Category Archives: Miniature Dachshund

Planet Penny Road Trip

We’re all super excited here on Planet Penny, we’re off on an adventure this week, felting needles at the ready!

If you’ve been visiting here a while you will know that I have had a couple of fabulous weekends at the Frank and Olive Crochet Retreats over the past few years. This time I am the guest tutor, taking fluffy fun up to Yorkshire to join Ruby and Dan and their guests.

We will be making something a little bit different for Christmas, decorations that I hope reflects Ruby’s exuberant personality and sense of fun while passing on the necessary skills of needlefelting for the guests to take away and experiment with.

Higgins is off to stay at his home from home just down the road, where he will be treated like a little prince. One person providing a comfy lap where he can help with the crochet projects, and another to crawl endlessly round the floor playing games. I don’t think he will miss us at all!

After a few days in Yorkshire we will be heading to Manchester where my OH has a course to attend. Manchester is a place I have never visited so I’m looking forward to some exploring and a spot of Christmas shopping. If this is your stomping ground, I’d love some suggestions for places to visit.

I’m feeling very excited about getting out and about with more Planet Penny workshops. If you are in Norfolk or Suffolk you can find the next three sessions I have booked for 2020 on the Workshop Page above and I’m always up for discussing another road trip. If you would like me to visit just drop me an email!

Follow me on Instagram if you would like to see what we get up to at the Retreat, or even if you’d like to see me getting lost in Manchester…see you soon…!

Autumn Walks and Acorns

I can’t believe we are nearly at the end of October! It’s all been a bit busy here on Planet Penny. We’ve just had a flying visit from the grandsons and grand dog which is enough to send anyone in a tizzy, especially Higgins! The grand dog is very “Tiggerish’ and Higgins has to be careful not to be bounced on.

I’m having to do a bit of resting because of the M.E. so I’ve been installing things on my shiny new iPad so I can sit with my feet up and write blog posts. This my first attempt. Not so much the writing as working out the best way to process the photos…I’m getting there…gradually.

And I’m also getting ready for the Two Rivers Trail Festive Fair which is coming up next month, so felting needles at the ready, I’ve been making acorns.
But we have had some lovely weather, so over the past few days we’ve been out with the camera enjoying all the colours of autumn, so come with us, it’s only down the road! I love to think that someone was walking along eating lunch, tossed the apple core in the hedgerow, and planted a tree! 2016-10-23-10-54-59 This is one our favourite stretches along the walk, sheltered enough not to get muddy.Because we do mud rather well in Norfolk! Mud And while there are acorns on the trees… acorns …there are needlefelt acorns in the studio!So watch this space… I’ll be back to show you the finished articles and with more news about the Festive Fair.

See you soon…x

Autumn Planning – looking ahead

Hello…and Happy Sunday! I hope the weather is being kind wherever you are. Here in Norfolk we are presently bathed in beautiful Autumn sunshine, which is trying very hard to dry up the huge downpour an hour ago. But it’s warm, the doors are open, Higgins is sunning himself and all’s right with the world…well on Planet Penny anyway.

Looking back over the blog I find I’m usually a bit moany around this time of year and I realise it’s not the autumn I don’t like because it can be beautiful. The colours and the angle of the light. The misty mornings and sparkling dew on the leaves. It’s looking ahead to the lack of light that lowers my mood. I find it really hard when the sun sets ever earlier rises later and later, and the clouds don’t lift all day.

So I’m autumn planning, determined to find lots to do, and lots to share and to try to keep motivated this time round. I hope you’ll join me!

So here’s a little glimpse of what Higgins and I have been enjoying on our dog walks this week… Mini dachshund in autumn planning As you can see…he’s just a blur!

So many gorgeous colours and textures… Autumn Colours - autumn planning We’re going to keep enjoying it for as long as we can! Autumn sunset So, coming up, I’m going to show you some cosy knitting in a fabulous autumn colour… autumn planning - knitting and an irresistible fabric purchase from my favourite shop, Arts Desire.

And on Friday I shall be taking part in a Blog Hop with Sew and So …here’s a little clue! Autumn planning blog hop I’ll leave you with some winners. The TWO lucky winners of the fabulous crochet book from this post are Susan and Julie. I wish I could send everyone a copy though, thank you all so much for entering the competition.

And if you didn’t win the book, there is still a chance to win the lovely Happy Crocheting bag on the newsletter. Just subscribe via the yellow button below to take part.

See you soon…x

Guest Post: Higgins and the Pawsome Box

Hello! Higgins here. It’s been sooo long since mum let me loose on the keyboard but I really wanted to tell you about my Pawsome Box, cos I love it when I get my very own post.

(Mum gets soo grumpy when I open hers.)

Pawsome Box I had to give it a bit of a chew and a thump about to get in, but when I did it was PAWSOME! Pawsome box contents There were TREATS! treats for Higgins the miniature dachshund from the Pawsome Box There were TWO bones! And some more treats, a lead, and some wiping things to make me smell cleaner (Hmmph! I smell lovely already!)I LOVE the stripy bone…it squeaks!(Well it did, until I had a little accident) but I STILL love it… Toy from the Pawsome box And the other bone I can just chew…and chew… and chew… Higgins jumping I thought this was just for me because I’m special, but mum says ALL the dogs in the WORLD can have this treat too because there is a special code from the lovely Pawsome people to get a discount. So I thought I’d better tell you all so that my doggy chums can have some post too.

