when everything turns to cr@p - knit socks.

I don't know if it has been the rotten weather of late but all my mojo seams to have gone. I have not been in my craft room for weeks and just don't feel inspired to do very much at all. I have let me folksy shop run down to almost no stock because I was just not getting any interest at all, and my Etsy shop has had few visitors either, I emptied all the books from my Amazon shop because they were all very heavy and you don't get enough to cover postage, and when others sell their copy at 1p - well, I just couldn't compete - and I seam to have almost run out of things to sell on ebay.

I have been desperate to finish quilts before starting any new ones but the tops I have are all huge so I just don't have the space to do them properly and likewise I really want to go through my fabric collection and make myself some new clothes but can't for the same reasons. 

To be honest I have feel thoroughly sorry for myself.

Mr Figs Noro Rainbow socks

Something that does keep me busy and is ultimately rewarding is knitting a pair of socks. 

They are something I can do without having to think too much, I can watch telly, chat, take them anyware, and that tube just goes round and round and round. In the past month I have knit 4 pairs - two were claimed by Mr Fig instantly and he has worn them in rotation ever since - even gently hand washing them himself! Another pair is for my Grandma's 98th birthday next month (deliberately in bright colours as she can't believe they make anything but grey sock wool, or that people knit them these days.) and the last pair has been for myself as a pair of slouchy warm soft sitting around at night socks. 

Grandma's 98th Birthday present.

My box of sock knitting wool is still full to the top - and there always people who are willing recipients of a pair of hand made socks. No matter what other projects I have on the go - or not on the go as the case may be, I will hopefully always have a sock on the needles.

random arty close ups of socks!

If you are a sock knitter you will know what I mean - if you always wanted to have a go at sock knitting but were afraid of using 4or5 needles - HAVE A GO! it's easier than you think (once you get past the first couple of rounds!!!!)

a little colour in an otherwise grey sky.

Yesterday I drove a whole 5 miles to Gisburn to collect baby fig from the beat-hearder festival.

Last year she had gone for the first time. The weather had been amazing, she came back the same colour as a boiled lobster with colourful tales to tell about the whole experience. The people, the bands, the food, the camping, and everything else that goes with a festival.

Yesterday I struggled to get my car onto the site through the mud. Everything she had taken was caked in it, wet and muddy and more than a bit smelly, her legs were aching, and she was tired.

She has just woken up after a good 13 hours sleep in a rotten mood, so I have escaped upstairs to avoid give her some time to sort her stuff out.

I have been playing with colour to keep a cheerful head on while the rain continues to fall here.

I have been working on a bathroom rug made from Tee Shirts cut into 1" strips and knitted.

It is working out better than I hoped, but is getting quite heavy now and squeaks while being knit. 

It is also taking a lot more Tee Shirts than I thought it would. I am on my 4th now and it is still only 20" long.

A friend gave me a ball and a half of some Rico creative DK - so I decided to make myself my 2nd 'Childry' 

It is perfect for just protecting my neck from drafts and keeping the earache at bay.

Although the frilly edge is over 600 stitches long, so I only knit about 3 rows instead of 6 - they were taking almost 1 hour each - and lets be honest, who really need a frill that deep?

We have between the rain and floods actually had 1 really nice day last week. As I sat in my little sewing room this lot pulled up outside the window. They were off to the fields behind us to cut the grass for haylage. It is like a military operation with the filled trailers hurtling up and down the road all evening - and none of them slow down for the speed bump about 20 yards away because I think they like the incredible noise it makes. Ah, the bliss of country living!