Flora & Purl

bonjour

2012-02-25T17:44:00.000Z

February has been dull dull dull, but today it almost felt like spring. We went to a pet shop to choose guinea pigs for Flora's approaching birthday, but I got a bit distracted but the stunning multicoloured parakeets. Here are a few snippets from our sunny Saturday.

We've lots of fun weekends planned for March- happy days x

café convalescence

2012-01-21T23:07:00.000Z

It's not much fun being cooped up in quarantine when you're 3. Pearl is a very sociable tot and loves being out and about- especially in places that involve eating, but naturally the chicken pox has put the muckers on that this weekend. So this afternoon we thought we'd try and cheer her up by creating her very own café in the girls' bedroom.

Pearl carefully took our orders from her little playhouse/shop and served us all delicious cakes, juicy fresh strawberries and yummy pink milk. Service par excellence!

Clearly, nobody is every too poorly to eat a ladybird-shaped chocolate truffle!

pretty in pink

2012-01-21T15:12:00.002Z

Happy Saturday! We're having a quiet weekend snuggling in doors, as poor Pearl has chicken pox and we're all a bit worn out. I'm hoping to get up to the allotment tomorrow, weather dependent, to plant my garlic (overdue job, I know!).

This week, I saw in my 32nd birthday and I was spoiled with lots of lovely cards and presents. I also ran my first ever 5k, probably a bit of an odd thing to do on the evening of your birthday, but I'm feeling very proud as I've never ran further than the bus stop in my life! I'm hoping to run in a proper organised event later in the year, but I'm not sure if I'm brave enough to do a half marathon just yet.

I finished off the week with a rather exciting Pyrex purchase, spotted in a charity shop on a work-related trip to Somerset.

It's the coral-pink sister of my blue Gaiety divided dish, that I was so excited to find last year. £2.50 of utter Pyrex joy!

Don't they look happy together?

I also had another nice Pyrex surprise this week, when a parcel arrived containing this fab pot stand:

These were being given away on the modern Pyrexware website last year, but were only available to those living in the USA, so I had asked an American friend to apply for one on my behalf. I had completely forgotten all about it until she contacted me just after Christmas to check my address. I absolutely love it- so much fun!

I can't quite decide what to do with it, as it is far too lovely to use, so for now it's hanging by the bread oven in my dining room, complimenting some of my other favourite Pyrex-related bits and bobs.

weekending

2012-01-15T20:28:00.001Z

What a beautiful, bright, crisp weekend- I can't tell you how happy the sunlight has made me. I managed to squeeze in two chilly woodland walks, a blissful child-free night away in an Oxford hotel and several hours digging on my first trip of the year to the allotment, all in two days. Signs of spring are already peeping through the frost.

tangerine pyrex embroidery hoop

2012-01-07T11:34:00.001Z

Happy Saturday everyone, I for one am delighted to see the sunshine peeping through the clouds on this January morning.

This week, I picked up a gorgeous scrap of thrifted vintage fabric and decided it would be perfect for a little freestyle embroidery hoop, but I was rather indecisive about picking a subject. In the end, I thought I'd stick to what I know...

I'm so pleased with how doodley my lidded casserole dish turned out, and the randomly sized lazy daisies seem to lend themselves so well to giving the impression of a vintage Pyrex design.

I love the sunny tangerine tones too- just the perfect remedy for those threatening January blues!

if i had a hama

2012-01-03T11:42:00.001Z

The last few days of the school holidays have been spent getting up late, snuggling, drinking hot chocolate, a trip to the cinema and lots of fun making and doing.

Having now taken down the Christmas decorations, Flora and I decided to make some pretty dangly things from the bumper tub of Hama beads that Father Christmas had brought her. Partly inspired by Lou's lovely Hama window decorations, and partly inspired by Tiff's tremendous Happy Hangers of Joyfulness, we made some cheerful little mobiles to brighten up this dull, dismal January.

I started off by making this little woodland-style mobile to hang in the girls' window. I'm hoping it will shine chirpiness into their room, even when it's wet and windy outside, as it is today.

Meanwhile, Flora set about creating hers, which features a random assortment of brightly coloured bits and bobs to hang over her bed.

I especially like this cute little face (me apparently!) because she patiently sat designing and making it entirely independently.

I found myself feeling a little envious of the sunny little dangly things and promptly decided to create a few of my own in the shape of some of my favourite things- can you tell what they're meant to be?

This one is my personal favourite....

OK, so you know you must be ready to go back to work when you start making Pyrex dishes out of children's craft materials!

What are you doing to keep the January blues away?

erin ink pyrex calendar 2012

2012-01-01T11:46:00.000Z

I was especially thrilled to welcome the new year this morning, as it meant I could begin using my 2012 calendar. No ordinary calendar for me, no sirree, my clever husband surprised me with this gorgeous recipe calendar, filled with beautiful illustrations of vintage Pyrex, all hand drawn by the uber-talented fellow member of the Pyrex Collective, Erin Mowry.

He also bought me these beautiful prints of more Pyrex dish drawings (please ignore the washi tape, I will be buying proper frames this week). What more could a Pyremaniac wish for?

out with the auld

2011-12-31T20:14:00.001Z

Farewell to 2011- it's been a funny sort of year where I feel like I've achieved little in some ways, but a lot in others. I've done very little in the way of creativity this year (that Ysolda beret is still on the needles, a year down the line), I still haven't worked out how to use the non-automatic settings on my DSLR and I never did nearly as much with our allotment as I'd planned.

However, other aspects of my (mainly non-bloggy) life have gone well- I started a pretty exciting new job and, after a highly embarrassing incident climbing back up from a beautiful beach in Cornwall (I actually thought I was going to die of a heart attack at the grand old age of 31), I took charge of my health for the first time in my adult life. 48lb down and many hours of sweat later, I still have a way to go, but I'm looking forward to challenging myself further throughout 2012 and am hoping that the girls will notice the difference in my beach-olympics when we return to Cornwall this summer (who knows, I might even brave a swimsuit too!)

So happy new year to one and all, I hope you get all you wish and dream of and 2012 passes without too much misery. And go easy on those resolutions! xx

it was just like christmas

2011-12-17T15:21:00.000Z

Now that the schools have broken up it feels like Christmas has well and truly arrived in our home. The cake (made by my star baker dad) is iced and decorated and there a little touches of yule all over the house. The tree is covered in colourful jollity, seasonal records have been spinning, I've been writing greetings cards and making gargantuan shopping lists. Just a bit of wrapping left to do and we're just about sorted.

Hope you're having a fab pre-Christmas weekend and enjoying some festive fun.

a space of my own

2011-12-11T14:38:00.001Z

It's hard to believe we've lived in our cosy little home for a year now. In many ways it's flown by, but in others it feels like we've been here forever. The one room I'd not got round to properly sorting out since we moved in was the dining room and it had turned into a bit of a dumping ground for things that didn't belong anywhere else. So this weekend, after a trip to Ikea to buy additional shelving, I set about organising this space once and for all.

You will notice that I have finally got a crafting space, all of my very own, with a shelf high enough to keep small fingers away from my best scissors! It's been a really good excuse to rummage through my fabric scraps and oddments of yarn- just the kick I needed to get my creative juices flowing again.

Having seen my greatly under-used sewing machine looking all happy and shiny in its new space, I felt the need to try it out immediately. Luckily I had a star-puncher and some newspaper to hand and whipped up a thrifty Christmas decoration for the mantelpiece...

Happy days!

mockney

2011-12-10T12:09:00.001Z

I nearly spat out my cuppa when Flora (aged 6) told me she'd been doing a project about David Hockney at school, a few weeks back- makes a refreshing change from sponge paintings! Here is her homage to the artist himself, which is now framed and taking pride of place over my mantelpiece...

