Welcome to my blog. I live, knit, crochet, spin and craft near the Northumbrian Coast (but not too near – the waves won't be splashing my yarn!).There's a story in every stitch, every grain of sand, every blade of grass. I thought I'd blog about it…
When I was working on a pair of socks at Knit and Natter Group the other Friday, one of my knitting friends told me about an unfinished project that had been sitting in the cupboard under her stairs for about ten years – a pair of socks for her husband.
I could totally understand her frustration – the socks were being knitted on double pointed needles and I too had unfinished socks for a few years for exactly the same reason. I got over it though – someone introduced me to short circular sock needles and I’ve been using that method ever since (read about it here).
I offered to finish them and she brought what she’d done so far to the group on Friday. As the pattern used 2.5mm needles, the same as the socks I’m working on, I swapped mine on to other needles and was able to get started on finishing hers on the circular needles. One sock was complete and the second one was part way through the leg, so once I’d transferred it on to my needles and put some stitch markers in it was fairly quick going.
The yarn is a self-striping four ply in subtle shades of blue and brown. The stripes knit up beautifully and evenly – I haven’t used a self striping yarn like this before and loved it – you can really see your progress as you get through the stripes and it made it easier to match up the placement of the heel and toe divides – I didn’t need to count rows, just match the stripes.
Of course I had to use the double pointed needles when I was part way through the toe shaping, but I can cope with that: it was only for the last few rows. It hasn’t taken long to do at all and I finished it tonight, including grafting the toe closed using Kitchener Stitch, and darning in the ends.
I hope my friend’s husband like them. He has had a bit of a wait! I don’t know him, but he was the clever chap who made my knitting bowl, so I’m really glad to return a favour.
Have you ever knitted socks for other people? Who?
Friday’s Knit and Natter at Alnwick Medical Group brought more lovely charity knits (including those pictured here). There are two “fish and chip baby” tops here (in peach and orange/brown/white), each with matching hats. These were among the first items the group started to knit, following news from one of the practice GPs, who had been doing voluntary work in a clinic in Africa – there was nothing to keep newborns warm in the maternity unit and they ended up being wrapped in newspaper (like fish and chips) – hence the name. These simple tshirt tops have been a great solution.
Also pictured are a couple of premature baby outfits, destined for the unit at the RVI, Newcastle. Both are very pretty and that lilac/white/pink one is a really lovely colour combination.
We also have a couple of fabulous hats here. The red and green one with the bobble was made by the husband of one of our members, using a knitting loom – she reports that he really likes using the loom. He’s one of the contributors who make charity knits but don’t actually attend the group – we have several ladies who make beautiful charity knits that are either dropped off at the surgery or send them with friends who do come along.
The Knit and Natter Group is held every Friday at The Lower Building on Infirmary Drive from 2.30 to 4pm. We make a voluntary contribution of £1 towards posting the charity knits to where they are needed and tea/coffee and biscuits are provided. Some members make the charity items, others work on their own projects. Some knit, others crochet. There’s always a lot of expertise and experience in the room to help out beginners or assist with problems.
There were no scones where we went today, but the cake looked good so we stayed and had some of that instead.
We were at the Paw Prints Coffee Shop at WCF Pet and Equestrian on South Road, Alnwick, close to the the Aldi supermarket. There aren’t many places for a cuppa and a snack in this part of Alnwick, away from the town centre and the tourist haunts. But being handy for Aldi and having it’s own car park should attract customers, even those who simply want a takeaway coffee (currently on offer for only £1).
Being inside a pet/equestrrian supplies shop, Paw Prints is of course dog-friendly. The menu is very limited however. They only serve hot and cold drinks, a small range of home-made cakes and pre-packaged biscuits, cereal bars and crisps. The staff were great – very helpful and friendly (and quite apologetic about the absence of scones).
We opted for coffee and walnut cake, which was lovely: home-made with a nice texture, just the right amount of icing and a a generous sprinkling of walnut pieces on top. It was served with proper cake forks too. Our drinks were fine. – filter coffee and hot chocolate, but nothing fancy (no whipped cream or marshmallows), though the tall, thin mugs with saucers looked quite elegant. It was all very reasonably priced too.
The cafe has been open since just before Christmas and they plan to expand the offer to include sandwiches (and scones, I hope!) It provides a low cost alternative to the town centre venues if you just want to get a quick snack to eat in or take out.
It’s been a busy week. I really needed to get on with some book editing so I needed a couple of days away from the blog to get some more done. I mentioned before that I’m helping a friend with her third fantasy novel – read about it here.
I did have a lovely trip out on Sunday though. Our daughter lives close to Druridge Bay Country Park. We (K, myself, daughter, son and dog) went for a walk (or in my case, a scoot – I use a disability scooter) around the lake that afternoon. The afternoon sun was shining but clouds were beginning to gather and it was cold.
