House proud

Now that my house is fairly uncluttered, keeping it tidy and clean has become easier - and more of a priority. I notice things now that didn't really bother me before - or if they did, they were dwarfed by the much larger piles of clutter and chaos looming in the background. One particular bugbear of mine? Kitty footprints. We seem to have the grubbiest footed cats in the neighborhood - rain or shine they bring dust, soil and other muck into the kitchen and across the lino. This is where we put their food bowls, so it gets particularly grubby particularly quickly. Or it did, until this morning.

I finished this rag rug last night - it is cheap, cheerful and recycled - all of my favourite things. I simply cut inch wide strips of old sheets and fabric offcuts and crocheted rows of double crochet (that's single crochet to those of you in the US) with a 7mm hook. With hindsight, 1 inch is probably excessive - it was quite hard work pulling the loops through which made my hands sore. If I were to make a bigger one I would use thinner strips and a larger hook - though it has made a substantial rug that doesn't slide around and will stand up to frequent washing. Did I mention it was cheerful?

OK, I have a long way to go before anyone could describe me as house proud. But caring about kitty prints is a start, yes? And doing something about it - even better?