Scavenger Hunt

Hello there! I've hardly been in Blogland over the last two weeks and have been missing you all - how are you? It's been busy here and I'm very glad that it's a Bank Holiday weekend. Last week we had several seasons at once with snow, sleet, hailstones, rain and warm sunshine all in the course of a couple of days. That's April for you. This weekend I'm joining in with a photographic scavenger hunt hosted by Hawthorn at I live, I love, I craft, I am me... If you've never visited her blog, I recommend you take a look. Her photos are great and she always has something interesting to say. Over the last three weeks I've been taking photos which fit the categories she set, so without further ado, here they are:

1) Orange

I reached for a clementine after our meal and P passed me one of our old Ikea plastic plates. We bought these plates years ago when the children were little and we needed some unbreakable crockery. We've carried on using them, as we're fond their flowery shapes and bright, zingy colours. As soon as I put my clementine on it I knew that this was my 'orange' photo.

2) Feather

Our garden is regularly visited by pigeons and collared doves who like to peck the seeds I put out on the feeder. I know many people think of them as a nuisance, but I have great affection for them and love their rounded shapes and soft grey plumage. When I was gardening I found a feather and used it to mark where I'd planted some seeds. 

3) Something fresh

Two weeks ago I picked some rhubarb from our garden and within 20 minutes it was trimmed, washed, chopped and cooking gently under a crumble topping in the oven. Even I was impressed by my speed. As my friend said, 'That's quicker than Birds Eye!'.

(Here's the 'after' shot - we ate it with vanilla ice cream).

4) Horizon

We drove to Wells one evening recently and, as we reached the top of the Mendip hills, this view lay ahead. We take this road very often and as a result it's become very familiar, but I never tire of this wonderful view of the Somerset Levels and Glastonbury Tor. Magical.

5) Wet

I went outside after a shower of rain and stopped to look at raindrops which were caught in the new leaves of the aquilegias. The closer I looked, the more I could see. You can see our cherry tree reflected in this lovely, sparkly droplet.

6) Craft

I love going to craft workshops and learning something new. Still on my to-learn list are basket-weaving and stained glass-making, but one that I really enjoyed a few years ago was mosaic-making. I made a mat and this green and white daisy-bordered mirror which hangs in the kitchen (as it's a mirror I am making a rare appearance). Cutting up the tiles was easier than I expected and I enjoyed piecing together the design as I went. I must do some more one day. 

7) Growing

When we were at our local farm shop recently we stopped to visit the ducks and hens, and as we passed the pond we noticed the frogspawn. It's not the best photo, but you can see the hundreds (thousands?) of tiny eggs and a tadpole swimming by. In every egg was a miniscule wriggling black dot, each one a froglet in the making. 

8) Memories

This little milk bottle brings back memories of my infant school days. Back in the 1970s every child was entitled to school milk, and we would be given ours at morning break. If I was milk monitor I would count out the little bottles, which held a 1/3 pint, and line them up on top of the big old stove that stood in the corner of our classroom to warm. Then I would pop a stripy red and white plastic straw into the top of each silver foil topped bottle, ready for drinking. I actually didn't like warm milk, but did enjoy the ritual of having my own tiny milk bottle.

9) Sticks

I love a den. We found this one in the depths of Goblin Combe. We hadn't seen anyone for the whole time we'd been in the beautiful and eerie gorge, but here was reassuring evidence of busy human activity. Rather cosy isn't it?

10) Sky

This is my choice of category. At this time of year the skies are so dramatic, a fabulous ever-changing artwork going on above our heads as we go about our everyday business. I am a bit of a cloud freak and can't take my eyes off the silvery-lined, billowing cumulus clouds which tower high into the atmosphere. The beautiful dark grey parts of them bring rain and hailstones, and before you know it the sun is out again.

I really enjoyed doing this scavenger hunt and hope to visit you all in Blogland a bit more this week. Hope you've all had a good weekend. See you soon x

This Week

Hello there, and thank you for all your lovely comments on my last post which was all about poetry. I must confess that when I wrote it I was a bit worried that it might be met with a rather quiet response. However, I should have known better, and I was delighted to discover that you enjoy poetry too - yay! It was fascinating to hear about your favourite poems and to hear about why they're special to you. 

This week has been pretty chilly with a good deal of stormy weather. Last weekend I managed to do a bit of gardening: tidying up dead perennials, a bit of weeding and some pruning. It felt good to be outside digging the soil and being active, and I spent an hour or so in my shed afterwards.

Some muscari which I bought from a supermarket a week ago are doing well and will bloom soon, and brighten up the shed with their wonderful blue-ness. I can't wait.

Yesterday they were in bud next to their scented cousins, the hyacinths. Such a lovely spicy, springtime smell.

At Christmas I bought another Mark Hearld concertina card decorated with a scene of winter birds. It's in my shed too, reminding me of the birds outside in the garden.

This weekend I plan to take part in the RSPB's Big Garden Birdwatch, spending an hour watching the birds in my garden, and taking part in the survey. I already sent off for a pack and have refilled the feeders ready for our feathered visitors.

As you can see, Clover took an active interest, hanging about while I put out the seeds. Not sure the birds appreciated this.

