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Welcome to my blog!


If you ask me what my very favourite thing is I would not hesitate to say my family. I came into motherhood quite late on, and was immediately overwhelmed with how amazing it is. Now I would like nothing more than to be a Domestic Goddess, and surround my family in love, good food, beautiful things and lots of happy memories. And like the majority of families these days, we need to do it on a budget!

I firmly believe we all have a little bit of the Domestic Goddess inside us, just waiting to break out. Whether that is knowing how to make a roast chicken feed a family of 4 for a week, being able to make, repair or recycle clothes, hunting down a bargain, or simply turning everyday, simple things into pretty or useful items, with a little bit of imagination we can all dip in to the Goddess inside and make our lives that little bit more interesting.



I hope you enjoy reading my blog as much as I enjoy sharing my (challenging) journey into Domestic Goddessness!



Thursday, March 31, 2011

And so it has begun...

I have finally bitten the bullet and started knitting for the baby which will, hopefully, be arriving in about 17 weeks. Judging by the state my hands were in last time, swollen and painful, and unable to bend properly, I think I should have about another 10 weeks worth of knitting or crochet in me before I have to pack in. So I figured it was high time I got my finger out if I was going to produce something.

In truth I have been surreptitiously looking at patterns online for several weeks, without wanting to admit I was going to actually attempt any of them. I've been glancing at baby wool in the shop making a mental note to come and get it at a later date. Didn't want to tempt fate you see, pretty much in the same way that the pram we bought last week did not make it over the threshold before being stashed in my mum's spare room. But it takes a bit of time to hand make clothes, even little ones, and it's not easy with a toddler playing under-the-bridge with the wool, or using the needles as drum sticks, so in reality further procrastination was not really an option, at least not if I wanted to wrap my new girlie up in a lovingly handmade something-or-other before she gets too old to not want to be seen dead near something her mum made.


On the needles, and the hook, because since when did I ever do things by halves, is a cardigan that ties at the side and a baby blanket. Other items will, I'm sure, follow on. Just as soon as I find a pattern I like, or one that I can translate.
Why is it all the nice patterns online (and by nice read 'free', we are on a tight budget after all) all American? Not that I mind them being American, but it is hard work trying to translate them into Old English. What the hell is Worsted wool? And we've measured our needles in mm for millenia, why do our American cousins have to confuse matters by using their own scale? And that's before you get on to the different terms for crochet. It is even harder being confused when you have a baby brain! And so I have temporarily laid aside my plans for all the beautiful items I have found, and have resorted to the good ol' Sirdar book I bought when I was expecting Daughter No 1.
Pictures to follow once complete (Christmas then!)
I've probably told you this before, but in all seriousness if you are after a pattern, be it knitted or crochet, free or paid for, English or (shudders) American, then you could do no worse than having a wee peek over at Ravelry And if you get stuck, the forums are a good place for advice (or just a chin wag if you feel the need to procrastinate or play work avoidance!)

Til next time!

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

This one's for Sharon...

I will consider my hands soundly smacked. I have apparently been neglecting my blog, and my friend Sharon told me so the other day. And there was me thinking no-one read it, and it was just me sending out my words to the empty ether!

I do realise it has been a while and I'm sorry. But to be truthful, between now and Christmas there's not really been a right lot of crafting going on. You see I have discovered a tiny spanner in the craft works, and that would be a 2yr old daughter who likes to make things too. Not easy to craft with a toddler around, interfering with my crafting stuff, stealing my supplies and generally making a mess. Then there is a slight matter of a wriggly baby in my belly making it impossible for me to stay awake at night long enough to do more than a few rows of crochet or a hurridly cobbled together birthday card (Sorry Sue!)

So what have I been doing? Well like I said, not really a lot. I did manage to make a hat for my neice (not sewn together and waiting for me to finish the hat for her sister before giving it to her which might be in time for next winter!) which you can see here:


and currently in progress is a blanket for daughter number 2, just row upon row of trebles until I reach a good baby blanket size, or the wool runs out, whichever is first. I will have to put a border on it, but I am not allowing myelf to think that far ahead yet. Only room for one thought at a time in my sponge like brain atm.

I have also (rather foolishly probably) agreed to make a birthday cake for my dad's 65th birthday in May (Sorry for telling the world your age, dad, but since only Sharon reads this I should think you're safe!) It will not be the stressful performance it was of making my mum's wedding cake. For a start there's only one tier. And if all else fails I've found a fab online shop that sells personalised toppers. A nice picture of a steam train in icing and I'm sure he'll be happy. I'll also lace it with so much whiskey he won't care what it looks like! A good plan, I'm sure you will agree!

Until next time (um... June at this rate!) keep craftin'!