Oh no - how did the stash grow?

A birthday is an excuse for many things. Calories consumed on the day don't actually count - but then nor do they on the days around the birthday, and any wool purchased on the special day, and the days around that day don't really count towards the stash. The reasoning being that any new yarns are a treat  (as are the calories) or they must be for a specific project. So the extension of my stash over the past few days has included:
4 balls Debbie Bliss baby cashmerino in green - fall into category of treat
3 balls of the same in a pale green - same category
2 balls Adriafil Azzura - green - had to buy something in a new wool shop I found so justified
A considerable number of balls of browns and creams and reds to make a log cabin square blanket - specific project - and balls left over can be used for something!
Perhaps it is not so bad as it looks. Having just written down the truth, the whole truth it was not such an extravagant week after all. The fact that the bag containing the "considerable number of balls" is so huge just  makes it seems like an inordinate growth of the stash.
I can feel quite smug that I did not buy any patterns and the two new books in my knitting library were presents. The only small problem is that I really need patterns now to go with the new wool and there are a couple of patterns in the new books that need wool specifically for them and, naturally, nothing in the stash matches. Perhaps I can finish the existing projects? It will be 12 months before I can use the same excuse again.

St David's Day

March 1st - St David's Day and my birthday so, as these things should be, I am spending the day in Wales. I feel the need to buy daffodils in celebration or just because I actually like them and they are the most inexpensive flowers. Perhaps someone will buy some for me?

Opera and fims

A splendid evening at the Wales Millenium Centre enjoying a production of The Marriage of Figaro with the Welsh National Opera. It is almost with shame that I have to admit that this was my first visit to the "armadillo" but it had just happened that time spent here never coincided with something that I really wanted to see and, over the years, I have developed almost a rule that I will only see productions that I really want to see rather than think that might just be ok. There is so much more enjoyment then. I cried with joy at the beginning of the Lion King a few years ago and there were tears of joy as Figaro concluded last night. Looking at the surtitles, in English and Welsh, we were reminded of a delightful production, in Russian, many years ago at Nottingham Playhouse. My recollection was that it was called Guadeamos but now I think not and will no doubt spend a lot of time today trying to find the name of that particular play. The husband recalled pantomines with the older children when I was left at home with Charlie and we remembered taking the eldest to her first Shakespeare. Walking back after the performance last night we were both high on an evening well spent and gratitude for those supposrters who make such lavish performances accessible. An evening at the theatre in the widest sense of that term is such a special occassion. The trip to the cinema earlier in the week to see The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel was just something to slot in inbetween other planned evernts. We enjoyed the film but didn't select the best seats, as we did for the opera and we didn't make a bit of an effort with the way we dressed. Back in the 1960s going to"the pictures" was a special event. I recall a family trip to see My Fair Lady with family including grandmothers and great aunts and a journey of some miles to a nearby town - and boxes of chocolates instead of bags.

Finished - sort of

Just need to make the decision whether or not to put a border around the whole thing.
Then the colour
Crochet or knit?
Width?

The log cabin blanket

Today I am finishing the last log cabin square with the currently available wool. There will be enough squares for a small blanket and, if I want it to be any bigger, I will need to go out and buy some more wool. That would rather defeat the objective of "stash- busting". There are now decisons to be made. Do I simply sew up the squares as they stand and make the blanket? Do I make a contrasting border around all the squares to make the blanket slightly larger? If I do make a border then what colour? Do I knit the border or crochet? Decisions, decisions. The other option, of course, is to go out and buy more balls of wool and make more squares - the decision of the procrastinator.

Log cabin fever

It is snowing and I have just received a new delivery of smokeless fuel and seasoned logs. It is time to stay indoors and indulge in my latest current passion of knitting log cabin squares for a sitting room blanket. The inspiration came from my son's house mate, Kat, who showed me her first panel for a quilt for Kate's baby. I couldn't remember the name of the pattern but she reminded me that it was log cabin and I decided that I would give it a go with some of the stash wool. I had plenty of raspberry pink double knitting from the swatches I had made up for the chickens and some leftover creams and beiges from Christmas cowls. Inevitably I made a quick trip to the nearest wool shop yesterday - in anticipation of the snow but the squares, so far, apart from a couple of shades of brown, have been knitted up from the stash. I am hoping that this is not a displacement activity from continuing with Charlie's cardigan. I had been doing well with this particular project over the weekend - back and right front and one sleeve completed but once the idea of log cabin squares had been planted into my head I just had to give it a go.
I am working on 4mm needles and with double knitting wool. I have no particular plan with the squares. They will be sewn together in a random way or I may knit or crochet borders. Looking at examples on line there are so many delightful ways to finish. I will just have to knit sufficient squares and then make a decison.

Bookshelves and knitting patterns

I usually do my grocery shopping online. I really do not enjoy trips to large supermarkets and online shopping was something I very quickly embraced. Today, however, I made my way to our local Asda to buy firelighters and tea bags! The store had changed so much since the last time I had visited; that always irritates me; I like to know where to find the things I want. Then I began to think about the joys of serendipity when I came across some colourful plastic envelopes which were ideal for the storage of my old knitting patterns. I bought two packs and came home to spend a very pleasant hour arranging patterns into suitable groupings to go on to the bookshelf alongside my collection of knitting books. Now, when I want a baby pattern, I won't have to go through the whole pile, I can just open up the pink envelope with smaller patterns - the vintage ones or the other pink envelope with the more recent patterns - the A4 sized or the print outs from Ravelry.
This unusual burst of organisation follows an hour spent over the weekend moving my, ever increasing, stash of wool out of various boxes and onto some shelves upstairs. This has certain advantages - I can see, more clearly, what I have and the number of balls. I can see which wools might go together in some new item and I can also remind myself not to buy any more! At least for a while.