October is... squashes of all shapes and sizes, leaves turning golden and falling in clumps, winds that nip your ears, the end of harvest season, and a time for bonfires.
 

Did you know? Apple Day is nearly upon us! Celebrate this humble fruit on October 21st by attending a celebration, or get creative and make an autumnal display using seasonal fruit and other finds.
 

Dates for your diary: October 31st isn't just Halloween; it's also the ancient festival of Samhain. Check back later in the month for Sarah P's post on how to keep this celebration, or grab a copy of the magazine to read Sarah H's take on the day.
 

Things to do at home and in the garden:

• Bring out the blankets and stock up the logs ready for those colder nights.
• Make seasonal displays with foraged autumn finds. 
• Try out this homemade cider recipe - it's so easy and you can make as much or as little as you like!

Be creative:

Have a go at foraging and then with your bounty make a simple hawthorn berry jelly.

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It's finally (and officially) here. One of the four Solar Festivals, Mabon marks the move into autumn according to the Wheel of the Year. An equinox is technically an astronomical point, and as such the precise date can alter each year, though the autumn equinox typically falls between September 21st - 24th. The date represents a moment of equilibrium, as the day and night are of equal duration, and as such the concept of balance is key.  We are in the middle of harvest, and it is a time to finalise late summer tasks before moving forward into the colder months. 

In her book Sacred Earth Celebrations, Glennie Kindred suggests the following ways of celebrating the festival:

• Plan to get out and about and experience the Equinox on the day whatever the weather.

• Gather with friends and family for a bring-and-share feast. Ask everyone to bring food and drink that reflects the season. Decorate the tables with vases of flowers, fruit, nuts and autumn leaves. Light candles with a dedication and thanks for the harvest of the year.

• Thanksgiving and balance are the twin themes of the Autumn Equinox. Seek to take the harvest you have gained in the outer world and integrate it with the turning within, to help bring clarity to the way ahead as the season changes from autumn to winter.

• Have some baskets of yarns, seeds, shells, string, sticks, fir cones, feathers, dried grasses, dried flowers, ribbons, threads, needles, scissors. Ask everyone to bring something and then sit together, weave, thread, bind, create something that reflects the abundance of the moment. It may be a necklace to wear, a headdress, an autumn posy to hang up, a special wand or totem. As you make it, think positively about what you are harvesting and how you can use this for your greater good and the greater good of the Earth.

• Reflect on the gains and losses of the year. Give thanks for the outer expansion and what has been possible. Look at what is no longer needed, and what it is time to let go of with thanks and blessings, as you release the past.

• Share with each other the seeds of your harvest that you take with you into the next cycle. Count your blessings. Celebrate your abundance.

• Plant some native bulbs or tree seeds in pots to place outside. Plant your own inner seeds with them. Focus on your hopes, ideas, and intentions for the spring and your allegiance to the Earth. Plant some of the fruit, nuts, seeds and berries you have gathered for the Autumn Equinox, label them, leave them outside without saucers underneath, and see what comes up in the spring.

Double sycamore seed pendant, £85

18ct gold budded twig and diamond ring, £2200

Slim oak leaf ring, silver, £75

Lucy's love of the British countryside started as a child, her pockets often filled with seed heads and feathers. Her love of the natural world and collecting has continued, her woodland finds are now displayed in her Oxfordshire studio, hanging from the walls and stored in old science jars.

Lucy believes you cannot compete with the beauty of nature, its perfect lines and textures, so uses it as directly as possible. Taking moulds from her delicate finds, she casts into the cavity they leave, allowing her to create exact replicas of life in solid silver and gold that retain the finest details.

"These natural forms with beautiful textures would decay into the ground and be gone forever, with direct casting from them I've created something that will now be here forever, to be worn for a life time."

Lucy's newest work concentrates on engagement rings and wedding bands, simple lines from cow parsley stems, rye grass, lichen, leaves, twigs and seed heads wrap around to create rings, the fragile veins and stems clearly visible as the designs overlap to create a collection of fine botanical wedding jewellery, all cast from British countryside plants with a scattering of diamonds.

