July Scavenger Hunt Photos

Hello Lovelies,
Thank you all so much for your extra kind comments on my Giant Granny.You really do make my day :0)

The list for July's scavenger hunt ( see the other entries to this monthly challenge  here ) had a holiday vibe so I intentionally left taking any pictures till we were away last week.

It's nice that these pictures for the scavenger hunt also allow me to share a glimpse of our first trip to the seaside this year with you lovelies. The images are not in the order of the list...but in the order they were taken.
The first three were taken in the resort of Wells -next-the-sea. It was our first visit here and we would love to return one day. So much to see and do.

1. Celebration.......

well sort of .....lots of bunting and flags in this street made me think of celebrations

2.Ice Cream

Fish and Chips and Ice cream...2 must have food items at the sea side.

3.Red , white and blue

I was particularly taken with this fishing boat in wells harbour. We were having a go at crabbing when I took this picture...along with many others. I think the crabs have got wise to this sport and learnt how to tease us by taking the bait then letting go as soon a you try to lift them more that a foot out of the water...what clever creatures :0)

The next couple of pictures were taken back at our Caravan. It really was a souper dooper one and it must have belonged to a family who sub let it as there were so many sweet personal touches like colourful crockery and great resources like puzzels and games.

4.Stars

well OK one star (fish) on this gorgeous tea pot .Isn't it great !

5. Stripes

Had to be my latest blanket. I'm loving picture for both it's colourful crochet and the glimpse of my cheeky son who sneaked under the chair when I went to fetch my camera and then gave himself away by giggling. You can just see his trainers and the top of his head if you look closely :0)

The next four images are from Thursday ...our only sunny day this holiday

6.A Kite

A Dad and a very sweet little boy enjoying the day.

7.Sea Shells

the incoming tide making this shell look so colourful. I love wandering along with my feet in the waves looking for shells and unusual pebbles.

8.A Flag

Hunstanton proudly displaying it's blue flag ...I'm loving the blue sky!

9.Flip Flops

For sale on the prom

10.Something that makes you happy (not a person or animal)

Crochet on the beach :0)

11.Fields



Norfolk Lavender fields taken on the journey home.The grey skies had returned but this weekend has turned out sunny ...great for getting the mountain of washing dry !!

Hope you enjoyed these . Now I just need to squeeze in my "Nature Notes" post....pressure !!
Have a great Sunday .
Jacquie x
P.S. Just realised I missed out Strawberries from my photos ...oooops

Holiday Crochet Ta- Dah

Hello Lovelies,
We have been very fortunate to spend a few days away this week, in one of our favourite parts of the country, Norfolk.
 As the journey is a fairly familiar one to us these days, and my navigational skills are not required, I took the opportunity to do some crochet whilst Mr BM drove.
My Giant Granny was nearing completion and I was keen to see the finished result......

First I completed the plum border ,which was already half way around when we set off, then I began the sewing in of over 100 ends. Here are just a few. Unfortunately the trip was about 10 minutes too short to get them all done .....

The next day I finished off in the final few ends using this method. (scroll down a bit )

Would you like to see my latest blanket ??


Here it is ....

Ummmm I LOVE this blanket . It was started ....let me check ....yes , on the 29th of June . It was completed on the 26th of July. Less than four weeks !!! .
I really enjoyed this speedy project and being part of Sucrettes crochet along made it even more fun.Do check out the gorgeous blankets in the flickr group ( button in my side bar ) Thank you so much for organising this Angie :0)

Another reason to love this kind of blanket,as well as the easiness and speed, is that they are just so soft and drapey. Perfect for snuggling under...

Using lots of bright colours like this always makes me happy , it's like colour therapy !!.....

Here it is spread out on the floor. It's 57 rounds plus a border and is big enough to easily cover my feet when draped across my lap........

The border is my favourite "double V. stitch" you can link to the pattern via the picture in my side bar . It's super quick and easy......

