yarn along

Joining in with Ginny

I have started knitting a That Cheeky Kea vest top for Thomas' birthday. I'm knitting it out of my stash yarn. I did go to Hobbycraft and buy some yarn for both Thomas' and Hannah's birthday knits but then discovered I'd bought 4 ply rather than double knitting for Thomas. Then we were all ill and I never made it back to exchange it (and anyway it's rather nice 4 ply so I'm sure I can make something with it). So Thomas' top will be a mixture of heathery green and grey. Not sure yet what colour to do the contrasting pockets. I've got a nice heathery purple somewhere that might work.

I'm reading Lark Rise to Candleford by Flora Thompson. I read this many years ago when I was a teenager, and started reading it again (the same copy as before - it's showing its age!) over Christmas when we were staying at my parents. It's a good book for intermittent reading as each chapter is a self contained description of an aspect of country life in the 1880s.

the start of the garden

I planted some tomato plants a couple of weeks ago and they are just poking through. These are a bush variety which need less attention (i.e. no staking or picking out side shoots) so fingers crossed they will be more successful than in previous years........

The kids and I have also planted lots of flower seeds this year. I thought we'd start some off inside and then plant some more outside when it's a bit warmer. We've got Stock, Cosmos, Lavatera, Nigella and Snapdragon. The garden should look very pretty if we manage to plant all those.

yarn along

On the needles is another neck warmer. This is the 3rd one I have knit recently. I have been teaching myself how to knit continental style in the process. I think I've cracked it now. It took a while to get going, especially with purling, but it is so much easier to knit this way with circular needles. And since I am so, so bad at getting round to stitching up knitting projects, I think circular needles are the way to go.

I am reading Not on the label by Felicity Lawrence. It's about how the power of the big supermarkets, and the push for cheap food, affects the workforce, the environment and the food we eat. It's made me want to reduce my dependence on supermarkets even more. We already get an organic fruit and veg box delivered (just waiting to buy the house with the big garden so I can grow my own!) but I'm also going to start getting some dry goods (rice, pasta etc) in bulk from an organic wholesaler. These companies are committed to social and environmental responsibility, so it's a start.

reduce

I'm trying to reduce the amount of packaging that I use (both recyclable and not). Most packaging is from food e.g.

• tinned tomatoes and baked beans
• yoghurt pots
• plastic fruit punnets

I am aiming to tackle these bit by bit, starting with the tomatoes. The plan is to order extra tomatoes with the veg box on Friday and then transform these into chopped tomatoes which we can use throughout the week. Should be doable !