Wreath making🎄

During the first weekend of December we gathered around newspaper covered tables and we crafted many wreaths.  For ourselves, for friends, for colleagues and for family. 

Food was shared and there was so much - the table groaned beneath plates and despite our best efforts, the left overs were shared out and sent home to be eaten later.

By the end of a wonderful day of cutting, snipping, chatting, eating, tying and tweaking, between the ten of us we had made 15 wreaths.  Our home smelt gloriously of wood and pine - quite heady and spicy.

Then, later, once our guests had gone, the house quiet, left over foliage and fripperies put away we cradled mugs of tea and toasted our toes in front of the fire.

It had been a good day, a very good day, made the more special as we'd not been able to celebrate wreath making for the previous two years and it was wonderful being able share food and friendship once again ❤️❄️🎄

In at the deep end

 Go on, I said, let me fix it for you ... I really would love to. You'll be doing me a favour - I need my hands to be busy and I love doing that sort of thing....

It took a couple of weeks of gentle (ok persistent but gentle) persuasion to be able to prise this jersey (well you lot would call it a cardi but a jersey is a jumper is a cardi to me!) and bring it home. It is a well loved lamb's wool super soft favourite of a dear friend of mine and I'd seen that she'd already made a couple of repairs and that another hole had begun to appear.

I brought it home and started to un-pick the stitches so that I could see what I was working with and soon found that there were many mini repairs all over the body of the jersey. It was like doing textile forensics with the differing coloured thread revealing many layers of repairs to this beloved item of clothing.

Every time I turned the garment over, I found another mend or another hole. So, I decided to start with the smallest wounds and work my way up the the major one on the left under arm.

I kept going, building up my courage and practising different techniques - good old fashioned darning, Swiss darning, boro-esque stitching, patchwork, applique, freeform, pseudo-Dorset buttons and 'wing-it'.

Each evening, after we'd eaten, I'd switch on my anglepoise lamp and stitch another hole closed, avoiding looking at the large one on the arm until apart from a worn thin area that I was going to weave over, I had no choice but to tackle the arm. In the end I took the scissors to it and just cut away all the threads and wool then picked up each tiny stitch and sewed them to prevent any more unravelling.

It was then a matter of finding a soft but strong fabric to patch from the inside and applique stars and tiny stitches to strengthen the knitting. Strangely enough, once I'd got over my reluctance to repair this particular gaping hole - it turned out to be my favourite mend.

This afternoon, after three weeks, I completed the final mend - the woven section on the left front, took the photographs and folded up the jersey. Both relieved and bereft it was now completed. It can return home tomorrow. I shall miss it's company!

This was an act of rebellion against the tide of the throw-away-society as well as an act of kindness to a friend who does so much - thank you x

Sunday reflecting

The house has been full of voices the last couple of days with the boys and their girls joining us for our annual wreath making day - it was non existent in 2020 and this year it had been downsized to just a bare minimum of family and special friends; to be able to have a small part of our yearly tradition felt rather special.

With quite a few folk not joining us, I was busy making a number of wreaths - which I have to admit was rather hard to rustle up the enthusiasm I usually have - it seems I have made so many this year that the novelty has well and truly run its course... I also wanted this to be a lovely day because last year was .... well - last year didn't really happen, did it?

However after several mugs of tea, mince pies, gingerbread cake, gingerbread, lots of catching up and a constant background serenading of festive songs - I got there in the end!

Another very special part of this day is the arrival of a gingerbread chrimbly tree - where squeaks of delight and oohs and aahs of appreciation could be heard as it landed in the centre of the table with a flourish!

It is this plate of tasty sculpture that really makes me feel like the festive season has begun. And what makes it even more special is, it is part of my boys festive build up and and once they'd grown up and brought home their girlfriends - they delighted in sharing this tradition with them too. It also amazes me how quickly this plate of biscuits are scoffed - with the larger pieces being torn into large chunks and carried off triumphantly!

Nearly all of us had more that one wreath to make and if I have my calculations correct - I think, by the end of the day there were  15 or 16 made - so we were rather busy!

The pile of greenery both on the table and beneath it certainly looked impressive however I had to ask Himself to brave the dreadful weather outside and gather more as we soon depleted it.

The house smelt gorgeous - citrusy conifer, spicy ginger, mulled punch, mince pies, pizza, baked potatoes,  cinnamon sticks, crusty bread, quiche and nut roast.

