Dyeing with teabags!

I dyed some yarn!! With teabags!! As you can see it sent the cream Cygnet DK yarn a lovely coppery colour. I'm really pleased with it :) Word of warning though. If you do a test batch, make sure you do it with the yarn you intend to dye! I did a very small test batch using the Excelana 4ply, and it came out a very lovely autumn yellow. As you can see, the Cygnet came out far from a yellow! Luckily, I love this just as much as I love the yellow. Just be aware that it might not come out the same colour on a different yarn. 

I followed this tutorial. My test batch came out a similar colour to hers. The great thing about dyeing with food stuffs is that it's safe for your pans! The tea stained my pan slightly, but it came straight off with some magic eraser :)

I've dyed a second skein and intend to dye two more. It should be enough to knit the Peaks Island Hood from Whimsical Little Knits 2 :)

Ashley x

I killed a dishcloth!!

During the clean up of our flat, I used the only dishcloth that I could find in the mass of boxes:

This picture was taken just after I'd finished it. It's the prettiest dishcloth I've ever made. During the clean up, it was subjected to bleach and much scrubbing. Here's the poor thing now:

The picture makes it look better than it is, it looks much grimier and more sorry for itself in real life. I'm not sure how I managed to make a hole in it, it's starting to unravel. Which is why I'm declaring it dead. Better to lay it to rest now, than when it's a nasty pile of yarn that's annoying to use.
In tribute to this poor sorry dishcloth, I made three more:

I don't think we short on dishcloths for a while, considering what it takes to kill one :)
Ashley x

Graduate!

Phew, where have the last couple of months gone?! Thank you for the well wishes :) The move went so-so. We managed to get everything into Dom's dad's van ok, and the drive down was fine too. I didn't even get travel sick! We arrived on the Friday, we were to stay in an inn and get the keys on Saturday. But when we got here it was clear that the last tenant probably wasn't going to be moved out in time to drop the keys off at the estate agent. She and her mum were just shoving things into the car, she hadn't even packed anything beforehand! And they were throwing a few things into the car, not even filling it up as much as they could. In the end Dom's dad suggested we offer to help. We filled their car as full as we could, and off they went. They returned for the last few bits and left us with the keys. Hurray, we were in a day early! Right? You'd think we'd be happy, but the flat hadn't been cleaned at all. 

We decided to stay at the inn anyway, as the flat was in such a state that we just didn't want to sleep there. 

So on Saturday morning, we made our way to our new flat. The walls were mouldy (apparently this is a common problem round here, but she'd made no attempt to keep it under control), the fridge was disgusting with mould and the freezer box was frozen over so we couldn't open it (when we eventually got it open there was food in there!), everything was grimey, the bedroom carpet is cream and shows up everything she'd managed to spill on it, as well as a burn mark from an iron! After a couple of days, we noticed that the curtains were also mouldy and had cat hair matted into the lining. And then there were the fleas in the carpet!!! Ick!!

Anyway, we cleaned and scrubbed, and had the land lady and the estate agent round to check out the curtains and told them about the fleas. They were both disgusted, and the poor land lady was embarrassed! They both agreed that she wouldn't be getting her bond back. They took the curtains to be dry cleaned and organised for a professional flea treatment and a painter to come and stain block the walls (after we'd given them a good clean with water and white vinegar) and re-paint them cream. 

So we're mostly happy with the flat now :) We're still lacking in furniture though. We went to a furniture sale during one of our first weekends here and bought a chest of drawers (it's nearly as tall as I am!) and a little side table/coffee table from a company called Underneath the Mango Tree. It's made from mango wood! It's beautiful and is built to last. Plus  the chest of drawers makes our clothes smell lovely! We also have a sofa that the last tenant left, after a good scrub and a hoover out, it will do until we can get a new one (it's not in very good condition thanks to the cat). And a bed, of course. 

