Sunday Stuff

I often wonder if there might come a point when I get bored with blogging my life. If you will get bored reading about it too. If you will one day pop in to Attic24 and groan. Think to yourself :: oh no, how boooooooring, not moooore crochet, moooooore baking, mooooooore magazines, how predicable, we've seen it all before, a dozen times or more. Isn't there anything different? Isn't there more to this persons life??

Well maybe that might happen one day. In the distant future. But right now I have to say I really, really, really enjoy my life. And i enjoy that my blog follows my life, and it is therefore honest and reflects my happiness as well as  my current passions, all of which don't alter much from week to week.

I sincerely hope you don't think me too smug for saying this, for declaring my happiness? I hope not, because it is certainly not meant that way. I am not bragging about my life. I am quite simply photographing bits of it and sharing it. Honestly, simply, and exactly as it is. Although of course I do tend to miss out some of the messy bits, the tantrummy bits. And the very private bits.

Why am I saying this to you? Well....because just now I uploaded my photos from my camera to the computer to take a look at the weekend images. Pictures from the past 48 hours which were snapped here and there. And I was delighted to see them. Yes, they are quite predictable. Yes, there are images which are very similar to ones you've already seen. But then that's the nature of my weekends at this point in my life, there exists a great deal of predictability, of repetition. But OH how I LOVE it that way!!!

So today's post is all about my yesterday, the Sunday Stuff. A little morning crochet (pictured above), interspersed with baking cookies, drinking coffee, eating breakfast (a bacon sarnie, sat on the front step in the morning sunshine), some magazine browsing and some Little People supervising (they were outside, up and down the street on scooters/bikes with half a dozen other neighbourhod children).

11am or thereabouts and we decide on the spur of the moment to pack the Little People's bicycles in the boot of the car and drive to a nearby town which has a park with great cycling potential. Unlike our local park (which is beautiful but hilly), this park is flat. It has expanses of flat grass and a neat flat path which circles the perimeter. 

It turns out to be quite a momentous bicycling morning as for the first time we remove the stablisers from Little Lady's bike. It does not go smoothly. There are tears and snot, there is a lot of obstinate, rather frightened protesting. There are wobbles and there are falls. There is minor injury. There is a rather exhausted Mother running around the entire park attempting to maintain her daughter in a vertcal position whilst whizzing along with some furious pedalling. But we do on the odd occasion achieve Balance, and a Little four year old girl pedals on her own when her Mummy secretly takes her hands away. We still have a way to go, still have plenty of practice to do, but it was a great start.

 

After all that emotion and exhaustion we drive up out of the town to a favourite pub we know and love. We were in fact here last weekend too, on the Yes-day. Today we don't sit inside near blazing fires and under ancient beamed ceilings but instead sit in the pub's beer garden with cold drinks and crisps and enjoy the warmth of an early spring afternoon. You can see the pub in the above photograph look, see it's stunning location. It's high high up on Ilkley Moor, and the views are spectacular.

 

After we've had rest and refreshment at the pub we take a walk up over the moor.
 

The landscape is quite bleak in some ways, but there is beauty in the sweeping open spaces.

It's the height that I love about this place. I love that when I am up on this moor top I am so much nearer to the sky. The town of Ilkley looks so tiny and far way down there in the valley, like a model village.

 

There are spectacular rock formations up here on Ilkley Moor, providing great climbing/scrambling opportunities for Little People and heart-in-the-mouth panics for Big People. There are sheer drops all around. It is not all that pleasant at times.

 

We watch gobsmacked as climbers scale the sheer rock faces. And eventually we tire of policing the daredevil antics of Little People who are so unaware of the perils of Sheer Drops.

So we head homewards to number 24 to light the fire and settle down for the late afternoon/evening. A film for the Little People, and some crochet and magazine-strolling for me....

....I began working the reverse of my circular cushion. Round and round in ever widening circles, I am loving it.

 

I often like to multi-task when I am crocheting, and one of my favourite things to do is to browse a magazine at the same time. Well truthfully I cannot read and crochet at the same time, but what I mean is that I like to hook a row, then browse a few pages, hook another row, then browse some more. I like the visual stumulation of doing these two things together, of seeing the yarn against the pages, the stripes against the print (see here, I was doing it then look)

Yesterday I was looking through last months issue of Country Homes (the April issue I think?) as I realised there were bits of it I had missed out the time I first read it. The above page caught my eye...it was a spread about cleaning out your greenhouse. Want a closer look to see what attracted my attention?

OK...look....

That blanket!!!!! OH oh oh!!! I Love it!! I tell you, I can spot a crochet blanket in an instant, they jump out at me, leap off the pages...That colourful stripyness is just so joyful isn't it?!

Oh yes and speaking of joyful, I realised this morning that I had indeed promised to show you a little something today, a little itsy bitsy peek at some new yarn, remember?

Want to see?

Do you?

Really?

Really really?

Oh go on then...have a peek......

Hmmmmmmmmm yes, another bag of scrummy yarn comes home to Attic24.

I blame Lovely C entirely. It's all her fault.

On Thursday, she casually mentioned to me that she was taking a trip that afternoon to a shop in a nearby village as they were selling off Debbie Bliss yarn for £2 a ball. Do you remember me posting about a Sale last summer? Well another sale is about to happen in a few weeks time at the same place, which is very exciting indeed. But even more exciting was the fact that Lovely C decided to telephone the shop and ask if we could possibly have a sneaky private rummage through the yarn before it goes on sale. And the shop owners agreed! Yeeee-hawwwww!!!! Wild Horses wouldn't have kept us away.

