doodles
*In the early hours of March 9th 1995, I found myself at the London Astoria nightclub, within arm's reach of my favourite musician, Prince, who was performing an 'after show' gig. We'd already enjoyed an amazing set-list at Wembly Arena, but this was something else! Seriously, I'd never experienced anything like it before, and haven't since. After the main concert had ended, I'd been in a hurry to make the journey home, but my boyfriend was a hardcore Prince fan (he collected every 7" and 12" vinyl plus bootlegs and CDs in every possible format and cover, and had educated me in 'old-school Prince' - the early albums like Prince, For You and Dirty Mind). He knew to wait until the venue was almost empty... in case of an announcement. When one came, we hotfooted it into London and used the last of our combined pennies getting into the club where we spent the next few hours dancing to music that was to appear later on the Gold Experience). We eventually caught the last Night Bus, arriving home at almost 6 am, completely exhausted. It was probably the most incredible night morning of my life.
When I heard the news of Prince's death on Thursday, this was just one of many memories that came flooding back. I thought back to my pre-teen friend who had her hair cut and drew a moustache on her lip with black marker pen (as on the Purple Rain album), and then couldn't get it off - she had a 'shadow' for weeks. I recalled getting ready to go to school discos in the late 80s (back-combed hair, shoulder-pads, listening to songs from LoveSexy, which I'm pretty sure we'd secretly recorded from the radio, or maybe someone's older sibling) and sitting in my bedroom with another friend a few years later as we played Diamonds and Pearls over-and-over while making plans. In July 1992, after my A-levels, I travelled to Paris to see him. My Uncle and Aunty came too. Just a few years later my uncle died and memories of that Paris trip seemed even more special.
I thought of my first term at Uni - my first time away from home. While the girls in my halls of residence were wailing along to Whitney Houston's Bodyguard, for me it was all about the unpronounceable symbol album on my 'Discman' CD player (still quite high-tech in 1992). And so it went on... each album becoming inextricably linked with a different stage in my life. Graduation (The Gold Experience). My first apartment (Emancipation). Walking to the train and commuting to work (Crystal Ball/Truth). Millennium Eve (1999, obviously). Inviting friends around for dinner when I became a home-owner (Rave Un2 the Joy Fantastic). Chatting online to D, never imagining he would turn out to be my husband (The Rainbow Children). Becoming a parent (3121). Each chapter of my life accompanied by a different album in a different place and on a different device, starting with tapes on my very first Walkman back 'home' in Wales, then a chunky waterproof version as a teen (that was cool, I listened to it on the beach in Mallorca), a 'ghetto-blaster' in the park, a portable CD player (everywhere, until the batteries went), then onto iPods, iPhones and in recent times, retina-display iMachines as I listen to MP3s from more recent albums such as Plectrum Electrum. Prince's music has been there for it all. Nothing else has.
My children were confused when I burst into tears reading Thursday's news. And while it's quite easy to explain the tragedy of someone dying early - for whatever reason - and that you're shocked (they have heard this before), it's harder to explain that a much-valued but intangible part of your own life has come to an end too. Unless his enormous vault of music is released, my future memories won't be accompanied by annual Prince albums and, for the moment at least, I really can't imagine that.
Sometimes it snows in April
Sometimes I feel so bad, so bad
Sometimes I wish life was never ending
All good things, they say, never last
It's no exaggeration to say that we have lost a musical genius whose work spanned not only decades and genres but also the lives of many people over that time. Prince may be gone, but he left one hell of a legacy.
*Amazon affiliate links are included in this post.
*Amazon affiliate links are included in this post.
All good things, they say, never last
*In the early hours of March 9th 1995, I found myself at the London Astoria nightclub, within arm's reach of my favourite musician, Prince, who was performing an 'after show' gig. We'd already enjoyed an amazing set-list at Wembly Arena, but this was something else! Seriously, I'd never experienced anything like it before, and haven't since. After the main concert had ended, I'd been in a hurry to make the journey home, but my boyfriend was a hardcore Prince fan (he collected every 7" and 12" vinyl plus bootlegs and CDs in every possible format and cover, and had educated me in 'old-school Prince' - the early albums like Prince, For You and Dirty Mind). He knew to wait until the venue was almost empty... in case of an announcement. When one came, we hotfooted it into London and used the last of our combined pennies getting into the club where we spent the next few hours dancing to music that was to appear later on the Gold Experience). We eventually caught the last Night Bus, arriving home at almost 6 am, completely exhausted. It was probably the most incredible night morning of my life.
