Wild flowers

A farmers cottage just outside Hopefield

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Carpets of wild flowers appear annually around the end of August on the West Coast of South Africa and provide a spectacular sight till October. This was one of the best seasons I have ever had the privilege to experience. Unfortunately this splendour cannot simply be captured in pixels. The sound of the birds, with the crisp Spring breeze and the smell of the flowers need to be experienced in person.

Hopefield flowers

 This year we attended the Hopefield Wild Flower show, with craft markets, entertainment and the most delicious home cooked meals on offer. And then there were the flowers. On every side walk, grass land, piece of veld and vlei (lower-lying area with a bit of water present), they were just everywhere and as far as the eye could see.

 

 And then there was the local graveyard, where family and friends covered graves with piles of plastic flowers, in a kaleidoscope of colour. So special.

Mother Nature inspired me to recycle a hunted Hartebeest skull into a Spring Beauty, using Cotton and Wool yarns and the age old technique of crochet.

Langebaan Yarnie News Aug/Sept'15

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Fresh eggs daily

On the 1st of December 2014, we celebrated one year of Lagoonliving and the move to the small town we always dreamt of. It is one of those dreams so many people have, but yet so little ever get the chance or summons the nerves, to do. We feel truly blessed and celebrate each day as a gift at The Lagoon.

One of the items on the bucket list, was to get our own backyard chicken flock established, with just enough indigenous hens to provide us with fresh, free range eggs every morning.

I grew up with chickens and fondly remember feeding them from my hand and the times I had to look for 'lost' eggs in the back yard. The 'indigenous mixed breed' variety seemed like the obvious choice, for low maintance and easy bird care. We found our Amber White POL (Point of Lay) chicks at Golden Egg, just outside Paarl (e-mail Lorinda on admin@goldenyolkeggs.co.za) and just after our one year Lagoonliving anniversary, we finally ticked the chicken box too. (more images on www.instagram.com/finchgifts)

Our nifty coop was made by Uli Kapff at Garden Stuff (e-mail gardenstuffsa@gmail.com) and proved to be a very good investment. Handy hubby has since added a little enclosure, but the ladies much prefer to scratch around the whole back yard. The veggie patch is ruined, but we have been harvesting three fresh eggs every morning, for the past three weeks.

We named our brood after the infamous ladies of the 70's, The Pointer Sisters (I am so excited, I just can't hide it, Jump for my love and other oldie favourites in the house) and Bonnie, Anita and Ruth are now a firm part of the family. They love being touched and the children spend hours at 'the chicken channel' as they have named it. One could easily write a soapy about the antics of chickens. Feeding them fresh fish guts have proven to be the best form of entertainment to date; with The Sisters losing all their dignity and chasing each other around the yard, screeching and clucking, with wings flapping, to protect their prized morsel. Any kitchen waste is highly appreciated and recycled into fresh eggs daily. The nest box straw with chicken litter goes into the compost heap and the new veggie patch will certainly benefit from this edition. The cycle is complete.

Hooking at the Lagoon

 My granny taught me the basic stitches of crochet and knitting when I was about 5 or 6 years old.

When I decided to get rid of my nicotine addiction about two years ago, I reached for the crochet hook again. Kicking the habit would mean more snacking and fidgeting hands and I thought getting hooked to yarn might help.
Well, it did. I also managed to get hooked on Merino wool, as the ultimate fiber to work with.

The story of sheep to yarn is magical and the finished product possesses the properties of the wool it is made in; soft, luxurious, breathable, flame resistant, natural, biodegradable and regulates the body's temperature through the natural crimp in the fiber. All these qualities appealed to the natural living style we were after and I got busy with my first major project.

 Four kilogram's of Merino wool later, and we had the ultimate ripple style blanket for our bed.

Friends bought a plot at the lagoon and asked for a blanket as well, so another four kilograms and 8 months later, they have one too, for their new home. The wool yarn was sourced from different Merino wool suppliers in South Africa, some being designers hand painting commercially spun wool, others were homespun and some were from commercial spinners and dyers. The Merino Ripple blanket has been on our bed for almost a year now and is the most wonderful sleeping buddy you can imagine. The 'regulate your body temperature' fact is completely true and results in much deeper sleeping patterns.

Getting back into crochet, I have met a wonderful group of people, with the same mindset and urge to be creative in yarn. When you hold that ball of wool in your hands and start thinking about the possible projects you could use it for, something clicks and nothing else is quite so important any more. Playing with yarns and hooks have helped me kick the habit and proved to be therapeutic to a stress-filled city soul. Highly recommended.

Free Range

Lagoon Living has made us more conscious of the origin of our food and drink and living closer to nature, this has become a priority. I have been baking our own bread for years, but only recently found a source of flour without the added iron and additives we are trying to avoid. Bolkor Flour is made by the Van der Merwe family in the Porterville district and they are sticklers for quality. (contact tel +27.22. 9313121)

We dream of eating only free range proteins and found a wonderful source of Nguni beef, from Waylands farm, just outside Darling. Lizette and Michael Duckitt are the sixth generation on the farm and their family has been farming there since 1865! I think they know their stuff by now. They strive to farm holistically and in harmony with nature and their wild flower reserve is open to the public during flower season.
 

"We are using the “holistic grazing” system. This enhances the natural vegetation which means that the more we graze the more food we get for the animals to eat and the healthier they are. Everything from the daisy’s to the birds are benefiting from this system. "  says Lizette.
That's our kind of thinking, so we gave it a try.

 We bought their Nguni meat chunks for mincing and made our own beef sausage, mince meat and beef patties. Nothing compares to eating your own, home made sausage, with absolutely no added anything. Just pure beef. Free-Range. Local. Lekker!

Making moves

Making the move from Big-City-life to a small seaside village, next to a salt water lagoon, was always our dream. When our son left home for university, we finally decided to take the leap.

Husband has to drive the 100km to work every day, but does so through the West Coast National Park (www.sanparks.co.za/parks/west_coast) with a variety of indigenous buck, tortoises and ostriches causing peak hour traffic, in stead of thousands of other commuters. I can work from home most days and drive with him when I need to be in Cape Town for meetings. This gives us an extra two hours together in the car, which is great for focused communication and crochet projects.

Our lifestyle change is significant and I will write about our experiences, in my very simple Lagoon Style, to share our triumphs and tribulations. You might be thinking of doing something similar in the near future and I hope to shed some light on how it is working for us and what you could expect. I will also share my love for Merino wool, crafts, the arts and local flavours at the same time. 'Local is Lekker', as we say here at the West Coast.