Turned out nice again

Sunday was forecast to be raining all day. I was secretly pleased because it would mean I could shirk my gardening duties. My working week now ends at 8.30pm on a Saturday, so more than ever I want the day of rest to be exactly that.

However it turned out bright and beautiful.

So after skulking in bed until mid-morning, I was ousted. I need help, he said.

Once I dragged my reluctant carcass out there, I decided to do some tidying. Sort the paths out, pick up all the endless debris from next door's Weeping Willow, do some weeding and put the pots full of seedlings all in their rightful place rather than where I can trip over them when I'm hanging out the washing.

Oh, but then it started raining. Damn. *big wink*

So, after doing a bit of deadheading of flowers for vases, I skipped inside and took up my needle.

First job: make a cushion and a curtain for the porch from some really pretty 1950s barkcloth I scored for top dollar on ebay.

Now, we all know the laws of the universe; of course there wasn't enough fabric, there never is.

So what do we do?

That's right. Jiggery pokery. That's why the curtain has pink trim top and bottom. By Jove, I think it works.

That curtain is the final touch for our newly decorated porch. Those stained glass windows are one of the few remaining original features, and I love them.

Second up, make a curtain for this little baby blue meat safe. There's the cushion from the barkcloth on the gold chair.

Then there was job number three. I found this gold brocade cocktail chair for £4 a few years ago, at the carbooty, but the grubby seat always bothered me. So last year, after months of sniffing around, I managed to find a piece of fabric on ebay which was a near perfect match, and recovered the seat pad. 

That's a dress I got from Second to None. When I wear it, he always asks me if I've lost my sheep. (Little Bo Peep)

Not easy. Jiggery pokery.

(I feel like I'm writing this blog post in the voice of Micky Flannigan).

Anyway, yesterday I decided to change the pompoms. Those pink ones were looking a bit faded and they didn't go all the way round, so I replaced them with some red trim. Looks very plush now!

So that's it, the house is styled to within an inch of its life tidy, which is good because I wanted to make a positive first impression on her. She only arrived this morning. She's Tehura by our Walter (Walter Lambert). 

Isn't she a beauty?

How about you, anything to report from this weekend?

Chinese lanterns at dusk

I love to have flowers in the house, and my favourite kind are those collected from the garden.

So at dusk I set out to fill some vases. The nights are drawing in fast now, so by the time I had finished the solar powered exterior fairy lights and Chinese lanterns had come on.

I love twinkly lights outside. It's like dressing the garden with sparkling jewels.

He put up lengths of wire which run the width of our patio, and then we tied solar powered fairy lights to them. When all the lights come on, our back garden and patio look like Las Vegas.

Viva La Bling.

The vases get distributed around the house. This looks a rather holier than thou still life. Or maybe we're all just praying that the lovely late summer weather continues.

I look at Miss Wong and she looks at me. We never tire of one another.

A few weeks ago I had a craft day making this Vix and Dee style lampshade. I have the house to myself today, so I had better go and make the most of it!

You can take the girl out of the country, but you can't take the country out of the girl

I almost feel this post doesn't need words, the pictures seem to do most of the work for me. But I'll tell you what it's all about.Our friends from Finland were over for a flying visit, so we met up. The setting was Ashover in rural Derbyshire. A traditional Georgian country pub lunch, followed by a traditional country walk. It's a quintessential English village with a small shop, a Post office and a couple of pubs. The country girl in me would happily live there.

 

Back home, we luxuriated in the sunshine. It's such a lovely time of the year to be out in the garden. Every day you see developments, a shoot sticking up here, a flower unfurling its petals there.

Apple blossom. Rosemary and potato bread. Home grown leaves for a green salad.

This one is a Pasque flower. Such a fantastic colour combination, the purple and orange.

We're doing our utmost to cover that huge fence we put up this time last year. Clematis Montana. A joy in April.

Car boot treasures. These will go in pots on the patio. It's still a bit too early because of the danger of frost, but I am itching to get them out there.

I like my garden to be full to overflowing. It's my way of bringing the countryside to me.

Which are you, a country bumpkin or a city slicker?

Let them eat fresh vegetables!

I know what you're thinking. Anyone with rainbow fingernails must lead a VERY glamorous life.

