Friday, February 23, 2007

Half Term High Jinks!

Half term was wonderful, chaotic, mad, shambolic but wonderful! Tanya and her lovely family came to stay for a week from France. Poor things were treated to far more rain than they are used to but I guess that is always a risk if you visit North Devon in February. We shared some great times together this week, we laughed, cried, ate the obligatory cream tea, listened to great music, drank, shopped (despite toddlers, tantrums, grumpy old men and endless rainfall), were treated to a show put on by the kids, thrifted, marvelled at how our eldest girls have grown up, talked and talked and talked (despite having 7 children in permanent earshot), celebrated Floss's 13th birthday early and generally caught up after having been apart for the last year. I miss Tatty so much. Since she moved to France we use the telephone and emails to keep in touch but it is no substitute for being together and lately my girlfriend has needed a hug (or two). After being in each others company for a few hours it is like we have never been apart. The same thing happens with our children, they just pick up from where they left off a year ago. Lovely, like Lettuce says, 'Good friends ease the heart'.




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Thursday, February 08, 2007

My website





My website is live boys and girls! Go and take a peek, tell me what you think. I need feedback. Pin It

Monday, February 05, 2007

All the fun of the thrift

I had a great day thrifting on Friday. I spotted some mannequins for sale in the local paper. Mr Big Stuff had been looking for some for quite some time and the little old man who was selling them was retiring from running his clothes shop in Ilfracombe and was selling up. Thinking he may have some old shop fittings I accompanied MBS there. Sadly the shop was completely gutted ready for refurbishment but the mannequins were fabulous and just what MBS had been looking for. While he was loading up I decided to venture into town as I had spotted some charity shops on our way through (It's the first thing I look out for when entering a new town). Now I don't go to Ilfracombe very often, especially in winter. It's a funny old down-at-heel North Devon seaside town, all fudge and fairy shops, but the charity shops were great. I love going to charity shops in places I don't normally go. Their stuff always seems more exciting and unusual somehow. I also liked the fact that the charity shops were scruffy, independant charity shops for obscure charities. I find that some of the bigger charity shops like Oxfam, Barnardos and CLIC are a little sterile these days. Their stuff is sometimes too new and I wonder what happens to the old smelly stuff. I fear the worst! Anyhow I found some great stuff like this........




Flour shaker to go with my sugar shaker



A gorgeous pile of crockery in ice cream colours



A scottie



A shabby chic jug









Some tablecloths


A linen Teatowel





And my favourite thing of all, a kitsch poodle tin full of buttons!!



I know, I'm easily pleased! I also got some fabric, some old kids books and a teletubby rucksack for Lizzy who was beside herself with love for this tatty old thing (like mother like daughter!). Oh and I still had change from a tenner!

After all that thrifting I was quite hungry so we went down to the quay and had lunch in Damien Hirst's restaurant. It was lovely. As it was a fine, spring-like day we took our time driving back along the coast marvelling at the views and reminding ourselves how very very lucky we are to live here. I just wish I had remembered to take my camera.

When I got home I sorted out boxes and boxes of stuff for a lady to take away for a local jumble sale. She had a car load and could have held a jumbly with my stuff alone! It's my new regime, one out, one in.
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Sunday, February 04, 2007

Fabric and Fairies

On Thursday a parcel arrived at my house. I unwrapped it and inside I found this......





Further unwrapping revealed this..........






and, finally, this................





A beautiful pipe cleaner fairy made by this clever lady. I fell in love with her immediately. She was so lovely and beautifully made, the attention to detail is undescribable and you just can't see how extraordinary she is from my photos. Believe me she is wonderful! The only trouble was she wasn't mine. I had bought her for my Mother-in-Law whose birthday it was the next day. She has been virtually house bound with extreme sciatica. Now for an extremely active lady like my MIL this is so frustrating for her and it has been getting her down a lot. Nothing she has tried has shifted it. I parcelled up the fairy together with The French-Inspired Home, some scented candles, chocolates and a corsage, all things she can enjoy from the comfort(?) of her chair. She was thrilled, especially with her fairy, and it really cheered her up. I had to get in touch with Niki though and ask her if she could make me one the same, or at least very similar, before I let her fly off to her new owner!

I have found a child minder for Lizzy for 1 1/2 days a week so that I can at last get on with stocking the shelves for my website. It is all ready to go now and just needs me to spend a little time adding the fabric to my shop. Here for you is a little preview of things to come, enjoy!

1930's cotton



1930's cotton



1940's cotton


1930's paisley cotton


1950's kids cotton



Vintage French buttons



Polka dot grosgrain ribbon



Vintage linen buttons

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