Crisp Autumn Day and a little Creativity

My system had a bit of a shock this morning when I had to get up early, for me, and accompany my DH to a local village where he was selling (he hoped) his photocards at a Craft Fair.  We woke to a frosty but sunny start and I soon found consolation in the early start by exploring the village while DH set up.

The village is Barkston (also known as Barkston-le-Willows), on the A607 just a few miles north east of Grantham and is mentioned in the Domesday Book when it was known as Barchestune.  The village sign makes reference to its history of having four mills (it sits on the River Witham) and to the close proximity of Barkston Heath which is an RAF station involved in pilot training.  There are many deer in the area as it is close to the Belton Estate where deer roam free.  Barkston has a further claim to fame through its connection with Stan Laurel whose father is buried in the local churchyard.  I believe the village pub was once run by Stan Laurel's aunt.

The paths were littered with piles of frosty leaves in varying shapes and sizes.

Walking round to the church the light was beautiful,

I would have liked to have explored the churchyard but sadly couldn't manoevre the gate open.

Walking a little further and greeting one or two dog walkers who were taking an early stroll I came to a newly ploughed field and found some interesting stitching potential.

 These are not the strongest of marks as the furrows are fairly shallow but they have design potential.

This is the view looking back to the church along the field edge.

 I wouldn't wish to be this tall but it's a good indicator of the angle of the sun.

Wandering back to the main road I came across this young lady (I think) who was very interested in me,

and venturing down a lane I found a beautiful distressed door.

You probably need to click on it to see the lovely paint swirls.

By the time I got back to the village hall DH had finished setting up and the fair was about to open.  We had a very pleasant day with a few sales and met quite a few people we hadn't seen for some time and to top it all off we won a hamper of Christmas foodie goodies in the raffle. Yum!

There has been some creativity going on here this week.  

This angel is about 9" tall and is made very simple of three separate parts.  You can make it from old quilt blocks and they are sometimes made from 'cutter quilts' (old damaged quilts).  I'm making another one in a smaller size too. The idea is very versatile as you could make them as fancy or as plain as you wish and add beads, buttons, lace, whatever to trim.  Think also of using vintage linens to make these little angels.  I have been busy on another small project too but as it concerns an article written by a friend, that will be appearing in an issue of Stitch magazine next year, I think I will have to wait to show you what I've made.  Sorry!