10 September: Beads

Yesterday was not suitable for continuing the garden tidy-up that was started when we got back from Suffolk. Heaps of prunings were shredded and returned to the borders; the sodden ground meant that weeds were easily extracted, but the dog turds were not so easily scraped up off the front lawn. The best argument for paving your front garden is the neighbours' dogs (sorry, Murph, but not everyone who has dogs is as responsible as they could be).

Anyway, I got out the bead boxes. A little while ago, I made some bead stitch-markers -


but found that I don't like using them, and have gone back to using scrap thread for marking.

I used to make lots of bead ear-rings, and I sometimes alter them when I find that they are too big/ too small/ the wrong colour. But there are still loads of beads in packets in the boxes, and recently I bought some fasteners in the bead shop in Durham (called LeBeado - ha, ha!), so I made some necklaces -


Great fun, and a change from knitting.

Must go now - in the middle of carding some recycled plastic bottle fibre.

6 September: Suffolk again

A nice relaxing week near the Suffolk coast. For people with a low boredom threshold, who have never previously been to the same place on holiday twice, our third trip to Suffolk looks like a developing obsession. We even stayed in the same converted barn as last autumn.

I took very few photos, and most of DH's are of dragonflies or butterflies.

And anyone who was expecting a post-card, we didn't get round to sending any. Sorry.

We had some wonderful walks, along the coast, across heathland like this -

and in woodland. In Rendlesham Forest, we discovered some carvings of woodland creatures, deer, rabbit, snake, fox -

and this fellow, evidently providing an unusual location for an orienteering control - "Crocodile, S. side" -

29 August: Lucky, lucky, lucky!

No, not a Lotto win, but the next best thing.

I have been sent an entry coupon for a Free Prize Draw to win a FREE Mobility scooter.

The blurb lists lots of exciting benefits, none of which seem to mention an inability to walk, indeed one of the plus features is that it goes into the boot of your car (perhaps not my car, which is very small). Also I could "travel anywhere you like", with the possible exception of footpaths with stiles, and "Go on trips or a holiday".

Actually, that's just what I am about to do, though with a pair of trainers, a rucksack, and my cycle helmet, not a Mobility scooter.

24 August: Day out in York

We went to York to see the exhibition at the Quilt Museum - very interesting to see some recent quilts. And the building is sensational!

No photography allowed. Over coffee we discussed which quilts we liked best; both of us really admired Future Beaches by Kathy Unwin, a beautiful balance of design, technique, and meaning. Then DH liked the simple red and yellow Welsh quilt, and the extremely intricately embroidered Pawnbroker's Crazy Coverlet; while I was drawn to the black and white Broken Images by Maggie Davies, and loved Gwenfai Rees Griffiths' Harlequin, with its interpretation of Amish colours and layout.

Then we went to see the Treasurer's House, a NT property. Again, no photography in the house, but there is also a lovely garden - here, the house is on the left, and the scaffolding is on the Minster next door -


This path with its alley of trees was particularly attractive -


And the cobbles caught my eye -


Then we walked into the streets, intending to explore the city a little. But it was so crowded and noisy, and so many people smoking in the streets, that it was really unpleasant. We perched on a barrier in front of a church to eat our sandwiches (all seats either full or covered with spilt ice cream), then almost came straight home again. But earlier we had seen people walking along a section of the city walls, and decided to climb up and walk round.

That made a third interesting element to the day. The view of the city, houses and gardens was different, it was not crowded, and we had a pleasant walk all the way round. Where we had to come down and walk on the road across one section, I snapped the wall itself -


As we completed our circuit, the raised position gave another view of the Minster -

And there were only a few spots of rain, once. A grand day out!

23 August: Felt bag

The other item that was felted with the hat/bowl in the previous picture was a bag. This was intended for felting from the start, though.

I decided to finish it on Thursday, to take to the Guild workshop morning. I'd got a zip for it earlier in the week, so I sat down to sew the zip in after breakfast. Brain not properly engaged, so it took 2 attempts to get the zip sewn in properly. Then I found some beads that match the colour really well, and made a pull for the zip.


