Mia and summers end –maybe not if you knit this hat! –just love the fabulous job that the team at http://www.knitonthenet.com have done with my design –go have a look at all the other fabulous knits over there.Well back from France and the design book is full now for next falls designs so heres to all the swatching I need to do,will miss the sun and the lovely people I met.Seeing my sister for a few days without being ic of little folk was great and nice to reconnect  

Mia

after all the childrearing years.Our husbands had a good time with their own brand of humour –not lost on us really. We ate some lovely food and drank some very good wines, La Caminade http://www.lacaminade.com where I stayed was just perfect and Joelle and Christian both perfect hosts .

Mia— summer days at la Caminade

Summers end –or maybe not

Mia

Some British Weather

So I needed a break, a short holiday–so where better than my chapel in the hills.It rained on day 1 and day2 day 3 and 4 were the same and now on day 6 it is horrendous horizontal rain and meanwhile I hear on the radio how London basks in temperatures of 30 degrees—what acrazy country we live in .Hay summer and here is so beautiful views from my windows and the reason I am here.

view from my window

the first thing I saw this morning from my bed.Then whilst having breakfast and looking up the valley

the view as I had breakfast.

Then looking towards the start of my garden here and the lovely Rowan trees which are very full of berries

My Rowan Trees

And then  a nice picture of the grasses blowing in the wind if onky we had the sun as well oh well !!!!! dream on  

Grasses blow in the wind

Memories and Aching Bones

The only wedding pic I am allowed to show you until the bride and groom return from honeymoon.
We had a family party the night before the wedding as family had travelled many miles for this event and the joining of 2 families is importrant and the party was great the weather good the food good –thanks to my mil Cindy who I could not have done it without her,and she made the wedding cake -! so a couple of piccies from there showing my brother and sister(aren’t they good looking dudes)who had not met before the party for 16 years when we buried my Mother,the other a kitchen shot (most good parties start and stop in the kitchen ) of Cindy my mil,Bart my brother and Kath one of my longest ever friends hahah( she rescued me in a snow storm when I was pregnant with my son 29 years ago).

But back to reality now and what can I say! my back aches, my knees scream,and my hips feel like they are singing at me but apart from that I am fine, as fine as someone moving at my age can be.
There are so many casualties of this move, tons of yarn- I really felt it was a competition as I made each hank or ball of yarn justify its existence in my stash some did not make it and the load got lighter –the next day round 2 and it started all over again and more casualties until I had reduced the stash. It is amazing how focusing on justification gets rid of so much we cling on to.
I have cleared my studio and apart from feeling sick and crying when 2 of my vintage sewing machines left home I am doing ok I think.The plants in my garden I will mourn over and wonder how they will do –pathetic really but the cherry blossom each April is awesome and the first taste of my own plums is something else.The frogs in the pond and all the birds I will miss, wonder if my baby robins will follow me.
I know there are horrid things happening in the world but I never wanted to move again and here I am off again.How I envy folk who have lived places for 30 or 40 years .The longest I have managed to be in 1 place was the childrens childhood home and I did 17 years there and leaving it nearly killed me and have not settled since really.I have my beautiful Teasdale home where my bones will rest when I am older.
Back to this move and more looking forward ,the new village is lovely the new garden is looking good and I love my home and am ready to make some good memories.My new lounge looks out over the main part of the garden and again my dreaming table (I call it that because as I sit to write or create I dream the day away gazing outside )has a great view so cannot see the new book getting finished very quickly.
I am not hanging onto anything any more that is not functional and needed by me now right now or so beautiful I cannot face the day without it,
So once again new beginnings to face and changes to cope with, lots to do, lots to learn, and lots to look forward to.
I am so happy for my daughter and her new hubby and I adore my new sil but I am so going to miss her and she will be living even further away from me but as you will see when I post some more piccies no-one could be happier, she oozes happiness and I never saw her look more beautiful apart from the 1st day I ever looked into her face. I was honoured to design and make her dress,and tiarra and bag I enjoyed every hour I spent doing them and very proud when I saw her ready for her big day ‘Thank you Emma for giving me that opportunity I will never forget it ‘.
Moving date looms and there is still fabric to sort, knitting needles to sort,views to say goodbye to and more than likely hundreds of decisions still to make,but they will be made, I salute the future.To any of my blog readers who are also moving –good luck !!!check out http://feltingfibres.wordpress.com for news on latest felting classes to be held at Viking Loom York in November

interference

Hi everyone ,well I did finish the olympic knitting with about 1 day to spare but have been away felting .It has rained and raIned here in the uk and especially in the lakes so much you come away feeling you have rising damp.

 So to weaving –I have now woven my first length of cloth and started planning my experiments to get unnatural woven lengths  for fabric manipulation .going to be good fun .

Spinning another skill but I think better to be learnt in another place where craft is craft .Mother has fallen in love with the olympic top so today got more ‘manos del uruguay’ to knit another for me .

Roll on winter now so we will get to spring and maybe some summer in 2009 or will it be a hunt for the sunshine .

Summer

What a strange and very sad year this is turning out to be .We have had some nice sunny days and the gardens look good but once again the family is facing another funeral as this week Nigel’s father Derek has died .To say we feel lost is an understatement and life will be different without him around .Once again the family gather to draw strength from each other and say our goodbyes .

Last week we met Katie’s family in a most beautiful part of Suffolk, I was quite drawn to the area and to the history –more than drawn,as I  have allready done some research now .The church fascinates me and the flint work and the whole mysterious church yard.

My geometric bead designing has taken a lot of my time lately

I have purchased new software which has made the patttern writing a lot easier for the beading designs,  Lots of summer still to come.

Till we meet again keep clicking and enjoy the summer .To all my American readers and friends Happy Independence  Day Weekend .

The photos on this post were taken on Suommenlinna an island in Finland the lilac was incredible and also this bird which followed our boat nearly all the way there.This island is incredible and has an amazing light  would love to go back for longer