Autumn

Well, it seems Autumn has arrived.  Last Monday morning I was cleaning out the chickens in shorts and a tee shirt, and then in the afternoon the skies darkened and the rain came. And it hasn't really stopped since.  It was a long summer, with family worries constantly in the background, so I haven't been as busy as I could have been.

At least the rain meant the return of interesting fungi - although I am getting a bit tired of my friends sending me photos of amazing fungi that they've just stumbled upon, whereas I take an awful lot of effort and am rewarded with quite mundane finds.  For example,

I found this on an old stump, and had to get onto my hands and knees to photograph it, and all the while Millie was going absolutely bonkers and tying me in knots with her lead.  I thought maybe there was something bad about it that was freaking her out.  I just kept holding her down until I felt a sharp pain in my leg.  Suddenly I was aware that there were hundreds of wasps flying around us because I was kneeling on their nest, and poor Millie was getting stung.  Our getaway was made all the more difficult because the lead was wrapped around my legs, but we did get away, with me smacking away wasps from both Millie and me, and yanking at my hair because they were caught in that.  We both suffered, and had to take anti-histamine to help us recover from our ordeal.

Anyway, other than fungi hunting, I have drawn up the new schedule, and we have some good workshops coming up.  There's a couple of absolute beginner quilting workshops; hand- piecing this Wednesday and hexagons on Wednesday 6th November, some Christmas decorations to sew on Wednesday 20th November, knitting socks with Ros on Wednesday 16th October, and of course wreath making with Linda on Wednesday 11th and Saturday 14th  December - either the morning or afternoons.

And there's been plenty going on in the workshop.  Glenys is forging ahead with her seat covers

Ros knitted a beautiful shawl

and finished her stunning Janie Crowe Blanket

Louise finished her Attic 24 blanket

and last week was working on her bee skep

Barbara finished her scrappy quilt top

and Lynne produced another work of art to inspire her Medallion class members

So perfect.

And me?  I've been working on my crocheted Whirlpool Mandala Rug - an Airdale Yarns pattern which is made up with Axminster Rug Wool which is 80% wool and 20% nylon.  I bought it when I went to the wool show in Newbury and am afraid to say it was on only the second stand I went to - no self control!

Still, it brightens up these grey days!

At Long Last.....

I can declare my Medallion Quilt well and truly finished....

Don't look too long - just scan over it.

How many mistakes?  Oh Lord, I can hardly bare to look at it but in the end it was just a matter of getting the thing done - and apologies to Lynne Johnson: this is what a quilt looks like when you don't listen to the teacher and carry on regardless of whether things are working out or not.

Mo very kindly said it must have taken me hours - clearly she doesn't know the half of it.

I think I started it in 2011.  At the time I was very aware of how much quilters spent on fabric and wanted to show that it could be done using fabric you already have.  I selected four dresses I really liked, but which were at least 20 years old.  One was a Miss Selfridge, two were Laura Ashleys and the third was one I'd bought when I'd gone for an interview in London when I was 23!!  I was also given some Liberty fabric and the rest would be white cotton.

To begin with the central Medallion was unpicked at least 5 times before it went right. 

Back in 2012 I had got this far:

And then unpicked and unpicked.....

and so it went on, until finally in 2017

I started quilting it!

And now it's finished, and I can move on........

Horror in The Workshop

We had a great day making lovely coin purses in the workshop yesterday

all different fabrics and designs and very pretty indeed.

However, a very bad thing happened in the morning.  I pulled out a drawer to select a fabric and sitting there, looking up at me,  was the biggest spider I've ever seen in my life.  I don't think it's an exaggeration to say it was the size of a dinner plate. I ran from the room in horror,  gibbering incoherently.  The five ladies at the workshop rushed into the room to see what was the matter.  Three of them slunk back without saying a word (they know who they are) but Sheila gamely (proving what a game old bird she is) approached the drawer and grabbed the spider.

As we all looked on with awe and respect she walked to the door with the trespasser and then flicked it out the door - but she missed! - and he went scurrying towards the back of the room.  Then Sandra came forward with a large glass jar, Sheila slipped a piece of card under it and the creature was despatched.

I need to spring clean.

Anyway, at last week's workshop Fay showed us how busy she's been and stunned us with another beautiful quilt.

Such a bright and sunny summer quilt.

Meanwhile, on the farm, the combine has been dusted down and harvest has started - and I went harvesting myself this afternoon at Q Gardens Pick Your Own in Milton; there was so much fruit, it was fantastic.  The Cherry Trees were so heavy with fruit you didn't need to use the ladders - just reach out and the cherries fell into your hand (some accidently fell into my mouth).

Glowing

There are few things better than taking the dogs out just as night falls and seeing a tiny speck of light shining in the grass

look a bit closer and you can see

a glow worm!  And once you've spotted one, you suddenly see them all!  Little glow worms (they are beetles really) with their lights shining brightly in their tails to catch the attention of the males which can be more than 50 yards away.  And I've just discovered that they feed on slugs so that has to be a bonus!

We really should get a night camera.  The other evening I received this email:

"Would you believe I am camping on your site busily sewing in the ends of a wall hanging for my son for his 50th. It is a Barn owl and a real one has just flown by. Magic"

I told her she absolutely had to bring the hanging up to the workshop the next day so we could all see it.

It really is stunning and Sandra told us she got the design from a book called Animal Quilts by Juliet van der heijden.

I hadn't realised that the last time I wrote this blog was when we returned from wonderful Wales.....well, quite a lot has been happening.

