Update on Daisy Doo

Daisy is doing really well and a quietened down a good bit - although not so quiet. She is now 18 months old (how time flies) and I love her to bits. She is so big, but I don't notice it until a smaller dog is up beside her. I am bringing her on holidays for two weeks to West Cork where she will have plenty of time to swim and walk.

Below is a picture of her for the first time when she let me tuck her in as she was feeling poorly. She soon recovered after a week's dose of antibiotics. She is terrible now at the vets and just hates it as she remembers being left there before.


Look at these eyes, you forgive her most things when she looks at you like that.

New Finished Knitting Projects

Finished these lovely alpaca socks called "Anne's Magic Stripes" from "Knitting Circles Around Socks". These were knit in the Alpaca Yarn Co. Classic Lite and on 3 mm circular needles using the magic loop method. These were a birthday present for my sister and she loved them.

I finished this lovely 111-7 Drops Jacket with Raglan Sleeves from Garn Studio Designs. This is a free pattern and it was knit with Mirasol Tupa Yarn - a lovely cotton with sheen. This is knit all in one piece and finished off with two nice buttons. I find the Drops Designs quite small fitting and knit the larger size.

I bought these gorgeous buttons in Avoca Handweavers, back in February and they suit it perfectly.

Reading - Latest Books

"Nothing Simple" by Lia Mills is about a couple who leave Ireland to follow their dream in America. They settle in Texas but nothing turns out as simple as it would seem. Recession hits 10 years later and when her daughter disappears Ray looks back on her life and comes to a decision. This is quite a good read.
"The Other End of the Leash" by Patricia B McConnell. This was an okay book but really for people who are into the total psychology of dogs. The book promotes an increased level of understanding of human and dog behaviour, in the hope that it improves the relationship between people and their dogs. It suggests that even the slightest change in body movement can have a huge impact on what your dog does next. I would only recommend this book for the serious dog owner on the level of the dog whisperer. "The Hat Shop on the Corner" by Marita Conlon-McKenna is an excellent read and is set in Dublin. Ellie, the main character, inherits a hat shop when her mother sadly passes away and decides to carry on the tradition, much to the upset of some property developers, who do everything to change her mind. This book is warm and uplifting - if you like Katie FForde you will love this. Through the book Ellie finds her own happiness and brings joy to a lot of people through her millinery.

Just finished "Love, Life, Hate Adore" by Deirdre Purcell but would not have been a favourite of mine. This was a good story but quite disappointing in terms of how the author portrayed it. It is about a girl Angela who took on the responsibility of looking after her brother when her mother died, only to be accused of rape when he was 19.

"Flying Without Fear" by Duane Brown. Yes I am afraid of flying and thought that reading this book might help. It did and it is very well written but nothing that I have not learned before from yoga classes. It goes through the whole aviation industry and how it is easier to be killed by driving your car. It is all about American Aviation and how planes are put through rigorous testing, as well as the pilots. Would not get you over your panic of flying but would certainly help in terms of relaxation methods of dealing with your stress.

"Bones Would Rain from the Sky" by Suzanne Clothier. I cannot rave about this book enough - but only if you are into dogs. An excellent book in terms of understanding the minds of dogs and how to get a better relationship with your dog. Suzanne is brillaint and though provoking. One chapter relates to how a dog never lies. When you come home from work, they are always glad to see you. When you leave a room and come back a moment later, they are still wagging their tail. Perhaps we could apply this to our human relationships. It provides a humane way of training and interacting with dogs and is the best insight I have received into dog behaviour, and I have read quite a few books on the topic. Well worth a read.

"After the Rain" by Thomas Christopher Green is a story about two brothers working in their family restaurant and have always had a very tight bond until their father commits suicide. A lovely easy read with lots to think about.

Art Exhibtion

Have not been blogging for ages but hopefully back on track. Have been really busy. Had my first art exhibition a couple of weeks ago which went really well. There was eight of us exhibiting in the Mount Pleasant Tennis Club in Ranelagh. Mairead, our teacher for six weeks was brilliant and inspired us all and gave us such confidence in ourselves. Special thanks to her. A big special thanks to Dara who helped me through the day and set up and to everyone in my class and all my family and friends who came to support me.

The picture above is some of the works by the other members of the exhibition. This is just a snapshot. I don't want to bore you.

This is called "Anenomies" and it sold at the end of the evening. I was a bit sad letting this one go but it means that I can continue painting with the proceeds. This was an oil on canvas.

My sister Ger brought me back some postcards from her visit to Monet's garden in Giverney. He has to be one of my favourite artists and it is my dream to visit these gardens - hopefully next year. This painting was done in wateroils on canvas and I was really pleased with it. My brother admired it so I gave it to him as a present. I called it Water Lilies.

This is the second one based on Giverney and I called it Flowers in Giverney. This was sold on the night and I had the pleasure of seeing it hanging in its new home and it looks great. This was oil on canvas. These two paintings were done entirely with a pallette knife - my favourite way of painting.

