new homes

October 28, 2016 Julie (little Cotton Rabbits)52 Comments

This post has been languishing as a draft for over a week but it's been school half term break here so I've not had time to sit down and finish it. At this moment though Toby is having a little quiet time, sitting happily watching Balamory (his current favourite show) and stimming with his lego, so I'm hoping to get this done and posted before he decides he wants a bath or a snack or a different Balamory dvd on.

He would have quite happily sat and watched his Balamory dvd collection on a loop all this last week and I swear I'm still hearing the theme tune in my sleep. I've tried to get him out as much as possible though, so there's been wood walks and trips out too. Of course while Toby has wanted to watch dvds I've had a little knitting time but I'll show you more of what I've been making next week. For now I just wanted to pop in and post some pictures of the final two prizes from my 10th anniversary giveaway, as they've now arrived in their new homes.

Noisette2

Noisette

Polly2

Polly

I've so enjoyed making these and hearing that their new owners are pleased with them.

Well, that's it from me until next week, when peace and order will once more return here and I'll have time to write up our half term adventures, until then have a great weekend and a happy Halloween x

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Thanks to all for the kind compliments, the little suitcase and tea cups are made by Maileg. I bought mine from Bijou, I think that this particular style might be sold out but there are lots of other pretty designs.

September days

September 23, 2016 Julie (little Cotton Rabbits)37 Comments

With the autumn equinox yesterday the balance of the year has tipped and now we're heading towards shorter days, from warmth to cold and from light to dark but for now it still feels like summer is hanging on here. I've been trying to get out a little more often while the good weather lingers. We have such great countryside around us and I always feel relaxed and peaceful after a walk but it seems hard to fit one regularly into my days, there's always something that needs doing isn't there.

Still, I've been making good progress on knitting projects. The first prize in my 10th anniversary giveaway competition has been sent off and has safely arrived in her new home. I really enjoyed making her and putting together all of the little bits and pieces (I always loved dolls houses when I was little and that's obviously still with me). The little suitcase and tea-set are from Maileg who have retailers all over the world and I made the little iced bun from my teeny tiny bear pattern (scroll down to the bottom for the bun).

Mouse

Travelling mouse

Towards the end of summer I'm always tempted by patterns for scarves and shawls and mittens so I'm also working on a couple of cosy projects for myself and my family. This one is from a pattern from 'Flora' the first Issue of Making (which I believe has now sold out). It's the Flora cowl but I'm making it into a long rectangular scarf which will wrap round and round and be snuggly. The yarn is the very beautiful Blend No 1 from Ysolda which happily is back in stock (probably not for very long as it's rather in demand due to it's softness, lovely marled grey tones and it's excellent provenance). I bought 2 skeins and am just coming to the end of the first one so I'm hoping that I'll be able to finish this in time for the arrival of colder weather.

Blend1yarn

Blend1 yarn

I don't know if it's the time of year but I feel like I'm struggling to fit everything into my days at the moment. Nothing has really changed here, so I think it's me more than anything else, but I just can't seem to settle or get myself properly organised. I'm good at making lists but the power to get on with tasks seems to have deserted me at the moment. Maybe it is the time of year and hopefully I'll feel more settled once autumn has got going. How about you, are you faffing about or organised and together at the moment? If you are organised do you have any tips to share?

Well, I'm rambling so it's time to go and add some things to my list of to do's and then promptly ignore them by making a cup of tea and picking up my knitting! 'Til next time I'll leave you with some pictures from my equinox walk up Widbury Hill yesterday. Thanks for dropping in x

Hawthorn

Snails

Seedhead

general stuff · wildlife

End of summer

September 15, 2016 Julie (little Cotton Rabbits)38 Comments

Firstly I want to say a huge Thank You for all of the kind, funny, thoughtful and heartwarming comments on the giveaway post. I have read them all and I really appreciate the time everyone took to comment. As usual I've used a random number generator to pick the winners and in view of the amount of comments I decided to giveaway an extra animal so I've picked three winners. They've each been notified and are in the process of choosing their prizes (you can see who they are in the previous post).

As I've been merrily knitting away for months, making exactly what I want when I've wanted to I've ended up with lots of clothes, heads and feet. Now I have to jigsaw all the pieces together, work out which head goes best with which outfit and make all the missing parts. It's going to take me a little while but I am hoping to have a little batch of animals ready to sell this autumn and all being well another one in the run up to Christmas. That's the plan anyway!

Bits and pieces

We're starting to get back into term-time routines here. It always takes a while for Toby to settle in, especially as he has a new classroom and new teaching staff. He's also in the biggest class he's ever had with 11 classmates instead of 6 or 7 so this is challenging for him as he thrives a calm and quiet environment. And he's adapting to the after school clubs that I've signed him up for. As he's almost 15 it seemed like a good idea to expand his horizons, so he now goes to Rock club where they explore lots of contemporary music and Health and well-being club where he experiences relaxation techniques and yoga. On club afternoons I collect him with a handful of custard creams as a little treat and to try a lessen the anxiety he experiences at not coming home on the bus as usual. It also helps me feel a little less guilty for tipping him out of his comfort zone!

Anyway, I must get on with some work so I'm off to get knitting arms and sew seams. Until next time I thought I'd leave you with some of the pictures taken over the school summer break where we celebrated Amy's brilliant GCSE results (3 x A*, 7 x A, 1 X B), tried to get out and about as much as possible and made lots of plum jam 🙂

See you soon x

Cheers