I especially love how she's chosen beach huts as her theme- a lovely reminder of our time in Brighton. Clearly the simple clean lines just don't quite cut it when you're 6- empty space simply must be filled in with smiley crabs. Just as the Bigger Splash is crying out for an inflatable flamingo.

lundalikes

2011-12-07T21:10:00.001Z

What isn't there to love about the gripping Danish crime series The Killing? But if, like me, your very favourite thing of all is Sarah Lund's natty (but in need of a good wool-wash) jumper from series 1, then head on over to the Radio Times for a chance to win a replica of the famous pully itself.

Snap yourself in your own favourite jumper with your dourest facial expression and submit it into the gallery to be in with a chance- two runners up will also win all the wool and needles needed to knit their very own series 2 jumper. You'll also find the full knitting pattern over there as well- could Scandi needlecraft get any more exciting?

Here's me attempting my best Sarah Lundalike pose....

Jumper-tastic, eh?

festive french toast

2011-12-04T11:09:00.001Z

❅2 eggs

❅1 teaspoon of demorara sugar

❅pinch of salt

❅half a cup of milk

❅knob of butter

❅6 slices of bread cut into festive shapes of your choice

❅maple syrup/honey

1) Beat your eggs in a wide, shallow bowl. Stir in the milk, sugar and salt.

2) Heat the knob of butter in a small griddle or frying pan.

3) Place the bread shapes, one at a time, into the mixture, letting them soak for a few seconds on both sides.

4) Transfer bread shapes to the pan, heating slowly until bottom is golden brown. Turn and brown the other side.

5) Serve hot on snowflake Pyrex dishes with syrup or honey. A dusting of icing sugar would look even more festive- unfortunately I had run out this morning!

elfin about

2011-12-01T20:57:00.001Z

Happy December everyone! We've been getting in the festive mood already...

This weekend we're going to watch our town's lights being switched on, write our cards, mull some wine, make some crafty presents and I'm hoping to persuade my husband to let me buy our tree (but he says next weekend- spoil sport).

What festive fun are you planning?

bath christmas markets

2011-11-26T20:17:00.001Z

This morning Steve and I headed to Bath on the train for a spot of Christmas shopping. I met up with the always lovely Lou for some girly shopping and a delicious lunch. Such a luxury to have a bit of grown-up time without the girls for a change. I'm starting to feel rather festive now- especially after my first mulled wine of the season!

ps I got told off for taking that top photo- apparently you need the station manager's permission to take photos in a train station. Who knew?

birthday pearl

2011-11-20T13:09:00.001Z

Happy birthday to little Pearl who turned 3 on Friday. She had the most wonderful birthday party yesterday and we're all exhausted today as a consequence. So today we're having a pj day, the first one in living memory- and it feels good!

Happy Sunday x

you make me forget myself

2011-11-13T15:22:00.001Z

Such a perfect day- a crisp, autumn woody walk and my first eggnog latte of the season.

Sorry it's been a while. I haven't been doing anything interesting enough to warrant such a long absence, but have found myself busy with a new job and various tedious things that inevitably fill up adult life. I'm still spending most evenings at the gym burning more flab and am going to dance classes three times per week to keep it fun. I've lost 38 pounds since August and am halfway to my goal weight, so feeling pretty proud of myself, but still a little sad that my crafty hobbies have had to be shelved for the time being; I guess you can't have everything!

Back soon x

the river at sunset

2011-10-01T18:57:00.000+01:00

I, for one, am loving this scorchio weather on the first day of October. We made the most of this beautiful, warm autumn evening and headed down to the river for a stroll and spot of duck-feeding. It was so strange to see crimson leaves, shiny conkers and crispy teasels amongst the blazing sunset. Long may it last!

☼ brighton ☼

2011-09-25T22:47:00.000+01:00

Brighton had obviously been missing us- we were greeted with blazing sunshine and blissful memories. It's back down to earth with a bump with Sunday evening melancholy, as I mourn the cavernous chunks of dear friends' lives I've missed whilst living so far away.

friday feeling

2011-09-23T10:02:00.002+01:00

Sorry I haven't been blogging much lately, I've been on a huge health-kick trying to shift this lard once and for all, so any spare time is currently being spent sweating my arse off at the gym. Whilst I'm pleased with the changes happening with my body, it is sad that my creative time has to be sacrificed- no cosy Autumn knitting for me!

Anyway, the good news is it's Friday- practically the weekend and the sun is shining. I'm especially excited about this one, as we're heading off to spend a couple of nights meeting up with beloved friends and family in fabulous Brighton. I feel like I'm going home!

On a totally random Friday-feeling note, how awesome is this teapot? I want it!!

Wishing you all smashing weekends xx

deadly day out

2011-09-18T16:51:00.001+01:00

Today Flora and I have been treated to the most fantastic day, watching her biggest hero Steve Backshall and his crew at the CBBC Deadly Day Out. This year the events are ticketed only, with a random draw to decide which lucky children won the privilage of attending- I had been devastated for Flora when we recieved an email earlier in the week, telling us we weren't amongst the chosen few. However, the lovley Lou over at Little Green Shed came flying to the rescue and pursuaded her even lovelier parents to sacrifice their tickets so we could go along with Lou and her family- thankyou so much Mr & Mrs Shed snr !

Sadly I didn't managed to get any pictures of the main man Steve Backshall himself as I was too far back during the show, but I promise he was just as lovely in the flesh as he is on the telly. Flora's not stopped raving on about reticulated pythons, alligator snapping turtles and harris hawks since we got home. I think we'll all sleep well tonight! x

toffee apple cobbler

2011-09-06T17:29:00.000+01:00

With harvest time upon us, cobblers are a tasty alternative to the umpteen fruit pies and crumbles we all find ourselves baking at this time of year. We used apples, but you can use up your glut of just about any other fruit in yours.

Ingredients~

4 tbsp of good quality, unrefined dark muscavado sugar
5 tbsp porridge oats
3 tbsp milk or single cream
4 brambly apples
1 tsp cinnamon
3 tbsp orange juice
1 tsp of demerara sugar

1) Preheat the oven to 200°C/ Gas 5. Put the oats, 1 tbsp of muscavado and the milk in a mixing bowl. Squidge it all together in your hands and then roll into 4 or 5 small balls.

2) Peel and slice up the apples and lay them out in your favourite Pyrex casserole dish.

3) Sprinkle on the rest of muscavado, cinnamon and pour on the orange juice. Give it a good stir, until all the apple slices are nicely coated. Pop the dumplings on top and sprinkle with the demerara sugar.

4) Bake for about 20 mins, until the apples are all gooey and caramelised.

5) Serve with a dollop of icecream, custard, or another suitable creamy accompaniment.

One satisfied customer!

goodbye summer

2011-09-04T16:42:00.000+01:00

Haven't the school holidays flown by, I cannot quite believe it's time for winter uniforms and homework diaries again already. We've clung on to last days of Summer by heading off for a dreamy weekend filled with meadows, piglets, campfires, music, blackberries, the chirping of crickets and the hooting of owls.

I do hope you've all enjoyed the summer as much as we all have xx

kew gardens

2011-09-01T22:47:00.001+01:00

My lovely dad took us to Kew Gardens today as an end-of-summer treat. It was my first visit and I wasn't disappointed; I'm still trying to decide which bit I liked best- the palm house, the cacti, the giant lily pads or the aeriel walkway.

