The first knitting retreat for 2015 has just ended and a lovely week was had by all with lots of sunshine, laughter and a bit of knitting!
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| knitting in the studio |
Culli is away for 3 weeks so I missed my 'front of house' man, but everything went well. Guests Sue KS and Purl are on their 3rd visit to La Verderie with friends Veronica (on her 2nd visit) and Sue P on her first visit here, so it is a gentle start to the season for me.
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| he looks so innocent |
Buddy is being his usual naughty self, so far he seems to be targetting Sue KS, everything in her knitting bag seems destined for his mouth.
On Monday we had a quiet day at home, sitting knitting in glorious sunshine in the morning and opting for the cool shade of the studio in the afternoon.
Projects on the go are - Sue KS is knitting a triangular shawl in Manos silk blend, kid silk haze and alpaca lace, Veronica is knitting a top down cardi in a lovely soft tweedy blue yarn from
Shilasdair in their Highland Inspirations range and is also knitting a couple of rows of a lace shawl in bed every morning with her early morning cuppa when nobody is talking to her! Sue P is knitting a lovely little boys cardigan in Cygnet DK and Purl is knitting a short
sleeved cardigan from the Frost Collection by Sarah Hatton and I have pinched a pattern from this book to knit a lovely loose sleeved
shrug but as I wanted to start straight away (of course) have used a summer yarn - Rivage by Plassard.
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| the Roman amphitheatre in Saintes |
On Tuesday we went in to Saintes in the morning for a visit to l'Oasis, the big fabric and yarn shop. Veronica and Sue bought between them fabric, yarn and buttons and I bought the Plassard yarn for my shrug. Then on to the Roman amphitheatre for a bit of sight-seeing and a coffee.
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| cowslips in the woods |
Back home for more knitting (and a bit of un-ravelling), then a dog walk through the shady woods.
On Wednesday we went to St Jean d'Angely for a wander around the market, where the girl's bought me a lovely summer top and I bought fresh fish and seafood for supper, then a visit to the yarn shop, dress shop and kitchen shop, followed by coffee in the square and back home for lunch.
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| shopping in the market |
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| window shopping |
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| coffee in the square |
On Thursday we had a morning of knitting then drove down to Royan in time for lunch in the marina, savoury galettes followed by ice cream.
Then a walk around the town, starting with the amazing cathedral de Notre Dame, which was sadly closed for renovation so we couldn't show Sue P the stunning stained glass windows, but here is a little glimpse of them -
Onwards around the shops, buying magazines at the Papeterie, lots of window shopping and of course the wonderful yarn shop
Bleu Framboise, where I managed to knock a whole tray of beads on the floor with my bag - the sort of customer I always used to hate! However, we made her day with a few sales. A quick dip into the sweet shop for gifts and then back home for champagne to celebrate Purl's 50th birthday on Sunday and tagine cooked on the windowsill followed by creamy croissant pudding.
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| Bleu Framboise |
On Friday morning there was time for a bit more knitting, birthday cake for Purl before an early lunch and then off to Bordeaux for their flight home.