When I heard the news of Prince's death on Thursday, this was just one of many memories that came flooding back. I thought back to my pre-teen friend who had her hair cut and drew a moustache on her lip with black marker pen (as on the Purple Rain album), and then couldn't get it off - she had a 'shadow' for weeks. I recalled getting ready to go to school discos in the late 80s (back-combed hair, shoulder-pads, listening to songs from LoveSexy, which I'm pretty sure we'd secretly recorded from the radio, or maybe someone's older sibling) and sitting in my bedroom with another friend a few years later as we played Diamonds and Pearls over-and-over while making plans. In July 1992, after my A-levels, I travelled to Paris to see him. My Uncle and Aunty came too. Just a few years later my uncle died and memories of that Paris trip seemed even more special.
I thought of my first term at Uni - my first time away from home. While the girls in my halls of residence were wailing along to Whitney Houston's Bodyguard, for me it was all about the unpronounceable symbol album on my 'Discman' CD player (still quite high-tech in 1992). And so it went on... each album becoming inextricably linked with a different stage in my life. Graduation (The Gold Experience). My first apartment (Emancipation). Walking to the train and commuting to work (Crystal Ball/Truth). Millennium Eve (1999, obviously). Inviting friends around for dinner when I became a home-owner (Rave Un2 the Joy Fantastic). Chatting online to D, never imagining he would turn out to be my husband (The Rainbow Children). Becoming a parent (3121). Each chapter of my life accompanied by a different album in a different place and on a different device, starting with tapes on my very first Walkman back 'home' in Wales, then a chunky waterproof version as a teen (that was cool, I listened to it on the beach in Mallorca), a 'ghetto-blaster' in the park, a portable CD player (everywhere, until the batteries went), then onto iPods, iPhones and in recent times, retina-display iMachines as I listen to MP3s from more recent albums such as Plectrum Electrum. Prince's music has been there for it all. Nothing else has.
My children were confused when I burst into tears reading Thursday's news. And while it's quite easy to explain the tragedy of someone dying early - for whatever reason - and that you're shocked (they have heard this before), it's harder to explain that a much-valued but intangible part of your own life has come to an end too. Unless his enormous vault of music is released, my future memories won't be accompanied by annual Prince albums and, for the moment at least, I really can't imagine that.
Sometimes it snows in April
Sometimes I feel so bad, so bad
Sometimes I wish life was never ending
All good things, they say, never last
It's no exaggeration to say that we have lost a musical genius whose work spanned not only decades and genres but also the lives of many people over that time. Prince may be gone, but he left one hell of a legacy.
*Amazon affiliate links are included in this post.
*Amazon affiliate links are included in this post.
On Tuesday I mentioned that I was awaiting a delivery of a "Wreck This Journal" by Keri Smith. If you follow my Instagram account you will have already seen this this little book has taken over our lives for the last few days! Here are a few snippets including some WIPs....
1. Little Miss doodles over a page 2. Pencil rubbings of my knitting notions, 3. My doodling over a page (WIP),
4. Esio Trot on the 'etirw drawkcab' page, 5. A page torn out, washed in the machine and reattached, 6. A ribbon found on the street, used to 'swing' the journal, 7. Reckless scribbling (v hard!), 8. My crumpled bed, 9. A page full of circles (WIP)
When I first saw this book in the bookshop, I thought it wasn't for me - that it was too prescriptive - but after looking at the #wreckthisjournal tag on Instagram, and on Pinterest, decided to give it a go and I am LOVING it! In fact all the women in our family are - three generations of us are now "wrecking" our own journals (my mum and Little Miss have their own, and I've just ordered another for my sister). Surely it's only a matter of time before it catches on with the boys? In the meantime, this page is for sale by auction until January 7th...
You can find it, complete with all details, listed on eBay. Huge thanks to those who have made a bid, you really made my day by helping me complete this fun project!
Affiliate links: "Wreck This Journal" is available for £4.25 from Amazon UK and for $8.52 on Amazon.com (it is Prime eligible so there's not much of a delay to your gratification).
Wreckage
On Tuesday I mentioned that I was awaiting a delivery of a "Wreck This Journal" by Keri Smith. If you follow my Instagram account you will have already seen this this little book has taken over our lives for the last few days! Here are a few snippets including some WIPs....
1. Little Miss doodles over a page 2. Pencil rubbings of my knitting notions, 3. My doodling over a page (WIP),
4. Esio Trot on the 'etirw drawkcab' page, 5. A page torn out, washed in the machine and reattached, 6. A ribbon found on the street, used to 'swing' the journal, 7. Reckless scribbling (v hard!), 8. My crumpled bed, 9. A page full of circles (WIP)
When I first saw this book in the bookshop, I thought it wasn't for me - that it was too prescriptive - but after looking at the #wreckthisjournal tag on Instagram, and on Pinterest, decided to give it a go and I am LOVING it! In fact all the women in our family are - three generations of us are now "wrecking" our own journals (my mum and Little Miss have their own, and I've just ordered another for my sister). Surely it's only a matter of time before it catches on with the boys? In the meantime, this page is for sale by auction until January 7th...
You can find it, complete with all details, listed on eBay. Huge thanks to those who have made a bid, you really made my day by helping me complete this fun project!
