weekend musings

what a wonderful weekend it has been! After the florist visit, we went to a local pub for lunch. I decided on potato rosti topped with prawns. Yummy ! then we came home and I spent the afternoon reading Harry Potter.... and then we went to a 60th birthday dinner for Joes' brother. What a gourmet meal that was. Prawn & smoked salmon pasta for an entree...main meal was chicken breast cooked in a mustard sauce with cashew nuts and dessert was a wicked brandy custard & raspberry concoction. I came home feeling like an overstuffed wombat. What about the wedding dress that I have to fit into in October? So I got up early this morning and went for a long walk. The mornings are delightful right now...sunny but nice and cool. Daffodils are starting to spring up from the ground & the wattle is in flower. Spring must be just around the corner ! Then I came home, had a nice healthy breakfast and spent the day in the garden. I then went for another walk.
Dinner is in the oven and I am off to bed early tonight !

ms*louisas' wedding ~ July 30

today we are off to see about the flowers. Ms*louisa is thinking of having a bunch of lillies for her bouquet. They will look gorgeous but I am a little hesitant because of their tendency to drop bright yellow pollen. A disaster on a white dress ! Our friend, Peter is doing the flowers for us. He was a professional florist before he retired, competing in world wide competitions as well as doing some floral work in Buckingham Palace, many years ago. We are going to his home this morning and having a chat about all the options as he will be doing table decorations for the reception as well.

housekeeping ~ July 29

I have lots to catch up on today ~ I have to clean my kitchen benches & do tons of washing. The two days out this week have me way behind. Amazing how that happens ! In my kitchen, I have an old shop counter as part of my benches & after I clean them I want to rub some lavender furniture polish into it.
I love when I clean my kitchen ~ when it is all done, I like to gather some produce from my garden * and put it in a big bowl * today, it will be lemons as my lemon tree is groaning with the amount of fruit on it, at the moment. Some lovely lemon grass candles burning as well ~

living ~ July 29

I am off to have my hair cut & coloured this afternoon ~ can't wait..... my hair needs a lift. It is amazing how time flies and before I know it, 6 mths have passed since I have been to a hairdressers. So I go off and after having it done, I vow that I will do this more often but of course, that doesn't happen..... I am thinking of having layers cut and foils in three colours. I desperately need something different. I don't want length cut off as I love to put my hair up, especially when I work in my garden. I hate when my hair is flapping about my face * drives me mental !
last night I went shopping to a favourite store ~ Tree of Life and bought a gorgeous lace skirt and a velvet jacket * both on sale.. the skirt is a grey blue and the jacket the most divine shade of lilac. Perfect for the 60th birthday party that we are going to, tomorrow night

brown*paper*parcels ~ childhood dreams

from brown paper parcels on April 13 2005, I wrote :

ECCENTRIC ~ as a little girl, I always wanted to be different~ I wanted to wear clothes that were out of the ordinary and I wanted my bedroom decorated with all my favourite things ~ of course I went through teenage years like everyone does but the things I stuck on my wall were out of the ordinary ~ a huge advertisement for Levis and pictures of 'old' movie stars and I had a huge collage of favourite things on my wall. I wanted to wear hats: I wanted to wear my grandmas clothes ....not much has changed and I am pleased to say that I have finally achieved one of my ambitions in life ~ I AM ECCENTRIC !!!

my wonderful day ~ July 27

Today, instead of housekeeping, I went out with my patchwork friends. We drove to Balmain * an inner city suburb* and did some serious shopping. Quite a few home decorator shops ~ very french & oh so nice. I bought some absolutely divine almond cream soap * some lovely note paper with french rabbits on it & the most delightful retro style blouse. Oh ! and a vintage style flower bobby pin for my hair. I could have spent lots more time & money but will go back with my daughters one day soon.
Then we went to a friends pub for lunch * pate de fois * a tiny scallop wrapped in bacon & prunes * pumpkin & asparagus risotto for my main and for dessert I had berry & vanilla bean panacotta..delish and there goes my diet.....ah well walking it will have to be for the next few days.