The paths are good, so despite the mock threats, there were plenty of routes round the lake without negotiating this row of stepping stones.
There were lots of families, dog walkers and cyclists about and Buddy the labrador was in his element. He absolutely loves it when the whole family is together. He wasn’t sure about the swans though. They had come out of the water along with the ducks and a large flock of gulls when someone started to feed them.
We all went back to daughter’s house for hot drinks. I’d lost all feeling in my fingers, despite gloves, so knitting was out of the question for at least half an hour. I was soon back at the socks though!
It was so good to be out with the family – it’s not often that we do something all together like that. Do you have a family activity that everyone enjoys?
This afternoon it was our weekly Knit and Natter Group at Alnwick Medical Group, which runs from 2.30pm to 4pm on Fridays, in the Lower Building.
Once again, the members have made a beautiful selection of charity knits , but today we were focussing on some of the blankets made by our group. All of those in the picture are made of small squares sewn together. Whether these are knitted or crocheted (like the pretty pink and white one) , it’s a great way to get started if you are learning for the first time, with help on hand if you need some support
A lady recently brought a partly completed blanket into the surgery. She can no longer knit so couldn’t finish it. One of our members has now completed it (the lovely leaf design at the bottom of this picture). Haven’t they both done a great job?
Have you ever given someone else a project to finish, or completed one for someone else?
It’s that busy Friday that happens once a month when both the monthly group and the weekly group I’m in are on the same day.
First up this morning was the monthly group at The Amble Pincushion. Knit and Natter sessions are on the 3rd Friday of every month from 10am to 12, cost £4.50, including refreshments , raffle entry and 10% discount in the shop on the day. This lovable giraffe toy was made by one of the group for her baby granddaughter. It seems to have started a trend because, by total coincidence, another group member won a knitting kit in the raffle, to make, as you’ll have guessed……a giraffe.
We were talking about the newly-refurbished Alnwick Playhouse too. The shop team have been getting regular updates from one of the staff members who is a member of the Alnwick Stage Musical Society who will be performing Jesus Christ Superstar in late March. This will be their first show to be staged since the renovations.
We were also discussing casting on and binding off. I learnt the cable cast on method when I was little and used nothing else for years until I learnt the thumb or long tail method fairly recently. I now know there are absolutely loads of variations to use depending on the look and amount of stretch needed. Some are very plain, others are quite decorative. We were all pouring over a book that one of the group was given recently, that had full instructions for each and suggestions of the sorts of project each would be most suitable for. It’s always great to learn something new.
We were back to our usual weekly scone-tasting today and decided to try the new cafe in the recently-refurbished Alnwick Playhouse. This was a great opportunity to check out what’s new in this popular local venue.
We got one of the last tables available in the bistro section (it was the busy lunchtime period)- there are additional tables in the foyer but it all seems to fit together well. It was good to see the place full of people again after such a lengthy closure for the renovations. The staff were helpful and our coffee and scones arrived quickly. The drinks were served in generously large cups with saucers and the scones were just warm and served with foil wraps of nicely soft butter. I wasn’t sure why the scones were sliced. I prefer to pull them apart to see the texture. They may have been a little under-baked for my taste, possibly bought in rather than made on the premises, but quite acceptable. There were some very scrumptious-looking cakes in the counter cabinet.
I do like the lunch menu, which had a good varied selection of classic sandwiches, including the local ham and pease pudding stotty, salads, soup and some with a Moroccan flavour (using ingredients like chickpeas, falafel, halloumi), It all looked very appetising and portions look generous, The staff were attentive and cleared tables quickly: it always looked tidy during our visit. It did seem a on the expensive side, but not excessively so. It’s a welcome addition to that part of the town, open to the public whether or not you are at a theatre performance.
The town has eagerly awaited completion of this multimillion pound refurbishment, following a massive fundraising effort. Alnwick Playhouse has always served its community well, with an impressive programme of theatre, music, comedy, dance and film, including live broadcast West End theatre productions, opera and ballet.
Many local people have been on both sides of the footlights at the Playhouse as amateur and school shows are given a high profile too…. and rightly so. Their standard is very high (and that merits professional performance space which brings out the best in our performers and musicians. I once spoke to some holidaymakers in the interval at a junior amateur production. They were staying nearby so thought they’d spend an evening at the theatre. Initially they been disappointed, thinking that the show that night was “just a school play” but soon changed their minds and were so impressed they wanted to come back again.
