Cornflower

Stitch by stitch

    I hadn't heard of World Embroidery Day until this morning, but what more appropriate time to post a relevant link or two.

    I picked up my needle recently after discovering Nicki Franklin's The Stitchery and her lovely individual kits and monthly Journal subscription.

    Caroline Zoob does beautiful work (see also her book on Virginia Woolf's garden), and occasionally has limited edition kits for sale.

    If you're in the market for an embroidered project bag (such as the above), look out for new stock in Sherry's shop. Her Instagram gallery shows her style.

    I've linked to Mary's blog before, of course; her level of skill is something to aspire to.

    Should you be looking to learn embroidery or discover new techniques, the Royal School of Needlework has recently launched some online courses.

    See also this post.

A Scottish pudding

    I wanted a Scottish pudding to serve to a Canadian guest the other night and I chose cranachan as it's so simple and delicious, can be largely prepared in advance, and the raspberries it calls for are in season. I failed to take photographs(!), but this old post gives you the idea.

    The recipe I used is at the end of this article, but I omitted the whisky, put in about a tablespoon of vanilla paste instead, and no harm was done. I also sweetened the raspberry coulis slightly and didn't ripple it through the cream but poured a good amount in the bottom of the serving glasses, piling the cream and oatmeal mixture (with a few more berries folded in) on top. The addition at the end of a sprinkling of oatmeal and a drizzle of honey is a good one.

Little acorns

    If you're in Edinburgh over the next six or seven weeks, do visit The Lost Words exhibition at Inverleith House in the Royal Botanic Garden.

    I'm sure you're already familiar with the book by Robert Macfarlane and Jackie Morris which "celebrates the relationship between language and the living world". A fair number of its artworks are included in the show, each subject being treated in three ways: an "absence", an icon, and a contextual piece, showing "things that are missing and things that are hidden, [...] absences and appearances". Run your tongue around the "spells" and linger on the images, but if - like me - you are unnerved by large pictures of certain birds (magpie and raven, for instance), you should be fine enough in the gallery but turn the book's pages with care!

Cornflowers at Kelmscott

    I blame the heat - 32 degrees - for my failure to take note (or even notes) of what I was seeing at Kelmscott Manor last weekend. It was so sapping that I wilted, wandered round in a dwalm, and didn't think to ask the guide about this design sketch in William Morris's bedroom, so I can't tell you whose hand is behind it or what, if anything, it eventually became. I must go back on a cooler day.

    Whatever the weather, though, I recommend The Bell Inn at nearby Langford for lunch.