Midsummer Solstice & St John’s Eve Special | Singing, Dancing & Watching the Sunset

A song at the Stones | Dancing for a Stick | Wild swimming | Midsummer sunset | Witches’ Pool | Sketchbook flip through | Small garden joys In a quiet village not far from the sea and even closer to the canal lies the tiny cottage that was once the home of a blacksmith’s ‘striker’. Once, the air would have resounded to the clang of hammer on anvil, and to the hiss of the smith’s thunder-water as each red-hot horseshoe was quenched again and again. Here in this new place just a couple of miles from The Old Shop, I’m trying to simplify both my surroundings and possessions, while turning the pocket-handkerchief garden into a haven for wildlife. Hopefully with a little beauty woven in, together with some homegrown organic goodness. And all while planning adventures, practising music and looking wistfully at the still chaotic studio space. Not to mention the cottage itself which, I tell myself, has to get worse before it can get better. In this bumper Midsummer edition, the focus is on a week-long visit to the Welsh Borders, firstly to witness Evesham Vale’s National Morris Weekend and then on tour with the van, as the UK’s heatwave made the idea of a four-day wild camping hike seem like the craziest idea ever. Back home we check on how the fledgling (and unwatered) garden has fared, and there’s a flick through the zig-zag sketchbook you may have seen me collaging ready for this adventure in the last Stryker’s Cottage video. Do come along on the journey! If you enjoy what I do, you might like to subscribe to my magazine style Substack newsletter created around each new and full moon. These explore landscape, magic, history/archaeology, recipes, seasonal musings and more. It’s all there, much like the videos but with less focus on the cottage and more on the folklore under our feet. It’s delivered straight to your inbox, is free to subscribe, and you can sign up over at imogenashwin.substack.com. There's a paid option too, that has extra content as a thank you for supporting my work. This makes a huge difference to me, giving me time to produce the newsletter and videos and helping to keep me supplied in coffee :-) Speaking of coffee, another way of supporting my work should you wish would be to buy me a coffee, for which I am always very grateful. It helps me to keep doing what I do - thank you so much, friends. https://buymeacoffee.com/imogenashwt