Operation Hygge

A very happy new year to you all! I’m starting the year in a bit of a reflective mood, with both the dog and I having been poorly and sadly losing a much beloved family pet. Lots of questions are racing round my mind from the general post-Christmas “What can I eat next?” to the much bigger “What do I want to do with my life?”. The weather is appalling, although I realise we are getting off very lightly compared to other parts of the UK and friends in the US midwest!

So to avoid falling completely into a January slump, my thoughts have been turning to the idea of “Hygge”. I was lucky enough to go to Copenhagen for a weekend in December with some lovely friends (although I failed to take a single picture!) and first learnt about the idea then.

Source: Cloudberry living via Pinterest

Copenhagen was awesome by the way, lots of cool design and friendly people but entirely set up for coziness despite being cold and dark; lovely lights and candles, pretty stars in the windows and snuggly blankets in all the cafes and restaurants. And then I found this article and a post about it on a lovely blog I’ve just discovered called Cozy Things and it all started to fall into place.

Source: Trine Jansen via Pinterest

It’s all about being warm, cozy, content, soothed and happy…all of which I am feeling greatly in need of right now and I’m sure many of you are too! So in lieu of any new year’s resolutions I am launching Operation Hygge: to fill my home and life with things that make me happy and cozy and all on a miniscule budget. Well, realistically when I say miniscule, I mean non-existent! Like many of us, this year is going to be extremely tight financially so anything I do has to be about making use of things I already have or that I can beg, borrow or steal 🙂 My make do and mend mentality has been brewing for a while but the excess of Christmas has tipped me over the edge…just too much STUFF. I’m sure there will be a ranty post on this in the not too distant future! All the more reason to hunker down under cozy blankets and knit and read and drink tea and snuggle up with dear ones.

The first part of the plan is the dreaded de-cluttering, starting with the room where I keep all my wool and general crafty stuff. I’m going in, I may be some time…!

Grey and white

It is freeeeezing here. I am sat with multiple layers of woolies on, a hot water bottle on my lap and a furry spaniel by my side and I’m still chilly. Bah, I think I’ve got yet another cold on the way. Everything outside is a bit gloomy, all grey and white skies. I realise it’s slightly ridiculous to be moaning about the weather when people in the US have snow higher than their front doors but there you go, I am feeling VERY sorry for myself).

But here’s something that’s grey and white and a lot more cheerful. Towards the end of last year, my lovely friend Debbie commissioned me to make a reindeer patterned hat for her to wear on her super-exciting sabbatical this year. Her and her hubby are taking a trip to lots of different places in South-East Asia and while she won’t need anything woolly while they’re in lovely hot places like Thailand and Laos, later on in their trip they’re going to Everest Base Camp where I imagine it will be almost as cold as it is here 😉

We found the perfect pattern (from my ever-growing vintage collection), picked the colours and wool (Debbie Bliss Rialto which is a gorgeous extra-fine merino wool) and after a few weeks of lots of twisty fair-isle knitting, a beautiful bobble hat was born!

Debbie’s reindeer hat!

Ah, seeing her lovely face has cheered me up a bit! I think some lemon and ginger tea and an early night is in order and hopefully normal cheery service will resume soon.

Remember, if you would like a reindeer hat of your very own or have an idea for something else you’d like made, drop me a line. Stay warm, people x