In the evening, after all had gone, we sat quietly recovering around the fire, Youngest and his Girl quietly finishing off their wreaths, Eldest and his Girl reading on the settee and the weather howling around the house in a foul temper - I decided that despite this year's wreath day's build up being quite hard work - it was worth it - really worth it x 

You are amazing x

Hello dear ones - thank you so much for your thoughtful comments and I was touched that some of you shared your word for 2021 with me - thank you.

Those words have such power and positivity.  Here is to all of us being able to step up and blossom this year, with support and kindness I am sure we can negotiate our way through 2021 and survive.

`•.,¸,• •,¸,.•´`•.,¸,• •,¸,.•´`•.,¸,• •,¸,.•´

On the fun and success of December's one word a week photo scavenger hunt, I thought I would trial it a bit longer and see how it goes - for those of you who are newbies, this is what we do ...

Using the word as inspiration, find or take a photo that fits, then waffle a bit of a story with it and share with us on the show-and-tell day. You can find the list for January is at the top right corner of my blog.

Your photo (or photos if you have more that one that goes with your story) can either be freshly snapped that week or one from your archives - we don't mind, it is all about sharing the stories and pictures. I will add a link up and all you have to do is follow the very easy steps and share your post. Then we can come and find you and comment on your photos and stories xxx

`•.,¸,• •,¸,.•´`•.,¸,• •,¸,.•´`•.,¸,• •,¸,.•´

And, to make you smile - here have this happy little face and gorgeous smile - hope it makes your day, like she does mine every day :)

38 of 52 *

 Another week in 2020 has slipped by, a gentle mix of busy and quiet, sorrow and joy, sunshine and rain.

Monday while I worked up in the moorland garden I was surrounded by the sounds of a warm and gentle autumnal breeze rustling through the hedge leaves with the occasional distant lowing of a dairy shorthorn checking on her calf. The herd were high up on the hill and had left all their young asleep in the sun against the garden wall. Over the course of ten minutes or so, the calves awoke, stood up, stretched and bawled back at their mothers. I unintentionally startled them and as one they cantered off in an untidy wobbly blob up to the main herd. Each calf finding their dam, latching on and suckling.

Moss was with me, watching my every move with intense brown eyes. She is good company.

Tuesday was volunteering-at-the-community-shop day and I was fully aware that we would be understaffed - we are usually a group of three but today we were only the two. My volunteering buddy and I worked out a strategy and hoped it worked... and it did - we had a lovely day and enjoyed the 'busy-ness' of it. The afternoon was filled with mask making and slow-sow stitching whilst listening to the rain on the window and drinking coffee.

Wednesday brought hot tears - I worked in a lovely mature garden higher up the village. It is tucked behind an beautiful old farm house and is a multi-layered space completely enclosed by mature hedges and trees. I already knew that the cat ,who usually 'supervises' me as I work in 'her' garden, had died unexpectedly the night before so was expecting a saddened owner, and she was. We shed a tear with a mutual friend, who had been on hand helping with vets and heartbreak the night before, arrived to bury the cat. A special place was selected in the garden - one the cat liked to rest in during the warmth of a summer's day - and a hole duly dug. We were all affected by the loss of one rather small and fat furry cat. The garden seemed thinner that day.

Thursday was rather more joyous. I was part of a small (and correctly numbered and socially distanced) group who walked from a picturesque village over rolling fields, lead by a community outreach officer (a walk leader/ranger in old terms.... why do they change titles??). 

We ended up at a newly acquired space the outreach group had obtained complete with wonderfully old and beautifully maintained barns and shippon and a huge blank space with the remains of a walled garden and raised beds. The long term plan is to have the gardens up and running giving the outreach group a safe space to share with groups of folk who need help with mental and physical health, gently guiding and helping to reintegrate with people, learn new skills and find a place where they can feel safe. There is a long way to go, the site is raw and has been neglected for a long time but with a bit of hard work (ok - a lot) and the right sort of leadership and guidance - I think it could be an amazing place in the future.

While we were there, a dear friend of mine (he introduced me to this group and invited me on their walks) reached a phenomianal milestone.... at the grand old age of 81 years young and post major cancer surgery and a stroke .... had reached his goal of #walk1000miles in 2020 and had beaten me by 150 miles (I am still plodding on ha!) So, I presented him with a specially designed medal and the rest of the group cheered and took photos. He was delighted and kept his medal on for the rest of the day :)

The gardens must have been some one's pride and joy once as the soil is good, the construction strong and the layout well designed and the thick layer of moss and nettle roots has prevented the soil from drying out while the shear quantity of earthworms was fantastic.  

