The sensu-wool world!

On Monday morning I had a very pleasant surprise, I discovered that I'd won a giveaway from A Playful Day - a skein of Super Knits Bessie in Kate Bush.
The Playful Day podcast has been going for a few months, and I have become an regular listener. It has a great mix of yarn reviews, knitting news, greentrianglegirl's knitting progress, food & drink and general playful fun! Super Knits is a lovely yarn company based in the West Midlands. When it was first mentioned on A Playful Day I spent some time drooling over the website and admiring the colour names - she studied sculpture anyone? So I was super happy to win a skein of sock yarn. Gemma from Super Knits kindly got in touch to ask if I wanted it sent as a skein or wound in to a ball, and for all I love the look of a skein, I do get a bit tangled, so I asked for it as a ball. It arrived this morning & it is very pretty. 425 meters of 75% superwash blue faced Leicester & 25% nylon. And most importantly I can confirm it is super squishy!
Close up yarn porn picture next....
Now to get a few projects finished, so I can settle down and make myself some socks for when I go running up that hill!
I spent ages thinking of the Kate Bush pun that is the title of this post. If you can think of anything better please let me know...

Sunshine & finger puppets!

Yesterday was the last day of the Merchant city festival. I must say with the sun shining Glasgow scrubs up pretty well. There were stalls, music, a parade, pole vaulting, plus a caravan being pimped!
We saw comedian David Kay (see the very funny Freedom) in Make It Glasgow. It was very civilised with tea and scones, and afterwards we all got to make our very own finger puppet of David Kay!
I think mr crafty captured his hair perfectly! Also this week I sent in my very first entry for write in for writing' sake. By giving a topic and a deadline, they help to inspire writers. The title was headhunting, and you can read my entry here.

Ribbon woven QR code

I saw this QR-3D project on Rockpool Candy's blog and wondered if a ribbon woven QR code would work. Firstly I created a QR code here (for this very blog!), and transferred the code to squared paper, so that I could follow the pattern easier. QR codes are made up a grid of 33 x 33. So I laid down 33 strips of white ribbon, and set to work weaving the black ribbon in.Finally finished! Interestingly the ribbon woven QR code doesn't scan, but a photo of it does. I wonder if this is because at a smaller resolution it hides the imperfections? I quite like the look at the underside - a QR code in negative.

Cows & Cross stitch!

At the weekend I went to MK, to take part in the Midnight Moo. A 10 mile, female only walk around Milton Keynes to raise money for Willen Hospice, a very very worthy cause. The walk passes Milton Keynes's most famous residents - the concrete cows!
Whilst down south we popped to MK Gallery. This is a beautiful building, it really works well with the surrounding city centre. And mr crafty was even wearing matching clothes!
The show currently on is exploring the work of eight artists who come from MK. One of the artists is the very talented Mr X Stitch. His spam email cross stitches are great, and I just love the use of the hoops as frames.
I also really enjoyed Emma Wilde's meticulous drawings of MK roadsides and Lauren Keeley's haunting paintings. And now, I really must rest my legs after all that walking!

Zines and new arrivals...

This week I have been reading zines. The lovely Heart & Lungs, a joyful collection of illustration, information, advice, bears and beards.And the delightful Green Bean, a super pretty insight into Katie Green Bean's new house, cake recipe, book reviews and super cute piglets.
I have also been knitting baby washcloths, from this great pattern from Kris Knits. As I currently have six pregnant friends, and there are only so many blankets and booties I can knit!
Speaking on new arrivals, on the roof of the tenements opposite, I have been watching a little seagull chick getting a little bit stronger and braver each day.
Surely it is time to fledge soon?

An ode to silliness...

On ravelry in the British Knitters group there was a thread regarding the new Astounding Knits book (see ten projects here). A few people felt that this did nothing to inspire knitters, that this kind of thing gave knitting a bad name and that they disliked knitting with no practical use. I for one, am just the opposite. Life can be pretty tough and harsh at the best of times. So I am all for a little bit of silliness or whimsy. I think these projects do inspire, they help to push the boundaries of what you can do with needles and yarn. And to the idea that they have no practical use, they do have function - they may make us laugh and think. Surely these are important? Being a little silly is very important. I for one, have spent the weekend using my knitted fishy as an air guitar or kipper tie (thanks to mr crafty for being my model).
Watched jousting and seen a little medieval craft.
And finished reading issue six of oh comely magazine. A magazine that describes itself as 'about people and their quirks and creativity, rather than money and what it can buy'. What a nice sentiment, now if only the rest of the world was like that.

A day on Lindisfarne...

Lindisfarne is a very special place. So rich in history, and so very pretty too.
As well as looking at the fine scenery, I was on the look out for textiles. In the Lindisfarne centre was a quilt by Joan Tunstall, depicting a page from the Lindisfarne gospels.
Within Lindisfarne castle, some fantastic textiles, and a very fetching original William Morris sofa.
Also on the island I couldn't help but notice some sheep, who seemed rather relieved that they had lost their woolly coats. Now I wonder if the fleece is off to make something special?