Eight-by-Six

I love this time of year, sitting in front of the TV knitting or crochet a blanket. I knit every night when I can and this week these are the things I'm completing. Well the wash cloth I finished on Sunday night, a quick crochet pattern edged with bright pink, all 100% cotton and lovely to use in the shower. crochet wash cloth I'm also working on spa cloths for my mum in DB cotton. I found this colour in John Lewis on Saturday and have almost finished the first one. This blanket started out as a baby one, found here at Purlbee  and I liked knitting it so much it is now almost an adult blanket to be gifted at Christmas (shhh). I love Debbie Bliis wool and this merino one has great stitch definition even when you are just using garter stitch. Its easy enough to stop and pick up again or add to as you find more wool. My plan is to finish it this week then pick up and knit along the long edge to create stripes in the opposite direction. Its very tactile, warm and snu

We took off for a spa weekend to celebrate our wedding anniversary (24 years on the 24 Nov) and stayed in the Hythe Imperial, Kent . After reading reviews from previous guests I was a little worried about what to expect with our weekend away; they didn't paint a very rosy picture of the Imperial Hythe. I’m not entirely sure what other people were seeing or complaining about to be honest; they didn't give a fair review and only commented on the negative things they found (some people will moan for the sake of moaning). A good review should have an even balance of information for the perspective guest, good and bad. From the moment we walked into the hotel we were given a warm welcome, with friendly and knowledgeable staff. the Hythe Imperial We were given a junior suite on the 4 th floor with dual aspect windows with sea views, which was perfect for us considering we had booked a standard double. The Romney Suite we were allocated was excellent, tasteful décor and ve

my first attempt to crochet a poppy Poppies are everywhere at the moment, the huge display at the Tower of London (Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red). Celebrating the WWI centenary this November. I thought I would join in and knit and crochet myself a poppy, I found this easy to follow pattern of just 12 rows. Or could try the crochet ones instead. I have made donations over the weekend and bought the paper and metal poppies but I plan to wear one of these on my coat. I'm now addicted and have crochet another 8! The other pattern for the one on my coat can be found here  at Addicted to Making blog. You can also find another free crochet pattern here  on the Wendy Poole web site. Easy ribbed poppy pattern Colour A 1 ball red yarn (this will make a lot of poppies) Colour B Scrap of black yarn or black button Body of Poppy Using Col A Cast on 60 stitches Row s1 –10 : K2, P2 across whole row(for a slightly smaller poppy do 8 rows of rib). Row 11 : K