A ramble along the seaside

It's been a lovely weekend! It started with a quick visit to Dunelm with Mum. For those who haven’t heard of it, Dunelm is a chain of shops that sell everything from curtains and haberdashery to garden ornaments and crockery. I last went about three years ago as our local one is nowhere near a public transport route. Mum was going anyway to buy some curtains and I thought I’d tag along for the ride as I was really impressed by their fabric and craft sections last time. On my last visit, there were three aisles full of yarn, haberdashery and craft tools for various hobbies. Clearly this hasn't been a successful part of the shop and has been reduced to half an aisle since then. The pictures below cover most of what was available except for a sad looking shelf of yarn which wasn't worth a photograph. Oh well. On the plus side, Dunelm still has a good fabric selection and I bought a metre of fabric with bees on it. Potential project bag perhaps?

After that, I packed a small bag and headed to the south coast for a weekend with the boyfriend. Woohoo! We tried our hands at homemade pizza and made some happy dough.

Which turned into tasty pizza - chopped and puree tomatoes, grated cheddar and ground beef, yum!

Although the weather in the UK has been grey at best so far this year, there was a mix of misty mornings and lovely sunshine in the afternoons. 

I felt a bit like I was walking through a Victorian murder mystery. Beyond the line of grass in the photo above is the sea. It was eerie hearing the waves but not being able to see the water. 

This bit looked like the Pirates of the Caribbean right at the beginning with Elizabeth Swan sailing across the seas.

Next to the huge war memorial on the sea front is a far smaller memorial for 48 sailors who died of yellow fever on HMS Aboukir while in Jamaica in 1873-4. I thought it was a strange thing to remember but clearly had enough of an impact at the time to merit a stone memorial. 

The weather steadily cleared as we walked and resulted in hot chocolate sitting outside a pub in the warm sun. 

Followed by knitting in the sun back home.

I think I brought a few too many projects with me for one weekend!

Despite a bit of rain we headed out again onto the seafront in the other direction to the Round Tower. Inside you can still see the tracings on the floor for the canons.

Clarence Pier to the left.

Watching a yacht entering Portsmouth Harbour. The tides were strong and we could see the yacht's engine was finding it difficult to propel the vessel against the current.

Further out to sea are the three forts built in the late 1800's to prevent any threat from the sea. They were never really used and are now privately owned hotels and a museum. You can actually go for lunch on Spitbank Fort just for the day. 

My boyfriend's flat has a lovely view which on sunny days end in beautiful sunsets. Although looking at the photo above, I think we need to clean the windows! 

I hope you have had a great weekend whether it's been relaxing at home or out and about wherever you are.

Charlotte and Harvey x

Autumn/ Winter Meander

Despite the time of year the weather has been glorious! It's not as cold as it normally is for November and there have been multiple days of blue sky and bright, wintery sunlight. I find the winter sun is a lot paler than in the summer but it's so bright that it catches your eyes when you look up.

We've had a few cold snaps early in the morning especially around commute time but it quickly thaws by lunch. I love the feel of the grass crunching underfoot and the freshness the frost gives to the air in the morning. It is the perfect antidote to the busy train just five minutes later. 

I managed to finish early on Friday and took a few photos on the journey home:

This is from London Blackfriars Station

And this is next to the iconic Tower Bridge and Tower of London

There was still enough daylight to go for a walk when I got home although you could tell it was leaning towards the end of the day. Well I say the end of the day, sunset is around 4.30 in the UK at the moment so darkness usually sets in before most people leave work. I was grateful to get half an hour of light to soak up the sun. 

It feels as if the trees and plants can't decide which season they should be in. Its still surprisingly green near me intermingled with red and orange leaves and bare branches.

And the squirrels were out in force!

The light was really beginning to shift at this point but I wanted to get a longer walk in before heading home. Got to get the London fumes out of my lungs!

The last of the rosehips

I call these winter berries, does anyone know their proper name?

Although I don't like ivy, I loved the pattern of the vines and leaves. If I could draw, I think this would look great in pen and ink.

And then the sun started waving goodbye through the clouds and it was time to return home.

I felt so lucky to catch the sun especially as it rained all day Saturday! The knitting is steadily plodding on and I will give an update later this week :) I'm thinking about doing a sock knitting review from a beginners perspective in case anyone is thinking of trying out socks for the first time. I've been trying lots of different techniques so hope it's useful! 

Have a great week everyone x