The Great British stag beetle, bees and hawk moths have all been given a new life in solid silver and gold by the nature loving jeweller, her Hawk moth ring was chosen by costume designer Michele Clapton to be worn by Sansa Stark in the hit medieval TV series Game of Thrones.

Since completing her MA at The School of Jewellery in Birmingham, Lucy has exhibited her work around the world, been published in many books and magazines, and most recently exhibited at London's prestigious Chelsea Flower Show.

"My work is evolving all the time, as the seasons change, the inspiration is new once more."

www.lucysylvester.com

Today Head Chef at Colwall Park Hotel shares his foraging tips and a simple hawthorn berry jelly recipe. Don't forget you can win a 1 night stay for 2 (including dinner and breakfast) at the hotel if you select our Seasonal Package for the magazine crowdfunding campaign (which has already reached its first target!). You'll also receive a recycled check blanket, organic apple and cinnamon tea, organic dark chocolate, and a copy of the magazine (but be quick - the campaign ends on Wednesday 6th!).

Foraging is exciting and very rewarding but can be very dangerous if done without doing your research. I am still a novice but find information through books and websites like foragedfoods.co.uk.

There is great produce to be found and don’t forget it’s free!

During the coming months I will be looking for produce in the local fields, hedgerows and not forgetting the Malvern Hills, bring the bounty back to Colwall adding some culinary twists and creating some flavoursome dishes.

As the nights are shorter nature’s larder becomes less bountiful but there is produce out there.

Hawthorn Berries

Hawthorn berries are best picked when they are most ripe, which usually means any time from now until the beginning of November. Hawthorns are dense and, unsurprisingly, thorny. The berries are red and fairly similar to rosehips in appearance. Foraging the berries can be time consuming as they often bring with them lots of stem when picked which need to be removed; however, the rewards can be delectable.

Simple Hawthorn Berry Jelly

• Pick 700g of hawthorn berries.
• Remove the stalks and wash, then drain.
• Put the berries into a saucepan, cover with 850ml of water.
• Bring to the boil and simmer for 1 hour then mash up the berries.
• Strain the mixture overnight using a muslin cloth - this will keep the jelly clear, but do not squeeze just let the juice drip.
• For every 550ml of juice you measure out you will need 450g of sugar.
• Squeeze the juice of 1 lemon.
• Mix the sugar and lemon juice into a saucepan along with the hawthorn juice. Bring the mixture to the boil, stirring continuously until the sugar has dissolved.
• Now rapid boil for 10 minutes until the jelly has reached setting point. The setting point is normally around 105 degrees, you can carefully spoon a little mix onto a cool plate, leave for a moment then push with your finger to see if it crinkles or is set.
• Skim off any foam from the top of the liquid, and pour into sterilised, warm jars and screw on the lids.

Tip: This jelly goes great with cheese!

In today's tree story, Steffany shares her ode to and love for the scent of Jefferson Pines. If you want to take part in this mini-series, head back to the original post for more details.

My tree-loving soul was born on the breeze floating through Jefferson Pines, living in southern California at a little less than 7,000 feet above sea level. A new job in California took me far from the midwest, where I grew up near flat farmlands, where trees were planted as windbreaks, for apple harvests in the fall, or for barriers between houses. I had never experienced native trees, planted where their seeds fell due to wind and wildlife and able to grow to heights well beyond 100 feet. When I exited the van which had driven me to my new job, my first thought was how dark the area seemed despite the morning hour.

As I looked up, I stood in awe. Shrouded in shade I stood below the tallest pine trees I had ever seen, their rich red/brown bark looked like puzzle pieces and their crowns the most beautiful shade of blue-green needles. Their pine cones littered the ground and were the size of cantaloupes and small watermelons, missiles I would learn to dodge when hearing them crash through the branches on their way to the ground.

The trees' height and locations formed a sanctuary - the trunks were the walls, the ceiling was their branches offering small glimpses of the sky, and the floor, a wondrous, crunchy brown carpet made of fallen needles.

I stood and let the southern California breeze wash over me. I inhaled the scent of the dead needles, burning them into my memory and smelled... vanilla? Butterscotch? What was that?

