Feral Mittens

 Each year I try and make as many Christmas presents as I can and each year, there's a theme.  Well, there's a theme until I run out of time and end up getting all sorts of random presents for people!   In 2019, I started making the presents in July, and I planned to make fair isle mittens for everyone.  

I think I probably managed about six or seven pairs that particular year and I always resolve to do better the next year, but it never happens!

Cousins at Southwold

 

Back in July 2019, our cousins Tim and Sara were on a road trip between Sussex, where they live, and Northumberland, and all points inbetween!

We were lucky enough that they stopped in Norfolk for a couple of days and we got to spend the day with them at Southwold before they were heading off later that day to Ipswich.

A lovely, unexpected, day out for all of us, which culminated in fish and chips on the pier - always a bonus!

East Preston

 

Back in July 2019, I popped down to Sussex for the day to check out Sam and Simon's new house, have a paddle and a cream tea!

Mission accomplished!

A Week in the West Country

 Back in June 2019, Finn and I headed down to the caravan for a week's holiday - we didn't have anything planned and I'm always careful to avoid the west country in the height of summer when it's too busy, and also when it's so hot - I couldn't leave Finn alone in the caravan, even to go over to the shower block.  He was way too anxious so I had to either take him with me, or pop him in the car for a short while.  And of course, in the heat of the summer, I couldn't leave him in the car for any length of time.

Of course, we did our local walk pretty much every day, come rain or shine.

We popped to Minehead one day.   The sculpture depicts the end of the South West Coast Path - a 630 mile national trail from Poole to Minehead.  I had walked this in its entirety over a number of years, in the days before Finn owned me.   So it was lovely to do a tiny bit of the walk with him, and to photograph him curled up in the map sculpture.

We popped over the border to Chepstow Castle.

And of course we visited the odd beer garden too.

We even got to visit Andy's work and I got to take home a set of gardening dungarees! 

Feral Jumper

While visiting the John Arbon mill in South Molton with Amanda, I must confess to having bought a few skeins of yarn.  Quelle surprise!   I had bought some colours previously and had found a Marie Wallin pattern that I wanted to make - Mousa from her Shetland book - and had a vague idea of the colours I needed to buy to supplement what I already had, except for the main colour.   For some very odd reason, I chose pink.  I never wear pink!   However, it seems perfect for the other colours and I do love this jumper for its motifs, its colours but also the fact I can sling it on over a long sleeve teeshirt and be warm and cosy.   It's so warm  - obviously because of the double thickness of the yarn where I've taken the floats across the back - that I don't actually think I could have worn it with sleeves - it would have been much too warm, and I'm never THAT cold where I need loads of layers.   It's perfect, if I do say so myself!

(The "feral" name harks back to Shannon, bless her, when she'd seen Fair Isle written down but didn't know how to pronounce it.  When she talked about my feral hat back at the Sheringham Viking festival a couple of years ago, we thought it was hilarious, and the name has stuck!)

Mill Open Weekend

 After our visit to the beach at Saunton Sands, Amanda and I headed to Braunton for fish and chips, before heading to South Molton for the Mill open weekend at John Arbons.   Andy had bought me mill membership for Christmas previously which gives me a life long 10 per cent discount on purchases - bonus!

We got a full tour of the mill and got to see how all the machines worked.   The fleeces were so soft, that how I didn't jump into the fleece bins, I just don't know!

Saunton Sands

 Very occasionally, Amanda stays at the caravan with me when Andy is away for a weekend.   This particular weekend in June 2019, we were actually heading off to the John Arbon Textile Mill Open Weekend in South Molton in Devon to squish and buy wool!   But we needed to wear Finn out first so that he'd sleep in the car while we were having a tour of the mill machinery, so we checked our atlas and saw that Saunton Sands wasn't too far away and had a very long sandy beach, and that dogs were allowed all year.   

What a find!   A beautiful beach on a June Saturday and we had it practically to ourselves.   I'm assuming it must have been a bit blustery and chill though which would explain why we're wearing our coats.  What a fab beach!   And no surprise that we've since been back!