Lighter days

Now we're into British Summertime (!) I think I can be forgiven for falling for a couple of bits to lighten up the warm clothes that I'm getting a bit tired of. Though there's plenty of linen in pale pastel colours in the shops, the weather really isn't up to wearing such things yet. I fell for this scarf in Cirencester yesterday.

It's made in Sctoland, by Shirley Pinder, and is a cotton/merino mix. The green woven stripes are elastic, so it has a really pleasing soft, stretchy feel to it.

Back in February, when I had my meeting at Clarence House, I walked back through Bond Street and spotted this yummy necklace in Fenwicks. I thought it a bit costly, but hey, I was having a good day and I thought I'd wear it lots. After all, you can't grow out of a necklace, can you?!

It was available in this colour, a pale green, a pale pink and beige.

When I got home, I realised just why it was the price it was. Examining closely, the work which is involved in attaching so many small disc-beads to the whole thing is considerable. And assuming the person wasn't paid megabucks for doing it, I think it was a reasonable price.

I wore it to my "big meeting" last week and had many many comments. Being nicely balanced - light enough to move a bit but with enough weight to hang nicely, it must have twinkled slightly as I moved, and several people in the audience wanted to come and have a closer look afterwards.

I'd quite like another, pink one, maybe.

Greedy, aren't I??

Curled up with a book

A rainy Saturday afternoon seemed like a good opportunity to get right on with Knit One Kill Two, and so I settled in after lunch and had it finished by tea time! Yes, it's an easy read and for me, a definite "down in one" book.

The characters are a bit cardboard cut-out, but the clues weren't too obvious (apart from page 76!) and the descriptions of the textures and colours in the yarn store were well done, I felt. The knitting pattern and recipe in the back of the book seemed a bit superfluous - I mean, who needs a pattern for a fluffy scarf? I did feel a bit daft by being surprised by the second murder though and clearly hadn't given the title much thought!

Whereas I wouldn't dash out to buy the next in the series, and still don't consider myself a crime reader, I enjoyed the book and if I were stuck for another easy read, I'd happily get another. I think it will amuse my bookgroup, who will no doubt be bringing some serious crime fiction along to counteract this little bit of fluff!

Finding the Amazon link this morning, I came across several of these "theme" books which have amused me greatly:

Hanging by a Thread and Cutwork by Monica Ferris are needlework themed, and there are a lot more where they came from!
On What Grounds and Through the Grinder by Cleo Goyle are amongst the Coffee Shop mysteries.
Dearly Depotted and Slay it with Flowers by Kate Collins are in the Flowershop mystery series.
And I won't tell you where The Jasmine Moon Murder and Camomile Mourning are based. It's the same place as The English Breakfast Murder of course.

So, what do you think comes first, the title or the plot?! I can say that if you can think of a pun, I bet it's out there already!

Book Group dilemma - resolved

My book group have been selecting a genre of books for discussion rather than a single title recently. Having just pulled a few romances apart last week*, we chose "crime fiction" for next month.

Here was my dilemma. I can't bear crime fiction. Colleagues expressed surprise and swiftly took up the challenge to convince me that I was missing out on some great reading and that I should investigate Donna Leon, Nikki French and other names I've heard of but never read.

I got myself a copy of Death at La Fenice in Waterstones yesterday and came home, prepared to give it a go. But before I started it, I shuffled a few papers and found this, which seems the perfect answer. Good friend Mary had come across it and given it to me to read some time ago, but it had been buried under a pile of paper. Interesting that it should reappear at such an opportune moment.

Report to follow!

* books discussed included: Sue Gee's Letters from Prague, Small Island by Andrea Levy, Waiting by Ha Jin, Pride and Prejudice, The Cairo House by Samia Serageldin, Audrey Niffenegger's The Time Travellers Wife , My Lover's Lover by Maggie O'Farrell and Alan Titchmarsh's Rosie !

By way of relaxation

Having completed the first Jaywalker, I felt I deserved some mindless knitting before starting the second one, so looked out this pattern, found here. It was very quick to knit, not much more than an hour or two, and had enough to keep me interested since I didn't have a picture on my printout.

Hmm. We've been chatting recently about the England - Scotland - Wales aspects of the UK, and I thought this cloth raised all kinds of questions, which I don't need to point out here but which I'm sure you will have fun identifying.

You might also have fun identifying my deliberate mistake in the top right corner. Well, it was late. I'd just finished a pesky sock. The light wasn't good.

And heck, this is only a dishcloth!

In the meantime

I've finished the first Jaywalker. Phew. It bit back until the very end, and I reached the conclusion that I was simply fed up with it and had a pessimistic approach throughout. I'm pleased I wasn't knitting these socks for me, or else I'd never have worn them!

I shall knit the second one, exactly as the pattern says, on five needles. I know I prefer two short circs but sometimes the designer just knows better!

Yarn is Schoeller + Stahl, Fortissima Colori Socka Color, bought in the Co-op on Bahnhofstrasse, Zurich! I think it has a Missoni feel to it.