A touchstone, as I try to convince those I care for (including myself) that we are precious & loved separate from labor or even effort.

Ready to go!

A teaching day today. How to patch holes in your clothes. A lot simpler than you might imagine, with only a couple of important things to notice, so that it lasts well.

I came to know that Virginia Woolf was a knitter only today!I love when my present passion meet my past passions.Knitting this Leaflette scarf kept me alive last year when everything seemed to be sucking the life out of me and I cannot agree more with Woolf on this and everything else 🧶 #knitsky

Things used in everyday life are the real archaeological treasures! These sewing #needles were made from animal bone some 15,000 years ago. Some designs simply don't need to be improved, because form and functions were perfectly matched from the start. Form follows function! 🧵1/2 🏺

Nostalgia burst! 💙

Could I employ someone to follow me around reminding me of this on an hourly basis do you think?

Overheard, said by a mother to a small child as they came out of nursery together: "Oh no! There is MORE lava! We'll have to do a Really Big Jump!" #TinyJoys

Today I am very grateful to Past Claire, who left very full and excellent notes, last time she did the darning your knitting workshop, including an outlines of the session, some excellent questions to work through with people and a full packing list of what I need to take with me. She did GREAT!

Today I am very grateful to Past Claire, who left very full and excellent notes, last time she did the darning your knitting workshop, including an outlines of the session, some excellent questions to work through with people and a full packing list of what I need to take with me. She did GREAT!

Still a couple of places left on my next workshop. This Saturday, 1st Nov, from 2 - 5pm, at a lovely little yarn shop in Durham, UK. Learn to mend your knits (hand knitted or shop bought) so you can keep on wearing it for longer. #visiblemending www.wingandabear.com/products/men...

What did you love doing at 6-8 years old? Is there a way you can still do those things? Our childhood pleasures can often be sources of adult joy too. For me it was (is) cycling around the city, ice skating, drawing, writing, crafting & nature spotting. Off to fit one of those into my day. ☺️

Still a couple of places left on my next workshop. This Saturday, 1st Nov, from 2 - 5pm, at a lovely little yarn shop in Durham, UK. Learn to mend your knits (hand knitted or shop bought) so you can keep on wearing it for longer. #visiblemending www.wingandabear.com/products/men...

Excellent suggestions for thicker sock yarn - many thanks. Have just ordered a couple of colours from West Yorkshire Spinners, so I will have toasty warm feet around the house, later in the winter.

I'm wanting to knit myself some really thick, super warm socks for wearing around the house this winter. What's a good yarn to use? I want the hard wearing qualities of a normal sock yarn, but much thicker. Is that a thing that exists? Can anyone recommend something suitable? #craftsky #knitsky

I'm wanting to knit myself some really thick, super warm socks for wearing around the house this winter. What's a good yarn to use? I want the hard wearing qualities of a normal sock yarn, but much thicker. Is that a thing that exists? Can anyone recommend something suitable? #craftsky #knitsky

Look there! A Fieldfare's popped by for some berries. How delightful. 🍒 📷 Peter Christian

Fall is nice because you can see what pockets you were going to get around to darning in the spring, but just didn't.

I'm in need of a new knitting project but haven't got the brain space to plan/swatch/measure etc. Something small I could knit lots of? A big project I could come back to whenever I have a gap? What are your favourite "pick up and go", not too demanding type knitting projects? #craftsky #knitsky

This has really caught people's imaginations - way more than I was expecting. Very lovely, but a tiny bit overwhelming and a tad surreal, too. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

This has really caught people's imaginations - way more than I was expecting. Very lovely, but a tiny bit overwhelming and a tad surreal, too. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

The map sewing project is in it's final week. There's been a press release, and 2 photographers and a video interview which was all a bit overwhelming! Here I am, with my lovely colleague and my excellent craft group too: www.facebook.com/share/r/178Z...

The map sewing project is in it's final week. There's been a press release, and 2 photographers and a video interview which was all a bit overwhelming! Here I am, with my lovely colleague and my excellent craft group too: www.facebook.com/share/r/178Z...

A traveler from an antique land--great guy--said to me with tears in his eyes "Sir, two vast and trunkless legs of stone stand in the desert." And I said wow, that's really something. But we'll be building a big beautiful statue to my hubris and it will stand for eternity

That age old dilemma: I really need a wee, but there's a cat on my lap and she is comfy and soft.

