Autumn Ways and Holidays

Hello lovelies!

It's hard to believe just how quickly summer slipped away. Only a week ago, one of our largest local mountains was bare of snow, and in the last couple days its peak has turned a soft white again. How excited I am for sweater weather, hockey season, cozy nights in, and all the other awesome things that come with shorter, colder days. I had to put the heat on for the first time this past weekend, and happily got out my box of warm, woolly accessories. Hooray!

First I must show off a few shots from my little vacation to Vancouver. I had a great visit with my brother and dad. It was so much fun, and I hope to go again next summer (or sooner if I can). How cute is the little felt heart? I was walking near Commercial and Broadway and it caught my eye.

Some of (my) most enjoyable outings were visiting Science World, and checking out the delicious 216 flavours at La Casa Gelato. (Some are a little weird, but they were fun to taste.) We did lots of walking, dining out, window shopping, real shopping.... I spent most of my money at Three Bags Full and at Baaad Anna's. Both yarn shops are well stocked with beautiful products, and have lovely, helpful staff. I was invited to attend their Wednesday night Stitch n Bitch, but was unable to go. Maybe next time!

Now, the highlight of my trip, and the main reason I went to Vancouver in the first place, was to stand beside one of my best friends as a bridesmaid at her wedding. It was such a beautiful, sunny day and everything went off without a hitch. I am so honoured to have been a part of her special day! We are still waiting for the professional photos, so I only have a couple of my own to share...

Heritage Hall on Main Street - historic venue where the ceremony and reception were held. 

Photo booth fun with one of my favourite ladies! <3

Now that I'm back home, I've resumed work on my keyhole/loop-through scarf order for my aunt. Four out of nine are done, but I must step up production to get them finished and mailed by early November and still have time to write up patterns for my latest designs (and block them so I can take nice photos and publish them here).

On Sunday evening I attended a "we survived inventory" tea with some coworker friends and had a great time. Our hostess Nellie put on her own version of a high tea spread, complete with adorable cupcake stands, pretty china, and an amazing assortment of teas and sweets. We had so much fun that we've all decided to try and do something similar each month. Next time we're having our own wine tasting party!

  

Next time I hope to share some more knitting (WIPS and FOs), and maybe another yummy recipe. Hope you're all staying toasty as we enter this lovely cool season! ♥

Autumn is Coming

Hello my dear figs!

This week has been a hectic one at the cottage! Lots of cleaning, visiting with family from Newfoundland, a couple crafty ventures, and this lady has had a rather full week of work. As of today, I am on holidays for two weeks and am really looking forward to some serious relaxation. My dad and I are driving to Vancouver for a holiday to visit my brother, and also for me to take part in a close friend's wedding as one of the bridesmaids!

Here's a few snaps of what I've been up to this past week!

Another of the loop-through/keyhole scarves, this time in moss stitch. I've had this Sublime Angora Merino for ages and thought it would nice made into a wee scarf. Will likely be casting off tomorrow once we hit the road.

A bit of new woolly excitement... a girlfriend (and fellow knitter/yarn addict) let me borrow her drop spindle to try out hand-spinning my own yarn. I don't know the maker or brand of it, but it's a top whorl spindle, not too heavy, and was nice to use. I feel like I got the hang of using it rather quickly, and was able to spin up a mini skein of worsted(ish) weight yarn. I could tell there was too much twist in the yarn because when I took it off the spindle it still twisted up on itself. A warm bath helped relax the fibres a bit, and I hung it to dry with a big can of beans weighing down the hanging loop. Next morning it was dry and more manageable. I then twisted it up into the wee stubby skein you see below :)

There has been a big change in our weather recently, too. AUTUMN IS COMING! That precious summer sunshine has been replaced with grey skies and cooler temperatures. Autumn is my favourite season and I'm so excited for sweater weather, cozy blankets, hot cocoa, and pumpkin (spice) everything. Just the other night I was craving something sweet to have with a cup of tea and saw a picture of these bars on Tumblr. 

Clicking the link was a bad (or very good) idea and I had to make them. I give you SOFT AND GOOEY LOADED S'MORES BARS, from the gorgeous blog Averie Cooks. If you've got a sweet tooth, be sure to click through and see all her other drool-inducing recipes. Here's my finished batch after cooling.

So that's all for now. Thanks for stopping by! I'm not sure if I'll get a change to post whilst on holiday but will definitely try! I plan on hitting up a few great knitting shops while in the Vancouver area, and will probably be too excited NOT to share photos with you all! Happy Friday! ♥