Di Ford Workshop

What a brilliant day we had yesterday when we were invited by the Little Coxwell Quilt Group to join them for a workshop with Di Ford.

Di is an Australian Quilter, teacher and author who is famous for her beautiful reproduction quilts using loads of needleturn applique, fussy cutting and Broderie Perse.  She has done mystery quilts for Quiltmania, and designed the Antique Sampler quilt Lynne teaches at our workshops.

And what an inspiring, down-to-earth and very, very clever lady she is!

We started making her 'Pendle Hill' quilt, which meant honing our needleturn skills under her excellent tuition.  She also introduced us to the latest quilting craze - pentagons!

At the end of the class she showed us some of her quilts

including an antique one she had bought in France last week

 And then finally the quilt group had a show and tell (mostly of Di Ford quilts)

 Celia Knight showed us this quilt she has made, a copy of an old quilt that is kept by a family who were happy to let it be reproduced, but don't let people see the original

 

They were all absolutely fantastic and rounded up a perfect day!

A Busy Day

What a busy, bubbly, high-spirited crowd we all were in the workshop today - hardly surprising when Lynne Johnson was taking the class.  The door was open wide to let in the sunshine and from outside we could hear the sounds of spring - lambs bleating, bird song - a perfect day!

Alice brought in the Butterfly quilt she made to show us

This picture really does not do it justice - I think the colours haven't come out because it was such a bright and sunny day - the quilt is actually all different, vibrant shades of purple - not greys and blacks which it looks like in the picture.

Ros and Alice showed us what they've done on their Medallion quilts:

 

 

We loved Alice's flower border - she's used bondweb

 

 

and then the ladies working on their Antique Samplers compared blocks

And then it was down to work for the rest of the morning.

After lunch, we returned to the workshop but Sue and Jenny were missing and even Lynne had disappeared........
                                              ...............Aha!

 

 

Thank you Ladies - made my job a bit easier!

Lambs and More Lambs

I can't believe it's only been a week since my last post - we've been so busy round here. 

There is only one cow left to calf now, which is good news, but sadly we lost one cow - she prolapsed before giving birth but had seemed fine after she had her calf.  She was eight years old so it was a great shame and of course her calf will have to survive by stealing milk from the other cows.

The lambs I am feeding are now penned up outside with a little hut made from a fertilizer drum that they can get into.  All the feeding is really exhausting. 

Then this afternoon the sheep were giving birth almost too quickly for Jonathan to bring them down (serves him right really because yesterday he was grumbling that nothing was happening).  Anyway, I went outside just now and saw this

Two more, who were only born today, have been added.  So, now I'm up to five - but at least three of them are used to the bottle now so it's just a matter of putting the holding on the hurdle and they'll feed themselves.

They were all very happy just now skipping around in their pen in the warm sunshine.

Another One

Pet lamb has a friend

 

 

A caravanner on our Certified Location came up and told us he was trying to get milk from Big Boy, the alpaca, so I had to go and get him in.  I was a bit worried, as I carried him up the field Big Boy was keening behind me - I kept an eye on his shadow and if it appeared next to me I was ready to run!  We weren't surprised - he was a twin and mum wasn't interested in him.  He's quite little, and hoarse from bleating for his mother, but he's feeding well and they both spent the day out in the sun.

Easter Day

Well, I'm sitting here full of chocolate and roast dinner and feeling quite content with the world.

A few things have worked out well today.

First of all, when I put the ingredients in the bread maker for my Easter Plait I accidentally set it to quick bake instead of dough.  Realised in the nick of time and emptied it out and then kneaded it by hand - I was worried that the yeast had been killed though.

However, it was fine.

Then, one of the ewes was lambing for the first time and struggling quite a bit.  Jonathan pulled the lamb out

checked her over

and realised she was having another one so pulled that one out too.

He put both lambs under her nose for her to clean them up

but she was having none of it.  This sometimes happens the first time they lamb, especially if they have struggled - I suppose they just associate the lambs with pain.  Every time the lambs tried to get near she'd push them away.  Twice Jonathan held her fast so they could feed but it was hard work.

Then, this evening, I went out to have a look and

 

both lambs were suckling away!

So that was a happy ending.

Then George is back from Lundy and he wants to move there (two children each on different islands - that would be really unfair).  I have enjoyed looking at the photos.  He said it was like another world

It does look beautiful.

Finally, apologies to everyone I have accused, both outright and in my head, of breaking and hiding two of my breakfast bowls.....I found them at the bottom of the cupboard!

Easter

This morning I took my mother over some Hot Cross Buns.  She said she'd bought some from Marks on Thursday - they were handing out tasters and she said it was the most delicious bun she'd had in years.  I said "that's because for the last 30 years you've had to eat the ones I bake".

 

Well, they've all been eaten now, but I plan to make an Easter Plait tomorrow.

Whilst most people are enjoying a relaxed Bank Holiday, Jonathan's been working his socks off.

He's put the ewes to lamb in the back paddock with the Alpacas - Big Boy and Barney come up every time a ewe lambs - they are fascinated by it.

and then brings them down to the paddock behind the house once they've lambed (it's a bit more sheltered).

and they stay here for a day or two before they go out to the big field.

The two at the back are as spotty as Dalmatians
 

 

 

Because it was warm I let the pet lamb have a run around in the grass

She was very curious about everything.

Off to pick up George tonight - can't wait to hear about his adventures on Lundy.

 

Happy Easter from Lorne Hill Farm!

 

 

April Fools

So, April Fool's Day has dawned - and for the first time in  years I haven't played a trick on anyone.  Don't know why - I've always been very keen in the past - probably all the dust and chaos in the house from the building work distracted me.  I always catch Jonathan out with lame things like the sheep are out, or DEFRA are coming to do an inspection.  Then the time I woke Victoria up with "Your piano teacher is downstairs waiting for you" - she leapt out of bed and started dressing and when I said "April Fool" she burst out crying.  Then when I asked my mum if she'd seen the Queen and Prince Philip coming down the canal outside her house on the royal barge was particularly good - she couldn't believe she'd missed them.  Then when my nephew was little and I phoned and said a lion was loose in their village and they had to go and look.  Joe went, came back to the phone and when I said 'April Fool' he said that actually he'd seen the lion.

Anyway, the joke was on me today.  Lambing started nice and promptly but I couldn't believe my eyes when I came in from the workshop

How can I possibly have a lamb to feed on the first day?  Apparently her mum wasn't interested and only had enough milk for her twin anyway.  So the work starts again.....she is rather sweet though.