What's on the needles?

Since I started to learn to knit a couple of months ago, I've never not had something on my needles. I'm trying to be sensible and take things step by step, as I think it might be quite easy to get discouraged by attempting something too complicated. I can, however, see that I'm making progress in reading my stitches, spotting when I've gone wrong (and rectifying it) and generally getting neater, with more even tension. I've been trying different combinations of stitches, with simple patterns that have been mostly straight knitting, though I've started to learn to increase and decrease now. 

Currently on my needles (above) and almost finished is a baby blanket, in acrylic. I'm pretty much making the pattern up as I go along. I've discovered I don't much like using acrylic but, for something that is going to be donated to the baby bank, I can't afford to spend a fortune plus it's washable and practical for a busy young mum. 

I've knitted two little boat-necked sweaters, one in soft lavender cashmerino and the other in a sage green shade, both for the baby bank. 

I used the same lavender yarn for a 'Sophie scarf', which is a long, thin triangular scarf with an I-cord edging, that taught me ways to increase and decrease. I enjoyed that pattern so I also knitted the same scarf in red DK yarn for my daughter for Christmas. 

The rest of the family also got gifts - a regular scarf for my son-in-law, wrist warmers for my older granddaughter and a little blanket/coat for younger granddaughter's favourite toy goat! 

I have not dared to try circular needles yet but I decided I'd make a square baby hat; I quite like the effect when they have two little pointy bits sticking up! My sewing up leaves a bit to be desired... I'm going to have to improve that. Anyway so far, so good. I'm certainly enjoying myself and when the weather is too cold and icy to go far, it's good to have another hobby with which to pass the time. 

 

Nostalgia

 

I was idly wondering whether writers go back and reread their own novels, or diarists thrill again to their own journal entries. (We all know that famous Oscar Wilde quote: 'I never travel without my diary. One should always have something sensational to read in the train.')  Maybe I'm odd - or self-obsessed! - but I do occasionally like to look back at my blog, which is, after all, a record of what I've been up to for the past eighteen or so years. So I was looking back ten years, to 2016 and I found, for the 13th January, this delightful memory:

"And she's off....

We are fortunate that the town of Halifax is almost equidistant between my daughter's new home and mine - and even more fortunate that it holds the fabulous National Children's Museum: Eureka. The museum was in its infancy when my daughter was a child but is continually renewed and re-envisioned and has gone from strength to strength. My granddaughters love it - and so do we adults, as it is a wonderful place to take them when the weather precludes outdoor play. With both children still being under school age we can go during the week when it's quieter. It gets packed, as you can imagine, at weekends and holidays.

On our recent visit, E, who is four, was captivated by the workshop devoted to transport. She 'drove' a lorry, took a car through a carwash, filled up with petrol and then donned overalls to change the tyres. A future in Formula One looks assured. One-year-old M was curious at first ...  and then decided the smooth floors were perfect for getting in some walking practice. She is so proud of her new-found skills and balance.

Up...  steady...  and off she goes.....'

I loved looking back at this. Little M, the adventurer, now eleven, is still curious, brave and bright. She's a lot bigger, of course! In the meantime, she grew her hair until it reached below her waist. Last week, she had it chopped off into a very stylish, short, razor-cut bob. I believe her intention was to donate her long plaits to a charity that makes wigs for child cancer patients. 

Leeds station

I'm afraid I've not been doing anything very interesting since New Year. It's been so cold and icy that I've tended to avoid going out (even though we've had very little actual snow here, to speak of). Our hospitals are under such pressure; the last thing I want is to slip on the ice and end up in A&E facing a long wait for treatment, so I've been staying safe and cosy at home. 

I did venture across to Leeds on the train one day, to meet a friend. I was mildly amused to spot a man in the station concourse standing talking, quite loudly, to a mobile phone on a tripod, obviously filming himself. It looked quite a serious endeavour, as he even had a script of some sort in his hand. (Of course, deaf old me couldn't hear what he was saying.) I did wonder whether it was one of the local TV channels, as he looked vaguely familiar, though I'd have thought they could afford an actual camera operator and not rely on a mobile phone.  Modern life's zeitgeist is that everyone younger than me (and there are a lot of them!) seems to be permanently either 'talking to themselves' or cut off from the world with massive headphones. I find it really weird. 

Meanwhile, outside the station, work goes on to 'improve' the environment. They are enlarging the pedestrian forecourt; moving the bus shelters and spacing them out so there’s more room to wait for a bus and creating an additional pedestrian crossing to make it easier to get to and from the station. They say: 'We want to make a significant difference to the look and feel of this important ‘gateway’ to Leeds and the wider city region. We want visitors to get a great first impression of our city as they come out of the station.' It seems to be taking forever though, and is currently quite disruptive to pedestrians and traffic. 

The Light of the World

Once Christmas is over, I quickly tire of the decorations hanging around: the tree, the Christmas cards and so on. They rarely last until Twelfth Night in my house. I packed them all away on the 31st December this last year. I did, however, decide to leave a string of lights that I'd draped around my mirror, for at least a while longer. I like the way they bring a bit of cheer to the darker end of the sitting room, especially in the evenings when the various lamps make pools of light and the little LEDs sparkle. They're slightly annoying, since every time I switch them off at the plug I have to cycle through all the 'modes' again when I switch them back on! (Whoever chooses the flashing modes must risk a seizure every time!) I also might have to find a better way of securing them than the masking tape I've used, as they do tend to keeping falling down! But I might keep them lit until Candlemas, which is on February 2nd, traditionally the day that commemorates Mary and Joseph presenting Jesus at the temple. On that day, some churches bless the candles that will be used throughout the year. 

