Seeking Seaside

Well, we had a new tent and were itching to try it. Combined with our urgent need to get a bit of seaside, and a genuine need to get some photos and videos for my next big online course, what else to do but head to Cornwall?!

The weather was....mixed...but the pasties and icecream were just what we needed to keep the mood up. 

On our last full day, we found a very quiet part of the southern coast and walked to this beach, only accessible on foot. Perfect. 

Many videos and photos were taken, just because. I could sit and listen and watch all day, but unfortunately, we had to climb back up the cliff and find icecream. 

So that was a good day, but all in all, it was just a little stressy. Learning to pitch (and then dry) the mammoth new tent, plus a campsite owner who must have had some sort of military or headteachery background by the tone of the messages and posters plastered absolutely everywhere, we didn't really have the relaxing break we were looking for. 

So we're up for a second go. Going further south and west, taking a smaller tent that's quicker to pitch and easier to dry, and preparing properly for cold nights! Last time I ended up sleeping in double socks and a lambswool sweater - this time, I'm going to add tights and a hat.

So pray the weather gods shine upon us, and please please let us go before all the campsites and pasty shops are closed for another lockdown. Oh, and the tearooms - we made a major booboo last time and forgot to have a cream tea! I know, shocking. We will remedy if we can. 

And in case you were wondering, it's scone with an "on", and jam first. 

The Great Outdoors and other adventures

Hello everyone,

Well I think I've defrosted! When Maggie Grey invited me to take part in the Brockenhurst Needlework Fiesta, I immediately thought "New Forest: Camping". What could go wrong?! When I decided to cancel the emergency back-up B&B, the weather was (admittedly unseasonably) warm. When I started to pack up my camping things ready for my weekend in the New Forest, there were yellow warning forecasts for strong wind from Storm Hannah!

I arrived in good time in the afternoon to set up the Green Cornet (as my husband calls it - it's actually called a Green Cone, not very original). The tipi hadn't been used since last summer, when we use it for an overnight tent on our first and last nights in Brittany, as the big tent is such a palaver to deal with. I'd forgotten that we'd detached all the little loops and toggles that connect the fly sheet to the inner, so first I had to do that. Then I had to tighten all the guys as much as possible. Then I unzipped the front ready to put my things in, and found that I'd forgotten to attach the central toggle that holds the inner up to the full height of the pole. So yes, I had to undo all the guys, take down the pole, attach the toggle, and tighten everything up again.

By the time I was all set inside and out, I was exhausted but it was time to go to the village hall to set up my stand. By then the adrenaline had kicked in, so I got everything set up remarkably easily, including the pieces of work on the wall which usually take ages to arrange, and I think it all looked quite good!

Back to the tipi for a glass of wine and some bolognese I'd brought from home, then time (and it did take time, thanks to the wind) to boil some water for a hot water bottle and tuck myself in for the night. And boy, was it windy! The wind dropped a little bit initially, but around 2am it started to build up. Luckily the tipi shape means the wind goes around, so the tent was solid and stable but it was a bit drafty. Half way through the night I threw one of the picnic blankets on the floor over me, on top of my other two blankets and wool duvet. I slept well after that, and woke to a beautiful sunny morning - if still a little breezy - and to see a large herd of deer gathered on the far side of the campsite in the morning sun.

View across the campsite towards my pitch

The first day of the show was wonderful - so many visitors, and a lot of interest in what I'm doing. I sold many creativity packs ( I love making them), my new book, and my cards. I'd taken some painted collage backgrounds that I started to stitch while people chatted to me, which was all going well until I thought someone had turned the lights out. Then I realised that no, it was my sewing machine. Again. I'd taken my middling machine, which until October was my main machine, and it's been in for repairs twice already this year to replace the power board. And I thought third time lucky. But as soon as the screen flickered, I knew it was a goner!

So the next day (after a much quieter night in the Green Cornet once the storm had passed) with the sewing machine packed away, I rearranged my stand but then didn't know what to do with myself. I ended up buying some gorgeous hand-dyed felt from 21st Century Yarns, and started to stitch something by hand, just to keep my hands busy!

