Bloomin' football world cup nonsense has meant that I was unsuccessful in prizing my hubby away from the television this evening. I had wanted to go forth into the glorious Yorkshire countryside on this special Summer's evening and do something happy and celebrationish with my family. Inexplicably, I adore both the Solstice days each year in June and December and it always feels really important to me that we celebrate them in some small way. I feel compelled to do it somehow, and am seriously miffed if it doens't pan out. Bah. I felt so very irritated earlier, stropping and harrumphing and deep sighing, but then I pulled myself together and set about arranging my very own personal celebration.
It's cloudy here but beautifully warm, so I took myself out to the back yard with a small jam jar of flowers and a couple of candles. I made myself a cup of tea in my rainbow mug, took my patchwork blanket to sit on and wrapped myself in my beautiful Home Poncho. And I rippled. Oh those soothing rows of sea and sky colours worked their magic and I felt a wave of calm wash over me as I sat there quietly and worked. I heard distant music, gentle adult chatter and the sound of children shouting and playing as my neighbourhood went about it's evening business. And I gave thanks for this life of mine, for the happy house that we live in on this friendly street, for these long summer days when the Little People can still play out at 9.30pm.
Happy Summer Solstice to those of you in the Northern Hemisphere, and happy Winter Sostice for those of you who are upsidedown! I hope your day has been wonderful wherever you are in the world ♥
ps the above photos were taken at 9.45pm x
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Edit to add :: thank you so much Laura in South Africa, for sharing these beautiful words, a Wiccan blessing for Summer........."As the sun spirals its longest dance - cleanse us, As nature shows bounty and fertility - bless us. Let all things live with loving intent and to fulfill their truest destiny."
What a lovely little celebration! Your garden is just sweet and the colors you have in these photos are jut wonderful --- I just love them.
Posted by: Lizy Tish | June 30, 2014 at 12:12 AM
Hello Lucy, happy summer solstice to you belatedly! I'm sorry I haven't been checking in so often because I thought you might not have time to post so much at the moment, and I had a lovely surprise of 3 new posts to read on my Saturday morning yay! Having read a few comments it seems clear that many of us like to honour the passing of time and it links us all together somehow. Maybe next year we can all make a group marking of the solstice in a hooky way, either sat outside in a sunny garden or snuggled up next to a fire? I hope you're having a sun filled day :-) Love Jo xx
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Posted by: sbo web | June 26, 2014 at 01:55 AM
I am positively in LOVE with your new ripple, and am concocting one of my own in my head. Alas, I have a few other projects going (gifts for others, i.e. deadlines - sigh - ), that I must finish before I can give my full attention to planning out and then embarking on a cool, relaxing, blue-y calming seaside ripple. We live right smack in the middle of the US - Missouri, in fact - so we are quite a distance from the nearest beach (9 hours drive is the closest, I believe). The ocean is absolutely my favorite place - doesn't matter to me which coast, so hopefully, when I complete MY Coastal Ripple, it will give me a sense of being there whenever I wrap myself up in it. Thank you so much for sharing the tidbits of your life and your amazing creativity with us!! You are definitely an inspiration!! xxxxx
Posted by: Janet Tweedie | June 24, 2014 at 09:08 AM
I woke up at 5 am and after a quick check to see what time the sun would rise ,I got up and went down the garden to sit on our deck on the river,to watch,take pics,contemplate and celebrate .
I was joined by bats...while it was still twilight,a heron...looking for an early breakfast,coypu diving off the bank and swimming upriver and all the dawn chorus....wonderful :)
As I write this ,just after midnight ,a summer storm is raging ...oh the forces of nature....don't you just love it !
Happy summer Lucy,
Carole,SW France x
Posted by: Carole C | June 22, 2014 at 11:35 PM
Lucy it looks like you had a lovely night. Love your colourful photos and your gorgeous crochet blankets!! I am 3/4 of the way through my granny stripe crochet blanket. Your geranium garden is beautiful. I look forward to seeing the blossoms open
Posted by: Squeeze Cuddles ~ Julia | June 22, 2014 at 11:08 PM
21st June a very special day in our family.
