memories of pyrex cups

When I was little my grandma always gave my sister and I Ribena in plastic pyrex cups. They were lovely to drink from, with their little plastic holders and the glass part that slotted in perfectly.

If I remember rightly there was a lovely plum coloured one and a sludgy green one and I always wanted the plum one as it seemed nicer to drink out of (and it matched the Ribena!)

Well I found some, still in the packaging and in pristine condition, and they are still lovely to drink from!

Sadly no plum coloured one, but I'm rather fond of sludgy green now!

beautiful weekend...

a tent, some hobnobs, mint tea and oranges...

1000 feet up, stunning views, cold snap, autumn colours...

a perfect weekend!

camping...

this weekend I'm going camping!

Yes, it's cold, and yes the forecast is rain and snow, but you only live once! To get away from the noise of cars and buses with their spluttering engines, to breathe in clean air, to use your muscles to climb a hill or two, well you can't beat it!

There is nothing like waking up all toasty and snug in your sleeping bag when its rainy outside the tent and you can hear the sheep bleating!

(and a few pints of Guiness helps too!)

love my new love bag...

I made a new shopping bag! Lovely slubby stripy cotton fabric with appliqued word 'love'.

I use it for small shopping sprees instead of getting a carrier bag...

paintings...

This is one of my paintings, currently residing in the kitchen on our huge red chimney breast!

I am working on a large commission at the minute, and I need to get more paint. I feel another visit to the tip coming on...

(they really do recycle paint!)

If you click on the image you can see it in a bit more detail! thanks...)

The little things...

This afternoon I took mum to M&S for her to buy some fabulous new clothes. I walked round feeling utterly covetous and dowdy! The colours, the fabrics were beautiful, and even though I am not a big fan of the shop, mum picked out some amazing classy stuff...

And my point?

Well, I got home feeling slightly wretched thinking, I have no money blah blah blah. And then I saw my little bird. She sits in the banister looking all cute and pretty and she can't be bought at M&S or indeed any shop and that made me glad. And I felt happy for my mum feeling all happy and delighted with her new boots and silky tops and pencil skirt, so I basked in her delight and thought what a lovely afternoon we'd had together. Which can't be bought in any shop and remains priceless...

Love you mum!

and here she is!

Being thrifty, part 2

My new magazine rack, revamped by me! I love it!

magazine rack - 99p (charity shop)

left over gloss paint

designer wall paper - free sample from DIY shop!

Voila...

(just wanted to share!)

being thrifty...

Anyone who knows me will nod in agreement when I say I'm addicted to charity shops/jumblesales etc. I can't resist a bargain!

They will also nod in agreement for a second time when I mention that sometimes I can have dubious and certainly not 'middle of the road' ideals when it comes to a matter of taste.

But the notion of being thrifty, albeit in a slightly odd, skewed way, was instilled into me from an early age, and my love of gaudy antiques and rummaging in jumble sales has not diminished as I have got older, when I should really be browsing in John Lewis and Ikea...

Anyhow, my mantra is "never pay full price for anything!" And if you can get if for nothing, then even better!

Take this weekend for example. I wanted to sort out my precious plants before they started to rot in all this rain. I also wanted to sweep the front garden free from those tiresome autumn leaves. But alas! My yard brush handle had snapped in two (courtesy of my heavy handed husband). So what did I do? Drive to the local hardware store to purchase another? Browse on Ebay hoping to find a bargain price? Noooo...

I drove to the local tip and got one for free!

Happy days!

out with the old...

my new teapot!

I loved the white one for its simplicity, cleaness of line and all that, but the blue one is so much more inspired and makes a Sunday morning cup of tea so much more of an event...

Now I just need to find some gaudy teacups to go with...

dark autumn evenings

well, it is totally dark now, so I thought about the sunshine!

lovely hazy summer days...

Summer in Corsica...

Hot sun seems so far away, today it has hardly got light...