And you'd be right. Mais oui. I wouldn't lie to you, would I?

A pair of Pinnochios lurking in the undergrowth. There's a clue there.

So, instead of thinking that these little jobs I do are menial, I prefer to daydream, a la Marie Antoinette. She frolicked at Le Petit Hameau, I plant seeds in the greenhouse.

This is the top of the garden, the working part where we have the shed, the compost heap, the greenhouse and the vegetable beds.

Of course, I don't want her fate. I read her biography years ago and it seems she was dealt rather a sorry hand. From being sent by an ambitious mother to a foreign court with no friends, to marrying a husband who wasn't interested in her for a long time, to being the victim of fraud and eventually a hate figure for an entire nation before finally losing her head. Forget the fancy frocks, that's no dream existence.

Qu'ils mangent de la brioche! Let them eat cake! Although widely attributed to her, she didn't actually say it.

Purple sprouting broccoli, our first crop. It melts in the mouth

Looks like we're going to be eating sweetcorn and courgettes

No fancy frocks for me today, it's a pair of vintage overalls and a wool cardi, 50p each at the jumble on Saturday. I'm no Madame Deficit!

Reasons to be cheerful

So much of our time this year has been spent in the garden and so much of our pleasure has derived from the produce. Dahlias and zinnias grown from seed.

Ditto sweet peas. Here are the seeds for next year.

They've been spectacular and so prolific this year. Even now, they keep coming.

This is a new little project. It's called a happy jar. When something nice happens, you write it on a piece of paper and stick it in the jar. Whenever you feel a bit down, you open the jar and look through some of the good things which have happened. Or you could start in January and then review the year in December. 

My first entry. Cutting a courgette from the garden and putting it straight into the pot. Yes, that made me happy.

A country walk resulted in a surprise haul of brambles. We added some apples from our tree to make the most delicious crumble. Growing things. Food. Basic stuff, but feels so good.

What are the simple things that make you happy?

But uh-oh those summer nights!

We ate outside two nights in a row this week. It felt like a staycation!

Tagliatelle with sage, butter and capers with salad and wine. Oh and parmesan on top. Hugh lovers, he's done it again. Just scroll down for the recipe.

We discovered these candles on our last night in Dubrovnik when we went for cocktails on the terrace at the Hilton with our last few kuna. They are battery operated and move through different colours in phases. They put you in a trance.

Outdoor fairy lights above the patio. All twinkly and beautiful. The man of the house particularly loves them in winter.

 

The stars of the garden show at the moment are these foxgloves. How I love them. 

The King of Rock and Roll and the King of Heaven

I intended to post yesterday in celebration of the fact that I now have 100 followers, but I left it a day and now I have 101! Thank you so much to all of you for following me.

Without further ado, here is the wonderful Swiss made frock that lovely Curtise gave me. It is a terry towelling  fabric in red white and blue with a zip down the front. It is soft, comfortable and I love it! It takes me straight back to about 1974. Time travel, you can't ask much more of a dress than that can you?

Here it is teamed with the amazing 1970s platforms gorgeous Vix gave me. I regularly put high heels on my list to Santa in about 1974. Didn't get them at the time. It just goes to show, good things come to those who wait...

A few of you asked what I bought on my recent trip to Chesterfield market. Well, the easy answer is fabric! Plenty of it! Can you tell I'm a Textiles graduate?

An amazing alpine tea towel, a wonderful 1970s offcut featuring a rocking horse, the softest yellow floral cotton curtain to be made into something or other and a 1940s tablecloth which went straight outside onto the table up the garden.

The tea towel is entitled Les Chamois. I looked it up and it is a type of goat antelope which lives in the Alps. Perfect. I love it so much.

Such is the voraciousness of the pigeons hereabouts, we have had to cover our crops in netting. I like to think of these strawberry blooms as little brides peeking out from behind their veils.

I inherited an amazing gold and turqoise ring which was stolen years ago. The universe has sent this 50p special from Chesterfield market to replace it. Thanks Cheapskates, I shall wear it often.

The King of Rock and Roll and the King of Heaven. I can't believe I didn't buy these Graceland pounds. What am I going to use when I visit?

Coffee pot from Chesterfield market and matching anenomes in my garden.

That's all folks! xx