In a Vase on Monday - Small offerings

My hero sorted through the still unpacked boxes and found some of my little vases....The very smallest of my vases is a tiny very heavy three sided cut glass vase.

It has been raining during the day time every day, except for one or two hours of weak sunshine here and there, for ages.  Sometimes it has been much clearer at night, and I hope it will be so for the full moon on the 31st.  Cathy who hosts this meme has been getting some sunshine, and her vase this week brings together some choice pieces for January....it is well worth visiting her IAVOM, and through the comments and links to others see how plants and flowers are faring not only across the UK but also far and wide.

Just outside the conservatory one of the special snowdrops bought at last year's Shepton Mallett Snowdrop festival, has had just the one bloom.  Galanthus Elweseii has such lovely markings and I hope that when it gets planted in its permanent position it will clump up.  I love its broad glaucous leaves, which I left to feed up the bulb.

In support I have a standard small snowdrop, a few cyclamen, a very sodden stem of winter flowering Jasmine nudiflorum, a fern leaf, a struggling stem of Erysium linifolium 'Bowles Mauve', overwintered bud of Ghislaine de Feligonde, and a couple of stems of Lophomyrtus ralphii Little Star.  I had been growing this gem of a small shrub in a pot since I acquired it back in 2014.  It is much milder here and seems to be thriving in the ground, where I planted it out last autumn.

I wonder whether there will be another new to me galanthus to temp me when I visit the Shepton Mallett Snowdrop Festival next month, in company with fellow IAVOM Alison C.  I will also be sure to go to the Wells snowdrop event at the Bishop's Palace.

Portreath Socks Complete

The pair of socks called Portreath...can be worn right way

or inside out...

Oh to be besides the seaside with a little sunshine!

Doubly early Rhubarb Jam

Early Rhubarb from the Yorkshire Triangle get made up into Doubly Early Rhubarb Jam this morning

In a Vase on Monday - Evergreens?

Yesterday it stopped raining for a whole day....

After breakfast we had a fine walk along the local hills and onto the Somerset Levels, all along the small lane, during the whole time passed by only a couple of cars and a handful of cyclists.  It was cold and slightly breezy and we were well dressed for the conditions.

On the way back I grabbed three stems of the wild ivy from the hedgerow, and then as I took off my shoes by the front door, came face to face with the ideal companions...

Here is the arrangement set up to catch the sunshine in the conservatory...

And here it is again in the sitting room..with a little escaped Christmas Mouse who had to stay out as the room seemed so bare..a few of the dried up flower heads from ivy in the Christmas arrangement
too, to form a nice little motif.  When I was young my mother's advice to me was always buy presents you would like to receive.  Sadly that piece of advice has its problems: you sometimes want to keep the presents!!  So when I found a lovely funny little Christmas mouse to give to my Daughter in Law, I knew straight away that there would be problems.  To avoid that two were purchased.

With a little shelter by the front door, the Loropetaum Fire Dance has been in continuous flower for several weeks.  For the present it is in a large pot enjoying winter protection, until we get more sorted out with the garden landscaping.

The third Evergreen, in the sense that it is not deciduous, but 'ever purply red and gold blotched' is the Pseudowintera colorato Red Leopard a New Zealand native.  It is at present by the front door where it sits again with some protection and looks very smart when the sun is shining off its shiny leathery leaves.

When I first bought the Red Leopard in Warwickshire, I found out that it is used in New Zealand in cookery...now that is a challenge for the next few months.

This week Cathy who leads us on this weekly quest to find something interesting in the garden, and write about it, has been inspired to explain a little of her character...the ability to defer gratification.  There are several parallels in our character....having enjoyed my small box of very tasty marzipan delicacies, I have decided to put away my box of turkish delight till Easter.  Mr S wanted to be generous....so when I said one box of something sweet and delightful, he bought two!!!

Portreath Socks

When I started the first of the Portreath socks, I had to draw in my own chart and colour code it, as well as alter a couple of the symbols to make sense of the pattern.  There are many ways of making things as easy as possible.  This is much easier than reading from a small black and white chart, and there is room for me to tick off lines and have column repeats.

I decided to make the sock leg length twice as long as the pattern, with four repeats of the pattern and also made a change to the bottom of the sock.  This is the first sock pattern that I have come across where the pattern results in a completely reversible sock with a very different effect.  The designer Faye Perriam gives a garter stitch sole, but I have opted to change this to a stocking stitch, with the 'wrong side' ie purl looking facing the way the sock is knitted, and the smooth side will be on the reverse and balances the pattern on the leg and top of the foot.

Now onto the second sock....

Just picked up my knitting again after a lovely walk onto to the levels, past the first of the hills with a view to Glastonbury straight from home....its just the day for stretching ones legs:  sunny, and very cold, and not raining!

I've just read up that Portreath is a pretty little Cornish seaside place...here's wishing I'll be down there to  pose with my socks before they are worn out.

