After a thoroughly miserable, wet week here in Buckinghamshire today (Saturday) has dawned bright and sunny – a perfect autumn day. We’re off out later for a walk and to take some autumn photos, also hoping to collect some blackberries and elderberries.

Here’s a taster of autumn in Buckinghamshire -

my Japanese acers are looking gorgeous and I can see them from where I sit on our sofa through the French Windows…they always cheer me up. By the way I don’t always have my knitting on the patio furniture…more on that later…. and of course, Simpson had to get in the photo somewhere as, being a cat, he is incredibly nosy and does’t believe that anything happens in this house that doesn’t involve him somehow.

So, despite the miserable weather dampening my spirits this week I have made progress on the baby shawl – I’ve now completed 16 and a half repeats although I then discovered that I’d miscalculated how many repeats I need to do and it’s nearer 24 than 20 so that was sort of one step forward and two back. However, determined to get it finished this week….I even took it to work and was knitting in my lunch hour which prompted all sorts of questions from my non-knitting all male colleagues! Cue impromptu knitting demonstration…so I didn’t get that much done in the end.

As I’ve been concentrating on getting this completed I haven’t done much other knitting although I have been starting a sock for my Sockret Pal swap partner when I’ve had enough of the shawl and need a break on something else.

I bought my first sock-knitting book this week, Knitting Vintage Socks by Nancy Bush and the same day it arrived from Amazon I got a package of hand-dyed wool from my new favourite supplier – The Natural Dye Studio -here’s a picture of all my goodies and my sockret sock -

Managed to get the wool muddled for the photo but from the left – Mohair Loop “Midnight”, Mohair Loop “Delphinium”, another skein of Mohair Loop “Midnight” then a 50g skein of Roving Felting wool “Atlantic” then two skeins of pure merino sock wool “Jewel” and finally a second skein of “Delphinium”. The sock I am knitting with some more pure merino sock wool “Tuscan Spice”. The colours of the Tuscan Spice go wonderfully with my terracotta tile table and make me think of pumpkins and autumn leaves and orange sunsets….

The pattern is from my new Nancy Bush book – “Child’s First Sock in Shell Pattern” – it’s a lovely pattern to knit and I’m really pleased with the way it looks in this wool, here’s a close up

Not sure of my plans for the other wools – the Felting is for another felted Teeny-Tiny Tote bag, the mohair loop was intended for scarves and just last night my m-i-l called and was asking if I could knit a lacy scarf for her neighbour. I knit my m-i-l a lacy mohair scarf last year for Christmas and her neighbour always admires it so she wanted me to knit her something, apparantly she loves purples and mauves so I’m wondering how the mohair loop would knit up in a lace pattern as the “Midnight” colour is a lovely mauve…has anyone used a loopy/boucle yarn to knit a lacy scarf/stole?

Off to enjoy the sunshine while it lasts….

I’m hoping to send off my first Sockret Pal package today as well so I’m really excited, can’t wait to read how my pal likes the goodies I’m sending.

I’m so excited – I won the “Why is Mona Lisa Smiling” on Sonja’s blog http://knitwitcentral.blogspot.com/ and I’m so pleased. I can’t remember ever winning anything before so thank you Sonja.

I’ve been annoying my hubby by walking around all last night saying “I won!!!!” at short intervals. Can’t wait to receive my goodies….having recently discovered both sock knitting and the knitting blog world I feel like I’ve been let into the best club ever and am rapidly making loads of new friends and learning new skills.

Have just purchased a massive amount of hand-dyed yarn from Natural Dye Studio on eBay – I bought some lovely yarn in the Cherry Blossom dye-way a while ago with which I knit my second ever pair of socks (see the posts about them) so I can’t wait for the other colours I’ve ordered to arrive….hopefully something really nice for my Sockret Pal and I can look for a pattern….

I ordered Jewel, Tuscan Spice and Midnight – even the names sound good enough to eat dont they? Also bought some felting wool from them in “Atlantic” as I’ve also just tried my first felting project – a Teeny-Tiny Felted Tote from a pattern on Sarah’s Craft Closet thanks Sarah it’s a wonderful pattern and the Noro Kureyon was a joy to knit. I will be making lots of these bags as Christmas packaging for my friends/family.

Here’s the bag felted but without a cord yet, took the photo next to my favourite tea mug to show just how Teeny-Tiny it is!