Autumn Rhythm

We're kind of almost back into the swing of things here (bar builders and electricians and plumbers popping back in to fix something or other and fit the new timer for the heating and patch up the landing floor and so on). Funny how quickly we can slip back into our old normal, and how it has clicked for the children.

I have one planned activity for each day, a craft I'd like to try or a daily-rhythm activity. Mondays that's either a trip to the Library or, if the children don't want to go that day, a new story to tell. Tuesdays it's handwork, so usually some kind of craft I have planned (sometimes a choice of a couple of things). Wednesdays are wash days, so either a fibre-related handwork project or just helping sort laundry (I love, now, that two of them can reach to hang their own clothes!). Thursday is our baking day, so bread, and sometimes cake or something else sweet. Friday is our painting day, and cleaning/decorating for the Sabbath.

Today the main thing I had planned was to go to the park on our morning walk to collect hawthorn to dye some yarn for a special project. :) We found literally tons of elderberries again, so had to bring a lot back to make jelly with...

...though of course we ate some fresh right off the bush as well!

On the walk back we found gorgeous leaves. Morgan made a fairy garden in a puddle.

I made a garland for the newly-Autumnal Season Table.

Here is the wool in the dye bath!

(For the interested yarnies, we had broken hawthorn twigs with leaves and haws and all into smallish pieces, soaked them for a couple of hours (meant to do this longer but was impatient), then boiled them in a pot for about twenty minutes (maybe more, I didn't time it, but it had reduced a LOT). We strained the yucky brown plant bits out, and added alum to mordant (about 2tbsp to I reckon about a litre of fluid), before putting our pre-soaked skein of yarn in the pot. We heated it *very gently* for about twenty minutes, taking it off the heat any time it started to bubble, and left it until completely stone cold to rinse. It's a lovely pale warm yellow, I hope the colour stays lightfast!)