It's a good size, and the felted fabric is thick and firm. Great colour. Very satisfactory.

18 August: Weather necessitates knitting

There's been so much rain in the past week or so that it's been uninviting to go out. Apart from a sortie into Durham to knit with some on-line friends at the Botanic Garden*, when it was dry for long enough to have a bit of a walk too, I haven't felt like going out.

And talking of felt, I knitted a hat recently that was too big when it was finished. As I was felting another project (not yet finished, so there's no picture of that one yet), I threw the large hat into the washing machine too. It is now a nice felt bowl. Here it is on the window-sill -

And on the kitchen table -

The bag of leftover sock yarn is a little emptier now too; here are the latest 2 to be finished -


And with a view of the heels as well - you will notice that they match! -

Yesterday was supposed to be dry, and we'd hoped to go for a walk, but the gloom was interspersed with savage showers, so I cast on a scarf. I must have soggy brain cells, because I mis-read the stitch pattern and cast on the wrong number of stitches, then I mis-read it a different way, and got the spacing all wrong. Then I discovered that I was actually knitting something not quite the same as what I thought I was reading, and that explained why it was all skewiff. So, after pulling it out at least 5 times, I finally got it started properly.

I don't think I like it in that yarn.

*Edit: in the Botanic Garden's cafe.

13 August: Sunderland relocating?

OK, this "summer" is a bit of a joke. But the right wing think tank that has come up with the idea of shifting the populations of Liverpool and Sunderland to the South has written the best comedy script of the silly season.

Their pals in the construction industry will put up some shacks and all those poor underprivileged Northerners can then improve their prospects by moving south. Oxford and Cambridge were mentioned as possible towns to receive the influx (not Henley, Guildford, or Tunbridge Wells, naturally). Thank heavens they never suggested Basingstoke.

Yes, let's cram millions more people and their 4x4s into already over-crowded towns and roads, building yet more houses on land which is likely to be under water within 30 years (global warming, rising sea level, flooding London - remember that story?), houses that would cost at least twice as much as a house in Sunderland (somehow I don't think these new houses would be local authority estates). Let's shift all those people with flat caps and whippets, with their close-knit extended families, and pigeon crees, into civilised, forward-looking parts of the country.

What's that? Some of the northern natives might not want to live in the south?

Unless it's Spain or France, of course.

10 August: Yet more socks - and a rug

After knitting socks for some time, I had a bag full of small balls of left-over sock yarn, in many different colourways. Never one to let anything useful go to waste, I have used some of these to make some odd socks -


As they will never match anything, this is their main feature. They will go into the sock drawer, and a random 2 will be taken out to wear. If I like them enough, I may never knit a matching pair of socks again.

And on the theme of never letting anything useful go to waste, there has been a box of rug yarn in my possession for the last ooh, 30 to 35 years. There was also a certain amount of the same yarn in my mother's belongings when she died in August 1983.

Last week I wove most of it into a small rug on my peg loom, a very low-tech affair consisting of nylon pegs and a length of 3" by 2" wood. I used 5 strands of the yarn together, to mix up the colours and to produce a squishily thick and soft rug.

It's about 29 inches long and 25 inches wide, and the cat has already selected it for a favourite place to lie.

7 August: Out for a walk

I've just been reminded why I dislike walking in a group.

Lovely bright sunny morning, though a bit humid from yesterday's rain, but pleasant for a walk round a favourite local circuit. A dog walker uttered the normal "Morning" as we passed each other. Then on the narrow path with wet undergrowth on each side, there was a party of middle-aged ramblers. All the gear, big boots, thick woolly socks, rucksacks and walking sticks. Two abreast, filling the entire path. Nobody glanced up from the earnest contemplation of the ground and the conversation, until I was forced to stop to avoid a collision. Then they looked at me as if I had landed from Outer Space, and passed by without even a smile, let alone a friendly greeting. (And no shorts were involved.)

