Frozen

It has been a really mild winter here in the Netherlands. As you can see we still have roses! They even survived the frost shown on the picture. It will however get colder next week. Good reason to keep on knitting! (lets focus on the positive side of things. I have to admit that I have enjoyed the mild weather - makes dressing three little ones so much easier!)

Despite the colder weather coming our way I hope that I can plant spinach in February. In coming weeks I also want to do a inventory on last years seeds and order some  new organic seeds from here. They also sell in UK, Ireland, France and Germany.  I have been very pleased with their products and service in the past and look forward to browsing their catalogue again. If only I had a bigger kitchen garden to fit everything I would like to try! That would be fun especially when making plans for the coming season. Maybe not so when trying to get rid of the weed :)

Knitting

January 15th and I have my first finish of the year! Wool socks for my 3-year-old. The first sock for my daughter is also done.

Three weeks ago I was certain that I will not pick up knitting again. I learned to knit at school and it is the only type of craft that I did somewhat regularly outside of school when growing up. But I never managed to make something I really liked. I was always trying out something without a pattern and then getting frustrated because it did not work out. Crocheting on the other hand was something I wanted to try again and I asked for crochet hooks for Christmas. My mum included a whole set of knitting needles to the package and before I knew it I was knitting socks. I had not knit for ten years but apparently it is like riding a bike. And if you do have a pattern and the right sort of yarn for the project, you can actually make something useful.

I did some research on knitting and learned that there are different methods how to knit. I seem to be doing it the continental style with a special kind of technique for the purl stitch. I learned all that from here. I'm knitting with bamboo knitting needles and love them! They feel nice and warm, make less noise and prevent sliding. I will never go back to the metal ones again! When I have finished the socks for my daughter I want to try something new and make these type of socks for myself.

Goodbye 2011 Hello 2012

Dear 2011, you were really good to me! Even if I did slow down this year I was still sewing, gardening, baking, hand printing and embroidering. I even added knitting to the list at the very end of the year! 

And Hello 2012! What a beautiful beginning with sun and snow. 

I wish you all happy and joyful new year!