Happiness is ...

What a difference a month makes!! Here's our before (planted Labour weekend) and after photos ...





It's pathetic isn't it? To get excited over a few lettuces ....

We had a couple of days off last week and ventured out of Devonport - I know, I know, crazy stuff! We drove up to Warkworth because there's a really amazing wool shop there called Twinset & Pearls. The range of wool and colours is stunning and wonder of wonders, the button collection is fabulous. I find sourcing interesting and different buttons is really hard and they can be soooooooo expensive.
Poor Eddie having to spend his days off driving around wool shops!

We did do some touristy things though and went to Matakana, Leigh and Matheson's Bay .....





And of course there has still been time for knitting ...




I am happy to report that Issie looks like she's lost some weight! The photo is slightly misleading as she's definitely fitting more of her body on her "pedestal" ...

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Of mittens and kittens

Our lovely pink bottlebrush is flowering. I notice that the red ones seem to flower on and off all year but ours only flowers once which is sad because it's such a beautiful tree and a glorious colour.




I've been madly trying to finish a couple of pairs of fingerless mittens to send to my goddaughter for Christmas. She's about to start work in a lodge in France for the ski season and of course I've missed the NZ Post deadline ... Still I'm quite sure it will still be snowing there in Jan!





You may remember my kitten prototype - I mean how could you forget it ???



Sarah from Cotton Kiwi very kindly sent me a similar pattern a couple of months ago and I'm making it my Xmas holiday mission to work on knitting some toys. So the kitten will get a dust off and some adjustments and I'm trying for a bunny and an elephant. I hate knitting toys but I have to work on these and other projects to give me a summer product for the market. Never fear, progress reports will follow but not necessarily photos unless I have success! If I have as much trouble with the kitten's tail as I did with this one, I may well knit a Manx version .....

And speaking of kittens (well not any more but she sure behaves like one most nights) here's Isabella. I believe she may be saying "Look into my eyes and feed me" Unfortunately, as you can see, we have been doing too much of that and the vet has put her on a weight reduction food plan. She needs to lose 1.5 kilo's .... She's not happy ...

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My favourite things ...

Working in advertising means unlike most people, I actually enjoy watching television commercials ...

I started musing about my favourite things after watching one of new State Insurance TVC's and decided that at the top of the list was knitting and pussy cats - wow, imagine that !!!! If Eddie is reading this, the reason you're not at the top of the list darling is that I wasn't including husbands ....

Here's some work in progress bootees from the weekend ...
I know I should finish one pair before going onto the next but sometimes you just have to see how a button or colourway is going to work.






Here's Issie on Saturday.




And here's Issie on Sunday! Well, her paws at least ..





Oh, and did I mention I also like red?

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