life ~ July 27

oh boy, did I have a lazy day yesterday ! I did a few loads of washing & had all intentions of generally tidying up around the home * putting things away & those other bits and pieces that can sometimes be forgotten in the daily grind.... however, a phone call early morning had me meeting a friend for coffee ~ which turned into a two hour chat, supporting each other with our teenage daughter hissy fits... we parted at lunch time, both feeling much better after our chatting. I came home ~ had a sandwich and read a book that I just can't put down and stayed on my lounge, under a quilt reading until 3 in the afternoon, while the wind howled outside ~ totally decadent....
the book ~ *A Tuesday thing by Kate Shayler * a true story of a woman who grew up in an orphanage. This is a follow up of her first book *the long way home* Kate Shayler
next Tuesday, I am actually having this lady over for morning tea..... I am so excited !

housekeeping

a lot of people out there in blogworld seem to be decluttering ! I have been decluttering for a few months now..... my mind was like a mixed up jigsaw puzzle... so much 'junk' around my house was sending me near insane. So I started slowly decluttering. As I am a hoarder at heart, I took it slowly. Each week as I did my housework, I would tidy a little more. Putting stuff I no longer wanted * either in a bag for the op shops or in a box for my daughters to go through. My house is starting to look so much neater.
As I have said many times * I have a routine with my housekeeping * I recommend routine * each morning, I do a certain chore * same day - same chore * I spend an hour or two and its done. Afternoons to do as I please ~ weekends no special chores ~ just tidying, cooking & gardening * or nothing at all.
Then in spring - I do a thorough spring clean * major housekeeping ~ washing windows * washing winter blankets * things that only really need to be done once or twice a year.
Maybe I am obsessive * who knows * but that is ME !

vintage cleaning ~ July

Lavender is probably my housekeeping signature scent. It smells so fresh ! I like to use this spray on my bathroom and it is perfect for spraying in the toilet bowl.. lavender is very antiseptic and smells much nicer than those chemicals we are urged to use.


mix 1 cup water & 1 teaspoon pure essential oil of lavender in a spray bottle, shake vigorously to mix.
Spray on surfaces * no need to rinse
Keeps indefinitely.

housekeeping ~ July 25

Monday ~ as usual I changed my sheets, vacuumed & dusted the bedroom and cleaned both bathrooms. Now it is all done for another week....love it ! My bed is snuggly warm with my vintage quilt ...I only use this one in the middle of winter as it is quite heavy but the fabric is so gorgeous * a pity to hide it away. A bunch of daphne is sitting in a small glass jar in the bathroom and candles burning...ready for me to have my lovely relaxing bath tonight * pure bliss *

in the mail box ~ July 25

I have made quite a few good friends on the 'net' & am lucky enough to be in a kind of snail mail thingie with a few of them. Today, I received a lovely newsy letter from a girl in Scotland * thanks ms*wendy ! it is a joy to read of other girls' daily lives..their wishes and dreams ~ we are all so similar. Letter writing is certainly something we should encourage and rediscover....it doesn't have to be expensive... a note on some gorgeous paper is all we need to feel special * write a note to someone today

from *like grandma use to make* May 12 * 2005

you just have to try this cake it is easy & delicious ~ enjoy !

grandma's cakes

We went on a picnic last Sunday for mothers day and I wanted to make a cake...one that evoked memories of my childhood picnics..so I hunted this recipe out of one of my grandma's cookbooks....I am sure it is the one that she would bake for grandfather in his tin lunch box. Washed down with a hot cup of tea ~ delicious !! It was a hit with my whole family !!

155g soft butter
2 tsps. grated orange rind
2/3 cup castor sugar
3 eggs
1 cup self raising flour
1/4 cup milk

ORANGE ICING
1 cup icing sugar
1 tsp. soft butter
1 tblsp. orange juice ( approx )

grease a deep 20cm round cake tin; line base with paper
combine all ingredients in large bowl, beat on low speed with electric mixer until ingredients are combined. Increase speed to medium, beat for 3 mins. or until mixture is changed in colour and smooth. Spread into prepared tin. Bake in moderate (180C - 375F ) oven for about 45 mins. Stand 2 mins before turning onto wire cake rack to cool. Spread cold cake with icing.

ORANGE ICING
sift icing sugar into small heatproof bowl,stir in butter and enough juice to make a stiff paste. Stir over hot water until icing is spreadable

and there was 1 comment

Alice said...

