Kew Gardens London

Had a great day out and about yesterday. I've met a delightful American woman from Utah who is also here with her husband (who is on business like mine), so we been filling our days with trips around the city.

First we took the tube to Buckingham Palace to see the Changing of the Guard than we wound up at Kew Gardens. What a beautiful place!

As usual my photos are all jumbled up. So we begin with the end of my day when I met my DH for dinner and a walk up Primrose Hill which is right by our hotel in the Regant's Park area.
DH and I at the top of Primrose Hill.
This is what the view looks like, its actually a very good view, you can see the Eye of London, St Paul's Cathedral, Westminster Abbey among other things.
These lovely tiles are outside a door in Kew Gardens near the train station.
These are the flowers of the Indian Bean Tree, brought to England from India when India was their colony.

Speaking of bringing other species into England, England has recently been invaded by the common gray squirrel. I'm not sure how they got here, but they're killing the native English red squirrel. They're not outright slaughtering them, but the gray squirrel is better equipped to forage thus stealing the lazier red squirrel's food! An English man was just charged $1500 pounds for drowning a gray squirrel that he caught in a trap in his garden. Apparently the little beast was eating the food he set out for the birds and he was fed up!

The Indian Bean Tree flowers and all of the rest of these shots are of the Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew. It was built about 250 years ago by royalty who originally used it as hunting grounds.
This Chinese Pagoda was added in 1761.
I loved the fields of lavender.
This is a holly bush, hopefully the ones I planted along my driveway will eventually grow this big.
I love marigolds, they're some of my favorite flowers.
This lily pond was amazing!
This is a pitcher pant, it traps small incests in these sweet smelling pitchers than eats them!
Gorgeous, maybe some one reading this can tell me what this flower is.

There is also a beautiful Victorian era glass conservatory..."The Temperate House is the largest surviving Victorian glasshouse in the world. Covering 4,880 square metres (5,850 square yards) and extending to 19 metres (63 feet) high." Sorry no pic but you can see one by going to the Kew Garden website.

If you're in London for a few days and the weather is nice take the time to visit Kew. Its an easy ride on the Green District line practically to the end, near Heathrow, and than a short walk from there.

Step "Into the Garden" with Jane Thornley

"We all love gardens, those pockets of beauty that light our lives with color and bloom. Despite the grand gardens existing in the world, our favorites are usually our own, no matter how humble."
Celebrate the greeness of summer with Jane Thornley's new book Into the Garden, it features a pattern threesome designed as a homage to your garden – a drapey shrug, fitted top and a loose, flowing, over-top, three little somethings for you to grow from your favorite yarns. Pick up your needles and watch them bloom.
Jane's book is sold as a PDF download that will appear as a Link after purchase. If you pay via paypal make sure to hit the "Return to Merchant" button to generate the Link. If you pay via credit card the Link will appear after payment has been made.

Quick, very quick, Paris Getaway!

This past weekend we had a speedy trip to Paris. And I finally got to see the Louvre and Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa!
This is the Greek Venus De Milo, the Goddess of Love or Aphrodite of Milos.
And here DH and I finally got our turn to pose with the famous Mona Lisa. The crowds were huge and the portrait is really very small, but thrilling to finally see! It is believed she is La Gioconda, the wife of the Italian merchant Francesco del Giocondo.
I'm not sure who this bust is of, but its old.
We had a bite to eat on one of the balcony cafes over looking the courtyard. The Louvre is really old and really big, each of the buildings was originally a palace that the kings had added during their reigns. This is the famous glass pyramid.
We did a sight seeing bus tour of Paris, of course, and saw many of the beautiful works of art the city has to offer. This obelisk was given to one of the French Kings by a real Egyptian Pharoh a long time ago.
And the decadent Moulin Rouge!
Of course the Eiffel Tower or the Tour de Eiffel. We saw it at night when it was all lit up, just beautiful!
And our hotel was on the famous Champ de Elysee where the Arc de Triomphe, built by Napoleon Bonaparte, is. We could see it, along with the Eiffel Tower, from the balcony in our room. It was a fast, but fun trip and we plan to go back when we can stay longer so we can see the Rodin Museum, Fontainebleau and Versailles.