“Smell the tree,” someone said. Hesitant but curious, I walked to the nearest tree, gently moved my nose close to her mosaic bark and smelled. My eyes were closed and it was vanilla, the scent of my childhood, the essence of cookies and sweetness and warmth and familiar and love. I was over 1,800 miles from home and yet…I opened my eyes.

“Wow,” was all I could manage.

“Jefferson pines, that’s how you tell…you smell their bark,” the person said and smiled.

Back home as a child I would climb the trees in my backyard, would rake the vibrant yellow and orange and red leaves in fall for money, and watch cedar waxwings eat the berries from trees. As an adult, I spent the next nine months living in and among the Jefferson Pines, gathering her pinecones, standing at the edges of her walls to view the San Jacinto mountain peaks we would hike and climb, sleeping underneath her protective arms, and watching as walls of them burned in a local forest fire. As a child, trees were a part of my world. As an adult, these Jefferson Pines were my world. I was forever changed, my view of trees moving from one of utility to one of admiration.

A few years ago I was in Colorado, near Pikes Peak and as I exited the car, the familiar scent of dead pine needles took me back twenty years, to my lost soul, so unsure of my future, right out of college with no plans and a temporary job in southern California. I walked to the nearest tree, laid my arms around her trunk, leaned close and inhaled. The lack of a vanilla scent was disappointing at first. I knew it would be a long shot as Jefferson Pines seem to grow mainly along the western coast of the United States, but I had to try. I stepped back, the crunching under foot familiar, looked up into the spire of needles above, saw snippets of blue sky through the small windows of adjacent branches and inhaled a familiar peace. I sat down in her shade, picked up the small pine cones scattered about and remembered.

My love for trees was born on the breeze of Jefferson Pines. Before her, a tree was a tree was a tree. After her, a tree was a maple or blue spruce, a weeping willow or a crab-apple, a home for bluebirds to raise their young and squirrels to find shelter and doves to build their nests, where bluejays chased sparrows in their quest for food, where tire swings are hung for my children and joy is found among the branches of our Maples, where curiosity is aroused, where respite beckons me, and where my soul breathes and finds peace.

Steffany Cartellone is an explorer of nature, relishing the things she sees on her daily walks with her kids. She is currently sitting outside on a cool summer morning, sipping hot coffee and watching a mother bluejay teaching her young how to find bugs and seeds. For her, life doesn’t get much better than these moments. Her blog, thoughts about intentional living, can be found at a-snails-pace.com and her first novel, she hopes, will be published in 2018.

Today we're featuring the poetry of Lizzie Parsons, an English Literature with Creative Writing graduate currently working for Wild Learning. She has also written for New Nature magazine (which you should definitely check out if you aren't already a reader - latest issue here), amongst other publications. Find her on twitter here.

Out here

with a smile it is like paradise – my

tomato hot house smells amazing, like

those silly sparkly gems I was writing

about inside. Out here

it is so green, and as you walk

up the outside steps the temperature

rises and the smell of warm summer floral

air hits your nose. The sun sends

down its rays to land on my face,

the air is warm,

imagine water and the woods, sweat

trickling down the inside of my

t-shirt.

As I walk

into this space I see damselflies

scattering in the sunlit air,

flies and butterflies.

I see

buttercups and clovers, purple vetch,

and my floating favourites, the

dandelion seeds.

Today the lovely Amelia shares her tree story. If you want to take part in this mini-series, head back to the original post for more details.

Trees. How different the undulating landscape of Hampshire would look without their majestic, towering presence upon the backdrop of the countryside. There is a source of life that exists beside our own, living within the branches and even inside the bark of the tree itself. Birds call them home. Insects their habitat. Wildlife, their shelter and food supply.

But as for us, what do trees really bring to us other than natural beauty and the oxygen that creates our atmosphere? What is it about this giant of the countryside that inspires, welcomes, restores and beckons adventure?