Now it’s re-opened! I’m impressed with what they’ve done to the place – thoughtful consideration of how to improve facilities AND retain the unique character and features of the building. That’s never easy but I think they’ve done a pretty amazing job. They’ve opened up areas of the building I didn’t know existed, to integrate a re-sited public library/information centre (and the cafe) alongside the theatre and gallery. It isn’t at all cramped though – it actually looks and feels more spacious. It’s a really clever use of space
There are some good improvements to accessibility too and I had a brief look at some of these. The entrance ramp has been resurfaced and the metal railings replaced by toughened glass, which doesn’t block the cafe’s view of the street. The handrails on the steps seem better too. The reception/box office counter is lower. The lift to the upper floor is easier to use as it’s not tucked into an awkward corner like before, but the beautiful spiral staircase has been retained. The gallery space looks more spacious, making use of previously dead space and flexible seating. Only the bar is still not fully accessible. It never has been so I won’t miss it! I hope to go to a show soon and try out the auditorium for accessibility – reports are good so I’m confident it will be a good experience. The young woman at reception/box office was really helpful and knowledgeable about the building’s accessibility.
Enough! I’m sounding like the brochure. I need to stop (and knit). I’m sure there’s scope to do that in the Playhouse too.
Do you have a local community theatre? What makes it special to you?
Last night I picked out some yarn from the pile that I’d previously earmarked for the big stash busting blues poncho/cape – I found this sock yarn I picked up from Flying Tiger a while back.
This has too much green in it to fit in with stash busting project. I’ve really enjoyed wearing the last pair of socks I made, so need more – especially now I’ve become more confident about sock knitting and recovered from One Sock Syndrome. It seemed obvious to use this sock yarn!
I needed to start a new small portable project, something that I can stick in a small bag to do in the car, waiting for appointments and to take to knit and natter groups. Socks knitted on tiny circular needles are perfect for this (though when I turn the heel it might need a bit more concentration and nattering may cease for a while)
It was blustery this morning, but looked beautiful and such a joy to feel the warmth of the sun on my face when I was out of that cold wind. Sitting in the car in a lay-by while K walked Buddy nearby, I cast on the first sock – if I’d been more prepared I’d have brought straight needles in a larger size (casting on with thumb method, using 2.5mm circular sock needles is fiddly) – I wanted to try this to ensure I kept the cast-on nice and loose. Anyway I just concentrated hard not to pull it too tight and managed to complete the cast on and knit a couple of rounds. The top of the sock is in k2p2 rib so it’s lovely and stretchy – it would defeat the object of that if the cast-on is too tight,
I love the colours of this yarn – they include a deep blue with a very dark green, shading lighter into almost yellow green. At first this made me think of rocks by a deep blue sea, strewn with yellowish brown seaweed below high water mark and crusted with yellow lichens above. Then I looked out the window, spied this puddle and saw similar colours in the sky’s reflection, the grasses and conifer saplings around me.
The woodland is managed here, with fencing and rabbit guards on the young trees.
We couldn’t stay long as household tasks awaited – but it was nice to be out in the sunshine, thinking about the colours in the landscape.
In my previous post about finishing a project from a kit purchased in Tobermory on the Isle of Mull, I set a little quiz question. Answers coming up!
I asked….. Tobermory has two connections to UK Children’s TV. What are they?
Connection 1
You answered correctly. Balamory: this series outlined life in the town with a diverse cast of fictional residents who lived or worked in the colourful houses, including some away from the main street which were painted specially for the filming. Incidentally, Archie’s castle (painted pink) was filmed elsewhere. We visited Bal…sorry… Tobermory several times, both before and since the series was shown and it had quite obvious effects on the place. It boosted the economy, with lots of tourists visiting the town, especially families with young children, which was great for the local businesses that benefited, though this did have some disadvantages. The traffic was much busier on normally quiet roads (especially the ones running between ferry terminals and Tobermory). I wondered if these visitors were day trippers or actually staying on the island. Some of the roads are single-track and not an easy drive for first time visitors. We did see a lot of damage to the verges. The shop that portrayed “Pocket and Sweet” seemed particularly popular. Balamory maps were on sale to help identify the locations used in the show. It is difficult living in a tourist area, trying to go about your usual business when there are visitors wandering in the middle of the road, blocking the road and gawping, I felt particularly sorry for a local police officer, who was on duty ( probably dealing with the traffic overload). A small child pointed at him and shouted, “Look! There’s PC Plum!” I’m sure he took things a lot more seriously than the comedic Balamory character (who keeps bursting into song and drinks lots of tea)! I had to try hard not to laugh!
Connection 2
There were a couple of other suggestions. Katie Morag was based on life on the island of Col but was filmed in Lewis, in the Outer Hebrides, not Tobermory.
The film “When Eight Bells Toll” did indeed use Tobermory, but was not made for children.
