Items in which I feel I now live include turtleneck tops. I must have about eight, half of which are greeny- blue. How did life function without them? They tend to be layered over a vest top and under a medium to light jumper or a dress, sometimes under a shirt. That super cosy extra layer keeps me happy in these testing winter times. My warmer season alternative is, for want of a better description, the 'older lady t-shirt' which instead of floppy cotton band tees is a heavier knit top extending to mid upper arm. Not snug, with a rather pleasing amount of surplus. They keep me lovely and warm when a vest top isn't enough. Talking of keeping warm enough, it's been evident that I don't feel the cold as badly as I used to in my teens. I used to struggle with numb extremities all the time and terrible chilblains to my hands, incredibly painful and at best unsightly. C on the other hand feels the cold a lot more now. 

Kezzie wore an asymmetric skirt on her blog recently too. If I was designing this skirt I'd have kept the hem straight and would have secured it to avoid any flash mishaps. I also would have tried it in a fabric that didn't retain it's washing crumples so much. I promise I ironed it. Much as people shun their irons and boards, I am relatively at peace with mine and commune with them often. It's not that I adore the process, though it beats washing up and emptying bins by a long stretch, but more that I do appreciate nicely ironed clothes. And sheets. Oh, a lovingly pressed duvet cover and pillows is a gift indeed. 

 

It's back to that confusing state of never really knowing which day it is. It wouldn't matter except for work appointments cropping up and it's going to look pretty bad if I'm a no-show for something important. The lockdown state of play is still tricky to navigate and I'm trying to ensure a good level of productivity each day but spreading my time thin on several things usually feels like nothing is really getting achieved. I'm finding that casting my mind back to last year doesn't resurrect much. The first lockdown feels clear but after that things get fuzzy and I struggle to pinpoint when lockdown 2 happened and what went on before and after. Probably because we still didn't contravene our own aims of limited time out or contact with others, it all felt very similar. 

This week is set to be another wet one, with gusty gales thrown in for good measure. Winter is such a lousy time, I honestly cannot understand why anyone would enjoy this. Already my garden has some evidence of yearning for spring in it's own right, with bulbs coming through. Hold your horses, there's a way to go yet. 

Fortunately I still have a mountain of pictures from December to share. This was a delightfully bright day when a walk was taken with mercifully few people to share it with. 

Take care and stay safe this week.

 

The last fortnight has provided an interesting opportunity to notice differences in natures of cold and frosty mornings. Many cold outings have included a hat down to my eyebrows and scarf just shy of my eyeballs. Brrrr.

Stay warm.

 

Hasn't it been the longest week in forever? Wrap up warm it's getting even colder.

Hard to make out, but four deer dashing off into the trees. 




Take care,

 

What do you do when the temperature has dropped to minus anything? Layer up and get out! There's a lot to say for a knitted skirt and thermal tights but I went one better here with a cunning super long jumper with a skirt over the top. My burgundy-with-elbow-patches wonder is two thirds as long as my skirt and did a brilliant job of keeping me cosy. There's a price to pay but considering how dreadful this could have looked, I'd say I got off lightly.

Yes, of course I had a thick coat, scarf, hat and pair of gloves which I had to unravel on the quick to make the most of having this astonishing landscape to ourselves. There turned out to be some people rather distant but hopefully they didn't notice. It's obviously weird to take off warm clothes and have your picture taken and I don't want to talk about it. After a minute of attempts to stand and smile, I re-wrapped myself and carried out for a lovely wander, this time safely behind the lens.

This skirt must have seen a fair few wears, it was my original knitted skirt find and at that point I'd never seen one before. A winter must have. 
Take care,

 

More from the frozen landscape today. Did you know that the lockdown might last until the end of March? That sounds like such a long time. Let's take it one day at a time. 

The allotments are waterlogged at best, flooded at worst and not in great shape for any works to be carried out at all. Over the past three weeks we've only gone down there to look, or pick a few sprouts. I can't wait for it to drain a little so I can start to potter down there again; there's plenty I can be getting on with still and it goes a long way to making things feel good. 

Take care,

Sophie