a dar~ing, clue~ing, hint~ing kind of day...

today i have donned my businessy nitty gritty cap 

so i may tackle my businessy nitty gritty stuff with authority. 

i thought my cap rather bedraggled 

leaving me no choice but to perk it up 

by wearing a bright green floral frock & cardi avec elbow fabric patches. 

so far i have dibbled and dabbled upon Colin the computer for near on two hours, 

all the time dingly dangling the carrot of a 'gold sticky star' so i may stay focused. 

do you like clues?

 hints?

 possible snippets of something interesting? 

i have no idea if monday is such a day for such things, 

but whilst wearing my businessy nitty gritty cap

 i am overcome with throwing caution to the wind, 

gathering up my authority on such matters as 'hints and clues' 

and saying

 "why yes it is Tif, it is the only day of the week worthy of such matters"...

how daring, how clue~ing, and yes, how hint~ing can one get?

Tif 

'thing' friday...

thing one:

it is tres gloomy in the shed today, i know this to be true for just now i saw from the kitchen, that the family room looked tres dull and marched in there to pull back the curtains, only to discover i had already done so earlier. this tells me two things (within 'thing one'). it is tres gloomy and my ability to recall what i did ten minutes earlier is on rocky grounds

thing two:

a chance comment by a peachy reader reminded me of my lost 'little happy monkey' tray. i had two, one for display and one for use. a little while ago i lost my 'one for use'. i do not recall taking him out of the shed for a walk. i tried without vain to recall my last movements within my shed with my little tray, but alas and alack, the old recall cogs just will not turn. it has been over 5 weeks since i last saw my little tray. just thinking about him somewhere lost in our shed makes me sad... looking out and seeing perhaps me walking past, thinking i would spy him and gather him up and then no, i just walk on by, unable to spy him amongst the piles

thing three:

this sunday, when the weather will be at an all time 'gloomy low' i will be at the Assemble shop, beavering away with lovely dearies. i think this is a fine and dandy way to pass a gloomy day and i am actually rather giddy about it

thing four:

my rippley blanket is complete and i am most happy indeed. despite the fretting of colours, i do believe it turned out 'a-okay'. i know i am happy with it, because i have feelings of not wishing it to be shared with my clan members. this is a sign of me liking it very mucho. here is a few things you may wish to know if you are interested in what i did. if you are not, then you are welcome to skippity skip this bit. i do not mind one little bit.

* i used chunky yarn, 

* i made my own chunky yarn for some colours by doubling and tripling strands of yarn together

* i did a basic chevron pattern i learnt off YouTube

* i used a Mr Hook size 7

* i did four rows of each colour in double crochet (triple crochet UK)

* there was method to the madness of the colour placing

1 row of cream

1 row of colour

1 row of cream

2 rows of colour

1 row of cream

3 rows of colour

1 row of cream

4 rows of colour

1 row of cream

* i have discovered that when i add a healthy dose of cream to my crocheting it always appears to pull it together.

* i finished off my rippley blanket with an edge, the edge consists of

1 row of single crochet

1 row of picot crochet

and there you have it, you can make it any size you like. mine is perfectly sized for one large being and one small being to share. as i do not have a small being in my shed, i am debating allowing a little critter to snuggle in next to me. but no large beings. no they can have the other pile of blankets i have made over the years which are now looking rather loved. this will be my very own exclusive Tif's blanket... 

i am wondering now if i need to put a note pinned on it, reminding others they may look but not touch. then again, that would make me seem like a meanie, so perhaps i'll just hide it somewhere so others cannot find it. but what if i did that and then my recall cogs do not turn and i lose my lovely blanket along with my lovely 'monkey tray'? would that serve me right for being a meanie and not sharing? oh my goodness, i am now left with a quandary within my brain of what to do here...

thing five:

i don't have one, i did but its fallen into a black hole in my brain, due to anxiety coming on through fretting about the safety of my blanket. i'm sure it was super thrilling and really interesting, but once again, alas and alack, we will never know.

she is wishing you a happy dandy weekend with recall skills in tippity top condition ~ Tif 

giddy...

i awoke with a giddy feeling today, 

as i ate my breakfast i pondered all the reasons for giddiness within my day. after which i went out, upon returning i had promptly forgotten all but one of the reasons to feel giddy. i think that is the story of my life these days. if i do not make a note of things, they vanish into the little black hole in my head, never to be seen or heard of again.

whilst hoping for a bit of giddiness recall to happen, i waited for a break in the rain clouds, so i could photograph my one remaining reason for giddiness today.

