Like I keep saying, Christmas isn't a thing for me, but this year I'm really getting into the (secular) spirit of it. After I gave Kris and Katie their candy-cane earrings, a couple of the Richmond Knitters asked if I could make them some, so I did: I also decided to make candy-cane stitch markers for the Richmond Knitters Christmas party next weekend, so it was a bit of a production line. (The beer cans are to hold the objects while the varnish is drying. I try to keep the drinking to after the crafting.) Then Kate Davies posted a recipe for biscuits ( festive oaties – KDD & Co (katedaviesdesigns.com) that need fruit mince, so I made some fruit mince and the biscuits. I had heaps of mince left over, so next I might make mince pies. I love mince pies. Fun fact, when I was young and had a bit of an eating disorder, I basically lived off mince pies for a season. You would have thought that would cure the love for them, but no, I still think they are delicious.
Reading has been rather good this week. I finished Orbital and gave it 5 stars for being lyrical and beautiful. Then, as predicted I started Penny Reid's Homecoming King . I'm pretty close to finishing it and it's also looking like a 5 star read. It's tropey romance, and also well written, sweet and (unlike many romance novels) full of communication, trust and consent. It's just so sweet - except the bits which are sexy, which are genuinely sexy. I'm often more of a closed door kind of reader, but, maybe because I liked the two main characters, this didn't seem intrusive. It is a bit of a Christmas novel, which is weirdly themed with my unusually Chistmassy activities this year. Next up I think I'll read Loving Day by Matt Johnson, the oldest book on my Goodreads "want to read" shelf. Still the same two knitting projects as last week but they are both ticking away nicely. I've added a stripe and a half the the Electric Village shawl