A grand day out

Do you like my new books- cool huh- crochet decs, knitted decs, knitted food. I am very excited about the prospect of knitting my mate Claire some shrimps- who wouldn't be?
Do you like my sparkly pink wool? It has that smell, that fresh real new wool smell. I have no idea what I will make with this wool, it doesn't matter. Do you like my lovely smooth wooden double ended needles- tell me; when did a set of double ended's become 5 needles, rather then 4 (I'm not complaining!)?

So where did I gather all this treasure? I went to London. Yep little ol' 'scared of the city' me. To be fair I did get my Mum to meet me there. Who else could I take with me for such a heady day of w-o-o-l? We wended our nervous, slightly lost, way to I knit. This is a wool shop WITH A BAR (If I swore here there would have been an 'F' in their- I don't seem to generally so feel free to insert one if you like that kind of thing). When we had got our bearings we had a tiny mooch and found a vintage shop, which was seriously lush. We found the toy exhibition at the OXO tower gallery, then headed for the Tate. Now I know lots of people head 'up to town' quite regularly but this really was a great adventure for me and Mum. So why? Well it all came about because of the lovely Mary at Search Press.
So after all out tiptoeing through the city we headed back to I Knit for 4pm when we had been invited to meet Arne and Carlos of knitted Christmas balls fame. And fame if definitely the word for it! These guys are HUGE- not literally, they are actually of a very pleasing petite stature- unlike myself who's fat grey arse draws my eye every time I look across at the picture! You may remember from my review here that I thought the guys came across as pretty darn cute- and they ARE! Hooray- for integrity- for being bloody lovely-for knitting in a shop selling cider-for knitting balls with red ribbons on to raise money for an H.I.V charity. Hooray!

I had a really really magical day all in all. I chatted to some ace people, I had my mojo topped up just by seeing the joy on peoples little faces as they clicked their sticks and relaxed. If you have the opportunity for a big exciting day out- some time for yourself, a chance to spend the day with someone you love, wherever it may be- take the chance won't you? I have realised I am not very good (read crap) at taking care of myself and doing something indulgent and brave is just the kind of thing I need to do now and again.

Massive thanks to Mary and Search Press. The books, plus one more, were in a goody bag they gave me on the night. I will review the knitting ones in time but realistically the crochet one is beyond me. Leave a comment if you're in the U.K and you'd like it. It will be first come first served.