In the Cupboard.

 So with all of the boxes arriving from Australia, we have had a reshuffle of our furniture. This cupboard was purchased for toys and thank goodness we are now moving away from that stage. Which means..... that it can be moved into the kitchen and used for more a practical purpose.

 Displaying all of my bits and bobs. I am waiting for Jonno to screw in lots of little hooks so that I can hang up tea cups and trays so hopefully by next week I can start unpacking some of my Australian stuff into it. I have to admit that it felt like playing with a large scale dollhouse.

 And of course the odd bird was definitely needed to perch inside as Hugo has often thought it looked like a big birdhouse.

In case you have had enough of my cupboard (But whyyyyyyyy?), here are some crochet roses I have been working on. 

Lots and lots of love,

Kate xxooxx.

This Morning at Home.

And so ends another (and hopefully our last for a while) crazy week. Monday saw unpacking from our camping trip, yarn arrive for a crochet project that had to be sent away by Tuesday lunch and repacking for Archie's school camp. I had a couple of days to do things like washing, shopping, town jobs etc before we had a phone call saying that my shipping container from Australia was about to be dropped off! Wahoo and eek!!!!!

 Some of you may remember that I went to my parent's place in Australia mid November to finally pack up the rest of my stuff as they were moving and down sizing. It has been the most wonderful thing to have lovely bits of family furniture and boxes arrive... However, with the whole house being rearranged it looks very much as though we have just moved in! Yesterday I concentrated on our bedroom because to me, the sleeping area will always be my main priority. Last night, settling down surrounded by old familiar friends (chests of drawers and so on rather than a strange audience of neighbours), I felt so connected to my Australian family... a real sense of homecoming. 

Waking up this morning was a bit special so I thought I would share a few photos.

I added this photo because I always like to include a reality check. Downstairs is flooded with belongings and furniture. It took me 3 years to find the children yesterday and that was only when I had removed copious bags of wool from the couch. It turned out they were happy watching Stephen Fry's 'Hidden Kingdom' on demand. I would have been contently lost too!

Lots of love,

Kate xxooxx.

p.s. I am reading 'The Food of Love Cookery School' by Nicky Pellegrino at the moment. It is lovely and light and exactly what I need. I've also just finished 'Ripper' by Isabelle Allende which I adored - a thriller/mystery set in San Francisco and well written with great characters. I love a good murder mystery but have been spoilt by Louise Penny who is my absolute favourite writer of that genre (and in my top 10 all time bestie writers). It's worth starting at the beginning of her books (Louise Penny) as the characters develop so much as time goes on.

Crochet Roses.

 Wahoo, I am allowed to show you an early glimpse of my next project for Simply Crochet mag that I am working on. There is more to go with it but I will wait until closer to publication time before showing you. 

These roses are loosely based upon one of my favourite roses, 'Pierre de Ronsard'. Unfortunately it will be another two months before it comes out but I can't wait to show you the full picture!

Lots of love,

Kate xxooxx.

Holidays and other Good Things.

 I am sure that you must be thinking I have run away by now. And in a way I have a guess with camping and beach stays while the school holidays have been on. Reality is though, that I haven't had much access to internet for the past month.... can you imagine such a thing? I would love to say that has been good for me but I have really missed it. AND have missed blogging a ridiculous amount!

 So, a few things to catch you up on. Archie has become the most wonderful crocheter. He has such a lovely style that I could watch him for hours. He adores it too which is a bonus and we have spent a lot of time together crocheting and chatting. He has almost finished his first project which I can't wait to show you.

 Look at those little/big boy hands holding that hook and yarn....

 I have started a new fun project, crocheting a blanket for Jonno's old car (1977 Ford Falcon) which he has been doing up for the past few years. It would be sacrilegious to not have a blankie in the back. It's coming along well but I have limited myself to masculine colours which has been a good challenge. While I am not a pink person as such, I do rely on it a lot.

 I have more projects for Simply Crochet magazine coming up which I will hopefully be able to tell you about soon. And aside from that it is all about packing for school camps, unpacking from family camping and trying to shovel a bit of stuff back into cupboards after 6 weeks of having boys deliciously underfoot.

So many more bits and pieces to show you but until then,
Lots of love,
Kate xxooxx.

Working….

School holidays are still powering on but I did manage to get a little bit of work done on the Stanley book when the boys went camping overnight with Jonno. I only had two photos to take and now feel as though the finishing line isn't too far away. It's almost as though I am hanging out with friends whenever I have a scene with Stanley and his mother. They never interrupt me.

I finished reading Wally Lamb's 'We are Water' a couple of days ago. I loved it sooo much that I have to admit the house has fallen onto hard times. And now I have begun Amy Tan's 'The Valley of Amazement' it's looking as though the domestic neglect may become a more permanent situation.

Better go.

Lots and lots of love,

Kate xxooxx.

Books and Crazy New Hair.

 So this is what happens when you get cooped up with unwell children over summer. You start to feel a little drab and then the next think you know, you ask your neighbour to dye your hair… which she very obligingly does. I really like it but it did take me a couple of days to get used to it. My head piece was bought yesterday on sale as I thought it would come in handy for our mid year school ball (which is dress up). I will try to wear it only when I am tidying up the house - it will make cleaning more enjoyable.

 I also went to the library yesterday and borrowed a few more books. 'The Goldfinch' was such a stand alone read that it was quite hard to settle into a new one for a couple days. I actually ended up culling a couple of less than wonderful books as they couldn't measure up and life is too short for Not Very Good Reads…. sadly this for me included Adriana Trigiani's new book which I will try another day when I am not feeling so fussy (I usually really love her). I then read 'Dreamquake' the sequel to 'Dreamhunter' by Elizabeth Knox which I adored (I think I mentioned that in the last post) and am  now reading 'The Magicians' by Lev Grossman which is pretty good. I'm thinking Amy Tan next. I am so spoilt for books right now.

 Another head shot. Just hanging out with the kids…

And little cool cat Hugo with his new $6 sun glasses. Apparently they are very hard to wear inside as everything becomes dark.

Lots and lots of love,

Kate xxooxx.

p.s. Lesley, it was lovely to meet you in the library the other day and such a thrill to see your reading list!

Crochet Bears and Things

 Hugo has now finally had about 4 days of being temperature free. He was a sick little lad for 10 days and it feels as though we are only just starting to breathe again. So as I am sure you can imagine, Christmas and New Year's were very quiet. I am finding it heavenly to be on the other side of it all. Anyhoo, I saw that they have released the new cover of Simply Crochet uk, issue 14 and as I hinted a few times, I have a project in it. So here is a sneaky little peak. The brief was to design a vintage teddy bear. I thought I would go a little circusy with it. So here he is above (in a different wool) and below… 

I had such a lot of fun with it and the boys were very pleased as they both ended up with a new toy.

I've just finished reading 'Dreamquake' by Elizabeth Knox, the sequel to 'Dreamhunter' and am feeling glossily satisfied from having had such a great read. I love when an intricate plot is set up and then  manages to answer everything at the end. It is for teenagers (which never puts me off) but I have come away with so many thoughts to chew over which is always a wonderful result.

Now to choose the next one. Fortunately I have a pretty great pile at the moment. What are you reading at the moment for your summer/winter.

Lots of love,

Kate xxooxx.