We were not very lucky with the weather whilst we were away. I had to wait till yesterday to take these pictures. Not what you wish for at the seaside , but all the grey weather meant my new blanket got lots of use.
 In fact my Mum , who came with us and made it possible for us all to stay in a rather lovely lodge style caravan, admired and used it so much I gave it to her at the end of the holiday as a little thank you. ......

The weather meant My granny square blanket also got lots of use . ....

Finally , just yesterday , we got the sort of hot sunny day holiday memories are made of. We spent the whole day on the beach .
 The boys played for ages in the sea with their cousins who visited for the day ...... It was bliss .
For me, the best bit about this resort is that despite being on the east side of the country , it's position on the wash means it faces west and you can stay on the beach till late in the evening , watching the sun setting over the sea....

Perfect :0)   ( unlike my wonky horizon ! )

Right oh, I'm off to catch up with all my favourite blogs...I've missed you guys .
Jacquie x

Slowing down

Hello Lovelies ,
           this weekend it's been such a relief to sloooow down. Term is finished and the boys have six whole weeks of holiday to look forward to. I'm just enjoying relaxing moments in my garden. Simple pleasures like picking a posy of sweet peas before breakfast .
.....Trimming the "lawn" in the fairy garden ...hello tortoise :0)

..........Enjoying sunny Marigolds whilst they are at their best.........

........Looking forward to my crocosmia flowering ( I would grow this plant just for it's foliage ...the lovely flowers are just a bonus...it's definitely one of my favourites ).....

..........Noticing my sweet Himalayan Poppies  beginning to bloom ( so glad there is more colour returning to the garden after the slump of the last few weeks ).............................

..........Discovering this colourful painting whilst sorting through the boys school work. I LOVE this acrylic of a watermelon painted by my eldest :0)........

Indoors I'm trying hard to ignore the chaos and admiring my recently delivered yarn instead. This lovely lot of stylecraft arrived 36hrs after ordering from Masons . There's Shrimp bottom left ...some of which has already been incorporated into my Giant Granny. The other colours are Raspberry,Cloud Blue,White and Lemon. Yummy ........

I actually ordered a green too, it was a bit of a shock to see how bright it was in reality ( it didn't look  neon   on the chart).......... I suppose that's the risk you take ordering online .

Want to see ?

OK but sungalsses are recomemded :0)........

It's shade name is " Bright Green " ....and it certainly is !!

Thankyou for all your answers to my question about how you make your granny squares. I added up the results and marginally more of you lovelies (11 to 9) add a chain between each cluster. The most popular number of chains to use at the corners is 2 .
As some of you commented.....there is no right or wrong way , I just was interested to see which method is most popular...so thanks for the feedback :0)
Have a great week .
Jacquie x

Holiday thoughts and crochet question

Hello Lovelies ,
As we enter the last week of term my thoughts are turning to our Holidays. This year , as every year since the boys were born, we will be holidaying in a static caravan. We have tried other types of accommodation...like a tent ( great when the weather is kind )....a log cabin ( lovely but so expensive ) ....and cottage (nice, but not popular with the boys).No ,caravans are just right for us :0)
As a child we had a touring caravan....I can remember it with great affection , though my poor Dad did not like towing it and some years we would take the tent instead.
The caravan was so cozy and Mum used to bake before we went so there were always biscuits and cakes in the little cupboards to enjoy en route and on arrival.
On its tiny shelves we had games like dominoes and cards as well as little observer books on sea birds and other sea sidey things.There was also a cute little sewing kit in a brightly coloured tin.
The plastic and melamine crockery seemed special because we only got to use them once a year and when the upholstery became shabby and the curtains faded Mum and I sewed replacements  :0)
Nowadays I would love to have a little touring van....if we had somewhere at home to store it and I could use it for a bit of quiet crochet I would buy one in a flash...nothing new ...just a basic van I could makeover like this .

