Ridgeway Cottage anyhow

Despite the wind and the rain, signs of spring are everywhere. Delicate blossom   Early clouds of white flowers And vibrant flashes of green. It makes me happy.       Posted with Blogsy

It is with great pride that I'm able to announce that I can darn socks. Thanks to my best friend Mr Google, I watched a "how to..." video and within half an hour, that pesky hole had vanished.   It took me 5 years to knit these socks for my husband, mostly because I got stuck on the heal and gave up. This year though, my New Years resolution was to finish stuff and these were on my list, so I didn't actually sit there for 5 years knitting away, hour after hour. However, after less than a month, my husband had already made a hole in my masterpiece but darning was always part of the plan.     First I did the weaving bit one way Then the other way   Until the hole disappeared Finally I turned it in the right way and although it's not the tidiest in the world, it's done and done my me.     Posted with Blogsy

I've been struggling with life recently: possible virus, side effects from this and withdrawal symptoms from that. It's not much fun really so I've done a spot of Internet research and although I haven't found a solution for my headaches and blurred vision, I've been able to diagnose myself with a rather serious condition. I suffer from chronic second sock syndrome and in the year of the sock, it's quite valuable that I've discovered this early as there are several cures. It doesn't really come as a surprise to me because I am, by my own admission, a tragic and frankly quite terrible knitter. My sock knitting history is plagued by disasters. Firstly it took forever to master double pointed needles, then I was bereft of the patience to read a pattern. For over two years I was flumaxed by the anatomy of a sock and stricken with fear when it came to turning a heal, combine all of this with a inability to count stitches and it really is amazing that I ever ...

I've been doing quite a bit of watercolour painting recently. It's relaxing, observing everyday aspects of life, studying the details and getting it all down on paper.     Ever since visiting the Mysteries, Magic and Midnight Feasts at Canterbury Beaney and discovering Enid's Blyton's passion for nature and its documentation in beautifully written diaries, I've been inspired. I've started my own journal and I am trying to paint the arrival of spring. The hardest thing about painting with watercolours is deciding whether I've done enough.   There's always the risk of doing too much.       Posted with Blogsy