And Now Autumn

All the Monday feels here today as I'm home from my amazing trip to Morocco and slowly picking back up with normal life once again. I can't say I missed the domestic day-to-day business of tidying, sorting, cleaning, laundry-ing, shopping, cooking, parenting etc etc while I was away, but it's good to be home and back to it all the same.

Morocco was absolutely mind blowing...wOw, what a country!! The whole week was pretty full on, very hot, very busy, unbelievably inspiring, a weeny bit crazy and just way more intense than I could ever have imagined. I'm still processing the whole experience but it really was wonderful and I loved my time there. As you'd expect, I took a lot (a lot-a-lot) of photos and it's going to take me some time to go through them all and order them into a visual story to share with you.

I flew back on Thursday night after a fair bit of travel and airport delays, so by the time I'd made the train journey north from Gatwick to Yorkshire on Friday I was pretty pooped. It was lovely to be home again though, the family made me feel cherished and I know I was very much missed after my ten days away. The kitty on the other hand did not make me feel cherished at all, she was soooo cross with me for being away for so long and gave me the widest of wide berths for two whole days straight. She literally sulked, turned her back on me and refused to let me touch her, it was hilarious! You'll be pleased to hear that I'm no longer an outcast and she is back to shadowing me around the house, so order has been restored.

I have half unpacked my giant pink suitcase and was thrilled to find that the lovely big bowl I bought home with me had survived the journey. Isn't it a beauty? It's a heavy, chunky earthenware bowl, handmade and hand painted by the artisans of Safi (the Moroccan pottery capital) on the Atlantic coast. 

The shopping possibilities in Morocco are out of this world if you value hand crafted things, but the overwhelm and sheer volume of stuff on offer is quite extreme. You'll see what I mean when I share some of my photos with you - I was content to absorb it all through my eyes and take some careful photographs for memory, without the need to bring much of it home with me. Aside from my gorgeous bowl, I bought three other things......

....two sweet little beaded necklaces and a small pot of saffron. I could have gone crazy and bought so much more, it was all so beautiful and appealing and wantable! But I generally tend to only buy one or two very small things on each trip I make, just small souvenirs to keep and treasure. 

I spent the weekend catching up with myself, easing back into domestic life and coming to terms with the change in season.

Yesterday was the Autumn Equinox, so that's it, summer is over for another year and now we are in a new season. J and I went for a walk along the canal and through the woodland and it was green and damp and cool - all the things that Morocco was not - and I felt a rush of appreciation for this little patch of North Yorkshire that I call home.

Nature is already changing her colours for the season and when I went outside to the back street this morning I spotted these gorgeous leaves growing in one of my neglected back yard pots. This is a self seeded wild flower (we call it herb robert, it's part of the geranium family) and I've got plenty of it. I picked three stems and brought them inside.....

....they look very sweet in these little pots, the first little bit of seasonal decorating I've done on my mantel since Christmas. Yes, Christmas. This year has been a very strange one for me and I realise looking back over the past nine months that I haven't been myself at all, and have felt quite lost for much of 2024.

Take this bunch of flowers on my table for example......I bought them for myself on Saturday, a cheap £3 bunch from the supermarket and oh my, they are bringing me SO much happiness!! But they did make me realise that I cannot remember the last time I bought myself flowers, (and this has been a long standing weekly habit of mine) - another sign that I have been in quite a low place in my soul for a while. In fact, I just looked back at my photo archives and the last jug of flowers that I photographed was 10th April...five months ago. What??!!! 

I'm not going to dwell on all this, but please do know that I am really feeling good at the moment, with good energy and a happy soul, and my creativity is simmering and bubbling again, so all is well with me it seems. 

I rested quite a bit at the weekend, I've been sleeping very well lately but travelling does tend to make me extra weary. Sofa time with an abundance of blankets (we should think up a good collective noun for crochet blankets - a cuddle of blankets?) and some peppermint tea...note the absence of the kitty, she was still giving me the huff treatment at this point.

I managed one row of knitting yesterday (just the one) but I took a photo to show you the colours. Aren't they lush? I'm knitting a pair of socks using this stunning yarn which I bought from a little yarn shop in Leeds in the springtime. It struck me how similar the colours are in the sock yarn and the Flowerpress blanket, they're in perfect harmony with each other. At the time I bought the sock yarn I had just finished making the 16 Flowerpress flowers, so I was obviously deeply in that soft colour zone, matching my projects without even realising.

The yarn (if you are interested) is a German brand called Schoppel, and this is their popular Crazy Zauberball range. There are fifty colourways to choose from, and it's called "crazy" because the colour changes are quite random in each ball so that no two socks will ever be the same (no matching pairs). You can find it online, Wool Warehouse have a good stock of the colours so you can swoon a little at all the colourful possibilities......! My colourway is number 2355 : "gartenparty"

Speaking of Wool Warehouse, they have Flowerpress blanket kits back in stock after the super speedy first sell out and they continue to be shipped out all over the world. Even after 10+ years I still have to pinch myself at the reality of my wonderful partnership with WW, I am so thankful I get to work with them and do this creative crochet thing for you. Feeling very grateful for my life right now.

I'll be finishing up the Flowerpress photo tutorial in the next few days, so hopefully that'll be ready to publish online on Wednesday for you. If you are currently immersed in the pleasure of these squares and this delicious yarn, I hope it's giving you all the good feels? And if you are waiting for the photos to help you along the way, thank you so much for being patient while I zoomed off to Morocco....you're in for a treat with this sweet pattern. It's such a joy.