I can see this might not work. Cats are not ideal birdwatching companions.

Whilst I was out in the garden I had a look round to see what was blooming, and discovered that there is a surprising amount of colour out at the moment. Outside our back door is this potted rosemary.

Looking at its flowers closely you can see how very blue and delicately marked they are.

There are pretty frilly primroses,

sweet violas,

hardy little snowdrops,

spotty-leaved pulmonarias,

richly-coloured and scented wallflowers,

bell-shaped heather

and shyly nodding hellebores,

delicately freckled and patterned.

And indoors on the window-sill a bright vase of sugary pink tulips glow in the sunshine.

More indoor flowers were to be enjoyed at my friend Jane's house which is where I spent a very pleasant afternoon last weekend. We have been friends a long time and share a love of making things, gardening and baking. When we can we take turns to go to each others' houses for a creative afternoon. Jane had prepared a very cosy corner with pretty miniature daffodils and a scented candle. Bliss. We had an inspiring time together sketching, sewing, crocheting and knitting.

It was lovely to chat and bounce ideas for projects around, as well as seeing what each other are making. 

Jane is talented and sells her brooches and artwork on Etsy - you can visit her shop here. It was fun to be surrounded by someone else's creations for a change, and very relaxing.

We drank tea, ate slices of stollen, and I started to crochet a basket from some chunky handspun wool which I bought online a few years ago. 

I finished it this week. Can you see the little star beads which have been spun into the yarn on the inside of the basket? I bought this gorgeous yarn here, as well as the yarn which I used to make my autumn garland and crocheted pot in this post.

It makes a good container to keep my wool in.

Or my knitting. I do like baskets, don't you?

This week I discovered overnight oats, as recommended by Jane. I had never heard of them, but after a bit of online research I discovered that they are quite a big thing. You may well know about them already. Not sure how I missed them, but I think they are the answer to my breakfast dilemma: I know porridge is delicious, healthy and excellent for keeping weight off, but I never seem to have enough time to make it before work. Overnight oats, however, make themselves. You simply put rolled oats in a container with milk, yoghurt, or a dairy alternative like soya, almond or coconut milk, and leave it in the fridge until morning. You can also add fresh fruit, like berries or banana, dried fruit, nuts, seeds, and a sweetener like honey or peanut butter. You can even add cocoa powder the night before. That's all a bit rich for me first thing in the morning, so I kept mine quite plain with milk, walnuts, seeds and a little honey. Delicious. Thanks, Jane.

I shall leave you with two glorious sunrises this week. The colours are so gorgeous, I don't mind that they signal unsettled weather for the day ahead. As far as I'm concerned they're a great way to start the day.

See you soon x

Dropping By

Hello there! Just dropping by to share some of the things that I've enjoyed over the last few days in what has turned out to be a rather busy week here. I did some sewing over the weekend - I'll post about that soon - but seem to be taking a little break from yarny things in the evenings. It's been cold and wet here with several hailstorms, sleet and snow flurries, so we've done a lot of cosying up indoors, as well as heading for bed early with plenty of blankets and hot drinks.

Outside in the garden there are few flowers to be seen, but this winter-flowering heather is putting on a good show. Its tiny pinky-purple bells are very hardy in the cold, and make a real splash of colour in the border.



In a pot outside the door is an ornamental cabbage. Usually I choose purple ones, but this year I decided on white. Its paleness emphasises and defines its frilly edges, making it look as if it's made from icing.



In contrast the edible cabbage I bought from the farm shop was a delightful mix of green and purple, and looked almost too pretty to eat. As soon as it was cooked, however, it lost its purple hue and transformed into a more run-of-the-mill green cabbage.

There have been some gorgeous skies this week. This was a glorious gold and pink sunrise ...

... and this was a heavenly lilac and pink sunset. The colours are exquisite, and watching them lighten, deepen and develop before my eyes is enthralling and quite meditative.

Indoors I've been enjoying some pale yellow daffodils along with one of my favourite magazines. I usually read my magazines in bed just before I go to sleep, as I find them relaxing and soothing. Sometimes, though, I'll read abut something that inspires me with an idea to make something, and it starts to buzz around my head just as I'm nodding off.

 On the windowsill is a pot of hyacinths which a friend potted up for me last autumn. I kept them in a dark shed and brought them out just before Christmas as they began to send shoots above the soil. The blooms are opening now and I can see that they will be my very favourite shade of mauve, somewhere between pink and purple. You can see the blue bases to the florets.

Equally exciting is my amaryllis which is beginning to open. It's tantalisingly revealing a glimpse of red petal between its green leaves, and looks like it will be a beauty.

The 'Bridal Crown' narcissi are open now, and smell wonderful, fresh and full of the promise of spring. I had to photograph them against the blue wall to bring out their soft, creamy shades.

Finally, I so enjoy having Clover around the house curled up on beds, sofas, her baskets and occasionally the floor under radiators. She sleeps soundly for a good portion of the day and snores quite loudly for such a small and delicate cat. She has very little interest in going outside at the moment, and her presence makes the house feel very homely indeed.

Hope you're somewhere warm and dry today too x