Excuse some of the fuzzy pictures, my lens kept steaming up with the humidity in the hot houses..

toggle the tortoise

2011-08-29T15:31:00.001+01:00

I hope everyone has been enjoying their bank holiday weekend. It's been really rather windy and chilly here, I even ended up lighting a fire on Saturday night- I hope it warms up before our last camping trip of the season next week. We've just spent this weekend pottering- going swimming, trying out a new indoor play centre, visiting the sweetie shop and snuggling up indoors with dvds from the library.

This morning we popped over to see my dad who was tortoise-sitting for a friend, who has had him since his childhood. Cue much hysterical excitement from two little girls...

It's hard to believe that this handsome fellow (who goes by the name of Toggle) is in his forties- beats the five years my childhood guinea pigs lasted!

mad men collection @ banana republic

2011-08-27T11:10:00.000+01:00

Yes it really is true! A collection of Autumn/Winter clothes based on the costumes from the most stylish and chic television series of all time, for us mere mortals to own at Banana Republic.

Feast your eyes on my favourite bits....

Shame it is all so very pricey....

car booty

2011-08-21T13:52:00.000+01:00

More carbooting this morning- how cute is this little 70s dress-up doll for 50p? The girls love her...

some Pyrex dishes, 50p the lot- loving the ducks...

and I'm especially stoked with this g-plan corner table for £4...

Happy days!

stainglass biscuits

2011-08-19T16:41:00.000+01:00

Ingredients: 100g self raising flour, 50g caster sugar, a pinch of salt, 50g butter, 1 large egg yolk, boiled sweets (we used Foxes Glacier Fruits), strawberry laces.

1) Sift flour, sugar and salt into a bowl. Chop the butter into chunks and rub into the dry ingredients.

2) Mix in the egg yolk and squash the dough until it comes together in a ball. Leave in the fridge for ½ hour. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 180º / Gas mark 4.

3) Roll out the dough and use cookie cutters or a sharp knife to make the biscuit shapes. Don't forget to make holes in the middle, for the pattern. Pop them on an over tray, covered in baking paper and pop boiled sweets in the holes- if it's a big hole it will need 2 or 3 sweets. Prick holes in the top, for hanging (I used a knitting needle).

4) Bake for approximately 15 minutes, until golden brown. When out of the oven, let the sweets set a bit and then transfer them on to a rack. Leave to cool for about an hour and then thread through the laces.

Enjoy!

electrelove

2011-08-19T12:38:00.001+01:00

source

Electrelane is my favouritist band ever ever ever. I can't count the number of times I've seen them play- some of my finest memories of living in Brighton are of being at Electrelane gigs. They reformed this Summer for a little European tour and, whilst I was gutted that I couldn't make along to any of their shows, we managed to catch their entire performance at La Route du Rock in France, live over the interwebs last week. You can watch it here. Mesmerising.

bun fight

2011-08-13T10:10:00.000+01:00

I've been growing my hair for the last couple of years, mainly because I've been too lazy and frugal to go to the hairdresser. My hair now falls quite a way past my shoulders- the longest it's been since I was about 12, so I've been struggling to think what to do with it.

from here, here & here

I keep seeing pictures of these lovely high buns, so armed with a bun ring (£1 in Primark) and a few You Tube tutorials, I set about the daunting task of trying to recreate something similar...

At work yesterday, my colleague fixed me with a long, curious stare, trying to think what my new up-do reminded her of. And then she remembered...

Aunt Flo from Bod. Not really the look I was going for, haha!

strawberry ice cream

2011-08-08T18:59:00.001+01:00

Yesterday I used some of the strawberries we picked to make Nigella's strawberry ice cream. I was a virgin ice cream maker and this turned out well for a first attempt and really benefited from the juicy fresh berries I crammed into the mixture. However, the finished texture was a little crunchier than I had hoped for, despite me whipping it like mad every hour, to stop the ice crystals forming. I wonder if it's just not possible to make perfect, smooth ice cream without a machine?

Happy Monday- enjoy the rest of the week, whatever you're up to!

car booty

2011-08-07T12:43:00.009+01:00

I woke up with a tingling feeling in my fingers in my toes this morning- I just knew we were going to be in for some luck at a little village bootsale we were heading off to. And my thrifting instincts did not let me down- just look what we picked up!

An Agfa camera & a Super 8 for £2 each...

Two bright yellow camping mugs for 20p the pair...

A Stylophone for £3 (Steve's wanted one of these forever)...

and he also picked up a mountain of records at 50p each...

I picked up two house leeks at 80p each- I've been meaning to get some for ages to pop in these vintage sugar bowls...

and I also came away with this jolly vintage vanity case for £1...

Even with the inevitable bags of plastic tat and stuffed animals the girls picked up along the way (including a rather noisy rollerskating Dalmation)- we all came away very happy with change for a £20 note- hurrah! I'm off to admire all your car booty treasure now, before I tuck into Sunday lunch! x

succulent strawbs

2011-08-06T19:04:00.000+01:00

Our strawberry crop has been pretty dismal this year. I think the long drought at the end of Spring didn't agree with them, despite our desperate attempts to keep them well watered. So this afternoon we went to fill our boots at a nearby PYO.

We grabbed two punnets and split off into teams- Steve and Flora stuffing one and Peal and I hunted for the juiciest berries to fill the other.

After a good bit of hunting, we soon had two punnets brimming with red, plump berries (and two kidlets with rather juicy chops!)

These babies are destined for some scrumptious Eton Mess and I thought I might also try making ice cream for the first time. That's if there's any strawbs left after Pearl scoffed a load and shared them with a guinea pig she made friends with...

Happy weekend xx

a novel scenario

2011-08-04T20:44:00.002+01:00

I will bashfully confess to being a rather picky and infrequent reader these days. Well, pretty much all of my adult life really. Uni was consumed with reading mountains of text books and beyond then, my poor brain has struggled to concentrate amid juggling all the other bits and bobs it has to think about and remember. I've become too accustomed to being interrupted by an impatient kidlet, or my hen-pecking subconscious inciting me to do something more productive. I find it hard to relax and am generally too wired to curl up with a book, having fallen into the habit over the years of fidgeting with things- the knitting, sewing or social networking. A world away from the library junkie I was in my youth.

So on our camping trip last week I did something I haven't done in so long, I can't even remember the last time it happened. I went into a bookshop. And bought a novel. For myself. Not as a present for someone else. Not a gardening guide. Not a knitting pattern. Not a dusty old Penguin Classic from a charity shop, purchased because the cover was pretty. An actual, real, recently published novel for myself. To read.

I browsed discerningly amongst the shelves for some time, wrinkling my nose at the bubble-gum pink, cupcake or handbag-embossed covers, that seem to be aimed at women my age. Raised an eyebrow at numerous shadow-written autobiographies of people I'd vaguely heard of. Dismissed others for looking rather too earnest to read on a beach holiday. Eventually I selected a book that appeared to be a happy medium between serious literature and feminine appeal.

I absolutely loved the book I chose- I am no critic, but I can guarantee if you are looking for a fantastic, clever, subtle, humorous, heart-warming and riveting read, you will not be disappointed. It contains two interwoven story lines- one set in 1950s Soho and the other in modern day North London. As the plot unravels, the gentle hints dotted around the chapters begin to piece together, but it is only towards the end that it becomes fully apparent how the stories are connected, finishing with a remarkable twist. I was in tears at least three times throughout reading this book and I could not count the number of times I laughed out loud. It was utterly charming and I cannot wait to read more of Maggie O'Farrell's work.

