Loops, loops everywhere!! :-)

Today's visit to the propagator found loops popping up all over the place!

As a consequence, the prop has now been moved under the lights - no leggy seedlings in this house if you please......







So the scores on the doors so far:

Orange Hab - (loved them last season and still have a freezer full!) 0/2
Peruvian White Hab 1/2
Yellow Pointed Hab 2/2 (Possibly not if this is a rogue seed!)
Chocolate Hab 0/2
Fatalii 0/2
Yellow Scorpion 0/2
Jamaican Red Hot 0/2
Jamaican Mini Bonnet 0/2
7 Pot White 0/2
7 Pot Brain 1/2
Dorset Naga 0/2
Bhut Jolokia 0/2
Bonda Ma Jackques 0/2
Turbo Pube 0/2
Cili Goronong Yellow 0/2
Bulgarian Carrot 1/1
CAP 253 C 0/2
Black Scorpion Tongue 1/2
SuperChilli 0/2
Limo 2/2
Baby Sweet 1/2

Not a bad start at all! :-)

Kat's "Two-Sticks" Easy Cable Hat

Well, I've knitted so many of the "Two-Sticks" Ear-Flat hats, I decided it was time I moved on a little! I've always feared cabling, but discovered it can be really easy and I've made a pattern that gives a really nice continuous design around the hat. Again, this hat is knit up on two needles, no circulars required :-)

Where I have put "C6F" all you have to do is slip the next 3 stitches onto a spare needle and hold them forward (to the front of the work) then knit the 3 stitches that follow those. Once you've done that, knit the 3 from the spare needle so in effect, they are crossing over the previous stitches.

ABBREVIATIONS:
K = knit
P = purl
K2tog = knit 2 together
P2tog = Purl 2 together
RS = right side
WS = wrong side
St-St = Stockinette
sts = stitch(es)

YOU WILL NEED:
5mm Needles.
Chunky yarn in whatever 2 colours you would like. I used a variegated yarn for my main colour so the finished hat has more colours in it.

METHOD:
Cast on 98 sts in the colour you'd like for the band.
ROW 1: (K2, P2) to end
ROW 2: (P2, K2) to end
ROW 3: (K2, P2) to end
Row 4: (P2, K2) to end

Continue in established pattern until you have 20 rows, ending on a WS row.
Changing to the main colour and St-St 2 rows.
Now it's time to start the cabling.

CABLE PATTERN:
ROW 1: K1, (K2, C6F, K2, P2, K2, P2) 6 times, K1
ROW 2: P1, (K2, P2, K2, P10) 6 times, P1
ROW 3: K1, (K10, P2, K2, P2) 6 times, K1
ROW 4: P1, (K2, P2, K2, P10) 6 times, P1

Repeat the above 4 rows another 3 times.
Knit Row 1 & 2 once more.

REDUCE FOR TOP
Now it's time to start reducing for the top of the hat.
K1, (K10, K2tog) 8 times, K1 - 90
Purl Row
K7, K2tog to end - 80
Purl Row
K6, K2tog to end - 70
Purl Row
K5, K2tog to end - 60
Purl Row
K4, K2tog to end - 50
Purl Row
K3, K2tog to end - 40
Purl Row
K2, K2tog to end - 30
Purl Row
K1, K2tog to end - 20
Purl Row
K2tog to end - 10
P2 tog to end - 5

Cut the yarn, leaving a good length tail; enough to sew down the seam. Thread the tail through remaining sts and pull tightly together to secure.
Sew down the row ends (using mattress stitch if you can, but not essential).

Sew in any ends (or worms as my other half likes to call them) and you are finished!
If you'd like, you can add something like a button or a knitted flower - Put the finished hat on your head, position the accessory in front of a mirror so it is where you like it and then sew it down; preferably, take it off your head first or your accessory may be a tad more permanent than you'd like!

You should end up with something like these lovely hats:

It's germination time again!

I can't believe it! It's come around already and, (pardon the cliche) it seems like only yesterday I was nervously popping seeds into soil for the first time...

But here we are, once again; and without further ado, let me introduce you to this year's brood (Planted on 5 Jan):

Burried in there we have the following varieties:

Orange Habanero - (I loved them last season and still have a freezer full!)
Peruvian White Habanero
Yellow Pointed Habanero
Chocolate Habanero
Fatalii
Yellow Scorpion
Jamaican Red Hot
Jamaican Mini Bonnet
7 Pot White
7 Pot Brain
Dorset Naga
Bhut Jolokia
Bonda Ma Jackques
Turbo Pube
Cili Goronong Yellow
Bulgarian Carrot
CAP 253 C
Black Scorpion Tongue
SuperChilli
Limo
Baby Sweet

And if that wasn't enough to be getting on with, I still have my purple Bonsai and a Chocolate Jolokia Bhut clone - otherwise known as the "Turd Plant" (Thanks Dave!)

I made the bonsai from a C. Chinense/C.Annuum Cross. It's my first bonsai and I have to say it is doing wonderfully and it's so pretty:

It also has buds, though I assume it's very early for them to turn into pods.... we shall see!

The Chocolate Jolokia Bhut clone was sent to me by a friend called Dave who I know through a chilli grower's forum - It is also looking healthy.

