Sock it to me!

I finally did it and I learnt so much on the journey. I love the colours of the yarn, although they don't show up very well in the photos.

The fit around my instep is spot on now and I'll have to remember to fiddle with any future patterns to accommodate my high instep and chunky ankles. I also tried Kitchener stitch to bind off the toe. I've used it on shoulder seams before but not on something knit in the round. It took a couple of goes but I got there in the end.

One thing I will have to get used to, never having had hand knitted socks before, is the feel of the stitches on my sole - they feel kind of lumpy (yeah, I know they're knit stitches so they're bound to but I just hadn't expected it!). Tinker decided to lend a hand in the photography but got bored and left part way through, just staying long enough to demonstrate how well the colours go with his beautiful ginger coat!

Here it is, unblocked. Now, what's the best way to block when you haven't got sock-blockers? Maybe a bent wire coat-hanger? Does it actually need blocking? I shall ponder these questions whilst I continue making some curtains.

At the beginning of the week the weather forecast for Sunday (Steyning marathon) was dire but has now been updated to be brighter. Fingers crossed anyway as last year was truly awful and I have never been so cold and wet.

Two Walks and a Triumphant sock

I forgot to write about a lovely walk Mike and I did last week. It was a 7 mile route around the village of Salehurst and the footpath took us alongside the beautiful church of St Mary the Virgin, a 13th century chapel, so we went in for a look. This first thing that struck us was the glorious stained glass window above the entrance. The colours are jewel-like and absolutely gorgeous.


Just inside the porch we spotted this most impressive font. It dates back to the times of the Crusades and was reputedly a gift from Richard 1st as a thank you to the Abbot of Robertsbridge for assisting him. At the base of the font you can see the salamanders which are a symbol associated with the Crusades. You can see a good photo of the interior of the church here

On the way back we passed through several orchards and I took this photo because the apple trees looked almost alien and I loved the shapes their bare branches made. You can see that the farmer had been busy pruning them and all the prunings are laid out neatly in piles ready for collection.



Our walk yesterday took us across the fields not far from home. It was an unseasonally warm day. We crossed a field of ewes who looked as if they were getting close to lambing. One of them was especially friendly and took a liking to Mike. I think she was trying to see if he had anything to eat in his pocket!
She followed us all the way to the stile and stayed to watch us walk along the lane. Awwh!


Last but not least, I've finally got round the heel on my sock and it fits this time. HOORAH!!! There's about 1" to go before I work the toe so it should be finished tomorrow with a bit of luck. Here's a sneaky peak. There will be more photos soon 'cos I'm rather pleased with it now (hope that isn't tempting fate for the toe!).

Rip it, rip it........

A frog he would a-ripping go,
Hey-ho said Susie!

The longer heel didn't make enough difference so I have ripped right back again and am increasing the leg stitches by 8. That works with the pattern repeat and following lots of measuring of my arch and ankle I reckon that, combined with a slightly longer heel, will do the trick.

One thing I now understand is why so many people have taken to sock knitting - progress is so quick. If I hadn't had to start again twice then I'd easily have completed one sock by now. Instant gratification!

Fingers crossed it works this time (well, obviously they won't be crossed when I'm knitting, DOH!).

One good thing did happen today though. I got all my stuff through from the lovely people at Guinness World Records ready for the London marathon. I do actually remember last year saying that I would never do the running and knitting again as it was so blooming hard and painful but I'm getting quite excited about it now. Maybe I am mad after all. People have been saying it for years!!!

Cats!

Now Tinker doesn't normally bother with my knitting (unlike Barney who loved to fight with it!). Ha, who am I kidding! I'd left it on the chair whilst I fed the horses and bunnies and when I returned it looked like a Tom and Jerry cartoon with wool all over the place. I had done about 3" having restarted my sock but I had to rip it right back to this. Ah well, c'est la vie.

I Knit London, Wendy & a Glorious Sunset

This morning I had a lovely email from Gerard at I Knit London. I'd emailed him to ask if he'd publicise my running/knitting stuff at FLM (London marathon) and he has very kindly agreed to put something about it in his weekly newsletter. I'm hoping to get to meet him this year at the Stitch'n'Bitch in September as I missed him at FLM last year where he was publicising the charity Water Aid. You may remember they organised a wonderful knitted river to draw attention to the problems of lack of clean water in 3rd world countries.