Sadly we don't have much parking space and I do like the static caravans we get to stay in .The one at the top of this post was last years, on the Isle of Wight, which was in a particularly nice position. They tend to be a bit beige inside so I like to take some colour and comfort . This was last years makeover :0).....

A little home from home

This year I'll definitely be taking my granny square blanket and hopefully my giant granny will be finished too. I'm up to 50 rounds . I recon another 8 or 9 will be enough :0).........

Now I'm looking at this picture I think I'll have to order more of the orange I've run out of.

It will be another lap blanket rather than a bed cover but that's ideal for in the car and warming your legs in the daytime. Because lets face it ...who knows what the English summer will bring. This was Saturday morning ( the forecast was spot on ! ).....

Lets hope the wet weather is short lived .Our holidays are still a while away but wet days at home with three boys are not always easy !!

Jacquie x

P.S. I was just wondering about the different ways to make granny squares. I only use 2 chains on the corners and none between the three double crochet ( u.k. treble  crochet ) groups as I like the slightly denser effect this gives as my tension is quite loose. I've noticed others like Sucrette put a chain between each cluster and only one chain in the corners. I'd love to hear what you do and why :0)

Making the most of the sunshine

Hello Lovelies,
well, with a terrible weather forecast for the weekend and glorious warm sunny weather this morning I decided to get the shopping out of the way asap. As soon as the boys were at school I zipped around Morrison's and dashed home to put all the shopping away.
The weather was still lovely and on my way home I pass a gateway that has been looking so pretty over the past few weeks . I can't stop the car to take pictures as it's on a busy bend but I wanted to get some images before the crops growing there are harvested so I decided to get out my bike as it's quite a walk....

Some of you may remember my trusty old Raleigh ( This is the picture I staged for a scavenger hunt photo )...she's 22 years old and I'm hoping to get her a wicker basket this year ...instead on the black wire mesh one. She also has a black gel saddle cover which isn't very pretty but super comfy :0)

I headed off .... whizzing down the hill, well actually I'm a bit nervous of whizzing these days so I stopped on the hill to take a picture instead.........

This is where I was heading.......

Lets take a closer look........

WOW .....I love the colour of this crop...not sure what it is ...maybe one of you lovelies know.
I love the glimpse of the three little cottages and fields behind it....

It's still only twelve o'clock so I decide to take a ride to the cottages for a closer look....

Ummmm pretty..... shame about the large conifers .

I love the freedom of pooteling around where ever the fancy takes me on such a lovely day. It's really warm so I'm cycling in my skirt and sensible sandals :0) the breeze is lovely around my legs .......

At the side of the cottages I notice a wonderful , really old stone trough...it would have been for animals to drink out of but now it is filled with colourful geraniums. ......

With an old watering can hidden around the back....

This is something you would never have noticed in a car .I get back on my bike and start to head for home. Up the steep hill it's first gear( yes my old girl has 3 gears !) and stand up on the pedals, I'm really gasping by the time I get to the top and very glad to put my bottom back down on the saddle and pedal slowly to recover.

Instead of heading home I cycle on to the next village. I don't want to rush home to the housework to day.
I'm just enjoying noticing how the fields and hedgerows are looking this July ...stopping to take picture whenever I feel the need...which is pretty often :0)....

I end up at my favourite church. I've shown you the simple little village church before and today it's looking as lovely as always .With a wonderful old rose growing over the porch.....

I'm pretty hot so I go into the shade of the porch to admire the old door...

Look at this handle and the colour of the stone reminds me of the crops in that first field ........

There is not a soul around and I sit for a while looking out .....

Before it is time to cycle home .
It was great to have a peaceful hour in what are hectic end of term weeks. I can hardly believe my twins are in their last few days at their wonderful, nurturing primary school. Makes me feel a little sad.

Thank you for all your wonderful comments on my last post. If the weather forecast is correct I expect I will get chance to add a few more rows to my giant granny this weekend.

Hope you get a little creative/outdoor/peaceful time too.
Jacquie x