A bit of this and a bit of that....

Reading, knitting, sewing, outings and life in general...

We have moved into Autumn and already there is an abundance of berries and other signs of the changing year.

Earlier this month we went to South Creake in Norfolk where we rented a small cottage and enjoyed visiting the surrounding area.

At Houghton Hall there was an exhibition of works by Anish Kapoor who is one of my favourite artists. Isn't this mirrored piece stunning:

The beaches along that part of the Norfolk coast are spectacular and we were lucky enough to enjoy really good weather whilst we were there.

I took my Purl Soho Half and Half Wrap which I am knitting for the Cady Jax knit along.

Near where we were staying was Bloodgate Hill, an iron age fort. There were only the sheep there that evening but we enjoyed the huge East Anglian skies on our walk.

We took the opportunity to visit St Withburga's Holy Well in Dereham which was very interesting to see. It made me think of my favourite cathedral, Ely, in quite a different light as the Abbott and monks stole her remains to keep as a holy relic for themselves and this healing waters well sprang up in Dereham as a result.

Another great visit was to Burn Valley Vineyard which we visited on a very wet and wild day. I was pleasantly surprised at how good the wines we tasted were and we took some bottles home with us including a sparkling wine we opened on a visit to my daughter in Yorkshire later in the month.

I signed up for a Selbu Mitten Course run by Patricia of Knitographyfarm and it has been great fun learning and recording how to knit these traditional mittens in my knitting bag notebook.

I write down what I am listening to, what I am feeling, the weather and all sorts of things that influence how I might knit that day. It is interesting to note because your tension when knitting can vary wildly. It helps if you notice the many things that might be contributing to your stress levels. It is good then to try to adjust the balance in your life in order to keep yourself at a healthy level of tension both in your knitting and yourself.

During September I bought a lot of books and am enjoying reading along with book clubs, especially Miranda's Notebook whose read for this month was R C Sherriff's The Fortnight in September. Set in the thirties it tells of a family who travel to the seaside for their annual holiday but nothing is as static as it seems as underneath each character's stream of consciousness a constant change is uncovered.

I am looking forward to reading the other two books at some point but I have a huge pile of to be read books right now including Miranda's October choice for her Tea & Tattle book club and The Botanical Yarn's book club which I signed up for for three months and have read two so far.

Miranda made a YouTube video telling us of new releases for October and one mentioned was Miss Mole by E H Young and I knew it was one I own and have read so I looked it out and, yes, I added it to that ever growing to be read pile!

Betty by Tiffany McDaniel was the second of The Botanical Yarn's book club choices for September and I found reading this tale of growing up in a disfunctional multi cultured family in America both difficult and absorbing.

The first book was Queenie by Candice Carty-Williams with it's mini yarn skeins based on the book cover and my chosen pattern the Queenie Cowl by Amanda who used to run the Natural Dye Studio.

Yarn to interpret a book cover - what do you think?

On a visit to my daughter in Yorkshire I was delighted by the cows who graze on the common have no barriers to stop them walking along the road. Most drivers are able to relax and enjoy the moment but some sadly are not and by harassing the cattle they often find themselves with some damage to their vehicles!! A lesson in life, I think, to understand that we are not supreme beings and need to respect the place given to us in this world.

I enjoyed this really tasty Lychee Martini whilst we were celebrating my daughter's birthday when we visited.

Later in September I was lucky enough to visit Farnham (picture above) where my son has just moved. The Thread Festival was being held at the Maltings and I went along at the end of the afternoon on a late entry ticket to find I had the place almost to myself. Isn't that one of those dreams people have of being let loose in a shop when everyone has gone and that was exactly how it felt. I had the complete attention of each stall holder and was delighted to be able to chat and look at the wonderful stitching goods on display.

Some of the lovely bits and pieces I picked up at Thread Festival.

Vyckky of West Green Loft Yarns also started stocking yarn and embroidery kits in her online shop and I picked up this beautiful set of sock yarn and an embroidered wreath which I am looking forward to getting to at some point. (picture below)

Throughout the Covid-19 pandemic I have tried to continue to support local bookshops using online shops such as Hive but recently we went to Maldon where I was keen to pop into a new little bookshop, Maldon Books, and I picked up two really lovely books: A Poem for Every Autumn Day and D by Michel Faber. They are proving to be thoroughly enjoyable picks which I would really recommend. The poems are divided for each day into one to read in the morning to inspire your day and one for the evening for reflection. D is a children's fantasy book with so many references to children's classics which are fun to identify as you read, although Michel Faber is quite evasive about whether he sees them as influences or not, and the story is absorbing and great fun too.

Keeping me super busy this month too has been test knitting for the lovely Jooles of Sew Sweet Violet. Above is the Hybernation Sock which was a collaboration with Vykky of West Green loft linked further up in this post. And below is the Lola Sock which was another collaboration with Ali of Little Drops of Wonderful who hosts the Strictly Sock Along and was also a fund raiser for Bill's Special Bus who is Gayna of Tales from Cuckoo Land's son and they are raising money for his school bus where he is a pupil.

I am still very busy with my cross stitching too and was so pleased to make a start on this free gift from Nicola of Hands Across the Sea Samplers for those taking part in the Exclusive Ann Morison Stitch Along being hosted by Traditional Stitches, a needlework store based in Canada celebrating their twentieth anniversary. I have signed up for the sal which has been put back to December because of the problems the pandemic has caused with supplies but that is fine by me as I was more than happy to have this free stitch to be getting on with.

I am going to finish this September Edit with a few images from a Sunday morning walk in Colchester with all it's historical architecture and lovely riverside walk. We ended our morning with a cup of mocha in Bill's restaurant and were very glad of an outing during these difficult days but, as you will see from my favourite stitches right at the bottom of this post, they shall pass and we will have hope.