Trying to keep busy

It is unbearably empty in the house and very lonely, but life goes on. Thank you all of you for your kind comments, they have really helped. I've been trying to keep busy so have been attempting something creative (keeping busy hasn't extended to housework yet).

I bought these gloves:

in the sales and they are made from very simple treble-ish crochet, just worked in rounds, yet because of the nice soft fluffy-ish wool they are really warm. I replaced the original ribbon with one I preferred, and really like them. So I had a half-hearted attempt at doing my own at the weekend, using the end of a very, very old ball of mohair-type wool - it's probably about 20 years old so I've no idea what it is actually made of.
I ended up working round and round doing one treble crochet and one chain, and working into the gaps of the previous row on the next one, making it all up by just trying-on all the time till I got about the right size, leaving a gap for the thumb by doing a long chain then picking up stitches round the hole later to crochet into, like you would with knitting, I just finished the thumb bits yesterday. A bit sad because when I started them Newton was sitting next to me, very ill on the Saturday night, and I ended up crocheting a bit of his white fur into them without realising and only saw it last night when I'd completely finished!

Having saved enough to finish the thumbs, of course I ran out of wool completely for the hand part about one and a half rows from the end of the second mitten, so it's shorter than the first, but then this was all a bit of an experiment so it doesn't matter. I like the idea though, and so when I next go to John Lewis might treat myself to a ball of lovely Rowan Kidsilk Haze if they still do it or something similar, and have another go, at which time I'll try and formulate a pattern and let you know. Of course this would be the very opposite of being thrifty and perhaps would be too decadent. I'm sure any fuzzy wool would do though - I think it has to be fuzzy to make it look a bit more interesting. They were so quick to do because the stitches are so open, and you could easily thread ribbon through the gaps in a contrasting or similar colour. Probably would be better if I joined the rounds properly instead of doing amigurumi style, must look up how to do this. I'd like to persist though because with a nice ribbon through they'd make a good present for friends next year. I'm wearing them now as I type and they're surprisingly cosy.

My good friend Tammy at Confessions of an Artist has been very productive and those of you interested in re-using and recycling, as well as knitting, might like to see what she's achieved in her latest post. I love the sock, she's knitting it with two colours held together for the main part and it's lovely and thick, not quite sure if I'm patient enough for socks, I'm such a slow knitter, which is why I'm getting more drawn to crochet. I never thought of actually unravelling jumpers from charity shops either but it's a great idea.

Also for any of you who don't fancy knitting or crochet, look at what Twiglet has done to make her mittens in her post.

I must go and do some baking now, we've completely run out of cake, thank you Lyn in yesterday's post for inspiring me to make a lemon loaf cake, I reckon I'm just about up to that and I even have the necessary lemons!