Pebble covers...

This week has been pretty stressful, and work has been getting too much, so one of my days off I chose a mini project to focus on

Something that's been on my list of things to try, a pebble cover

I look for smooth and good shaped pebbles on our beach walks, and had found a few ready with this project in mind

Again I've worked organically, working round the natural shape

Other than being by the sea, that would make this a natural project to progress on to, my main reason is for decoration. The fireplace in our living room, has an empty space, which had a couple of rocks placed in there. So ive been filling the hearth with prettier shaped pebbles, and I intend to add quite a few splashes of colour. I may even try my hand at painting a few!

To help myself relax I did have another afternoon sat on the beach

Walking along the seafront

And did another round of my mandala under the warmth of the sun listening to the lapping waves

I've now completed week 7 and its growing nicely, and involves plenty of stitch counting on each row. I'll endeavour to get a full picture next week as its getting quite a size now!

I'll leave you with the beautiful bunch of tulips that hubby brought home for me

I'm loving their deep red colour...

Floral madness...

We've had fabulous weather this week, and we tried to make the most of it. I had seen pictures of Highdown Gardens on facebook and knew instantly it was somewhere I wanted to visit. So we leapt on a bus, and found it easily enough, and it really didn't disappoint. You may know by now that I have a small obsession with photographing flowers! So this place was a perfect playground for me, and we'd gone at the ideal time of year.

There were carpets of bluebells

and forget-me-nots

little clumps of primroses

an array of blossoms

and magnificent splashes of bright colours from the proud standing tulips

As we'd made a spur of the moment trip, we hadn't thought about refreshments, but thank goodness there was an adorable little café, that was full of homemade goodies, so of course we indulged in a drink and some cake!

Crafting wise I have been focussed on my Mandala rounds and made good progress

And as I couldn't choose between relaxing and doing crochet or going out in the sun, my Mandala took a trip to the beach with me!

Best of both worlds!!

Each round looks so complicated in the written instructions, and occasionally I have a wobble and wonder if i'm out of depth, and then I break it down step by step and before I know it I'm in the flow of doing it, and then feel proud that another section is complete

Today I had to work in the afternoon, but the luxury of living so close to the sea enabled us to have a couple of hours strolling together

We even managed to pick up a few little treasures on the way

The forecast doesn't look so great for the week ahead, so it may mean we get some housework done ;-)

Literal mandala madness...

No time with hubby this week, so we've had no trips out, so my days off have been crochet focussed.

I had intended to continue up into even more darker shades of purples and blues on this basket, but
       decided to stop, for no other reason than I liked the shape it had become at that moment.

I went back to get some more washing line but they didn't have any, but I found some thicker rope    instead, so it will be interesting to see what form this one will turn into.

                                  I've made a start, using up the smaller rope to start the base.

I have a load of ideas of different stitches i'd like to try on these baskets.

The mandala has continued to grow this week, although I confess it has been 1 step forward, 2 steps back, no my concentration has not improved!

I was so proud to have completed week 4, and made a start on week 5, until I was supposed to work into the stitches on the back, but found I didn't have any!

Revisiting and trawling the pattern I found that I had missed a complete row out! I hate frogging with a passion, but I had no choice, I couldn't continue without those vital stitches. Typically it was the round of bobble stitches that had to be undone (the most laborious, time consuming round, can you feel my pain!).

So it took a whole afternoon of feet up, Prince videos on the tv and grit and determination to put it right and get back to the beginning of round 5 again!

I'm loving both these projects at the moment and itching to get any moment to get working on them.

I did manage one little trip to the beach, where I basked in the sunlight, sat on the pebbles, and sat and wrote a letter, on good old traditional paper!

The cycle of the sea at the moment, means I don't get to actually see much of it as the tide seems to be out whenever I venture there!

Until next week...

sea walks and puffs...

We've been in our new home, and we're starting to get settled and get into a routine. Thankfully as we have a spare room, it means we don't have to sit and look at all the boxes yet to be unpacked and sorted! We got our new washing machine delivered and installed, so no more trips to the launderette!
The weather hasn't been amazing, but on Thursday we were able to venture out along the seafront. We will never tire of watching and listening to the waves

And we enjoyed watching 2 little birdies at the waters edge, trying to avoid the crashing waves

We also got our first glimpse of birds flying in formation

We had gone out without breakfast, so when we came across a garage, we decided a pit-stop was required!

On the return walk we stopped to look for Geocaches, and although it was next to a busy main road, it's amazing how discreet you can be!

