The Adventures of a Silver Spider

Hello how are you all on this wonderful, sunny Friday?

Well I am great! Though totally frustrated with flipping blogger as I have just written a post that it has now chewed and lost half of including all my photos that I had painstaking cut and paste from flickr! I have had a good couple of weeks. I am now officially a teacher, of course that would be more impressive if I could tell you that I had a job but those seem to be in short supply. So as of September I join the ranks of supply teachers - wish me luck.
In the mean time I am realising (like many others out there) it is actually a nice easy life being a stay at home mummy especially when all your children are at school!
I should have been able to give you a Ta-dah moment on my blanket as I crocheted like a fiend. Unfortunately I ran out of the purple. I have about another 50 little circles to go so had to order more yarn from the States and it hasn't arrived yet. Probably as I get back from Canada, typical!!
So anyway I picked up another wip, an Aestlight shawl that I started way back in February, when I was doing my bus commute.

The yarn is wollmeise. I struggled to capture the colour but let me tell you it is even more wow weee than it looks in the photo. I am onto the edging so may finish in the next day or to if I can keep up the motivation.
Then a few days ago I came across a new blog -well to me at any rate The Royal Sisters. I have to say I am a little bit in love. Michelle has a refreshing, quirky style and has lots of great crochet ideas.

I have been intrigued by the idea of crocheted tissue box covers for a while and decided to have a go at Michelle's version. It was very quick and totally straightforward. This one was for a present but, looking at it I realise that I really needed one in this colour way as it goes perfectly with my table cloth!
As you might have already been able to tell my other main activities of the week have been berry picking and Jamming .....and Jamming and dyeing!

I do love making jam. My grandparents bought me my preserving pan a few years back for my birthday. I don't think it even got used last year so it has been fun to dust it off and spend the afternoon stirring the lovely sweet smelling liquid.
I still have a ton of raspberries that need attention but I have run out of jars. I have made strawberry, gooseberry, Blackberry and apple and lastly Blackcurrant Jelly. The Jelly was definitely the most time consuming but I had a bit of a light bulb moment after I had hung up my Jelly bag.

The currant picking was back breaking and originally I had been going to make jam though when I realised it was probably going to take about ten hours to top and tail all of them I decided to make jelly but the idea of throwing all of that fruit out made me feel a bit faint so I thought I would have a little go at dyeing.
So after the jelly was in its jars cooling I ran hot water through the jelly bag.

Then put the purple water, salt and yarn in the microwave for 15 minutes. Most of the colour had left the water and then I rinsed the yarn. I have to say I am super pleased with the result.

I haven't quite decided what to do with it but I am thinking about a little shawl maybe citron, what do you think? Let me know.
Well enjoy the rest of this lovely Friday and what looks to be a warm sunny weekend.