Everyone Loves a Bargain

I don't seem to be very good at getting bargains, but isn't it a good feeling when we uncover one. I 'd been looking for some shelves for the dining room, but nothing really appealed to me, then I found a dusty looking top half of a dresser looking a bit sorry for itself. I knew straight away it was 'The One' and felt giddily excited as I asked Andy if we could fit it in the car (Andy is a master fitter inner in our cars, sometimes defying natural laws of space and dimension)

Cleaned and ready to be painted and pampered

A couple of coats of paint and a good covering of wax turned these unloved shelves into something pretty

I think they look just right holding some pretty china

I really love them, definitely worth waiting to find the right ones and spending the time on them, they make me smile when I go past them!

Another bargain this week... some yarn at Hobbycraft working out at 60p a ball

The photo doesn't do it justice, you can't see all the sparkles! I have some nice plans for it, just need to run them by Miss Imogen first.

Take care
xxx

A Bit of Rippled Crochet

I have a very lovely husband, very understanding about my love for yarn. It was my birthday back in February and Andy surprised me with a lovely big package he'd ordered on line without me knowing, what a brilliant surprise!

Here it is unpacked and ready to be used, beautiful selection of colours.

I've seen quite a few ripple throws and blankets on line and really fancied having a go myself, what a wonderful way to use my birthday present and have a lasting object to show for it. Let the ripple making begin.

I keep stroking it, I love the colours and it also feels so soft. It's been on the go for over a couple of weeks now.

I used all the colours once, now I'm going through them again in a different order. It's about the size of a single blanket, just right to cover my legs in an evening.

I do want to start some smaller projects to run alongside it, I'll keep you updated...

Imogen started her intensive physio on her knees yesterday. My poor mite has started to have recurrent dislocations and each time they pop her in plaster

I'm really hoping the physio will help prevent this. They said her muscles are strong,  but need tightening, she also has hypermobility.

They worked her very hard though she did enjoy it too, but as a treat at home she made herself some crispy squares for school lunches. Lots of rice krispies, marshmallow fluff and golden syrup, well mixed, squashed down firmly in a tin, cooled in the fridge then Imogen cuts a piece as she fancies it for school.

Her friends have given it the thumbs up too!

Penny, Imogen's Lhasa Apso, had a hair cut today ready for some warmer weather... hopefully. Does't she look pretty

Take care
xxx

A Birthday and a Spot of Gardening

Thank you all so much for your lovely and encouraging comments on my last post. it really does mean a lot to me, thank you :)

Firstly let me tell you about the magnificent Mother's Day present my wonderful lot bought for me. I've coveted these from afar for quite a while, but this is mine... yea...

It's a KMix from Kenwood, the design is fire cracker. It's proudly sitting on the kitchen counter, though I do still need to find a good place to store the attachments for it. I couldn't wait to use it and as my son was about to turn 26... time for a birthday cake methinks...

It was a family affair, as birthday cakes here often are

lots of chocolate just like the one we made for Imogen last year as Adam had requested the same (without the 1 Direction decorations)

The easiest cake I've ever made, it was quite mesmerising to watch

All contributing, Daddy adding the icing sugar to the buttercream

Imogen doing the important taste test and bowl scraping...

Adam was really pleased and very happy to wrap it up and take it home with him, Imogen would have been more pleased if he'd forgotten to take it!


I haven't put as much time into the garden this year as I probably should have. I was hoping for a warmer weekend on Saturday, it was a bit grey and dull, but not cold. I spent the afternoon in the greenhouse replanting my baby petunias and lobelia.

I love to see pots full of colour when we're in the garden, and hopefully these will continue to grow and flourish. I wish now I'd planted more seeds, especially some vegetables. we do have some tomatoes and garlic

I also picked up this bargain tomato planter

With a photo of how the tomatoes should grow from under it

I've planted a tomato plant in it though it didn't seem very happy hanging there upside down. My camera needed fresh batteries so I can't show you how forlorn it looked, but when I checked it this afternoon it looked much more chipper, so fingers crossed! I have visions of buckets full of tomatoes and me cooking up lots of tomato sauces to freeze.

I've enjoyed touching base with everyone again though I still have lots of blog reading to catch up with.

Here's a happy picture of one of my baskets to end with

Take care
xxx

I'd like to blog again!

I hope you haven't forgotten me as it's been a while!

I can hardly believe we're into April already, but isn't it like that every year now.... whoosh... coming into Spring, blossom appearing on the trees, an uplifting time.

I'm not very good at saying how I am, I tend to brush things aside, play them down and smile and I've tried to keep my little blog a nice happy place. I still want it to be a positive place, but I'm going to write it down for anyone to see... I find life so hard. I've always suffered with depression on and off and I'm rather sensitive. I wrap myself up in my small family that is just my husband and children (the most marvelous people) and don't leave the house very often. I use a wheelchair when I go out, but that isn't really why I don't go out much, it's because I get so anxious and have such low self esteem. I'm very good at covering it up and meeting me would not reveal how scared and inadequate I feel. There are so many things I'd like to do, but don't know how, sometimes just getting out of bed is a major achievement. I'd love to meet more people and would love to go out and make some friends... I just don't know how to. I go to a lovely knit and natter group once a week and stress so much about going each time, but really enjoy being there and talking to other people who share my love of yarn.

So... why mention this now? Even though it's not the same as sitting with someone and having a cup of tea, reading and commenting on people's blogs and having people comment on mine is so uplifting. Though we don't 'see' each other and some of us live many miles apart, it's still a way of connecting to others and sharing a small part of our lives.

My husband has noticed that when I blog, I'm happy. Despite rarely feeling good enough I have shared pictures of things I've made and felt so uplifted by comments from readers, I've made connections with people, it's widened my small life.

So thank you for being there and I hope I haven't bored you to pieces or left it too long for people to come back and see me... and I have so much to photograph and show you and so many blogs to read and catch up with again.

I'm going to write another post with my latest happenings separate from this one (well done if you managed to read this).

Take care
xxx