27.9.11

Eggs & new prints




The Cotswolds are looking particularly beautiful at present - the landscape seems ever so slightly blurred at the edges, as if seen through a misted glass. We are also enjoying a spot of 'Indian Summer', so collecting eggs is even more enjoyable than usual.




Marjorie and I don't often venture out of this side of the village as it leads up a very long and steep hill, which we find ourselves obliged to puff and push up. However, there is an excellent source of eggs nearby, from the Barrington Farm Estate. If you are driving to or from Burford along the A429, you are literally seconds away from it and I do recommend trying them out. (They sell double yolkers too).



The metal 'egg box' is a little austere, but it's more jolly inside. Self service here and an honesty tin.



We always buy the seconds. They are an absolute bargain; two dozen lovely free range organic eggs for £3.20 - who minds if they are a bit wonky and mismatched? (Feathers are free).



Returning home is easier. Downhill all the way and glorious views of our patch.




Then an industrious afternoon trying some new lino blocks.




Rather familiar looking little landscapes - no prizes for guessing where I get my inspiration from.




I'm still very much at the 'remembering how you do this thing' stage and there were many rejects. But I did get a handful of saleable ones -
House on the Hill and Autumn Fields. Each is under a fiver - and you can't get two pints of beer for that nowadays. Not down here, anyway.

I also pulled more hare prints but the block is becoming a bit over used, so out of many printed, I only have two more to offer - and huge thanks to everyone who bought the last batch - you cleaned me out in three days! (EDIT - Hare prints now sold out - thank you!)



Happymess/happiness.

10 comments:

Pamela Terry and Edward said...

Double-yolkers make the best cakes!

Gerry Snape said...

don't you just love our beautiful countryside!?
I love your lino prints!!

Frances said...

Gretel, I know that you do appreciate the opportunity of taking a bicycle ride up a steep incline and finding fresh eggs at the peek. And beautiful landscape surrounding you going uphill and downhill.

Great that those hens throw in some feathers as dividends to their free range laying produce. Not for the first time you've taken me along to a bit of fresh air and a culture very different from hereabouts.

Your lino re prints are lovely. Good for you to refresh those printing skills. I wonder what I would manage nowadays if I tried to ink up one of my old etching plates. It would take a lot of trial inking and trial paper before I would ever reclaim the modest ability I once had.

xo

Claire said...

Seems all that huffing and puffing is well worth it Gretel. Beautiful countryside and double yolker eggs......

Love the bunting and stripey table cloth in the little shed. A feather or two with your eggs, how wonderful not like the sterilised environment of the supermarket.

Love your new prints, you must be having such fun, brushing up on your printing skills.........

A weeeeeeet, grey Spring day here.....'just perfick'

Claire :}

ted and bunny said...

there's always something so pleasing about lino cuts and prints isn't there; quite simple and workmanlike.

Did you used to do them at school- I remember a Dryad book in art class and the lino being too tough to cut with the knife

hope you're having a good week
x

Anonymous said...

Your new prints are lovely! I'll be picking the little hare up from the framer tomorrow - I'll pop it on the blog tomorrow evening!!

jerilanders said...

Gretel, If you were my neighbor, you could have fresh , huge, brown eggs every morning. My gals lay more eggs than we could eat in a year. When we get too many, I scramble them up in an enormous frying pan and give them back to the chickens. They love them... talk about recycling!

rossichka said...

Hello, Gretel!
I've been quiet for a while, but I'm going to comment your last posts now...
I like all your prints and hope we'll see some new ones in future. The sight of all those rabbits hanging under the ceiling makes me feel the coziness of a house around Christmas!:)
The "lemon" kitties are so sweet - you had really good samples to follow!
Your countryside looks so peaceful and beautiful... I like the idea of buying "fresh" eggs, especially the fact that there's trust and honesty in the sell-buy process...:)
Hugs to you!

julochka said...

we had an egg place like that down the road, but people weren't always honest, so now they big a big, ugly vending machine, so you can't pick the wobbly eggs...it makes me happy our hens have finally started laying eggs themselves.

I LOVE the linocuts!! they're just wonderful!!

School on the Heath said...

It sounds like a perfect day. How lovely to be able to buy wonky and mismatched eggs with double yolks.