Next up was a very helpful email from Wendy from Wendy Knits I'd left a comment on her blog asking for advice about my high instep/heel problem and I was thrilled that she'd taken the time to reply to me. She agreed that the best way would be to increase the length of the heel section then lose the extra stitches after the turn. I've now ripped right back to the start so will be casting on again tomorrow. Thanks Wendy, you're a star!

How did we manage without the internet?!

Finally, we had the most glorious sunset this evening so I tried to capture some of its beauty. Everywhere was bathed in a pinky amber glow and it looked so lovely.

First frog of the year!

I turned the heel last night and didn't find it difficult at all so no worries there. It was, however, obvious that my foot was never going to fit in the space provided! I have quite high arches and I didn't need to go to the trouble of slipping my stitches onto waste yarn to try it on - it was obvious that I would be ripping backand starting again!

So, I will need to increase the number of stitches around the leg section (but not too many or it will be too loose) then I suppose I'll have to lengthen the heel bit to give my ankle room to get into the foot section. Better go and do some searching around on the internet for advice. In the meantime it's off to the frog pond........................

Last long run before the Stinger

Hoorah, it's taper time (that means I start reducing my mileage before the marathon)! I did 15 miles cross country this morning and it was very cold at 7am when I ventured out. The ground was frozen solid and some of the fields were very hard to run on as they were rutted when the crops had been drilled in. On the way back the sun was out and the ground had softened which made the going a bit easier.

Here's a photo of a solitary Blackthorn tree in our back garden. originally it would have formed part of a stock-proof hedge but sadly this is all that remains. In the olden days people knew a thing or two and it provides us with sloes in the autumn with which we can make Sloe Gin (YUM!). It look so pretty and the smell of the pollen is sickly sweet as you pass it. Kizzy and Esther are tucking into their feed in the background.

This evening I shall start to turn the heel on my sock so I'll soon know if I need to rip it or not. Fingers crossed........

Knit Today Magazine

As I'm now fully into fund-raising mode I've started to contact everyone who helped me with publicity last year. After the London marathon I was contacted by Janice Broadstock, the editor of Knit Today magazine and she very kindly put a little article about my antics in the magazine. This time I contacted her and she replied almost immediately offering to do a little write-up in issue 20 which is due out at the end of March, just in time for the London marathon. I suggested that she could mention that people might like to come and have a 'Knit-Out' too as it's a lovely day out (weather permitting!) and there is a great pub at about mile 18 which is really close to the road so you get to see the runners close up. She even said she might pop along herself. What a star!

I know the Alzheimer's Research Trust will be happy to provide everyone with lovely purple tee shirts and it would be wonderful to be greeted by a group of knitters at a point where I will most likely be getting tired.

We tried to organise it last year but sadly Rachael Matthews (a talented knit designer) didn't have any luck getting people together in time. What I really need is someone to co-ordinate it and organise a knitting group so I might try contacting one of the knitting groups in central London to see if they could help.

I swatched and washed but........

........it's looking pretty darned small to me! My swatch came up bang on the correct tension but now I've started it looks so small. I've tried it on my hand and it stretches to 20cm with out too much effort and my ankle/calf measures about 20.5 so technically it should be OK. I suppose what I should do is carry on, turn the heel (gulp) and then stick it on waste yarn and try it on. That way, if I have to frog it at least I'll have had some good practice.

What a glorious weekend

The weather this weekend has been unseasonally warm. It seems wrong to complain but I do worry that global warming is taking it's toll. Putting that to one side we took full advantage of it and I enjoyed a lovely 20 mile run this morning along the lanes. I had intended to go across country but the fields are just too sodden and it would have taken even longer than usual.

When I left home at 7am the sun was just thinking about getting up and I headed off towards Bodiam bathed in a pinkish/Amber glow. This photo was taken looking from the front of our house.

By the time I reached Bodiam the sun was just peeping out over the hills.



There had been a heavy frost and the ground was covered in a shimmering white carpet which appeared golden as the sun's rays spread across it.






Bodiam castle looked almost pink in this eerie light.

From Bodiam, I headed off towards Northiam and did some circuits in that area before heading for home. Although it had been very cold first thing, I was sweltering by the time I got home at 11am. The day was just too gorgeous to be indoors so Mike and I headed out for a 5 mile walk along the river Rother. It may sound strange, having just run 20 miles, but it really helped to stretch my legs out.

On the knitting front, most of the ends have been woven in on my wrap and I must get Mike to take a photo of me wearing it. I am very pleased with how it has turned out as the colours are so beautiful.

