Misty Mountain

Knitting in the sun! Oh and a bit of Madrid too!

This was the part of the garden I was sitting facing for most of the day today.  We got up early and took Phaolin out for a walk before it got too hot.  Sadly we didnt get up quite early enough to head for the sea, so that will have to wait until tomorrow morning.  Then when we got back I made the first jug of Pimms of the Summer.

We were out of cucumbers, well we needed the little we had for the salad for lunch, but we did have orange apple and mint so I chopped those up and dumped them in and... delicious.

Earlier this week I was in Madrid for work.  I love Madrid, not quite as much as I love Rome, but it is a truly splendid city.  We were staying at the Hotel Hospes in the centre of Madrid.  A five star boutique hotel that deserved every one of it's five stars.  I swear I could move to Madrid just for the food!  

This was my room

My bathroom had a double corner bath, a waterfall shower and two sinks and it was so quiet, even with the french doors open it was hard to remember that I was in the middle of a busy city.

We dined at the terrace restaurant here on Monday night.

You know that building used to be the post office!!  Now it is a centre for the arts.  The Palacio de Cibeles Restaurant is on the sixth floor terrace and well worth a visit if you get the opportunity.

I did get chance for a good walk into the centre on Monday evening before dinner and of course, some shopping.  I bought two new fans, a pink one and a yellow one, and some lovely spanish yarn.  Then I had a wander round my favourite plaza.

Then I looked at my watch and realised there was no way I was going to make it back in time for dinner if I walked... so I got a cab.

We drank Mojitos in the terrace bar before dinner.  Fabulous Mojitos!  And here is the view from the Palacio de Cibeles Restaurant, as night fell.

I will admit that one of the things I really enjoyed was grabbing a vew moments to myself, ordering a glass of wine and sitting on the terrace with my crochet.

On the second night we went to Meson Txistu a basque style terrace restaurant and a regular haunt of Real Madrid footballers and Rafael Nadal.  Sadly he wasnt there on Tuesday night and my pictures all include my colleagues and so are not for this blog.

It was a good conference, good to meet up with old colleagues, many of whom I have known for well over ten years.  We worked hard, I know that sounds surprising looking at the venue and hearing about the restaurants but we didn't finish until well after seven on Tuesday evening and I had to leave before we were done on Wednesday to catch my flight.  I arrived home at close to midnight on Wednesday and have to admit to being extremely tired.

Probably explains why I was content to sit in the garden and knit baby shoes today.

And now I am off to finish a cardigan.  O. xx

Heirloom

When I was younger we called them christening shawls.  These days with the shifts in the religious concepts they seem to be called heirloom shawls.  Well whatever they're called... I have finished the one for my grandson.

I posted this picture of it a week or so ago...

The centre stars were complete and so were the lace panels all the shawl needed was a border.  I had already begun making the shawl when we learned that our first grandchild was going to be a little boy, so knowing that I didn't want to make anything too frilly or fancy so I decided that a plain border was probably the way to go.  By the time I got to crocheting the rounds had gotten very long and the work was almost hypnotic in nature.  I was also concerned that I was going to run out of yarn.  Traditionally circular-ish shawls are between fifty and fifty four inches in diameter.  In the picture above the shawl isn't even forty inches across.  Still I kept going  laying the work out, adjusting the maths and checking the tension as I went. Finally I felt I had something that would be big enough and I was on the last ball of my lovely Sublime Baby Cashmere, Merino, Silk 4 ply yarn, so I added the final rows and hoped it would all work.

Then I realised my blocking boards weren't gonna be big enough so I had to order a four by four pack of children's play mats off the internet to make sure I had enough!

After that himself and I spent hours measuring and pinning, adjusting and pinning and measuring again until finally I was satisfied.

And this was the result!

It isn't perfect by any means, but there is a lot of work and a load of love and I don't think I could have done much better.  

I just hope the girls like it and use it.

Well I am almost packed.  My boarding pass is printed and I have an electronic version on my phone.  I have almost finished a nice little crochet shrug to take with me.  So Madrid here I come!   Love O. xx

It has been a good holiday.  Very relaxing and peaceful.  I lost a couple of days to work stuff but I can get them back later in the year.

It's been a contemplative couple of weeks, almost over now and I find myself wondering why the older you get the quicker the 'endings' seem to come.  No sooner has something started than its over, it seems.  And why is it suddenly such a disconcerting issue.  I don't recall it bothering me before.  I've always had a thing about seizing the moment and making the most of what you have.  I love my life and I feel so blessed.  Even if everything goes pear shaped at work and we have to leave our dream house up the mountain (inevitable eventually I feel) I know I have loved every second of being here and I will never regret moving to this beautiful part of the world.  

Anyway, less of all this philosophical nonsense.  In a little over six weeks our grandson will arrive in this world and I have to say the excitement is setting in big time now.  My crochet and knitting baskets have gone from being full of blankets and tops and cushion covers etc to being filled with little cardigans and hats and bootees and baby blankets, everything is so dinky and sweet and it makes me smile so much!  And then there's this...

I am no pattern maker but I decided to have a go at cobbling together an heirloom shawl myself.  I is awaiting a border to get it up to full size but I am rather pleased with the results so far!

I am also incredibly glad I invested in some blocking wires, they made it so much easier to pull the shawl into shape yesterday.  Well worth the investment.

So it is Saturday and I still have a few days holiday left so I am off to get on with more baby crocheting.

O. xx

Morning Memories, Happy Beltaine and an Anniversary

Merry Beltaine!

So... today himself and I have been together for twenty years!  Beltaine twenty years ago.  A walk in Swithland Woods, a dinner of cheese and onion pie, jersey royal new potatoes and salad and an evening ritual in himself's front room.

This morning we got up for the sunrise and saluted it out in the garden with himself standing on the picnic table to do his pipe ceremony!  I did not stand on the picnic table, I kept my feet firmly on the ground.

Then we retreated to the big sitting room, listened to Runrig belt out Maymorning (probably the best Beltaine song ever) and realised that we were sitting in a room full of memories.

Anniversary or age?  We weren't sure but for some reason we were surrounded by ghosts.  The candle flames were absolutely still, a near miracle in a hundred and thirty year old house full of drafts and I prayed that the omens were good for another twenty years.

  It is a damp May Day here so our walking will be limited but I don't really mind that too much.  I have plenty of crochet on the hook :)  And this evening our two friends from up the road are taking us out to Sosban for dinner.

Now I think clothing might be in order then when it finally stops raining we can go out.

Have a great Beltaine all!  O. xx