I’ve started to draft this on Tuesday as I’m not sure I’m going to have much time at the weekend. More on that later.
Dyeing
This week has been too hectic to get the dyes out, so the linen I mentioned last week won’t be dyed for a few weeks.
Felting
I heard from the Fuzzy Thistle shop that 2 more of my scarves have been sold and they asked for some more. So, on Monday, I made 2 new scarves, to go with a scarf and hat I made earlier that I will drop off when they are open next Tuesday evening. We are also going to try a lampshade in the shop but I need to find some time to make it. (Finished lampshades are covered in the Other News below.)
Knitting
My HES socks have occupied my knitting time as it has been too warm to have my thick jumper on my knee. Almost time to start the toe decreases.
They are also ideal travel knitting. I bought another skein of Regia sock wool in Nairn wool shop last weekend. Rather than stripes it seems a “weird and wacky pattern” to quote the sales assistant.
Spinning
I seem to have lost my spinning mojo, despite it being Tour de Fleece all week. We stayed at my MIL’s 2 nights last weekend and I only spun on one of the days and that was during a card game of Canasta Bolivia whilst I was waiting for my husband to have his turn! I only got a little spinning done on my wheel of more camel and silk and really just stuck with spinning on my Turkish spindle this week and not my wheel. We’ve been hit with a heatwave and my wheel is in the sunroom…hot hot hot!
I took my spindle down to my sister’s and managed to do some practice spinning with some hideous shade of pink fibre. Perhaps it will be a smitten mitten, but I need practice so better to try with the worst fibre in my stash. By the way I love pink…just not this shade. My niece Olivia had a go and said it was quite satisfying.
Weaving
No significant progress on my weaving either this week, I only managed to do hem stitch on the starting edge. I did reach out to one of the Weaving groups on Facebook and they made some recommendations about reed and yarn size when weaving tea/dish towels. For those interested, they recommended I use 8/2 cotton with my 10 dpi reed but thread 2 yarns per slot & hole on the warp (vertical) and when doing the weft (horizontal) use single thickness yarn. On my previous attempt (which had big holes) I’d used a single thread on warp and weft.
Other News – A Busy Week!
On Tuesday I was packing for my trip to my sister’s and pulling together my camping stuff as I am off to Belladrum Tartan Hearts music festival next Thursday for 3 days/nights of camping, dancing, singing along and getting merry. Therefore, there will likely be no post from me next weekend. I’m not back from sister’s until late on Monday and then off to the festival Thursday morning so it will be washing and chores and little crafting time.
On Wednesday I found out Sky Arts Landscape Artist of the Year was filming their semi-final in Cromarty. So, despite it being 26°C the dog and I went to see the filming and are possibly in some of the shots in the background. We’ll have to wait until the new series is aired to see! We saw the 2 TV hosts and 2 of the 3 judges. I only took a photo from far away so there’s no spoilers for who got through to the semi-final. It will air in autumn. Now if you happen to see it, remember TV adds 40lb to how you look, especially to pastie white legs.
Then in the evening it was time for La La Land dance class. It was very hot and my friend didn’t come this time but I was brave and went anyway. A lady there recommended the Jazz dance classes that will start up again in September on Wednesday nights, so I am thinking of going along. I find doing cardio boring at home but enjoy a dance class.
On Thursday morning I flew down to my sister’s. She lives on a farm in Bedfordshire, England. I haven’t been down for 2 years and she never comes up here, so the kids had shot up. My niece is 13 and nephew 14, so a big change. I packed every linen item of clothing I own and a dress I bought in Hawaii. It reached 36°C and with no fan, no breeze and no air con I struggled to sleep. A new record temperature for July in the UK was recorded in Cambridge 38.1°C (100.6). 38.5°C is the highest temperature ever recorded in England.
On Friday I made up the lampshades with the felted covers I’d made a few weeks ago. We also went to Wrest Park for a walk, played table tennis, had a go on the trampoline and played lawn tennis. It was a much more comfortable temperature.
Here’s the finished lampshades.
