At the beach this summer
Posted on October 07 2019
Anyone who was watching the World Cycling Championships, which was based here in Harrogate, will be well aware of the torrential rain we have been enduring the past couple of weeks. It was such a shame to see Yorkshire shrouded in grey but whilst not necessarily good cycling weather, it has been a perfect time to sit in the dry and enjoy knitting warmer garments to get ready for the cooler months ahead.
We have had a really busy summer......at the beginning of June I met up with my group of knitting friends I was introduced to through Patricia Roberts and Les Soeurs Anglaises. In past years we have visited Edinburgh, Harrogate and this summer we travelled to one of the group's home city of Stockholm and had a fabulous trip. Leaving behind a wet and miserable UK we arrived to blue skies and sunshine. Aside from chatting and knitting, we did some sightseeing and thoroughly enjoyed the food especially the lunches of herring, delicious breads and cheeses. I also discovered Swedish cinnamon buns which were very much enjoyed - usually two at a time!
The summer was also spent designing and knitting new garments in our own Puddle yarn with a deadline to have a photo shoot at the end of June/beginning of July latest. Between Alice and I, we came up with a selection of designs which I then had to interpret into patterns - the aim was to keep the knits fairly simply but, at the same time, ensure that they looked stylish when worn. We are currently introducing the knitwear over the month of October via Instagram and uploading the kits to our website and we really hope that you enjoy the results.
The garments can be worn by all age groups which I hope the photos show. For the shoot we used Alice together with Grace and Marthe, her two best friends from school. We wanted to show the garments on young women of different shapes and sizes who were not professional models. We did not manage to shoot all the knitwear in the original timescale so Alice and I went back to Flamborough Head and she took photos of me wearing some of the garments to show our chunky knitwear worn by someone with a different age profile (that is, someone who enjoys Senior Railcard status!).
We were so lucky with the weather on the days of the shoot. It was one of those rare hot sunny days when we lugged all the props and knitwear down the cliff....fortunately, the clouds came over to give perfect weather for photography. Thanks to Carolyn Mendelsohn (photographer) and Lauren Rippin (Make-up Artist) for all their hard work. After 8 trips up and down the cliff I could barely walk the next day but we are delighted with the results. The adage 'no pain, no gain' springs to mind.
Although I have now lived in Yorkshire for nearly 25 years I had not really explored the coastline until Alice decided we should do a seaside fashion shoot. We then spent a couple of days driving along the coast and although there really are some lovely spots, Flamborough Head was perfect for our needs. A great variety of scenery and, most important, a coffee shop at the top of the cliff! If you ever get the chance to be in the area I recommend a visit. We had our dachshund, Puddle, with us and so we stayed at a lovely, dog-friendly B&B in nearby Flixton - the two days were just so busy that we did not have time to relax. However, we hope to return next year and enjoy some lovely walks and sightseeing.
Here are a few preview images from the shoots:
We have had a really busy summer......at the beginning of June I met up with my group of knitting friends I was introduced to through Patricia Roberts and Les Soeurs Anglaises. In past years we have visited Edinburgh, Harrogate and this summer we travelled to one of the group's home city of Stockholm and had a fabulous trip. Leaving behind a wet and miserable UK we arrived to blue skies and sunshine. Aside from chatting and knitting, we did some sightseeing and thoroughly enjoyed the food especially the lunches of herring, delicious breads and cheeses. I also discovered Swedish cinnamon buns which were very much enjoyed - usually two at a time!
The summer was also spent designing and knitting new garments in our own Puddle yarn with a deadline to have a photo shoot at the end of June/beginning of July latest. Between Alice and I, we came up with a selection of designs which I then had to interpret into patterns - the aim was to keep the knits fairly simply but, at the same time, ensure that they looked stylish when worn. We are currently introducing the knitwear over the month of October via Instagram and uploading the kits to our website and we really hope that you enjoy the results.
The garments can be worn by all age groups which I hope the photos show. For the shoot we used Alice together with Grace and Marthe, her two best friends from school. We wanted to show the garments on young women of different shapes and sizes who were not professional models. We did not manage to shoot all the knitwear in the original timescale so Alice and I went back to Flamborough Head and she took photos of me wearing some of the garments to show our chunky knitwear worn by someone with a different age profile (that is, someone who enjoys Senior Railcard status!).
We were so lucky with the weather on the days of the shoot. It was one of those rare hot sunny days when we lugged all the props and knitwear down the cliff....fortunately, the clouds came over to give perfect weather for photography. Thanks to Carolyn Mendelsohn (photographer) and Lauren Rippin (Make-up Artist) for all their hard work. After 8 trips up and down the cliff I could barely walk the next day but we are delighted with the results. The adage 'no pain, no gain' springs to mind.
Although I have now lived in Yorkshire for nearly 25 years I had not really explored the coastline until Alice decided we should do a seaside fashion shoot. We then spent a couple of days driving along the coast and although there really are some lovely spots, Flamborough Head was perfect for our needs. A great variety of scenery and, most important, a coffee shop at the top of the cliff! If you ever get the chance to be in the area I recommend a visit. We had our dachshund, Puddle, with us and so we stayed at a lovely, dog-friendly B&B in nearby Flixton - the two days were just so busy that we did not have time to relax. However, we hope to return next year and enjoy some lovely walks and sightseeing.
Here are a few preview images from the shoots:
Grace wearing Jack-snipe a cropped colour block sweater knitted in Puddle
Sue wearing Kittiwake Cable wrap knitted in Puddle
Alice wearing Oystercatcher V neck sweater with cable sleeves knitted in Puddle
Marthe wearing Pipit ribbed cape knitted in Puddle
We have continued with our Charity Knitting Group and last month moved our sessions to the Granby Care Home in Harrogate so that residents could join us if they wanted to. The group has been incredibly productive making crocheted blankets, knitted hats and scarves for the Harrogate Homeless project; a box of outfits for the premature baby unit at St James's Hospital in Leeds; knitting for Syrian refugees; a couple of packages for "Knit for Nowt' charity and some Twiddlemuffs to help those with dementia.
Thank you to all the lovely ladies who participate to support some wonderful causes. If anyone is in the Harrogate area and would like to join us please check our Charity page on our website for dates and further details. The page also has information and patterns relating to the various causes so if you cannot attend but would like to knit for the charities then please contact us for details.
As I am sitting here writing this, the rain continues to fall. Time to make a cup of tea, put on a box set and start some knitting.........
Thank you to all the lovely ladies who participate to support some wonderful causes. If anyone is in the Harrogate area and would like to join us please check our Charity page on our website for dates and further details. The page also has information and patterns relating to the various causes so if you cannot attend but would like to knit for the charities then please contact us for details.
As I am sitting here writing this, the rain continues to fall. Time to make a cup of tea, put on a box set and start some knitting.........