Thanks as always for visiting and keeping up with my stories, I am very happy to still be here after all these years.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

 

 

Comments

[G78UDY]

Fixs

[CJ]

So glad you enjoyed Morocco. I cycled there once many years ago and loved it. Glad that you are bubbling with creative energy as well, that is such a good feeling. Bertie (our cockapoo) pretended he couldn't see my eldest when he first came back from university. He didn't actively walk away, but he just wouldn't look at him. And any day now, number 2 son will depart. Sniff. CJ xx

[Jeanette]

Maybe these soft colors are a sign of how you were feeling the past year? Very pleased that you are feeling better now again.

[Winkwonk]

Reading this post with my Harbour blanket (in Springfrost colours) over my lap :) Beauuuutiful cat, I'm glad she has finally forgiven you!

[Dawn]

Welcome back home! In the cat picture, in the background I see what looks like the blanket I am crocheting. I'm in New Zealand and winter is finishing but hopefully I will have it complete by next winter. 😊

[Beverley]

Glad you had such a good time in Morocco and I love the bowl you bought. We don't bring back much from our holidays abroad but I do like a wall plate as a small reminder of where we have been over the years.

[Fiona Smith]

I love the 'flower press' blanket so much. The colours are gorgeous and the yarn is a joy to work with. I'm looking forward to seeing it all gradually coming together. The perfect cosy project for cosy Autumn evenings 🍂🍁

[Louise]

I'm looking forward to your Morocco photos! Unlike you, I tend to buy ALL THE THINGS when I go overseas. The one thing I wish I bought more of on my last trip was cloudberry jam from Sweden and Finland. It's heavenly! Lovely sock and blanket colours! Just gorgeous!!

[Sandra]

I love all seasons for different reasons. We are so lucky here in the UK. Some people make all shades and tones of brown or golds an art form on their youtube channels and create so much beauty in their crafting or photography, or just their homes. They are all so warm and inviting in autumnal colours. I wouldn't care if pumpkins vanished though along with all the frenzy they seem to gather around them. Autumn is about apples, and pears and soups and gathering in all the fruits of the harvest and being thankful.

So no pumpkin spice lattes here, but lots of apple crumble and stewed plums. I love the damp autumn smells and the soggy leaves (more than the crisp ones); also the scampering squirrels and the fallen seed pods from trees. A wonderful time of year. Harder to keep cosy though, with heating costs so high, so what a relief hot water bottles and duvets are!

[Claire]

So great to hear you're refreshed and rejuvenated from your trip.
Yes very much looking forward to your photo tutorial..there's another baby born and another blanket to make🥰

[Geeha]

So glad to see that you're able to get back to the little things that make life more enjoyable. I'm sure your family notice the difference and are delighted to see you recovering a little from this difficult year. Aged 18 I left my beloved tabby cat to go to college. I didn't return until Christmas and she pointedly ignored me, despite all my trials with food and stroking, having transferred her devotion to my mother. I returned to college a fortnight later never recovering her affection.

[Michelle Gladwish]

Good to see you are feeling brighter. My 2 kitties do exactly the same if I go away - they are so funny.
Hope you will be in Coopers on Friday as myself and Kath are coming up for Yarndale. I'd love to buy you a coffee x

[Kathryn Collyer]

I lived in Rabat, Morocco for two years as my husband worked at the British Embassy from 2003 to 2005. The sights, sounds and colours in the Medina's are so inspiring for artists and crafters. I look forward to seeing your latest project using Moroccan colours.

[Kristine S]

Love your terminology... so many "wantable" things... TOTALLY agree. And I brought some of them back!
I believe it should be a SNUGGLE of blankets - cuddle is what the cat does, snuggle is what we do ENCLOSED in blankets‼️❣️‼️
Loved seeing you again - thank you for the usual much needed dose of colour, calmness & crochet xxxx k

[Bettina]

Perhaps a "snuggle of blankets" ? 😀

[Donna]

So glad you are back and feeling yourself again. Love a "cuddle of blankets" It's perfect. And thank you for your blog, it is such a joy!

[Dawn]

A “Cuddle of blankets” sounds perfect.

[Winwick Mum]

It's lovely to see you home again and feeling like your usual self. We have that plant in our garden too - I never knew what it was called but it smells awful (to me) and I pull it up as soon as I see it! :) Hope you've topped up your sunshine tanks enough for the change in season! xx

[Laura]

Lucy: I LOVE your blog!!!

[Pam Buckley]

Hi Lucy, Glad you enjoyed your retreat,it's nice your back ,I've been waiting patiently for your return, just to see if I could follow your pattern,for flower press blanket, I've bought most of your blanket patterns,but unfortunately not finished any of them,I have lots of wool as you can imagine,you can through yourself into crochet it's a tonic especially,when you've been through cancer and a parent having end of life care with demention, it's so heart wrenching to watch , Best wishes

[Willow]

Poor kitty was sad while you were gone, 10 days is a long time in a little cat's life, and how would she know you were ever coming back? She missed you!

[Cathy Tucker]

Xxx

[Glenda]

Your pictures are always beautiful, glad you are feeling much better and I am very happy you are doing video tutorials as it helps me soooo much xxx

[Deb Peet]

It's nice to read your blogs again and see your pics .I'm on square 11 of the Flowerpress blanket using Yarnsmiths create DK. I'm really loving the shades together & getting a very vintage feel while making this blanket.

[Janis]

Welcome back I looked up yorkshire on internet beautiful. I am from Minnesota usa.U ARE so talented i wish I could crochet and knit like u. Love your blog.