There is one tree which stands, noticeably, a short distance from the meadow river bank. Its leaves dance like bunting hanging from ribbon at a country party, and its stooping, arched branches hang low, creating a tunnel to walk through. A canopy, imploring you to wander beneath it and venture to the river beyond, for a paddle. The wedding arch, as it is fondly known, seems to bloom and grow more captivating each spring and summer. It has been the site of picnics with hay bales to perch on, photographs to capture the little joys of summer moments, and a resting spot offering shade and comfort from raging weather, be it heat or rainstorms. It has also been the signature mark of the changing seasons and in its quiet, welcoming way has offered its sweeping canopy as a place to stand awhile and simply think.

If you look back from the meadow gate, your eyes fall to this peculiar shaped tree, with its unkempt edges and rustic charm. How can one tree grow to mean so much within a place? How can its presence be something you look forward to greeting each day? Without it, would the river still look so pleasing to investigate and explore? Would the meadow feel a little forlorn?

Maybe, in a world where change is upon us every day, the landscape and its historical landmark of trees, offers us a sense of comfort. To withstand a storm and each changing season, to remain steadfast amidst our fast paced life. The tree does not go anywhere but literally remains grounded and rooted to its spot, seeing life move around us, as if it were watching a slideshow through the times. Trees were here long before us and will remain long after we're gone. They exist beside us and even if they are brought down, their stump still sits in remembrance of what once was. I'm not sure how long our faithful wedding arch has graced the meadow. When it was planted, who planted it, how it came to be, remains a mystery. It has flourished in its place beside the river for all to see, and all marvel at its beautiful shape and stooping branches. There is something so good and worthwhile here. Instinctively, you just feel it.

To some it may look like just any other tree, but to me, it is a significant focus of nature's beauty in our ever changing meadow. The wildflowers fade away, the grass is lost in the winter months ahead, yet despite the departure of its leaves, our radiant wedding arch prevails. Unmoved. Its shape unchanged. Simply present in its secure place beside the river bank. I wonder how many people and animals alike have taken shelter beneath it. I wonder if they felt as grateful for its presence as I do.

Our old and wise Hazel tree, thank you for being there.

Eating seasonally is something that I've written about many times before, and I have been advocating this way of cooking for many years. So when I come across businesses that have similar values, it's lovely to be able to share them with others. The chefs at Colwall Park Hotel and The Malvern in Worcestershire not only choose seasonal products, they go one step further and choose to forage for ingredients in the local area. Keep an eye out in the journal over the next few weeks as we'll be featuring a recipe for honey roasted chestnuts, and hawthorn berry jelly. In the mean time, Head Chef Steve Rimmer shares a bit more about the ethos behind his food choices...

At The Malvern restaurant we create a lot of our dishes based on seasonal products, not only is it economical but eating seasonally has health benefits too; foods in season contain the nutrients, minerals and trace elements that our bodies need at particular times of year. For example we will use Worcester wild garlic & asparagus between March and May when it’s just come into season and is at its peak, whilst the Herefordshire berries are very delicious from July to October.

When we come to seasons my favourites have to be Autumn and Winter. This is the time of year I like cooking heartier food such as slow cooked blade of Herefordshire beef with balsamic shallots, roast root vegetables and a rich red wine sauce. The Autumn Winter vegetables such as parsnips, sweet potatoes, and butternut squash are great and go well as purées with fish, meat and vegetarian dishes. You will always find beetroot on the menu as that’s one of my favourite ingredients to use and I love to put it with goats cheese. Give it a go this season!

If you'd like the chance to experience seasonal food at its finest, the lovely folk at Colwall Park are offering you the chance to win a 1 night stay including dinner and breakfast for 2 people. The Malvern Hills surrounding the hotel provide the perfect opportunity to wander in the countryside and escape the norm for a short time. And if you're worried about leaving your four-legged friend at home there's no need - the hotel is dog friendly, with a 'paw wash' station and even doggie ale in the bar! 

For your chance to win, just head over to our crowdfunding campaign for Creative Countryside magazine and select the 'Seasonal Package' (£35), which includes a printed copy of issue 1, an enamel mug, organic dark chocolate and tea and a recycled cotton check blanket. There are only 35 of these packages available, so it could easily be you that wins the stay! 

I did it! I finally clicked launch, and it's all systems go! The crowdfunding campaign for Creative Countryside magazine is now live and waiting for your pre-order. 

