Friday 30 October 2009

Bit's and Bob's Pleasing Me Today!!

Hello there!
Just thought i would drop you a few quick lines before the weekend.
I had a wander in the garden this morning - its a bit damp and drizzly - but we have to make the most of the daylight, it seems too start getting dark so soon! I do so miss being able to sit out in the garden, eating dinner and just relaxing!
Anyway on to the first show and tell!
How exciting !!!!!!
Out on one of my Treasure Hunts, I espied this lonely lady, well loved, well used, and now sadly cast aside! Oh how sad she looked, I empathised with her - I too miss my babies and the joy, warmth and comfort they would bring to a tired harassed mother!
In her day she would have been a Queen amongst Prams 'Royal' no less.



I just couldn't see her go to the scrap, She's too big for the house, so she must bide in the garden with the faeries! In summer she shall have garlands of flowers! I will use her to display potted plants - cheer up her sad, tired looking frame.
Just another 'something' - it all adds interest to the garden!

Just don't ask what Hubby P said!

On with the show and tell -
Kale! Kale - lovely kale, I just love the way it looks, just so decorative! I buy it weekly, freshly hand picked by my local organic-y farmer, and I juice it - Big into juicing my veg here!




In the garden, the delight of my Honesty seedheads They look so nice sat amongst the greens and reds of the fading foliage! Can you see the little snails having a good 'ol snooze!



And how about the fresh jewel green of this moss growing at the base of the old kitchen sink, its full of water and fairy moss, it just amazes me how and where it will grow



Yes, yes I know! Another chair! But isn't it beautiful - a chair fit for a faerie princess!




And last but not least - a new shabby old leather bag. Couldn't resist this it looked just so lived in! What tales could it tell!
Plus its fairly large and zips up - I am always aware that there are certain undesirables at crowded places like car boots who will think nothing of helping themselves to your purse.




That's all for now folk's - have a nice weekend.
xx Take care xx Vicky xx






Monday 26 October 2009

Love Will Find a Way - Oh and the Button-y Giveaway!

Well Folks - its been a wild and windy weekend here on Anglesey! Well all of North Wales i think - we ventured off the island for a little browse around Porthmadog. A lovely little town, always a favorite with Hubby P - lots of Charity shops!
Here we are - the gruesome twosome - just well - getting blown away, sat watchin the world go by! We had our son and his partner with us - Robert was playing with his new camera, we're normally very camera shy!
And as for the 'Love will find a way' bit - just look what we have! Baby rabbits again!
I thought I was most careful preventing any kind of romance between Billy and Mo, but hey! like they say - love certainly did find its way!


They are just starting to peep out of the nest - I think there are three of them.




So cute! I will keep you posted.




Here's a couple of random carrots that caused gales of laughter from the men of the house! -Honestly! - so juvenile!!
I buy them from a local farmer who himself was apologising to me for the shape of the carrots! You don't get that in Tesco's! Apparently its because they are grown in very stony ground. I don't mind - they are grown organically and they taste darn good!


Weekend-y Treasure!
A couple more bowls of the Better Maid ware, to add to my collection.
Plus another old 'interesting chair' possibly destined for the garden as an 'Artistic; feature! Unless I can find room for it in the house!


The little old Vintage bottle of Cussons Aftershave will sit nicely with the others in the bathroom.




I know its terrible! I have so many collections of all sorts of random things - why I can't stick with one or two I don't know!

But I also bought this!!
When I was a girl I always wanted a musical box - the ones that has a fairy or ballerina that twirled around when you opened the lid.



So - as they say 'Its never too late' - when I espied this I gladly handed over my £2.
I know it looks a bit mucky - I haven't given it a wash yet - but it still woks perfectly, she twirls like a dream to the tune of 'Love Story' - remember the film? Ohhh how we cried!!



She is so cute! Must get on and give her a wash!
And not to be forgotton - The Big Draw, Names in a Hat an all that!
Well I pulled out three ;-
** Funkymonkey
** Serenta
** Sharie - View to a Hill
So well done, If you let me have your details I will get your little Button-y parcels off to you!
xx That's all for now folks xx Take care xx



















Thursday 22 October 2009

Car Boot Treasure and General Buttoniness!

Hello there! Just a quickie post - just thought i would do something creative (post a blog) whilst I eat my sandwich, rather than browsing through the new Evans Online - lovely clothes, so tempting, but given I am the shape of a lumpy sack - at best, no amount of lovely clothes hide the fact! Ahhh well - its something to do with my cake addiction I think!
On to Buttons - I've been testing them out, and yes folks - they are all rather lovely and lend a certain cuteness to all crafty projects!
I needed a lamp to put in the summer house, so I found a rather unusual base - £1 at the car boot of course. It is sturdy and rather heavy which is what I wanted, so that it wouldn't get knocked over easily. The shade was just a cheapy thing too - 50p from another stall holder. So I set to and covered it in buttons - and more buttons!



