Season's Greetings

Merry Christmas to all who celebrate it, Happy New Year and Happy Holidays for those who have other festivals to celebrate at or around the Solstice. 

Apologies for the dearth of posts since the spring. We've had a funny year, health-wise, but now beginning to feel a bit more like doing things again. This photo was taken by Mr Bufo on the Canal de Bourgogne in May. As usual we have made a donation - this year to Macmillan Cancer Support - in lieu of sending commercial Christmas cards.

Catch-up on the knitting

Time for another knitting post. I've been getting on with several things over the last few months, including finally finishing something that has been a bit of a millstone, and starting a fun blanket. Meanwhile there are always socks, and I've embarked on my first top-down cardigan.

The blanket is a Knit-Along (KAL) that started at the beginning of January, though I only got going at the end of Jan- but I've caught up now. Patterns are released every 1, 8, 15, and 22 of each month, leaving the extra days at the end of the month for sewing up the four squares produced into a larger square. At the end of each quarter we get the instructions for sewing the quarter's 3 larger squares into a strip. 







So far I have one strip




















plus one month's large square









and a couple of weeks' squares from this month 

The plan is to end up with 48 squares and 'weeks' 49 and 50 will be the final assembly and border.



The 'millstone' is a cardigan for Mr Bufo that I started two years ago. The pattern was not well-written - to start with, the opening of the pattern stated it was 'Small, Medium and Large' But the actual instructions were for 4 sizes. 
I had a long gap when I had put it away for the summer, as being too hot to do in the warmer months, and when I came back to it in the autumn of 2016 I couldn't find the bag of new balls of wool! So I did other things that winter, and it wasn't until sometime last year I found the bag with the extra in. 
Then when I thought I'd nearly finished I discovered that the cuffs on the sleeves I had knitted according to pattern would not go over Mr B's hands, so I ended up picking up the stitches from the armholes and knitting down.
But now it is done, it doesn't look too bad, and I think he's quite pleased with it!




And then we come to socks ...




I bought 2 balls of sock yarn in Lille at Christmas
















... and knitted up the red and blue for Mr B














Then I made a start on the purple and grey for me, but haven't got very far yet.

And I keep being tempted/distracted by other things, like this Sirdar Colourwheel














...with which I've started the top-down cardigan 







So that's most of it - I've done a few shawls and other bits and pieces along the way, of course! 

To Cheer Myself Up

Trying to compensate for yet another plan going 'a-gley' - and so as not to look at the grey weather outside the window, I'm cheering myself up with some of the photos I took in Poole Park last week when the weather was rather more springlike.

Anemone blanda cheering up the side of the footpath, together with some forget-me-nots further along.

Amelanchier

Bluebells

Pen swan nest-building ...

...while the cob is on guard.

Pink Hawthorn (crataegus)

And I popped back the next day to
see that the pen was already sitting
... no sign of the cob, though!

There, now - that seems a bit more like spring!

Candlemas and Signs of Spring

I don't know whether the weather today has been bad enough to count as winter gone, or bright enough for it to take another flight,* as there have been sunny and cloudy spells here. But a couple of days ago it was pleasant enough to take a few photos of bits of the garden, which was cheering, as there are snowdrops nearly out ...

Primroses ...

Hellebores ...

Lungwort ...
















...and my camellia is in bud for the first time in ages! 

* If Candlemas Day be sun and bright
Winter will have another flight
If Candlemas Day be cloud and rain
Winter will not come again.