Gardening fail

We are not very good at gardening here at yarnroundhook. A lack of interest combined with a lack of time is, I think, the problem.

The front garden is messy and overgrown...

Last year we got a lovely letter from the council about 'overhanging the boundary' which resulted in some frenzied pruning of the holly bush and lilac tree. I do try to keep the front garden relatively tidy, but relative to what I don't know. It doesn't look very tidy, does it?

The other side of the path is a bit neater and some of the wild sweetpeas survived the purge and are now in flower...

As for the back garden...well, we completely overhauled it when we first moved here. We tore down a garage (which would have turned into an excuse to hoard crap, knowing us) to make the garden bigger and laid a patio and lawn. The men who laid the lawn for us asked if we'd like a border around it. Knowing our limitations we said no, so the colour in the garden must come from containers. Which, if I buy ready-grown plants don't do so badly.

However, if we try to grow things from seed it is a different story...

Nearly every blog I read is, at the moment, teasing me with pictures of the strawberries they've grown. Do you want to see ours?

Does it look like these are going to bear fruit by August? No.

I also, this year, attempted to grow some ranunculus, one of my favourite flowers.

(Picture via Bella signature design)

Let me show you how they're getting on...

I don't know what I did wrong. I soaked the bulbs like the instructions said, planted them in new compost, I'm sure I planted them the right way up... sadly, I think these are as good as they're going to get.

*sigh*

Easy sewing

Two of #1's summer dresses from last year...

turned into skirts...

and shortening a pair of jeans...

God, how I resent the fact that I have to do this, but I am sadly afflicted with a lack of height. The only jeans I can find that don't gape alarmingly at the waist are Gap's 'curvy' jean and the shortest length they come in is 30". This is way too long when you are, apparently, the height of an 'average' 13 year old (the statistician in me knows there is no such thing as an average 13 year old, hence the ' '). Anyhow, I like to shorten my jeans keeping the original hem, for which I use this tutorial.

And, before you ask, no, I can't buy teenager jeans because I don't have the figure (for which you may read 'hips and thighs') of a teenager.

On to some more complicated sewing today. Simplicity pattern 2579, view B.

Wish me luck!

At home

We are a 1 car family and Thursday is the day that the Mr takes it for work, so it is also the day that #2 and I are 'at home'. We had a fine old time this morning out in the garden playing 'can't catch me' and hide and seek. I love how little children think they are hidden from view if they simply lie face-down on the floor whilst giggling madly.

We sat on the back door step for a drink and a chat and I couldn't resist taking this photo to show you that he was wearing his sisters sandals. I love that #2 is still at an age where he will wear a dress and lots of girly accessories if given half a chance. Maybe he'll still be like this when he's 25, who knows?!

We did a little gardening - deadheading the flowers, perhaps a bit too enthusiastically at times. They've done really well these violas - they've gone a bit 'leggy' but are still producing lots of flowers. I like the way they are all turned towards the direction of the sun.

Then we went off to our 'rhythm and rhyme' class - where the dancing song for today was 'Top of the world' by The Carpenters which seemed very apt as today is my wedding anniversary.

That was our wedding car - a red and white 2CV Dolly. Aaahhh, the memories!

Cherry pie and the power of advertising

If there's one reason to love summer it is surely for the soft fruit. Cherries, nectarines, strawberries, gooseberries,....

Well, it wasn't going to be for the weather was it? It's raining here today and the temperature seems to have plummeted by about 10 degrees. Good old British Summer...

So anyway, cherries are half-price in the Co-op at the moment and I remembered seeing a blog post somewhere about cherry pie and thought I'd have a go. In hindsight, yesterday was not the best day for making pie. It was hot. Pastry, hot weather and having the oven on are not a good combination, especially if you are not paying attention (one eye was on the children in the paddling pool) and add too much liquid to the pastry.

I didn't follow MrsB's recipe exactly. I decided to make the delicious almond enriched pastry from Nigella's cranberry bakewell tart which you can find in the book 'Feast'. It is a deliciously crisp pastry that tastes a bit like marzipan - yum yum. Well, it's delicious if you actually like marzipan...which I do and will eat the off-cuts from covering the Christmas cake until I feel sick... but that's another story.

The pastry was difficult to manage even after a spell in the freezer and I had to do a fair bit of swearing patching on the base, but that's ok, you can't see it. When it came to the pastry lid I rolled it between 2 sheets of clingfilm which worked a treat.

I was surprised that the pie was not a hit with the children - they ate the pastry and left the cherries. Such a shame that I'll have to eat it all myself now.

Now, on to the power of advertising. You see that drink in the picture? Well I kept seeing this...

it seemed to be in every magazine I opened. White Grenache mixed with ginger ale and summer berries. It sounded good. It is good. But be warned - it goes down a little too easily!

Nap time

This afternoon, sitting in the shade of the garden parasol, a bag of yarn at my feet...

a cup of tea and a bowl of perfectly ripe nectarines to hand, sewing in the ends of the ripple blanket (40% done)...

an hour well spent, I think.

Scotland

I know half-term finished well over a week ago, but I thought I'd share a few pictures from my Scottish holiday...

I'd have stayed another week.

Another first

Knitting this time. No, no, I have actually knitted before - not that often it has to be said and usually only child-sized stuff. You know, hats, cardigans and the like.

But a while ago I bought a knitting magazine primarily for the freebie 'Rowan Home Knits' mini-magazine that was included.

I really liked the look of the throw in the bottom left corner, but it uses 17 balls of wool and involves 350 rows of 155 stitches. Quite a job. Also, despite being knitted with only one set of needles, the instructions require you to knit the side borders separately and sew them on afterwards. Why would you need to do this? Why?

Why give yourself the work of sewing two seams? Why? Maybe a knitter could come along and give me a good reason because I (being one that hates seaming) can't think of one.

Anyhow, what I have made from the mag is a little mugwarmer. Not because I needed one as such but because I wanted to have a go at intarsia. I've never done it before. And look, it didn't turn out too badly...

You can see, I think, that the red wool is pulled a little too tight at the bottom, but apart from that (and tying my yarn in a few knots as I went along) I don't think I did too bad a job. There are no holes anyway!

Now truth be told, if anyone is inspired to try making a mugwarmer, it is a little annoying when you try to drink. Unless, of course, you like the feel of wool on your bottom lip as you drink your coffee. Who am I to judge?!