Finally, pictures of all my recent events...
But first here I am in my lovely new scarf! My friend Lucy from Dallas, TX knit this scarf for me out of my Sandrasingh.com Superwash Fingering yarn and I love it! The pattern is the Leaf and Flower Stole by Linda Choo, you can find it along with more of Linda's patterns on Raverly. Every stitch is perfect and I can't thank Lucy enough!
I'll have you know that I have not mastered adding photos to my blog. Try as I will to put them in chronological order, I just can't seem to master the order that I'm supposed to put them in. So these first shots are from the 4th of July party at my cousin's home in Youngstown, Ohio.
That's me in the middle sitting with my cousin's Mary and Caroline and Mary's mom, my aunt Ethel.
It was a great party with lots of relatives and friends. We had our own fireworks, along with the rest of the neighborhood, the moment it got dark.
Youngstown had their fireworks on July 3rd so we raced downtown after the dinner you'll see below to see them!

Here are my DH and I at Youngstown's famous restaurant that used to be a bank, this is the original bank vault.
Here's Cousin Mary is robbing the vault!
Here's Mary's brother Paul trying to master his nephew's Justin's crazy skateboard. Not only does it have four wheels, they all go different directions at the same time and the two foot boards rock. To Paul's credit he finally learned it!
Here are my mom and I visiting my Aunt Metz.
That's Aunt Metz between Mary and Jessica.
Here's Toffee at the 4th of July Parade After Party, she's beloved by all!
Resting after the parade.
Zoe enjoying cotton candy, after the parade.
Our youngest cousins...Justin, the tall one in the American Flag hat got his picture in the local Youngstown paper!
Here's my brother George with my mom and cousin Jessica. My mom got to ride on the fire truck during the parade which made her very happy.
And here's the parade! These photos should have gone prior to the party above, some day I'll master the photo ordering!


The kids decorating our car.
And last but not least we made it to London! Here we are in Regent's Park visiting Queen Mary's Rose Garden. The roses were in full bloom and stunning.
And yes I'm holding a Harrods bag, a very small purchase, a tour book of London but I'll cherish this bag for years to come!
This is the food court in Harrods, just gorgeous!
And finally DH and I in front of the London Bridge.

London

No photos to share, they're all still on the camera, but I'm having a lovely time here in London, despite the rain! We did our obligatory bus tour, which we love to do in each new city we land in and have been hitting the major department stores.

Harrods is very impressive and very expensive. Liberty has one of the coolest upholstery fabric departments I've ever seen and they even had a huge selection of Rowan yarn! Not to mention sewing goods. The jewelry department was impressive too, there was a trunk show for custom made charm bracelets and necklaces using original Victorian era charms. I almost caved, but didn't. The store was built out of tall sailing ships and is a Tudor style, its an interesting shopping experience.

And we fell in love with a silver coffee table made in Egypt at Selfridges, but it was the only one they had and sold already! Hmmmm, we than went to London's Heal's furniture shop and found a very similar coffee table but not quite what we wanted. So the hunt is on.

We had dinner at an Indian restaurant in London's financial district last night and it was a lot like being in NY's Wall St area, lots of busy looking people in suits.

Its raining today so I slept late and had a nice workout. Time to go get my day started.

July 2010 Newsletter

Special Announcement: Sandrasingh.com will be closed for shipping yarn from July 9 - 25th, you may order yarn during this time and it will be shipped after July 25th. Patterns sold as PDF downloads will be emailed after purchase as usual.

Lazy days at the pool, outdoor concerts and dining al fresco, summer is in full swing and you're in need of cool knitting projects that travel with ease. Celebrate with these new patterns and 5-40% Off all my Cotton Yarns. And if you're thinking about fall with gift giving season only 6 months away, get started on one of these new cold weather projects that are still small enough to knit now. So sit back & relax, these new projects and yarn sales are only a click away!

In This Issue: Save on Cool Crisp Cotton / Summer is a Time for Lace / Sweet Treats for Your Feet(s) / Lil Summer Dress / Think Fall /

Save on Cool Crisp Cotton
If you enjoy knitting wash cloths, market bags or light and breezy summer tops I have the cotton yarn on sale that you need. Schaefer's sport weight Susan, Laurel a worsted and the bulky Sandra are all 25% Off and can be purchased by the single skein or dyeloted bag. Some quick project ideas for these 3 yarns are the Susan Drop Stitch Diamond Shell or Boatneck Shell, the Laurel Top, Summer Sampler or Knapsack and the Sandra Hooded Child's Cardigan.