First we did the shearing with the help of friends

It only takes a couple of hours but it's very hard work

and they work up an appetite so afterwards they come up to the house for a full English breakfast!

Then Barney and Big Boy went off to have their hair cuts

so all the animals are ready for Summer.

We've been busy in the workshop - last week we did a dressmaking day and were amazed how much we accomplished.  We were all working from Merchant & Mills patterns

and I was very pleased with the Trapeze dress that I managed to make (except for the hem) by the end of the day!

and Ros also managed to practically finish her more complicated pattern

but we both agreed it would have been a far more painful process if Sandra hadn't been there!

Then this week Fay showed us her completed Antique Wedding Sampler

Such a beautiful quilt and I really didn't recognise it as the same quilt others in the group had made - the colours are so vibrant she's completely made it her own.

Sheila came down and showed us the Trip Around the World which she started at our workshop

and the Di Ford she has been working on (all hand-stitched)

 

Such beautiful colours!

Finally Denise had a word of warning for us.  When you have made a beautiful quilt top, celebrating your house in France, and decide to add one final border with perhaps a house on it

......don't ask your partner to draw up a picture of the house so you can sew it - it may present quite a challenge!

Wending West.....

Finally it arrived - the day for us to Wend our Way West to Wonderful Wales!

I love Wales so much - I am always so excited when we drive over that bridge and feel like we are going into a foreign country - and it's only an hour away!!

The sky was grey at that point, so I was pleased I'd packed lots of warm clothes.  We then drove on to our destination, a little cottage in Amroth, a village near Tenby.

The next day the sun shone - and continued to shine until our last day - so I lived in shorts and a top!  Because it was so sunny we didn't really visit any 'indoor' places - so no lovely mills or sightseeing drives - we just walked and relaxed.  Jonathan's idea of the perfect holiday is to lounge around reading books all morning, so I sorted out my Happy Holiday Step and sewed until he was ready to head out!

We walked around the Colby Woodland Gardens that were very close to our cottage and loved all the Rhododendrons

Absolutely stunning.  The flowers everywhere were beautiful actually - and we were very excited to discover wild orchids on another walk.

One day we decided to visit the Bosherston Lily Ponds and were bowled over by how beautiful they were - the lilies were just coming into bloom

After walking around the lakes (because they are much bigger than ponds) we decided to walk on around the coastal path.

Well, what a treat: bay after bay of beautiful white sand, sparkling blue water and lovely sunshine.

First this, with Church Island

then around the corner to this

                                                                   then this

and on to this

                        then this

 

and finally this:

 

The whole walk took about three hours and the views were absolutely stunning.

 

Another day we visited a beach closer to home and Jonathan built a stone pile (apparently this is what you do)

 

We visited Manorbier Castle, which was lovely

 

 

and on our last day (when the sky suddenly clouded over) we headed to Tenby, which is so picturesque with all the brightly coloured houses

 

and - just to put the icing on the cake - A SeaSalt has opened there so I could do a bit of shopping!!

What a lovely holiday .....can I really wait another whole year before I go back to Wonderful Wales?

The End is in Sight!

Phew - it's been a long time coming but the end of lambing and calving 2019 is well within sight now.

I'm still bottle feeding my four (very sweet) little lambs

and Jonathan's still bottle feeding his calf

which is very sweet indeed

The weather has been kind to us this year, so all has gone fairly well.

Unfortunately spring in the valley also means the time when the rooks descend.  They are a real nuisance; after feeding the chickens I have to stand there for ages or the rooks will take their feed, they steal the horses feed in the yard, and they can be very cruel to livestock.  If there is ever an ailing sheep or lamb in the field, they will swoop down and peck out their eyes which is a very pitiful sight.

Which leads me to a sad story about Lucy, our ten year old pet lamb.  She has two claims to fame: the first, when she was still a lamb but quite grown up and she used to stay out in the chicken field with her friend Mabel.  One day there was a rainstorm and I looked out and wondered why all the silly chicken weren't sheltering in their hut.  On closer inspection I found out why:

Then, last year, Lucy had twins and after he'd pulled out the second one Jonathan and George went out (dancing).  To my horror I realised she was having a third, and I couldn't get hold of anyone to help, so her second claim to fame is being the only sheep whose lamb I had to pull out.  Jeffrey came over after the deed was done (and after he'd finished his supper) to see if I was okay and said he'd better take a picture:

Anyway, this year Lucy had twins.  It was early in the morning and sadly the first one was born dead, but Jonathan pulled out the second one and because it was big and healthy and Lucy was licking it Jonathan left them to bond (which is the right thing to do).  I saw a couple of crows out there a bit later so Jonathan went out to check.  The crows had pecked the lamb's still wet umbilical cord and left the lamb disembowelled.  Of course it died.  Lucy bleated none stop for the next two days.  It was very sad but at least she's okay.

Any way, on to happier things.  We have had a lovely visit from our grandson and I was inspired to crochet him a Toft zebra

I will never, ever again crochet with black wool - it was an absolute nightmare! - but apparently Isaac likes him!

In the workshop Eileen had a length of Sari silk and she suggested to Jackie that she might like to make a doll's outfit out of it.  The next week Jackie turned up with this:

So lovely!

Finally, my sister decided to celebrate the ten years since she had her kidney transplant by collecting all the 10ps she came across over the year and donating them to the  Six Counties Kidney Patients Association, the charity that looks after patients covered by the Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

Victoria had a collection in her offices in Jersey and Isaac handed his great aunt the haul:

 

And I mentioned it in the workshop and was thrilled when so many ladies handed over their cash:

There was a lot more than this by the end and Belinda was able to donate a grand total of £205.00!!