Tube Sketches

People who sat opposite me on the tube today.

Fog

Testing the camera out on my new phone on a lovely foggy morning. 

Cosy Knitted Jumper

This cuddly jumper is proving to be quite a challenge. It's not the neatest looking thing in the world, but I'm more pleased that I've got the pattern right! Had to restart it once...and re-do numerous rows. My ability to watch tv and not lose count is getting better however. 

This is the back so far, and despite a slightly wobbly bottom line it's not looking too bad. It is getting heavy though! I can't wait to get it finished and cuddle up in it, I think I'll definitely stay warm through winter with this on. 

Orange Choc Chip & Cinnamon Cookies

For such a tasty cookie, this recipe is dead simple. The most difficult part was probably chopping the chocolate into small pieces! I know, I probably need sharper knives.


Ingredients:

• 100g (4 oz)    margarine
• 75g (3 oz)       golden caster sugar
• 175g (6 oz)     self raising flour
• 100g (4 oz)    chocolate orange chips
• 2 tbsp              ground cinnamon
• 2 tbsp              milk

This recipe makes around 16 - 18, depending on your cookie sizes. 

1. Heat oven to 180°C, 350°F, gas mark 4. Grease two baking trays.
2. Chop the chocolate orange into small pieces.
3. Beat the margarine until soft, add the sugar and cream together until light and fluffy.
4. Stir in the flour, chocolate chips, cinnamon and milk and mix well.
5. Place spoonfuls of the mixture onto the baking trays. Flatten them a bit if you want a more normal shaped cookie, and bake for 8-10 mins. When done remove from the tray immediately and place on a wire rack to cool.

And then enjoy!

Sainsbury's are selling Chocolate Orange's for £1 at the mo so nab them if you can. I used less than half of the orange too with these cookies, you don't need too many chips. If you can find orange chocolate chips then even better!

Looe, Cornwall

A while ago I visited the little Cornish town of Looe. It was delightful, everything you want in a break away from the city. The views alone were spectacular. I didn't get a go in a boat (unless you count a ferry across the harbour!) but there's always next time... As you might guess I took quite a few photo's whilst there.

There were a lot of house names dotted around Looe, many of them hand painted so I of course took lots of photos of those!

I also had a bit of a play with a telescope...with mixed results.

Lastly, a beautiful sunset that lit up the town.

The View

The view from Brockwell park is simply wonderful. I’m sat on top of the hill looking towards the city, which has a blue grey cloud hanging ominously above it, making its slow approach across London. Here in Brixton it’s still sunny, with a few white fluffy clouds drifting along. I can see cranes dotting the horizon, and the top of the Shard towering above everything else. The flag flows straight out on top of the Houses of Parliament. If I were in the next seat over I know I’d be able to see the Gherkin and the cluster of buildings around it marking the City of London. The London eye would also glisten, full of tourists happy to see London on a good day in the sunshine. Wembley with its arch soaring above the stadium would appear in the distance. 

Closer to home I can see the green grass rolling down in front of me, a few dog walkers ambling along, some waiting impatiently whilst their furry companion abandons them in favour of some fascinating smell in the undergrowth. Large black crows are scattered around the field, pecking after some tasty morsel. A man with dreadlocks and no shirt is doing handstands, a woman lies on a blanket appearing to sun-bathe. The local health freaks are jogging around, some setting up camp to do a routine for all to see, their tracksuit covered bottoms up in the air in strange poses. Young families stroll out, a little girl with a toy pram pretending to be like daddy, whilst mum is on the phone. Lily, her name is, and she’s striking out on her own, aiming up hill to collect handfuls of grass, depositing them in her trusty pram. 

I can hear the drone of aeroplanes above, and the distant rumble and creak of the park wardens in their vans. The local parakeet colony screeches from the trees, and the wind blows, rustling the drying leaves. The horn of a train sounds, and I catch a glimpse of white carriages traveling past Herne Hill. I can hear the distant joyous screams of children in the park, they won’t mind the approaching cloud, dimming the view. I however would need a thicker jumper, and so must tear myself away from the wonderful Brockwell park.

Knitted Shrug - In Progress

A while ago I posted here about a new knitting project I had started. It was a small shrug, perfect for those English summer evenings. Despite the fact that we are now working our way out of summer, I am still working on it, perhaps it'll be ready for next year! I thought I would post a halfway update photo, as I still haven't gone through those lovely Cornish photos yet...

As you can see, it's taking a while to get through! I've done one sleeve and a bit of the back so far. Despite a few dodgy bits it's looking ok, I'll have to wait and see if it's wearable when finished. 

I've got my eye on a gorgeous jumper I want to make next, I bought some needles off Amazon and can't wait for them to arrive so I can get started. I always feel guilty about not supporting my local shops when buying from Amazon, there's a lovely knitting shop just down the road called Sharp Works. Whilst I am a poor graduate with no job however, the local shops will just have to wait. 

So next knitting post hopefully there will be photos of a finished shrug or the beginnings of a jumper!

10 Minute Sketches

I'm back from sunny Cornwall and I have lots of photos, they should be up in the next day or so for you all to see. There are some stunning views.

Whilst I'm going through them all, here's a few good looking chaps and one pretty little lady.

Cats

I've been having another splash with the watercolours recently, and some more sketching. I seem to have been on a cat theme however...

I used this lovely photo as a reference for the watercolour, haven't kept the links for the sketches I'm afraid! Unfortunately I don't have my own cat to take advantage of, so it's a good thing the internet is full of cat photos. That last one on the bottom left is Morgan Freeman with a cat on his head. I think i'll have to turn that image into a proper drawing one day.

One last thing, yesterday I discovered there's a festival in America where you can all get together to watch cat videos. Amazing. 



Ok that's enough of the cat theme for this week.