I've quickly run through this site and now I am soooooo hungry. My daughter will
absolutely love this site, too. I'm not a great cook but I'm definitely going to
try some of these recipes.

life in the chicken coop ~ July 24

sometimes * things don't go as planned * life doesn't go ahead as you want * and circumstances don't turn out as expected. Today dear people ...one of my hens turned into a rooster !! I was awoken at some ungodly hour by a really loud crow & thought to myself....gee, that little bantam rooster has become mighty loud....but sadly not so......one of my gorgeous black australorps has decided 'she' is a he....... and he has to go. One rooster is quite enough ! I am in the process of finding him another home as I can't bring myself to make chicken pot pie from one of my friends. I would never survive as a farmer...my hens all have names and after their egg producing years, they are allowed to become matriarchs & spend their retirement scratching and clucking, enjoying their twilight years.

vintage gardening

my weekends are usually put aside for spending long times in the garden. Winter is a little hard to do this but today I am buying a few bags of mushroom compost to use for mulching my vegie garden. Getting it ready for early spring planting in a month or two.
I am also going to start putting seeper hoses throughout the garden, so will do one garden bed today...hopefully by late spring, all my gardens will have one.
I hope to get to a nursery, to buy some seedlings and to look at what potatoes they have in stock so far.

brown*paper*parcels ~ my vintage bookshelf

on April 14th * this is what I wrote about LITTLE WOMEN

*the first copy of this book that I can remember owning had a pink cover and a picture of the 4 girls in the sitting room. It was illustrated with coloured sketches and I received it for Christmas in 1964. I loved that book so much. I am lucky that my mum was a hoarder as that copy is still on my bookshelf now. A treasure !!! to look at it and touch it brings a warmth to my soul. I always wanted to be Amy , I am not sure why* maybe it was because she had gorgeous blonde hair where mine was thin and brown and she always wanted to look pretty * like most little girls. And I wanted to draw like her * I loved Meg, she was so gentle, I felt so safe with her * and I cried when Jo cut her hair off. I was in awe of Jo !! Loved when she went into the tree to read and write* Beth~ I was a little scared of Beth and I think it was because I didnt know as a child how to cope with her illness
I always wanted to go with Mrs March to deliver the meals to the sick and needy and I was absolutely afraid of Aunt March
I loved to read this book ~ I felt that I was peeking into their actual home and living the lives they did * the carriage rides in the snow...sounded like so much fun...... and even now when I feel like I need some nurturing ..that is one of the books that I grab. I don't think it was intentional but I ended up calling my first daughter *Louisa May*

and there were two comments:

I absolutely love your description of Little Women.I first read it back in the early 60's myself.I always wanted to be Jo, except when I was feeling sorry for myself,then I would imagine being the patient,loving, and suffering Beth.How I cried when she passed away.Did you ever read Eight Cousins?This is another of my favorite.What wonderful things girls today are missing by not reading these childhood classicsHelen(grammea)

Hey Robyn,It was great to read your post about little women and the vintage housekeepers. I blogged about them on the Little Women the Musical Show Blog http://littlewomen.typepad.com - The musical will be going on tour in the fall so hopefully ou can come and see it. :)

good morning ~ July 21

Jack Frost is a fairy small

I'm sure he is out today

He nipped my nose

And pinched my toes

When I went out to play.

I remember this little rhyme from when I was little & would run outside in the middle of winter with no shoes or socks on and my mum would recite the rhyme to me. Today, I woke to an icy cold morning complete with a visit from Jack Frost. frost on the tops of old fence posts * on letter boxes and all over gardens and grass. Beautiful !!!! Life is indeed good !!

brown*paper*parcels ~ memories are made of this ~

on April 11, this is what I wrote about bottling with my grandma

fowler vacola
my grandma Florence Emily had 7 boys, no daughters. So obviously each meal was a mammoth task. I can remember helping her to bottle the produce from my grandpas vegetable and fruit garden. It was such fun ! A few years back, I went out and bought myself a bottling kit and started to do bottling ..... it is still fun and the end result is magnificent. I have bottled pears*plums*apricots and peaches and have even been creative in doing it with spiced pears* peaches in brandy* & pears in cognac ~ there is nothing more satisfying than opening a bottle of fruit that you bottled yourself and serving it with homemade custard. We really need to preserve these vintage skills, they are disappearing fast !

life ~ July 20

it is amazing how my little baby picture helped me..... thanks for the thoughts and prayers. Today was spent just being........my blog isn't going to become a poor me blog * I am not like that at all...... but sometimes by just having a hissy fit here, every now and then, by posting my *baby picture*....well, it just helps, ya know?

