On Sunday morning I found out that there are cattle grazing on the meadow close to my flat and I was able to capture a quick snap as they pottered about. This might give you an entirely inaccurate impression of my lifestyle. I am very much the town mouse and I can honestly say I find it shocking to have such a rural scene right on my doorstep. The meadow is lush from all the rain we endured through the spring so I expect the cattle are having a fine time. Would it be churlish of me to admit that I prefer it in the winter when the trees are bare-and the cows are safely tucked away in a barn?

Realising that the knitting content hereabouts might get a little thin, I’ve cast on another pair of socks to keep us all amused. These are the fifth pair in my “Six Socks for 2021” challenge and I’m using the ball of Katia Symmetric Socks which I bought from Norfolk Yarn a month or so ago. Feedback at that time suggested that it would be a shame to waste the pretty golden yellow at the beginning of the ball, so I’ve included it. I think the leg might end up being a bit too long, and if it is I shall wear them with the whole cuff folded over.

Thus far, the yarn is lovely to work with. Some yarns can be quite slinky and some can be rather fine, some are soft and fluffy whilst others are tough and wiry. This yarn is soft but toothy, it grips the needle well and anchors each stitch firmly to its neighbours. I expect it would be a simple matter to rescue a dropped stitch and that isn’t always the case. In fact, if I were pressed for a succinct description of this yarn, I’d say it is well-behaved. I’m really keen to get to the multi-coloured part of the ball, but I must resist the urge to gallop on with this project and ignore the main event which is happening off-camera.

In other exciting news, I had my grandson to visit over the weekend and I took the opportunity to have him clean some of my fountain pens. It’s not child labour – it’s education! He also got to choose the ink to put in a pen of his choice and he chose the Namisu Orion which he filled with Graf von Faber-Castell Cobalt Blue. I did try to nudge him towards the Viper Green I’ve just bought because I’m so keen to try that out, but he wasn’t having any of it. I feel there’s a Viper Green fill on the horizon and I’m anxiously keeping an eye on the levels in my currently inked pens, waiting for one to run out.

Later in the week I’ve got a post to do wrapping up my recently completed journal and introducing the next in line, with a glamour shot showing how I’ve decorated the front page. Don’t get your hopes up, it’s been decorated by me and so you know what to expect: a bit of washi tape and a couple of stickers.

Until then, I hope you’re enjoying sunny weather and finding a cool spot to indulge in a little bit of your chosen craft or hobby.