Our darling son was born on this day
Who would have thought today 28 years on I would be enjoying lunch not only with my wonderful husband and darling son but also with our beautiful daughter in law and their baby girl our Princess Darcy Alice.
Posted by: Amanda Maddick | June 22, 2014 at 10:19 PM
Your ripple is coming along nicely...those are such soothing colors.
Posted by: Wendy | June 22, 2014 at 09:13 PM
A day late but the Happy Solstice greeting is sincere, some lovely posts recently and I do similar things in the evening in my little garden, flowers, candles and some patchwork. Life does not get much better.
Posted by: Cath Tunley | June 22, 2014 at 08:47 PM
A beautiful post xx
Posted by: Michelle | June 22, 2014 at 08:43 PM
Happy solstice, love the crochet, ripples are looking very ripply xx
Posted by: niki murray | June 22, 2014 at 08:43 PM
What a delightful hooky haven! Wonderful x
Posted by: Pam | June 22, 2014 at 08:29 PM
Happy Summer Solstice from Norway :-)
Posted by: StrikkeSiri | June 22, 2014 at 06:06 PM
Happy Summer Solstice Lucy from a non-crocheting follower of your blog, who none the less gets huge pleasure from watching your creativity spill out into your family's everyday life! I will crochet one day......
Posted by: Jenny | June 22, 2014 at 05:52 PM
Blessed Solstice to you too! I've been mad on the ripple blankets for the past few weeks, following your fab pattern-I started making one for myself a few weeks back which is also going to be the colours of the sea :-)
Thank you for the lovely pattern! x
Posted by: Liz Jones | June 22, 2014 at 05:52 PM
Belated Happy Solstice to you. The colors in that Ripple blanket are just absolutely delicious. I'm lucky in that my DH isn't a football fan so life goes on as usual in our house. Soon be over and then you can drag him off for walks again! :-) Jude.x
Posted by: Jude.x | June 22, 2014 at 05:38 PM
Happy summer solstice!
I really like the fact that you took with you a jar of flowers, it is the small details that makes us happy!
Posted by: Maria Cardoso | June 22, 2014 at 03:03 PM
Similar situation here!Did manage evening meal outside, but by about 8pm it was fairly cool. Lovely to have a warm Midsummer though, as recent ones have been horrible weather. Have you ever read I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith? Midsummer rituals feature as part of the story. It's a lovely book set in the 1930s and loosely based on the themes of Pride and Prejudice, with a first person narrator written as diaries. Beguiling book.
Posted by: Liz | June 22, 2014 at 01:35 PM
Here, in France, we celebrate the summer solstice with music everywhere (la fête de la musique).
Posted by: Carine07 | June 22, 2014 at 01:05 PM
Lucy, love your blog and have been so inspired that I am taking a beginning crochet class at my local yarn store.
Posted by: Debbie Schroder | June 22, 2014 at 12:59 PM
relaxing & crocheting sounds amazing! I am loving your newest afghan!
Posted by: Dana | June 22, 2014 at 12:56 PM
I always forget how much further north England is than the mid-atlantic coast of the US. It is twilight by 9 even on the solstice.
I very much like your seaside ripple :) :) :)
Posted by: Maureen | June 22, 2014 at 12:14 PM
Hi Lucy, So glad your evening turned out to be so happy after all!!! Happy solstice to you too and I am sooo happy we're on our way to summer again!!! Love the colors of your ripple blanket!!! Have a great day!!!!
Love
AMarie
Posted by: Anna-Marie Field | June 22, 2014 at 11:46 AM
Happy summer solstice Lucy. I always celebrate but yesterday it was all too much, hay fever like you wouldn't believe and really sore eyes saw me snuggling up at nine and reading with a cuppa in bed. Not quite what I had in mind ... But its good to be flexible! Emma x
Posted by: emma from toadstool tales | June 22, 2014 at 11:41 AM
Nice colours in your new blanket.
Posted by: Erendis | June 22, 2014 at 11:27 AM