'perfectly peachy pinnies'

for the joyful shop update

they make my inner granny soul giddy with a wave of nostalgia for days gone by. the time when one donned a pinny in the morning and took it off last thing at night. yes i like to think my 'perfectly peachy pinnies' would be most suited for any 'granny loving' soul worth her 'granny loving salt', spending her day happily wearing them.

there is a front, a back and best of all, they are reversible, thus two pinnies in one, just like my granny wore.

tomorrow we are off to my adopted auntie and her little grey cottage for bonfire night, this of course is the perfect reason to wake up all over again with giddiness...

she is wishing you a weekend of giddy ~ Tif 

footynote: hurrah hooray! one giddy reason has been retrieved from the black hole. yes yes, how could i forget, i am all giddy over my new knitted wrist warmers which turned up in my mail box a few days back! do you see them in the photo, well they are handmade by the lovely Jane and her spiffy ancient knitting machine... i wonder what his name is, i imagine him to be quite the sturdy fellow and quite hard work some days when he is playing up. the stitches are itty bitty and there are 24,716 of them, in my one pair of gloves. can you imagine that many stitches in one pair of gloves? not me, because i am crappity crap at knitting itty bitty stitches. plus i suffer from 'second sock syndrome' so even if i wished to make some, i would only ever have one hand warm at a time. no, much better i wear a lovely pair that Jane made, that way i have two warm hands at the same time... i am looking forward to a whole nesting season with these sweeties on my hands without a doubt.

questions & answers...

1. Tif, how is your crochet coming along?

well thank you kindly for asking, despite starting off with what i felt a dodgy combination of colours, i am thrilled to see things are not as pants in the 'colour combo' department as i first thought.

2. Tif, have you paced yourself this time whilst dabbling with Mr Hook?

actually i have dearest reader, i have indeed! this time i have just dabbled short spurts of dabbling and thus far, the blanket is progressing, Mr Hook is feeling loved and my wrists are feeling dandy.

3. Tif, when are you going to continue with the three c's, the anticipation of your words of wisdom on clog wearing is causing me to be distracted at work and home?

do not fear nor fret dear reader, i do plan to pick up where i left off in the next week or so and with that bit of information i hope your distracted ways will mend themselves.

4. Tif, you mention you have been beavering on a joyful shop update but have yet to announce the day of said update?

ah yes, tomorrow i will be doing a bit of rambling about this very subject, as tomorrow is wednesday and i do think it lends itself nicely to such important businessy busy things such as rambling on about shop updates. in my rambling will be the date of my joyful shop update and other nitty gritty details which maybe of interest (or not as the case maybe for some)

...and glory hung at mossy shed windows in the shape of flannel floral curtains

5. Tif, was that you i spied over on Holly's peachy blog Decor8 this morning, whilst having my morning cuppa?

gosh, yes it was... i must tell you i was most fortunate to meet Holly whilst doing what i was doing in Minnesota in september. if you recall Janine and myself went to The Creative Connection to sell our wares and launch the book. Holly very kindly invited me to do a book interview upon her peachy place, i do hope you will take the time to read it, because way, way on down, once you get through my rambling answers you will see at the bottom, where i list my blessings of the internet, you are amongst them dearest readers. for i have said it before and i say it again today, i would not being doing what i am doing without you by my side and for that, i am truly thankful

she is also thanking Holly most kindly for asking her some very nitty gritty questions and being most peachy about the book ~ Tif

blankets on the brain...

i have several drawers in my little brain 

and within them are stored many things to ponder.

they are labelled and they are quite a nice set of drawers. 

i would not say until the other day they are painted glossy custard yellow,

 but now they are.

for if i cannot achieve a custard yellow cupboard in reality

i can at least have one in my imagination.

one little drawer is labelled 'crafty must makes'

and a few weeks back i opened it.

from out of that little drawer in its fine and dandy coat of glossy yellow

leapt 'fabric lappity lap blankets'

"ah yes" i thought to myself, 

"of course that is where i popped you well over a year ago to keep you safe"

for the first time in yonks i feel like i can stop still,

open these drawers and see what lurks within,

waiting for their moments to shine...

'tis a good feeling.

over the coming weeks with high hopes, 

myself and Miss Ethel,

my adopted auntie and her Mr Bill,

and a pile of vintage and used fabrics

we will be beavering away on 'lappity lap' blankets.

two sizes of course!

one for little critters and small beings

and one for medium beings who perhaps care to share with another,

or perhaps not.

and then when we are all beavered out,

i will hang them in my shop window in a cluster,

for in my little drawer marked 'crafty must makes',

alongside the scribbled note saying "lappity lap blankets"

was a side note saying

"Tif, hang in a cluster, for a cluster of lappity lap blankets

 truly will make your crafty heart beat a little faster"

a 'lappity lap' blanket, this one will live at Mossy Shed for she stole my crafty heart

she has dallied in the yarn aisle whilst her #4 kicked a ball around the soccer pitch with a coach who appears to have lost his watch ~ Tif