If you want a bit more info, here are the highlights of what we're offering...

• For just £7 you can get a copy of the magazine. It's all about slow, seasonal living, and as it's the autumn edition ('gather') you can expect apples, hedgehogs, festivals, rain, fire, adventures and much more.
   
• If you've got green fingers opt for the £15 package that includes the magazine, a wooden seed dibber, a notebook and a herb mix Seedball (these are genius!) - limited number available. 
   
• Our mini seasonal package (£20) includes an organic beauty balm from Magic Organic Apothecary, mini beeswax candles and a copy of the magazine. 
   
• Go one step further and get the bigger seasonal package (£35) - you'll receive a recycled check blanket, organic tea and chocolate, an enamel mug, the magazine, AND you could win an overnight stay plus dinner and breakfast for 2! - limited number available. 

There are also discounts for bulk buying copies of the magazine (to share with friends, perhaps?) and if you're feeling splash with cash go for the handmade package that includes 2 incredible wooden candlesticks (made with no electricity!), a handcrafted stoneware bowl plus beeswax candles.

ONE LAST THING! 

If you know anyone else who might like the magazine, I'd be incredibly grateful if you could share the campaign on social media. Just use this link - https://igg.me/at/creativecountryside/x/16185632 - or use any of the share buttons on the campaign page. Thank you so much.

Trees have long been entwined with storytelling. Not only do they provide the perfect backrest when reading a good book, their history and mythology has also inspired works of fiction for thousands of years. In her book, Gossip from the Forest, Sara Maitland suggests that the mysterious secrets and silences, gifts and perils of the forests were both the background and the source of fairytales; Little Red Riding Hood, Hansel and Gretel, The Seven Dwarves. 

Trees are also seen to be sacred, with healing powers. In The Sacred Tree (a small but beautiful book that focuses on 13 native trees of the British Isles and their corresponding 13 moons and place on the wheel of the year's cycle), Glennie Kindred suggests ways to communicate with tree spirits, as well as exploring the spiritual and healing qualities each tree has to teach us. The book is full of wonderful line drawings and includes how to grow and plant trees, too.

The Woodland Trust seeks to continue this deserved reverence, and is currently urging tree lovers to stump up nominations to become the next Tree of the Year. The Brimmon Oak in Wales narrowly missed out on being crowned the 2017 European Tree of the Year and the Woodland Trust is hoping to go one step better next time around. People are asked to nominate a tree ‘with a story’; this could be a link to a historical figure or event, a tree at the heart of a community or one which is just well loved. Winning trees will benefit from a tree care award of up to £1,000 thanks to support from players of People’s Postcode Lottery. This can be used for arboricultural surveys or other maintenance, interpretation or even to support a community event in celebration of the tree.

Inspired by the celebration of trees, we'll be featuring our own stories in the journal over the next few months. First up is Mugdha from Kindred + Wild, as she takes on the elder in next week's post. I'd love to hear from you if you've got a tree story to tell. It could be a specific tree, or a whole species. It could be associated with literature and tales of your childhood, or maybe you just pass it each morning on your way to work? Get in touch by emailing contact@creativecountryside.com. If you'd like to nominate a tree for Tree of the Year, you have until the end of July to take part, and can find out more here. 

Today I'm featuring the lovely Sarah from Say! Little Hen. Living in Queensland, Australia, she's passionate about organic and sustainable products and living, and is a woman who wears many hats when it comes to her creative business! 

Eleanor: Tell me a little bit about Say! Little Hen, and how it came into being.

Sarah: My business incorporates three of my favourite things - knitting, writing and baking sourdough. Under the one banner of Say! Little Hen I write a blog and run my online store, where I sell my knitting patterns, the eBook I wrote on spelt sourdough and now also natural fibre yarns. Selling my knitting designs was quite unintentional. I had a few designs already made, as I had previously knitted and sold items on my little market stall as a small hobby business. I was asked one day if I would sell the pattern for one of my most popular designs, Tea Mouse, and since I was no longer making and selling, I decided why not! From there I converted more of my scribbled notes into legible patterns, offering them for sale online and now, 2 years later, I am completely in love with designing and selling knitting patterns. Having an online yarn shop is something I’ve had on my “one-day” list for years, and at the beginning of this year, I decided there was no reason not to just go ahead and do it! So I did, and I’m loving growing this tiny little business day by day and seeing where it takes me.

