a day in november

Yesterday it poured.
Today made up for it.

pinecones

Does anyone else love pinecones?

I can't resist picking them up when I'm out walking in the woods, stuffing my pockets to overflowing. I love their woody fragrance, so evocative of autumn, and evenings gathered around a fire. And I love how each pinecone is a little work of art in its own right, so intricate and beautiful.


Isn't nature a wonderful thing? And then there's these amazing pinecones.


This one is nestled on my hot-off-the-needles fingerless mitts* - pattern available here, using this wool. They're a lovely snug fit, and the rainbow colours brighten up a grey day.

*actually, only mitt two is hot-off-the-needles. Seems I suffer from second mitt syndrome as well as second sock syndrome.

habit

It's been a while....

Seems I've got out of the blogging habit. And you know what it's like with habits - once they slip, it seems like a monumental effort to get back on track. Even if it's something you enjoy doing. So, hello and goodbye October, you've flown by while I've been extraordinarily busy in real time. And I'm finding I've not quite adjusted to the shorter days yet, much as I look forward to this time of year. My time feels pressured, yet we get the same amount day in, day out, year in, year out. You'd think I'd be used to it by now. Is it just me, or does time really seem to fly as the years go by?

I've been enjoying the autumn light and long golden shadows cast on sunny afternoons. Enjoying shadows and silhouettes that look like papercuts.


I've found my knitting mojo again and have finally completed that second sock. Yes, I know it's taken months, but Pipany finished hers, so that upped the ante. And now I can't wait to knit some more.

I've been thinking that it's time to work on a christmas card design. Maybe another papercut, like last year.

And I have itchy fingers...I can feel a session with my scalpel and cutting mat coming on. Christmas gift tags anyone? It would be a start.

Ps. Thank you so much for Walter's birthday wishes. That boy is spoiled rotten.

He's also reminded me lately of his winter habit - when I get up in the morning and throw back the duvet, he waits until I've left the room, then leaps onto my bed, steals my hot waterbottle (it has an enticing furry cover) and sneaks downstairs with it. He likes to use it as a pillow. Makes a great perch to rest your chin on. Perhaps he's hankering for a water bed?

turning three

Walter is three today. And birthdays must be celebrated, musn't they? We drove back to Cornwall yesterday, and as today was a work-at-home day we sneaked out for a long walk this afternoon, accompanied by the most perfect autumn weather.




A dip and some stick collecting was followed by some digging for treasure, and a roll in the sand, while I collected pebbles.


I think Walter knows just how much he's loved. He makes my heart sing.

Happy Birthday, sweet boy.

skyscapes

first thing

last thing

My days have started and ended with some spectacular skies lately. So much space and such beautiful autumnal light. Autumn. My favourite season - for so many reasons, more than I have time to list here. Time is a very precious commodity for me at the moment. I can't seem to find enough hours in the day to visit this little space. But I will be back soon. First, a visit 'up country' to see my family. And then hopefully, the pace will slow down a little as the nights draw in. I'm looking forward to it.

over the brow

Who can resist being lured over the brow of the hill?


It's worth it when this is the view.


May this perfect early autumn weather continue....

Happy weekend, friends.

birthday bunting

A banner for a birthday, but a bit different from last year's.


I found a bag of old handkerchiefs in the charity shop - 50p the lot, so I brought them home to sort, soak, wash and press and then chopped some corners off to make an all-white garland. I love white - it's so simple and fresh-looking. The interest is in the lacy bits and the embroidery. And I've enough corners left to make a length for myself, too.

Happy happy birthday for tomorrow, Gill!

for the walter fan club

This is the "I've just been bathed, aren't I handsome" pose.


And yes, he's wearing his fleece jumper - it drys him out super-quick and saves the house getting soaked. This is his second one. He ate the first (just like those gloves).

I never ever thought I'd be the sort of person who'd put a jumper on their dog.......

walking the land :: two

A little while ago, I came across some photographs by artist and photographer Ian Brown. They struck a chord with me both for their beauty and their subject matter. The photographs were in an exhibition of Brown's called Walking the Land at this gallery in the autumn of 2007. Sadly, I never saw the actual exhibition.

Loe Bar, Cornwall

White Agapanthus Field, Cornwall 2006

I was so moved by the images I bought the exhibition catalogue so I could pour over them at home (I think it was about £5). The images are multi-layered and have a haunting, luminous quality to them. And several of them are of nearby places familiar to me.

Set Aside (Hogweed), Cornwall 2006

Godolphin Wood, Cornwall 2007

You can view a slide show here. It's worth it just to see bigger images. I'm sorely tempted to frame some of these. Aren't they beautiful?

walking the land :: one

I walk every day - come rain or shine, blue skies or grey, hot or cold or somewhere in between. You have to do that when you have a dog, but for me it's (mostly) not a hardship. Walking the land gives me an intimate picture of nature and the changing seasons. I love that connection. I thrive on it. Walking is a daily ritual that connects me deeply with my surroundings. Admittedly I'm sometimes distracted by ball-throwing duties, but even Walter takes notice of the sea, and won't venture in very far when the waves are crashing.


Walking gives me a chance to pause and gather my thoughts, to have a conversation with myself. To think about what I'm doing and to mull over creative ideas. And to be outside is to be inspired - by beach and cliffs, by water, by the woods, the moor, and sometimes by a walk around town and along the prom. Often I find my doodles and scribbles are heavily influenced by nature.


A few days ago I walked up on the moor to a familiar spot, only this time using a route I'd not walked before. It's amazing the difference a change of perspective makes - seeing with a fresh pair of eyes. The moor was a blaze of purple heathers and coconut-scented yellow gorse. Of grasses blowing in the wind, with the sea glimpsed in the background.


On the horizon is the neolithic chambered tomb, Chun Quoit, one of the many ancient sites scattered around this landscape.



I felt like the land was mine. Birdsong, wind, rustling grasses, the sound of the sea in the background. No man made noise.

Just me, Walter and nature, doing her thing.

something made

I was just sorting through a pile of fabric swatches and came across a little bundle from Ian Mankin (who send out free generous-sized swatches). It's all very well looking at fabric online, but it's not the same as running your fingers over the woven threads, trying it out in situ, and getting a feel for the real colours. I love Mankin's fabrics - lovely muted colours, lots of utility fabrics with a contemporary twist, and plenty of linen.

I had a large swatch of grain stripe indigo, and decided to turn it into a lavender bag to hang from my front door (which is actually no longer the front door, but still referred to as such). The weave is quite coarse so I lined the fabric with muslin to prevent any lavender flowers poking through.


In the warmer months this door is always open - it leads into my little conservatory, and then into the garden.


The original letterbox is still in the door - now tinged with rust and long redundant, it's far too small for modern mail. I hadn't really paid it much attention before, but when I got my camera out to take these photographs, and looked through the lens, I finally really noticed it, and appreciated the simple bold graphics. And anything with a hint of rust does it for me. I'm easily charmed.

a big red dahlia

No words. Just a red dahlia (Lover Boy). And a vase (a favourite of mine).



I love the way the glass and the light play together.

meetings at the edge

just sitting
watching
breathing lungfuls of clean salty air
at the edge - where my land ends and the atlantic stretches out in front of me








warmed by the evening sun
dreaming
happy
peaceful
home

flowers for free

Hydrangea flowers are bursting into colour in the hedgerows.

:: beautiful :: blooming :: blue :: blossom ::

And I know someone else who loves this colour.

finding peace

A white feather awaited me on the bathroom floor at 6am this morning.


A subtle reminder to have a peaceful day? It worked for me, despite being very busy.