Sunday, 22 January 2017

Thinking about Sunrooms



I have a lovely little sunroom in my house
 
  I spend a lot of quality time here, reading, knitting, taking tea breaks with friend. 

  And I was thinking how much it reminds me of the sunroom in the house where I grew up. There were windows on three sides of that lovely north facing sunroom.  Wine coloured drapes  covered the windows at night.  It was our front entry way – the way guests came in.   The windows slid sideways for air and the door window had a disappearing window that dropped down into the door itself leaving a screen window.  The downside of that wonderful room, was that the roof leaked.  And for all the detective work and roof walking tar brush in hand  my father did, we never completely got rid of leaks.  We didn’t mind though.  We just got pots out and captured the drips.

Our Christmas tree stood in that room.  I loved going out there at night with only the Christmas tree lights for company.  Sometimes we set up the sewing machine and worked out there.  The record player stayed out there and I spent hours singing along with my favourites, or just listening.  It was a great place to read too – laying on the love seat deep in the latest book from the library.    And on occasion it even turned into a dining room if we had company.

 Sadly,  that sunroom is now gone!Torn off the front of the house when I drove by a couple of years ago.  Maybe they couldn’t handle the leaks. 

My little sunroom here is half the size, but has four lovely south facing windows giving me a gorgeous view of the mountains surrounding the south Okanagan Valley.  This year it too had the Christmas tree front and centre – small – just fitting on the coffee table and festooned with lots of fairy lights and the antique ornaments.  Now, the plants I’m trying to save for spring are scattered around the floor and rewarding me with new green.  They will go out on the deck and into the garden once all the snow is gone.
And speaking of snow.....
 

 I bought cheery wicker furniture with red cushions for this room – came in a box – a big box – that I had the delivery man leave in the carport.  I took pieces out one at a time and started the rather complicated process of construction. 

 It seems furniture comes to be assembled in this goofy world we live in – gone are the days when you could buy it complete, delivered and set up for you. . Anyway – I did it – two chairs, a 4 foot coffee table, and a settee put together with a screwdriver and an alan key..  For some reason the coffee table gave me the most grief but I managed.  I put the first chair together backwards – why do I always do that?   Fortunately the plush red cushions were already to go and just had to be plopped on once the furniture was screwed together. 



On a knitting note – I have liberated myself from the sweater I was working on.  Tore it completely apart, and rewound the wool.

  It was a trial, that sweater.  I must have torn it back 4 times and then got up to the neck and decided I hated the thing – would probably never wear it.  So, I was sitting there  – musing on this – and decided it had to go.  I got my trusty ball winder out, and wound as I ripped and the more I ripped, and the sweater got smaller and smaller, the more liberated I felt.  Obviously it was not mean’t to be. 

  I like the wool – Malabrigio Rio in wine/red.  I wanted a squishy sweater- long, comfortable, great to slip on and go.  What I was getting was a tight assed piece of armour.  I tore up the pattern too so I would never be tempted to do it again.  It just wasn’t working.
And… I’m taking a break from knitting – well…except for socks – always have to have a sock on the go it seems. 
 This is Opal sock wool sweet and spicy Watermelon.  It's fun and bright. 


  So…I’m learning to tapestry weave.  I’m a real baby at the moment but...   I’m learning. 
My sides are wobbly and those  first two triangles here are pretty pathetic, but the green one...hey...it worked.

It's good, as this year begins, to try some new things, and perhaps even pick up again some things long put away.

And a final "green" note here.  My Orchid is getting ready to bloom!  It is taking it's own sweet time about it but that is actually a bloom stock on there after five years of it just sitting around doing nothing.  Wow!
I wish us all a happy, peaceful 2017.  
Cheers for now
Patricia



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