Affiliate links: "Wreck This Journal" is available for £4.25 from Amazon UK and for $8.52 on Amazon.com (it is Prime eligible so there's not much of a delay to your gratification).
Considering I've been making things with yarn for a few years, I'm surprised that it's taken so long to discover pompom makers. In fact, it only happened when I found myself with a few hours to kill and a voucher for some free makers in return for a supplying a few pom-poms to The Handmade Fair*. Let's just say they are addictive. Look out for some pompom projects and a giveaway coming to the blog next week.
*See the insert in the current UK issue of Mollie Makes, which is also pompom-tastic!
Addicted!
Considering I've been making things with yarn for a few years, I'm surprised that it's taken so long to discover pompom makers. In fact, it only happened when I found myself with a few hours to kill and a voucher for some free makers in return for a supplying a few pom-poms to The Handmade Fair*. Let's just say they are addictive. Look out for some pompom projects and a giveaway coming to the blog next week.
*See the insert in the current UK issue of Mollie Makes, which is also pompom-tastic!
I should have finished the socks that have been in my bag for several months, untouched...
I should have tidied the house following two trips away in as many weeks...
I should have tidied the house following two trips away in as many weeks...
...but I didn't manage any of these things.
So what have I been doing? Driving to Wales and back, spending time with family and friends, and constantly refereeing two children who are over the summer holidays and can't wait to get back to school in a(nother!) fortnight. At this precise moment I can't wait either... although I know I'll feel very different on the first day of term.
When I've had the chance to do anything else I've been reading all about puppies*, knitting a few hexipuffs and starting a brand new project. I'll tell you all about that, and the yarn, on Friday when I'll also be offering the chance to win 200g of the same colourway. Until then, I suppose I'd better get back to my list of unfinished things.
My week of knitting
I should have finished the socks that have been in my bag for several months, untouched...
I should have tidied the house following two trips away in as many weeks...
I should have tidied the house following two trips away in as many weeks...
...but I didn't manage any of these things.
So what have I been doing? Driving to Wales and back, spending time with family and friends, and constantly refereeing two children who are over the summer holidays and can't wait to get back to school in a(nother!) fortnight. At this precise moment I can't wait either... although I know I'll feel very different on the first day of term.
When I've had the chance to do anything else I've been reading all about puppies*, knitting a few hexipuffs and starting a brand new project. I'll tell you all about that, and the yarn, on Friday when I'll also be offering the chance to win 200g of the same colourway. Until then, I suppose I'd better get back to my list of unfinished things.
After recently publishing an infographic about secret stashes, and another about my own knitting evolution, today's Knitting & Crochet Blog Week prompt did not seem entirely out of the ordinary. As is often the case with my doodles, inspiration for this came from my Mum who is a "regular knitter" and often looks at me like I'm completely mad. If you're visiting from KCBW, I'm sure you'll understand.
If you're a regular Wednesday visitor looking for my WIPs and books update, you can find a summary of current projects on Monday's post. This coming Friday I'll be hosting the Crochet at Play book tour, and will have an interview with author and designer Kat Goldin, which I'm sure you won't want to miss. Next Wednesday I'll be reviewing The Great British Sewing Bee book and the Amy Herzog Class "Knit to Flatter" (which I'm half way through and absolutely loving) so stay tuned!
Do you know the difference? ( 4KCBWday3 )
After recently publishing an infographic about secret stashes, and another about my own knitting evolution, today's Knitting & Crochet Blog Week prompt did not seem entirely out of the ordinary. As is often the case with my doodles, inspiration for this came from my Mum who is a "regular knitter" and often looks at me like I'm completely mad. If you're visiting from KCBW, I'm sure you'll understand.
If you're a regular Wednesday visitor looking for my WIPs and books update, you can find a summary of current projects on Monday's post. This coming Friday I'll be hosting the Crochet at Play book tour, and will have an interview with author and designer Kat Goldin, which I'm sure you won't want to miss. Next Wednesday I'll be reviewing The Great British Sewing Bee book and the Amy Herzog Class "Knit to Flatter" (which I'm half way through and absolutely loving) so stay tuned!
Since Wednesday's post, I've had an idea in my head that wouldn't be shaken so yesterday I started work on a few little doodles which will be ready to share with you soon.
There are various "pesky" jobs that I dislike when knitting and crocheting - winding skeins, sewing in ends, joining granny squares, finding dropped stitches - which got me wondering.... What are the little pesky jobs that you'd ask your own Little Yarn Fairy to take care of?
What about you?
Since Wednesday's post, I've had an idea in my head that wouldn't be shaken so yesterday I started work on a few little doodles which will be ready to share with you soon.
There are various "pesky" jobs that I dislike when knitting and crocheting - winding skeins, sewing in ends, joining granny squares, finding dropped stitches - which got me wondering.... What are the little pesky jobs that you'd ask your own Little Yarn Fairy to take care of?
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