Our Garden

 Here are some pictures of our garden.

Early days, since this photo was taken the 2 shrubs either side of the spiky plant on the left have been cut down and I've cleared out some of the borders. 

This is the new border area, planted with perennials and some seeds to encourage wildlife, slugs are invited to their own parties in the beer traps.  The plant on the right is a wood aven which I mistook for a geum, I realised the error when they started growing rather prolifically and a lot of them have now come out.     

 

The alligator end, this border was overgrown and has been planted up in a joint effort.

This area is a bit sad but I am hoping for great things.  It is on a steep slope alongside our jetty which is on the right of the photo.  The peonies had a brief spell of glory and the slugs are gradually diminishing as they discover the delights of beer.  The area was overcast by the shrubs on the left which I cut back before planting it up.  I've sewn some californian poppies, english marigolds and nasturtiums in here.

Some of the baskets and tubs Rob and I planted up last week.  

 

The community herb garden, anyone can help themselves.

One of the lovely white nigellas

The Gingerbread Man

This is a little playmat to tell the story of the Gingerbread Man. He can run out of the baker's shop and down the path until he gets to the river. There the hungry fox is waiting in his cave. I like to think, in a moment of kindness, this time the fox will help the Gingerbread Man get over the river to safety.

The mat is felt appliqued onto whatever came to hand for backing and wadding (a piece of an old duvet cover, a bit of old shirt and some left over curtain material). The stable door and the gate can both be opened, and I pondered making the house doors open too, but I wanted to keep it simple for play purposes. However, I couldn't resist adding a bit of embroidery on the houses, a rabbit with a pompom tail, and a tiny horse in the stable. As you can see, there was absolutely no consideration given to keeping things to scale! 

The Gingerbread Man and the Fox are both made of felt and stuffed very slightly. The fox's tail and face had a bit of white wool needle felted in to add the detail, and the eyes and buttons are tiny beads, sewn on very securely. The finished mat measures 13 by 10 inches, and the Gingerbread Man is about 2 inches high.

Winter Photos

 Here are some frosty photos taken this morning. 

The triangle of land we walk round in the morning.  The bamboo stakes are positioned for tree planting.

Frost on brambles

Frost on seed heads

A robin watching us

And from a couple of days ago, possibly the same robin!

December Stitching

 This month I finished the December bookmark to complete the collection. The tree is metallic thread couched with invisible thread.  

My second piece this month stitched up very quickly although it was started from the idea of slow stitching where there isn't a lot of planning.  There was some planning in mine but I did basically make it up as I went along which is a very different way of working for me.  

The rows of running stitches are a feature of slow stitching and I found them quite satisfying to do.  I'll be having another go in this style in the new year.  

October Bookmark

Here is the October Bookmark, stitched in a variegated thread in the colours of autumn. 

Garden Snippets

My efforts to make a more wildlife friendly garden are beginning to pay off this year. I transplanted this self-seeded yarrow into an area of waterlogged ground, just to provide a bit of cover. It thrived over the spring, producing lovely feathery leaves. The flowers took ages to come out, but now they are here in abundance, and a favourite with this gatekeeper butterfly, who's often found sunbathing there.

The corncockles also thrived in the poor soil. They are over a metre tall and smothered in flowers. A bit of research showed that they are on the critically endangered list in the wild, although these came from a pack of wildflower seeds. Apparently, they are also poisonous, so I have been treating them with caution. 

A surprise addition to the garden was this common spotted orchid, growing in the wild patch among the fox-and-cubs.

In the warm weather, the birds have been enjoying the bird bath. The pigeons just sit in it, the blackbirds enjoy a vigorous splash, and the starlings arrive in packs and make a huge commotion. 

Here's a crew enjoying a communal bath...

and the last one out making a dignified exit.

 

More Watercolour

 Here are two watercolours in which I tried out my new swordbrush for some of the finer detail.  I was pleased with the very fine lines I could create with the brush and will certainly be using it more often.  

The sword brush is a flat brush which has been cut to make a very fine point. 

The aqueduct and tunnel at Chirk

A bowl of tangerines