Ally Pally Day Two

Back at the exhibition today, once again it was Ray Slater's dolls who were the centre of attention in our corner of the show.  So much character and so beautifully constructed, everyone loved them.

For us, however, the lovely accessories passing by were the main attraction.  A gorgeous scarf here

a lovely pair of shoes there

Throughout the day we admired the work of others, often in the form of bags of some kind

My apologies; the poor photograph doesn't really do this original designed bag justice - it was knitted using the domino technique with felted embellishments and the owner was proud to reveal zipped compartments and the detailed finish - quite rightly too.

Another lovely bag, beautifully machine quilted and embellished in a most tasteful fashion

There were other interesting sights from time to time

and visiting friends provided amusement -( some may recognise this bosom! )

but for the feature which set this shopping trolley apart from others you'll have to go here

As yesterday, meeting friends was the highlight of the day - Maggie, Paulene, Dale, Sue, Nita and I had a rare opportunity to get together - Sarah was there too, but not quite in the same place as the rest of us, sadly!

At the Ally Pally

We enjoyed the first day at the Knitting and Stitching Show today, keeping busy and talking non-stop it seemed.  We loved watching everyone, especially all the youngsters with the most creative outfits.  But I was rather surprised at the cavalier way they photographed everything and anything, usually in an open and honest way but sometimes taking the sneaky route with a mobile phone.  I rewarded those who asked permission with over-generous thanks - heaven knows how those who didn't want any photographs taken managed it.  Presumably they spent all their time policing their stand...

Time for teachers and tutors to make a few recommendations, perhaps?

Of course, many friends were here at Ally Pally today as well - this must be one of the best social gatherings of the year and it's a great opportunity to get together and catch up on what's what.

In addition, there's always something interesting to see and usually (thankfully) people are pleased to share and agree to a photograph

Here, a fascinating knitted necklace worn with an equally individual and striking outfit. Just one of several noteworthy garments and accessories which attracted our attention during the day. 

As the day wore on, our eyes fell upon the treasures people had found and we loved the fact that several stands used clear plastic bags.  Here, two bags full of Oliver Twists goodies.

5.30pm at last and time to pack up.  Tutor/demonstrator Hazel packed up her dear little bears into their box for safekeeping overnight (this box is only about 5 inches square by the way and Bernard, the smallest is just an inch and a half tall)

Did I bring goodies home?  Only one today - a skein of the softest  Baby Alpaca Cashmere and Silk lace weight yarn from the Natural Dye Studio for a small triangular scarf pattern I bought in Purl Soho last month. 

But I'm there again tomorrow ;-)

Heigh Ho, Heigh Ho

Back to work this morning, teaching in Warwick.  Having trouble travelling light however - I seem to be taking half my studio with me!

Linctus

When I was a small girl, there was seldom more than a single bottle of cooking sherry in the house, for people generally didn't drink alcohol at home so much in the 1960s.  My Grandad worked for the Customs and Excise however, and somehow, from time to time, an unlabelled bottle would find its way into the cupboard, often around Christmas time.  It was always known as "Daddy's linctus" and I now realise it was most likely a rather good port - which wouldn't last very long in this household.

Well, today there are a few bottles of linctus around as patience has its rewards in the form of last year's sloe gin.  Earlier last week, my good WI friends Marjorie and Connie did their harvest of the blackthorn hedges around Bourton on the Water and brought me two large bags full.  They tell me that there are not so many sloes this year and I can tell from looking at my blog from 2007 that they are rather later than previously.  But my goodness, they are of fine quality!

Of course, before I could begin this year's Sloe Gin process, I had to bottle last years. I had also frozen the sloes to split the skins before steeping in the gin - so much easier than pricking with a darning needle!

Same procedure every year.  That's a large demijohn for us, which will be bottled as needed, a smaller bottle for Edward and of course, a bottle for Marjorie and Connie.

And the quality control is most important, so sampling has to be done. Cheers!

To "Brideshead" and beyond

The rain finally came overnight and we woke to leaden skies and wet pavements.  Time to go home.  Our journey took us via Byland Abbey, however; one of those places you stumble upon as you turn a corner, suddenly finding a magnificent structure immediately in front.  Wow.

It had been our intention to drive along the ridge past Ampleforth towards Hovingham, stopping for a short time by the Mouseman workshop.  You can read about Robert  "Mousey" Thompson here.

The furniture is beautifully crafted and perfect in a large country house or parish church setting.  Since we have to furnish neither, we admired and moved on.  Not before I'd taken a photograph of their raw material in the form of stacks of English Oak, gently weathering outside the workshop.

On then, to our intended destination. Castle Howard.

We arrived with the morning rush, but that was fine - this place was large enough to cope.  We loved wandering around the house at our own pace and appreciated the fact that we could take photographs.

Though undoubtedly grand, Castle Howard is most certainly a real family home too.

The views were magnificent, both outside and in

We really enjoyed an exhibition of Nick Howard's photographs and found the inevitable exhibition to both the recent filming and the 1980's TV series interesting, for after all, many will always think of Castle Howard as Brideshead.

We drove to Hull mid afternoon, intending to spend the night there and drive home tomorrow morning.  Mummy's bungalow stands empty and with no buyers forthcoming, we tend to put it to the back of our minds.  But having satisfied ourselves that all was well, we decided to drive on back to Gloucestershire tonight.

After Strictly Come Dancing and Hull Haddock and Chips, of course.  We have our priorities!