We worked in the garden for most of the day and managed clear one bed completely and made serious inroads in another two. It was most gratifying to plant up the bed with native wildflower plug-plants before we left - a job well done. This space, if taken forward with the enthusiasm that was shared yesterday - will be a lovely one to be in.

Moss was invited too - of course, she makes so many friends as she goes along and as they day warmed up she found her own way to cool off.  Then, at the end of the day, we walked back through the fields and sat on the village green with locally made ice cream cones and just appreciated the day, the weather, friendship and silly wet dogs......

Now, today being Friday - is the 'start' of the weekend. Himself will be home by lunch and the sun is shining with a blue sky and softly grey pink clouds scudding through. It is definitely feeling and tasting like autumn and I am most definitely trying to see the beauty of it. 

Last days of summer .... holding on .... letting go .... cool days and chilly evenings.

Have a lovely weekend where ever you are - hope you find precious moments in your day despite what's going on around us.  xxx

*and the 38 of 52? it is the number of this week..... the 38th week of 2020. Not so many left - wonder how things will turn?

Little Owl #30dayswild 10

Walked yesterday with Moss (obviously) and a dear friend. We used to meet once a week before everything changed and we'd walk and talk and set the world to rights. Then for about three months, like everyone and everything, we had to stop.

Yesterday, we met, kept at a socially acceptable anti-social distance from each other and we walked over seven miles up hills, over moors and through woodlands. It was wonderful - we picked up where we left off - still setting the world to rights but this time we added post CV19 and present #BLM to our conversations.

Moss was just happy to be out.

Along the way we were stopped in our tracks by a Little Owl -  it watched us as we watched back - then quite nonchalantly it turned it's head and flew off searching for lunch. We stood there in total silence, both pleased and delighted to have seen this little bird. 

Birds seen:

Curlew, Lapwing, Oystercatcher, Skylark,  Magpie, Rook, Crow, Wood Pigeon, Chaffinch, Gold Finch, Gulls, Pied Wagtails, Meadow Pipit. I am sure we saw more but did not actively register what they were, however I am happy to say, we did hear a Cuckoo :)

#staywild #walk1000miles #30dayswild

Before I forget - my dear walking companion turns 83 this year .....

My Five on Friday 13.02

A quiet list of gratitude, acknowledging that it is the little things that make a day all that better.

• Confirming my decision to live a simpler life - relinquishing things that drove me then wrung me out. That perfect realisation that yes, it was a correct choice and I am grateful for it.
• The NHS - at a time when it seems the world has gone mad, these people, however fallible and normal, step up and not away when someone ill needs them. 
• Lunch with friends - catching up with someone I'd not chatted with since October.
• That simple pleasure of talking, walking and drawing.
• Being on the hills with that dilly dog and Himself.

Have a lovely weekend xxxxxxx

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Sunshine, sketching and strolling

Last week, an artist friend and I spent a lovely several hours with a walking group as part of the Pendle Hill Project, a funded action project to bring people into contact with the landscape, re-training ancient skills, walking old boundaries, introducing the environment to newbies and reminding folk how to re-learn to love 'local'.

My friend invited me to go along with him as he had been a regular (only recently returning after a couple of major illnesses) as he knows I love history and walking. I took my camera (and sketch book of course!)

And joy of joys - the sun came too :) it was one of the nicest sunniest days we have had in aaaaaaages!

We walked with a couple of community rangers and a number of folk from a broad spectrum of life. The group soon spread out into smaller clusters, nattering and chatting as we followed an ancient boundary system with modern touches.

The village itself is full of wonderfully old buildings and has been used as a location for a television series. The houses are quite inspiring to sketch.

Both my arty friend and I spent a time drawing and taking photos for inspiration a bit later.

Although early in the season we were delighted to hear lapwings and curlews and their hauntingly evocative moorland cries. A sound that gives me such pleasure as it means that summer is on it's way.

Along the way we spotted some rather gloriously chubby toads - a bright yellow and deliciously russet brown one, which I gave a helping hand away from the road.

I could not resist a 'selfie'with my little buddy and we had a chuckle taking this photo.

Nearly five miles later, tired but rather happy, we shared cheese and pickle sandwiches and coffee - a rather good day out!  Did I mention the sun shone?? Well it did!