I found some old Spring photos of Cineraria

A while ago my brother rescued all the photos that were on my old computer which had died. I thought that everything had been lost, but by some miracle he managed to transfer the files onto a USB stick and I have now put them onto my present computer.

I found these photos of our Cineraria, which I took during Spring many years ago. The Cineraria used to grow in abundance under the pine trees around the house. They had self-seeded from somewhere and loved the growing conditions under the trees. 

There were so many different colours, ranging from blue, through pink, mauve, purple and white.       

Unfortunately we had to have the pine trees around the house removed. They were old and leaning dangerously. In stormy weather the pine branches used to thump on the roof....scary.

After the trees had gone the cineraria stopped growing in this spot. But some have still managed to spread into the orchard and surprisingly into the vegetable patch and under the deck. 

I am waiting for new, self-sown seedlings, to flower this Spring. I never know which colours will show up. I like to pick individual florets of different colours and float them in a bowl of water on my desk :)

Now I am off to sort through more of my photos, I love the memories that they evoke.

See you again soon.

Hugs, Rose x

My favourite scent of Spring

 

It is now 2 weeks into Spring and the bluebells in my garden are in full flower. They make such a wonderful sight. 

I couldn't resist picking a bunch for my desk. Their scent is gorgeous, it fills the room with Springtime happiness. The flowers are perfection, such a lovely blue, reminding me of the Summer skies that will follow in a few months time.

The sky was a dramatic, dark, charcoal-grey yesterday over the distant hills, it was very ominous. However the sun shone on our land, making the fresh green colours of the spring leaves really stand out. The photo above is a view from my bedroom window. 

The plum tree is full of white blossom at the moment and it is alive with buzzing bees. The blossom looks like thick snow as there are so many small white flowers covering the branches. 

I have the window open at the moment letting the sweet scent of the blossom waft inside, mingling with the perfume of the bluebells on my desk. Bliss.

I feel so lucky to live on 10 acres of land here in New Zealand. All the space to walk in and enjoy and feel shut away from the worries of the world. 

The only time we see anyone outside is when we receive our weekly delivery of shopping, and even then it is contactless. The driver leaves our groceries on the doorstep and we bring them in when he has driven off. Waving to him from the window. What a strange world we live in at the moment.

I hope that you are managing to keep safe and happy through these times.

See you again soon.

Hugs.

Rose xxx

Happy Easter!

 

Have a Merry Christmas!

 

Knitted moss stitch washcloths - pattern included

Over the past 2 weeks I have been spending a lot of time indoors due to the bad weather. I have been using my list of 20 Winter Comforts from my previous post quite a lot. Mainly spending my time reading and knitting.

I have had the urge to knit since Winter started, but didn't know what to knit. Then I saw knitted washcloths/dishcloths on another blog which looked very pretty and I found a cotton (30%) and bamboo (70%) mix yarn for sale in many different colours.

Later I finally saw cotton washcloths for sale in a gift shop. That made my mind up, I had to knit some washcloths.

I couldn't make my mind up on which colours to choose so I ended up buying 30 balls of 8-ply yarn. Two balls of each colour that I liked!

My reasoning behind buying so much is that the knitted washcloths are eco-friendly, being made from natural materials, and should last a long time. Better than the synthetic dishcloths I usually buy. I also think that cost-wise, in the long run, the knitted washcloths will cost me less. So I am telling myself that I am being thrifty as well.

Here is the pattern that I used to make the moss stitch washcloths:

Pattern

K = knit
P = purl

~ Cast on 57 stitches

~ Knit 8 rows in garter stich (each row knit)

Then work the following 4 row moss stitch pattern until the patterned area is square:

~ Row 1: K6 *P1,K1 Repeat from * to the last 5 stitches then K5

~ Row 2: K5, P1 *K1, P1 Repeat from * to the last 5 stitches then K5

~ Row 3: same as row 2

~ Row 4: same as row 1

Once the patterned area is square and ending on a row 1 or 3,

~ Knit 8 rows in garter stich (each row knit)

~ Cast off all stitches

~ Sew the ends in using a yarn needle.

I used 8-ply yarn which was a mix of 30% cotton and 70% bamboo.

You could also use a 100% cotton yarn instead.

To get the right tension I used 3 1/4 mm needles (the yarn label said to use 4 mm needles, but I found this to be too loose).

The pattern makes one 25 cm x 25 cm (10 inch x 10 inch) washcloth (which could also be used as a dishcloth).

One 50 gram ball of yarn makes one washcloth.

Happy knitting.

Lots of smiles.

Rose x

20 Winter Comforts - My Hygge List

It's that time of year again when the days are becoming shorter and darker and the nights are drawing in earlier. The cool weather is sneaking up on us. The temperature is dropping and here in Auckland it is a mild 16 C during the day and 11 C at night. Soon to get colder.

Winter has begun and I am well prepared against the Winter blues this year.

