london is my cuppa tea

Posted on Posted in book reviews/events, designing, projects

i know, i know—i ran off and left you hanging for nearly a week, didn’t i?
so sorry; i always think i’m going to have LOADS more time to myself during these big events than i really do. i actually spent about five minutes a day in my room and those were mostly devoted to falling into or dragging myself out of bed.

couple that with the fact that the wifi in my room was very spotty at best and even mister knitspot didn’t hear much from me over the weekend. now that i’ve caught my breath though, i can tell you all about everything.

i arrived safely at heathrow a little less than 24 hours after i left my house—between the long chicago layover and the time change, i lost nearly a whole day hopping over the pond.

i did have to sit in the pen for a little bit, but eventually got my stamped papers back and was on my way.

i met up with clara parkes and together we headed for london town. we were pinching ourselves all the way to the coffee shop near the university where we waited for our rooms to open up while soaking in some city street life—look, there’s a double-decker bus

wait, wait—there’s a lorrie

we are such tourists. but really, who cares?
i never claimed to be cool . . .

pretty soon cookie showed up with a new haircut—she even has a perm. it makes her giggle even more, if that’s possible, haha.

from there, the weekend pretty much took off for the races and i never really caught my breath again til today.

after we checked into our rooms and had a very quick nap (no use going down the rabbit hole when it’s so close to evening), we headed out to meet the other teachers for a yummy dinner. afterward, i knit and visited with cookie for a while before falling into bed for a nice deep sleep.

the next morning we were up bright and early for a look through the V&A, guided by the extremely knowledgeable judith mackenzie, who was also at knit nation to teach spinning classes.

we saw many wondrous textiles and carpets

clothing and wall hangings

and of course, incredible articles of clothing

some of which were even knits.

we finished up in the ceramics hall, where skylights illuminate a block-long bank of glass housed crockery to perfection

we even spent some extra time taking a very close look at these silly figurines

after the museum, we all headed off for afternoon tea

to rest our feet and take some time for quiet chatting amongst ourselves.

with a lovely lunch provided by our hosts and event organizers, alice and cookie.

which we finished off with a selection of luscious cakes and teas . . .

now there is much, much more to tell about the weekend, but i think i’ll save the rest for tomorrow; i have to get to bed or i’ll never get up in time to catch the train for brussles, which is our next stop. we have a date to visit a chocolate museum there.

i KNOW—but don’t you fret; we’ll suffer through.

one last thing for today . . . i’m sure you want to know who won the book, right?
the lucky commentor is: carol the halloween nut!

more later, i promise—there are gardens, knitting, fun knit nation events and of course, yarn to share. i’ll be back tomorrow.

22 thoughts on “london is my cuppa tea

  1. looks like you’re having a fabulous time! I love your reports from afar! But I must read these earlier in the day….. all the yummy food! Have safe travels!

  2. Oh, how I wish could have been there with you and Clara. I’ll just have to wait until Portland next week. Too bad I’ll be a smudge busy…

  3. It still makes me giggle looking quickly at your visa stamp! Have a wonderful time in Brussels and you will love the chocolate. It was a fabulous weekend at KnitNation, thanks for your company at Bingo and lunch on Sunday, I think the Norfolk branch of Fall in Full Color would agree. Enjoy some holiday time before you set off on your travels again.

  4. I can only echo what Janet says about your visa stamp – hilarious!! It was lovely to spend time with you and the rest of the Norfolk gang at Knit Nation. Have a great trip to Belgium, and we do so appreciate your gallant efforts at the chocolate museum!!! I know it’ll be a struggle, but do your best!!

  5. Looks like you had a great time in London. I did spot you at Knitnation but was too shy to introduce myself. You were in the queue behind me in the coffe shop on Friday lunchtime. I was overcome by shyness. LOL.

    I attended Judith’s spinning class on Friday and WOW, she’s amazing. My spinning has improved by about 500%.

    Enjoy the rest of your trip.

  6. From my limited travels, London is hands down my favorite city! It’s wonderful that you got to see some of it and not just work. I’m looking forward to meeting you next week at Sock Summit 🙂

  7. What a lovely trip! Your pictures make me want to buy a lottery ticket and become a world wide vagabond. Enjoy the chocolate museyum.

  8. I absolutely adore traveling vicariously with you! Lovely pictures – yummy food – great company – very strange visa stamps – LOL! Be safe on your journeys. Happily awaiting the next installment.

  9. Great shots! Love the china teacup. Can’t wait to see more pics of KnitNation, etc.

    Enjoy eating all the chocolate in Belgium – yum! There is none better.

  10. I showed your photos to my daughter, and she asked why we weren’t in London, too. At least we can live vicariously through your trip. Can’t wait for chocolate! Thanks, Anne, for taking the time to blog.

  11. The cup in the top photo repays any amount of waiting for your post. I want that cup. And that paisley-esque knit dress in the V&A. Come to think of it, I want a long trip to London, too.

  12. So glad to hear from you. It sounds like you had a great time. Cannot wait to see all of your yarny goodies!

  13. I didn’t think it was possible to put “chocolate” and “suffer” in the same sentence.

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