Group walking means ambling along slowly, chatting all the time, and not noticing a thing you pass. Whereas I prefer to stop and look, or otherwise walk fast enough to enjoy the air and exercise.

This morning it seemed autumn is just around the corner. The buddleias are peaking, rowan berries turning orange, elderberries starting to colour, a few ripe blackberries, and some horse chestnut leaves are starting to turn.

Part of the rape seed harvest is in -

And the martins are gathering -

In the hedge was this old gatepost, unused for many years but still standing -


Old and disintegrating, but still interesting.

4 August: Now on the needles

While waiting for the radiator in my workroom to stop dripping, I knitted nearly a whole sock. I also contemplated the fact that the kitchen ceiling is a funny colour where the drips have ended up, and felt pleased that I didn't paint the ceiling when I painted the kitchen walls. Because it would have been wasted.

Then I cast on the project I've been planning for a while - a stranded waistcoat.

This key pattern was used for the felted bag I made in March, and I wanted to use it again. It's not often that I repeat myself in knitting, but it's a very satisfying pattern to knit, and I like the effect of the varied green shades with the black.

Here it is at the point where the ribbing is done, and half the first pattern repeat. I did a few more rows while sitting in the garden this afternoon. Then the British Gas man came to repair the radiator, so I couldn't carry on with it.

It needs looking at (and some counting) while knitting, so it may not be possible to knit this and watch TV (New Tricks tonight); another sock may be on the agenda.

Yes, that pencil sketch in the bottom right hand corner is my pattern for the garment shape. Very hi-tec, this knitting stuff.

1 August: Cumbria

We've been meaning to visit Acorn Bank garden near Temple Sowerby for ages. A couple of times the weather has turned nasty, and we've gone somewhere else. But today, we got there.

The house is not open; parts have been turned into holiday apartments. But you pass the front of the house to reach the garden. And the tea room (the scones are recommended).

The walled gardens are in 3 parts - the orchard, the herb garden, and the well garden. This is the well garden -

And this attractive gate was at the end of the herb garden -


There are woodland walks; they were closed today, because the overnight rain had caused the beck to wash away part of the path. This is what the beck looked like down by the water-mill -


After all these outings this week, there may be a period of lying in a darkened room.
Perhaps with a bit of knitting.

31 July: Northumberland coast

One of DH's favourite walks is up the Northumberland coast from Craster to Low Newton (we did it the same day last year).

Yesterday the stiff breeze was from the south, so behind us as we approached Dunstanburgh Castle.


In order to cross the stream which runs out across the beach, we turned in through the dunes and across the bridge - watching out for trolls.

Arriving at the Ship Inn precisely as they started to take lunch orders, we were able to eat while watching the queue for food and drink grow.

The wind seemed to have strengthened as we walked back along the beach, whipping the salt spray onto the specs, and whipping the loose sand round the shins. Perhaps shorts were not the best choice.

The tide was coming in as we neared the stream. There was a nice sand bar half way across; a neat skip and a jump and I was across - with dry trainers!

The next wave swept up the stream, demolishing the sand bar, and stranding DH on the far side. But all was not lost, as another sand bar was formed by the retreating water, and he was able to hop and step over. Much more graceful by both of us than last year's efforts.


The back of my neck is sun(or wind)burnt today. DH was protected by his birthday hat.

28 July: More Durham coast

Happy Birthday, DH!

Part of the birthday celebrations was a walk on the Durham coast, which was sporting a celebratory thick mist. We started along the coast path, which is well-surfaced, has lots of signs, and lots of public art works.

The flowers in the cliff-top meadows are specific to the magnesian limestone -


And include plenty of orchids -

Then we turned inland, by Hawthorn Dene -

Several miles later, we returned to the beach, where the mist had lifted very slightly -

Jellyfish were not the only jetsam on the beach; this seaweed lay next to a pearly piece of sand-rounded glass -

And as we returned to the car, tired after an excellent walk, it was still misty -

23 July: Le Tour

Le Tour is the most interesting it's been for years. It was a great idea to do away with time bonuses, as it leaves everyone on the same footing - and there are so many riders who could win this time.

