Natural Dyeing and Farmer's Markets and Food Festivals

Could not resist posting this, taken last weekend at a www.plantdyedwool workshop with Jane Meredith.  I'm really lucky as she is just 8 miles from Upper Newton, on the riverbank.  I joined forced with the Brecon Weavers and Spinners Guild for a happy, if rather roast day natural dyeing Cotswold fleece with coreopsis, nettle, madder, meadowsweet, weld, indigo, woad, tansy all tested with chrome, copper, alum and some without mordant.

My dye plant area in the garden is developing, I picked up seven madder plants from Aardvark books in Brampton Bryan (don't forget the Scarecrow Festival 3/4 August this year), at their antique festival and rendezvoused with Cottage Herbery.  It's the best thing about local nurseries, you get a personal service.  I had been chatting to them at Shobden Food Festival on the aerodrome - ok next door to it, and arranged to see them three weeks later.  I did the same thing at the Farmer's Market in Hereford - I had forgotten to plant Nicotiana Sylvestris so ordered and arranged to pick up at the next market - perfect.

Walking With Offa, swallows, Gardens in the Wild Festival

The new Offa Hopper free guide with maps, proven bus routes out and lovely walks back to Kington has been launched.  Yours truly is kneeling by Lisa Richardson - Walking Festival Herefordshire and Pete Blench - Hereford Times walks and wonderful guide to take guests on great walks.

Nearer to home tthe Swallows are now nesting on the house and in the barns and the robins have rejected my soft felt bird pods and decided to lay and nurture their fledglings in the tidy pile of plastic rubble sacks for recycling - there is no accounting for taste!

The Malvern Show has been and gone - amidst it's usual mix of weather especially wind.  I remember a few years ago helping a friend from Pershore College layout and plant up her competition garden in such a wind - a total change of planting had to happen as all the tulips were blown over and then petals blown off.  Still at least those tulips were ok - something has completely destroyed my gorgeous Spring Green Tulips, they are now on the bonfire in disgust.  Thankfully the amelanchier hedge - newly planted ready for a friend's Springtime wedding reception is focusing me at that end of the garden.  I have also been somewhat focused on the dearth of ground elder, larger and stronger than ever before in two new beds - I must have divided something and inadvertently spread it last year.  Thankfully two of my twitter followings involve forages so I will be looking up recipes - probably not for breakfast guests - never fear - well not until I am entirely convinced that they enhance fritattas.

The new deckchair covers have been made and the deck chairs given a splash of freshening up black paint.  I bought one length of deckchair material from TinSmith's in Ledbury - one of my favourite haunts when over in that part of the world.  I had some rather gorgeous black lace in my stash and decided I wouldn't use it in felting work anytime soon but an artful dash underneath the pillows I have sewn in should look quite splendid.  I'll post photos when the sun decides to come back!  Also I'll post photos of the Kadai for outdoor cooking I finally succumbed to on a recent visit up the A49 to Shrewsbury.  It has a Hungarian goulash pot attached - well on the floor now after the winds of yesterday but now that Kington Building Supplies has furnished me with some sharp sand I am confident that the first summer stew will be upright.  The sand is quite ingeneous - it filters charcoal and cooking debris that is accidentally dropped in so only water splashes onto the ground underneath.  Of course now I am eyeing up small bits of farm mending thinking that a certain enclosed tube shape with two vertical holes and a removable lid at one end could mean that we could engineer our own charcoal in the embers ....  It's always interesting at Upper Newton - no room to relax for this particular brain.  Always projects for the benefit of guests though.

The next excitement is 22/23 June Gardens in the Wild based around Stagg Meadows.www.gardensinthewild.org/ Some really terrific speakers, Robert Myers (just post Chelsea),  Anna Pavord, Anthony Woodward, Clare Foster, Mirabel Osler, Noel Kingsbury, Nigel Dunnett, Peter Clay and Stephen Anderton.

Felt Exhibition in Llanlidloes this Easter
Quite chuffed to have sold a cashmere and merino antique scarf at the Feisty Felters exhibition in Llanlidloes this Easter.  I have been having fun with iPad overs too.  Now to make some welly boot liners for he who is important and has cold feet in this latest snow.  It was a beautiful journey over on Easter Saturday, luckily lots of sheep visible but the snow drifts in Radnorshire near Llanfiangel-Nant-Milan were awesome and scary for local farmers.

Made a few more cushions, lovely duck feather filling, a photograph of our gracious Oak Tree down in Long Meadow - adapted and screened onto some lovely shabby chic cotton and backed with Black Mountain (white) fleece.  In a way hope they don't sell - perfect for the holiday cottages!

Sorry about the lines around - I got my layers muddled in photoshop!

Primroses are here, Kinnersley on Sea!

Just so lovely when the one field near the cottages bursts into lemon gorgeousness all along the bottom of the hedgerow.  The cattle trample around here pretty well for most of the year but it is rested from November to ... the finer weather so these beauties have a chance to procreate undisturbed.  Of course if you were one of my foraging Twitter followers you'd be syruping or munching on them - but me - I just appreciate them just where they are with the birds in full chorus all around.