oh dear

we are all allowed days like this and
yes dear readers * this is one of mine

*aprons*

I love vintage aprons and have a few in my cabinet drawer that I like to use. Sometimes I sell one or two on ebay..... seems that there are lots of apron lovers out there....or is that the collectable of the month? I have been collecting them since...forever and my favourites are the simple home made ones......used alot by some other vintage lady from a different era
I love to put my vintage pinny on, turn up the Edith Piaf and cook up storm. Nothing that I collect is just on show * it is all used and loved * if it breaks ~ so be it * I will have fun finding another.
I have added favourite apron links to the side bar * have a peek when you have time

*simple abundance*

I am at present following the Simple Abundance path * and enjoying it. Helps to make life that little bit more special & pretty.
I have a favourite blog RETROSPECTIVE that I check nearly everyday and found this posting this morning :

Philippians 4:12

“I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to
have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every
situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.”

......I actually had never read that in the Bible.... amazing sometimes don't you think ? how the Bible turns out to be a life guide.

brown*paper*parcels ~ my vintage bookshelf ~ Heidi

on April 10th * 2005 this is what I wrote about one of my favourite books :

*oh ! how I loved to read Heidi when I was a little girl.I would make myself a little package with a piece of cheese and some bread, wrap it in an old teatowel and go into my cubby and sit and read Heidi for as long as I could.I always wanted to go and live with the Alm uncle in the Alps and sleep in her little straw bed up in the loft. I would cry when she was sent to live with Clara and my heart would ache when her aunt was so mean*

* slow food *

here in the Blue Mountains there are quite a lot of old homes with old gardens. Many fruit trees bear fruit, year after year with most of it going to waste. A group of fun people have joined together to get all these fruit trees onto a community register and each year some will gather the fruit and others will make it into jams; pickles & chutneys. I have an 80 year old apple tree that bears prolifically each year and there are only so many apple pies and crumbles that we can eat. I also have a persimmon tree that bears well. This group also goes out to dinner once a month to an organic restaurant that uses all local produce. I decided to join up today...it sounds like lots of fun and plenty of sharing of ideas. They call themselves the slow food group as nothing is fast * they take time to sit at a table enjoying home grown produce with friends and like minded people * how perfect !!!!

what a day !!!

dear readers * travelling on public transport here in Australia is not fun at the best of times * and every one is a little edgy since the bombings in London. Our country has been told to expect a terroist attack here, sometime in the future. Not nice but a fact of life *
I left my home to go to the city usually a 1 and a bit hours trip * took some sewing and settled into my seat for the journey. About 45 mins later * half way * there was a huge bang on the roof of our train and the lights went out. Of course we all immediately thought we had been victims of a terroist attack. We sat for a few mins and then an announcement over the loud speakers * "an electric cable has fallen onto the train * do not get out of the train * it is electrified * repeat do not leave the train" then " we have people working on it at the very moment but cannot give a time frame " so we all sat, waited, made a few jokes about it all and waited some more
another announcement " we have turned all power off and will have passengers disembark and have buses waiting to transport you all to the next station, please make your way to the end of the train" So we walked through 3 carriages, had to climb down some steps on the side of the train * very elegant, I must say * and then walk along the track to a bus. Mind you, our appointment was at 11am for the dress fitting, so we had to change that to after lunch. Finally got to the bus and then continued our journey.

Needless to say, it wasn't a wonderful day & I came home to a dinner out and a hot bath !!

The dress is gorgeous & if the bride*to* be gives her permission, I will post a few pics on flikr.

ms*louisas' wedding ~ July 15

today we are off to Sydney for the first wedding dress fitting. We are catching the train & will have lunch somewhere scrumptious. The city isn't one of my favourite places but when I do go I have a lovely time & very grateful when I can come home to my lovely nest.

living ~ July 14

didn't do a whole lot today - took two big bags of 'stuff' to the op shop * called in for a cup of tea with a friend and this afternoon I took a book into bed and read for a little while. My soul seems to be weary right now and just to have a nap does me good.
I am battling to get on with the wedding quilt * It needs to be finished by end of September so that I can have it quilted and then have enough time to put the binding on. It is gorgeous & well worth all the work that has gone into it !

