Stoke Bruerne & Springtime Crochet

April has arrived, the days are getting longer, and I feel a spring in my step. I had the opportunity to take a trip out earlier this week to a place not too far from home. Somewhere I'd wanted to visit for a while, a beautiful little gem of a place called Stoke Bruerne situated on the Grand Union Canal in Northamptonshire.

After a leisurely drive west, we arrived at our destination to the sun just peaking out through the clouds. I was optimistic that the afternoon would be fine and dry for our little jaunt up and down the locks. The weather's been a bit hit and miss here just lately, so we were fortunate to pick the best day of the week. 

As I drove into the village I noticed what looked like a public car parking area, so I decided to just follow the car in front. Once in the car park I realised we'd actually driven into the parking area of one of the local public houses 'The Navigation', which sits right on the canalside. A beautiful spot to while away the hours, with a nice tipple or bite to eat.

Despite the temptation to stop in for some refreshments, we wanted to explore a bit first so drove a little further into the village to find a public car park. Sure enough we found the Pay & Display that's right next to the Canal Museum, and for £3 per car it was very convenient and reasonably priced.

Not wanting to waste a moment of the dry bright weather we set to walking along the canal towpath, following the locks downstream first, then back up through the heart of the village towards the Blisworth Tunnel. It was a lovely few hours, spent blissfully unhurried.  

There was a hint of Summer warmth in the air, a little taste of what's (hopefully) to come in the months ahead. I can't wait to spend more lazy days in the same fashion. The simple things eh?.....

Crochetwise I've been on a mission to hook up several Happy Flower Blocks. But instead of crocheting a whole block one at a time I'm deviating from my usual method and crocheting several of each round, building them in stages. After making a few in Acrylic to donate to Sally's charity project last month, I got the urge to do more. 

So here are my efforts thus far. I'm hoping this method will keep me motivated for the long haul, as I want to make a blanket. Most of the colours here are Stylecraft Special DK. I'm making the best of the limited palette I have available. This yarn does go a long way, so hopefully it will  stretch to a decent sized project.

Onto round 4...........

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

Much love x x x