanie by Crazza. This is available as a free Ravelry download. It's very versatile and quick to make with clear instructions. It only took me a few hours on total to make. You can see the full details of the project on my Ravelry page, here.

The snout, ears and eyes were all crocheted.

Michael is really pleased with the result, he's giving the present to Alice today. I wouldn't accept payment for it - I enjoy knitting whatever - but he felt that he wanted to give something, so a compromise was reached and he has given the money to our local charity -The Waterloo Partnership, which helps the residents of Waterloo in Sierra Leone. So we all feel good about it.

Eve wanted me to make a hammer for her friend Fin. They have an ongoing joke about 'hitting the nail on the head' - something their English teacher says a lot - I think they have a specific head in mind!

The pattern is another free one, Magic Hammer by Karen Null and is available here.

I've still got lots of knitting and crocheting to do for Christmas - over-ambitious as usual. School finishes today, so I will no longer have the house to myself - I shall have to find somewhere to hide away and knit in secret.

The Darts World Championship starts on the television tonight - so I may treat myself and start a new sweater!

Just got my result from my Open University Earth Sciences course (Distinction!) - way better than I had expected because the exam was a real stinker. I've had a cry and a laugh about it - good job I'm on my own - no one to see me - I hadn't realised I was so worried about the result. I've just eaten a bag of chocolates to celebrate and now I had better get back to the knitting and making.

Antony and Cleopatra and a New Hat

We had a great night out last Monday. We went to the Playhouse in Liverpool and saw Antony and Cleopatra.

Cleopatra was played by Kim Cattrall (from Sex and the City), who apparently was born in Liverpool!

It was a fun night out - I always enjoy visiting the theatre.

I haven't had much of a chance to get on the computer this week. The assignment I had to complete took up more time than I had anticipated (but it's finished now) and my DH is working at home this week, so he has a habit of hogging the computer all day.

Despite the assignment (a 2000 word essay on children's literature!), I have managed to fit in a new hat.

This pattern is called Naked Star and is by my friend Ira from the Ukraine. The pattern is available as a free Ravelry download and is very easy to make.

I used the same yarn I have used to make my Olive cardi - Sirdar Click dk. The Olive cardi is now finished and is just waiting to be photographed. Full details of the hat project can be found on my Ravelry page here.

New Course

I seem to be very disorganised at the moment. So much to do, so much to plan, so much to make. The days are too short - and housework takes too long!

I've now started my new Open University course - Children's Literature. How much fun is that? I get to study Harry Potter, Northern Lights (The Golden Compass), Little Women, Treasure Island and even the Tale of Peter Rabbit. So much better than science!! Unfortunately I have an assignment due in next week (so soon) - but it seems more like fun that work - so no complaints.


Whilst I get on with my essay and think about knitting and crocheting, here's a lovely Lucy Grossmith picture called Magical Garden.

The joy of Autumn and snug, warm sweaters.

Exam Stress

I have an exam next Monday. My Open University module exam on Earth Sciences. It is perhaps a little late in the day to realise that maybe Sciences are really my subject - but I'll try my hardest anyway. This next week is going to be all about revision (but it would be a shame to neglect the knitting!)

On the knitting front, I'm making excellent progress on Nonna.

The colours are actually brighter than this in reality - hopefully it will photo better next time.

I love Fair Isle knitting because it seems to grow so fast. I've completed a full pattern repeat now and I've reached the armholes. Concentration is now called for, so it's been put to one side for the time being.

This last weekend was dominated by the Ryder Cup golf. Nonna requires too much attention to be suitable knitting for the event. So, a new project was called for. I chose Olive, a cardi from Rowan magazine #26 (from 1999). It's plain stocking stitch with a Peter Pan collar - very straight forward. I actually made this cardi back in 2000 using Rowan's felted tweed. It was a great cardi, I wore it all the time, until it shrank in the wash.

I'm now knitting it again - but this time in a washable yarn!

Finally I'm crocheting a tablecloth from a pattern dating back to 1917.

It's progressing smoothly at the moment but it is quite large so it will take a while to make.

