...January

I've been driving my husband to work this month - he started a new job at the beginning of January, and hasn't quite figured out the logistics for his cycling commute yet. Just under three weeks ago I made him take a photo of the sunrise through the (moving) car window, because it was so spectacular - glowing peachy/golden and turquoise through the trees. This morning I realised that while there was still a faint tinge of pink in the sky, the sun had risen before we'd even set off. It's official - our daylight ration is increasing. Hooray!

I finished crocheting the little rainbow coloured baby blanket, which just needs a baby lap to snuggle onto... 

...and straight away launched into another (full-sized) blanket for my daughter. She is in the process of buying her first house - a little two-up, two-down terraced house not far from us, which I have taken to calling Rose Cottage, because her middle name is Rose, and the house is so small and pretty. The blanket pattern is 'Flowers in the Snow' but she chose a soft pink background rather than white, so it's been christened 'The Rose Cottage Blanket' instead. It's going to be 16 squares long by 12 squares wide (192 in total) and I'm 74 squares in already. I decided I wanted to make each square unique (I reckon there are over 4000 possible permutations as I'm working with 17 different colours) but have had to devise a spreadsheet to avoid repetitions, and taken to lining the 'flowers' up on the carpet before joining them, to make sure that neighbouring squares aren't too similar! It's driving me ever so slightly insane, but the granny square addiction is too powerful to resist. "Just one more round!" I'm not sure what I will do when it's finished - I'm already pondering who my next victim enabler grateful recipient could be, so that I can feed my habit justify another project.

Last week I re-stocked my Upcycled-Soft-Furnishings wardrobe, by making myself another Wiksten top from an old brushed cotton duvet cover. It's quite a statement piece (Oversized Lumberjack Chic anyone?) but I'm embracing the eccentricity and really love it teamed with this old favourite scarf.

I also made another Ann Wood Pin Girl pincushion as a birthday present for my friend. Ann has recently added another wonderful (free!) pattern to her blog - check out these beautiful Dancing Hares! I can see one sashaying onto my sewing table in the very near future...