brown*paper*parcels ~ memories are made of this ~ April*9-2005*

my grandfather died when I was about 12 or so. I don't have alot of memories of him but I can remember that he was a passionate gardener, much like me. I just wish I had been a little older so that I could have absorbed all the knowledge that he tried to impart when we were on our wanders around his garden ~ I remember ~ aluminium pie dishes hanging in his fruit trees, to keep the birds from his fruit * jackpots full of a mix of sugar, vegimite and water to lure the fruit fly * herbs and vegies growing among his prize flowers * all this was organic gardening and I seem to have inherited his passion for it.
So ~I am continuing on and promise to try to adhere to all things organic ~
it is so hard though when I go down to my vegie garden and find that the slugs have had an overnight party in my new turnips or those white butterflys start discovering my cabbages and broccoli , is it worth all the trouble ? YES ! to get rid of as many chemicals as we can from our lives must be a plus !

ms*louisas' wedding ~ July 13

I am the mother of the bride & among my job description I get to make the wedding cake.
I finally found the fruit and today I will soak it in brandy.
Another of my tasks is to find some church pew decorations ~ of course, I have absolutely no idea what kind of decoration to go with ~ me, being me * am leaning heavily toward something vintage, but I don't think ms*louisa *the bride* is that into vintage....so the search is on

life ~ July 12

we must all remember that there is more good in the world than there is bad ~ what to do & how to cope with what has happened in Britain this past week and other places previously is summed up wonderfully at BROCANTE HOME

and Mother Theresa :

"Keep the joy of loving God in your heart and share this joy with all you meet especially your family. Be holy – let us pray."

brown paper parcels ~ vintage love stories * April 7 *2005*

renounced his throne for the woman he loved
how romantic! *

Christmas in July

when we celebrate Christmas here, in Australia * Christmas Day is usually hot and I mean HOT !! not fun to be cooking a roast dinner with all the trimmings. So what we have started to do as a family is celebrate Christmas in July * when it is cold like it should be at Christmas.
We have a traditional roast dinner * with all the trimmings as well as plum pudding & custard. I decorate our dining room and have bon bons on the table. I also put up a small tree. For gifts, a few weeks before * we pull a name out of a stocking and we have to buy that person a gift from an opportunity shop for no more than $10. That way, we are helping the needy by buying from a charity shop and that is our Christmas spirit! It is such fun. This year I am buying old socks and using them as Christmas stockings * one for each person * full of fun treats *
today I am off shopping for my 'person' who just happens to be my eldest daugther who is getting married in October * what fun I will have with that *

vintage housekeeping

washing those woollens ! what a chore, but I just can't bring myself to throw them in the machine..so they pile up until I have to spend a whole day hand washing. But, oh the satisfaction when it is done !!

in the mail box ~ July 11

oh! I am so lucky to have friends all over the world. Today my mail box was full.
I received a sweet friendship card from Melissa * thoughts of home * thanks so much & and I enjoy your friendship too !

and a package ~ I had bought a gorgeous vintage cherub on ebay last week and it arrived today ~ packaged up so*prettily * just lovely. all wrapped in blue & pink tissue and tied up with lace

housekeeping ~ July 11

routine ~ that really could be my middle name. I do love to have a routine - helps me keep on top of things. I do my chores in the morning and the afternoon is mine to do whatever I please be it gardening * reading or sewing or just being

Mondays I clean both the bathrooms * change our sheets and dust & vacuum our bedroom. I like to really scrub the bathrooms once a week that way I don't have to do a major springclean. I find that if I do them each week thoroughly, then when spring comes around, it isn't a huge chore to get it all done. I clean my bath & shower with a green cleaner * use vinegar instead of disenfectant * bicarb & vinegar for the toilets and peppermint oil & white vinegar in hot water to wash the floors ~ Monday is also the day that I wash my towels & sheets ~ so they are hanging on the line this very moment!!

like grandma use to make ~ * April 13-2005 *

dinner is served !! * Grandmas' famous meat loaf
My grandma had 7 boys !! of course she had to have cheap meals that she could whip up in bulk. This was one of my favourites that I enjoyed many times when I was a little girl and have since carried it on with my children. It is great served with vegetables and just as good on sandwiches