So I do believe I am a converted bookworm. Would anyone like to recommend me a book to read next- old or new, anything brilliant will do...

sycamores & sunshine

2011-08-03T22:33:00.000+01:00

I'm back at work this week and missing the girls like mad. So much so my heart aches, especially after all the wonderful fun we had while we were away. The warm, light evenings we been having are much appreciated, as it has meant we've had a little bit of extra time to lark about before bedtime. Life is pretty perfect when the sun shines.

a cornish adventure

2011-07-30T07:14:00.001+01:00

We've been spending this week camping by the sea on Cornwall's stunning Roseland Peninsula. It's been the most incredible family holiday we've ever had. The weather was perfect, beaches were breathtaking and the girls were both the best behaved they have ever been- no tears or tantrums from either of them for the whole week. I think there must be something to be said for abandoning television and laptops and being forced to entertain each other!

Every beautiful sandy, rock-pooled beach we went to was virtually empty- most unexpected for Cornwall in the school holidays, I can only assume that the rest of Cornwall's holiday-makers were on the popular north side. This meant that the girls were allowed much more freedom to wander through the rock pools and paddle in the sea by themselves, as wherever they were, we could spot them instantly. Flora spent some of her holiday money on an inflatable boat "The Happy Crab" and the girls spent many an hour rowing her in the warm, shallow sea. The sea was so blue and calm that even I was swimming in it- it must be many years since the last time that happened.

The campsite where we stayed was like nothing we'd ever been to before- a small, heritage farm with lush green fields, rolling down to the sea and the most relaxed and friendly atmosphere we've ever encountered. There were only a small number of pitches, all of which were occupied by ordinary families with small children like ours (none of the scary super-keen rambler types you normally get, parading about in testicle-skimming cut off denims at the crack of dawn). There was a whole field set-aside for the children to run and play, with goal-posts and a willow den- both girls had the time of their lives and made armies of wonderful friends, who they were sad to say farewell to. Campfires were permitted in braziers that you could borrow with the purchase of firewood and every Wednesday night throughout the summer holidays there is an organised fireside gathering in the top field, with a bring-and-share bbq, music, poetry, story-telling and marshmallow toasting. It was the perfect opportunity to relax, make friends and watch the sun setting into the sea.

I am now a rather rosy shade of pinky-brown and have an entire mountain of laundry to do, but I have never felt so relaxed. We'll be booking to go again next year as soon as we can- I can't imagine a holiday anywhere else in the world being so perfect!

courgette glut

2011-07-23T17:15:00.001+01:00

It's that time of year again- more courgettes than you can shake a trowel at and I've already exhausted my courgette culinary repertoire.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining- I love courgettes, so it is a nice problem to have, but I could do with some new ideas. So far I've made umpteen roasted Medetaranian pasta bakes, crispy courgette pakoras, vegetable chillis and today we had a very tastey courgette lasagne.

Last year I used them in chutney too, which was lovely, but we had so much and never got round to eating it all, so I'm going easy on the preserving this year.

What are your favourite tried and tested courgette recipes?

red arrows

2011-07-16T17:52:00.001+01:00

After a horrid wet and windy morning stuck indoors, this afternoon we took advantage of the sunshine peeping through the clouds and headed off for a drive to see if we could spot any of the planes from the Air Tattoo. We couldn't see very much at all, so I ended up driving right over to the venue, so as not to disappoint the girls. Just as we arrived, we were lucky enough to time it exactly right to see the Red Arrows drive right over us, so close we could see the pilots inside. I pulled the car onto the grass right outside the entrance to the show and despite the obvious police presence, not a single one asked us to move on, so we were able to enjoy the entire display from our car.

The girls were screaming with delight as they shot about above us, loop-the-looping and spinning about, leaving their brightly coloured trails behind them. To my surprise, I became equally excited, not having watched them since I was a child, and I as was whooping and cheering out of the window like a woman possessed!

It marked the end of a pretty fantastic week all round. I do hope all of you have had a good one too.

Lou, you must tell Rufus and Charlie, they said hi! x

yip yip!

2011-07-13T16:40:00.000+01:00

Go Flora!

festivities and fry-ups

2011-07-10T14:46:00.002+01:00

This weekend our whole town has gathered together in the market square, pints of cider in hand, to enjoy the music and entertainment at our annual arts festival. The girls have been running free with their friends, skipping, dancing and drawing on the pavement with chalks. In a minute we're back off out to see some of Flora's friends take part in a 'flash mob' freestyle dance routine. I've no idea what to expect!

I've also been tackling the jungle of weeds down at the allotment- I put in three hours' hard labour yesterday and can hardly move today. I harvested the last of our early 'Maris Bard' potatoes and made some delicious hash browns with them for this morning's breakfast, served up with bacon, eggs and mushrooms- yum!

Back to work tomorrow, but I'm buoying myself the thought of Cornwall in two weeks' time, yip yip!

saturday morning

2011-07-09T14:53:00.001+01:00

This morning I caught a half-dressed Flora reading the back of the record we were listening to. I love the fact that she will read ordinary things around the house now, not just her school books.

Thank you for all your kind comments about my fancy dress costumes, I did have a lot of fun making them. I really enjoyed working with felt- so colourful and easy to use, so I'm looking for inspiration for a few other cute felt-based makes. Watch this space.

Happy weekend x

p p p pick up a penguin

2011-07-04T19:38:00.004+01:00

It's time for the third and final installment of my 'British Icons' costume posts, and it's the turn of my own costume (which I am most excited about!)

In the run up to the party I was racking my brains trying to decide which British icon I wanted to be, but all the people I came up with were unsuitable for someone on the plumper side, like myself. So I decided that I would be an iconic object, rather than a person.

I looked for inspiration from around my own home and came up with the idea of going as one of my favourite things to collect- a mid century Penguin paperback book. For me, the Penguin book is one of the most iconic items of the 20th century- everyone instantly recognises the brightly coloured, simple cover designs and they are internationally celebrated for having brought good quality, contemporary and affordable fiction to the masses.

After a bit of thought, I chose the most infamous and revolutionary of all the Penguin paperbacks- Lady Chatterley's Lover, whose publication led to the company being charged under the Obscene Publications Act in 1960. Penguin was subsequently acquitted, marking a turning point in British censorship laws. The British public could not get their hands on a copy fast enough, with queues in bookshops up and down the land- two million copies sold in six weeks!

I had the idea to use Pearl's old cot mattress as the base of my costume, which I cut to a suitable size with sharp scissors. I'm pleased that I thought of a way to repurpose the cot mattress, as charity shops don't accept them on health guidance, so it would have just ended up in a landfill.

I bought some cheap lengths of polycotton in both white and bright orange and machine-sewed them together, to look like the book cover. I then cut some strips of the white fabric and ran it up and down my sewing machine with black cotton, to look like the pages of the book. These strips formed the top, bottom and one of the side ends of the book, which I stitched all together to cover the entire piece of mattress foam.

As I was sewing the pieces together, I stitched in some thick elastic cross-over straps, so that I would be able to wear the giant book as a costume.

Then it was time for the details on the book cover and spine. I cut out the letters and logo shapes from thick felt and then appliqued them by hand to the book cover.

I will confess that I got halfway through the rather tedious job of cutting out and stitching on the lettering and wondered why on earth I hadn't chosen to make 1984 instead!

But when I'd eventually finished it all, I was really pleased with the finished costume and it seemed to go down well at the party (although it was a little bit awkward to help myself to the buffet!)

After all that work I think I'm trying to think of another use for it- maybe a big floor cushion, or wall hanging? I'll let you know when I decide!

Have a lovely week everyone xx

my mate

2011-07-03T20:29:00.000+01:00

Thank you for all your lovely comments about the girls' Where's Wally costumes, I had so much fun making them, so I'm glad you think they looked effective!