'When Jesus spoke again to the people, He said, 'I am the Light of the World. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.'   John 8:12 

Noticing nature

A few nature notes from some of my recent walks. This small acer in the Hirst Wood nature reserve gives a lot of pleasure throughout the year, with vibrant leaves in autumn and equally vibrant red branches in winter. With the low sunshine catching it, it looked like the Biblical 'burning bush'. 

The winter structures of plants can be surprisingly pleasing. I think these are dead hydrangeas, in Roberts Park. 

Looking ahead to spring, there are already a few catkins on the hazel bushes in the nature reserve leading into the park. They seem quite early but, until recently, it's been quite warm, so maybe that has tempted them out. 

Finally, a rather fuzzy photo (taken on my phone zoomed in, which is never good!) but it always amuses me when I see gulls spaced regularly like this, one per fence post. They were enjoying what little warmth there was in the sunshine, I guess. 

Saltaire scenes

On a very clear, cold day, the local gull population clearly thought the roof of the New Mill was the warmest place to be. 

Elsewhere in the village, there seemed to be more cars than people. I guess folks were making the most of the end of the holidays and enjoying the warmth inside their homes. 

George Street runs right down through the village. It's one of three streets that spans the entire estate south to north, carefully designed to showcase the church right at the bottom. The others are Victoria Road and Albert Terrace, at opposite sides of the residential area. 

Slicing through from east to west are Caroline Street, Titus Street and Saltaire Road (the original turnpike road). Titus Street, seen below, holds one of the more unusual village houses, which has a watchtower. It was reputedly the home of the commissionaire and chief security officer at Salts Mill. People say he used the glazed tower as a lookout but I can't verify whether that's true or not. 

Geese may safely graze

The number of geese around here seems to have increased even more! There was a flotilla on the river and a huge number grazing in the nearby fields. I wonder if some of them have come here to overwinter, adding to the resident flock. It's a mixture of Canada and Greylags... and one rogue white goose. Can you spot that one? I try to like them but they're incredibly noisy, often sounding like dogs barking. They leave a huge mess of droppings too, which might be alright in the fields but isn't good on the canal towpath. 

Watching those on the river did make me slow down enough to also see a kingfisher. They're really quite small and very fast; hard to spot, even though they are so brightly coloured. This one was darting around just below me on the river bank but then, when some more people walked past, it sped over to the other side of the river and out of sight. It was a lovely little gift to me on my walk.

Ice ice baby

We are definitely in winter's grip, though it's been the kind of cold weather I really quite enjoy, with blue skies and some sunshine; crisp, very cold, icy cold in fact. We've only had one very light dusting of snow here (yet) though the east coast and North York Moors had quite heavy snowfall, I gather. The Leeds-Liverpool Canal was well iced up. That boat is going nowhere, for now. As usual, little boys were hurling rocks to try and break the ice but it had little effect (except to clog up the canal when eventually it thaws!) 

Lots of pretty, swirly patterns in the ice... I remember when we used to get those patterns on the windows at home, before we had central heating and double glazing. I don't miss that, attractive though they were. 

Favourites from 2025 #2

More of my more memorable moments of 2025, these from the second half of the year:

A quiet, green, summer wander in upper Wharfedale.

An atmospheric sunset.

Playing around with a shallow depth of field in Salts Mill's antiques centre.

A truly stunning performance of 'The Railway Children', part of Bradford's City of Culture 2025.

A fascinating insight into the William Morris & Co stained glass in Bradford Cathedral.

A close look at some interesting civic sculpture in Leeds.

Lovely light in my local woods.

Heavy horses at Keighley Show - and a blacksmith hard at work.

A memorable celebration - 'Bloom' - in Shipley's market square, another City of Culture event.

Edinburgh Castle, a reminder of a few days exploration further afield.

Also in Edinburgh, a quirky view of one of the exhibits in Andy Goldsworthy's exhibition. 

A perfect and colourful autumn day in upper Wharfedale.

The Turner Prize exhibition, hosted in Bradford as part of the City of Culture 2025. This was the winning entry, raw and expressive, from Nnena Kalu. 

A couple of night shots in beautiful Paris. 

And finally, an enjoyable little 'early music' concert in Salts Mill. 

Favourites from 2025 #1

 

It's that time of year when we look back over the past twelve months and choose our 'best' or 'favourite' photos. I don't think, for me, 2025 was a particularly outstanding year photographically. I haven't travelled widely and I seem to have been too busy simply enjoying myself and taking photos along the way, rather than putting photography front and foremost. Another day and I would probably choose an entirely different selection but here are some that stuck out as among my favourites from the first half of the year. 

Blue sky and bare, sunlit branches = welcome light in the depths of winter. 

A trio of black and white studies in Saltaire.

The welcome sight of snowdrops.

A mono square from a memorable walk in Calderdale. 

New buds on colourful stems.

A moody and textural shot in attractive light inside Heptonstall's museum.

Bluebells in Calderdale.

The hazy, fresh greens of Spring.

Two most enjoyable events from Bradford's City of Culture 2025 feast: 'The Bradford Progress' - music on the canal, and beguiling wool cloaks from Ann Hamilton's 'We Will Sing' installation in Salts Mill. 

A re-enactor from 'The Sealed Knot Society' bringing the English Civil War history to life.

My favourite border at Harlow Carr Gardens.