We have to go back some years and remember this character
Tobermory was one of The Wombles in Elisabeth Berisford’s books, which came to TV in the 1970s. These animated creatures lived on Wimbledon Common, unseen by humans, collecting and repurposing litter. Some of this was used in Tobermory’s ingenious inventions. I suppose they were ahead of their time: they were upcycling long before the rest of us. All the Wombles had place names which they chose from Great Uncle Bulgaria’s Atlas. The theme tune (Underground Overground , written by Mike Batt) spawned an album (which I confess to owning) , a hit single (Remember your a Womble) and a Christmas record (We Wish You a Wombling Merry Christmas). I didn’t realise I was such a Womble nerd.
So there it is. And nobody got both the links!
Aros park, Tobermory – also worth a visit – lovely walks on easy paths.
I do have another link to Tobermory – this one is connected to knitting (or at least to fibres) and the sea. On our last visit to Tobermory we visited the Mull Aquarium and thought it was brilliant. It is small but that made it more of a personal experience – the staff were really helpful and knowledgeable. There were touch pools aimed at children to familiarise them with rock pool wildlife and they use “catch and release” – a conservation approach so the creatures are only held in the aquarium a short time before being returned to the wild. This rotation helps with research. As they rely on what is caught, this rotation of creatures gives an indication of local species distribution changes in a way that permanent exhibits never could. I was particularly interested in the session led by “Dr Plankton” who identified the microscopic life in seawater samples we examined using the aquarium’s microscopes. Among all the jellyfish lavae, fish eggs and tiny crustaceans were a lot of microfibres – plastics, from fishing gear or even clothing…..all clothing sheds a certain amout of fibre when washed and that drains into the sea eventually. It was after this that David Attenborough’s Blue Planet series raised awareness of marine plastic pollution. We are starting to see some great initiatives to reduce marine plastics, such as collection and repurposing of discarded fishing gear, but we can all do our bit. As far as my knitting is concerned, I’m trying to reduce the amount of artificial fibres I buy. I want to concentrate on using what I already have to avoid waste and buy natural fibres wherever possible. Wool, alpaca, cotton and so on are biodegradable and will not accumulate in the environment. It seems like an appropriate thing to do for Stitches by the Sea!
Serious stuff, so I’ll finish with a lighthearted question.
What are your favourite TV shows from your childhood? Describe each in one sentence in case others have never seen them.
I finished what I’m calling the “Cobweb” scarf. It had long deserved promoting from UFO to FO, having done great service as an easy diversion when I needed a break from a more complex project, especially during knit and natter sessions. It defeats the object somewhat if you can’t knit and natter at the same time!
I bought this as a kit in a gift shop in Tobermory on the Isle of Mull. I’d already chosen a couple of very pretty locally hand-spun skeins when i noticed some brightly coloured little paper carrier bags. It turned out that someone had assembled the kits to sell and raise funds for the Aros Hall. This is a community-run venue in the centre of Tobermory and we’ve been to a very enjoyable ceilidh there. Each kit contained a simple pattern, needles and a ball of Rowan Kidsilk Haze, all wrapped in tissue paper inside the bag. There were several different patterns and colours to choose from but I went for this silver grey scarf.
Mull is one of my favourite parts of Scotland and we’ve had many holidays there – this trip was back in the summer of 2018. I’m normally fine with driving on Scottish single-track roads and I do find some parts of Mull quite challenging (there are some very steep blind hairpin bends) but the scenery is breathtaking and very varied. It’s great for wildlife and birdwatching. Both British eagle species (Golden Eagle and White-tailed or Sea Eagle) can be seen on Mull (sometimes at the same time!) and I saw my first otter there. We learnt an easy cheat on an early visit. If you see someone parked up with a seriously big telescope, it’s probably worth stopping (if it is safe to do so) and getting your binoculars out – I’ve always found the birdwatchers are happy to share their knowledge and point out what they are looking at.
The biggest town on the Island is Tobermory, characterised by a row of brightly coloured buildings along the bay. It’s quite a vibrant little place with several good places to eat, some interesting shops, an aquarium, a whisky distillery and more.
Back to the scarf: the kit included circular needles (10mm) , to be used on the straight, but I found it easier for this to use my own straight needles. The yarn is fabulous, so soft and fine – lace weight in 70% kid mohair and 30% silk. Using a fine yarn with big 10mm needles took some getting used to. The body of the scarf is knitted in garter stitch – you are creating a very open structure. I tended to pull it too tight. It was also very easy to catch a stitch and pull out a big loop. The haze of fine soft hairs that stand out from the yarn seems to support the open structure to give it a lovely bouncy feel.
I wanted to use the entire ball (you don’t really want to waste anything this luxurious). The finished scarf could probably benefit from blocking – it is very stretchy and I really struggled to measure it. It ended up about 14 by 55 inches. It is feather-light and drapes beautifully.
I’m looking forward to wearing it – a lovely reminder of a great holiday in beautiful Mull and the ceilidh at Aros Hall in Tobermory.
Now I have a quiz question for you (just for fun). Tobermory has two connections to UK Children’s TV. What are they?
Stitches by the Sea 