Knyttwytch's Crafts and Stuff

Bits and Pieces

First off I decided a couple of weeks back that I am fed up of my weak, breaking, scraggy and horrible nails! So I went for false/gel nails again - not too long because I need to be able to get dressed! But long enough that I feel slightly feminine again - and in my usual style I went for a nice subdued colour on the nails (NOT!)

The hand is still too podgy but the fun is there!

Secondly this is how far I had got with the cowl by the end of Sunday

I think I am pretty much back to where I was when I needed to pull it out again last time, so I think I am now on the home straight with this - I would really like to get this finished either this week or next - wish me luck!

Cleaning and Crafting

*Sigh*, I have the sofa and desk of DOOM again - my mission for this week (should I care to accept it!), as well as this I want to get some crafting done (I have discovered that with a stand I can manage a short length of yarn on a "Tapestry" so I plan on getting my tapestries done!), the sofa picture shows a Waterstones bag - that has some knitting in (a simple shawl - which now I have some better circular needles I can work on), on the desk is the "travel" crochet bag, again I want to get some of that done as well.  Add in to that the fact that I have a magazine to send out, stuff to get filed, stuff to get moved, books to read, seeds to sow .... it seems I will be busier than I originally thought!

I need to decide whether to clear the desk first or the sofa, do I work on both together? Or do I think "hang spring cleaning" (Mole from The Wind in the Willows) and just do the crafting! I know which I would LIKE to do ... but then again I like the place to look clean and tidy (another *sigh* for this one!)  Crafting would also take my mind off the fact that I am again trying to diet and at the same time I could have an audio book running - this would mean being able to keep on top of my Goodreads challenge, mind you the same could happen whilst clearing so that isn't too much of a problem (I have an Agatha Christie and a Dorothy L Sayers to get through quickly - both I think I have on audio, the one for the book club is on my Kindle so that is a sit and plough through it one!)

Hmm I wonder if A would be free this Saturday for lunch and a Knit and Natter? I think a text fest might be called for!  That and planning a healthy menu for next week (will the weather clear up again - salads are losing their appeal!)

Plans for 2013

Just a few things I want to get done next year!

1. Finish scarf

2. Read 213 books

3. Read two new series to me

4. Crochet 16 squares 0/16

5. Get up to arm holes on sweater

6. At least 1 new recipe every 4 weeks 0/13

7. Crochet a shawl

8. Clear £500 of the CC 0/500

9. Use make-up at least once a week 0/52

10. Lose 13 pounds in weight

11. Arm exercises at least once a week 0/52

12. Save £100 0/100

13. Learn to crochet in the round

13  items for 2013, well it seemed right to me *grin*.  I think even with my diminishing health I can manage to get these done (although the weight one could be the trickiest as I just can't seem to shift the "blubber"!!!)

The reading one should be fairly straight forward (even if it does mean reading between 17 and 18 books a month), the crochet, well maybe not quite so straight forward, but it does mean I am pushing myself a little bit and that must be a good thing.  With all of these the sooner I can get them done the sooner I can start planning my 2014 goals (sniggers quietly).

Meanwhile in order to try and get sorted I need to start planning the recipes, also see which recipe books still need to have recipes done out of them (so that could cover making sure that the books get used AND  ensuring that new recipes are put on my recipe blog).  Hmm do I need to have a sort out of the recipe books as well I wonder? There are a few that are always a good stand by and maybe those need to be more easily accessible, or would that make it too easy and the others just get forgotten more and more (answers on a post card please!)

Hmm speaking of post cards, one thing that isn't on my "To Do during 2013" list is keeping up with Postcrossing, this did slip by the wayside quite a bit during 2012 (mainly because I can't use my right hand too much and so writing is really, REALLY hard and painful).  Even if I only send a couple per month that would be something, even better would be a couple a week! but that may be pushing my writing luck.

At the moment my desk top is on the sick list with my OH frantically trying to resucitate it, until that is done and book writing is being put on the back burner, mainly because I can't get Dragon Naturally speaking to work on the laptop!

Wonderful Wedding Anniversary

On the 16th of November myself and my wonderful husband had been married for 10 years, and so we decided to go back to the same hotel we spent half our honeymoon at.  On the Thursday, therefore, we arrived at The Wynnstay Arms Hotel in Machynnleth and settled in for a fantastic three night break.  We stayed in the same room (4 poster bed!), and the service we had whilst there could not be faulted and the food .... frankly if they don't have a full page spread in various food quides then there is something wrong.  They pride themselves on sourcing food from as local as possible (although we were surprised to see Greene King IPA which is from around East Anglia - hardly Wales *grin*), two beers were from Welsh breweries though I understand.

We didn't try the Pizzaria (although that could be tried this coming summer when we are back in the area (sadly not staying at the Hotel though!), but I managed to pile on 6 pounds in 4 days - fantastic food as I said! If you are ever in the area I recommend the hotel for everything from a full evening meal, through lunch and of course tea or coffee (and if you get to stay there even better).

Monday and almost the first week of December gone

I spent an awful lot of last week NOT getting things done for one reason or another (seasonal depression and pain being the main reasons),  I don't know how other people are finding the weather but I am finding it almost impossible to stitch as the lighting is just not good enough, this is rather annoying as I have an awful lot of stitching to do!

One problem I have found is that I can no longer really wear any socks other than trainer socks (ie not going up the leg at all), this means that the sock I was half way through is now obsolete (need to meet with Alison and discover how to make socklets!), I am finding also that crochet is harder than I thought - I seem to really strangle/over tighten the yarn, I am wondering if using a larger hook size would solve this (answers on a postcard please!).

This week is the book club so making sure I have read the book! this month's is "Ghostwalk" by Rebecca Stott and is based in and around Cambridge so interesting from that point of view before  you even start reading (as we live in a village about 10 miles from the centre of Cambridge), one task I want to do this week (as well as the usual bits of cleaning that I can manage), it to make sure that my otehr blogs are linked to on here - so that's my healthy living blog and the blog that shows the recipes we have done.

I was up reasonably early today and so I am already shattered, today is going to be a planning day only, Dr Tempewytch is hoping to take Thursday and Friday off so they will both be relaxing days (well Thursday we may get some laundry done), the weather is supposed to get all Wintery again so that is not going to be the best for me - ah well!