Autumn Chill

Those Cold Mornings Approaching

   The last week has produced some less than perfect weather for late summer to say the least, the early morning chill as certainly returned and autumn is pushing our last summer days southwards planting seeds in our minds of cold dark mornings and those wet wild November evenings when the smell of bonfires fill the air and families sit down to thick belly warming winter stew and dumplins.
   I've been starting work at first light most mornings as sleep and me don't seem to be mates at the moment, I guess like most of us I get periods when I long for a good nights sleep yet wake early with my head full of ideas and worries, but they pass and I'll sleep when my body tells me to.
   With those winds that we had the last few days came the warning of getting the barn roof ready to face another long cold winter. I went up to take a look and found I need to sort out a new layer of felt before the bad weather gets here, most years I do this as the barn is so important to us and if we leave it unprotected against the wet weather then rot can set in leading to the roof boards being replaced, not a job I need or could afford. With things being as bad as they are here at the moment the last thing we need is a major payout like roofing boards so a few rolls of felt is well worth saving for and if it means another week without food shopping then so be it. To be honest I enjoy doing things like the barn roof as I know it means a further year or two safe from the eliments, it means our little haven where we sit warm through the snow will be there again this year.

   With autumn in mind I've been working with some rich orange and rusty colours this week with some producing a few nice rustic looking bead sets that I listed in my etsy shop www.etsy.com/shop/pebbledreams plus some nice little disc beads that I thought would be a nice addition. I know people who adore these colours and I can see why, I don't think any other colours represent our English countryside better, as kids I think we all remember those mornings walking to school kicking mountains of autumn leaves that covered every footpath, I remember the local lanes around our village always seemed to have a carpet of orange leaf and when you walked down them it felt soft under foot, every tree seemed to give up their golden jewellery just for us to enjoy weekend walks.
   This weekend is booked for ceramic ideas, my note book is full of sketches to try and bring to life, shapes and textures that I want to try on beads and pendants but also other items away from beads, just a few small ideas I've been playing with and with Christmas just a few months away maybe some will make nice presants. With the long hours I've been putting in on my lampwork I think I need some time out and what better way than to relax playing with clay, a whole two days getting dirty, footie on the radio, peppermint tea and a window looking out across the fields behind us, my idea of the perfect weekend !