Ten lovely things.

The snow-day edit

1. '. . . there is really no such thing as bad weather, only different kinds of good weather.'

    John Ruskin. Beautiful image by Circle of Pines.

2. Running wild and dreaming free. 

    Our Free Tribe, reconnecting children with nature through visual storytelling.

3. A snowy city, beautifully illustrated by the O'Hara sisters.

4. A snowy city, captured by Melanee Kate Thomas for Junior Style.

5. Read about the folklore of snowdrops on Creative Countryside.

6. Knitting and crochet inspiration from tipsy tessie. *pops onto my to-knit list*

7. A compendium of inspiration from Sibella Court. *pops onto my to-read list*

8. Support your sisters. Loving Holly&Co's fabulous new theme for March.

9. The sweetest snow scene from Jam and Ginger.

& lets just stay inside and perfect our pastry skills by baking these comforting Danish Pastries.

Stay cosy and have a happy day.

Ten lovely things.

The lovely edit.

1. Let love grow.

2. A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.

3. To fall in love, do this.

4. Roses are red, violets are blue, and you might just love this collection as much as I do.

5. Etsy find of the week. Grizzlie Knits. Just love this.

6. Love never fails.

7. Folksy find of the week. Sejal Ceramics. Just love this.

8. What is done in love is done well.

9. Crochet love. Love crochet.

&. Bring me chocolate and I'll love you forever 🖤

. have a lovely day .

Ten lovely things.

The inspired edit.

1. Lots of creative business inspiration thoughtfully collated by 91Magazine.

2. Inspired by the glimpses of new collections from Rock'nLullaby showing at Pitti Bimbo86.

3. 'Sunday's are for dreamers' via Mini Mavens.

     This has me dreaming of a Sunday spent knitting a cosy cardigan *sigh*

4. Etsy inspiration of the week. Didress. Just love this beautiful oversized dress.

5. The Petite Knitter has the most beautiful IG feed, full of yarn & knitting inspiration,

6. whilst Eleven Handmade will inspire you to get super creative with your crochet hook.

7. 'Herbarium' by Cristina Amodeo.

    *sigh*

8. Have the courage to step forward.

9. Inspired by the colours in this piece by Melanie Severin, called 'Weathered'.

& a Banana, Chocolate Chip & Walnut Loaf to inspire my weekend baking.

. have a happy day .

{ inspired#21 . Let it Snow . Let it Snow . Let it Snow }

. inspired#21 .

" I wonder if the snow loves the trees and fields, that it kisses them so gently?

And then it covers them up snug, you know, with a white quilt;

and perhaps it says, 'Go to sleep, darlings, till the summer comes again'"

. Lewis Carroll .

clockwise from centre

1 // 2 // 3 // 4 // 5

The first of a few festive mood boards, and with the weather we have at the moment how could I not be inspired by all the snow?

Those cosy looking snowflake mittens were captured by Marion of basic hus, and have me searching furiously for a similar pattern to knit myself a pair.  And that lovely last illustration, by the very talented Meera Lee Patel, is the perfect snowy scene. Though it does also remind me of how my early morning runs in the snow have felt; achingly beautiful, but uphill all the way!

{ have a cosy day }

{ happy friday }

1. Finding so many lovely new Insta feeds through Me and Orla's Gloom and Grow.

2. This weeks new knitting crush. Pampirion. And how incredibly lovely is that leaf stitch?

3. Dressed to impress. And how incredibly cute is that collar?

4. Christmas crochet goals right here.

5. Folksy find of the week. Flower and Fable. Heather; solitude, protection and beauty.

6. This garland would look so pretty paired with the festive foliage I've buying.

7. We are all made of stardust *sigh* *pops this on the Christmas List*

8. There is nothing in nature that blooms all year long. 

9. Dottie Angel has a shop. Who knew? P.s. I heard a shop update is happening today!

& let the Christmas cookie making commence, beginning with these.

{ have a happy day }

{ my october }

As L.M.Montgomery once said, I'm glad I live in a world with October's. The month hasn't been entirely worry free, but looking back it's only the lovely things I'm choosing to remember.

{ learning }

The month began learning how to crochet, something I've talked about for far too long. My grasp of double and treble crochet, and of course, those oh so wonderful granny squares, is all thanks to Clare, whose patience is matched only by her passion for crochet and all the many wonderful things you can create with it.