E: You knit, design, bake and blog. Which do you prefer and why?

S: It’s almost impossible for me to choose between them, as each is fulfilling in its own way. Writing allows me to empty the thoughts out of my head, or focus in on one particular subject. Baking is both relaxing and rewarding - a slice of fresh sourdough with butter, enjoyed with a cup of tea is akin to a slice of cake! And knitting is delightful on so many levels - selecting the wool, watching the fabric grow beneath my hands. I love that I can take it anywhere and that it’s a good conversation starter when I do pull my needles out in public.

I guess, very narrowly leading in front, designing would have to be my favourite. It still amazes me when an idea I had in my head comes to life on my needles. When the sketching, calculating and frustrating process of casting on several times is over, and the design is sitting in front of me, all knitted up, looking exactly like (or sometimes better) than my original idea - it makes me smile and feel far more clever than I probably should. And getting to share that with other knitters in the form of a pattern is the icing on the cake.

 E: Where do you draw your inspiration from?

S: It depends entirely on what I’m working on. I’d say most of the time it comes from everything around me - the chickens, the bush and farmland around my house, the weather even.

It depends on whether I am choosing to work with a specific material; if that’s the case then I try to make something that shows it off to it’s best ability. But if I have an idea for a particular project, then I seek out a yarn that will compliment it perfectly. My latest design was one where the project had to match the yarn, and so I’ve ended up with a chocolate inspired beanie. It incorporates cables and is, of course, finished off with a pompom. I’m rather proud of this one and am dying to share it!

 E: What does an average day look like for you right now? 

S: The days can vary a lot, but no matter what they always start with tea, and whilst I drink that tea I am pestered by my more boisterous Border Collie to throw her toy for her - my other collie goes back to sleep if there are no birds to chase; she’s perpetually hoping for a sleep-in.

I usually check my emails and social media quickly before going to feed the chickens, which doubles as a walk for my dogs. I love this time outside as it gives me time to think about what needs doing for the day, mentally draft blog posts or article ideas and also think about my responses to any more complicated emails. Most of my best blog post ideas have been thought up in the chicken pen!

After replying to emails, messages and comments on social media, and perhaps posting on Instagram, I usually have breakfast and do one small housework job (hard to ignore when you work from home). I pack orders around lunchtime and post them in the afternoon, between that there is time for writing, talking to customers online (something I spend a lot of time doing), taking or editing photos and doing other general admin-type tasks.

By late afternoon it’s time for more tea and Border Collie time - they’re very good at making sure they get ample attention! I usually post on Instagram in the early evening and hop back on there later, as I find that’s when it’s most active during the week. I usually knit or squeeze in more writing if I have a deadline coming up too.

The best days are the ones when a yarn shipment is due to arrive. I live out of town so the couriers don’t deliver here, they drop my stock at a tiny service station ten minutes drive away, so I always stalk my tracking numbers like a crazy lady when they’re due to arrive, and jump in the car and collect them as soon as they come. It’s very exciting!

E: Tell us about your workspace - where can we find you?

S: My workspace is spread throughout the house. I've a small desk in the corner of my bedroom where my designing process begins on paper, and I also make up sample cards and do handwriting I need to (lists, first drafts, article ideas). Along with my diary and to-do lists, I keep a collection of things on my desk that make me happy, in turn inspiring me as I find happiness key to creativity. They include books, a little mushroom ornament that was a gift from a lovely friend, an inspirational quote card from my sister, design swatches and even my favourite childhood toy - a bear by the name of Winslow, who was the first thing I ever wrote about (I still have his little short story tucked away) and is now looking decidedly worn! Odd collections of things tend to collect on the end of the desk too - stamps, ribbons, sticky tape - there’s even a candle there at the moment! If I can’t sleep at night I tend to sit at my desk and either write or do some knitting sketches.