Worsted weight Cherry Tree Hill North Country Cotton is 40% Off and one skein would knit up quickly into a beautiful washcloth that would make a thoughtful gift. Berroco's Cotton Twist is 30% Off. Karabella's sport weight Vintage Cotton and DK Zodiac are 5% Off per skein and 15% Off a dyeloted bag of 10 and Karabella Aurora 8, Aurora 4 & Aurora Bulky are just $4.99 a ball! All yarn sales end July 8th.

Straw Into Gold

Summer is a Time for Lace
Savor your summer knitting with one of these new lacey designs. Ilga Leja's Straw Into Gold is an elegant example of how bias knitting can create a luxurious shawl with exquisite drape. Begin with a few stitches and, using the magic of strategically placed increases and decreases, you'll feel as though you're knitting straw into gold. La Lana Wools Phat Silk Fine or Schaefer's Susan will work beautifully.

Bella

Lily Go, the queen of empire waist top designs such as Lace Sleeves & Dahlia, has turned her attention to shawls. And you'll be happy she did once you see her new, darling triangular shawl Bella. Bella combines a stockinette stitch body with scalloped edges and its knit quickly in only 370 yards of a fingering weight. Pigeonroof Studios' Circe or Original Sock would make this shawl as unique as it is beautiful.

Elegant and lovely the Fickleknitter's quick-to-knit shawlette Flyleaf is constructed in the traditional triangle method with knit on edging and short rows to shape the edging around the center point of the body. Knit yours in either Margaret Stove's Artisan Lace or Malabrigo's Lace Baby Merino.

Rock Candy

Ribbon Taffy

Sweet Treats for Your Feet(s)
Of course a sock project or two is on your summer knitting list and Goddess Knits' has two new candy-coated designs! Her cabled Rock Candy, and the twisted stitch Ribbon Taffy socks which are knit in one skein of my Sandrasingh.com Superwash Fingering yarn. Both will satisfy your sock knitting sweet tooth!

Lil Summer Dress
Is there a special little girl to knit for this summer? You'll love the one-piece construction of Lisa Ellis Designs' Lil Summer Dress or Tunic Top. And you'll also love the Instructional Video link Lisa provides in the pattern to assist you with the Baltic Trim. The pattern includes instructions for sizes: 6-9 months, 9-12 mths, 1-2T, 2-4T, 4–5 yrs, 5-6 yrs and is knit in a sport weight cotton yarn such as Karabella's machine washable Zodiac.

Think Fall
You're enjoying lazy weekends at the beach but you still have your eye toward your Fall and gift knitting. I've compiled this new collection of patterns that are perfect for gifting yet small enough for comfortable summer knitting, start one today and you'll have it ready for wrapping by December!

Lace Maple Leaf Socks

For a Mother - Daughter duo knit Fickleknitter's Lace Leaf Hats with only one skein of Malabrigo Merino Worsted, they're knit from the brim to the crown and the pattern is written for adult & child sizes. Designer Feather and Fan is the first to write a pattern for Malabrigo's new Twist yarn, her slouchy ribbed beret and matching reversible scarf Here Comes the Sun are knit with just three skeins. And HeartStrings FiberArts' Lace Maple Leaf Socks will give you a lace fix while allowing you to dream of the gold & orange leaves of Autumn.

Plaid Dog Sweater

Love to crochet, you'll adore these new designs from Knotsewcute and Freshstitches. Knotsewcute lets you keep your entire family warm, even the dog, their Arctic Wind Wrist Warmers includes 5 sizes and 2 edging options making them customizable for men, women & children, the Wrapped in Bows Baby Blanket makes a sweet gift for mom-to-be and Fido will love staying warm in his new Plaid Dog Sweater. While Freshstitches keeps you laughing with these clever Amigurumi, Gordon the Flamingo, Willy the Fish, Peter the Duckling and the practical Learie Jr. the Teddy Bear Key Chain.

Thank you for being a Sandrasingh.com customer and for reading my July Newsletter. I'm always here to help you with any of your fiber arts needs, email sandrasingh@sandrasingh.com, phone 877/519-1693, Facebook Sandra Singh, my Ravelry group Sandrasingh.com or tweet me on Twitter, Sandrasinghcom. Have a great summer!