I have decided not to embark upon my FairIsle project straight away and instead I am going to attempt my first ever pair of socks - the 'Sea Wool Bordello socks' using Fleece Artist yarn, colour 'Origin'. I got in such a tangle winding the skein into balls but I got there in the end! I'm not sure that the colour shows up very well in the photo - it has shades of plum, mauve and gold and looked pretty in the skein. I'm just off to cast-on now.

Pounding out the miles

Well it was more like squelching actually as the ground is so wet and claggy after all the rain we've had recently. At least it wasn't flooded though and I just had to deal with loads of mud rather than flood water. I did 16 miles across the fields today and it was quite a struggle 'cos of all the slipping and sliding around in the mud. Never mind, it's another long run under my belt. Photos will be uploaded soon........

The knitting part is finished.......

.....now it's time to weave in all those pesky ends! When I started the 'Modern Quilt Wrap' I diligently wove in the ends as I did each square. Sadly this good habit didn't last very long and I soon resorted to leaving them dangling free. Never mind, with a bit of good light and determination I'll soon have them darned in. Proper photos will appear when that is finished.

On the running front, I did a very pleasant 20 miler along the lanes yesterday. It was a glorious day. I left home at 7am with the moon still in the sky, watched the sun rise, ran a few miles then returned home at 11am to finish off wallpapering my office. I was rather tired so it took some determination to do the papering, but all the climbing up and down ladders seems to have stretched my legs out and they feel really fresh today.




After my run today, it was so lovely that I dragged Mike out for a walk as soon as I got back. Sometimes you simply have to enjoy the beautiful weather when it's with you. I just had to take a photo of these little beauties who were gamboling around without a care in the world. There is something really uplifting seeing the first lambs of the year. I expect some people will be thinking about mint sauce (not me though as I'm a vegetarian!) but I think of all the lovely wool they'll produce for us knitters.

Part of our walk lead us through the pine woods and Mike took this rather moody photo. I love the darkness that envelops you in a pine wood and the pinky/amber glow of the pine needles on the ground against the blackness of the tree trunks. I've seen many modern paintings that look just like this view. Very arty!

It never rains but it pours!

What dreadful weather we've been having for the last week - torrential rain and gale-force winds. Horrid! The fields are totally waterlogged and yesterday was so bad that the horses just stayed in their field shelters all day, poor things. I even had to do my run on the treadmill, which I don't usually enjoy but there was no way I could have run outside.

Today, however, there was some respite. The wind died away and the sun shone all day. It was glorious and I treated myself to a 9 mile loop through the village and round Northiam. This is a view of Bodiam Castle from the village. You can just see a bit of water on the right of the photo and in the next one you can see more of it. This is where the River Rother has overflowed and not a photo of the Lake District! Thankfully, the sheep have been moved from these fields or they'd have been swimming!

I just had to take a photo of these 2 little beauties asleep in the hay manger whilst mum caught 40 winks herself. Aren't they adorable? They were born just after Christmas so were earlier than expected.

On the knitting front, I have only got another 6 squares to do then my Modern Quilt Wrap will be finished (well, apart from darning in hundreds of ends!)

The Great Outdoors

Today I was scheduled to run 15 miles and I chose to run it as a cross country route as my first marathon of the year is the Steyning Stinger in March. I ran it last year and the weather was vile for the whole 26.2 miles. Today was an appropriate training session as the ground was sodden, with flood water lying on many of the fields. The arable fields were as claggy as can be with mud that sucked one of my shoes off at one point. One footpath was totally impassable with a torrent of water cascading down it with no way of passing along the side so I had to do a 2 mile detour.

There were many stiles on the route, all of which were very slippy and it's a miracle I didn't fall over. The other problem was the wind - it was very strong but thankfully not as bad as it has been over the last week. This meant there were branches strewn all over the place and I frequently had to move them out of the way to continue along the path. On the plus side, at least it wasn't raining!

I headed out at 7:30am thinking I'd just be out for 3 hours but I didn't get home until 11:15am so was absolutely cream-crackered and spent the afternoon just sitting knitting.

The Start of an Adventure

Something exciting arrived in the post this morning - my shade card from Jamieson and Smith. Just look at those colours; aren't they scrummy?!













Tinker has been helping move all the stuff out of my office as we are about to decorate so he's having a well-earned rest. Behind him you can just make out make out part of my yarn stash in a plastic box. You won't be surprised to hear that there is more!

