Shetland Autumn 2023 Days 9-10 Mon 10+ 11 Sept: Rest Days!

We were determined that we would build in some rest days this year and I guess this couple of days must count as those! Michael deemed his foot was better! He was not in pain and the swelling was much reduced so it did look as if we were not needing medical help. That was good as we had booked lunch at Bonhoga for Sunday. The plan was to visit the Hatchery second hand bookshop opposite and then take lunch in Bonhoga and look at the exhibition of work from Helen Robertson, Niela Karla, Lisa Hooper (based in SW Scotland) and Ellie Duncan. We also aimed to do some housekeeping things, like washing and cleaning the Motorhome. Clothes washing facilities were great at the campsite but of course everyone has washing to do, so it is a great chance to chat to fellow campers as people congregate there. 

All went to plan, it is always good to go to the Hatchery second hand book shop, it is well organised and the books are clearly labelled with the price.

The Bookshop in the Hatchery is on the right

 

I picked up three useful books, one on weaving, a book on Nature  Photography and one on Rag Rug making. I have found that my old (80’s ?) information books, for example machine knitting, books are crammed full with useful advice. 

It was as if the authors had loads of knowledge and understanding. Perhaps I am being cynical but all too frequently this is not the case these days with some people producing   a book within a year or so of beginning to learn. So I had three more gems to find space for when I got home. With the books from Shetland Library I was getting my own little temporary library in the motorhome. I was hoping to be able to read some in these two ‘rest’ days. 

We were glad we had booked lunch in Bonhoga, we had been disappointed on a previous occasion when we just called in and could not get a table.  Michael went back to the motorhome to rest his leg and he would have struggled to get to the top floor for the exhibition anyway.  I enjoyed looking round and was reminded what a range of talent is to be found in Shetland. The exhibition was well presented and it was a pity, I felt, that I was the only one looking round. I do hope many visited during the time of the exhibition. 

We drove back to the campsite via Lerwick. The plan was to read the menu for The Dowry and C’est La Vie and hope one of them would be open for dinner on Monday. C’est La Vie was our choice, there was no visible menu for the Dowry. Perhaps it was not open on a Monday. We would be hoping to fit in a visit there later in our stay.

On Monday evening we enjoyed a superb meal at C’est La Vie and it took us back in time to a couple of French Restaurants we used to frequent  in London, one in a back street in the  West End  and one in Blackheath where we lived. Special memories. When it came to Monday evening, we were pleasantly surprised when C’est La Vie got full, this was a Monday evening and it was not even wool week. As we sat eating our meal many people were turned away too. We are very much looking forward to our next visit there. 

Monday brought a change in the weather and we hoped it was not a return to the normal sort of weather we get in Shetland at this time of the year. We were going up to Unst. I had brought some of my Natural Dyeing to show the Ladies who knit and spin at the Unst Heritage Centre (3). I had with me the triple set of my skeins dyed from my apple tree (leaves, bark and ‘core and skin’), there are 15 dyed skeins in all, using Jamieson and Smith jumper weight yarn. (These can be seen in blog post 16 Sept 2016.) This summer I had set up a collection of Jamieson and Smith cobweb yarn skeins, dyed for a month in the greenhouse by solar dyeing. I had selected plants that I thought would dye yellow. In all I had the initial  yarn and 15 coloured balls from this. I did these to make bookmarks but now I have them arranged in a box I am enjoying seeing them as they are. I spent the day labelling these so it was clear which plant had given which colour.

    

Notes

1. Try and make time to look at this post about the work of these 4 artists. Link to this.
2. Well worth a look, but do check opening times 
3. Pre Covid I have been able to do some workshops with the ladies and we have enjoyed some natural dyeing ‘en mass’. That has been great as I have learned so much about spinning and knitting  lace from these ladies it has been a treat to organise some natural dyeing for them.