The base is really unusual - its a kind of resin with what look like sweet wrappers inside it - well I liked it. You can tell by the electrical wiring that its quite old. Hubby P tested the electrics and its just fine, so off to the summer house it goes.



I made a similar lampshade a while ago, this one sits by my sewing machine, amongst all the bits and bobs necessary to a sewing/crafting session. Bit like a colourful toadstool!


And having one or two buttons to spare I made a chunky bracelet!



Carboot Treasure - not too much this week, its just getting too wet and cold for people to stand outside selling their goods and chattels - I don't blame them.
I found these lovely little Vintage booklets - a delight to look through.



I saw these patterns for a set of Father and Son underware and immediately thought of my own dear family - curiously enough they declined! And so Very Stylish! I don't know whats the matter with the man! He said something about 'not being seen dead in them'!! He's such a spoilsport - we could have a real old laugh!



These slippers are so cute - remember that time when children were children, and wanted 'bunny' slippers rather than Britney, or Disney Princess!




This last little booklet was issued during the War, a fascinating insight to what women had to do to make their clothes last. Hubby P looked on Ebay - he has a wont of doing this with every treasure I bring home - not one of his most lovable traits I must say. Anyway he says this book has just been published again, no doubt in a more modern fashion.




This original has fascinating paragraphs on the care of your stockings and how it is preferable (if at all possible) to have two corsets and wear them alternately to make the rubber elastic last. And handy hints on how to repair where the bones have pushed through the fabric!
Imagine wearing a boned corset - and stockings everyday, to do your housework, bending, stretching, scrubbing - must have been a nightmare!



This is interesting - the Forward, just thanking 'you all' for the effort put in during Rationing - how very British!



And a bit of Autumn colour in the garden! Hubby P brought home for me the little wire basket - it lends itself well to the cyclamen.


xx Bye for now xx











Monday 19 October 2009

Buttons! Buttons! Buttons!!! How about a button 'Lucky Dip'?

Hello there! All okay? Goooood!
This weekends treasure trove - Buttons!
What is it about buttons? They are just so irresistible, the way they wink at you as you go by, their bright jewel like colours, their dinky little shapes - and Oh - so lovely to run through your fingers - as you scan them for those 'Special Ones'!
Well - I found a whole suitcase full of them!
It was late in the day, at the carboot and the Lady selling them just wanted to go home I think. She was selling them at 20p a card which was very reasonable - but why - Oh why, did I have to ask about buying the whole case full - Well! what can I say - the buttons - they just winked at me!
Needless to say - with a sigh, and a raising of eyebrows Hubby P could be seen struggling with a suitcase of buttons (whose zip had broken) to the van!
I paid £10 for the lot - and I mean a lot - really and truly -How Many Buttons Does A Girl Need? But there again 'Need' doesn't really come into it does it!



They are all Vintage but 'as new', unused still on their original cards. The cards themselves are so Vintage-y and cute - just nice to display (well I do have lots to use up - somehow!).




And there are a lot of cards of buttons - approx 1000 - and yes I did count them!, Hubby P thinks I am mad (well that's not new - really) but I just 'Need to Know' how many - you know what I mean?


They are all so delightful, I had great fun going through them and sorting them into piles of the different makers (and counting them!). Mind you it was taking such a long time Hubby P decided he would help me - well that's what he said, but you know he was just as enthralled with their colours, shapes and sizes (I dare'snt say prettiness) as any three year old!



Now he is quite an authority on shape, colour, weight and makers name, and indeed place of manufacture - another string to his bow!
You can see in this last photo some of my favorites, the big pink square ones are incredibly sparkly, real fairy pink!
And so my friends! how about a share in this lovely button-y treasure trove?
If you would like to leave me a comment - you know the sort of thing -'My Name Is ------. And I Am A Buttonoholic'................. and next Monday I will pull two names out of a hat and send the lucky two a goody bag of buttons each.
xxx That's all for now Folks xx Take care xxx

Steak pie to make for tea - I promised Hubby P!

Monday 12 October 2009

Weekend Treasures!!

Hello' hope you are all well today! Its lovely and sunny here! I just thought I would share my weekend finds with you - I had a thrilling time down at the dump (recycling centre!).
Well you know - or perhaps you didn't, but I do - just so love the look and feel of old galvanised buckets, watering cans, dustbins and the like. I like the idea that they were a useful, homely article, used on a daily basis, without thought, but in their own small way - have their own history. I like to plant them up and scatter them throughout the garden - I know what with the chairs from last week an all - you will be thinking my garden is just one big dump - artistic dump though!
In this large tub - I'm not sure what it was used for - it has no handles, but its so tactile with is corrugated sides, I have planted a large Oak tree that I grew from seed. It has to manage it the tub because I have no room in the garden for another tree!



This is an old dustbin type that I have a Golden Willow tree in - again grown from a cutting - no room in the garden for it!

