I’m writing this wearing a huge wool cardigan and looking at the grey sky through the kitchen window. We arrived back home yesterday afternoon… under the rain… and whilst for a split second the fresh air was welcome after the torrid heat of Italy, the novelty factor soon wore off. We were all kind of …
So… apologies for not being very present around here of late… but we had a wedding! My little sister got married on a very hot Tuscan day and it was fabulous. I should have taken more photos… but I just enjoyed the day and only remembered here and there. The ceremony took place at this …
This morning I practiced one of my favourite things… the art of getting lost… I dropped my brother off to the train station and by 7.30am I was wondering the still empty streets of Arezzo in complete solitude, I had a cappuccino (no chocolate powder on top, don’t be a tourist!) watching pigeons go their pigeon …
Sunday’s ritual. Drive down to the nearest village, Pieve Santo Stefano, built around a very small river Tiber, the one that flows through Rome. It’s been an incredibly dry summer so the water level here is super low. Sunday Mass. which contains one of the famous ceramic works of Giovanni della Robbia . then a …
We’re on the move again. I know, I know… To be fair I love it. I get itchy feet a lot… living out of a suitcase does not bother me in the least. Anyway, we’ve come for the annual visit yes, but my sister is getting married here next week and my parents will be …
I’m reading ‘Underground Railway’ by Colston Whitehead, which is remarkable and chilling, frankly, especially in light of recent events… …will the world ever learn? Caged birds by Maya Angelou A free bird leaps on the back of the wind and floats downstream till the current ends and dips his wing in the orange sun …
Visiting the Festival of Quilts last week has really galvanised the quilting mojo that, let’s be honest, had kind of gone into hibernation mode. I know I moaned about the set up of the festival, but the quilts were great, and I left very inspired, full of renewed enthusiasm and with a big pile of …
After the book was published in 2006, Elizabeth Strout said this: “As a storyteller, I don’t think it’s my job to pass judgment on the people whose lives I imagine and record.” I think it totally sums up her writing. Her amazing capacity to create characters that transcends descriptions because they’re so real and deep …
The American edition. The following quilts all came from across the pond so to speak. I believe they were the best in show, well a selection of… there were a few more but they were displayed in the darkest booth and some of my photos were awful so apologies for the omission. Also – moaning …
The Birmingham International Festival of Quilts is a real summer treat. I’ve been going for years… including one year I was so pregnant everybody was given me worried looks and followed my with a mop and bucket just in case, (In actual fact I wasn’t that close to the due date… I was just humongous). …
while you're ahead... 