Notes from the week

Edition 12

It's been a busy couple of weeks over here. I had my mum to visit (our first visitor in the new house!), so there was a flurry of activity cleaning and organising. Nothing like a looming deadline to finally get you to sort something that's been on the to do list for months. The guest bedroom had become a bit of a dumping ground, so it was quite satisfying to finally sort through and tidy everything, plus make the room cosy and welcoming.

I bought some tulips for mum's dresser, and they've lasted over a week now. I hope I can grow cut flowers in my own garden in the future, I’m always aware of the environmental impact of importing flowers out of season, or growing flowers in heated glasshouses in the UK. I love the delicate pinks of this variety, and it's another good use for my street present (read: abandoned on the pavement outside my building) green glass jug.

Mum and I did a few garden chores before Storm Eowyn drove us indoors. We sorted through the previous owner's log store and found these amazing vintage striped deck chairs. They're in great condition, a little linseed oil on the wood and they'll be perfect for summer!

Thanks to everyone who commented or DM’d me about my rhubarb patch, from my latest garden update. I decided to move it in the end, the dogs keep walking all over it (and Badger, who has no respect, keeps pooping on it) and I don't want the rhubarb to be any more active before I disturb it, it's already sprouting away.

I've so far relocated 4 to a strip of garden beside the driveway, where I think they'll get some sunshine. It's nice soil there, but a lot of tree roots, so I'm hoping they'll cope with that. I've put one in a pot and still got another 4 to dig up. Some broken pieces also had growing buds, so I've potted them into a container and I'm trading them with a work pal for nasturtium seeds from his garden. My little Hobbit heart is loving this bartering for plants.

I also met a lovely local plants person called Angela, whom I found via Facebook marketplace. I bought a few plants from her, she grows her own seeds and cuttings specifically to sell on marketplace. She was very knowledgeable and happy to chat, so I'll definitely be visiting her again in the new few months. I have a feeling any Buy me a Coffee donations will be spent on plants!

Knowing I would have a guest in the house, I cast on a simple knitting project, to be able to chat and watch TV whilst I knit (we ploughed through parts of the Traitors, Day of the Jackal, Man on the Inside and a Wallace and Gromit film!). I chose the Penny Gloves from PetiteKnit, thinking they would also make excellent gifts or scrap busters in the future.

I've been patiently waiting for pay day, for my next yarn purchase, so wanted to knit these gloves from yarn I already owned. These beautiful skeins of vintage tapestry wool are leftovers from my two Heirloom quilt cardigans, they're a different weight to the rest of the yarn so I couldn't use them for that project. After several false starts where I've had to frog back stripes to get the colour combos right, I think I've settled on a final design. I'll be writing this up in it's own blog post soon!

Wherever you are, I hope you're seeing the first signs of spring (or autumn in the Southern Hemisphere!). The snowdrops are just coming through in my garden and they're a joy every time I walk past them. Longer days are coming!