This painting caused me nightmares as up to the Sunday before the exhibition it was totally different. It is called "Midnight Poppies" and is acrylic on canvas. This also is hanging happily in its new house - hopefully loved.

This is called "Purple Flowers" and is oil and canvas. This was sold also and is happily hanging in Joan's house.

Unfortunately this one didn't sell and I called it "Purple Sunrise". It is wateroils on Canvas.

My First Pair of Socks

I have been putting off knitting socks for years but bought some yarn at This is Knit in Blackrock just before Christmas "Brown Sheep, Wildfoote Luxury Sock Yarn" and finally finished my first pair of socks thanks to some help from my sister when it came to shaping the heel and toe.

The pattern is from "Knitting Circles Around Socks" and is called Anne's Magic Socks. Loved the yarn and pattern and used approximately 1.5 skeins and hey presto - my first socks.

Wish You Were Here and Tell Me Your Secret

Just finished these two books. The first one is by Mike Gayle "Wish you Were Here". This is similar to a Chick lit but from the male perspective. I really enjoyed this book and finished it in two days. It is about a guy in a thirties whose girlfriend dumps him after 10 years and his other two mates decide that they will bring him off on a holiday to Greece for a week. It does not take him long to get over the love of his life and it is fun all the way. After been on an 18-30's holiday when they were 18 they decide to go on another one and once there, decide again that it is about time they actually grew up.

The second book is by Deirdre Purcell "Tell me Your Secret". Nicely written but a little far-fetched. A girl falls in love in the 1940's Ireland and her parents lock her up for 35 years in an attic, she has a baby and they just take it away to be adopted. Can you imagine.

Oriel Scarf

This is the Oriel Lace Scarf from 101 Designer One-Skein Wonders which I am really pleased with.

The yarn is scrummy and 100 per cent baby marino wool and was a very welcome present from a fellow knitter friend in the Rathmines Knitting Group.

I knit this on 5 mm needles and is a laceweight yarn called Malabrigo Lace Yarn. I knit this in less than 2 weeks and then just steamed it with the iron to flatten out the edges. I am delighted with it.

I will certainly knit with this yarn again, perhaps a cardigan mm.... mmm.... mmm....

"Disgrace" by JM Coetzee

Picked up this book in a Charity Shop one day just for the cover, yes a dog on the front. Yes there is a subtle theme about dogs in it, but more an anology of what is going on around the author. It won a Booker Prize and I can see why. It is a straight forward short read and you feel that you just cannot put it down. Lurie is the main character who is unable to relate to women, having married twice and then turning to prostitutes and then one day has an affair with one of his students and is disgraced and exiled from the university where he is working. It is set in South Africa where Lurie spends time with his daughter Lucy on her small holding - post-apartheid where thugs get away with rape, robbery and attempted robbery.

Latest Knits

Here are some quick knits I did over the weekend watching dvds.

Th first is called Baby Squash Hat from 101 Designers One-Skein Wonders. Knit from the Lidl's cotton yarn. Turned out really well. The second quick knit started off as the Garter Stitch Loop Scarf from 101 Designer - One - Skein Wonders but ended up just as a scarf and I cast off eight stitched three quarters way through to pull one end of the scarf through. This was knit with Yin Yarn bought in This is Knit at the RDS Show.

The last item are the Victoria Gloves taken from the pattern in Louisa Harding's "Knitting Little Luxuries". These are for myself and I think this pattern is great.

Just finished these three items

Holiday Stuff

Over the Christmas break I was able to get away for a night with a friend for a spa treatment, some fine dining, nice wine and a general chill. Chill being the operative word as you can see from the photo taking at 11 am the following morning. We decided on the Bloomfield Hotel in Mullingar which has a 3 star rating. The package included one night bed and breakfast, spa treatment and dinner in their fine restaurant. We arrived at 3.30 in time for our spa treatment (back massage) which was absolutely bliss. We then had dinner at around 6.30 pm until 9 which was scrummy.This is a photo of the sunset taking from the hotel. A beautiful spot. The only thing that would put me off going again was the breakfast was very poor quality and normally I would enjoy this part of a stay but that really put me off. There was an awful smell coming from the lift also. So I don't think we will be going there again any time soon unless we hear that standards have been raised.

Had some friends around for dinner the other night which included Daisy's boyfriend Fred. As you can see from the photos they enjoyed each other's company, although it took about 4 hours to take this photo. Needless to say the two of them slept it off the following day also.

Muffin

Muffin
Originally uploaded by sandykeat

This is an oil portrait of a colleagues dog which she asked me to do last year. Unfortunately I only got around to doing it this year and from the feedback the children were delighted with it for Christmas. It was hard to get all the shading right as I only had one photo to work from but I was pleased with the result.

Christmas Knits

These are some knitted things I did for Christmas Presents or for myself.