You just have click here to find out all about the Pawsome Box and use this discount code ukbtswem when you buy.

It’s my birthday next month… I’m not hinting or anything, mum…..MUM?

Pondering on Autumn days…

Autumn Days in Norfolk

Autumn in the UK is a constant source of surprise.

One day it feels like the sun hasn’t even risen, the gloom and rain is unrelenting and all you want to do is to snuggle up inside by the with a hot drink, a good book and a little woolly project. Oh, and in my case, a warm dachshund!)

And then another day will dawn and all you want to do is to dash of to the beach – again with small dog in tow – and breath in some fresh air and listen to the waves shooshing on the sand.

So this has been the week on Planet Penny. The wet days and the gloomy days have made persuading Higgins out of the door quite a challenge and I don’t think he appreciates the delights of the autumn hedgerows AT ALL, but I do…

Autumn hedgerow - Nightshade berries Autumn leaves Min dachshund in coat But then the sun came out, and after a couple of hours battling with a large overgrown honeysuckle in the garden, Higgins and I headed off to the seaside to catch the last of the Autumn light… Autumn on the Norfolk coast Waxham 6 It’s amazing to get there when it’s completely deserted, just me and a little dog, who just runs and runs and runs, and get a bit frustrated when I don’t join in!

miniature dachshund I spend a lot of the time with my head down looking for treasures, sea glass which is a rare find here…Brightly coloured seaweed… seaweed on the autumn beach just appreciating the colours of the sea… Waxham 4 The clocks go back this weekend, I hate losing the evening light, don’t you, so these Autumn excursions will become even more precious.

And talking of the dark evenings, have you entered the giveaway for the Dayight Lamp yet? I’ve really enjoyed reading your comments about what you love best about Winter but there’s still some time left to join in, just enter HERE for a chance to win.

Here’s sending you sun filled Autumn days, and cosy crafty Autumn nights by the fire!

See you soon…x

Spring cleaning…in September!

That September ‘new term’ feeling never goes away really, does it? All those years of seeing the ‘Back to School’ displays in the shop windows, the new school sandals (yuk!) and the new pencil case.

So it always seems a good time to start something new, or give something established a freshen up and that’s what I’m working on with the blog at the moment. I’ve been blogging now for seven years, I can hardly believe it… there are 569 posts! Because the whole thing has grown up a bit piecemeal over time I need to have a tidy up.

But it’s a bit like deciding to sort out the box of photos under the bed. I’ve got right back to the beginning re-reading every post, it’s a lovely trip down memory lane! I’ve gone back to past holidays, the arrival of Higgins and all the cute baby pics, the building of my studio, the passing seasons…It’s such a lovely record of my life and I’d never have done it without the blog.

I’m sure you’ve noticed the new Planet Penny header. There’s so much going on here that than just wool so although I’m very fond of my sheep, I hope the new look encompasses the fact there’s a lot going on, and it’s all colourful!

But as well as beavering away at the computer I’m trying to make the most of any September sun which comes our way, (which, alas, has been a bit elusive. I’m listening to the rain as I type!) I’ve been in charge of dog walking this past week so my camera has gone with me, and also a little friend of Higgins called Coco. I’ve had my hands full.

mini dachshunds in September sun Norfolk UK - September The hedgerows are full of berries this year, I don’t know when I’ve seen so many. It’s a sign of bad weather to come so they say… memo to self: Knit more socks!Just such a fabulous colour, aren’t they? I always think the Nightshade berries look like necklaces the way they twine through the hedgerows…

Nightshade berries - September - Norfolk UK Having a supply of poo bags when out for a walk is jolly handy if you want to do a spot of spontaneous blackberry picking… blackberries - September But there are still summer flowers… scabious 2015-09-19 16.26 And bees…

2015-09-19 16.09 and a fairy ring… Fairy ring - September - Norfolk, UK toadstools toadstools2 But the fairy dogs weren’t interested… Mini dachshunds Higgins&Coco3 …until I mentioned the word T-R-E-A-T-S… Higgins gets quite bossy about treats! Mini dachshunds - September -Norfolk UK Meanwhile, back home and I’m crocheting up a big warm sweater with cold days in the studio in mind. After my lovely weekend at the Crochet Retreat with Frank & Olive I was inspired by Ruby’s big chunky crochet creations and so I was delighted to find that the issue of Simply Crochet magazine I bought last year (because I’m in it too!) had Ruby’s jumper on the front. Crochet Entrepreneur in Simply Crochet I’ve customised it (because I’m not a sylph-like twenty year old) and I think it’s going to be very cosy. It’s a brilliantly simple pattern, no shaping and only the one stitch all through. What can go wrong? Picking up the wrong hook and doing half a sleeve with it before noticing, that’s what went wrong!

So, not quite finished yet.

I hope you’ve enjoyed my September ramblings, do you spring clean in September too?

I’ll be back soon…x

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