“Arthur blinked at the screens and felt he was missing something important. Suddenly he realized what it was.”

“"Is there any tea on this spaceship?" he asked.”

There’s a lot to be said about Sheffield. About how pretty it is, about how friendly the people are, and about how much goes on here considering it’s so small. But that is not what I’m going to talk about today. No, today I’m feeling the need to pay tribute to one of my greatest loves. No, not knitting this time.

Tea.

Despite it being August and there being a literal beach outside my window at work (seriously) Sheffield has decided to piss it down with rain. Cats, dogs, pigs, goats, whatever – you name it, it’s raining it. It’s also not particularly warm – at least, not to a soft southerner like myself.

And you know what it being cold and wet means to me? Yup, you guessed it –

Tea.

Here is a classic example of my tea consumption:

This is my first cup of tea of the day. CB gets up before I do and he makes himself a cup of coffee and makes me a cup of tea. He doesn’t put it on the bedside table as it gives me a reason to drag myself from the duvet-cocoon and ultimately into the office.

This is cup number two, when I get in to the office. Yes, it’s a big cup (pen for scale). I need a big cup. This one is my proper first cup – the previous one doesn’t really count as I’m too sleepy. Plus by the time I actually get out of bed and drink it, it’s lukewarm at best. This one is hot and yummy (my mouth just filled up with saliva thinking about it).

These get me through the day. On wet days like this I can average one an hour. I then need to pee quite a lot though.

This is my post-lunch cuppa. This helps digestion. Probably. Maybe.

This is a ‘welcome home from work’ cuppa I sometimes make myself. Not every day - some days I don’t drink tea after I get home. They tend to be days where I’ve had too many cups at the office and I am more tea than woman.

This is faux-tea, also known as hot-of-choc, also known as hot chocolate. It satisfies the need for pudding without scoffing sweeties, and makes me feel warm and sleepy ready to start another day of tea-drinking.


*Quote from Douglas Adams

“Welcome, newcomers….”

“…The tradition of Festivus begins with the airing of grievances.”

While Festivus technically falls on 23rd December and my nephew was born on 22nd, I think it’s close enough to warrant the quote. Plus it’s a great quote so shush.

I’ve finished my latest knitting project – a v-neck jumper for my nephew, either for Christmas or his birthday. Yes I know I’m five months early, what of it?

I started my Christmas knitting early because I don’t want to rush or stress closer to the time. I’m also one of those freaks who gets her Christmas shopping done super early as well. It makes sense, people! I urge you to follow suit!

Ahem, anyway…

I used a pattern by MillaMia from their Close Knit Gang book called Fredrik (Ravelry link here) and used MillaMia Merino in Putty Grey and Sirdar Snuggly DK in Berry.

The wools are really soft and drape nicely, and I think the colours complement each other well and generally look yummy.

I tried to embroider my nephew’s initials on the front to add a little extra special touch. It was a great idea in my head, but in practice I didn’t really know what to do and I think it looks a bit rubbish. I’ve decided to leave it on there for now. I can always revisit this later in the year and decide whether to keep, re-do, or cut out the embroidery.

Generally it was an easy and fun knit. It came together in about a week and I didn’t really get a chance to get sick of it. Picking up stitches for the neckband was a little tricky, trying to get the exact right number, and I think the decreases on the bottom on the V look a little funny, but I think I’m nit-picking.

I’m also not overly keen on how the arms are attached. I thought the raglan shaping was a bit off, but I’m such a new knitter I didn’t trust myself to deviate from the pattern. Kinda wish I had, but then there’s no telling how it would have turned out.

I chose the 24-36 month size as my nephew will be two in December, but this jumper is MASSIVE. Maybe I should save it for next year! I guess he’ll grow into it, I hear babies have a habit of growing…


*Quote from Seinfeld

“What I've started I must finish. I've gone too far to turn back…”

“…Regardless of what may happen, I have to go forward.”

I have finally done it. I have finally finished my Carnaby skirt.

It took over a month of knitting (including spells of not-knitting) but I am finally wearing my first knitted skirt.