This is a Clapotis knit with Aracunia Ranco Multi. It took 2 skeins and is yummy and knit very well.

These are Louisa Harding Victoria Knitted Gloves knit with Louisa Harding Grace silk blend yarn. Another yummy present.

Another picture of my clapotis.

This is Ella's favourite hat knit with Noro yarn from one Skein Wonders book.

These are Noro silk garden fingerless gloves taken from the Noro Mini Knits book.

More Noro Fingerless Gloves.

and finally another pair of Louisa Harding Victoria knitted gloves.

I lost the rest of my photos off my camera i.e. knitted felted bags and a shower soap holder.

Knitting - Little Girl's Dress

This is my latest knit, just need to attach a nice ribbon to the middle section to finish it off. This was knitted from the Patons Knit Today - Ribbon-tied Pink Dress and the yarn I used was Cotton Classic Cable from Lidls and it was knit on size 4 mm needles. Enjoyed knitting this, just need a new-born baby girl to give it to. Yes my stash is depleting but not as quickly as I would like.

Night Train to Lisbon by Pascal Mercier

First of all I would like to wish all my readers a very Happy New Year for 2009. For my part I hope it is a better year than 2008 and am feeling positive so far. Read this book over the Christmas break and found it quite intruiging but quite hard going.

The main character is a teacher in Switzerland and one day an unknow woman leads him to seek out a book written by an unknown Portugese writer. He then reads the book and leaves his teaching responsibilities on the spur of the moment and catches the train to Lisbon to discover everything about this author's life. It is an interesting read and very different - not for everyone. If you like Isabel Allende you will probably like this book.

The Loss of a Loved One

I haven't been blogging for a while because alas my poor Mum died a couple of weeks ago. My Mum was one of the kindest, honest, and gentlest women I had the privilege of knowing and I miss her terribly. Before she became ill she used to always get up every morning early and make breakfast for me, had the dinner on the table every evening and looked after my dog during the day. She was not materialistic and was always there to offer advice and help me when I had a problem and listened to my woes and troubles when I came in from work. I have found it hard the past two weeks but I am taking each day as it comes and my family and friends have been there to support me all the way for which I am eternally grateful. I am so lucky I have such good friends and an exceptional family who have been there every day for me. She is now resting and at peace with my dear Dad in Heaven and hopefully looking out for me along the way.

Knitting October 2008

The first is called the Canterbury Memories Scarf knit from 3 balls of cream Debbie Bliss Cotton Angora. Needs to be blocked and will be an Xmas pressie hopefully. I used about a quarter of a skein for the edges.

Knit from the same yarn was a hat from the Noro Designer Mini Knits.

Knit also from the same yarn another Noro Hat from the Designer Mini Knits collection.

This is my Noro Silk Garden lite Juno Regina scarf. Knit with 4 skeins on size 7 mm. I love it and it is for myself. I adapted the pattern up to 57 stitches and knit less of the charts and just continued with the main pattern. Quite a tedious chart pattern but I stuck with it.

Art - October 2008

Just finished this painting and am calling it "The Lonesome Boatman". Wanted to do something different and am really pleased with this one. I think it will look somewhat better when framed.

Pet Expo 2008

Went to Pet Expo with my friend during October and had a really good day out, apart from the fashion shows and the dressing up of animals just like this one below.

This I had to take a photo of, I thought it was a pram for a baby but no, wait for it, a pet stroller. I said to the guy selling these, do people actually buy these, and he said hundreds are sold for taking their pooch from the beauty parlour home and at shows. Well I have seen it all now.

I got to brush this beautiful golden retriever who was very placid altogether.

The highlight of the day was all the puppies in training for the Guide Dogs for Blind. They were so cute and even had labradoodles.

Book Reviews - October 2009

Have only managed to read 2 books during October, one a total disappointment and the other, which I thought was going to be a disappointment, a really good read.

The disappointment was "One for my Baby" by Tony Parsons. This was a big let down having read "Man and Boy". Alfie returns from Hong Kong to London after his wife was killed in a scuba diving accident and it tells how he copes with the loss. A bit non-descript, readable but not enjoyable.

Deirdre Purcell "That Childhood Country" on the other hand was a really good read and left me page-turning the whole time. Deirdre's descriptive writing style in this novel was excellent and tells the story of a girl back in the 1950's in Ireland finding love with someone beneath her status and having a baby at 16. It is full of emotion, and heartbreak but definitely worth a read.

Innocent Smoothie Hats

Finished my contribution to the Innocent Smoothie Hat marathon. I managed to finish 23 hats in total and have just posted them off this morning. Hopefully somebody will buy a smoothie with my hat on it and I had to guard them with my life with Daisy.

Daisy has had some sickness over the last couple of weeks after swallowing a foreign object. Luckily she didn't have to have an operation and is now bright and perky. Here is a picture of her beside my hat collection but no doubt give her five minutes and she would have demolished them all. Explain that to the vet when she has another xray.