 

The yarn they had this time was Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino. This is a GORGEOUS yarn, quite fine in weight (you would hook on a 3mm or 3.5mm hook) with a slight twist, and oh SOooooo soft!! It usually retails at around £4.35 for a 50g ball, so to find it at £2 a ball was an absolute bargain.

 

I'm not sure how many balls I ended up with...maybe 24 or so?? I was waaay too excited to count numbers. I simply filled a bag. And used my grocery money to pay for it. It all happened very fast, in a bit of a blur.

I got them all out and had a lovely play with them yesterday, had a good look at the colours I ended up with...13 in total, all very spring-like and oh-so-pretty aren't they?? A little more pastely than I would normally choose perhaps, but I love the way they look all together. They remind me of  sweet peas, that alluring combination of pretty softness with the odd deep shade thrown in.

Of course I don't yet have a plan for this yarn.

I am still firmly in the stroking/gazing/playing stage. Oh and sniffing. One thing I do love to do with any new yarn stash is to stick my face right in it and have a good, long snaffley sniff.

Delicious.

xxxxxxx

Comments

[Moira]

Love your posts. Wish my DH was as understanding with crochet everywhere. His mum and sis would fill the house with aran and fair isle knitting and I think this put him off woolly goods for life!

I have two furry cats too that shed fur like there's no tomorrow. So any coloured wool would soon be hidden behind white fur.

I do love my life as it is, but come on here for a wee look-see at how it would be if I could keep cats, crochet and a home covered in woolly rugs entirely seperate.

As Kerry says, if it aint broke, don't fix it.

[Kerry]

don't change, please, don't change a thing

[lazylol]

Don't worry Lucy, we will never get bored of your blog. It is so wonderful to read your posts and see your lovely bright, cheerful and colourful pictures.

[jeane]

oh dear, can i have a ball of ur yarn pleaseee?? they looked so yummy, u sure cant wait to start on those yarn, can u?
the rockie mountain were as stunning as u were, lucy. lol..

[Alison Hutchison]

Oh Lucy I love that your blog follows the same pattern, with wee side bits added on. It's like sitting down with a latte, meeting a favourite friend, walking in the sunshine. I'm making my own little house picture inspired by you to go in the new place that we bought last week. Move 7 weeks today...not stressed!!! Would love to share a picture of it with you but not sure how? Have a wonderful week x

[Aqeela]

Your blog is still my favorite one of the moment, i havent got fed up of it yet! Yes it is predictable and samey, but thats what i like about it to be honest. And although i love all the shabby chic blogs, they are rather pretentious at times, and your blog isnt. I love your use of colour (although im a pastels girl at heart i am beginning to revert back to your colours which i used to like when i was younger). I always look forward to reading your blog (which i do almost daily), already looking forward to coming back tomorrow to see if youve posted again!

Aqeela xx

[Linda O]

Lucy, looks like you had a great weekend,my 4 year old can't get bike riding yet either, too much like hard work for her!!! Stunning scenery!
Love your bargain yarn, and to get it from an actual shop,and not have to buy it from the internet is a bonus, there is only one shop locally to me that sells wool, and the range is very poor.
I for one would never get bored with your blog, such beautiful colours, wonderful projects,and happy, happy words, keep it up, love it!!!
Linda xxx

[Kat]

I check your blog every day to enjoy the bright, colourful photos, and the happy text that always accompanies them. I can't imagine myself getting bored of your blog!
Very jealous of all that bright colourful yarn, I want more hours in the day to crochet! :o)

[Nina - Tabiboo]

Oh wow Lucy, such beautiful photos I could never get bored!!

Even though we live by the coast and I love it I also love to visit your blog for the scenery I miss 'yes' I'm afraid I'm a land lubber!! trees, hills, woods, birds... the whole thing does it far more for me than the coast so 'thank you'

And of course all that colour, just what is needed on even the sunniest of days!!

Have a lovely day,

take care,

Nina x

[P.K.]

beautiful colours, and the rock photos are wonderful. I enjoy your blog, and visit for a daily colour hit.

[lucy]

Ooh I am so jealous of your bargainous baby cashmerino - the colours are fab. I must say I will never ever get bored of your blog. I know this because not only due I obsessively log on to catch up but I frequently go back and reread favourite posts/ look at the photos again. Which makes me think it's time you started thinking about writing your book...
Lx

[Boo]

Oh i love today's post!!! So many memories!! Yes, 4 children I've had to run behind as they learnt to cycle!! The last just WOULDN'T get it!! At the end of the 2nd summer, I gave up and asked a friend to help. He offered my little boy £10 if he could cycle around the block independently. And what do you know - that cheeky boy wobbled off, completed the block and claimed his tenner!!! And Ilkley Moor!! Those pics of the climbing rocks???? Well Lucy, that's exactly the spot where same fraidy cat cyclist learnt to climb and abseil - aged 4!!! Later, when I'm home from work, I will scan in the photos of him dangling off rope for my blog. That was an amazing day - thank you for returning that memory to me!! Cow and Calf I think the rock is called!!! Boo xx