Summer Nearly Gone

Hello Folks.

Well it's nearly the end of August and I haven't blogged as much as I hoped.   As it's turned a bit rainy I've also not got the front door painted, I'm hoping for a dry, windless day.

The first thing I must tell you is that Miss Clicky got the grades she needed for University and she'll be starting at the University of Gloucestershire in Cheltenham (half an hour drive down the road.)  She's studying English Language and has decided to stay at home.

Me and Mr Clicky had another week in France.   This time we left both the kids behind and stayed for a night in Arras, Northern France to visit some WW1 memorials, more about that in another post I think.  The next day we travelled down to our house, and for the first time in roughly twenty years it had occupants.  That was a great experience, camping ~ only cold water, boil the kettle to wash ~ but we had crammed our £5.00 bed bought from Ebay into the car.  We took some old bedside lights and put some fleece blankets on the boards almost glamping!   We put up more plasterboard ceilings, fitted an new window pane and even went out one evening! 

We went to a night market at a local town called Cluny with our English neighbour.  We had a very pleasant wander around the stalls and then sat down at the tables, where families sat and chatted and enjoyed food and wine from local producers.

We had a freshly cooked crepes.  Yum.

Cluny has an impressive Benedictine Monastery

 which we sat opposite to enjoy a beer.  It was great to have a few hours off from plasterboard!

The weather was a bit changeable but one night we enjoyed sausages cooked on the front wall and admired the views too.

Of course, I got a bit of knitting in whilst not driving.  Another one of my Fabulous Stripey Socks finished.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      

There are 8 so far, here they are living in the display unit in the kitchen!

My Green Behind-the-Sofa cardi is finished and blocking so pictures of that next time.  I have turned my attentions back to Mon Petit Gilet Raye, which has been scrunched up in it's bag for a while.  It seems my English arms and shoulders are larger than petit French ones so I have frogged it back to the yolk.  Yes, you're right, I should have worked this out before I knitted the whole of the front but there we are.

I've not made my bunting yet, but my sewing machine has been in demand as Miss Clicky has been handing me various items of clothing which need altering in some way.

One last thing to tell you about, I've been going to a dance fitness class ~ aerobics with ballroom steps ~ since Christmas.  We were talking at the class yesterday about our weight,  and I was paid the ultimate compliment "You're less wobbly than you used to be."  I spent the rest of the day with a smile on my face. :-)

Back to work Monday after the holidays, with a new gang to work with.  I'm doing Maths support all morning,  with both KS2 classes so a bit different for me too.

So there we are, I'll see you soon.

As always have fun........Clicky Needles.

Sewing For Pleasure

 Hello there!

We're into the third week of the holidays already!  Mr Clicky, me and Master Clicky went to France with our friends to do some more work on the house.  Master Clicky was taken because as he's nearing 6 foot tall and with good muscly shoulders, is excellent at lifting plasterboard.  We even let him have a go with the angle grinder and bought him a bow saw and set him loose on the 'garden.'  You can read about our exploits here.

Back home and the sun was still shining, good for the mountains of washing that seemed to appear.

I've had it in my mind to get my sewing machine out.  It lives under the stairs, a bit unloved, making me feel guilty.

Mr Clicky had been on at me for ages to take up a pair of trousers he had, and Miss Clicky had a pair of jeans to do too.  When I asked her to try them on, she denied knowing she had them, they'd been in the basket that long.  I duly did both pairs of trousers ~ no pictures of that, too boring ~ and then decided to embark on some Sewing For Pleasure, but what to make?  

I went for a new cover for the poor, neglected machine. It's a Toyota and I've had it for at least 20 years.  Not that fancy, but does what I need.

The old cover is so disgusting I hardly want to show it to you. Yuk! 

I popped into Stroud to find some suitable fabric and came out with some fairly thick Duck Egg-ish ~ maybe Eau De Nil ~ spot cotton.

I used the old cover as a pattern, and winged it a bit too.

I pressed all the seams open and zigzagged as I don't own pinking shears.  I was pleased with how the corners came out, more luck than judgement I think.

And here we are Ta-Dah!  I made buttonholes around the bobbin holders??? ~ not sure if that is what they're called ~ and had read the instructions on how to do them, I'd clean forgot! 

 With hindsight ~ a wonderful thing ~ I should have made it a bit longer, but as I said I followed the old cover.  I added a bit of spotty ribbon along the bottom in pale blue just because....  So there we are Sewing For Pleasure, I quite enjoyed it.

 And now I have found some b e a u t i f u l birdie fabric on Ebay.  It's a heavy cotton and I have 2 metres of it.  I was thinking about large cushions for the garden, but now I'm thinking a simple shoulder bag, maybe both?  I'm not sure I want to cut into it, too nice!

I also got a remanent bundle on Ebay, as I am possibly the only person not to have made (or own)  bunting yet.  I know I am very late to this party, but better late than never.

Of course I am still knitting ~ I was very glad that I had my emergency knitting in the car the other day when we got stuck behind an accident in Worcestershire ~ and I'm attempting a turned hem on the bottom on my Green Cardi.

There's also a ton of jobs to do around the house and because I've bought some paint for the front door (undercoated at the start of last summer holidays) its now turned rainy.  Hey ho.

Me and Mr Clicky are off to France again this weekend for 4 days so I'll see you all after.

Have fun and I hope the sun shines on you.

Bye for now.....Clicky Needles.