The Sling: Day Two

That’s a running total, I’ll have you know.  As in, I haven’t slung 82 things today.  Just altogether. 

I was slinging clothes this morning.  This girl has waaaay too many clothes!  A few fewer now, though.

So spur me on.  Tell me your best reason for getting rid of stuff.  Besides the daily thank you gift to a random sponsor, I’ll give a prize for the best reason I’m given for chucking things.  You can leave your comment on this post or any subsequent post up until and including Friday’s.

Speaking of thank you gifts, today’s goes to Ian Baldwin.  Thanks for supporting me and Jessie’s Fund, Ian!

P.S.  Getting close to my target of £150.  If you’d like to help me make it, click here.  Thank you!

The Sling: Day One

Today is Day One of my five day sling.  And, already, forty-five items have been slung.  Which means I’m off to a flying start!

Among other things, I’ve slung a few books today.  Which is a landmark in itself.  Books are - in my book (ha!) - sacrosanct.  I don’t remember ever slinging a single book.  Ever.

But I’m no longer going to carry through life every tome that’s ever come my way.  So today, I’ve ditched a few.  Not, I hasten to add, the classic children’s books pictured above.  Just stuff on the dusty top shelf which I knew I’d never read again.

Rather fortuitously, my Mum has just started a book swap at her church.  So my slung books have a destination.  (And, no - I won’t be taking any back in return.  I’m slinging this week, not bringing!)

It’s not too late to sponsor me.  I’d love to make my target of £150, so if you feel like helping me and Jessie‘s Fund, click here.  We’d be so grateful.  And if you want to cheer me on in the comments below, go for it!  It’ll work magic, I promise!

Oh, nearly forgot.  The first thank you present goes to Catherine Stevens.  Who happens to be the first person who sponsored me.  Thank you, Cath!

Hebden Bridge

Hebden Bridge sits in a steeply wooded valley.  When the woollen industry it was built on declined in the sixties, the mill-working population saw an influx of green activists, alternative practitioners and artists of all kinds.  More recently, it has attracted commuters who travel daily to Leeds or to Manchester.

This strange mix of residents - together with a regular helping of tourists and day-trippers - gives the town a super relaxed, yet trendy vibe. In fact, Hebden has been rated the ‘fourth funkiest town in the world’. 

It’s one of the most creative places you’ll ever come across….teeming with galleries and craft shops and hosting a sizeable arts festival every summer.  It has a great Picture House that serves as both a normal and an art house cinema.

The town is also very scenic, with both a river and canal running through it.  The buildings cling so tightly to the sides of the tree-clad hills that a special Act of Parliament had to be passed to allow people to gain mortgages on the houses which are - quite literally - built on top of one another.

We’ll spend an afternoon exploring Hebden Bridge during The Magic of the Moors retreat.  You’ll be able to take your pick from the numerous cafes serving up organic and locally-produced food.  And shop in the plethora of artsy stores.  Be sure to check out my favourites: the fabulous contemporary Heart Gallery (pictured above) and Hannah Nunn’s exquisite designer lighting boutique, Radiance.

Hebden Bridge has been called the perfect mix of the urban and rural.  Why not come see for yourself?

Rooted in Place: The Magic of the Moors runs from August 15th-20th, here in the Pennine hills of Yorkshire.  Find more information here.  Registration opens on February 1st.  To receive a reminder, sign up to the Dixon Hill newsletter.

Haworth

We’ll be spending quite a bit of time in and around the Pennine town of Haworth during The Magic of the Moors retreat.

Haworth is most notable for its Bronte connections and we’ll certainly be making our own pilgrimage to The Parsonage….seeking to examine the ways in which the famous sisters were influenced by their moorland upbringing and surroundings.

There’s also a lovely steam railway running through the town.  It was on the Worth Valley line that the classic, 1970 version of The Railway Children was filmed.

In recent years, encouraged by the highly popular 40s weekend which takes place here each May, several vintage clothes shops have opened their doors.  Making it a bit of a girly mecca!  There’ll certainly be time to rummage and try on!

Then there are the small shops that just must be visited.  No trip to Haworth is complete without calling at The Old Apothecary.  And there’s my favourite new shop, Daisy Days - a boutique flower and gift shop which showcases the work of small as well as established designers.  You’ll love it!

Oh, and I mustn’t forget the pretty pottery painting café.  We’ll spend an evening at Cobbles and Clay - nattering, eating and splodging happily.  Before we wend our way back up the cobbles themselves and home across the heather.

Rooted in Place: The Magic of the Moors runs from August 15th-20th, here in the Pennine hills of Yorkshire.  Find more information here.  Registration opens on February 1st.  To receive a reminder, sign up to the Dixon Hill newsletter.

The Nature Table: January

Today sees the launch of a new series here on the blog.

Do you remember the nature table at primary school?  Did you ever trail a bunch of daffodils or a murky container of tadpoles into the classroom to add to the assortment of finds clustered there?

I used to love the nature table.  Even now, the sight of snowdrops induces a flashback…thrusting me back to my six year-old self and the fascination of that jam jar strewn surface.

I thought we’d do a virtual version here this year.  Each month, I’ll show you what would be on my real, live nature table if I had one….or what I would bring to the teacher if I was still six years old.

January is a spare month.  So much is dormant in the landscape.  Yet there are always treasures if you search for them.  Attracting my attention at the moment:

1.  Beech leaves, shrivelled but not yet fallen, glowing in the sunshine.
2.  New buds, promising spring will soon be here.
3.  The dried, reddish-brown fronds of last year’s bracken.
4.  The last of the ivy flowers.
5.  A few remaining, mostly wrinkled berries.
6.  Bright stems of crimson dogwood.
7.  Birds’ nests so obvious in naked trees.
8.  Lush, thick moss on the dry stone walls.