Crochet
First we have some progress on my crochet blanket. I'm really enjoying this, especially the textural side of it with the bobbles and front post trebles (or front post double crochet in US terms). It measures about 18" across in this photo. The only down side is that I can't work on it for too long at a time as it hurts my hands; darned arthritis. Never mind, it isn't a race to the finish line and it's an enjoyable journey.
The last row in the photo above is crab stitch which really defines the edge beautifully. I know some people are scared to trying it as it's counter-intuitive to go from left to right in crochet. However, a few weeks ago I showed my friend Julie how to do it and although she was adamant that she would never get the hang of it she was soon crabbing away quite happily. It's all about perseverance - just keep trying it and don't expect it to be perfect first time.
Knitting
Next was a needs-must knit. I made these gloves for Mike many years ago and when they started to get tatty I took them for horse duties. They've been darned and darned (you can see a patch on the lefthand side) but I think the moths have been at them too as the yarn just kept tearing each time they were mended so I needed a new pair pdq as my hands get cold very quickly when I'm struggling with horse blankets and feed buckets.
On rummaging through my stash I found a ball of what looked like a wool and possibly alpaca mix of 4ply and several small scraps of assorted yarns of a similar weight. I wanted the gloves to be really close-fitting as it makes my fingers feel better when they are tightly encased and it's also easier to manage fiddly buckles and halters. So I decided to try an experiment by making the gloves extra large and then attempting to felt them in the washing machine on a hot wash.
It worked a treat and they feel lovely. Hopefully they'll last a few seasons. This was just a basic glove pattern to which a added some stripes of colour.
Join dementia research update
If you click on the link above you'll see that the number of people who signed up to JDR rose by 2500 in the week after the launch with our region, Kent, Surrey and Sussex just sneaking into the lead. I was delighted that so far 35 of my friends have also signed up to the PROTECT study and hopefully there will be more soon.
The success of that week would not have been possible without all the people who helped to spread the message but I wanted to give a special mention to all the hard-working people at JDR HQ who worked tirelessly to ensure it was a success. They don't get into the limelight but we would not have got to this stage without their hard work and dedication. Well done team!
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| Here we have Andrew Rutherford, Zara Qadir, Catherine Wheatcroft and Peter Gudge |
In my post about launch day I mentioned that I'd forgotten my camera but there was something I just had to share with everyone; this yarn-storming outside Mary Ward House which was across the road from JDR headquarters. There are some sweet little seahorses and fish. Very jolly.
I have no idea who did it or why but I really wanted to share it so I asked if one of the JDR team could please help me out by taking some photos.
Many thanks to Andrew who took these photos on his phone. I chuckled when he apologised for their quality because his phone is 3 years old - Andrew, mine's going on 15 years old and doesn't even take photos!
More exciting news to follow soon.
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