I had another look at these images of ice formations. I think we are over the cold weather for now. 

Here is one of my iron tubs. Traditionally it would be used to cook beans in for animal food.

I use it to grow Sweet Williams in.

Yesterday we had a visit from the sun. It was so warm I found myself  allegedly tidying the garden .

I have bought a craft drill/engraver. My last one overheated. I thought I'd  have a look at making pendants and mobiles from a  large box of driftwood I beach combed from Aberystwyth, Wales. I did a Fine Arts Degree there.

Valentines Day. It's usually a challenging day here. I stayed at home by the stove making purses out of an old pair of jeans and  made a funny little purse with a heart and buttons for a special person.

Mullein seed head;

Sunday walk

The first thing I do in winter, while the grass is frozen, is give the 5 sheep their sheep nuts. Each time I do this I love it. How can you not be impressed by a beautiful primordial looking ram such as this. We don't shave them as they would be freezing in winter without the woolly fleece. They do rather well in winter. The sun shines and they seem to enjoy whiling away an afternoon lay about waiting to be fed. Their shaggy locks are a disadvantage in summer. We have very long summers and while being in the mountains it's not ever too hot the sheep stay in the cav during the hottest days. 

I walked just below the lake in the village where lies an abandoned mill. The window still exists as you can see as do all the  workings within.

The stream has a frozen skirt. Each frozen day brings ever more elaborate formations of ice.

Fox prints across the lake.

Frozen bubbles

I spotted these wonderful frozen blobs yesterday in my water tank.. The sun's been out, very dry, sparkling blue skies and absolutely bloomin brass monkeys. I did go for a little trundle yesterday just to  keep the old toes from dropping off. Otherwise I have been learning the gentle art of sock making, I am on my 3rd sock.

My atelier is soo cold. I had to abandon ship, move my computer and sit in the warmer kitchen.

We have wood stoves to keep us warm. The water was drained out of the pipes yesterday so as not to encourage the freezing and then bursts. We do have a spring here that flows very clear. Normally it's pumped to the house. While the night temperatures plunge to -12 we just fill buckets and do away with frail pipes. It is fun temporarily but soon becomes a chore. We shall tackle washing up tomorrow and have to venture out to fetch gas for our cooker as we have run out. The sun is lovely during the day, it's a great lifter of spirits. I photographed some corners briefly and tackled a little more of my rag rug, the reverse is rather attractive too. I am using a fine nosed pair of pliers to pull through my lengths of rag.

This kind of rug is a vast consumer of old tired sheets. Some of the sheets I have dyed, some naturally with walnut husks. Then after long lookings ont comp to learn the art of dying I cracked and bought dye for blue and green. I still want to learn to dye things but I don't have access to chemists for chemicals. Pot ash may help I need some plants too and winter may not be the right time. I am thinking I'd like to grow woad. But I digress. My advice to a would be starter of this kind of thing is begin smaller on a little chair rug. This way you can manage the colour combos a little more beautifully if this is your will.

I have been bitten by the bug though and I am looking for a loom next. 

I needed to venture out to breathe some icy cool air. The forest just above the lake has a frozen canopy. Wednesday is a 'chasse' day when the forest is where a howling dog  or camouflaged men appear. 

Curiously we have these sprouting ice formations appearing out of the earth.

Back to my painting and rag rugs. We had a moment of sunshine.