Tag: Yard

animals, Building work, Food and drink, Sustainability, Working the land

What’s doing??

Ellie

We have been busy as bees round the holding still, but since the start of lockdown in March we have not had any significant rainfall!!! 10 weeks!!

Things are tinder dry outside…. we are having to regularly water everywhere and currently just the other side of our nearest village there is a forestry and field fire that the forestry services and a helicopter have been battling since Sunday evening…

Thankfully there is some rain forecast tonight and for at least the morning tomorrow! The earth here will give a sigh of relief I expect when it starts to fall!!

In the meantime here a few snapshots of the past few weeks here! New fencing, shearing, turning out the horses, new chicks, new play stuff for the boys, elderflowers and a lot more!!

Craftiness, Firewood, knitting, Knitting and Crochet, Life with a toddler, Livestock, Podcast, Sewing, Spinning, Weaving, Woodwork, Working the land, yarn

Episode 13 show notes

Ellie

Episode 13

Sunday 18th March

So I’ve made it this far!!! Still got bump in tow!!

Lots of little bits to tell you all about this week, some sections are a bit light on content this week, because we’ve had disturbed nap times due to toddler illness ( joyfully he threw up in the car the other week so that was a heap of pulling apart the car and car seat to wash!!)

Plus more getting ready for the new baby, growing season by sorting out the seeds etc..

Well it’s another snowy day here in Wales and it’s freezing!!!

I’m wearing James’ fleece as it covers the bump!! And I’m wearing a cowl my Mum knitted for me!! It’s a Song of the Sea cowl by Louise Zass-Bangham and the Pattern is on Rav.

Knitting

I’ve managed to finally block my samples I had knit up and have subsequently tweaked patterns etc!! Now just need to get some more projects off the needles so I can cast on the full projects for those!!

I have two FO’s

Two little baby hats!!! The pattern is my Jelliebean Baby Hat pattern and it’s on Rav, I’ve knitted one in Rainbow heirloom solo light and one in some left over hedgehog fibres, plus a small amount of my own hand dyed yarn to stripe in so I was definitely not playing yarn chicken!! These are in my bag that the lovely Zoe of Pins and Needles made me.

I am halfway down the foot of the second sock for my Dad’s birthday

These are a Plain top down vanilla sock knit out of Weavers Loft sock yarn which is 75% super wash wool and 25% nylon, so good and hard wearing for much use for my Dad! These are in my fantastic Thimble and Thread Makes Harry Potter bag.

I have managed a heap more rows on my Hazels shawl and the leaves are really starting to come through now!! Ive knit this in River Knits 4ply fingering in the colourway Indian Giant Squirrel and it’s a pattern I am working on for release after the baby is born

I have decided to start using my progress keeper on my weasley sweater, because I can’t for the life of me remember whether I have even knitted on it since I last podcast!! The progress keeper I am using is a lovely tardis one from Jennie of Owl about Yarn.

Sewing…

Yep none…. No FOs….

But I have managed to cut out some fabric for a commission project and have some more to cut out this week so I can get sewing on that!!

However I have managed some mending/darning etc!!

I’ve mended The rainbow jumper which is the DayDreamer pattern by Jennifer Steingass, James’ socks and two pairs of Williams socks!!! Some knitting required…..

Weaving…

Zero…. Too much getting the desk cleared and the loom hoiked about at this stage of bumpness…

Crochet….

Also zero!! But to be fair I have been awaiting the plying of the Icelandic to carry on with that….

So that leads me into Spinning….

I have Navajo or chain plied the Icelandic!! Just need to skein it, wash it thwack it and it’s good to go into a crochet project…

And I have thread plied the Sara’s Texture crafts exmoor BFL!!! I’m really pleased with how it’s turned out and can see more thread plying in my future especially with the beautiful variegated skeins of yarn. Mainly because I believe my yardage for this skein of yarn is going to be HUGE!!! in comparison to the Icelandic which will be minimal as it is three ply and super chunky!!

Acquisitions!

So I have received the fabric I ordered for the commission project

Cotton

Terry

Rip stop

And I have ordered more rip stop and received it to make the boys waterproof dungas using the Made By Jacks Mum Free Range Fun Over Trousers.

