Picking a project for the other Birthday Girl

This is Shan and she's my special 'birthday twin' as we were born on the same day in the beds next to each other 30 years ago! I wanted to knit her something to mark the occasion, as for me that's the ultimate expression of love; making something specifically for someone and hoping they'll like it, use it/ wear it and cherish it forever. So I set about thinking what I wanted to make for her:

• She's a classy lady so I wanted something unfussy, but with a simple interest. 
• She wears a lot of black, perhaps because she's a doctor and has seen enough white for a lifetime? So it needed to complement that without being a really 'out-there' colour that she'd never wear. 
• She has recently bought a house, which is probably the most exciting house I have ever been in. It's like a little cavern that keeps throwing up random rooms, extra kitchens, tiny stairways to studies and narrow hallways leading who knows where. The only thing is that it's practically falling down and therefore freezing in the winter. So whatever I made for her I knew it needed to be warm. 

The pattern I finally settled on was The Age of Brass and Steam, which is a rather steam-punk name for a pretty simple, classic pattern. The barley colour of the yarn really reminds me of Shan as she loves neutral tones in her home decorating. The yarn is 100% wool so it will be super warm in the winter - it's actually a bit of a shame that I gave it to her during summer! Although she can't wear it just yet for fear of over heating, she seems to really like it, so if she's happy, I'm happy.

We did lots of celebrating this year but wanted to do something extra special to mark the big birthday so went away for a long weekend, husbands and Flo in tow to Camber Sands in East Sussex. We stayed in an amazing little holiday home called The Salty Dog which I HIGHLY recommend. It was lovely to spend some quality time together and get away from it all for a few days, but by far the best part was Camber Sands beach and dunes. Seriously, you can't get better than this.