Now for the second installment- my husband's costume. He really isn't very keen on fancy dress at the best of times, so I needed to think of something a little bit more low-key, but clearly iconically British. I drew inspiration from the kitchen cupboard and decided that a jar of Marmite was just the thing.

I cut out shapes from brightly coloured felt to create the basic elements of the jar and label, overlaid them and then hand-stitched them all into place with blending cotton.

I then just stitched the jar onto an old white tee shirt and- voila! What could be more iconic than a trusty jar of Britain's favourite yeast extract?

Hope you all have had a super weekend- I hope yours didn't fly by as quickly as ours. I'll be back tomorrow with the third and final (and most exciting, in my opinion) installment of British Icons costumes- mine!

where's wally and wenda

2011-07-02T23:22:00.001+01:00

As promised, this is the first installment of my 'British Icons' fancy dress costume bonanza.

I'll start with the girls, who chose to be Wally and Wenda from the 'Where's Wally' books (or Waldo for my readers on the other side of the Atlantic!).

I bought their stripey top and dress for next to nothing on ebay and knitted them both red and white bobble hats, based on this very simple pattern.

I then used felt to stitch up a soft, cartoon style camera for Wenda and binoculars for Wally, with thick black cord for the neck straps and stuffed them with foam.

Rather than buy them plastic glasses to wear, I decided it would be much more fun to try and recreate Wally and Wenda's own cartoon eyes. I stitched up the eyes and glasses in black and white felt and glued them to cardboard, before mounting them on wooden skewers and gluing more felt to the back. I was really delighted with the result and the girls looked so funny!

They had such a lovely time at the party, dancing away at the disco and scoffing party food- they're now sound asleep, snoring away in their comfy beds.

Hope everyone is having a lovely weekend. I'll be back tomorrow with the second installment!

hello

2011-06-30T18:49:00.001+01:00

It feels like such a long time since I last wrote a blog, even though it's only been a couple of weeks. I've been so busy with work and other things and I just had no head space to think about anything else, so it's good to be back. What did I miss?

I haven't just been working though, the allotment has needed watering and weeding, of course. Thankfully all the hard work has been paying off and this evening we went down and had our first proper harvesting session. We were all squealing with delight as we felt around in the crumbly soil lifting up golden potatoes and cheering as we pulled up our first few juicy carrots- the other allotmenteers must have thought we were a little eccentric to say the least!

In the rest of my spare time I've been crafting my socks off making fancy dress costumes for my friend's 30th birthday 'British Icons' themed party, which all four of us are attending on Saturday. I have been getting a little bit carried away, and can't wait to show off what I've made... more on that in a few days.

Oh, and do you remember I was grumbling about not being able to find an old watering can to go in my little back yard? Just look what my wonderful dad surprised me with at the weekend- it's exactly what I wanted- hurrah!

I've got a little bit more fancy-dress making to be finishing off tonight, but I promise to pop by all your blogs and have a proper catch up over the coming week. I can't wait to read about what you've been sewing, knitting and harvesting in the sunshine. I've missed you all!

a late {this moment}

2011-06-19T14:01:00.016+01:00

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savour and remember.

PS sorry I haven't been about much of late- I think I'm suffering from loss of mojo. I'm going to have a little break, but will be back in a couple of weeks with some crafty plans I've been hatching.

oh and PPS you must go and admire the fabby greetings cards in my bloggy best pal Lou's splendid new shop!

adieu xx

sunshine & showers

2011-06-12T16:45:00.004+01:00

It's been a weekend of two halves- a sunny Saturday with fun, laughter and dancing, followed by a wet, windy Sunday and rainy-day activties.

Despite fitting lots in, it's all gone far too quicky- I don't feel ready to go back to work tomorrow!

I hope you've all had a smashing weekend too xx

{this moment}

2011-06-10T18:55:00.001+01:00

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savour and remember.

our backyard

2011-06-07T19:18:00.003+01:00

Whilst I love our allotment, I've been missing having a nice relaxing outside space at home, where I can potter about with the watering can in the evening after the girls had gone to bed. When we moved here in the winter, I had grand ideas for our rather shabby little backyard, but zero budget meant that these did not come to fruition. So this weekend I headed down to the garden centre to see if I could pick up some bits to cheer up our sad little space.

I switched my thrifty radar to high alert and was able to pick up eighteen flowery bedding plants for £7 and found some slightly droopy packs of Jamie Oliver herbs on the reduction trolley, reduced to £1.50 from £7.99 for six little pots (I bought two packs).

Once the plants were potted up in terracotta pots alongside the olive trees my mum bought me for my birthday and the herbs planted in the lovely wooden planter my dad built for me last year, the yard was looking a far chirpier place to sit.

A few jam jars with tea lights inside made do as the garden lighting and the bunting I won in the Me Old China giveaway a few weeks ago looked just right along the outhouse (which still houses a toilet!).

I saved a few of the marigolds I'd been growing from seed for the allotment and popped them in tin cans, for a bit of colour while we wait for the potted flowers to bloom.

All I have left to do now is sew up some little cream blinds for the windows in the shed, to hide all the junk inside. I'm also on the look-out for an old metal watering can, to stand by the garden tap, but unfortunately I was not in luck at the carboot sale on Sunday.

I'm really pleased with the transformation and can't wait for some warm evenings to make the most of it.

Happy days!

{this moment}

2011-06-03T10:56:00.003+01:00

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savour and remember.

piano ♥

2011-06-02T21:44:00.002+01:00

This evening our new pride and joy arrived, with a bit of help from my father in law and his horse box.

We had been picked to be the lucky new owners of this fabulous antique mahogany piano, which had been advertised on Freecycle.

Once she's had a bit of a clean up and a professional tuning, I'm having visions of cozy family sing-songs on chilly nights for many years to come. I'd better get practising!

I'd also love to give her a lick of jolly paint to cheer her up, like this wonderful mustard piano, which would be perfect for our dining room...

So, what do you think we should call her?

dollywood

2011-06-02T14:34:00.000+01:00

Flora's been putting her new-found survival skills to good use this afternoon...

bushcraft & bonding

2011-06-01T18:57:00.009+01:00

Flora and I have had the most fabulous day, learning basic bushcraft skills in the stunning surroundings of the Earth Trust Centre in Oxfordshire.

We learned how to build forest shelters, allegedly warm enough to spend the night in, using a design based on a squirrel's drey.

Thankfully I think the chances of us ever getting lost in the wilderness are pretty slim, so I don't think we'll be trying out an overnight stay any time soon, but it made an excellent den for hiding in.

There were then plenty of fun and games including log-balancing and camouflage hide and seek.

We were then taught how to light fires using a firesteel, a dried up fungus and a handful of dry grass.

Once the fire was going we used hazel sticks to make cooking equipment

and made rather strange hotdog-type things by wrapping sausages and cheese in bannock bread dough.

Despite their dubious appearance, they were actually very tasty!

The course was a full-on five hours and we were both exhausted by the end of the day. It was so nice for the two of us to be learning things together and I honestly think it did us both the world of good. Flora had the greatest time running around, letting her hair down, whilst still being sensible and responsible for her's and others' safety.

And I really learned to relax my usually rather over-protective parenting and trust her to take informed risks, even though part of me was screaming inside- "eeeek my child is somewhere camouflaged in the woods and I haven't a clue where she is", "aaarrgh my six year old has just been given a humongous sharp knife" or "eeeeeep my baby is holding a ball of flaming hay". But I suppose that's really a big thing that's so wrong with the way we (myself totally included) tend to parent our children these days- not allowing them out of our sight, preventing them from taking risks and thus failing to teach them to think about safety issues for themselves or develop basic common sense.