Crassula Ovata Gollum

From time to time I like to feature one of the succulents which grownaround the house.  Compared to our previous house, we don't quite have  windows with the right orientation.  This specimen could do with a little more light,  and as soon as the temperature rise above 10 C it will be moved into the conservatory.   Quite unusually the radiators were on side walls, which made the window sills far more favourable for growing plants on.

This plant is now over ten years old, about 12...it is really root bound, which I read, is no disadvantage.  It is  top heavy now, and has a wide trunk.  I am however fond of the plant, which is wedged in this oval planter which gives it some stability.  It has grown this shape just on its own.

A few years ago, I took some cuttings and was pleased to have given one to 'connoisseur' Kevin, who loves many plants but is really into orchids. It was he who brought Crassula Budha's Temple for me.  Having trawled through my blog, I'm really surprised that Gollum has not featured before.

By November 2019 plant having grown even larger,  shaping and pruning giving it a wonderful shape, it became necessary to consider its future.  With several 'Little Gollums' around the house, I decided to offer this to Alan who has a lovely stall in Wells Market selling various troughs etc.  You ought to have been there when I said the plant was his.  It made my day and his.

Out with the old and in with the New

Just as they have been pointing out in the news, I have been aware for a long time that there are mountains and oceans of plastics and lots of non recyclables to contend with.  I still like to have a paper diary, and go for the cheapest as they usually have card covers. 

Back in 2011 I made my first cloth diary cover using some of the techniques which we were being guided through each week by our WI president and craft queen bee Kay.  Ever since I did my first bit of quilting, and that is something for me who had until then just sewed on the odd button or mended a hem that had come undone: First Quilting

The Last Diary Cover was made in 2011, so it has lasted seven years...and will go into the recycling bin.




When I came to change over my diary on the first of January, at first I thought it would just need a good wash as it had a couple of years ago, but then looking at the spine, I noticed that it was starting to fray.

My current handbag...and those who have known me for some time wont be surprised, is still bright and jolly, a sort of mango or pumpkin colour.  So for a new cover I decided to use bits and pieces which I already had in my stash.  Rummaging through I found just the right combination, together with threads, silks, and cotton batting.  In the end I just used a thick cotton quilting thread, in black and also mango.

I found that quilting on the black showed up the dragon fly motifs perfectly.

Here is the finished diary on one of my project bags.  The dragon fly fabric was first used when we were working on a  Cathedral Patch work trial.  I was pleased to make up a bag with it:  Cathedral Patchwork Bag.  This is another project I completed at the Kenilworth WI craft afternoon. When I have a small project on the go, whether sewing or knitting, I gather all the essentials into one of my project bags.

Here is my very cheap diary, for which I paid less than £1...the front cover fits into the sleeve, which can also accommodate all those notes, club membership cards and annual passes etc....

For the inside back sleeve, a little dragon fly motif finishes this off nicely.  This is where I keep all those vouchers....

I've spent a few hours when it was wet and windy outside, completely at ease, in peace, with only needle and scissors, using all the lovely techniques I was shown.  As I sipped on my lemon verbena tea this afternoon...the last stitches were put in place.

I wonder how long this one will last?  Maybe I should make a reserve one?

In a Vase on Monday - Win, win?

Its the first day of the New Year......Happy New Year to all fellow In a Vase on Monday contributors.

If I had felt moved or had had time to post this time last week, on Christmas Day, this is what I would have posted....all the remaining Mistletoe from our wreath making episode at the WI earlier in December sat in a little green vase, with my nodding fairy, and crocheted snowflakes.  I bought the snowflakes off Cynthia in Kenilworth a few years ago.  Cynthia was one of the Crocheting ladies in the Kenilworth Knit and Natter Group, and was often making lovely little things to help raise funds for her Parish Church St Nicholas.  Here they lie around the mistletoe in a garland, tied all together.

So although I lost out on joining with Cathy and others, feeling at least joined in spirit with them, made me arrange this little homage to IAVOM in the corner of the conservatory.

I very nearly gave up too today...but In a Vase on Monday, if practised often enough, can help one to appreciate what could be 'lurking' in the garden, even after weeks of what seems like continuous rain.  This morning when I walk across the grass to top up the bird feeders, it felt like I walking across water...had I not done this, I would not have noticed a few very bright flowers.  After another deluge mid morning, I ventured forth to pick a few blooms:

These cycalmen coum needed the smallest of my glass ink bottles.  These are the first of the blooms from some third year corms which have grown here , but which I gathered when newly germinated in the gravel of my old garden.  The patterned leaf and the totally silver leaves come from other corms that are yet to flower.

I win, because despite the wet weather, I have a few bright flowers to display, and win because having been contributing to In a Vase on Monday...it made me go out and find these beauties.  Would you not agree?

On our walk in between the heavy showers a couple of days ago, I balanced across a dyke full of water to pick a couple of stems of hazel and Alnus from a hedgerow for my vase but it is definitely outshone by the cyclamen.  

Thanks to Cathy who leads us up and down the garden path each week in search of things to make us smile in our garden....she also comes up with the most uplifting posts to accompany her arrangements; a little like thought for the week from her garden.  Do go and see what she as come up with for the the first day of 2018.