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

The Cotswolds featuring lots of sheep

I spent last weekend cycling around the Cotswolds in England on a rickety bicycle called Hortense with my boyfriend, Will, on a matching bike called José to celebrate five whole years together. I can't believe the time has gone so quickly and I feel so lucky to have him in my life. 

Anyway onto the important bit - sheep! Featuring other animals too. On the Saturday we went to Adam Henson's Farm Park which is a mix of rare breed sheep, rabbits, cows, chickens, goats and an educational centre for school groups and children.

I discovered bantams look like a squashed version of real chickens when they sit down.

But are so fluffy when they stand up. Look at those legs!

Goats will only pose for photos if there's a handful of food just underneath the camera. And that my Garthenor cabled hat is very warm!

Herdwick sheep are very friendly and incredibly soft to touch. They are going on my sheep wishlist (everyone has sheep wishlist right? Right?!)

More sheep but I can't remember the breed. Soft and friendly although mainly for the food we were giving them.

We finished the afternoon with a sheep show which explained how sheep have developed since early farmers a thousand years ago due to breeding, Roman and Viking invasions and what we needed them for.such as wool or meat. Can you guess which are the Roman and Viking sheep from the names?

In the corner of the barn were two gated areas full of fleeces. I was very tempted to get one but the thought of cycling it all the way back to the B&B was too much even for me. Although the farm park is very knowledgeable about sheep, they didn't seem that aware of the uses for the fleece. Hence why it was labelled 'wool' rather than fleece. The different breeds would have been interesting to spin but as I haven't bought fleece before I had no idea what I needed to look for. I'm going to go back once I have learnt a bit more about fleece, staple length and spinning in general. 

It was a fantastic weekend! My legs were pretty sore by the end but the cooked breakfasts and cream teas certainly helped cure our aches and pains. 

Winter has come

I woke up this morning to the lawn covered in frost. With the fields across the road beckoning, I grabbed my camera and a warm woolly hat and headed out.

Although it was only 8.30, the frost had already begun to melt as the sun hit the trees. 

I'm not a regular photographer but even I appreciated the shards of sunlight piercing through the canopy above and landing on the ice and leaves and berries.

  

And the frost lined leaves.

Walking out into the main park, the normally vibrant green grass had been muted and sparkled.

  

The individual stalks reminded me of sugared angelica with the ice as the sugar. 

The perfect start to a rare day off. Have a wonderful week everyone :)