I now am resolved to really trying to rein this part of my parenting in somewhat and allow the girls to be more adventurous- to run that little bit further on in front than I'm fully comfortable with, to climb a tree that little bit higher and to be out of view for more than one minute in the soft play frame!

Pass me the valium...

mind the gap

2011-05-31T14:09:00.003+01:00

Last night, the tooth fairy visited our home for the very first time.

She left a whole pound under Flora's pillow for her very first lost tooth.

Flora had lots of fun spending her gift in the sweety shop- she's normally only allowed 30p in there!

It won't do the rest of her teeth of much good!

dampened spirits

2011-05-30T19:25:00.000+01:00

What a wash-out the bank holiday weekend was.

We hadn't intended to do much as we are trying to potty train Pearl, but a bit of fresh air wouldn't have gone a miss. Instead, we stayed very close to home, fitting in what turned out to be a rather eventful trip to the library (we bumped into a friend who was having a serious asthma attack and I ended up taking her two children home with us after she got whizzed off in an ambulance) and a family swimming expedition.

A combination of wet weather, a stinking cold and lack of any 'fun' funds due to car repairs left me feeling rather flat and uninspired last week. Hopefully I'll be back on blogging form this week and normal chirpy service will resume shortly.

Showing off her 'big girl' pants!

Have a wonderful week x

{this moment}

2011-05-27T18:10:00.000+01:00

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savour and remember.

curry night

2011-05-24T21:44:00.000+01:00

There's nothing like a delicious curry to lift one's spirits. Especially when it's served in a plethora of vintage Pyrex.

poole

2011-05-22T19:58:00.000+01:00

Howdie folks, I hope lovely weekends have been enjoyed by one and all.

We spent the weekend in a caravan near Poole in Dorset with my parents in law. All I will say is that it was definitely a holiday for the children, who must have thought they had arrived in heaven! We were joined by Flora's class bear Willow, who has written his own little blog about the weekend and has probably done a far better job at summing up the holiday than I ever could.

However, in between the mayhem, I did manage to snap a few beautiful serene moments. Enjoy xx

{this moment}

2011-05-20T08:05:00.001+01:00

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savour and remember.

ps Sorry for neglecting my blog, have been feeling under the weather this week. We're off on a long weekend to Dorset in a mo- will report back soon.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone xx

{this moment}

2011-05-13T17:59:00.001+01:00

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savour and remember.

rain

2011-05-08T23:12:00.001+01:00

Yesterday I could almost hear the vegetation sighing with relief when the rainclouds finally arrived. They poured down on and off for most of the day, leaving the most incredible smell of freshness in the air that is impossible to describe.

Up at the allotment, I couldn't believe the difference the rain had made- all the plants were the most perfect bright green and many of them seemed to have doubled in size. The broadbeans are now completely covered in flowers and the purple sprouting broccoli has bounced back with a vengeance. Even the strawberries I thought I'd lost have come through unscathed. Sadly the rhubarb hasn't recovered, but I don't think that was because of the dry weather, I just think it didn't like being moved from my parents in law's garden and had developed some unfortunate crown rot. Fortunately, several of our neighbouring allotmenteers have offered us free-pick of their booming plants so we won't go without rhubarb crumble this year.

The soil, which had become rock-hard and almost impossible to dig is now perfectly soft and crumbley. Today we got on and planted out our peas and beans, as well as our maincrop spuds (late, but I was stalling because I wasn't sure if we had the room for them) and I even risked planting out the courgettes and squashes under covers. I've popped lots of little french marigold seedlings in amongst the beds, in the hope that they will keep the bugs off the crops as we've had a few nibbled leaves already.

I hope everyone else had good weekends- what a horrible thought that we actually have a five day week for the first time in ages!

{this moment}

2011-05-06T00:02:00.003+01:00

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savour and remember.

reality bites

2011-05-03T20:35:00.000+01:00

Anyone else feeling a bit shell shocked returning to work after all the bank holidays? Luckily there are still a couple of reasons to be cheerful:

1. lots of lovely green seedlings on my windowsill...

and 2. a chirpy little lunch break charity shop Pyrex purchase...

Chin up peeps, it'll be the weekend before we know it!

dry spell

2011-05-02T17:31:00.000+01:00

We haven't had a single drop of rain for a month now and despite daily watering, our allotment is looking rather sorry for itself. We have scorched strawberry plants, wilting rhubarb and flaccid purple sprouting broccoli.

The only things that seem to be thriving are the broad beans, sprouts and potatoes, which we earthed up again today.

There were also a few carrot and parsnip seedlings poking through the dusty soil.

Despite it's parched predicament, I'm delighted with how the plot is coming together- it will be so beautiful in a year or two when the fruit trees have filled out. I'm planning to move that enormous concrete compost bin by the shed (behind the water butt) and weave a living willow playhouse for the girls in the winter.

This morning we made a scarecrow to guard our crops- the girls have named him Sidney. Let's hope the birds are fooled!

It also seems important to mention the government's plans to end the right to have an allotment, thus placing plots up and down the county under threat. For more information and what you can do to speak out against the plans visit here. All the more reason to vote wisely on thursday...

π

2011-05-01T18:07:00.002+01:00

A few weeks ago Flora was amongst a small handful of children from her school with a special interest in art and nature, who were selected to take part in a community art project up at the Folly.

I've mentioned before about our little town's connections to the nursery rhyme "sing a song of sixpence", which also inspired this project.

Flora's job was to help weave a willow and hazel 'pie'.

She's going back on Wednesday to finish it off by planting a covering of camomile inside the pie- I can't wait to see it finished!

As well as the pie, there are wonderful blackbird sculptures perching in the surrounding tree tops.

Presumably there are 'four and twenty' scattered about, but we only managed to spot about half that number!

Aren't they great? I feel super-proud that Flora had the opportunity to take part in this fantastic project, especially as it will bring so much pleasure to the local children trying to spot the blackbirds in the woods!

beltane

2011-05-01T09:11:00.002+01:00

There was an old woman tossed up in a basket

Nineteen times as high as the moon.

And where she was going I couldn't but ask it

For in her hand she carried a broom.

'Old woman! old woman!! old woman!!!' quoth I.

'Oh whither Oh whither Oh whither, so high.'

'To sweep the cobwebs off the sky.'

'And I'll be with you again by and bye.

It was a beautiful day again yesterday- just perfect for watching the wacky, Wicker Man-esque May Day festivities. I know lots of people think it's creepy and weird, but my Spring isn't complete until I've seen a spot of Morris dancing.

I can't wait to hear about what everyone is planning to get done in the forthcoming month. The veggies should really get going over the next few weeks and it will soon be time to plant out the more tender crops. We've also got a long weekend away in Poole with the in-laws to look forward to towards the end of the month.

Happy May Day x

{this moment}

2011-04-29T13:59:00.002+01:00

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savour and remember.

lucky duck

2011-04-28T14:13:00.001+01:00

This week I have been extremely lucky to win not one, but two fab bloggy giveaways. When my postman arrived this morning, I could have kissed him when he presented me with the two very prettiest parcels I ever saw.

The first was from Ms M at Me Old China, a blog that celebrates the very best of British style.

Inside was a fantastic length of London-themed bunting- just in time for the Royal Wedding (although I will admit to being a bit bah-humbug when it comes to that!)

I absolutely love how the bunting looks above the mantle piece in my dining / craft room, I think it might become a permanent fixture!

The second package was from the quite sickeningly talented Lizzie at The Pea Pod- have you ever seen such a lovely parcel in all your days?

She'd packed it full to the brim with little packages individually wrapped in tissue paper- all containing beautiful little trinkets, many of which she'd made herself.