I've made an activity list, to help me stay happy throughout this Winter, which I would like to share with you.

The first 2 things on my list I have already completed and will repeat them again as needed throughout the Winter season.

1. Bring flowering plants or potted bulbs into the house

- Cyclamens (I managed to find miniature cyclamens on sale for $3 each)
- Hyacinths
- Grape hyacinths
- Miniature daffodils

2. Keep desk clean and tidy and fill with pretty things

- plants
- shells
- candles
- trinkets

3. Go for a walk

- Dress up warmly and get outside to soak up the sunshine when it shines.
- Dress up warmly and walk outside on the grass on a frosty morning. Listen to the frost crunching under foot.
- Take photos

4. Snuggle up inside on a dull or rainy day

- Wrap up in a cuddly blanket or warm throw rug
- Wear snuggly bed socks to warm your feet
- Cuddle a covered hot water bottle
- Read a good book or magazine
- Light a scented candle
- Listen to the rain on the roof while being warm and cosy inside

5. Have a home spa

- Pedicure (don't forget the nail polish)
- Manicure
- Relax in a hot bubble bath with scented candles
- Rich hair treatment mask
- Scented moisturisers
- Beautiful scented soaps

6. Create something beautiful

- Colouring in
- Tapestry
- Cross-stitch
- Make a piece of jewellery
- Crochet
- Knit

7. Plan the Spring vegetable garden

- Draw a plan on grid paper
- Sort out seeds already on hand
- Order more seed if needed
- Work out dates to sow each vegetable indoors or directly into the ground

8. Make a delicious hot drink

- Hot chocolate with frothy milk and marshmallows on top
- Hot blackcurrant juice
- A pot of English Breakfast tea served in favourite cup
- Hot lemon, honey and ginger drink

9. Phone friends and family for a chat

- Phone rather than text or email

10. Cuddle cats

- Cuddle and play with the cats
- Take cats for a walk on the land

11. Watch TV on-demand

- Gardener's World
- Escape to the Chateau
- Doc Martin
- Binge on box-sets

12. Watch beautiful Winter sunrises and sunsets

- Watch the sunrise or sunset from inside the house
- Take photos

13. Blog

- Write blog posts
- Take photos for blog
- Read and answer blog comments
- Comment on other people's blogs

14. Play games or do puzzles

- Jigsaw puzzles
- Crossword puzzles
- Puzzle books
- Board games
- Computer games

15. Watch YouTube

- Funny animal videos
- Funny cat videos

16. Bake something

- Chocolate brownies
- Mid Winter Christmas cake
- Make Russian fudge

17. Practice gratitude

- Each day, in a notebook, write down 3 things that you are grateful for and 3 things that you enjoyed today.

18. Meditate using Mindfulness CDs

- Ten minutes a day

19. Have an early night

- Read a good book in bed
- Have a cup of hot chocolate
- Fluffy warm duvet
- Hot water bottle

20. Have something to look forward to every day

- Plan your day

Use ideas on this list or think of other things to stay toastie indoors or adventure outdoors.

I hope that you can stay relaxed and happy during the cooler days of Winter.

Can you think of anything that you would like to add to this list?

See you soon

Hugs

Rose x

A week into Winter

Winter arrived here in New Zealand a week ago, but where I am in Auckland it feels more like late Spring. At least the plants seem to think this.

There are new buds on the chestnut tree, sycamore trees and the viburnums. The camelias have flower buds on, which are starting to open, and the freesias, daffodils, ixias and babiana have sprouted from their bulbs.

I hope that the plants don't go into shock when the cold weather hits.

The red hot pokers (kniphofia) have now opened and are putting on a magnificent display.

We have got quite a few red hot pokers now. They have self-seeded in many sheltered spots, much to the enjoyment of the wax eyes which love to feed on the nectar. (We occasionally get tuis feeding on the nectar as well).

The wax eyes descend on the red hot pokers in large flocks and fly from one flower to the next very quickly. I tried to catch them on camera, but unfortunately all I get is a blur.

This week I have been trying to get out into the garden as much as possible between the rain showers. It is still warm enough for me to go outside in a T-shirt without a cardigan. But gumboots are necessary as the ground is getting a little squishy.

The vegetable garden is coming on well. We have harvested about a third of the radishes now. They are yummy, nice and crisp and moist and not too hot for me. I love eating them dipped in butter.

Today I saw our first snow pea growing. It is 1 cm long. So it looks like the bees have been around pollinating the flowers. I wonder how long it will be before the peas will be ready to pick? Yum!

While it has been raining I have spent my time tucked up inside reading a book on surviving the Winter months called Making Winter by Emma Mitchell. And I am also reading through a couple of gardening books to see what I can do in the vegetable patch over Winter.

What comforting things do you like to do during the Winter months to avoid the Winter doldrums?

Looking forward to hearing from you.

Hugs,

Rose x