I'm preaching at our Patronal Festival tomorrow morning. The invitation was "Something about what you've learnt from sewing the map with people?". That's rather different from my normal approach of "Everything starts with the Bible passages set for the day" but an interesting challenge ✝️⚓

A fractious day at the drop in. Everyone seemed grumpy and argumentative. I was glad to be home and unwinding, then a phone call from a colleague saying, "Could you just check your pockets for me, Claire, and see if the main door keys are in there??" Bother!

What greater attraction does Edinburgh have to offer than that, after all?

So this guy says one way to stop doomscrolling is to choose to do something creative when we feel the urge to reach for our feeds or whatever. I just spent four hours doing creative things, and I even got a blog out of it. I feel satisfaction and mild enthusiasm instead of the usual despair. Yay!

Women don't just want pockets. We want 70s dad pockets, with capacity for door keys, house keys, wallet, change, dirty hanky, clean hanky (to offer ladies), travel card, driving licence, pack of 20 Embassy Number 1, a lighter, comb and several conkers picked up on the way home

Reports coming in of a giant fluffy monster attacking the centre of town today. Be careful out there!

Reports coming in of a giant fluffy monster attacking the centre of town today. Be careful out there!

I've now got over 50 memories and stories about our town, captured on paper, and marked by colourful stitches on the map. I'm going to need a second folder!

I've now got over 50 memories and stories about our town, captured on paper, and marked by colourful stitches on the map. I'm going to need a second folder!

Whatever you do, please don’t stop reading. Read for joy. Read for education. Read for resistance. Read banned books. Read books by marginalized authors. Read about experiences that differ from your own. Just. Keep. Reading.

Still mending things, here, too. If you want to come and learn to mend with me, in this lovely wool shop in Durham, you can. 2-5pm on the 1st and last Saturday in November. One session for darning and one for patching depending on what type of fabric you want to mend. www.wingandabear.com

My "Heck, is this project even going to work????" nerves are starting to subside a little! I reckon we've sewn at least 2/3rds of the streets in the town, and I've got 29 memories/favourite places marked on the map and recorded in my little folder too. It's not quite a couple of metres square

Still mending things, here, too. If you want to come and learn to mend with me, in this lovely wool shop in Durham, you can. 2-5pm on the 1st and last Saturday in November. One session for darning and one for patching depending on what type of fabric you want to mend. www.wingandabear.com

My "Heck, is this project even going to work????" nerves are starting to subside a little! I reckon we've sewn at least 2/3rds of the streets in the town, and I've got 29 memories/favourite places marked on the map and recorded in my little folder too. It's not quite a couple of metres square

The change in the weather means I can finally wear this wonderful and very warm cardigan, which my husband bought me for my birthday back in June. I might not take it off, for the whole of the next 6 months, honestly. #TinyJoys

Little friend! #TinyJoys

Reckon I should fasten a few of these ends off before next week's sessions! (This is the back of the map - the front looks a bit tidier, I'm glad to say)

Reckon I should fasten a few of these ends off before next week's sessions! (This is the back of the map - the front looks a bit tidier, I'm glad to say)

A chaotic morning, but in a good way! The main drop in is normally pretty quiet on a Friday morning, but a neighbouring community centre was unexpectedly closed today so we had a lot of extra people waiting on the doorstep when we opened. Some we knew already, others had never been to us before.

A chaotic morning, but in a good way! The main drop in is normally pretty quiet on a Friday morning, but a neighbouring community centre was unexpectedly closed today so we had a lot of extra people waiting on the doorstep when we opened. Some we knew already, others had never been to us before.

I'm running the first open drop-in session for my current community textile project today. Always the nerves: will anyone turn up! I'd be happy with 2 or 3. Noone at all would be sad

Trying to get back to a properly weekly day off, even if it's a different day each week. It's tricky if you're kind of part time at several overlapping things, some of which vary a lot from week to week. Better diary planning is possible, but it turns out I've also forgotten HOW to have a day off.

One thing I think about sometimes is how different the world would be if fancy prestigious places perceived accessibility as fancy and prestigious.

I was all keyed up with adrenaline and dread and about to leave the house for a dentist appointment this morning and the receptionist just phoned to cancel because he's called in sick. Now I'm all over the place and can't settle. Bleugh