June...ing

Lots more happening this month and it is all because we have had some much improved summer weather. May was just sew, sew, sew which is fab because I love my job but it makes for a dull blog post. So June, what have you brought us this year...

Picking - strawberries every night. We have a tally running and so far we have picked 7kg!! They are much bigger than last year due to the rainy month of May and the fact that I purchased a fruit cage to protect them.

Spotting - a cheeky squirrel with a whole strawberry in his mouth running away to enjoy it. It was one of the ones that had grown out under the frame.

Baking - banana bread, chocolate brownies, eclairs and Wimbledon cake; all eaten with strawberries.

Drinking - Homemade elderflower cordial. I love this stuff and think I might be able to get a second picking.

Listening - to my rhubarb and strawberry wine blipping away in the corner of the lounge.

Replacing - my broken ice cream maker. The paddle snapped and the motor burnt out so I got another one in the Lakeland sale. This is a batch of blueberry and, you guessed it, strawberry ripple. 

Arranging - flowers at church for my neighbour's daughters wedding. It is definitely a missed vocation for me. I last flower arranged for my own wedding about 4 years ago but I just seem to be able to pull it out of the bag - don't know how?? I was asked to help them, then asked to do two milk churns, I had a crisis of confidence and then whipped these up. Who knows? divine intervention perhaps.

I also did an arrangement on the font, one in an outdoor font and one on the bonnet of our vintage tractor too. I really enjoyed myself. 

Partying - until 2am at the wedding. Such a shame it was a freak rainy day on Saturday for a marquee wedding but everyone had a good time. Our girls loved staying up the latest they had ever stayed up too.

Knocking - up a pop-up wedding card.

Gifting - a new me-made handbag to my mum. She likes it and says it is a good size. I enjoyed making it too. The inside has the last of my Liberty cotton lawn as a lining.

Visiting - Croft Castle National Trust. My teen girls don't mind a walk around a garden as long as it is not too strung out and there is the promise of cake at the end.

Loving - watching Heidi continue to read and not always spend her time on her phone. Joyous.

Trying - to work from home outside! I think I should just be grateful for being able to work at home. It doesn't really work for proof watching videos or editing but it was worth a try. 

Buying - a new Indian parasol. It is fabric but needs looking after however, it is the most beautiful thing.

Acquiring - a guinea fowl. It is not ours. It just rocked up one day. I had to get rid of our cockerel. It was playing havoc with my working from home set up but now we have a rogue guinea fowl in the field! They are often used in pheasant pens to act as a guard for when foxes come because they make such a racket but this one has been very loyal by looking after our chickens so I have been throwing it grain. It roosts in a tree at night.

Sewing - McCalls 7322. I have sewn up every view for Minerva. I made this one to fit me, two to fit friends and another for Heidi. They are launching their own brand new exclusive fabrics. The viscose ones are a wonderful array of colours and prints and the jersey farbic on me isn't even out yet!

 

Hosting - my aunt and uncle for a week. They are the best house guests and we always look forward to them arriving, sharing great cooking and the girls love that they get spoilt. It was a lovely Jubilee week. We had a beacon bonfire in the field and drinks with our neighbours on our lawn.

Happy June. Hope June was fruitful for you. See you soon. Jo xxxx

Coming Along Nicely

Hello there, Welcome to my three word gardening post for this month. The flower yield of my year old borders is coming along nicely. I have had a vase on the kitchen table since March and it has not been empty. It is a great way of keeping track of what is flowering in the garden and if there are any gaps in the months of the year.

Lilac, pink pelargoniums (with lemon scented foliage), brunnera, aquilegia, chive flowers and the first of my sweet peas.

Next came the addition of cornflowers and an aquilegia called Nora Barlow Strawberries and cream.

Then I added my perennial Knautica which is a type of scabious. Long floaty stems with dark purple flowers ideal for cutting.

The first Sweet Williams start to make an appearance.

This week we have more colours of Sweet Pea with wild field foxgloves and the frothy stems of my big dark coloured Heuchera.

My flower farmer friend, Beth, told me to cut my sweet peas when they are tight and small and watch them open in the vase which has been a revelation. You get such a longer vase life and I really rather like the form of them all folded up.

In fact, the front garden has taken on a very purple hue with these wonderful delphiniums, structural allium balls, aquilegia and wild self seeded foxgloves.

My family and I have been visiting a few gardens lately which is always a good way of seeing what is in flower during particular times of the year. Andy and I went to Wollerton Old Hall gardens which had the most amazing Iris (put mine in perspective!) I was relaxing to walk around each tiny little garden.

 This week we went to a garden called Wildgoose in Shropshire which is a beautiful hidden secret. If you are from the Midlands it's definitely worth a trip out.

It is quite wild and informal but a great place for a sunny meander.

In my own vegetable and fruit garden things are coming along nicely too. There are going to be so many strawberries if I can keep the slugs off them and the Veg patch is all planted up and settling in.

Today is our village Jubilee afternoon tea and I made a very apt blouse to wear to the occasion...

Union Jack flags within little umbrellas - ho hum to the weather. 

Thanks for dropping in. Jo xxxx

May...ing

 May is my most favourite month. Everything is so Greeeeeeeen and alive. My blog post this month however is light on news. I have mostly been working with short interludes outside for dog walking and animal feeding.

Having - a haircut, back to the bob for a while.

Sewing - the Friday Pattern Company Wildergown blouse; the Atelier Jupe Liv blouse; the Juliette blouse and the Brumby Skirt. The Liv blouse is already a gonner because bloke put the silk blouse on a machine wash that was too hot! Whoops. 

Collecting - eggs in my new big pockets.

Catching - rainbows in the May showers and cooler sunshine.

Weaning - this little fella. Only two feeds a day now and less next week because he is eating grass and lamb feed.

Moping - about the miserable experience my big girl had on her Bronze Duke of Edinburgh expedition. They got lost a lot, they were three hours over schedule on both days, it rained on the night they had to put up the tent and cook pasta, the rucksack was 18kg, the leaders gave them a different route to the one they had planned... it goes on. She hurt in so many places because they walked so much longer than all the other groups - 8am - 6:15pm non stop! She still has blisters in between her toes and two of her toe nails are going to drop off. She is over it now and so am I but it wasn't the famous five expedition she thought it would be. Shame.

Stunning - sunsets of late.

Knitting - a tank top. I still have a problem with my arm so it is a few rows a night on this one. I am not even on the interesting bit to show you.

Picking - my first crop of radish and spinach with loads more pickings from the rhubarb.

Photographing - in the lighter evenings. It is great to have a longer day. Here are a couple of my favourite photos of late.

Waving - goodbye to the bluebells and saying hello to the foxgloves.

Feeling - disappointed with the weather. Normally May has some prolonged sunshine and I start to live my life outdoors. This May I have mostly been working and banking up my tutorials while the days are chillier hence the terrific amounts of clothes I am making.

Looking - forward to June. There are some lovely things to come.

Thinking - I'm lucky that I'm happy to be living this life. 💙

Jo xxxxxxxxx