I shall probably be glued to the entire afternoon's broadcast from l'Alpe-d'Huez stage later today. Nobody else needs to go over the edge today, though - 2 crashes off those mountain roads is quite enough.

My Tour de France knitting is already finished, ahead of the final stages. Socks, for me. The colours represent the maillot jaune and a couple of team jerseys, and the stitch pattern is Triangle Rib (from one of the Harmony books); this represents the mountains and the zigzagging of the sprinters up to the finish line.


And, filled with the usual July enthusiasm, I cycled to the supermarket this morning for some milk. Went the pretty way, and came back an even prettier one. Need a lie down now.

Here's a picture of my bike when I got back.


As well as the milk in the basket, my (wool) jersey's in there, along with my helmet, mitts, and cycle clips. Yes, long trousers - don't want to frighten anyone with shorts.

21 July: OAP

I've been hanging out with the old folk.

One day last week there were a couple of things to be done in Durham, it was raining, and I couldn't think of anywhere to park the car that was convenient for all destinations, so I went on the bus.

I don't use the buses much, for the same reasons as everyone else - standing around waiting for ages in a cold and draughty bus shelter; unreliable arrival of buses; perching a 5 foot 10 body on a seat designed for a dwarf very short and slightly anorexic person; the driver trying to throw you through the front windscreen; and it takes forever to get to not quite near enough where you're going.

But hey, it's free now (or rather better value for the council tax), and there was nothing else to do that day, so with my bus pass in my hot little hand, I joined the queue shuffling and grumbling in the nearest bus shelter.

4 buses an hour from one company, and 3 buses an hour from another - so a 20 minute wait. Out of the 25 or so passengers, only one needed to pay. Isn't a bus-ful of damp pensioners depressing? At least the driver was encouraging introductions - a violent lurch as I was getting out of my seat threw me into the lap of another passenger.

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Then there's M&S's cafe - is there some sort of invisible screening going on? Completely infested with the elderly; made me feel like getting a grey rinse.

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And although I knew Monday's a bad day to go to the Post Office, it was a lovely morning for a walk, and I can't tax the car online, as DH's name is on the registration document. There were also some letters to post (how quaint and old-fashioned!), so as the local Post Office has been closed, I strolled to the next nearest, only just over a mile.

There was a short queue when I arrived, but one customer was posting 4 large carrier bags-ful of parcels - another e-business flourishing. One clerk went out the back and came back with coffee cups. By this time the queue was 25 or 30 strong, shuffling audibly, and starting to grumble. Churlish, as the staff were obviously taking their tea break as they worked, and it's more than likely that few of those queueing, in one case for only one stamp, had anything better, or even else, to do.

So I made a point of chatting in a friendly fashion to the clerk, just so that she saw a smile at least once this morning.

Looks like rain again - still, mustn't grumble....

14 July: Heritage

Friday and Saturday were spent at Gibside (a NT place) demonstrating spinning at a Heritage Skills Fair.

It was a 3-day event, but I was there for only 2 days. The weather was completely awful on Friday, with pouring rain all day, and I suspect there would have been few visitors if they hadn't been herded in on buses from all the local schools. Saturday was dry, though the mud was still all around, and entry was free, so there were lots of people wandering past all day.

A bonus for me was the music. The fiddler on Saturday was able to walk around the whole site playing, but on Friday it was too wet for the 2 musicians, a girl with a fiddle and a lad with Northumbrian pipes and a fiddle (and one green sock and one orange sock) to go anywhere but our marquee - I had great rhythms for spinning. The chap making the event video filmed my feet treadling in time to the jigs and reels.

These events when the Guild has a stand and demonstrates weaving and spinning are all different, though one or two of the questions are very predictable. It still surprises me that so many people think it's unusual to have any sort of manual skill, or even to consider making anything yourself from scratch; are these the same people who buy ready-made meals in the supermarket? When did so many folk lose the ability to mend and improvise; when did they lose the will to do anything for themselves?

