Hello, I’m back! You may not even have noticed that I’ve been away, but we’ve just spent a couple of weeks in the Moselle region in Germany again. It’s one of our favourite holiday destinations, not too far from home, and also conveniently close to where my brother lives.
The region has fairy-tale like qualities, with its half-timbered houses…
…and castles around every corner,
but it has kept up with the times – I mean… a drive-thru castle!?!
We received a very warm welcome from our hosts and felt safe and secure in our little cottage guarded by a fierce-looking cock.
He was actually friendly enough and allowed his hens to give us some of their eggs now and then.
I had planned to tell you about a yarn shop I was going to visit, but, well, I think you’ll understand why I’ve decided not to when you’ve looked at a picture of its interior.
I felt shocked at the time,
but now it only makes me giggle – I’ve never seen anything like it. There were some gems buried in those mountains of yarn, though. I only wish I could have waved a magic wand and created an inspiring space out of the chaos.
I brought some knitting with me on our trip, of course. I’d knit some swatches beforehand.
And while we were there I sketched, measured, calculated, improvised, frogged and knit again until I was happy with the result.
I can’t tell you anything about it yet, as it is for the gift basket for our second grandchild (expected this summer) and I want it to stay a surprise. There is something knitting-related I’ve seen that I think will be interesting, but I need a little more time to sift through my photos and organize my thoughts. I hope to get round to it next week.
Now, on to something that gave me incredible joy – wildflowers. The sweetbriar roses and fragrant herbs along the hiking trails were delightful, and there was also flowering woad here and there.
And then there were the wildflower meadows, in full bloom in May. They take my breath away every time.
I’ve taken tons of flower photographs and am tempted to inundate you with them. But often less is more, so I’ll just share one here, hoping it’ll give you the same jolt of happiness it gave me.
Hope to see you again next week – bye for now!
Well, that was an unpleasant surprise – due to a problem at my webhost this blogpost had completely disappeared, including the lovely comments. I’ve been able to restore the post, and fortunately the comments were still in my in-box, so here they are together with my replies.
Anja commented:
I once “visited” a yarn shop like that in Diekirch (Luxemburg). It was even worse!
You couldn’t enter the store, it was fully packed with yarn, thrown on the floor etc.
The gentleman at the door asked what I wanted, so his wife could get it for me 🤭.
Did you buy any yarn?
The Moselle region is pretty.
MerulaDesigns replied:
Oh, even worse? Goodness! I can imagine what it must have looked like from your description. Yes, I did buy some (sock) yarn – at a different shop. I’ll tell you about it next week.
Meadow commented:
Beautiful wildflowers.
MerulaDesigns replied:
Absolutely, very, very beautiful!
Sylvia commented:
Beautiful flowers, and that last photo is amazing! Do you know the name of the flower and the insect?
Your knitting project looks lovely, but that knitting store needs a Caution sign outside!
MerulaDesigns replied:
The flower is a scabious, also known as pincushion flower. A fun name because you can clearly see the “pins” sticking out from the “cushion”. The butterfly is actually a moth. It is called “metaalvlinder” in Dutch (metal butterfly) and it really looks metallic. In English it is called green forester, although to me it looks more turquoise than green. Did you notice the wonderful feathery antennae?
Looking at your foto’s of the yarn shop, I visited the same shop. I searched for the hidden gem, but couldn’t find it in the jumble.
You did? What a coincidence! Or maybe not so much of coincidence as yarn shops are few and far between in the area. Finding the gem there is like finding a four-leaf clover.
Ooooh beautiful photos. And the dyed skeins mean woad is an experiment i need to try. Thanks for letting us travel by eye!
Dyeing with woad is similar to dyeing with indigo. Not a simple thing to do, but the beautiful blue is worth it. And thank you for your kind words!
Marjike – Oh what a post. I had to make notes so that I wouldn’t forget what I wanted to tell you. I love all the photos. It is great to travel with you. It’s an education – half timbered houses – I know that you have used the term before and you posted a picture of an example but if I can find the time I should look up the meaning of half timbered houses. I had to laugh when you outright called a rooster a cock – which is correct terminology, but a term that I don’t here roosters referred to that often – so it’s funny to me hearing it .
Yes, the yarn shop needed your magic wand – I have seen a couple of shops like that – but yours had good light so that really helps finding gems in the piles. A couple of summers ago my friend and I found a shop that needed a magical wand, but it didn’t have good lighting, and my friend wants to go back there. The only way I will end up in that shop again is if she and I are traveling near there, I know that she will make sure that we visit the shop.
Even before you said your knitted item was for a baby, I figured that out – such a beautiful stitch which shows up lovely in your yarn. Can’t wait to see it later once the little one has arrived.
The photo of the dahlia with the butterfly on it – what a magnificent and beautiful butterfly.
Happy Knitting,
Kathie
I’m so glad you enjoyed this post. I was educated in British English but am aware of the different meanings of the British word for rooster and being a polite person, I have to say that I hesitated to use it. At least it made you laugh, that is something. Having a friend with you when visiting a yarn shop like this will certainly help. I will make a note to help me remember to show you what I’ve made when the baby has arrived.