I am currently working on a bluebell-inspired design for my forthcoming YOKES collection. I am certainly not short of inspiration, as you currently can’t move for bluebells round here. Discovering these lovely flowers blooming in the woods and hills around me this Spring has really been an unexpected delight. On every walk, I seem to discover a new patch. . .
. . . around the Carbeth huts . . .
. . .through the hedgerow at the top of my garden . . .
. . .across the loch . . .
. . . and along the North-facing slopes of the Blane valley.
All the woodland paths are illuminated with their hazey-blue glow
And in dappled sunlight, they seem lit from within.
Clearly I have not had my fill of bluebells, as yesterday we visited Glen Finglas in search of more. (I drove the van over Duke’s Pass, which was excellent steering experience)
I can completely understand why this glen is listed as one of the best bluebell woods in Scotland.
This is a deciduous wood, and the bluebells bloom at the same time that the oaks are coming into leaf. The contrast between the fresh, pale green of the oak leaves and the deep bluey-purple of the bluebells rising from the woodland floor is really quite spectacular.
In clearings uninterrupted by trees, the bluebells intermingle with white stitchwort and take on a lovely meadow-like appearance.
I had plenty of time to study the Glen Finglas bluebells with my camera.
Now I can get back to my knitted bluebells!
Those Scottish bluebells look so beautiful. I love love love Scotland :)
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Spectacular, indeed! Your Scotland is a little piece of heaven. Love Bruce before the bluebell hillsides.
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Question: What happened to your cat? No photos for a very long time.
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So beautiful, your pictures are just so pretty and nature is awesome. All those beautiful places….!!
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Oh man. Waiting for the design will be very hard!!. In whatever format it comes, (fingers crossed for Magcloud), I’m going to try to retrofit the bluebells into Blaithin Junior for my much loved tiny granddaughters. And while I’m at it, try to do better with the steeking. :) all best, robin
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They are so gorgeous!
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Very beautiful. Thank you for sharing this fabulous gift from mother nature with all of us.
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Amazing stunning shots Kate! but why are they not called purplebells?
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Truely beautiful!
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It’s so beautiful! Your pictures reminded me about the Bright Star movie.
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So beautiful!
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Wow, the color is fabulous. Is it too early to buy the pattern, because it is going to be gorgeous? :)
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I miss bluebells so much now I live abroard. Cant wait for the finished bluebell pattern I am sure it will be a charming knit. Get the needles and yarn ready!
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Oh my gosh–what incredible flowers!!! You are very lucky to live in such a beautiful place :)
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Heavenly!
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Thank you Kate for these absolutely breath-taking photos!
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Just knowing that there’s something called the “best bluebell woods in Scotland” makes me happy.
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wow! some of those shots just took my breath away!
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absolutely beautiful!
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I can’t wait to see your Bluebell inspired design. I wonder if you could tell me/us this- if you were to pick a favorite time of year to visit Scotland, what would it be? I, along with some knitting friends, have a Scotland in 2016 goal. ( Our youngest will be off to college and we will be celebrating with this trip!) I’d love to hear what you think is the best time for a visit!
kim
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You photos are truly exquisite. I love bluebells. Thank you for brightening my day:)
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I especially liked seeing Bruce among the bluebells. He always makes me smile.
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We’ve got them here in Clisson (France) too, but they appeared a month ago and they’re gone now (they’re too fragile to survive too much rain). We had amazing blue hills for two weeks, though.
Your pictures are very beautiful, they completely depict the magic feeling one can feel while walking among these wonderful flowers. Glen Finglas looks like an amazing place. Hope I’ll have the chance to visit it one day.
Thank you for sharing this magic with us. I can’t wait to see this blue-bell inspired design.
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Amazing, specially Glen Finglas. Seems like some fairies might appear any moment!
Looking forward to yout new design.
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Beautiful photos, can’t wait to see how they have inspired your designs.
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Funnily I just posted about my little trip to the Bluebell Woods at Darroch Woods near Blairgowrie on Sunday – a truly beautiful experience. Can’t wait to see the design – the blue of the bluebells being a definite inspiration.
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Can’t wait to see your design, and the book! I have some “virginia bluebells” blooming now, but they look very different. I wish I had a restorative bluebell meadow to walk in!
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Oh my, you sure live in a beautiful part of the world. The photo’s are just beautiful!
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I’ve heard so much about the bluebells blooming on hillsides and in the woods, but had no idea of the scale! Thank you for sharing these lovely images. I can now imagine bluebells in a much more spectacular way :)
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Lovely photos. Thank you for sharing these beautiful flowers.
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On a treasure hunt some years ago we had to find – “a cold campanologist’s delight”……
…….. A bluebell! They are so delightful, and spectacular en masse like that in your photos. Looking forward to seeing your design.
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Stunning photos! Thank you for sharing your bluebells…one more thing to love about Scotland…
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So beautiful…and beautifully photographed. AND there’s Bruce! Looking forward to the bluebell-inspired design(s).
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Wonderful , a good inspiration for knit artist!
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Oh my goodness!! I have only ever read about bluebells in novels! These meadows of them are spectacular! I wanna visit you!!!
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What a gorgeous feast for the senses! I’m looking forward to your new bluebell inspirational design…
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Oh! How very, very beautiful! Hope they will still be in bloom when I reach the highlands on Holiday on Monday (yay!). I cannot wait to see the yokes.
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What a lovely walk! Now I will have to wait to see how it translates into a yoked sweater:)
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Absolutely beautiful! I hope to see them in person someday.
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We’ve got them here in Clisson (France) too, but they appeared a month ago and they’re gone now (they’re too fragile to survive too much rain). We had amazing blue hills for two weeks, though.