She had been especially thoughtful to include two lovely little hand-painted peg dolls for the girls. Pearl's has already firmly taken up residence in her dolls' house.

Thank you so much to both of you, I've never been quite so excited to see the post!

All these parcels remind me that I am long overdue a giveaway- in the last few weeks I've had my 100th follower as well as my blog's first birthday the other day. I must get round to organising something very soon!

Enjoy your extra long weekend, one and all!

back to school

2011-04-27T21:16:00.010+01:00

After such a blissfully calm few days, it felt quite a shock to be getting up early and organising Flora's various school paraphernalia.

I don't know where this year has gone- it feels like five minutes ago we were up to our knees in snow and here we are packing her off to school in summer uniform!

the mads

2011-04-24T23:06:00.003+01:00

Yesterday I was surprised and rather chuffed to receive a message letting me know that F&P has been nominated in the 2011 MAD awards. Even though I've been blogging for a year now, I still feel a bit of a bloggy virgin as I tend to just bumble along writing and photographing for my own entertainment (and to aid my terrible memory) and the fact that other people read my posts and seem to enjoy them is a bonus. So I never really realised that there were award ceremonies and prizes and wotnot- this message was the first I'd heard of such a thing. Apparently those shortlisted get inviting to a proper award ceremony and everything!

It seems F&P is nominated for two categories- family life and photography. Thank you so much to whoever nominated me- I've no idea who it was, or whether it was several people. If anyone else would like to join in with the nominations for their favourite family-themed/parenting blogs (or would like to put in an extra good word for F&P), pop over and fill out a voting form- nominations close at 5pm tomorrow (Monday).

Oh and whilst on the subject of awards, can I thank the lovely Bears Footprints and Flight Platform Living for tagging me on their blogs recently. It honestly gives me such a buzz that people enjoy reading my little blog. Because I'm ultra lazy and just not interesting enough to have that many random facts about myself, can I point you in the direction of a recent random-facty bloggy award-accepting post and ask that you all have a look in my sidebar at all the other lovely, inspiring blogs that I regularly read and enjoy- I'm going to be updating it again over the next few days.

rolling with the homies

2011-04-24T19:28:00.010+01:00

I do hope everyone has been having a wonderful Easter Sunday and feels suitably slightly sick due to chocolate scoffing.

Our day started off a little dubiously, as we'd got up early to go to our first car boot sale of the year, only to find we had to queue for the best part of an hour to park there and that the goods on offer were generally pretty rubbish. To make matters worse, the only pyrex I found was in Autumn Glory, a pattern I don't collect. An early start also made for crabby children, so by lunchtime I'd almost given up hope of saving the day.

However, this afternoon the sun came out and we walked on up to a hillside to roll the hard boiled eggs that the girls had painted yesterday.

Local people call this spot 'Humpty Dumpty Hill' and apparently, generations of children have returned here year upon year to roll their eggs. The last time we walked up here was to go sledging on Christmas day.

The novelty of egg rolling quickly turned in to throwing the eggs as hard and as far as possible down the hill...

Some eggs survived, while others did not...

and after frolicking about on the hillside, the girls recharged their energy by tucking into eggs of the sweet, sticky variety.

Om nom nom! x

really good friday

2011-04-22T18:48:00.004+01:00

Wow- what a scorchio Bank Holiday! We've had the most perfect day at beautiful Bowood exploring, picnicking and playing with Lou of Little Green Shed and her perfectly gorgeous family.

Her boys and my girls seem to be kindred spirits.

I don't think the children could quite believe their luck when we arrived at the adventure playground, although they seemed to have equally as much fun pottering about in the grounds and exploring down by the stream. It was such a wonderful, varied place, we'll definitely be going back.

Thank you lovely Lou for inviting us, we can't wait to see you all again very very soon- hopefully a little camping trip is in order next!

I'm really looking forward to the rest of the Easter weekend- allotmenting tomorrow, our first car boot of the season on Sunday, cinema on Monday and squeezing in some baking and Easter crafts in between. Hope this amazing weather sticks with us!

Happy Easter everyone xx

{this moment}

2011-04-22T00:13:00.002+01:00

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savour and remember.

love birds tea towel

2011-04-17T15:43:00.001+01:00

Last night, Steve and I went to a wedding reception in a beautiful country hotel- it was lovely to have an excuse to put on our glad rags and have a night out without the girls. Not knowing the couple very well (the bride was a colleague of Steve's) I was a bit stuck as to what to do for a gift.

So I figured if Wills and Kate can have a commemorative tea towel, why couldn't they?

Pattern available on Etsy here.

bluebell woods

2011-04-16T14:22:00.006+01:00

We are very fortunate to live in an area surrounded by beautiful National Trust land, including this stunning wood less that a mile from our home. This morning we went for a wander in the woods to see the bluebells in all their splendour.

wow, we certainly weren't disappointed- a carpet of blue as far as the eye could see...

The wood was full of beautiful fresh foliage- quite a contrast to the wintery bare trees we saw only a few weeks ago

We found another forest den, even more exciting than the one we found before, it looked like something from Star Wars...

Steve and the girls pretended they were Ewoks and set about constructing another wall and extending the roof

To find your nearest bluebell wood and to download an awesome free bluebell knitting pattern visit The Woodland Trust.

Happy weekend x

{this moment}

2011-04-15T21:01:00.000+01:00

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savour and remember.

dreaming of pebbles

2011-04-10T18:25:00.002+01:00

Who would have thought we'd be slapping on the sunscreen and pottering about by the river in early April. Everywhere was bursting with fresh colour, which seemed even more dreamy viewed through my hazy sunglasses and the scent of blossom and freshly cut grass drifted on the gentle breeze.

Feeling the warm sun on my skin makes me feel rather homesick for Brighton- what I would give for an afternoon picnicking and chatter on the beach with our dearest friends.

sun and seeds

2011-04-09T18:04:00.004+01:00

It's glorious days like today that make having our new allotment even more exciting.

Now that Spring has officially arrived, we are well on our way with planting up the more frost-hardy crops and our plot is really taking shape. So far we have planted out sprouts, broad beans, leeks and strawberries plants. We've sowed parsnips and carrots (in between the rows of leeks in an attempt at permaculture) and we've got the raspberry canes in, one apple tree, two pear trees, four gooseberry bushes and a mighty rhubarb plant. We also have a bed each of spring-sown garlic and onions which are coming on nicely and we planted our chitted seed potatoes this afternoon.

Last week we picked up a sandpit on Freecycle- perfect for keeping the girls amused when they lose interest in the gardening.

It would have been the perfect allotmenteering day, had it not been spoiled towards the end by an impertinent octogenarian stopping by to over-zealously tick us off for about 10 minutes about something ridiculously petty. I don't know why it upset me so much, but it did- mainly because we try so hard to teach the girls good manners and to respect other people's property and to play quietly so they don't disturb the peace etc etc, but it would seem that forgetting to padlock the flimsy gate behind us (when it wasn't even locked in the first place) is pensioner lottie crime of the century. I hope his tomatoes get blight. So there.

{this moment}

2011-04-08T21:36:00.000+01:00

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savour and remember.

health kick (up the bum)

2011-04-04T18:54:00.003+01:00

Is it me or does Blogland seem to be full of girls who spend their days sitting knitting, eating red velvet cupcakes and still manage to look svelte and ravishing in their vintage frocks?

Credit

Not me, I'm afraid. I have some serious lard to shift and sharpish. I need to cut back the cake and engage in some activities that raise my heart-rate (and I'm not talking about spotting promo Pyrex in junk shops).