Well! Yesterday we had a good sorting out of the tool shed - it must be said, Hubby P was ruthless!! Lots and lots of boxes of rubbish for the tip - we only just managed to get there before closing time. I like to go - bit of a jaunt for me - I like to have a good old nosy in the skips to see what people have thrown out, and maybe, just maybe - there is something 'useful' to bring home! Recycling you see!!

And this is what I found, it was buried under an old wheelbarrow and other bits - but I could see its corrugated sides. I immediately hailed a promising looking young man, and asked nicely if he could 'just possibly' dig out this treasure. It must be said he was very pleasent, and got it out in a flash - probably use to batty middle aged women!





Its not at all bashed about - as you can see its an old wash tub. It would have had a handle, but that's missing.



And just look at this soap dish - come handle, how cute is that!



The bottom has gone unfortunately, but it wont matter if I am to plant it up.
So as Hubby P unloaded the rubbish from the van, I stood by waiting to put my tub in the back. I was pleasantly surprised - he didn't say a word! Mind you he was very tired from clearing the tool sheds - nasty grubby job, but we are all so tidy and organised now.

Another find at the carboot was this little shoe rack. I've been wanting one for a while, but I didn't want a large pine one - which there seemed to be lots of, I just haven't the room for anything big!


So this is ideal, and rather cute - I think some clever person has made it, I've never seen anything similar.




It needs a good polish really, but I just had to have a play, to see how it would look!




Have you planted your bulbs?
I filled this little old trug with pretty little daffs - Tata tete I think. (the bottoms gone on the trug - seems to be an on going theme ere' - I am sure my bottoms gone too - well went years ago really!!)
xx That's all for now folks! xx Take care xx






Wednesday 7 October 2009

Ageing Gracefully - But All of A Do Da!!



Hello there! Hope you're all well, and keeping warm no the weathers turned!
Just a few rambling thoughts about the changes happening in my little world. I was mooching about this morning, it was nice and sunny,a bit of a nip in the air, but nice to be outside. I always spend a few minutes everyday just feeding the chickens, rabbits and sundry wild birds.Its a nice chore - just to mooch about and enjoy the garden. I take a ramble around, looking for whats new in the garden beds and what is fading away ready to have a long sleep and renew ready for the Spring.
Do you remember the three legged chairs I won in an Auction this time last year ( yes well! I just got carried away - Hubby P wasn't impressed that I had bought three chairs with which he couldn't even make one good one!!) They were such lovely old things - so I put them in the garden - as Art! to Age Gracefully! (Hubby P it has to be said - did have a bit of 'difficulty' with this one!) but as the foliage grew around them they looked wonderful! Seats fit for Fairy Princesses no less!
Well here they are - ageing in a most beautiful way - the moss on the seat is perfection, Man could certainly not produce anything so soft fresh and purely magical! I wish you could just rub your finger across it - its lovely!



All the colours of the fading foliage - like jewels scattered across its seat!



And the wooden backs - like pieces of old Gothic sculpture amongst the leaves and last Flowers of the season. That lovely faded, ancient colour that only real wood can achieve.



The seat of this one, its once magnificent brocade faded and threadbare, just the sparkly strands of golden thread, to hint at its past beauty!




Such a wonderful season, a feast for all the senses, the wonderful colours, fresh nip in the air, and that - oh so 'something' that you can smell in the air!

Yes a delightful morning - lots of 'faffing about' outside, Soooooooooo important to 'ones' well being you know!
So I came inside - eventually to do something useful. I had bought a nice coat at the carboot, but really it too small -who was I kidding! So I thought - 'get it put on ebay, get back some of that money you spent on clothes that raelly you knew would be too small etc etc' - this is me giving myself 'motivational' aggro, is it me? or do you too, give yourself lots of nagging?
Anyway this is the scary bit!
I tried the coat on - one last time - no it didn't fit, and no, realistically I am not going to 'slim into it'!
So I sat down at the computer to list it on ebay - felt a funny scratchy something on my hand, looked down - OMG!!!!!!!! A HUGE, I MEAN HUGE SPIDER!!!! on MY HAND!!!

It must be said usually I am not too worried about spiders - but this was HUGE!
She must have been in the coat all this time - hiding in the sleeve!

Of course all the shrieking brought Richard (my son) rushing in, he was really impressed, and told me to stop frightening the poor thing! I don't think he really grasped who was the most afraid!


Just look its HUGE!





Richard picked it up to take it outside, then it started running - going into/up his sleeve - WELL!! this sent me into a real Do Da!! What is it when you think your young ones are threatened - I know! - its only a little spider! but something really rather basic kicks in doesn't it- I started the shrieking thing again!
OMG - I had to have sweet tea for shock!
Once Richard had saved the poor spider from my 'Totally Over The Top' shrieking!

I think I am getting a bit - addled! is that a good word for it? - in my old age! haha!


xx That's all for now folks xx