A Glorious Weekend

The weather has been lovely for most of the weekend and I extended yesterday's run to 11.5 miles instead of the 8 miles I was supposed to do. I added a cross-country loop into the middle just so I could go across the fields and soak in the views. Today I ran 12 miles in the morning and it was very slippy underfoot so I had to be extra careful. It's raining now so I'm settling down to some knitting before I have to go and feed the horses.

Sold out!

Drat and double drat. I finally ordered the Oregon Cardigan kit from Virtual Yarns and received an email telling me that several key colours had sold out due to high demand (presumably following its appearance in Vogue Knitting) so they had cancelled my order. The yarns are expected back in stock in April so it looks as if I may have to wait to start my big FairIsle project.

There is another option that I had considered - Autumn Rose by Eunny Yang. Maybe this is a sign and I should go for that instead. I've just ordered a shade card from Jamieson & Smith and I already have the pattern for it in Simply Shetland 4 at Tomales Bay and I love the colours and style, although I would make the neckline less plunging (excess cleavage on show is not a good look for a lady, such as me, of a 'certain age'!!!).

No running today as it's a scheduled rest day. Tinker went out briefly earlier on and came back with a vole in his mouth which he proceeded to eat. Nature in the raw! Now he's settled in my collection of coloured carrier bags under my table.

Slogging through the snow

It wasn't that bad actually but I did my 7 miles across the fields in driving snow which I really enjoyed. There's something very satisfying about battling against the elements. Of course I can say that now I'm home, all warm and dry! The route I took lead me to Salehurst a charming hamlet nearby. At one point you pass the remains of Robertsbridge Abbey (just the refectory wall with an archway in it remains!) which is situated in the garden of a farmhouse.

My scarf has now officially been restarted and I did a couple of squares last night.

This is the cross stitch project I'm about to start. It's a cushion cover for in my office and I just love the bright, jewel-like colours. Now I've got to find my tapestry frame which is lurking in a cupboard somewhere........

Windy Wednesday

Well, the weather today was bright but rather cold and windy so I planned an 8 mile run that took me across country and through woodland for some of the time so I was sheltered. It was lovely and bracing but rather slippy in the woods as there was lots of mud and many puddles to negotiate. Amazingly I managed not to fall over and returned home in one piece!

I totted up my mileage for 2007 and I ran 2115 miles which is nearly 400 more than 2006. I doubt that I'll run as many this year as I don't intend to do any ultras (well not so far any way...............)


This is a book I stumbled upon in a secondhand book store a few weeks ago - The Second Book of Modern Lace Knitting, published in 1961. The front cover is of no interest but what made me smile was the name of the publishers - Mills & Boon. Now you wouldn't associate them with this sort of book nowadays!






Here is a centrepiece I've just completed but haven't blocked yet and the photo below is called 'Daffodils' and I rather fancy that as a Spring project.

My patchwork scarf has come out of hiding and when I look at it I can see some of Barney's hairs woven into it from when he sat on my knee whilst I knit. It made me sad but happy too as I shall always remember him when I wear it. Now I want to get it finished so I shall be concentrating on that for the rest of this week.

Happy New Year to everyone!

Here we are at the start of 2008 and it's traditional to make lots of 'resolutions' to which one struggles to adhere so I'm not going to! Instead I'm giving myself some more flexible goals and one of those is to blog more frequently and include more general stuff about what I get up to (I have so many hobbies and interests that it seems a shame to miss them out). This morning when I looked out of the bedroom window I noticed a little visitor in the horses' field - a sheep had found a way through the hedge from the adjoining field and was grazing quite happily with Esther looking on! I haven't bothered to get him back as he's in no danger and the ponies don't seem to mind him being there.

I did a pleasant 6 mile run this morning along the lanes and wished I'd taken the camera with me as I saw 2 newborn lambs. Awwwwh! I shall try to remember to take it with me in future as there's always something of interest.

I'm feeling the urge to knit again, thank goodness, but I've also got some crochet and cross stitch projects on the go so my time will be spread out as usual.

I also need to plan out my fund-raising and racing for the year. I will definitely be raising money for the Alzheimer's Research Trust again as my main charity plus there will be other individual events for different charities. I'm running the London marathon again and will most probably be doing my knitting too as the publicity was fantastic (even though actually doing it was jolly hard - the knitting that is, not the running!!!!!!!).