Your pictures are very beautiful, they completely depict the magic feeling one can feel while walking among these wonderful flowers. Glen Finglas looks like an amazing place. Hope I’ll have the chance to visit it one day.
Thank you for sharing this magic with us. I can’t wait to see this blue-bell inspired design.
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Your photos are quite beautiful. One can imagine the scent of the bluebells everywhere. But I do think Bruce should have a blue seasonal collar to go with them…
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Lovely, just lovely! The closest I get are my dishes, Buchan ware, which have bluebells, heather and thistles. My daily treat! Yes, bluebells in a yoke will be heavenly.
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I love Bluebells – our Southern variety have just finished their spectacular bloom. There is something magnificent about the range of purples, blues and greens in a great swathe of bluebells on the forest floor!
When I was little we had Walt Disney’s “Story a Day” storybooks and I distinctly remember that one of the stories involved Sleeping Beauty getting her magical Aunts to turn a harebell into a dress for her to wear. I remember I always thought of that story while out daydreaming in the woods on family woodland walks and looking at the bluebells.
Your photos are beautiful, I hope you are enjoying designing from them.
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What a stunning place!! It makes me miss Scotland even more!!!i really need to learn to knit so that I can attempt your beautiful designs….
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Thanks for sharing these, you are doing a good job of making this Scottish girl very homesick! in a good way. I went to primary school just round the corner from where the Kelpies now rear their heads. In those days all we knew about the canal was not to go anywhere near it because if we fell in ‘the weed would tangle round us and we’d never get out alive’.
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Or a Kelpie may have caught you…Seriously I got a little stressed when I visited with children on scooters and bikes so near the canal. When mine were young I would have been gripping their hands, how all five grew up reasonably laid back I do not know :-)
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Oh, oh, oh! You make me want to live in Scotland.
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Oh, thanks Kate for such beautiful pictures to start the day :-) The bluebells here in the Forest are blooming, too. They don’t have the cute little up-turned skirts, but the same beautiful blue. Your pixs ma ke me want to visit in spring. Excited to see your bluebell design.
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i miss bluebells so much! thanks for these lovely photos.
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They come and go so fast as do the forgetmenots along our West Marin, California roads. Your photos are really sunning. Thanks for this.
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Oh, how absolutely beautiful your pictures are. I think it seems to me that you have found a very special place to live…. and Bruce is quite obviously very much at home too!!!
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BREATHTAKING:::::::X
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Thank you for these beautiful pictures……spring is so wanted here and Scotland is terribly missed. Thank you.
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Absolutely beautiful! Thanks for this. Because of operations I havent been able to take my normal walks through the bluebells. This has helped so thank ypu. I look forward to seeing your knitting now. Joan
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what brilliant photos! they remind me of my childhood growning up in Scotland.
thank you!
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Low hovering clouds of fragrant blue; heavenly mist at our feet. Thank you for the photos.
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They’re precious—love the tiny edges. Can’t wait to see your design. Thanks for sharing.
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Just bluetiful!! Oh yes. continue knitting please…
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Beautiful photographs! I am excited to see your design and as always thank you for sharing.
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How lovely! Thanks for the lovely bluebell photos. Ours are gone over already (Oxfordshire) and we are being invaded by the horrible, so-called Spanish bluebells, real bruisers compared to your Scottish ones, which, by the way, we call English! ha ha!
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When I lived in England we thought the Harebells were Scottish bluebells. Just like pancakes up here were Scotch Pancakes or Dropscones in Newcastle
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Oh Kate, what gorgeous photos! If someone were reading your post to me and my eyes were shut, I’d still see their beauty. Thank you for another lovely post. I, too, look forward to your knitted design.
Sheila
http://sheilazachariae.blogspot.com/2014/05/knitted-arm-warmers-kit.html
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It’s a pity we don’t have ‘smelly-vision’ as the smell of the bluebells is so heady!
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Lovely photos. Bluebells are so gorgeous, and I love the fact that you can come across them even in the centre of Edinburgh, walking home past Queen Street Gardens or on odd patches of land. The way the sun filters through the trees and lights them up is so uplifting. Really looking forward to seeing the new designs.
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Beautiful. Ironic to see true ‘English’ bluebells in a Scottish woodland; here in the south we’ve lost the battle with Spanish blues and are surrounded by hybrids. Don’t suppose the locals call theirs ‘english’ though ;)
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Such lovely, lovely pictures. Now I know when I’d most like to visit Scotland. I’m so looking forward to your bluebell design!
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I can’t wait to see your design! What incredible inspiration!
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Wonderful! Thank you for sharing the beautiful photos.
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Simply lovely! I was in Scotland a week ago and enjoyed seeing the bluebells.
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Breathtaking! Thanks for sharing. Can’t wait to see your design!
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How absolutely beautiful! And to have all that so close by! No wonder it is an inspiration for you! I am now inspired to find bulbs to plant all over my woods here in Vermont! I’m so looking forward to your bluebell design.
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I love the bluebell woods, as did my mum. When your design/ book is released I shall knit it for her. Thanks Kate.
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It’s funny, I was thinking about how much my mum loved bluebells as I was reading this, then I saw your post. I have a beautiful watercolour of hers, that is of a bluebell wood & looks just like one of the photos hanging in my hallway.
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Just beautiful! Any design inspired by these flowers will be lovely.
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these are the most beautiful photographs I have ever seen im so glad that you live in such a wonderful place and know how you must appreciate your surroundings
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I’m looking forward to seeing your knitted version of the bluebells in a yoke. Your photos of them are beautiful.
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Oh my! How utterly beautiful! You live in such a wonderful area. Thank you for showing us this.
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Such beauty! Look forward to seeing the designs now!
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My favourite time of the year, when I visit my family in Cornwall every other year. Looking fwd to seeing your Bluebell design.
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