750 g ( 1 1/2lb) mince steak
1 tblsp. worcestershire sauce
1 cup fresh breadcrumbs
2 tblsp. tomato sauce
1/2 tsp salt ; pepper to taste
185g (60z) can evaporated milk
1 medium onion - chopped
1 egg - beaten
GLAZE 1/2 tsp. dry mustard
1 tblsp. brown sugar
1/4 cup tomato sauce

combine ingredients for glaze in a small bowl. set asidemix together all remaining ingredients (mixture will be rather moist)press into greased loaf tin (20cm x 10cm : 8" x 4"). then turn upside down onto aluminium lined baking tray, leaving tin over loaf. Bake in moderate oven (180 deg. C) for 15 mins. Remove from oven and remove loaf tin. Brush meatloaf well with the glaze (do not replace loaf tin) and return to the oven and cook for a further 50 to 60 mins.

like Grandma use to make

the other blog that I had was a recipe one & I am going to move the few recipes that I had over there to here and then continue posting a recipe every now and then, here, at daily parcels. It will make my life so much more organized.

living ~ July 10

the wind is roaring outside and it is absolutely freezing * bone chilling cold !!! the fire is crackling away * it's one of those days where I feel I can just sit and do fun, nothing things ~ so this morning I have been cutting out bits from my magazines and making a few collage-type cards & then I will get a few little care packages ready to send to some favourite people ~ maybe later I will watch an old favourite movie ........oh and I found the best vintage knitting patterns a few days ago ...some of them I think I will list on ebay ~ wonderful 1930's patterns * just divine !
there is one that is a pattern for a great vintage cardigan ...that is one I think I will make for myself.....isn't knitting just a wonderful past time for cold winters' days ?

brown paper parcels * memories are made of this ~ July 10

my nan's sister was called Elsie. She lived in a gorgeous old home with a tesselated footpath going up to the front door ~ the house always, always smelt of gardenias. She grew them wonderfully and there were always little bowls of them everywhere. When we went to visit her with my nan, it was like going to visit the Queen. We had our 'best' clothes on and had to behave ourselves like the young ladies that we were ! We always went for lunch. The table was set with white tablecloth, silver and her lovely china. I remember that she always had a bowl of cucumber in vinegar and her home made mayonnaise in a little bowl with a tiny silver spoon.Her bedroom had a window seat and I just loved to gaze at her collection of dolls.... I always wanted to play with them but never had the chance

winter warmth

flannelette sheets * mums' hand knitted slippers * warm scarves * hot cocoa * grandmas' snuggly crochet throw * hot soup * these things bring pleasure to your heart

brown paper parcels * favourite things ~July 9

I LOVE Lucy ~ I really do !!
She made me laugh * so hard to pick a favourite episode * the one in the chocolate factory is one I remember * that was so,so funny and a good laugh is one of the best things for ones soul

brown paper parcels

this is the blog that first started me off on blogging * where I would reminisce about my past...however it is too time consuming to have more than one blog so I have decided to close the brown paper parcels down and transfer it to daily parcels...

like Grandma use to make ~ comfort food ~ July 8

my grandma had 7 boys !!! and an old wood stove * every week she would cook up a huge pot of soup * starting Friday it went right through to the following Thursday * simmering away and being added to when it got low * a few carrots * a handful of barley * parsnips and onions * just delicious and certainly food that warms your soul * every time I make it I am taken to times past * a little girl sitting at my grandmas' table


I start with approx 6 cups of beef stock ( I use cubes ) * 500g diced beef - chuck or stewing steak is good as long as it is quite lean * 2 onions finely chopped * 3-4 carrots peeled and sliced * 3 sticks of celery sliced * 1 clove crushed garlic * cracked pepper & salt * I put this all into my big soup pot and bring to the boil * then slowly simmer for 1 hour * rinse 1 cup of pearl barley then put in the pot & peel & grate 1 peeled swede/turnip - stir into soup * simmer for another 2 hours * stir occasionally * the longer and slower it cooks the better * serve with bread * delish !!! ** add more water if needed during cooking process **

life ~ July 8

God bless them all

*quaint puttering idea *

I found a whole lot of vintage glass icecream bowls awhile back and today I used one to put a tealight in, on my kitchen dresser ** quaint **

housekeeping ~ July 7

as it is school holidays here, I do my housekeeping around my daughter * I like to be able to spend time with her doing mum and daughter things * so this morning I cleaned the dining room and tidied the table * does anyone else use their table for a dumping place for anything and everything ? * anyhow - mine is cleaned off, I polished it and later I hope to get a huge bunch of flowers to put in a jug on the table. after we are off shopping together for girlie things and a present for the man in our 'lives' ~ he is 53 tomorrow !!!

