Greetings....

Just a quick post to show you  the pottery plaque that I made a few months back. The colours weren't quite strong enough so I had to return and re-apply another coat so it could go through the firing process again. 

And this was the result. I am really pleased with the outcome and it proudly hangs in my new hall, welcoming guests as they walk over the threshold. That is, if they can climb over all the tools and DIY equipment that clutter the hall currently. 

Bore - da means good morning to all you non-Welshies!

Humbled.....

One day last week I was having a particularly stressful day at work. Nothing was going right and it was one of those days where you feel like you are fighting a losing battle. And (I am sad to say) that those days are becoming more and more frequent. 

But then to my delight and surprise my lovely friend Sue popped in with a belated birthday present and like me, she too has a love for all thing vintage. She had bought me a lovely cushion and has been collecting vintage brooches at different vintage fairs over the past few months that she had pinned onto the front. She was with me when I found my beloved Dior brooch at the Bristol Ashton Gate fair that I cannot currently find but then we still have boxes upon boxes to go through since the house move.  

Apparently there would have been more of them but she told me she was being too fussy and spent too much time selecting just the right ones. 

What a lovely gift, and it is true that thoughtful gifts do mean so much more. 

Ps.... I haven't yet finished posting about all my other lovely presents that I received for my 40th in July so apologies to all my friends that read this and are thinking "she still hasn't written about it!" I will get there, I promise

New beginnings.....

At last......

I can steal a moment away from the DIY to spend a cherished moment getting back to my blog. Apologies for the lack of posts over the airwaves.

As I said in my last and very quick post.....we have finally moved house and I have never been happier. John and I were finally able to buy a house together after many disappointing complications.  But here we are....new house and a new town - Caldicot in South Wales. It's very different from our beloved Bristol but only 25 minutes away over the Severn bridge.

The house itself is huge (in comparison to what we were renting in Bristol). We keep smiling as we walk around as we are not used to so much available space (which I of course will have no trouble filling with bits and pieces and trinkets galore). Now house buying is not for the impatient, a trait of which I am terribly guilty. I hate clutter and mess and dirt, so the in-house renovations are very stressful for me, as are all the spiders that Johns DIY keeps disturbing. We have guttering to replace, new kitchen and bathrooms to install, re wiring, plumbing, an en suite and a dressing room to build......the list seems endless and that's not even including the decorating (the more pleasant side of all this commotion). But because it's ours, there is a real sense of achievement in everything we do, no matter how small so I am determined to enjoy every dusty moment.

I have a clear vision in my head for every room and thankfully John is just happy for me to be in charge of the fluffy side of buying the house. Colours schemes and decorating don't really float his boat. So, with that in mind, we (I) have made inroads into the dining room as I wanted it decorated and ready to receive guests for Christmas. It is the one room we have decided to do a quick fix in and not replace ceilings and re plaster etc. We need one small haven at least in this ever growing building site! So pics soon to follow once it's finished which will hopefully be this weekend.

And I couldn't finish without posting a couple of pics of my favourite things....

This is our beautiful, coveted SMEG fridge. second hand of course from the wonderful SMEG Outlet store. I have dreamt of having an old 1950's style fridge for longer than I care to admit and when John found this little beauty on a clearance offer at less than half the normal price, we snapped it up. The kitchen won't be done for a while so she's not exactly sat in surroundings befitting of her grandeur but no bother. It is still the jewel in our crown. 

And this lovely postcard was found on Etsy and it just seemed like it had been made just for us. It was designed by a local artist Clare Phillips (Clare Illustrates) and the wording says.....Remember we may not have much, but we'll always have Bristol. It is lovely and I smile every time I walk past it in our hallway. The gorgeous Clifton Suspension Bridge is in the background and that is where John proposed to me so it has a lot of meaning for us. 

One of tens of pictures I have to grace the walls of our new home. 

On the move.....

Hi All....

Just a quick post to apologise for the lack of activity but we have been busy moving house.  We are finally in but have a million boxes to unpack and a new town to explore. Normal  service will resume soon!

Take care,
Mrs M.