But the most unlikely-looking people have fascinating bits of information, or are involved in other minority activities which are often very interesting. You never know when somebody stands and watches what sort of conversation may start up.

They were quite long days, including the drive there and back, and it was tiring, being "full on" all the time, in the words of the Guild member who organised our stand.

But how else do I get the chance to sit and spin for 2 days solid, with a constant stream of people to chat to? And discover suddenly that I'm part of our "Heritage".

10 July: Knitting Photos

Some FOs.

These two have been made as samples for a spinning demonstration tomorrow, to show what can be made from handspun yarn -


They are made to the pattern for Estonian Hand Puppets by Anu Kotli and Carol H. Rhoades, with stitch patterns from Scandinavia. The eyes are buttons.

The latest socks for DH - the cat normally only investigates shoes, but this time he got up close to the socks.


They are made from Yarn Yard sock yarn, in the colours Housebrick and Agatha.

And lastly the Hallowig (in acrylic yarn from the local market) I made a few months ago, and have only just got round to photographing -

I knitted it for fun, but it looks really awful on me, and it's hellish hot....

9 July: Rain

There's been so much rain lately that I thought the River Wear might be high when I went into Durham yesterday.

High enough to wash away the debris that's been caught on the weir for ages.

But it wasn't.


The weirs themselves now look to be in poor repair, with chunks out of them. No matter how many shiny new theatres, bars, hotels and swimming pools are built, the river is one of the city's main features - pity nobody seems to care how it looks.

6 July: Tottering on

So we are locked into Le Tour yet again.

Every year it begins with wondering if I can cope with all the press hysteria, scandals and speculation; then a breakaway looks like it might just keep ahead, a catch, a sprint for the line - and I'm hooked again.

Takes about 3 days to get the hang of the new colours of the jerseys, then we're back in the swing of it.

Having 2 TV programmes yesterday and today has meant that I have progressed phenomenally well with my current sock knitting, nearly a whole sock done in the past 24 hours. Just as well there's a ball of Euskatel-and-Saunier-coloured sock yarn waiting in my work-room.

There's another plot afoot this week - to finish one or two samples in time for another spinning demonstration next weekend.

As the weather forecast was poor for the weekend, I began on a gardening project on Friday afternoon. Dead raspberry canes were dug up, posts and wires re-positioned, and an area of border dug over. It was very difficult, as the soggy clay stuck fast to the fork, and had to be poked off. Just as well it was done then, as the subsequent rain has formed a small pond there. Perhaps it needs a bit more sand...

2 July: Post No. 300

You know how it is - you've been wittering on about the garden and your knitting, and the occasional day out for a couple of years, there's not much new to say, and you've fallen over the boredom threshold. Lots of the blogs you like have packed up, or are "taking a summer break". The witty comments are drying up.

Should it be "Goodbye, and thanks for all the fish"?

It's tempting.

But then I went out for a super walk yesterday, and I want to blether on about it.

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My journey home from Peterlee Magistrates' Court used to pass a sign pointing into a housing estate to Castle Eden Dene. I noticed it every time I passed, but I'd never been there till yesterday.

The car park is small. At one side is an overgrown piece of fenced off land, with these carvings in the long grass -


The path drops steeply into the Dene, with big shady trees on both sides. It's muddy in places, but mostly very easy walking. The stream was almost dry yesterday but clearly it is not always so. The bridges over the stream are sturdy -

The reason for it to be an SSI is the magnesian limestone cliffs on each side, with their unique flora and fauna -


It was magic, walking along in the dappled shade. The whole Dene is about 3 miles long, from the car park eastwards (the way I went) is about 2 miles. I had the place almost to myself. A couple of dog-walkers, a fat woman exercising, and near the end of the Dene, some local lumberjacks were working (not singing when I was there) -


After crossing a road and passing underneath the railway viaduct, with its traditional graffiti, I reached the sea! Not quite Southwold, but there is some white sand further north. And plenty of rocks to sit and enjoy your picnic.


But this is East Durham. Burnt-out cars are almost compulsory -


Even so, there's likely to be a return visit quite soon.