Chunky Mitts

Here, at last, are the Arm Warmers, made with Sirdar Click Chunky yarn, on straight needles, and following a very simple pattern from Hand Knitted Things. I actually finished them very quickly, for me, but I was put off photographing my hands wearing them because they have been in a right dried-up old state. I had to slather on some heavy duty hand cream before taking this pic, just so that you wouldn't recoil in disgust.

The yarn is a mix of acrylic and wool. I usually buy pure wool, even when it isn't necessarily practical. I just prefer the feel of it. But the wool shop which is to be my local for as long as we decide to stay in our current location (somewhere in the county of Worcestershire) has a large selection of yarns, but most of them are blends. If I'm going to be a purist I'll have to travel further afield.

The cable stitch was a cinch. How pleasing to be able to create a complicated effect by simple means. And I like the finished result so much I went straight out to buy more (blended) wool and I am knitting a shorter pair. I liked the idea of a long-armed mitten, but I think I will rarely have exposed forearms in the next few months.

Still Cosy After All These Years

This tea cosy inspired me to knit. Just look at it. Isn't it perfect? Clearly made from brightly-coloured scraps jumbled together, it is the word 'jolly' manifest in wool. It used to belong to Pete's grandmother and it brought a bit of crazy colour to our neutral-hued home for a few years before being put into storage at the beginning of our Airstream travels. We weren't going to have a teapot, taking up space and payload (weight allowance). Well that soon changed. Tea and coffee are important to me and they have to be made properly - brewed and infused rather than scalded and wrung out!

We recently had a bit of a sort through of our stored possessions and this little cosy came to light again. It has been brought aboard, even though I had just made a new one. A bit restrained in colour perhaps, but in keeping with the Airstream's interior.

My own grandmother showed me how to make cosies, carrying the yarn across the back and keeping the tension. She was a speed knitter. She used to make some dodgy things though, like ladies in crinoline dress toilet roll holders, and lacy tissue box covers. All of these unnecessary disguises would be in whatever garish wool she had stashed. Every time my parents redecorated the bathroom a new crinny lady would be produced, whereupon ( yes that is a real word, heathens) it would be hidden out of sight until she visited and it was ceremoniously placed on the toilet cistern, as if that was where it always lived. More grateful recipients were, hopefully, the charities to whom she donated her wares to raise money.

Anyway, I shall be making good use of one or other of these cosies today. Pete has gone to Wembley to see the NFL game and I will be indulging in a new knitting project, lots of tea and biccies and repeats of Sherlock Holmes and Poirot. More about the project later. I'll just say that it's a pair of hand warmers with a cable stitch. Hand warmers? Like gloves, but without fingers. I was assured by the enthusiastically helpful woman in the wool shop that there's nothing to a cable stitch, much less complicated than it looks. We shall see. Now, time for a brew.

Hydrangeas and Pearls

While Pete and his Mum went searching for ancestors in the graveyards of Lancashire, I was happily distracted by this unexpectedly theatrical tribute. 

Smile

Today's colour is grey. It is raining, the distant Cumbrian fells are completely obscured by clouds, so our view is dominated by electricity pylons and traffic on a busy 'A' road. To cheer myself up I am wearing this button. I bought it yesterday in a wonderful shop in Ambleside, filled with colourful quirkiness and called Detail.

A Glimpse of Ludlow

We finally forced ourselves to leave our idyllic spot in Shropshire. Where there was once a field dotted with shiny Airstreams is now a field of grazing cattle. The next time we are near to Ludlow we must explore the area much more. For now, here are some images from an afternoon in the lovely town.

Crafty Airstreamers

Last weekend at the fourth UKAirstreamers Gathering near Ludlow we had the first 'Unhitch and Stitch on the Sunday' afternoon. There was some knitting going on, and some exchanging of techniques. I learnt how to cast on with my thumb and other crafties who had forgotten how to knit, had their memories jogged.

I got engrossed in teaching four young Airstreamers how to make sock creatures. Alice and Will had to go home before finishing so I hope I'll be getting photos of their creatures sometime. Jordan and Rory weren't in a hurry, as this is their farm, and they each managed to make a creature in one afternoon. Check them out! Aren't they brilliant?

There is much more about the completely fabulous time we had at our UKAirstreamers Gathering on our other blog, Pete And Tracey On The Road.

The Airstreams Are Coming

The fourth UK Airstreamers Gathering is happening this weekend and the new bunting is ready. Thirty-plus new and vintage Airstreams will be wending their way to a beautiful spot in Shropshire. Airstreamers, Carl, Gaynor, Connor, Jordan and Rory are welcoming us all to their farm, and it promises to be a stunning and unprecedented gathering of Airstream travel trailers and motorhomes in the UK.

On a crafty note, on Sunday there will be 'Unhitch And Stitch' under our awning, where Airstreamers can bring a project of any kind, and partake of tea and cake. The cake part is a twisted form of enticement because I'm not an experienced baker, but I sometimes have beginner's luck on my side. Let's hope that will be the case this weekend!

Anyway, onwards, there's lots to do today. I might get another go on the sit-on grass cutter if I'm lucky, having already fulfilled a long-held wish yesterday. I can't help it. I'm a city girl. I've only ever had a balcony and some window boxes. I digress. A couple of early arrivals will be turning up later today, then everyone else tomorrow.

If you're in the Ludlow area around lunchtime, look out for a lot of shiny aluminium beasts on the roads. I'm off to drape bunting. You can't have too much bunting!