I finished knitting the button hole band on Saturday evening, and it fitted nicely when lightly stretched. I then cast off and crocheted two lines of slip stitch along the waistband as instructed.

Now I don’t know if you’ve ever tried to get a crochet hook into black stitches surrounded by other black stitches in a dim light, but it’s an absolute delight. I wouldn’t say my stitches were tight at all, (but then I guess I don't have the loosest of tension) but long story short it took a lot of perseverance (and a lot of swearing) before my task was complete. And so I bound off, and swung the skirt around my hips and – it was far too small. The skirt no longer fit but had a gap of about 3 inches. So, after a little more swearing, I unpicked the crochet waist band I had painstakingly added, and ta-da! the skirt fit me again.

I immediately blocked it, getting it away from my sight, hoping it would dry quickly in the hot weather.

I didn’t get a chance to buy buttons until Monday so that evening I cautiously returned to my skirt which was dry as a bone and now smelt lovely. The wool felt softer and moved better, and it had stretched nicely (I didn’t want a mini-skirt after all). I then threw it around my hips to work out where the buttons should go.

Maybe you can see what’s coming next, I certainly didn’t.

It was far too big. Five or six inches too big. I almost lost it right there, right at the final hurdle.

I was set to just sew the buttons further in and have a huge overlap, but CB suggested I try crocheting again. I thought it was a very good suggestion but I didn’t want to do it because it was such a nightmare last time…

But he has been right about these things in the past and I didn’t want to be disappointed every time I wore my new skirt. So. Monday evening, I angrily re-crocheted the waist band of my skirt.

And it worked. It now fits quite nicely around my hips. I only did one line of slip stitch as it finally fit and I didn’t want to tinker with it anymore in case I ruined it, so I quickly sewed the buttons on the buttonband and threw it on.

I love it. I really feel as if I earned this skirt, but I do love it.

*Quote from Michael Ende

“It is a Yorkshire habit to say what you think with blunt frankness…”

 “…and old Ben Weatherstaff was a Yorkshire moor man.”

As we all know, the 1st August is Yorkshire Day.

What’s that? You didn’t know? Are you kidding me? How could you not know that? It’s a national event! That’s outrageous that you didn’t – huh? Oh, you ARE kidding! Of course you knew. Well don’t I feel silly! I did think it was odd you hadn’t heard of such a big and famous event.

I mean, I suppose there’s little point me talking about Yorkshire Day now, considering you know all about it, but I do have a bloglet to get out so please indulge me.

The Yorkshire Society was founded in 1980 to raise the profile of Yorkshire and regain pride that had been somewhat lost owing to the demise of the wool and coal industries. A Yorkshire Society Civic Procession was held in 1985 by the Mayor of Wakefield and since then there has been a Yorkshire Day event every year on 1 August.

The date alludes to the Battle of Minden, and also the anniversary of the emancipation of slaves in the British Empire in 1834, for which a Yorkshire MP, William Wilberforce, had campaigned.

Wikipedia tells us that Yorkshire day “… was celebrated in 1975, by the Yorkshire Ridings Society, initially in Beverley, as "a protest movement against the Local Government re-organisation of 1974".

The day was already celebrated by the Light Infantry, successors to the King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry, as Minden Day.”

This year Sheffield hosted it and I attended.

Here I am with my white rose in solidarity:

“I, being a resident of the West Riding of Yorkshire declare:

‘That Yorkshire is three Ridings and the City of York, with these Boundaries of 1142 years standing; That the address of all places in these Ridings is Yorkshire; That all persons born therein or resident therein and loyal to the Ridings are Yorkshiremen and women; That any person or corporate body which deliberately ignores or denies the aforementioned shall forfeit all claim to Yorkshire status.

‘These declarations made this Yorkshire Day 2017. God Save the Queen.”

I’ve only been in Yorkshire for a month or so, but I’m loving it so far and I have no plans to leave. The people are friendly, the lifestyle is laid back, food and drink is fantastic and not overpriced, and the landscape is beautiful.

My friend advised me to dine on roast whippet tonight in celebration. I think instead I will indulge in a few too many cups of the brown stuff…

*Quote from Frances Hodgson Burnett