SkipNorth

A very belated SkipNorth post - given that it's a week since I got home! But here it is:

So we set off on the Friday morning, Rosie and I, and got on 5 trains; four standard ones (one WAGN, one Central, one GNER, one Northern Rail) and one steam train, where we sat in the buffet car, drank cider at lunchtime and watched the steam and the snowflakes whirling past. Keighley to Haworth, via "The Railway Children".

Which was really nice to start with; and then we had the trek uphill to the youth hostel, which wasn't as far as the somewhat dour (definitely more Earnshaw than Cribbins) Haworth stationmaster predicted, and started on the afternoon's classes. Lixie has lots of photos of people doing this so here are a couple of pictures of the very pretty items she and Nic gave us to play with: some spinning-mad-yarn kits

and some finished stitch-markers, which I've been wearing on a big safety-pin clipped to the outside of my work backpack for the last week...

Then we had dinner. I was a Guide until I was 16, and then went all effete for a couple of years until I started doing archaeology in France over the summers and lived in a tent for a few weeks each year, so was completely unprepared for the Arts-and-Crafts splendour that was Haworth Youth Hostel. Or the quality of the food. After dinner, we carried on with the wine, and the knitting, until several of us fell into a tired stupor at an alarmingly early hour...

Here are some people knitting on Friday: first Woolly Wormhead, making one of her many beautiful hats;

and Lixie, blogging; think she was taking this photo of Ellen and Woolly at the time...

Then Saturday; the stash acquisition began. As ever, I was appalling about taking photos at the time - but here's the haul in more detail. First:

The Dyeables. 12 more balls of R2 Paper Tape in the colours which make you remember why they discontinued it (Knitting and Crochet Guild); 2 skeins Opal undyed sock yarn (ditto); 5 spools nylon ribbon (The Skep)...

Some things from Coldspring: James Brett Marble, which has sort of the same feel to it as Mexican Wave

a skein of 4ply variegated, and a cone of Debbie Bliss Astrakhan (you can get the colours from this but it's not a good pic... both are now in storage in the loft though!)

Then some goodies from the Skep: a skein of mohair bouclé and some very nice variegated 4-ply, 1kg in total...

and some fabrics from Bombay Stores; these will become pyjama-bottoms when I get round to making them...

We saw some great things at the Knitting and Crochet Guild but I was too boggled to remember what they'd said about copyright etc. so shan't post photos here. Then we went back to the hostel, had another very good tea and sat down with a modest amount of food and booze

and did more knitting; Lixie made handwarmers, and continued to model her Hex Hat knitted by Ruth

and finally, a shot out of the bedroom window on the Sunday morning when we headed off to Wingham Woolworks... It was a wonderful weekend and thanks again to Nic and Lixie for organising...