{ making }
Yarn has been a recurring theme this month, with the learning to crochet, and signing up to my first POPup Market. The past few weeks have been full of designing, planning, and making, pom pom's, tassels, banners and blankets. There is lots more yarn to arrive, lots more to make, but it's been very exciting seeing everything start to come together.

{ reading }

In a busy month, quiet moments have been cherished by sitting and quietly reading. After months of seeming to devour novels, this month I've enjoyed reading the Autumn edition of 91, and the latest edition of Lagom. Both have content that you can quite happily lose yourself in. 91 has led me to find even more creatives on Instagram to follow, whilst Lagom is feeding my wanderlust and adding even more places to my To Visit list. After all, who wouldn't be tempted by a Treehotel in Sweden? 

{ watching }

Although it broke my heart ever so slightly, I adored Goodbye Christopher Robin.  If you have even the faintest interest in Winnie the Pooh, and remember playing pooh sticks in your long forgotten childhood, then do try to catch this on the big screen.  Beautifully shot, it is melancholic without being sentimental, and brings a bittersweet note to the tale of the bear who has been a part of many childhood's.

I'm looking forward to November with an edge of apprehension.  The diary, it is fair to say, is crammed full of lovely things. There are plans to tick off a few more things on my Fifty before 50 list, that little POPup that I keep mentioning, and so much more. And I'm guessing that it won't seem five minutes until I'm sitting here writing all about it!

{ have a happy day }

{ happy friday }

{ 1 } #sorrynotsorry for a little more crochet inspo from LittleDoolally.

{ 2 } Will we ever grow tired of gingham? 

{ 3 } This weeks 'Does it come in my size?' Polly's fabulous forest dress.

{ 4 } Will we ever grow tired of velvet?

{ 5 } #weekendgoals time to sit & enjoy reading the latest 91magazine.

{ 6 } Preferably with a plate of these cookies by my side!

{ 7 } Oh my! Am I too old for a house tree of my own?

{ 8 } Creativity is intelligence having fun. Albert Einstein.

{ 9 } Etsy find of the week. The Minted Evergreen. The loveliest ombre patterned knits.

{ + } #prettyinpink with the cutest babycakes from the team at Khoollect 💕

{ have a happy day }

{ hooked on crochet }

One of the many ( many ) things on my Fifty before 50 list, was to learn to crochet properly.  It's something I've dabbled with now & then, but not something I've ever felt I really knew how to do. I've been keeping an eye out for a crochet workshop, and was especially pleased to find happening not too far away from me, and even more happily, taking place in one of my very favourite coffee shops, The Steamroom.

And so, on the past three Sunday mornings, I've sat in the company of Clare, of Clare Gets Crafty, being taught how to chain stitch, how to execute a double crochet, a treble crochet, getting to grips with the magic loop technique, all accompanied by a cup of the house batchbrew. Happiness, as it turns out, is simply coffee and crochet on a Sunday morning *sigh*. Clare made the best teacher; calm, with infinite patience and a yarn and crochet book stash to make you more than a little envious. Looking back, each week was structured in ways that made the most of the time we had, teaching new skills each week with time to get to grips with those new skills during the workshop. It's safe to say that I was a little hooked after the first lesson. A brand spanking new Pinterest board pays testament to that! Week two saw us fall in love with Granny Squares - or maybe that was just me ♥︎ ? And in our final week we crocheted an amigurumi cactus, which I enjoyed, but I'm not sure that it will grab my heart in the same way that granny squares did. 

As I don't have an abundance, just yet, of crochet loveliness to share with you, here is a little of the inspiration I've been busy pinning. I think I've a way to go before I reach this level of crochet craftiness, but I'm guessing practice makes perfect. 

1 // 2 // 3 // 4 // 5 

I can't thank Clare enough for the past few Sundays. You can find Clare over on Clare Gets Crafty, and read more about her workshops here. And for any of you local to Brum, she'll be at Etsy Made Local on the 2nd and 3rd of December, and at the Harborne Handmade Christmas Market the following weekend, on the 10th December.

And look, that pile of granny squares just keeps on growing #hooked.

{ have a happy day }