A right old fankle

I do love the word fankle.  And my new yarn. I certainly got into a real fankle when I tried to wind my skeins into balls.  I remember seeing a yarn swift somewhere online a few years ago and wondering why on earth it was worth having one.....surely it couldn't be that hard to wind a skein by hand?  Well,as I now know, it can be pretty tricky but it isn't impossible.

I am so much enjoying my Quince and Co Finch (colourways Pomegranate, Split Pea, Kittywake and Bird's Egg - bought here).  I asked for the wool for Christmas after seeing this scarf.  I love the colour combination and had a shawl in mind.  I was a little thrown when I found that the shawl pattern was charted and far harder than I had anticipated but in many ways that became a little bonus.  I spent a few very happy hours, over the Christmas holidays, searching Ravelry for a new perfect pattern. I eventually settled on the Serena Shadow Shawl (but I won't be short of shawl patterns to try once this one is finished, there's some lovely designs out there).  

I'm enjoying the pattern, which is very simple and really suits my life at the moment.....which at times has felt like it could be getting into a bit of a fankle too.  But it isn't and it will all work out, it is just rather hard to see quite how we'll get to that point.  We're on the move - up north* - which will be wonderful, but John** starts up there pretty soon and we still have a house under scaffolding and a fair bit more work to be finished outside before we can sell.  And really, we need to do some work inside too to show our, very unusual, house at it's best.  But we will be selling it in great condition which is more than can be said for the condition in which we bought it.  I'm not sure we'll be taking on a mid 1700s house again for a wee while!

So, I suspect I may be a bit quiet for the next wee while.  I won't be disappearing altogether and I'll try to pop in when I can.  I will also be reading all your lovely blogs, but maybe not commenting quite so much.

Sorry for the murky photos, the light here is terrible and the wool colours aren't very true.  I'm longing for some blue skies and crispy weather.  

* I'll spill the beans about where we're going soon but there's a couple more people I haven't contacted yet and I want to make sure they hear properly and directly from me first
** John has a wonderful new job, I can't tell you how proud I am of him
*** Books - presents from John for my birthday and Christmas.  Flora Celtica documents the relationship between Scotland's people and plants. I have longed for a copy for years and the new paperback version is perfect. The Ancient Pinewoods of Scotland is a guide to each of the Caledonian Pinewood remnants - a subject close to my heart.  My university dissertation was based on one of the larger remnants, The Black Wood of Rannoch.