Well now I had better get back to the revision. No doubt I'll be distracted into making other things over the next week, but I'll save the blogging until after the exam. Until then, have fun and be creative.

Snow, Ice and bits and pieces

The weather where I live is usually quite mild. Here in Liverpool we don't tend to get the harsh weather that the rest of the country suffers - until last week!

Very picturesque.

Over the Christmas holidays we had watched 'The Proposal' - the latest Sandra Bullock comedy.

It was great - I really enjoyed it. It was largely set in Alaska, and I noticed a significant number and variety of woolly sweaters - Alaska seems a good place to live to get the most out of your knitting projects.

The novelty of the snow wore off after a few hours, when everything turned to ice (maybe I won't move to Alaska just yet!). Eve was thrilled - school was closed. Even the university was closed. I was supposed to be getting everyone back to school and work, but instead they remained under my feet!

Eve was very disappointed this Sunday when a message was posted on the school website saying that her year had to return to school on Monday, but the other years could remain at home.

So I decided to make her some cakes for when she got home - to cheer her up.

I had planned to prepare a little party for her, but the ice but a stop to that. I had walked with Eve to school in the morning, to keep her company. However on the way back home, without Eve to link arms with, I managed to slip right over and ended up lying in a heap on the pavement, swearing profusely.

Fortunately, nothing is broken, but I do have a rather bruised behind and I am far too stiff and aching to do any housework for a few days! So Eve's little party was reduced to a few cakes - but she appreciated it anyway.

Sitting feeling sorry for myself yesterday afternoon, I made a lavender filled heart for Eve's wardrobe.

The pattern is from the February issue of 'Simply Knitting' magazine.

I also made a pink lacy mat.

It is actually a snowflake pattern from MYpicot. I had made one at Christmas time but it was too big as a tree decoration. This one I made in 4ply cotton and it is approximately 20 cm wide. It makes a nice mat to sit under a bowl or something.

I always find that when I'm busy I can always find time to make something completely trivial. Before Christmas I knitted 24 little squares (about 2.5 cm square) using oddments of 4 ply yarn and sewed a button to each. I used them as tags for the advent calendar. Since Christmas I have turned the squares into a length of bunting. It is now hanging in the porch, over the entrance to the hallway. Silly but it's the little details that make all the difference.

Finally for now, I have received my study material for my next Open University course. I always get excited when a new course begins - I love the discipline, I love learning new things and I love the challenge. This is my 16th course with the OU. It is called Our Dynamic Planet: Earth and Life. Nobody else in the house is excited about the topic, but I think it's wonderful. Must go now and start working through my study books - the course doesn't officially start until 6th February - but why wait?

Feeling blue - what shall I do?

I'm just coming to the end of this year's Open University course - Exploring Science. There's only the end of course assignment to complete and then I can relax. It's been very demanding but the subject matter has been fascinating. I'm glad I've done the course but I'll be even gladder when I can put my workbooks away. It was all getting a bit much yesterday - everything seemed to be too much - I think it's the biology - I hate that subject - so I've given myself the day off from the assignment today to try to relax somewhat. I've made a list of all the fun little things I want to do when I don't have to study - it's keeping me going at the moment.

Needless to say, knitting and crocheting continue regardless. The sweater I'm making with the Sirdar crofter fairisle-effect wool is about halfway done. Here's a pic of the back.

I decided to make the front a bit more interesting by putting in a buttoned opening but it's quite difficult to match up the random stripes on each half of the front - hopefully it will turn out OK.

After knitting Tender - the kidsilk haze cardi - I had 2 balls of yarn leftover. Although I don't like (understatement) the yarn, it seems a shame not to use it up as it is gorgeous once it's knitted up. So I'm using part of the leftovers to make a scarf. The pattern is A Little Obsession by Leslie Bernard and it's in the Ravelry library. I can't knit fast with this yarn so it's taking a while to knit but the pattern is ever so simple.

Formula 1 on the television this weekend - from Monza. That should mean quite a bit of knitting gets done. To cheer myself up, I may start a new project with the yarn recently added to the stash - variety is the spice of life.