Sunday brought even more visitors, more enquiries about workshops, more creativity packs, books and cards sold, and of course the New Forest is a wonderful place to visit - what could be better? So yes! I'm doing it all over again next year. And yes, I think I will camp again, and I've made a note to take a hat and gloves next time. And I'll be taking my newest Bernina - Old Faithful was declared properly dead on the Monday after I got back, and has been replaced with a New Shiny (wiping out my profits, but it had to be done). And because it takes the new bigger bobbins, like the other Bernina beast that lives on my desk, I spent a happy morning unwinding all the old silver bobbins (over 70!!) getting ready to pass them on to friends.

Because this was a Ramster year (the embroidery exhibition is every two years) I have been making cards since January to make sure I had enough for both Ramster and Brockenhurst. I've also taught five workshops, so it's a bit odd to stop now. That said, there's no rest for the wicked. I have another workshop next weekend, then a talk, a few more things later this year, and next year I'm in danger of running out of Saturdays. There are many, many things in the pipeline - so if you haven't signed up to my new newsletter, please do to stay in the loop of what I'm doing and where I'm going! Click here to join up.

Thanks for reading!

It's been a month now

So probably about time to download the holiday photos and resume normal service around here!

I can't believe it's a month, we haven't stopped since getting home - new school for Girl, new classes to teach for me, a ton of washing and tent-drying, a car-full of sand and shells and pebbles (some of which are still in the underfloor lockers). 

Ah, Brittany.  How we miss you.

You're so beautiful.

And we all love our home away from home:

Same campsite, different pitch, but a good one.  Maybe after 8 years we get to have the same one next year?  Maybe...some people have been going there for over 40 years...they usually get first dibs.

It's a stone's throw from a magnificent sandy beach with bands of pretty shells:

I'm particularly fascinated with the endless ripples and reflections...

(I spent three weeks trying to work out whether I was a "big picture" or "small picture" person, creatively.  Whaddya reckon??!  I think I've worked it out now...)

The sky is always interesting, and there's such a lot of it:

Just as well we walk and cycle and swim so much when we're there, as we all love the food - the bread, the patisserie, the picnics, the yoghurt pots to lick out, the moules (shared with about 4000 locals in the town square) - note the bottom pic of the Boy, who worked out where the biscuits were kept and just helped himself!

And we are all happy catching up with a year's worth of sleep, reading, swimming, being blown about by the wind, riding tiny ponies, paddling, drawing in the sand...

but not so happy being stung by jellyfish (Girl's knee, top left). 

(Afterwards, she wasn't sleeping in a little tent: it was more of a tentacle, ha ha)

She wasn't impressed.  Even less impressed with having to "frotter" her leg with "sable" to get the sting out!

Ah well, onwards...a busy year ahead, with lots of different projects to share, but all in the knowledge that we'll be going back next year - hooray!

Life under canvas

'oscopies and trains under the sea and 500 mile drives completed, when we arrive at our most favourite summer retreat we spend most of the first week falling asleep at any and every opportunity

But when we have slept enough, we unzip our front door and greet the day

and just a short walk from our canvas home we find this

Actually, when we live under canvas everything is a short walk: toilets, taps, showers, washing up, rinsing vegetables, new elephants for the coolbox...

But if that wasn't enough exercise, there is an awful lot of this to run about on and chase whippets

and a lot of this to paddle in

and play the role of "embarrassing Mother" by sketching seaweed whilst standing knee deep in icy salty water

and some of us also swim in it,

while others only go as deep as the ankles

some of us probably have more inbuilt layers of insulation than others...

When we've warmed up again after our paddlings and swimmings (note to self: take sheepskin boots and/or mohair socks for the cold toes) we potter about on bicycles and find little lanes that we'd like to live down

or buy icecreams from the nice people in the office

and maybe do a bit of paint flinging and paper sticking

or some of us may stay in our cage crate all day, depressed because we were bitten when having a lovely chasing game on the beach and it is sore and we're not allowed to lick it and we cost our owners quite a few euros in out-of-hours vet's bills...

but never mind, we've discovered a new doggy chew

and at the end of the day

we go back to bed in our canvas sanctuary and sleep for hours and hours, all over again

and only wake up to walk to the loo in the dark, stargaze, and count the flashes on the different lighthouses and buoys.

We miss it.