If I'm working on a pattern I usually do so on my bed - it's the only place in the house where I can comfortably knit for a prolonged period of time, which is important when I’m designing. It looks a lot like relaxing when I'm doing this but often it's the exact opposite! One of these days I’m going to take my knitting into a furniture shop and try out different armchairs to find one perfect for knitting in!

Yarn stock is usually unpacked on the dining room table, where I do waste some time patting and admiring it. Sometimes I pack orders here, too. And the computer is in a shared office space, overlooking the verandah where I do all of my product photography. I take my little piece of linen out there that I use as a background, all of my products that need photographing and balance one or two pieces of plywood painted white against a little step ladder, I use them to reflect light which reduces shadowing. My yarn is stored in sealed boxes in the linen cupboard & the top of my wardrobe - storage is limited here! Sometimes things being spread around makes tasks slower, but everything is achieved in the end and it’s great to be able to work with what I have.

 E: Why is it important for you to use natural fibres, and to choose ethical, sustainable and organic materials wherever possible?

S: I could fill a novel with the reasons why I think organic and sustainable choices are best. It’s something that’s talked about a lot now, and sometimes I think that makes people a little deaf to what’s actually being said. But there really is a need to do things organically, and find sustainable ways. In all honesty, I don’t really understand the need for chemical farming when the world functioned without it for a very long time, and modern farms have proven you can still farm that way.

With yarn, there really is nothing better than good quality natural fibres to work with.

Wool has this horrid reputation of being itchy, and I do acknowledge that there are plenty of woollen things out there giving testament to this bad rep. But there’s also a lot of good wool out there, and it’s the most deliciously soft stuff you can imagine.

There’s just something wonderful about natural fibres - they are more comforting, have more depth almost, than anything created synthetically. And when they are grown organically they have come from such healthy animals that the yarn is top-notch quality. It’s blissful to work with and wonderful to wear. I just can’t get enough of it!

 E: What’s so great about sourdough?! And what’s the one piece of advice you would give to novice bakers?

S: I love sourdough because of the flavour, and it’s versatility. Did you know you can make cakes and pastries with sourdough? It really is amazing stuff.

I’ve given quite a lot of advice to novice sourdough bakers, and the main thing I always tell people is not to be frightened of it. Sourdough seems to be something that becomes so scary to so many people, but it’s really not that complicated, and if you feel like it is, search for different methods or find simpler ways. Sourdough making should be fun, easy and simple - remember it’s only flour and water.

 E: What plans do you have for the business in the future?

S: Oh, so many plans! I’d really love to teach knitting classes, and perhaps even put together an online course for those who don’t live nearby. I love being able to help and encourage people with their craft because it’s such a fun and wonderful thing to do and I hate the idea of people giving up because they couldn’t get the help they needed. I’d love to teach sourdough classes for the same reasons, too.

I’d really love to also see my business thriving enough to perhaps employ a few people, although I do plan to stay intentionally small. And perhaps, in the very far off future, I’d stock my own brand of yarn. Whether it would be yarn I had dyed myself, grown or hand spun I’m not sure of, but one or all of those things would be simply amazing.

 You can find Sarah on Instagram and Facebook. Visit her blog and online shop.

If you'd like your creative business to be featured in a similar post on Creative Countryside, get in touch by emailing contact@creativecountryside.com. There is no payment involved; we just like to showcase creative talent whenever we can!

Welcome to summer!

Summer Rituals

• Make sure you always have a batch of homemade lemonade in the fridge for cooling you down on hot sunny afternoons (or to take along on a picnic!).
   
• Eat outside as often as possible. Even if it's just ten minutes with your morning coffee!
   
• Choose organic fruit and veg. There's no better time to take advantage of veg box schemes than in the summer, when most products will come from the UK.

 

3 Seasonal Recipes

Strawberry spinach salad
Beetroot, chilli + rosemary spaghetti
Gooseberry and elderflower ice-cream
 

3 Books for Summer

1. The Otter's Tale (Simon Cooper)
2. A Sky Full of Birds (Matt Merritt)
3. The Summer Book (Tove Jansson)

This post is a shorter version of our summer email sent out to members of our free community. Want to join? Click here - we'd love to have you!