And also this last fortnight I had a really happy post day!!!

The Lovely Anita from the Gaga Knits podcast has sent me some beautiful gifts!!!

A beautiful little cardie for the newbie when he decides to put in an appearance.

A book for Will which he has had read several times already!!

And a beautiful roving of Fondant Fibre in merino and mulberry silk!!! Part of their Illume collection called awakened spirit.

Thank you soooo much Anita you are so very kind!!

Shop update

I’ve been inspired this week to get my backside back to the dye pots!!! So hopefully (baby arrival allowing) later this week I shall have a little shop update with these two colour ways!!! Daffs and Crocus, they are currently drying out, having been my first attempt at yarn dyeing on the wood fired stove!! Man I needed to haul lots of wood!!! Or it seemed that way because I can only bring in small amounts at a time, not the big basket!! However I digress there are two bases, a sport weight merino base, which are the slightly softer colours, and the Stardust sock weight base which are the more vibrant colours!! So keep an eye on Tyddyn Bryn on Etsy later this week for them to pop into store!! One time limited dye lots, using up the last of the undyed I had in stash…. The next time I dye I shall have to do another big restash of the undyed before I dye!! And who knows when I might get time to do that!!! It has been two years since I last dyed yarn I believe!!!

Woodwork….

I’ve been out varnishing the sign for the front of the house again, and giving the bird boxes a quick coat too to protect them…

Farm update…

So James hired a mini digger a fortnight before I was due to pop….

He has now dug raised beds in the slurry it, which he needs to blockwork out…. watercourses…. Potato beds….. Flattened an area for me to make into a digging zone for the kids….

I’ve sourced some tractor tyres for digging pits for the boys…..

We’ve scoped out a pond site, but it wasn’t safe to take the digger to it….

In looking at that though I have found loads of my basketry willows have grown and need cutting back allowing me to get more plants going…

And Friday next if no one comes forward we become accidental sheep owners…. Still no idea if it’s multiple deal…. As in whether she is I lamb or not…. But we have bought some feed to supplement her diet in case and come next week we shall book a vet out to see her and register her as ours.

The chicks are growing well and feathering up… They are much bigger much faster than the last two, and are certainly eating more, drinking more and stinking more!!!

We’ve baked more cakes…. Muffins of the White chocolate and Rasberry variety and the banana and chocolate chip variety!!

I shall add a little photo montage at the end of all the farm happenings…

Sooo….

I hope you have enjoyed this weeks podcast!! I’m not sure when I’ll get to podcast next…. Baby is due Friday next!!! So in the meantime Happy crafting everybody!! And you can find me as Tyddyn Bryn on Instagram, Twitter and Ravelry, there is a Tyddyn Bryn Facebook page…. The Tyddyn Bryn Etsy shop, which I am going to attempt to keep open…. But we shall see what occurs in the next couple of weeks…

If you enjoyed the episode please give us a thumbs up at the bottom and I hope to see you all soon!!!

Building work, Fruit and vegetables, Garden, Life with a toddler, Wanderings, Working the land

Mini digger hired!! Check!!

Ellie

So James decided to hire a mini digger this week…. and has been out in it all day every day working hard to create better waterways, raised beds, scrape the barns, flatten play areas…. etc etc!! Busy times!!

Someone else rather liked the digger too!!! And very quickly figured out whilst sat on Daddy’s lap that two levers made it go forwards and backwards!! Therefore lurching it about whilst Daddy was digging!!

Working the land

The before and afters!!!

Ellie

So….. The path…

It took soooo much work and time and back ache I feel it deserves a before and after shot!!!!

Before…..

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After….

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So that’s two, no wait we dug one out… Three gates, a tonne of brambles and nettles, tyres, rocks, silage bags, mud, more rocks and rubble to give traction for the gator, digging, hedge cutting, strimming, digging, barrowing, gatoring, oh yes and a mound of cow poop!!!

BUT we can’t now get gator into the back field without running the sheep gauntlet!!

