ⓁⒶⓏⓎⓁⓄⓄⓟⓈ

At the moment, apart from my mornings filled with yoga and meditation, I am enjoying swathes of space to think, write and doodle. I'm going to be working full time when I get to Nepal so this is MY time! A creative bath. I soak in it for as long as I can. It's quite hot and sunny and going outside soon shows me who is boss (the sun of course) so afternoons are nice and cool in my little rooms. I don't even need the fan on much in there, not yet. So I stretch and lounge like a spoiled pet. 

I take my camera on a visit to the kitchen because something smells so good in there. I love Pushpa's kitchen. the reflections in the marble, the fresh vegetables and the soup bubbling away on the stove.

The stove is a two burner calor gas affair on which Pushpa is able to produce vegetarian banquets unlimited and deluxe. The pans to cook with are like little vessels with no handles, there is a multi purpose gripping handle that works with every pot. Quite a neat system I think as it's less washing up and takes up less room. Also less places for grime to hide.

If I keep the bamboo blind up on my balcony the sun pours in and my ever vigilant Pushpa spies an opportunity to dry out her dahl which is easier to churn into powder for the magic that she does.

We take it in turns to follow the sun with the spread paper until it leaves the room.

This would make a great stop motion animation.

Here you can see the shadow of the rope that holds my blind up.

I like looking at it, it reminds me of sailing with my dad.

So these lazy loops are not just what my days are made of, the washing is a 'must do' job. A fragrant heap of yoga wear soon accumulates and a bucket is my washing machine. After navigating the pipe work map that lives in my bathroom I am able to drill into hot water after 11am as the solar panels have been doing their wonderful little job of providing us with free hot water.

And in I go with my Jasmine and Rose washing powder. I love doing my bucket wash, it's just fine. I'm doing stuff by hand and that counts for a lot. I love rinsing and rinsing and the thunderous rattle of water hitting an empty bucket is one of the Official Sounds Of India.

And the joy I know you will share of hanging washing out on a blow dry hot roof with coconut trees keeping my clothes company. As Chocolate Girl rather cleverly puts it 
"a lovely bit of billowage"

It dries in a couple of hours and smells quite a lot like sunshine.

This is of course easy for some of us to take for granted.

The UK is crippled with grey sky for ever at this time of year.

I say thank you thank you thank you. And then scoot back down to my rooms.

And while I am roving this afternoon with my camera I thought I would give you a brief glimpse of my new year's resolution fruit which is to teach myself to embroider. Please don't laugh. I am enjoying it thoroughly. I don't have a manual, I had one from a charity shop at home but left it in a packing disaster zone. I bought one here

"Learn Yourself 121 stitches with Pictorial Guide" 

You couldn't make it up.

but I am having trouble putting faith in a book that calls a needle a neddle.

And I can't understand the diagrams!

So, here's me.
very roughly
stitching a story

and only slightly more successful are my crochet squares which are keeping time with me

and being rather meditative and good company in their own right.

I think I might need a yellow wool to sing out the sunshine song.

This is going to be a blanket made of very happy memories.

I'm not allowed to throw these cut ends away. Apparently they will be useful.

I can't imagine what for but then again, I'm always after a little thing to knot or tie.

Love from me who appreciates all of you who drop by and share my blessed life.

I wish you could all pop round for chai and a spicy curried biscuit. 

Then you could hold my wool while I ball.

⟖ world service ⟗

I am feeling quite excited about being here now. It's taken me a while to adjust and disembark.
But, hey, I am in India and it is, as usual, madly exciting, exhilarating and calm, all in the same moment. I'm well rested, feeling inspired, enjoying my pigeon English conversations and sharing smiles with almost every person I meet. As usual, an overload of colour is causing malfunctions of over stimulation and I am going to share some of my images with you from the last couple of days.


I went to the haberdashery shop as I really want to make something when I am here and when you are in a hot country there is only one thing for it, a blanket...I didn't intend to but I saw the wool and was smitten. I can't even tell you how cheap it was, ridiculous. Pure wool, colourfast (so they say) skeins in the most eye aching colours. I bought a few for 126 rupees (£1.79) and had to wind the skeins into balls, all rather delightfully old fashioned.

Especially if one listens to BBC World service on a crackly radio whilst drinking Twinings Tea! 

(I'm not being paid to advertise on this blog, but get your people to talk to my people if there is a proposition in the pipeline)

Once I'd wound my balls, I had the sweetest afternoon on a sunny veranda listening and hooking and thinking about lucky I was to be able to be alive in that moment. 

But then on my evening walk, the moment just before dusk when it seems as though there is a magic ethereal quality to the sounds and colours of India, a moment when anything seems possible and hopeful and an air of expectancy hangs in the air .....I saw this! Which fired up my wanty engines very much. Crochet garlands anyone? Someone find me a pattern?

But then I bought some embroidery thread and now I've got too many projects in the bag already. I shall have to stay here for a long time using up all my haberdashery. Would you have been able to resist?

And what colour cloth shall I embroider my life story on? It's enough to make a girl lose her decision making capabilities.

It's just as well I've got the gift of yoga to keep me grounded and unimpulsive and focused.

And I am so thankful that I haven't had to handwash all of these clothes. 

Until next time, Namaste and Lots of Love...

♕ queen of shops ♕

I'm back in the rain and grey and gloomy doom. I thought you might have had the decency to have an Indian summer waiting for me but alas only the grey carpeted corridor of Gatwick greeted me and my 20 kilos of luggage. My luggage was packed with my purchases of wool from the haberdashery shop in Turkey.
Knitting and crochet are very popular pastimes in Turkey. It's very hot in the summer but becomes cooler in the winter especially in the mountains. Even in the warm days that I was there I saw older people with woollen hats on and shawls & knitted socks appearing in the shops.
I am teaching myself to crochet and very nice it is too. I am not very accomplished but I am enjoying making little granny squares and it keeps my idle hands busy. So to the wool shop I went to buy some pure Turkish wool for my blanket which I will deem a family heirloom before I have begun.
The shop was divine. The proprietors spoke very little English so I just swooned around them and they didn't mind me taking a few snaps which I knew you would all love to see.
It was a haberdashery heaven...

The wool choice was staggering in colour and grade and it was all so much cheaper than here. Pure 100% wool was 4 Turkish Lira for 100 grams which works out to around £1.70. And the hanks of wool worked out much much cheaper than that. And if you didn't mind an acrylic mix then you would pay a few pence a ball. Not Fair is it? That's the problem with living on an island that isn't self sufficient anymore. Grrr. We should have lots of good value home spun wool. I thought we had loads of sheep?

Check out those colours?

Every type of button you could possibly need?

And reels of ribbons galore...

Zips and...

Trim and lace...

And the sweet couple running the shop bought us Apple Tea on a tray. It's just normal behaviour in Turkey. They don't do that in John Lewis do they?

I'll keep you posted on the crochet blanket...it's my new going out.