Isn't she lovely

This beautiful girl has come to live with me. She has been keeping Deb company for a while but the moment I saw her, I wanted ever so much for her to come here and now she has. Deb describes her as having the look of the young Princess Elizabeth and isn't she right. I've got plans to make her a proper home beneath my bevelled mirror which shamefully is still under my bed. Is that a vintage sin d'you think? Maybe I won't ever find a beautiful, shabby treasure ever again - I don't deserve it! Honestly I'll sort it out soon.

For the moment my bedside table is looking much prettier and the colours in the print pick up the colours of my first-ever attempt at a lampshade cover! Now this is bonkers but I feel almost giddy that it's turned out more or less ok. Well actually its a bit short on one side but I'm just concentrating on enjoying it (well apart from the fact I haven't got a long enough extension cable for it but yes, it's on the ever growing list too...)

And look what the postman delivered yesterday - the most fabulous Pay-it-Forward present from Jess who is the such a lovely and creative blogger. A sweet cushion in my very favourite print with pretty bobble trim that I've been admiring for ages, plus some lovely green polka dot fabric that I'm earmarking for a little bag for the bathroom.

Thank you so much Jess for making this for me and for remembering what I like, I'm very touched and ashamed at how forgetful I am because Jess was one of my PIF winners and I still owe her a pressie and my year is almost up! So keep your eyes on the letterbox Jess, there'll be something on it's way to you soon!

And someone else who needs to keep an eye on the letterbox is the delightful Anna of All Things Lovely who is the winner of my blog anniversary giveaway. Not quite sure if the crinoline ladies are quite the decorative touch you're looking for for the cafe Anna but hope you enjoy them!

Deja Vu and a giveaway

July is turning into a bit of a damp squib up here. This time last year we were coming home from a sodden (but beautiful) week in Cornwall and then I was almost washed away on the way home from work as the Sheffield Flood 2007 hit. Things don't look quite so bad yet and the garden is blissful thanks to all the water, but with sports day cancelled today and the holidays approaching I've got horrid visions of damp children, flattened flowers and a chilly old summer ahead.

So the only antidote until things cheer up is to escape to France - every night! I am addicted to the Tour de France. Not that I really know a thing about it or have any sort of grasp on the tactics but it is a glorious thing to watch on a dreary summer's night.

Woody has followed it religiously for years and patiently reminds me of the riders, teams, mountains, speed trial intricacies and technical details every year. The joy for me is the wonderful French TV footage that Sky screen; soaring aerial shots of chateaux, mountain villages with terracotta rooves, acres of rolling corn and lavender fields racing by and vast dark forests at the foot of glowering mountains. (If only I had some pictures, these floral ones are cheering me up no-end though!)

I'm not a great traveller - (I love the journey but feel so typically English and constantly embarrassed about having no clue what to say and not understanding the social niceties abroad) - but the Tour lets me experience France from afar for three weeks and makes me a little braver every year to pull myself together and go back.

It's also a year - around about now - that I started my blog and what a wonderful year it's been. I've made smashing online friendships, discovered the lure of vintage via ebay (ouch!) and learnt to appreciate and see the world around me with wider eyes. I can't express in a few sentences how much I appreciate all the wonderfully supportive, sweet and often really funny comments people have left. Thank you, sharing my little world with such lovely ladies has changed everything for me so much for the better and I will treasure every one.

So, by way of a proper thank you I've got a bit of something to give away.

Does anyone like crinoline ladies? This lovely pair of chair backs have been beautifully embroidered and if not used to decorate your arm chairs would make lovely panels for cushion covers or any craft project people, so much more talented than me, could produce.

One of them has a few tiny missing stitches on one of the hollyhocks but it's hardly noticeable (and I promise I'll give it a quick press too before I send it to the winner!). Everyone who leaves comment will have their name put in the hat to be drawn out by B next week. Thanks again and good luck!

And I've been meaning to pass on the fab, "You make my day" award onto some of my favourite blogs:

Anna at All Things Lovely - for one of the most entertaining blogs I read. I love her jolly style and and she's opening a cafe soon and will be the perfect hostess I'm sure.

Michele at Cowboys & Custard - a favourite of many, always fun and so creative and the leaver of some wonderfully special comments.

Pipany - the sewer of beautiful things, with the sort of home life I crave and all in wonderful Cornwall.

Dev at The Fairy Glade - great minds think alike I think and Dev's post always strike a special chord with me.

Cathy at Pink Green - the allotment queen with a very busy life who's beautiful posts really inspire me and my allotment dreams.

Lovely Lupins

What do you think? Not a bad return on £1.50 spent at the WI stall in the Butter Market. My glorious lupins are flowering their hearts out and the rest of the border is really taking shape. Everyday I just have to pop out and see what's going on in my precious little patch. Even on the busiest of days I squeeze in a minute to pull up a weed or drench my hanging baskets and I've started hanging the washing out the other side of the line so that I get the best view of my flowers.