I've tried to get back into crochet, and decided to just do a simple project to get the creativity flowing again. It turned out not to be quite so simple, as I intended to do puff stitch petals, except I got confused with the cluster stitch. I made a start and realised the petals were looking quite flat, so had to look up the correct technique.

All is not lost though, as I think a combination of both squares will look pretty good. I've had these bright, sparkly yarns in my stash for a couple of years, but now that I have a lovely, large cupboard for all my yarns to be stored, rather than boxed up in the garage, I have access to them all.

Now I've got my stitches organised, I should be able to get the squares made up quite quickly

Until next time...

Costa...

We managed to escape this year, for a much needed break, and Spain was our destination of choice. We had a very early flight, so our first day was just spent browsing the local area by foot, in a dazed tired state, but we still appreciated the warmth of the sun, and surrounding beauty.

For first full day, we had pre planned to take the Benalmedena sightseeing bus, and got ourselves a great 2 day deal.

Our first stop-off was at the cable cars. Hubby was a little trepidacious, as it went up the side of Calamorro mountain, but it was fun and could see all along the Costa del Sol coastline.

We made it up just in time to see the falconry display at the Valley of Eagles

Some beautiful birds, with huge wing spans. One did fly off for a bit of a tour, I hope he made it back ok!

We climbed the rest of the way up to the top, to see the outstanding views layed out before us

After our ride back down, it was back on the bus for bit more of a view of the town.

We got off early, so we could take a stroll down the promenade.

With shops and restaurants to our left and the sea and beaches to our right we had plenty to look at on the stroll back

But all along the way were great art works on the paths to distract us from the long, hot walk back

Day two, and it was back on the tourist bus, this time we went to the Dolphinarium, which we only  went to as it was part of the package. Again our timing was impeccable and we arrived just in time to see the dolphin show. These adorable creatures showed off their skills, leaping and acting on command.

There were plenty of animals to take a look at after the display. The penguin enclosure with its mix of breeds, swimming and waddling were beautiful.

After our packed lunch, we headed to Paloma park, another pre planned destination. This park totally lived up to its reputation. Initially our views were lush greenery, palm trees, and chickens!! Winding our way round the pathways, we then spotted some stunning peacocks, with extremely long plumage.

We've heard plenty of squawks coming from the tops of palm trees on previous days, but this time we were able to spot what was making the raucous noise. Bright green parakeets.

Best for me, later in the afternoon, was spotting the lovely bunnies. Shading themselves under bushes and out on the lawns nibbling.

There was just one incident that dampened the mood briefly, when we were approached by 2 gypsies trying to sell us flowers, invading our space. On their departure hubby knew something wasn't right, and found he had been pick-pocketed, but he went straight after them, and got our money back. We decided we needed a strong coffee and cake after that!

It was then round to the top end of the park, to the Cactus area. There were a huge variety in all shapes and sizes, tall and fat, fluffy and spiky. 

This park had everything lakes, trees, flowers, birds, animals, sculptures, exercise areas, green space and cafes

I can honestly say this is the best park i've ever been to!!

Day three, was a rest day, lazing by the pool and soaking up the sun rays, just moving on occasion to fill ourselves with a bit more food!

Day four, and we took the public bus up the mountainous roads to an Andalusian village called Mijas

                            

With the traditional white houses, and tiled roofs

There were plenty of steps up, but worth it for the views

They still had the traditional 4 legged taxis

The 17th century shrine at the cliff side

And an array of colourful fountains

We stopped for refreshments and ended up with the hugest slice of cake!

Day five and we hopped on the public bus to Fuengirola as there was a massive weekly market, the stalls seemed to go on forever, but we managed to pick up a few gifts

After we ate our pack lunch, we spent the rest of the afternoon  relaxing on the beach

Day five, We stayed local, walking along the promenade looking around the shops for more gifts, and took more time to relax on the beach

Each night, after dinner we enjoyed an evening stroll, whether along the beach or the promenade. It was still lovely and warm , and relaxing to hear the sound of the waves

For our last day, we took another stroll around the marina

and a last look around the shops. I found the best shop and could have spent a fortune, with clothes and bagis in a rainbow of different colours!

It was the hottest day and our flight wasnt till the evening so we made the most of the sun rays and sat on the local beach

I enjoyed paddling and foraging amongst the shells and found my first piece of sea glasss

Of course throughout our time I took plenty of pictures of flowers! A whole bright, colourful bunch of petals for future inspiration

We were sad to leave sunny Spain and head back to England to face a long stretch of  Winter, but we have some lovely memories...