If you fancy following any of the foragers you can track them through the twitter feed of @GreatCottages.  Very exciting day first bumblebee on the hellebores - enjoying extended daylight hours, this was taken at 5.50pm

Now for the deck chairs, the winter has taken its toll with a slight infestation of woodworm so the idea of fresh canvas from Tinsmiths in Ledbury was a little premature, treatment, a severe talking to and a good coat of paint are all going to be necessary prior to the unveiling.  There is something so hopeful and promising about the notion of sitting with something sparkly (hawthorn fizz or nettle wine!) that appeals when the reality is still soggy and still soggier boots thanks to the snow!

Astrology
Nearly forgot - don't miss Countryfile on Sunday - all about dark sky status in the Beacons National Park - on our doorstep.  Our resident astrologer has suggested I get download "Starry Night", "Planetarium", "Google Night" on the IPAD so I can name the stars we see so clearly here.  Also a really great hint - a red torch - life is full of finding out about things you cannot live without isn't it?

Deckchair hunting near Brecon

Wonderful mossy velvetness near Sennybridge

Pen y Fan and Black Mountain Ranges March 2013

I set off on an ebay related adventure yesterday, picking up two deck chairs from the other side of Brecon passing this view of Pen Y Fan and the Black Mountains.  Such a beautiful journey with many statuesque trees on the way - bit obsessive about trees before they burst into leaf at present as a new range of cushions are being made for Apple Bough Cottage.

I called back via Brecon Craft Fayre - held in the Memorial Hall - met some lovely people including a great Chinese artist who is based in Abergavenny and someone who makes cute sheep footstools in gorgeous colours.  Then purchased some coasters with fabulous photographs from the top of the Black Mountains - now used on the breakfast table.  No need to put the snowy scenes out this morning as watching the lesser spotted woodpecker nibbling www.wigglywiggler.co.uk nuts we had a coating of snow on the parterre.

The yfenni (mustard seeds cheesy deliciousness) cheese I picked up in the Hay deli yesterday went down really well melted into mushrooms with sour dough bread and maple smoked welsh bacon and rosemary and pork sausages - both from the great Butcher in the Brecon market.  I don't get up there often but always pop in and order, cross over and have a freshly cooked (in front of me ) welsh cake and chai tea and then pick up my goodies.  Shopping this way is always a pleasure - lovely welsh humour and a feeling of belonging.

Yesterdays breakfast sausages and bacon were both rare breed Gloucestershire Old Spot from a terrific butcher in Ledbury - again I was passing.  It's the joy of the market towns, just 15 miles centred from Hereford and you have such choice and treasures.

I returned from Ledbury to find the most gorgeous bunch - nay bouquet of flowers from @greatbritish flowers, from Heather Gorringe to sample.  They were and are stunning and the sent is really gorgeous from the narcissi.  I split the bunch, half into the cottages and half into the dining room.  Four days later they are still going strong and the irises are now fully open and taking centre stage.

Luxury travel blog

It's been a good day to tweet!  Incensed that VISIT ENGLAND site doesn't even have Herefordshire listed on its page about rural counties, - we don't get much more rural, I defy anyone to ask for a non-sea related activity and me not be able to find somewhere close that they could do it! (follow GreatCottages if you want to see the related tweets, or maybe its Kinnersley Cottages!)

Anyway,  a significant number of folk are following us so I tweet to the said company and commented on their thoughts on luxury travel and luxury items in the bathrooms particularly.

"I've been thinking, luxury isn't just expensive toiletries, it can be pure handmade artisan products too - we don't do expensive packaging or makes that suggest your room rate has been hiked up to pay for Molton's of the world.

'Luxury can be simplicity - not quite our gypsy caravan experience during the minus10 nights but our biomass wood pellet boiler bubbling away warming the cosy cottage. It can be the farmer's wife popping you onto the family pony for a gentle trek around the farm, popping some deck chairs down into the bluebell wood and kitting you up with a flask to bird watch in complete, splendid isolation.  Just a thought. welcome to Herefordshire and the Welsh Marches, simplicity and cosiness done well!'

What do you think, would you prefer highly packaged "luxury" shampoos etc or locally well made items?  I guess this is my first online focus group - you can tell it is too cold to be gardening or taking photographs.  Archie has been tightly curled up for three hours - a new weather report angle  it is Archie 3 degrees - non exploring weather today!

Feltmaking for door panels and Llanlidloes exhibition

Finally, builders and decorators all settled - one biomass fire burning away which makes Chess Cottage really toasty.  Decided that it was time to help folk who are not used to the wonderful darkness and near zero light pollution by making an optional door curtain to pop over the stable door.  Also thinking about buying a telescope as we are close to the Brecon Beacons National Park which as you probably know has been awarded International Dark Skies Status as an International Dark-Sky reserve  – one of only 5 in the world along with Exmoor National Park, Canada, New Zealand and Namibia. 
It's great to be back with my fingers in the fleece, ready to take to Felting in the Factory near Ross-on-Wye tomorrow to pop on a rolling machine.  I want to get this particularly fine ready to screen print with an image of our gorgeous ancient oak - a stunningly simple photograph I took last week.

Finally managed to extra the photo of the mystery fungus I found on a walk last week in our woodland - anyone know what it is - I can't find my fungi book at present - a great buddy who helped me with my library is jetting off to Australia today and I am at a loss as to know where it might have been located.