The rose plants Woody gave me for Valentine's Day are blooming too, you can just see one in the corner of the picture above and its actually a lovely pink rather than the deep red on the label. The other is a patio rose and is covered in velvety scarlet blooms and I must take some pictures of it this weekend if the sun peeps out.

Pinching out the tips of the cosmos is definitely paying off, plenty of flowers and tons of buds to come for the next few weeks. What a brilliant treat that'll stretch the £2 spent on 6 plants out for ages. Next spring I think I'll try again to grow some annual seeds myself - I'm hopeless and forget about them usually but now I've got a proper garden I might give it a proper shot and see if I can be a real gardener.

More lupins, not sure what type but they're the loveliest shade of dusky rose. Only thing is I've gone and planted them next to deep pink verbascum, pinky/purple foxgloves and a pink. Hmmm, I think this end might need a bit more planning for next year! One day I'll get around to posting some pictures of the front garden and the other borders at the back but they're looking a bit hopeless at the moment so I'm keeping my eyes trained on this side of the garden for now.

Thanks for the lovely wishes about my job. In all the excitement I'd completely forgotten to say what my new post is, typical. I'm going to be working on a new project for the NHS in our region as a Communications Manager, part-time still which suits us perfectly. All quite exciting and a still daunting but now I've had time to let it sink in I'm feeling much more confident.

And another thank you to the lovely Sairer who has one of the most beautiful and entertaining blogs I know. If you like vintage florals, beautiful gardens and delightful chickens pop over and say hello. Thanks Sairer, I'm very touched and still so chuffed to think people actually read this stuff that tumbles out of my head! Blogging is one of the highlights of my day and i want to pass this award onto 5 other smashing bloggers but the laptop battery is about to give up the ghost so if it's ok I'll pop back with those tomorrow.

Thanks again for all the lovely wishes!

Pastures New

Gosh what a week. It's sped by with a mixture of sleepless nights, comedy night preparations, sickness bugs and A NEW JOB!

I'm still in shock to be honest. My application was a bit of a "give it a whirl" thing and blimey I've gone and got the post! I'll be very sad to leave the lovely team I work with and I'll miss the work too because the countryside is so close to my heart and this job is quite different. But it means I'll be working much closer to home, no more 80 mile round trips to the office, three times a week, and instead I'll be round the corner from my mum-in-laws, in a nice little market town.

I'm feeling a bit over-whelmed and daunted by the size of the task and I keep having wobbles that it's all beyond me. But it really is time for a change and this could be the beginning of bigger and better things for all of us.

So, no more leaving for work at 7.15am and getting home just as the boys are going to bed and time for fun like this before they do. More time for Woody to concentrate on his writing and comedy dreams and a few more pennies in the pot to keep the wolf from the door and buy fabulous treats like these...

Do you think my vintage pillowcase obsession is going a bit far? I've realised I'm not the only one with this affliction in the blogging world, its massively addictive isn't it! This is the third pair I've bought in as many weeks. Aren't they just lovely, I've been keeping my eyes peeled for some candy striped ones for ages but no joy so bought a brushed cotton pair from ebay - then saw these the very next day! Oh well, the whole lot only cost £2.50 so hardly outrageous. The brushed cotton pair will be cosier for winter and the frilly ones are already making our bed more summery.

So that's where I've been this week. Sorry for getting a bit behind with replies and catching up with everyone but as soon as my head stops spinning I'll be back up to speed. Blimey, I need a sit down!

A Room With a View

Before I get going thank, thank, thank you to everyone who left a comment on my birthday party post. I can't tell you how smashing it feels to hear from so many like-minded souls and not feel like my ideas are a bit too old-fashioned or dull anymore. The ideas and advice you've all so kindly given has set my mind racing off with all sorts of plans and the birthday-boy-to-be has been consulted.

All on his own he's come up with two brilliant themes, but can't decide which one he likes best yet, either Jungles or Knights & Castles, which is looking like the front runner at present. Phew, I knew that medieval history degree would come in handy one day! Thank you for everyone's very generous support and I wish I could send you all each a beautiful posy like this lovely one from the WI market. The honeysuckle and roses smell divine - hope you enjoy it!

I've been tagged by the lovely Fairy Glade to show the view from the kitchen window (great idea for a tag) and this is it. Mostly I'm looking at various bits of plastic and drying washing but my view is also full of flowers and the wonderful rolling countryside beyond.

The mowed field opposite is a delight for the boys, for two days it's been busy with tractors, new-fangled bailing machines with a whizzy plastic wrapping thingy and trailers loading it all back to the barn. I adore our view and the huge bonus is that when we have visitors there's usually a scrum over who gets to wash up and enjoy the view!

My sources of vintage finds seem to have dried up lately and I've not come across any treasures for a while. Oh well, perhaps I'm due for a bargain haul around the corner. I did find this lovely straw hat though in a charity shop. I do love a hat, woolly in the winter, straw in the summer, especially in the sun because I can't bear the heat. It's a bit of a struggle to find one that fits though because I have rather a long bonce, hoods never keep my face dry in the rain and hats rarely fit. So imagine my delight when this pretty thing was a perfect fit.