I've spent all day sharing an office with two chocolate cakes and not having a single slice (I now have the shakes) and tonight I'm going to be trying out my new treadmill (which was £21 on ebay, but doesn't fill me with the same level of excitement as my usual thrifty purchases).

Wish me luck!

a yummy mummy's day

2011-04-03T17:21:00.002+01:00

Hope all you mummies have had a lovely Mother's day and have been suitably spoiled.

I've had a wonderful day, mooching round the garden centre and popping to the shops to treat myself to some cheery spring shoes...

Then, this afternoon Steve and the girls worked some magic in the kitchen and baked some really delicious scones, so we all had a superb afternoon tea...

They were so tasty, I ate three!!

{this moment}

2011-04-01T07:33:00.003+01:00

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savour and remember.

a jobling lot

2011-03-31T21:42:00.003+01:00

It's been yet another fabulous week for Pyrex thrifting

I started the week by picking up this lovely casserole dish for £1 in our own small town's little charity shop- simple but pleasing...

Then, in my lunch break yesterday, I ventured into a charity shop that I've not been in before, over the other side of town to where I normally forage. It was a rather jumbly and dishevelled Salvation Army shop- not very fragrant and the sort of place that gives charity shops a bad name. I literally had to get down on my knees and sort through piles of dirty tat, but it was very much worth it because

first I found four little Gaiety plates, £1.50 for all four...

I notice that, curiously, one of them doesn't quite match the other three. Three of them have a gold rim and the usual J A Jobling crown logo on the reverse...

However, the third does not have a gold rim and has a strange 'Jobling Opalware' logo that I have never seen before. The snowflakes don't seem to be quite as well printed on either, they are slightly more raised and flaked off more than on the other plates.

I wonder whether the charity shop had them in separately and then put them together as a set, although I suppose it's more likely that the original owner broke one and bought a replacement at a later date?

And now for the pièce de résistance...

Ta-da!

the most beautiful eggshell blue Gaiety divided dish for a mere £1. This is the very piece I have been coveting for months, as they never made very much block-coloured English Pyrex- this is one of the few. It's so pretty- I can't wait to have a Sunday roast to use it for my vegetables. Although, it is frustratingly minus its lid- where are all these millions of illusive Pyrex lids that have been misplaced over the years?

I now feel must apologise for the sheer geekdom to which I have descended since developing this peculiar obsession with vintage ovenware. Do let me know if I'm boring you all to tears with these OCD ramblings. I think my poor husband is a whisker away from having me sectioned...

land lady

2011-03-30T21:48:00.000+01:00

Earlier in the week I invited my friend (the one who had the baby shower) round for lunch and a much-needed girly natter. Being the lovely, generous person that she is, she brought with her some yummy left over baby shower cupcakes and one extremely special and touching gift.

This breathtakingly beautiful watercolour poster was painting by her own grandmother, who was herself a land girl during the Second World War.

My friend has been treasuring it but, having more contemporary decor, had not put it on display and thought it was a shame to have it hidden away. Knowing my interest in the thrifty, resourceful and determined women of the 1940s, she thought I would be far more likely to have it displayed where it could be treasured and appreciated on a daily basis.

Her grandmother is one very talented woman- she has dated it 1942 so she must have painted it while she was serving. I don't think it's a copy of another poster as I've never seen it before and can't find another by googling- plus the charming incorrect placing of the apostrophe makes me think it is all her own design (although even if it was a copy, it's still incredible!)

I can't take my eyes of the intricate detail on each land girl. Each girl has her own individual complexion, hair colour and body shape, which makes me wonder if these women were her actual comrades. I'd love to think so, anyway.

I have to say I was practically speechless when she presented it to me- I don't think I've ever had such an honour bestowed upon me as to be given the responsibility of cherishing a piece of someone's family history, let alone one as staggering as this.

I'm going to have it properly framed and it will be proudly displayed in my dining room for us and all who visit to admire and appreciate for many more generations to come.

Hurrah for the land girls!

nick the kid

2011-03-27T16:01:00.001+01:00

Meet Nick.

During our trip to the farm a few weeks ago, Flora entered a competition to name one of the newborn kids. To my suprise, I had a call this week to say that Flora's entry 'Nick' had been selected as one of the winning names (I can only assume they pulled the names out of a hat!)

So today we all went along, free of charge, to officially name the kid and collect Flora's prize.

We all had such a lovely time and were treated like royalty! We'll be coming back regularly to watch Nick grow up.

Can you guess what we had for lunch at the end of our visit?

ssshhhhhhh....goat burgers. And delicious they were too!

save the vest till last

2011-03-26T17:57:00.002Z

This afternoon Flora, Pearl and I have been having lots of fun at a friend's baby shower. Having not been to one before (and usually being rather stuffy and dismissive of American celebratory fads) I didn't have a clue what to expect. Flora was convinced we were going to actually put a baby in the shower, so we were relieved to find lots of tea, cake and games- including one that the girls found hilarious called 'guess what's in the nappy'.

We came bearing a small gift, that I had frantically stitched up this morning. My friend doesn't know what gender baby she's having, so I went for unisex red, embroidered with a little owl- everyone loves owls, after all!

it never rains but it pours

2011-03-25T19:55:00.000Z

I can't believe it- I scored in my lunch break again today!

A set of nine beautiful bright pieces of Pyrex for the bargain price of £3.99 for the lot. Trying to explain to my husband exactly why we need yet another gravy boat is becoming tricky.

I'm finding it a challenge discovering the name of this pattern- it looks just like Matchmaker, but I've only ever seen that in blue and green, so I'm not 100% sure. Can anyone help me out?

It's officially the weekend!!! x

{this moment}

2011-03-25T18:57:00.001Z

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savour and remember.

the drought is over!

2011-03-23T21:11:00.002Z

I've been complaining for several weeks now about my extended dry spell in finding anything of interest in the many charity shops I routinely trawl through in my lunch break. But I'm pleased to say that I had a very lucky day today.

Firstly I picked up some super dooper JAJ pyrex- my first piece of Harvest

and a large Chelsea bowl, neither with lids unfortunately, but a steal at £1.99 each

My luck didn't stop there, in another shop next door I found the most fabulous 1970s Meakin full coffee set with pot, 6 cups and saucers, milk jug and sugar bowl for a completely ridiculous £4.99. I almost felt guilt handing over so little, as though I was ripping off a charity!

Just look how adorable the design is- those little stars on the flowers are the dinkiest things!

I then arrived home from work to find the postman had been and delivered the book that Maria from Me & Ma had sent me. This book was given away by the lovely Colette Moscrop as part of World Book Night a few weeks back. Maria was the first to receive it and has now passed it on to me and I will pass it on to one of you when I finish it. It even has its own tracking code so we can see where it goes and how many people have read it as it carries on its travels!

To my delight, Maria had included these beautiful little handmade bookmarks for the girls and I. Thank you so so much, we love them!

Finally, thank you to Gemma at Helloitsgemma for awarding me the coveted Liebster Blog award (get me and my awards recently, oo-er!).

Because their generosity has brightened up my week, I want to pass the award on to Me & Ma and Collette Moscrop who both have really beautiful, crafty and comforting blogs

and I also want to pass it on to the scrummy Lou at Little Green Shed, really just because her blog is and always will be my favourite of all. Thanks Lou for being my blogger bessie xxx

sprung

2011-03-19T18:48:00.000Z

Goodness, wasn't it a beautiful day today?

I know we really should have made the most of it and got down the allotment, but I was feeling rather tired (still recovering from last weekend's party, I think) so we had a bit of a dreamy, lazy day- pottering about at the park, taking a stroll by the river and sitting in a pub garden for the first time this year.

Hope everyone managed to make the most of the sunshine x