Working the land

Path building

Ellie

For the last few weeks of visits James and I have concentrated our efforts! post failed diggering at sorting, clearing, digging, rubbleing etc the path from the yard into the field behind….. This field is no longer orchard field as James feels we have too little flat land to devote it to orchard….. Orchard and I have been moved to a steeper part of the rough land next to this field….

It has been hard and messy work…..

Mud…

Rain….

Silage bags that come out of the ground like hankies out of a magicians sleeve…..

Tyres….

Rocks……

Old rusty metal work…..

Gates…..

Old bits of fencing…..

Well I’ll let the pictures tell the story….

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Working the land

Digger!!!

Ellie

As well as the building work last weekend James hired a mini digger (too mini for the job he wanted it for as it turned out)

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As I left to go into cardigan to look at tiles he was a happy husband playing diggers and building a path down into orchard field from the yard!

Upon my return…..

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A digger minus the treads on one side!!

Luckily our neighbour at the top of the hill used to work on diggers so he came up and fixed it…..

James had about another hour or two of digger play before it happened again…

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He gave up! And luckily our neighbour came back just before we left to fix it again before it had to go back to the hire company!

Wanderings, Working the land

Our first proper trip to the farm!

Ellie

This trip was HUGE!!!!! so I am going to divide it into several posts so as not to overwhelm myself or you dear readers!!

Well my parents arrived Good Friday having battled the Easter Weekend Traffic!!!! We stayed at home Friday night for them to recover and then headed down to the Farm on the Saturday Morning.  James and I realised that we had forgotten the keys for the Hovel’s padlock about 10 minutes away from the farm!!!! ARGH!!!!!! we were not going back for them!!!  So upon our arrival Dad and James hacksawed off the padlock and we had access!! Phew!!!  We moved a few boxes of bits in and got the kettle on for a brew.  James and Dad began to light the Rayburn, which was a palaver and a half!! But they managed, whilst Mum and I went to greet the tenants.  By this weekend the Tenants (the calves) were in an even deeper sludge of poo and straw, but we were relaibly informed they were to be moved to pasture in a few days!

We shut everything up and took a trip into one of the nearby towns to meet one of the guys I had arranged to come and quote us for windows and doors at his showroom.  And to pick up a new padlock for the Hovel! Some gorgeous windows and doors… but by Barry’s own admission, on the medium to high end of the price spectrum.  We shall see how the quotes come in!!

We returned to the farm proud owners of a new padlock and had some lunch before making our first proper excursion to show Mum and Dad round the property.  Immediately dad spotted some St Johns Wort growing on the front borders of the Hovel and said we should get rid of it as it is a weed… I don’t think we shall get rid of too much identifable stuff like that just yet!  Especially as my book says that it grows only in a few locations in England and Wales… more thought needed first I think!

We walked along past the Calves and into the Yard area, weher Dad spotted some areas of hardstanding at the top end by the banked wall.  This might end up being a good area for some camper vans to stay or a possible sighting for the Eco-loo block.  We walked on towards the Holding field which is a small hedged area between the two big fields of ours.  Currently it has a load of wormery compost in it, as our neighbour told us.  he had put it there when he rented areas from the previous owner and had asked to remove some of it for his wife’s borders!  We wandered on into the Big field, past the large stone trough and along the top hedge which seems recently layed.  our sheep tenants and their lambs were all safely in the small field, so given that we had Sookie with us we closed the gate, keeping them in and Sookie out!  Although Sookie is of a very nervous disposition and would go within many feet of our wooly tenants!

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You can see evidence of the wooly tenants all round the fields in the bits wool everywhere!  We have a wealth of Blackthorn in the hedgerows and violets in all the banks.  Of the standard trees in the layed hedgerows we have one silver birch in the boundary between big field and small field and several others, although it is a wee bit early to tell what they all are properly, as spring in later up here due to the altitude!

There is plenty of work to do in Big Field for the boundaries, half of the one banked hedge line needs restocking with trees and an area in the border between big and small field needs to be rebanked and reinforced for stock proofing.

But can you see the old stone workings in the banking…. Oh Yes and all the ironwork lolling about the place!! There is a LOT of that, so we will need to slowly collect it all up, use what we can and move the rest into the barns over time, so we can decide what to do with it! Maybe some can be used to fill some fencing gaps….