socks on a roll....

I finished another sock. Socks are lightening quick in 8 ply!

weekend

Autumn Granola, with lots of nuts, cinnamon, cranberries, seeds, oil and honey.                                                     Sitting about in the sun, by the fire, knitting, lovin' up the animals, reading, cooking trout and making the most of autumn sun.

We picked grapes for our friends outside Bendigo, an east 2 hours with good company, autumn sunshine, helpful children and good tucker. Who says real men don't eat quiche??

Sal's socks finished!

Sal's lovely socks finished and pair number 6 on the needles now. These were an attempt at reducing the size, taking into account lighter yarn gauge, and they worked out quite well. I never kit swatches which yes can be a problem but not enough for me to have started consistently!

 

Crafty Kids

It's pretty exciting isn't it when your kids start on their on crafty journeys! I bequeathed Bella my sewing machine and she has just finished making herself a pencil roll, with all the patience required to drive a machine that I myself can no longer tolerate! A new sewing machine can be warranted when two of us are sewing!!

The benefits of Steiner education include crocheting and knitting in class at least twice a week. Our house his dotted with gorgeous colourful bags and beanies. Skills to be carried into adulthood. 

I'm looking forward to the cold winter days spent inside cosy and crafty, with lots of soups and khoreshts and chai, and more knitting get togethers with my crafty friends.

What are you and yours working on these days?

Yarn Along

Autumn garden

Our native garden, a work in progress, taking up where nothing else will grow.

Pomegranate and Tomatillos - the latter not so tasty but great for making chutney we hear.

It's my studio day today when I teach most of my music students. I start about 3pm so I have all day to do things at home, including the luxury of eating lunch in the sunny garden. The Autumn garden is such a transitional state isn't it - summer foods are finishing; the Apples,Figs and Pears have been picked and citrus is budding. But also there are the beauties of Autumn - Pomegranates and Persimmons, the former requiring of us, great patience and presence; to sit unhurried and pick carefully at its tiny delicate juicy seeds. Imagine my delight when I turned in my garden chair and spied a Pomegranate on a tree on our fence line, thinking it must be on the neighbour's side. But no. It is our tree, fruiting for the first time since we moved in five years ago. Now I have a vague memory of the landlord cutting that tree right down because the fence is so rickety.

Now we can add Pomegranates to our backyard produce, and as soon as we plant them; Figs and Passionfruit.

We have lovely new neighbours! Like-minded folk who have moved to this area like so many of us, in search of an affordable, spacious place to live with a big garden and still not too far from the city. Beau and I walked around the corner, excited to think we may begin a friendship so close to home, with a boy his age to visit!

Inevitably our neighbourhood is changing, slowly, which is fine, because with that change comes the leaving of the old Mediterranean folk who have lived here for a long time and whose 'practiculture' and community spirit we are soaking up while we can. Such friendly and generous neighbours have taught us a great deal. Perhaps as we get older we will take their place on the streets, wandering from house to house, sharing seeds, and advice, offering a taste of last years olives, talking abut how things were many years ago...I like that thought.

colourful

A crafty day at the kids' school, making felted soap bars for the Mother's Day Stall. I could pretty much do that all day - making stuff with lovely folk by my side....And Salvador's socks are coming along.                                                    We were camping all weekend with the families from our kids' classes. So lucky that we all enjoy eachother's company so much. My phone ran out of battery so no photos, but then sometimes it's better to be in the moment than chasing it...

Seasonal ritual

The Milo vest is finished!

Mediterranean weekend...

Last night Martino and I went out on a date, Mediterranean style. First we got dressed up and went into Brunswick to see Rebetiko Tragoudi for the Brunswick Music Festival. It was glorious; the sparkling, joyous sounds of the Greece we both love so much. A place surrounded by glittering ocean and sunlight must of course produce music like that.

This morning we bought 4 new chooks to join the other two ladies- one of whom we call Super Cluck because of her Ninja moves. She and her friend survived a visit from Mr Fox the other night. He killed two but Martino scared him off before he could bolt with them over the fence. There's just no forgetting to close them in their house of a night now. Fox knows us too well.

We ate olive bread and goats cheese in the garden and admired it's simple, autumn beauty. everything is soft and green and about to change.

I'm enjoying our newly reorganised kitchen. It's an oldie but a goodie and happily transformed by new shelves. It could do with a lick of paint, as could the whole house. But it has such country charm. We do love it in all it's rustic quirkiness.

I tried my first bit of cable knitting - the panel on the Milo vest I am knitting for a friend's new baby.

I made up a Pear tart/ flan/ financier kind of desert to take to our friends' house tonight. Thalia is from Chania, Crete (from where some of our favourite music comes)and not only does she make the best Tzatziki I've ever tasted, but she is going to give us some Greek dance lessons.

 

 

 

Here is my loose recipe for the Pear Thingamejig!

For the pears;

• four small Buerre Bosc pears, quartered and pips removed
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 tablespoon honey

Put butter and honey in a wide pan on stove top and warm to combine, place pears in pan and simmer gently until pears are softened and going golden brown.

For the flan;

• 1 cup almond meal
• 1 mixed cup Spelt and plain flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 80g butter melted
• 1/2 cup honey
• almonds - whole or blanched

Mix eggs, honey and butter together in a bowl, add almond meal, flour and baking powder, mix well but don't over-stir. pour mix into a greased, oven proof pie/ flan dish, and place pear pieces as shown above on top of mixture. Poor over the remainder of the butter and honey from the pan. arrange almonds on top. Bake at 180 Celcius for 25 minutes (gas oven. 

You can also warm some honey and macadamia oil as a glaze for after baking.

I hope your long weekend is turning out beautifully.

March - Sweet Autumn

Sweet Pears from our tree on the first day of Autumn - those few that were left by the birds. Maybe some nets next year. They are too delicious.

A tradition has begun with Jenny and I and various others at times, of meeting in lovely sunny cafes to tale care of boring business admin. Emails, website updates, grant applications, invoicing, chai, toast, knitting and a good laugh.

 

 Often on the weekend, usually Sundays, when the weather is fine (and even sometimes when it is not) we head off to somewhere, bushy, along a river or creek, where animals can be spied in bushes, rapids, trees, between rocks (this time around one fat eel, many lizards and three teenagers); where bird calls can be polished, branches can be whittled, snacks can be shared under trees, heads can be dunked in cold water holes, naps between explorations can be taken and in cooler weather - fires can be made.

These were the outings of our respective youths, with our families in WA and SA - different bushland, different rivers, but the same idea entirely - to get out of the suburbs, away from screens, phones (except to take some photos!), to walk on soft ground, sit together quietly and rest our eyes on green.

Disclaimer: No children were submerged during the lead up to this blog entry 

The evidence of all that beautiful last minute summer rain all about. 

Happy Autumn lovely people (or spring as your latitude may determine)