Whatever the weather...

One of the things I like about being a Brit is our obsession with the weather. This is one of our national stereotypes and source of amusement in other countries.

When a friend from New York moved here she put away all her winter clothes on the first mild spring day as that's what she did in the US as when the weather warmed up there it stayed that way. A few days later she was horrified that it was snowing and below zero and she had to scramble around in her freezing attic to find warm clothes. I think this is where our weather obsession comes from. British weather is unpredictable but also has subtle variations. In places where the weather is predictable why talk about it?

Our recent winters have been wet but mild so this one is taking us by surprise. I'm enjoying the snow and loving wearing my hand knit socks - did I mention I love handknit socks? I also love the beauty and quiet snow creates. Here's a picture from NASA of our green isles turned white. Beautiful.

Comments

Anonymous said…

See, the Minnesotans know better than to put away winter clothes before at least May. I'm only half kidding.

26 January 2010 at 11:20

Deb said…

I love your blog and seeing England up close. I'm from Canada and have roots through the line of the "Bonnie" Prince Charlie. I think this picture is cool. I am more of a crocheter than a knitter. You knit beautifully. Love your socks.

20 April 2011 at 01:31

Deja deja decisions

After all my decision making in my post yesterday, and my eagerness to cast on, my brain interfered again and I spent most of the evening playing with colour combos in Excel.

It looked like this:

I stared at it for ages, showed it to my other half, stared at it again, showed it to my other half*
*repeat until bedtime.

I decided to get stuck in having whittled it down to two possible layouts. I'm still not one hundred percent sure but I'm hoping I'll have a better idea by the time I'm at the next colour change.

Food: easy five spice soda bread

In that idle time between Christmas and New Year some have dubbed Twixmas, I found myself recuperating from spending a week with my very intense mother-in-law by watching mid-morning TV.

I flicked over to Nadiya's British Food Adventure where this recipe for red split lentils and five-spice soda bread caught my eye.

I'm a big fan of curry; it's my favourite cuisine and the combo of lentil soup and soda bread ticked the right boxes. My dad is a keen breadmaker and he talked about making soda bread over Christmas which had tickled my interest. While I like the idea of making bread, I'm unlikely to have bread flour or yeast in and I find the kneading and proving off putting, but soda bread is doable.

The lentil soup was eaten before I thought of photographing it. It's similar to dhals we routinely make for dinner - so cheap and easy to do - though the garlic and butter were a treat. The bread has lasted for a few days as there are only two of us in the house. I manag…

Deja decisions

Almost two years to the day that I cast on for what has so far been my biggest FO, I'm casting on another.

When I found out my first nephew was on the way I um'd and ah'd over what to knit for him; i.e. I spent hours browsing Ravelry looking at ALL THE BABY THINGS.

I wanted to make him a blanket, something he'd hopefully use and keep for several years, maybe into adulthood. While I like knitting modular patterns, crocheting motifs and generally being a clever clogs, my brain kept on returning to a simple yet effective pattern.

#knitting pattern is Teddy blanket by Millamia A photo posted by clarestorry (@gingerknits) on Apr 20, 2014 at 9:44am PDT

I've worked with MillaMia in the past and their oh so cheerful Teddy Blanket had always attracted a lot of attention at yarn shows. It's a very easy knit though it is an exercise in stamina.

After doing more browsing (thanks again Ravelry) I decided on it but using Rico Essential Cotton, not MillaMia yarn, as although …

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