I took off a rather nasty bunch of green feathers and a straw flower and replaced them with some vintage lace and a silk rose I've had stashed away for a while. I'm quite pleased with the result - just need some balmy summer weather to float around wearing it in now!

Edited the next day to say: What a plank! I am, of course, supposed to tag other lovely bloggers having being tagged myself. So, hoping they'd like to take part, I tag these delightful ladies to see the view from their kitchen windows:

• Carol at Clover Yard
• Emma at Sew Recycled
• Deb at This Vintage Life

Party trauma

I am having a crisis - of the birthday party kind. When I was little we had parties in the garden, played hilarious games, ate enormous amounts of jelly and had a fabulous time. I can still remember balmy afternoons under the trees in sun dresses, messing about in water and racing around until the sun finally sank behind the house.

I'd always imagined this is what we'd organise for the little Woodmouses but now I'm not so sure. Since beginning school B has been to quite a few parties and I've begun to that my idea of the perfect celebration for a 5 year old is a bit stuck in the 70s. I can't believe the difference and I'm beginning to quake!

It's not that things are competitive but more that my ideas are a bit old fashioned. It seems the only option today is to hire the village hall, book some entertainment (Pirate Pete, a clown complete with circus skills workshop, disco with lighting deck, bouncy castle etc, etc) I'm not sure we're up to this and more to the point could afford it.

On the whole B has really enjoyed them but he does have a slight hearing problem that means the noise can overwhelm and hurt his ears quite a bit so that's a worry. He does loves to dance though, is thrilled with a balloon animal and as long has he can jump about a bit is very happy.

So now the hugely important occasion of B's 5th birthday is rapidly homing into view and we have nothing planned yet and I am dithering over what to do. Well I say nothing, but actually in my head it's already there - a sunny day in the garden, a few happy friends, gingham tablecloths, bunting, pin the tail on the donkey, musical statues etc, etc. But is that just what I'd like to do - do little ones thesedays enjoy that sort of thing?

We've got this lovely Shirley Hughes book where Alfie goes to smashing party in a garden with bubbles and games, all the usual trimmings, and B loves it so I think he'd probably enjoy one like this too.

For some reason though I feel really nervous about being a bit retro and doing a homespun version. Usually I wouldn't mind but B really has definitely enjoyed these big parties (apart from the noise) and I can see the attraction of doing it all away from home; although home is definitely where our little family's, and especially B's, hearts are.

But am I being bonkers? We can't possibly invite the whole class around but even so, what will I do with eight or so 5 year olds if it rains? Is this the reason the village hall is booked up solidly all summer because there's just too much to do for parties thesedays to have them at home?

And then there's the money? Like pretty much everyone else we're finding things very tight and the cost of halls and entertainers is huge. Then where do you go from 5? Do you have to up the ante every year so that by the time they're 10 you're hiring out the Millennium Wheel?! Sorry, so many questions but I feel a bit like I can't keep up.

Oh.... what would all my lovely blogging friends do? I'd love to know what type of parties you've had and any tips or advice about what's worked, food ideas, party games would be ever so much appreciated!

HELP!

Flower Power

Anyone reading this blog must have realised by now that I'm rather flower mad and one of the things I enjoy most about blogging is discovering other people's joy in all things floral, from the garden to curtains, to books and embroidery.

Every morning we walk along a lovely little path, in-between the fields, from the modern part of the village down to B's school in the older heart and is one of my places of floral heaven.

View from the path across the meadow that's just been cut for silage and smells fantastic!

Early in the summer the crowded hedgerows were bursting with forget-me-nots and primrose and we could see the rosettes of foxglove leaves beginning to mass underneath them. After being away for a week I couldn't believe the sight that greeted us on our first walk this week. Purple spires fill the lane and as just glorious.

All week I've been inspired by them and finally got around to making some floral cushion covers for my beautiful but still to be revamped vintage sofa (one day, one day...)

My favourite is the Cath Kidston Posy version which reminds me so much of prints my Grandma had. I'm keeping my eye out for a couple of bargain metres of this for some curtains to cover the washing machine in the kitchen but it's hard to come by.


And joy of joys, this month's CL is full of flowers and country weddings too - perfect weekend reading if you ask me.

Along with this.

The pictures in this wonderful Ladybird book are where I first learnt about garden blooms with my mum. Our copy was chucked out years ago when Dad had had enough of the bags of books in the attic that threatened to bring down the ceiling on us and I don't think I realised then what it meant to me. Thankfully it was really easy to track down a copy on the internet for less than the price of a WI plant and I'm enjoying having it again so much. The lupin print on the cover is my absolute favourite.

Ladybird pictures have coloured so many of my childhood memories and looking back I can see how much they taught me, everything from idenitfying sea shells to trees, the seasons and wildlife. How fantastic then that Ladybird are now selling prints of these beautiful drawings online from most of the original sries, including the Peter and Jane books.

Oh blimey, a whole new vintage obsesssion blooms!