Sunshine On A Rainy Day?

After days and days of rain..I thought we could use some sun,
........even if it is only in flower form.

I thought I'd share with you the journey of our 2009 sunflower competition.

My pal Penny and her family have had a sunflower growing contest between them all for years..it's become quite serious stuff apparantly.

Anyway, Gavin and I thought we would start our own 'floral rivalry' and scrounged some seeds from the bird food mix.

We started out at the end of April (when the weather was much better than it is now!!!)

2 flower pots each..2 for Lou, 2 for Gavin and of course 2 for Patch (he didn't want to be left out).

Yup, as you can see..Patch likes to get his nose into everything!

After a few weeks the seedlings were transported from the little pots on the window sill to bigger

planters on the patio. We didn't have enough wooden stakes so my plastic knitting needles came in very handy as you can see!

Then a few weeks later..we got some blooms!!! ( and the sun was still shining!!!) They may not have been the tallest sunflowers ever but they certainly cheered me and since this pic was taken we have had ooodles more flowers!

So who won the comp? Who else.....The Mister (I'll win next year..just you wait!!!). He looks pretty smug huh? Grrr...lol. Well done Gavin xxx

Button It!

I wanted to share with you my latest purchase..lovely lovely buttons. I collect wooden Russian nesting dolls so imagine my total glee when I found these beauties on a newly discovered website Textile Garden.

These Matryoshka buttons are amazingly detailed in a pewter finish and worked out at less than 55p each...bargain!

I'm hoping these little ladies will inspire me back to my lace cardi which has slipped into quiet hibernation due to a decrease mishap.

Of course my shopping basket didn't stop there..I must have a thing about buttons because when I see some cute ones I have to buy them.

Like all the unknitted yarn I seem to have..my button stash is forever growing.

Well, at least my button stash is tidy and doesn't take up too much space.

It seemed pointless just to order one set..so here's the others I bought from the same shop. I thoroughly recommend them as overall postage was only 85p!!

Lovely, lovely buttons!!

Hip To be Square?

I have been knitting out in the garden the past few days (when it was cool enough to sit out..what a heat!). Still working on my lace cardi but needed something that required less brain power for my alfresco afternoons. So, yesterday I began knitting squares..yes I know hardly a step forward but these ones are easy and pretty cute. I found the pattern over on Liz's Knitting blog and thought it might be a great stash buster for all the yarn that continously tumbles out my wardrobe.Patch the dog pretending to look like a tiny, innocent little cherub..don't let him fool ya!

The turned corner effect on the squares is cleverly created by knitting 2tog twice in the middle of every second row. I began (as Liz instructed) by casting on 72 sts.

First row: K34, k2tog twice, K34

Every second row: Knit

Third Row:K33, K2 tog twice, K33.....and so on.

I'll keep at this inbetween other knits and maybe Patch will get himself a blanket!

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY..to Stateside readers