Happy New Year

Wishing you a full year filled with love, laughter and a whole lot of naughtiness. Happy New Year!

Forgotten pleasures

While I was putting my house back together piece by piece I came across this. I had forgotten that I had it, and when I found it, it made me smile. For who would have thought that not so long ago, ladies would have intentionally dropped their calling card at the feet of the gentleman they so favoured, once deposited the gentleman in question would have scooped it up and returned it, giving him a formidable excuse to speak to his admirer.

 Except this little green number is from a Walter to his Doris. (I swear I did not make this up!) He has lovingly embroidered their names, and judging on his wonky hand, I think he gave up on any message he wanted to carve, and left it at that. A simple gesture of love from Walter, in the hope that his Doris might enjoy a little hanky panky!

My true love gave to me

Speachless. When I showed my sisters in law, their jaws dropped. When I showed my niece in law her jaw dropped. All the others laughed and they continued laughing when I followed their requests to walk in them.

See you soon

Merry Christmas everyone. Have a happy time with your family and friends. Keep safe and be wild! x

Photo VV Rouleaux

Paper Cut Butterflies

Twenty wishes for a very special lady and her fella. x

Which to choose?

The forecast is snow, in fact blizzards. But tonight is my husband’s first Christmas party and as one of the head poncho's I want to make him feel proud. He has achieved a lot in his first year of business and he will need a dolly bird on his arm tonight. Well as best I can be in thermals and a parker. We are off to the theatre in the West end and then to a bar for cocktails and canapés. Such delight!




I have to fly now to pick up the kiddie winks from Pre School and then stick some curlers in my hair. So come on ladies, which dress to choose??

Blue Sky Butterfly

I can not wait for the New Year, I have six new boards waiting patiently to be primed and painted. All on the large size, which is very much to my liking.

I am going to do a series of distressed silver leaf paintings with butterflies and another series with book pages and bugs. The bugs are so small, they make me cross eyed when I paint them. I have also volunteered to look after the pre school African stick insects over Christmas so we are going to be bugged out here.

I don’t know why I like bugs so much. I think it is because they have so many parts all connecting together, to make the most unusual body armour. I often wander what on earth they are thinking. What do you think they are thinking?

Another

Another one of mine. Oil paint and silver leaf on 4x4ft board. Kate Kelleher.

Getting there

Things are starting to take shape around here. Hallelujah. Tree is up and it even has decorations, but a certain little someone keeps taking them off to examine them and then discard them on the floor. So by next week they will only be on the top tier. I wondered why my back hurt.

Work starts in a couple of days on the driveway and then I will plant olive trees in spring to finish it off. I hope to God this is the end of it. Four and a half years is all that it has taken! Ha. Before you know it the big man will say, ‘I’ve found us this new house!’ and then, whoosh….. off we go once again.

An angels shining down on me, dottie as she is.

An angels shining down on me, dottie as she is. The good lady Tif found time in amongst making her handmade Christmas tree, having guests, tending to her zoo, raising four children, and then freezing herself in her shed just to make my wish come true...an apron called nellie. I raise my glass to you Dottie Angel. I am looking forward to seeing the postman plodding up my path. I might even train Matilda to holler when she sees him, it will give her something other to do, than eating play doh.

This is her handmade Christmas tree. She has made a pledge only buy handmade or second hand things for herself and her home for a whole year. Admirable for sure. I can't work out why she thinks I am the crazy one?!

Lucky Lucky lady

Inspirational wonderland, these are the only words I can find to describe Emma Cassi's home. Yesterday Dillon and I had the pleasure of venturing over to meet her, Bertrand and their gorgeous son Antonin, with his rather large spider. The boys soon took up camp in Antonin's bedroom, which then allowed me time to browse Emma's jewellery collection.

Vintage wooden drawers filled with beautifully made jewellery. Crystals, semi precious stones, lace, sequins, beads, all hand stitched by Emma. Sitting neatly. Row upon row. Waiting patiently to be admired.

I was a little greedy, I have to confess, I couldn't help myself. My eyes were bedazzled by a lace cuff of mirrored crystal with beads, sparkling like a snowflake. 'Me' it cried, 'pick me'. So I did. And then I saw another, a little plump darling, with lots of clusters of aged golden sequins, tickling its middle. This one was a present, so Emma bound it in a sheet of music and tied it tightly with string.

And then I was introduced to her collection for little ladies, hidden in a box. The lid was lifted, and I couldn’t help but picture my Matilda standing pretty, with a little number of lace and beads finished with a lace cluster and a number cut from tape. And another, there it was, a simple strand, with a dangle of lace and a number, too pretty to put down; this was also carefully wrapped, along with a tiny lace bracelet for a special little lady.

Once home, I unfolded the silver box and unwrapped the crinkled tissue paper, and nestled inside was my gorgeous bracelet. Shining like a snowflake, glowing with the heady spice from her scented candles…not a bad days work for a girl with a trailing hangover, from too much fun the night before.

I should be doing something else...

Here I am, I have a few hours free while the little ones are at nursery, so I thought I would empty the boxes that are collecting building dust in the kitchen. I honestly do not know where to start. Unfortunately I am a perfectionist when it comes to matters of the home and my oh my, all I am doing is organising small clusters of stuff together. Its here, there and everywhere. Memories all grouped together. Too others passing in and out they might not amount to much. But to me they are like treasure. Where oh where am I going to put it all?

And as I mentioned I only have limited time before I pick them up from pre-school. You see the little fellow has his Christmas concert today, and amongst others he is going to be Father Christmas. Of course he has a costume. Although how I am going to squeeze him into it I do not know. He is nearly four and luckily he is a skinny minnie as the only costume I could find is size 12-18 months. I kid you not. My poor, poor boy will be squished into his costume. There is not even room for me to stuff a cushion up his top.The trouser legs rise up to his knees, and the top only just closes around his body, it is skin tight. Oh I hear you say, he will be sure to catch a chill. Fear not..I have found a brown pair of the little ladies tights that might just fit. All I need to do now is persuade him that tights are also for boys....

Oh, and the head has once again fallen off my Carol Peace sculpture...

Emma Cassi

Goody goody gum drops, Emma Cassi is having a jewellery sale. I know a few of you would love one or two of these treasures. It is this Saturday 2pm, White Hart Lane. I will defiantly be along, I will be pretending to buy something for my sisters Christmas present! Let her know via here as I think she is baking a cake or two.

Now form an orderly queue....

Knockers

I made these foliage bundles for the front door today. I thought they would look nice with the snow flakes I bought from Petersham Nurseries. I thought I would hang them as they are pictured here, but in the end symmetry won. I hung them in my pj's with my front porch illuminating my backside for the whole street to see. I have no shame.

Please excuse my lack of creativity and posting. This week has been hectic as not only have I had to unpack from our holiday, but also from staying two weeks at my mother in laws, and also unpack all the boxes from our lounge that were packed up during the building work. I have been trying to fit it all around the kids, so it leaves little time for anything else. Hence showing the world my black pants through my white pj's tonight. Nice.

So small, too small.

Ever looked up only to find you are so small compared to everything around you?

Something happened on holiday that brought my world crashing down around my ears.

While on the plane my dad collapsed and luckily my step mother Polly, who is a nurse had the knowledge and foresight to bring him round. While we are away this happened twice, and to me it was the first time I realised with sadness that my dad is getting older and time is not slowing down. My father who has always been fit as a fiddle, the muscular super hero who would fly me to the moon and back in his arms, has not been doing so well this year.

Luckily after a few days he got stronger bit by bit, and he made it home, hopefully we will know more in a few days time. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for more blue sun shiny days.

Photo by Yives.