This weekend: a cracker!

Firstly, lovely local yarnbombing spotted at the pub:

Then, feeling in need of a treat, I bought Mollie Makes, after a quick Twitter poll about which crafty magazine people rated at the moment. By the time I got to sit down and read it, we were on the coast and you can just see the sea in the distance here:

Sunday in Suffolk saw the opening of lots of gorgeous gardens in Bury St Edmunds, in aid of St Nicholas Hospice. This is such a good cause; we've been three years running now, and somehow the sun always shines! So many people take the time and trouble to open their gardens - businesses, churches and private homes of all kinds. There are so many moments where we wandered through little alleyways beside houses, only to emerge gasping at the size and beauty of people's gardens. We had some real #CuriousCounty moments: where else would you hear a recorder group play What Shall We Do With The Drunken Sailor while you look at an informative display of Victorian lawnmowers, or drink Pimms down a lane lined with plant and cake stalls? People must have found the gardening hard recently with the terrible weather, but all the plots looked great and the atmosphere was fantastic.

And, finally - roses from my mother's garden. Their scent is everywhere - finally, a hint that Summer may be on its way!

 

 

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I've read a brilliant book & made some crochet bunting

Yes, these are my two main achievements this week! I'm not completely convinced about the bunting; I've made it from a pattern in a motif book. It looks ok when flat, but it does curl a bit .... so I'm not posting a revised pattern just yet! It's squeaky, acrylic wool, too, so perhaps that's not helping!

Now, to the book: I haven't blogged about books that often, because I sometimes review them for www.whensallymetsally.co.uk. But as I don't think I'll review this one for them, I wanted to just note here how very brilliant this is! Susie Steiner sets Homecoming in Yorkshire and the action begins in 2005. The story covers the fortunes of the Hartles, a farming family and the people whose lives intersect with theirs. It's written entirely in the present tense and this gives the story a bleak immediacy. The observation of the minutiae of life is superb; although some parts of the novel are bleak, as I've said, much of it is gently humorous and the relationships between the various Hartle family members are beautifully drawn. The Yorkshire landscape, too, is carefully and atmospherically drawn, taking the place of an almost-character in the story. This was a library book and I'm very reluctant to give it back - a fantastic, unusual, memorable story.

 

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