cancer awareness

Just a reminder to any women out there
to have regular checkups !!

housekeeping ~ July 6

I swear I am a woman possessed sometimes. I took it into my head that I needed curtains for my kitchen window ~ which I have just put up a week or so ago but now have found some even nicer vintage ones which of course need to be taken up....and also decided to put some vintage curtains in my sewing room...but not before I trimmed them with black pom poms * of course I don't need anymore sewing to do at the moment. I must have had at least 4 pairs of curtains up and down over the past week. oh well it is good to have a change.
I did my housekeeping in the lounge and sitting room today ~ meant to pick some daphne from the garden but didn't get around to it.

living ~ July 5

oh what a gorgeous day today has been ! I did a few loads of washing and hung them out * cleaned daughters' bedroom - changing her sheets * dusting and vacuuming her room can be a mammoth task sometimes! and at lunch time, I made myself a sandwich & a cup of tea and took it out onto my front verandah and read. Winter sun can be so warming - reaching into cold bones * warming from the inside out. I see little skinks basking in the sun in my garden as well - the winter sun is good for all !

housekeeping ~ July 4

as usual - bathrooms and main bedroom - change the sheets. I do love to change our sheets - I vacuum the mattress and spray the cover with lavender water. I am partial to pure white sheets. In the past few months I have been on the hunt for vintage pillow slips and instead of buying new ones, I now have a lovely mismatched collection of roses * stripes & even some vintage laced edged creations * pure vintage delight !
It is really lovely when I have finished * to light the tea lights and have my bedroom so warm * and snuggly ~ a peaceful place to escape

living in Woodford ~ July 4

yesterday Joe & I went for a walk - I love to walk but don't often find the time or should I say make the time ? We went around the corner and stopped to chat to a new neighbour who has just bought the old house on the corner. He is in middle of gutting it, in view of renovating the house. As we did the same to this home we are in now, we are interested in his progress. So we chatted for about 10 mins and off we went.
Walked to my son's home and had a cup of tea there, stayed for awhile then decided to head off home. We walked up the hill for awhile and came to another old home we knew the owners of and called out a hello.
' Hello ' they said ' come in for a cuppa' so we sat on their verandah in the glorious afternoon sun and had a cup of tea and a long chat with them. Their home is gorgeous too * one of the oldest in the area * built in the late 1800's and their garden is divine as well. We talked about the local council cleanup campaign that is being held at the moment * gardening & their up coming holiday walking across England ~ delightful !!
I love living in Woodford * it has a village feel and most people are very friendly
* what is usually a 45 min walk turned into a 3 hour stroll * what a lovely life I lead

vintage gardening ~ July 2

what a joy this past week has been * lots of rain, so my garden is nice and moist. I spent a few hours this morning weeding and loosening the mulch. there is nothing at all better for the soul than to spend a few hours in the garden...
Everything seems to be doing well in the vegie garden although those rotten snails have had a munch on my broccoli. so disheartening to put all that effort in and then eaten by pests. The snow peas are thriving. Beetroot seems to be lagging and I must find out why, there must be a deficiency in the soil.
I have rhubarb and I think I will make a rhubarb cake tomorrow. It sounds yummy so I must use what I have in the garden as it makes it even more special. Oranges and Lemons are laden with fruit....it's wonderful to be in the garden and to be able to pick a fresh orange to eat..so juicy and sweet.

vintage pastimes ~ dressmaking

I would love to make myself a skirt out of a vintage curtain or maybe a gorgeous old tablecloth! teamed with a favourite vintage cardi & my hair up with a diamante clip - vintage chic
must go and look at Laraines' shop today to see if there is anything I like

nesters

isn't it amazing how just changing something or adding a little something can make you feel like your home has had a complete makeover ? For years I have had no curtains on my kitchen window - preferring to look at the scene but I found the most glorious vintage floral barkcloth curtains and they fit my kitchen window perfectly * well a tad short but that is ok* dear Joe has hung them for me and they look great ! cosy and warm and they can be pulled back during the day !
I love that look of torn and tattered * overstuffed furniture * fringed pillows * threadbare * english cottage - just delightful !!