Though not much was happening in terms of growth, I took the lack of wilt or signs of turning brown to mean that it was surviving; now it has just begun to grow a new leaf - happy confirmation that we are A-OK! (New leaf circled):

So all in all, a good start; what we want now is for some seedlings to sprout!
I shall update when they start to break through :-)

Chilli

DR WHO Style Fingerless Gloves

I recently knitted 2 Dr Who Scarves; one for a dear friend called Phill who now lives in Canada and mini version for Rob, aka him indoors :-)
It seemed only right to design a pattern for matching gloves, so here it is and here's what they look like:

The pattern is as follows:

YOU WILL NEED:

3mm needles and DK wool in the following colours: GREEN, YELLOW, RED, PURPLE, GREY, TAN & BROWN.

METHOD:

Cast on 46 sts

Using your first colour, K1 P1 Rib for 10 rows, then change colour and St-St 38 rows, making sure to change colours to get your stripes - I did: 8 Yellow, 6 Red, 4 Purple, 10 grey, 4 tan, 8 brown. Then K2 P2 rib for 30 rows, I did this in the green. You can do the stripes whatever thickness and in whatever order you like. Just keep in mind that the first rib is 10 rows, the finishing off rib is 30 rows and the st-st in the middle is 38 rows of whatever you like. Cast off loosely, (I use a larger needle) this helps keep the glove entrance wide enough to push your hand through.

MAKING UP:

sew up the seam from both the bottom and top, leaving a hole for your thumb to go through - that's it! Simple ;-)

Rob loves 'em!

How to Make a Raised Bed!

I recently decided to grow garlic after my success with the chillies, but wasn't too keen on using pots; I've also been tempted to dig up my lawn here and there to make it more interesting, so I decided the best thing would be to make a raised bed for garlic, chives and whatever else I can squeeze into it!

I'm putting this little tutorial here for anyone who wants to try it the way I did it.

I used:

2 x 2.4m Gravel boards
1 x 2.4m length of timber to be sectioned off for steaks (see photo)
1 Pack of 3 inch nails
1 Roll of Weed Control matting
3 -4 Bags of Topsoil
2-3 Bags of compost
1 Measuring tape
A Hammer
A Saw
A biro

If like me, you want to put your bed on the lawn; you don't have to remove the grass, but it's worth digging it and turning it over - it will improve the drainage of the soil that'll be pretty compacted after years of being walked on. The grass will break down over time and provide the soil with nutrients...Double Bubble!!

So first of all I marked out my work area, giving enough space for the bed and a border around the edge. My Bed measures 1m x 1.4m, to make best use of the wood I've chosen.

I marked it out using skewers into the ground and then using string between them as a guide, I cut a line out of the lawn:
Then using a fork, I dug up the lawn and turned it upside down:

Now to cut the wood:
Measure and mark 1 meter along one of the gravel boards and cut across it horizontally, giving you two pieces; 1 measuring 1.4m and one 1m. This is one front piece and one side - repeat this process to get your other 2 pieces! Simple.

Then we need some steaks - Take your thinner piece of wood and make 4 pieces 11 or 12 inches long, cutting one end of each into a point:

Now the fun of knocking it all about with some nails!....My granddad would be so proud ;-)
Take one of your side pieces and attach a steak to one end:


Obviously the steak in the above pic isn't lined up with the side, make sure yours is!
Repeat this at the other end. Now attach the remaining 2 steaks to the other side piece.

Take your longer pieces of wood and nail them to the sides of the shorter pieces:

And Hey Presto! One raised bed, simple but effective (and clearly upside down, but don't worry about that for now....):

So, back to the soil, and we need to put a layer of matting over the area where the border will be to stop any weeds coming through:

Position the bed over the matting (the right way up this time!) and hammer it into the ground. I made holes in the matting so the steaks would go in easier; once it's hammered down and level, pull the matting within the frame up and over as we don't want the matting to be in the bed, only around it:


Now fill it up with the good stuff!!:

Get in there!!!:
....that's the mucky stuff over which is a bit sad really; I kinda liked it!


Using some kind of decorative stone, cover the matting around your new raised bed:

And that's it!! I finished mine off with a few ornamental odds and sods, but again; that's up to you.... mine will look nicer again once the grass around it has recovered, right now it's all trodden down and covered in mud!

I'm thrilled with my new raised bed - now I'm off to plant my bulbs!! Happy growing :-)

MAN V. FOOD

How brilliant is this show? If you ask me, it's mouthwateringly good and thoroughly entertaining (and that's just Adam Richman!) we just can't get enough of it at our house!
So much so, that we decided to make a tribute to the show by frying up some heaven-sent burger delights of our own.

Obviously I reigned it in a little as I'd hate to waste a huge pile of food, but our tasty face sized treats were still mega enough to be a challenge; each containing 2 burgers, 2 sausages 4 rashers of bacon, Monterey Jack Cheese, beautiful sun-dried tomatoes, rings of fresh red onion and a beef tomato slice; all served in a frizbee sized floured bap. I went for garlic mayonnaise and a homemade chilli relish that will melt your face - Rob went for nachos :-)

Under construction:

MINE

ROB'S

It's H U G E!!

Where the heck to start?!

That's it....

Get it in! Lovely, big, fat, juicy, flavoursome goodness in a convenient hand held package:

I'm happy to report that we did it! Well.... I say we; Rob did every last morsel but I left a bit of bread :-( Heck, it was either that or Rob would be scraping bits of me from the walls and ceiling for the next week. A most enjoyable meal that should see me right for a month....