Visiting places and eco-dyeing!

The day before we went to Sue's funeral, we spent a day in Wiltshire....below is the typical colour for the houses. When l lived around here, l found it very depressing especially when it rainned, the stone goes really dark!

I love this round building (can't remember what it is called!) in the centre of Malmesbury. I know this area very well, as l used to live round here and also my boarding school is quite near by. It is a lovely little town and most important it has a good Needlework shop!!

This rounded doorway leads to an wonderful church and graveyard. We didn't have time to go inside but just the outside makes us want to come back another time and look inside.

The next place we went through was Tetbury, in Gloucestershire where l lived for a while, just after Andrew was born. It is also where you will quite often see Prince Charles, buying things from the joke shop!!

Now we have arrived at where we were eventually heading towards...Westonbirt, The National Arboretum. The reason was to see "The Autumn Colours" trail. Actually l reckon they are 2 or 3 weeks early but there was still a lot of beautiful colours.
So off we went to follow the trail and what is the first thing we see.....The BBC set up recording "Autumn Watch".

There are a few different areas for eating. One area has a few stalls and this amazing American caravan!

This next image shows another eating area, this time a Restaurant with a grass roof!

Now this next image you maynot know what it is . It is called a "Haha"
(Ha-ha is a term in garden design that refers to a trench, one side of which is concealed from view, designed to allow an unobstructed view from a garden, pleasure-ground, or park, while maintaining a physical barrier in one direction, usually to keep livestock out that are kept on an expansive estate or parcel).

Then we came round the corner and hit "The Colours of Autumn"!

You had to keep your eyes open during your walk because every so often there would be something off to the side, in a clearing. This is where l found some unusual carvings.

Don't you just love these colours of this wood?

We found this piece of fern and were fascinated to see how the front and back were so different. One side was raised and rough and the otherside was indented and smooth......l wish l had had some clay to makes some impressions of the fern. I have to admit l do normally have everything in my bag but not today!

This next image is of a sculpture which l think is very unusal and intriguing. The sculpture was made in 2003 by John Newling . In the beginning, visitors were asked to write down their wishes, on paper attached to ribbons, which was then wrapped round a branch on a near by tree. The wishes grew to form a large ball which was later cut free, cast in bronze and here it is and contains over 4000 wishes.

I am so in love with these colours and textures........this really gives me ideas for my embroidery.

More colour!

wow...now this is a big tree!

Isn't this tree amazing..all twisted and curling every where. 2nd image shows you the trunk..very weird! 

Colours galore!

And to end... some of my latest dyeing and sewing. The first image is wool dyed in and bundled in Euc leaves...left for 9 days, washed after resting for a week but not ironed yet.

This is a piece of felt that was dyed in an iron wash dye and wrapped around one Ecu leaf. Not ironed yet! really happy with this one.

This last image is a piece of sewing l did the day before Sue's funeral. I started to sew something completly different and somehow l ended up creating this!