The lack of furniture has also meant no sewing! We don't have any kind of table (the side table is too low), and there's no way I'd manage on the floor! I'm sure I've seen a photo of a blogger using a sewing machine on the floor and her legs are bent every which way and she's all hunched over. I think I'd injure myself if I tried that! We've placed a massive order with Ikea and are now waiting for all manner of furniture. There's a desk big enough for both me and Dom, and I can have my sewing machine permanently set up there!! I'm so excited, I can't wait to finish my Chantilly dress and not have to put my sewing machine away every time I'm done with it. And a wardrobe, and a lot of storage in the form of drawers and bookshelves. I really hope we have plenty of storage, I'm tired of having things in boxes or neat piles. 

And now we come to the title of this post. We graduated last week! The graduation took place in the Lincoln Cathedral, with drinks afterwards in the Castle grounds. It was lovely :) Dom and my mum came to mine, but I wasn't able to go to his as we only got two tickets each (for free, you could buy extras but they sold out super fast!) and his dad and step mum went. Dom was also awarded the prize for most creative use of technology! How cool is that?! Also, it's a good job Dom took an extra handkerchief as my mum had need of it during the ceremony :)

I'll finish this long post with photo's from my graduation :) I don't have any on my laptop of Dom in his cap and gown yet though. Here are my favourites:

Me and mum :)

I know this blurry, but it's one of my favourites. I think we were laughing
because I'd poked him in the head with my hat!

I hope you've all had a lovely weekend :) I'll share some of my recent knitting this week. And hopefully some sewing at the weekend! (Fingers crossed that the Ikea order comes when it's supposed too!)

Ashley x

Update: Just received an email from Ikea with the date of delivery. Not until the 20th!! When we ordered, the estimated delivery was the 15th *sigh* I was hoping in would be sooner, we really need a wardrobe. We've been hanging Dom's suits on the headboard of the bed! lol

Leaving tomorrow!

We're leaving Lincoln tomorrow! This is the third day of packing and we're down to the last bits and bobs, and trying to pack up pots and pans but leaving out the ones we need for tea tonight.
We'll be sorting the paperwork tomorrow, and should hopefully get the keys to the flat! I went to my last Spins and Needles Knit night on Monday, Sarah moved it so I could attend one last time. And she presented me with a lovely bag of yarn, a yarn bowl and a Spins and Needles mug! I was not expecting this, and it has made me even more sad to be leaving.
Anyway, the next time I post I'll probably be posting from Hungerford public library! Hopefully the internet won't take too long to get sorted.
Ashley x

Little update

Just a quick little update :) It was my 21st birthday last weekend, and my mum organised a lovely family party for me! This is much more my style than a night on the town in night clubs etc. :) I absolutely loved it. So a massive thank you to my lovely mum!  Here are a few photos:

How cute it that cake?!

Dom and I :)

Crazy candle/flower thingy

Cute cupcakes mum decorated :)

Me, my cousin Donna, and my lovely mum :)

He persuaded to do a silly smile and the hand thing!

I had a lovely birthday, and received some wonderful presents :) I think my favourite part was the food! Mum put on a massive amount of food, including my favourite - curry fry! And my granddad (in the last picture) made 'yellow rice', just like my nan used to make it :)

In exciting and slightly stressful news, we've been busy the past few weeks job searching. Dom was contacted by an agency about a software engineer job. After an interview, he was offered the job the next day! He's supposed to start on the 23rd of this month, so we have 2 weeks to move down south!! 

We'll be close enough to visit London at the weekends every now and then, which will be great as I can finally have access to good quality cheap fabric! This will greatly impact my sewing, and I can't wait. Unfortunately it won't be for a while yet, we have to find our feet and I still have to find a job once we're down there. 

So posting here will be few and far between for a while. It will also be mostly knitting for a while, which it has been for a while anyway (apologies to the sewists). I have access to good quality yarn in Lincoln, so I've been much more inclined to knit. But buying fabric online has meant it's not what I want it to be and is usually too stiff for garments. But hopefully, sewing will be more appealing once I can buy fabric after feeling it first :)

I'll let you know how the move goes (once we've got the internet sorted, or I've found a public library). I'm excited and stressed about it at the same time. Wish us luck!

Ashley x