Saturday I went to Fibre East, which is a big yarn festival with loads of traders. I took with me a shopping list of yarns, fibre and other bits and bobs I wanted to get whilst there. I’ll do a separate post about the festival and my acquisitions. I had a healthy cash budget to spend, hoping to have some change left over to take with me to the music festival next weekend. Then went to a 4 year old’s birthday party. I got my knitting out after a few hours of being sociable and they all thought I was weird knitting. I find big social gatherings stressful and exhausting and so knitting helps shut off my mind to the discomfort.
Today I’m posting later than normal as we met our 2 brand new cousins. You’ll be thinking these are twin babies with them being new…but what I mean is we only found out in Spring they existed and that my dad had a half brother he didn’t know about! Unfortunately his half brother died a few years ago, so they never met. Me being down at my sister’s seemed the perfect opportunity to meet up as they are both living in the south of England. It’s a very long story about how this was discovered but it is ultimately down to family trees entered on Ancestry.com and DNA tests that were able to confirm the situation!!
So a very busy week and busy next week too! Then normal introvert service will resume.
This is a Year of Projects update. If you would like to find out more about the Year of Projects Group on Ravelry, or you’d like to join in, please follow the link for details. To read what the other members of the YOP Group have been getting up to please click on the latest weekly folder and follow the links to their blog posts. This is a friendly group with a wide mix of skills and crafting interests.
HighlandHeffalump 
What an adventurous time you are having. I can’t wait to see your acquisitions and to hear about the festival!
Those lamp shades are truly wonderful and the color is spot on. Long lost relatives, those are a wonderful find all in themselves.
I agree I’m not much for cardio, although I need a fair amount. I think I will follow your lead and look into some dance classes myself!
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Congrats on the scarves selling and more wanted. The HES are coming along so nicely. Love the colors of the new yarn.I can hardly believe it got that hot in the UK. How horrible and no Air conditioning. Sounds like your adventures were quite a bit of fun.
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I love stories of ‘found’ family ties. We discovered an aunt and cousins a few years back – my paternal grandfather had another family that no-one knew about! How exciting that you and your pup will maybe be on tv!
Great news that your scarves are selling. I love the wacky patterned sock yarn – but then anything with purple in it always catches my eye!
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Love your socks, so nearly finished. Well done on the sales, and the new lampshades are gorgeous. I love landscape artist of the year – I shall look out for you!
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The socks are coming along nicely Liz and congrats on selling two of your scarves and more being wanted. I’m sure the lampshades will also be a hit as the ones you made for your sister look great!
What an adventurous week you’ve had and I hope it wasn’t too tiring and stressful, I find those kinds of weeks exhausting and need to escape into a book for at least an hour or two to restore some mental focus for social situations.
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On Thursday I wondered if I should have booked for longer, but now I am happy to be flying home to my hubby and dog tomorrow. It’s been fun but I’m definitely ready to have my routine back and the quiet of the house and walks with my dog.
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I get that feeling completely Liz!
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How satisfying that your felted items are selling! Congrats on your success. Re: the socks. I think the weird and wacky coloring of the yarn is turning into beautiful socks! How fun that you might be on TV! And the lampshades! Oh my. Seeing them on the table, they look lovely. But in use in the room, they looks so awesome! What a pretty room…
Have fun at the music festival! Sounds like a merry time, indeed! 🙂
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What a lovely busy week you had and are about to have! Those lampshades look fabulous in that bedroom–what a treat for your sister to have those. Your socks look great and Iove the hat in the montage in this post.
How interesting to find long lost family. My co-worker found her own 1/2 brother this past year after doing an Ancestry test kit! She is finally going to meet him next month.
xoxo
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I loved reading about all your adventures. Usually, I’m not really a fan of felted things but your lampshades look so interesting (and are my favourite colour). As for temperatures, we had a 40.5° C day last week, and even though I love summer, that day had me longing for autumn.
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[…] sister’s 4 lampshades ✅ finished week 4. She was really happy with them, but for me I prefer creating the landscape and seascape […]
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