Grow Colour, Dye, Spin, Weave, Handknit.

                                                              Our Garden in Summer.


The end of 2019 already, my that was a fast year! Got a lot done, but still have so much more to do. Wintertime is always a bit of a struggle for me, cold, grey days wet, windy not my idea of fun. But I understand that Nature needs to rest and nourish herself to come back strong and fit.
 I love sunny warm days, blue skies and a happy sailing breeze. I look forward to the days getting longer and lighter.

However the winter days mean;
 I can start to plan next year's garden.
 I can get spinning the fleeces into skeins of gorgeous woolliness in preparation for natural dyeing from my garden plants.
I can sit at my looms weaving in colour, texture and joy to my cloth.
I can sit in front of a roaring fire knitting next year's stock of handwarmers, cowl and socks.

So as this year comes to an end and we start a new decade, I hope you will pop in and enjoy reading my blog. I will be updating its look, so please bear with me.

2020 will be exciting, I have plenty of posts to share.

A big thank you to all our customers, thank you for making Woollen Tree grow from strength to strength.
Wishing you all a Happy Healthy New Year!

Our Annual Craft Show At Quarr Abbey

We will be attending our annual craft show at Quarr Abbey. 

We open next Thursday 5th December and run to Tuesday 17th December.

Our online shops will be open every evening from 5.00pm GMT throughout this time.

Upcoming Events

Our annual Christmas Crafts at Quarr Abbey Event will be

 on Thursday 22nd to Tuesday 27th November. Open daily 10.30am to 4.00pm.

Hope to see you there!

AND

This year for those of you not on the Isle of Wight we are also offering some special prices on selected items in our Etsy shop in "Cyber week on Etsy" from 20th to 26th November.

Just click on our link to our Woollen Tree shop.

Time To Grow

 March has been a time to get things started. A time to grow. Here is a photo of a woad plant I have left to grow on and hopefully produce seeds for my next year's stock. The photo below shows my woad seed collected from last year's plants. (Woad is biennial)

 I planted some in seed trays in the greenhouse and some direct in the ground under a cloche, as you can see in just a week the ones in the greenhouse have grown into tiny seedlings! the hope and promise of wonderful homegrown natural blue dye for my wool this year.

 While things grow, Skipper and I decided to spend a few days in Devon and enjoy the spring weather, fresh air and beautiful scenery.
A time to relax and be inspired, grow and nurture our own ideas for this year's projects.
 We visited  Arts and Craft centres and explored Dartmoor, walked up to Haytor and did some coastal hopping all along the South coast on our way home -Teignmouth, Exmouth, Sidmouth, Bridport and West Bay.

HAYTOR

 While in Bovey Tracey I made sure my stash this year continues to grow too! I called in at
Spin A Yarn

http://www.spinayarndevon.co.uk/

and treated myself to a gorgeous collection of roving and various yummy yarns.

 Then for my hand painted yarn and dyeing projects I bought a steamer and a good selection of tools to go with it.

I aim to grow my knowledge and experience, develop my skills in producing more of my own yarns, hand spun, hand dyed, hand knitted and hand woven.

Do Visit- Wayside Herbs

Beach at Shepherd's Chine- south coast of the Isle of Wight

Just  a short walk from the beach, Up Chine Lane is a new place to visit.

Wayside Herbs

Do pop over to the website to find out more.

http://waysideherbs.co.uk/

Newly opened it offers a wonderful traditional herb garden which is just beginning to burst into life. Full of plants and herbs. Also a border with plants grown for the making of natural dyes for wool and textile use, which I'm really looking forward to watching it grow and learning more about.

There are plenty of herbs and plants for sale , organically home grown. The perfect way to stock my own garden, particularly as there is range of different herbs not readily available elsewhere.

There is a Woolshed which houses a good display. Several spinning wheels, looms, and spinning and weaving equipment are shown in use with various textiles for you to admire.

Make your own pot- pourri with the natural ingredients  from the garden, walk the children's quiz and learn more about the history of textiles. 

There is a delightful little shop which sell all things handmade by local crafts people.

Here you can purchase some of my own  hand knitted and hand woven pieces- Sue Wright Handknits

So when you are next on the Island or live here and are wanting a new place to explore, Wayside Herbs is a rural small business with rustic charm and a very warm welcome.