My Pink Day

A piece of beautiful Laura Ashley chintz, bagged via Ebay, arrived in the post this morning. Do you know that feeling when a fabric makes you feel happy it's yours?


My pink day was made even sweeter when I brought home these dotty, pink tea plates from Sainsburys for £1 each.


The tulips match my pink mood and have found a home in my thrifted jug on the kitchen table.

Crumbs!!

That didn't hang about for long!
In the words of Mr Kipling "It was 'exceedingly good'. Mmmmmm.

Reasons

A newly thrifted glass cake stand is the perfect excuse to...........




.....bake a Victoria Sponge.



Victoria Sponge Recipe

175g Butter - softened
175g Caster sugar
3 eggs, beaten
Vanilla essence
175g Self-raising flour
3 tbsp Jam, preferably seedless Raspberry Jam
whipped cream, optional

Grease and line 2 20cm (8") round sandwich tins
Cream sugar and butter together until very light and fluffy
Gradually beat in the eggs along with a few drops of vanilla essence
Fold in the flour
Divide mixture between the 2 tins and smooth surface
Bake in preheated oven 190/380degrees gas Mark 5 for 20 mins
until golden, well risen and springy to the touch
Leave to cool for 10 mins and turn out onto wire rake
When completely cool, sandwich with jam (and optional whipped cream)
.......
place on newly acquired glass cake stand and gaze with admiration!

One persons rubbish.............

Is someone else's treasure!

My recent thrift discoveries


Another 50p apron - lawn fabric already earmarked for a project


A pretty little ceramic jug - perfect to stuff full of home-grown summer flowers.


Two wooden candlesticks that I am deliberating about whether to give them a shabby look with a coat of paint. But the wood is really nice too.


And lastly these two real treasures. Both were 30p each!! A good wash with some Fairy liquid, a tickle with a toothbrush on the metal trim and a gentle polish make them look fantastic. I am going to replace the damaged fabric within the lid of the dish with some pretty fabric or some handsewn embroidery.

Coming to a supermarket near you

Cath 'Kidspiration' seems to be catching on now away from her shops. The mugs are from Sainsburys (UK) and the t-towels are part of a set from Wilkinsons (UK). I do have to say - I am NOT a massive 'Cath' fan but her colours and pattern style match my mood since the New Year. I am enjoying pink, bright, floral and crisp. So little pieces like those above are perfect for lifting my spirit. Now let's see what I can do with the ugly stainless cannisters! Keep reading.

more stuff

These little patches are cut from my fabric stash and are going to be used for this project. I wanted it to look random and not be colour or pattern specific - but you can tell that by looking at it!


I thrifted this apron just after Christmas for a bargain 50p. I call it a bargain because the material is beautiful, in vintage, colour and ammount, I'm thinking 'cushion cover'.



I enjoy making hearts to decorate little corners and this is going to hang on my ironwork bedstead.

Catch up post

Time seems to be in precious supply in the Neet house at present so this is just a quick catch up. I will get back with more soon. Promise.


I love the colours (and the frangrance!) of these Yankee Candles tarts. So much better than the plug-ins IMO.



Cath is most definately the inspiration for this Granny Squares blanket destined for Little Neet's bedroom.



These little feet belong to some of my bunnies that have been a long....long time in the making but now completed.




This is Dot Bunny she is safely on her way to Norma in USA thanks to the wonders of Etsy.com.

Pretty

This is a lovely Gisella Graham chair that I bought with my pennies from Christmas. It is going to be my crafting chair just outside my kitchen door for the Summer (weather permitting?). Last year I used one of those folding canvas thingies, nice and comfy as it was, I think the Gisella one will add a certain elegance to the affair. I am thinking a nice comfy cushion (with bobble fringing)and a caddy to put over the arm for holding my crafty bits and bobs.



On the chair is a pretty board suitcase that I picked up in TK Maxx. Ideal for keeping my WIP tiddly bits in place. But............I already have another 4 of these sorts of cases.

Too many WIPs perhaps??

Heck!

How often do you have those days when you take oodles and oodles of photos only to find that none of them quite come up to the mark? I seem to have a really good knack for doing this (plus winter daylight does not help with the process!!) and so I am pretty slow at showing my projects and WIP's at present.

I brought the little bunch of flowers to cheer myself up and to try to inject a bit of life in my kitchen in the depths of winter. So Sainsburys came up trumps with these.

My 'flu' has turned out to be a viral infection which lasts for about 3 weeks (which I suspect quite a few of you will know about!) so according to that news from my Doctor I have still got a week to go of feeling lousy and out-of-sorts. Bum!

Now back to trying to sort out my photographic skills (or lack of).

Happy Flu Year 2009!

Sympathy to all my fellow lurgy sufferers.

Back soon.