These last 6 months I have been mainly...

Warning - picture heavy post (and very few words) well, don't they say a picture says a thousand words?!?

Since early February I have....



Survived the heavy snow we had... the picture with Carter shows the main lane at the top of our track, totally impassable.



I have learnt to weave on my mother's old Weavemaster 2 shaft loom.

Tried to learn to spin using a scrummy drop spindle I bought (made from walnut and wild olive, mmm the smell!).



Bought an old Ashford Scholar spinning wheel from a woman at my weaving class. They're all enablers, I tell you :)



Knit my first ever shawl - this is Ishbel knit in Cariad Flimstone Bay (aka Posh Yarns Emily) 4ply.


Been over on a solo trip to Normandie to check on the barn...



It was hip high in nettles and thistles - all three quarters of an acre!!!




Taught sock knitting classes at my LYS, Fiddlesticks in Honiton (there's the lovely Barbara in the far right opposite where I'd be seated).



Met Isla, my new great-niece-in-law!


Spent a week with my fossils out in Spain...



... and I cooked too! See, evidence above :)



Whilst in Spain I went to a little museum dedicated to Miro, not very far from my parent's place. It was lovely, and very inspirational seeing his earlier work before he went totally surreal.



I've been growing potatoes...



... and tomatoes in the new little greenhouse (Freecycle is a wonderful thing!)...



... and all sorts of other veg in our raised bed.




I've spun my very first little ball of yarn, this is it all bright an green after I plied it.



Knitting more socks, of course.



Taking this lovely roving (from Wildcraft) and turning it into a couple of bobbins of this...


which I will eventually ply together.



Using my little Scholar (named Maria which I thought apt as it was the name my maternal grandmother was known by - mainly because her first name was very old Polish and chosen so that it wasn't easily pronounced by the occupying Germans in the late 19th century! I also thought Maria was a good solid name with historical roots that just felt right for my first wheel) to spin some lovely BFL/silk roving into a hank of singles which I will use for weaving.


More soon!

Hope Springs Eternal

Well, no blogging for a week - intentionally - as I was hoping to have news of the cottage to tell you about.

On Wednesday we were distraught as the owner of the property had set the price too high for our budget. As of last night, we have renegotiated and the Bella Casa is ours! A few week's wait will be worth it as it is such a beautiful setting. I know you don't live in scenery, but the old adage of 'location, location, location' really does apply. So many possibilities, so many plans, so many dreams. I hope I don't wake up - if this really is a dream.

And here is another beauty: the un-named tulip planted last Autumn (un-named because I threw away the label accidentally after planting!). Isn't she a charmer - you have to smile when you see this firework of colour.

Oh what a beautiful morning...

...oh what a beautiful day! Tra la la!!

Here's a short visual tour of our garden in the gorgeous Easter sunshine... I especially love the view from the house to the back, over an orchard where three young ladies usually graze, but they were camera shy today!

Beautiful Blossom

How beautiful nature is at this time of year - the promise of a wonderful spring... hopefully! The scent is glorious and heady.







Here is a glimpse of 'Beauty' planted last Autumn...


And of two types of tulips (I forget which, but will look at the labels later) - I can't wait for these to flower!

Dying Spring

Early morning walk, sadness over the daffodils ending, but amazement at the blossom on one of many trees in our garden. I'm sure it wasn't in bloom yesterday - yet this morning, beautiful! An early morning pre-sunrise over the house, a feint tinge of pink from the rising sun, which at this time of year is a huge orb of fluorescent orange-yellow-pink: how else do I describe it?! A chill in the air after yesterday's warmth (in the afternoon the temperature raised to 23 degrees C - astounding for early April) yet today's 6 degrees C in the morning is the norm - I'm not sure about global warming, I've never known English weather to be 'normal' - I still vivdly recall the summer of '76 with standpipes in the streets in London :: and the summer I learnt to ride :: ah, memories...

Forward Planning

I've never been very good at forward planning: what's here today is what I focus on. I'm sure I'll regret it later in life when I want (and need) a nice juicy fat pension... perhaps this is the dawn of a new awareness?!

I've admired other people's planting scheme - especially Jane's love of her garden, which shines through in her blog (a daily must read for me - my normality!) - so it was with a light step that I visited the garden centre planning for spring.

Knowing that we are planning to move in the near future to somewhere larger, the emphasis was for replanting the summer bedding in our large pots, and I decided that spring would be a nice aim. So, the following have gone in:



And I'm desperate for more...!