Blossoms and Blooms

Yipee, Bank Holiday weekend, I've been looking forward to this since Easter! Mine officially started this morning when I finished work. I had a few errands to do afterwards and eek, 1/6th of it is nearly gone already.

It's nice looking out of my kithchen window at the moment because the apple tree is in bloom, sadly almost finished now, I took the pics a couple of weeks ago.

I love the blossoms before they have opened and have that lovely deep pink tinge to them.

I have some birds which permanently reside in this tree - it's quite an unusual variety - tinbird. They used to be part of a mobile hanging in the tree but I got fed up of having to untangle them every spring as the winds wound them around the branches. There were six originally but one disappeared - I wonder if a neighbourhood cat got confused and gave itself a bad tummy ache.

It's lovely to have some (free!) fresh flowers to bring indoors now - actually these lilacs were liberated from my mum's garden as mine haven't flowered yet. These are one of my favourite things about this time of the year, especially the scent.

I would love fresh flowers in the house all year round but I have neither Rosemary Verey's garden nor Elton John's budget so I have a few artificial blooms dotted around as a poor substitute - still they add some colour.

Pretty pink blossoms in the hallway.

Geraniums and roses in the kitchen.

Chrysanthamums on the landing window - actually I think these are prettier than real ones!

This basket of blooms doesn't really belong anywhere, I sometimes use is as a prop for pics of things to sell. The flowers are one of thoses candle rings and I think it works perfectly on this wirework basket as there are no stems to be seen.

I have gradually been adding more items into my online store and will continue to do so regulary (I hope). If you have a minute, pop over and take a look. I have added some fabrics (more to come) and a Shabby Chic section too. More Lillipegs hopefully next week, though there are a few currently listed on Etsy, as a trial.

Well, that would be about it for now - hope your weekend is happy and sunny, I'm off to enjoy mine before it's gone!

Lucy x

In praise of...

Yellow!

After posting my Easter vignette I felt in need of some more yellow. It's sunny and cheering, goes well with most colours and I'm sure a little does you good.

Yellow doesn't feature a great deal in my decorating schemes but I do like it as an accent colour, in the right shade and dose.

Not a really bright modern yellow, more of a soft, subdued, vintagey yellow. Like on this teapot - one of my favourites.

Laura Ashley used to be an excellent source of yellow for decorating, not so much these days.

Yellow stripes on a vintage chintz.

Beautiful and intricate ribbonwork.

I'm not about to start re-decorating in yellow, but on a wet and dreary day, what better than a spash of sunshine.

Happy Easter!

Out of Sorts

I'm feeling a bit tired and out of sorts today - not in a bad way, the kind of way where I just don't know what to do with myself. It's self-inflicted - last night I dozed off in front of the TV, this is something I do very easily. Usually I like to have some crafting on the go if watching TV - a. to feel I'm not wasting time, and b. to stop me from dozing off.

Last night I sat down after dinner without any crafting as I only wanted to listen to the Archers, then I was going to get on with other things. I think listening without watching is even more soporific - for a start there's no reason to keep your eyes open. So before the end credits I was in the land of nod.

Three hours later I woke up and instead of going to bed I stayed up until the wee hours trying to catch up on wasted time. Coupled with getting up early and a hard morning at work, I am now sitting in a haze. I'd love a cat nap but I daren't so as a distraction I've snapped a few pics and am writing this post.

As a diversion from other things recently, and to have something 'new' I made this lampshade cover. Orignally it was a grubby cream satin with gold fringe - still quite common at car boot sales. I use this lamp to work by so I wanted something pretty.

I used a lightweight vintage floral Sanderson fabric, with a lace frill and blue trim. It goes nicely with the other blues in this corner of the room. The lampbase is an old Laura Ashley one I've had for some time, I thought it might look top-heavy, but I like the combination of plain and skinny base with the fancy shade. It's currently my joint favourte with the little red lamp.

They stand opposite each other in two windows. I wanted to snap a picture of them both together, but there's a big mess in between which needs some urgent attention. I should really go and see to it now, but perhaps I'll just have a little catnap instead - zzzzzzz.

Rag Fair

A couple of weeks ago I went to the Stroud Rag Fair, at which Lizzie was selling and had convinved me was worth a visit. I often hear or read about events such as these, but either they are a bit too far away or I make a mental note then forget about them until it's too late. It usually involves booking a day off work and this time I remembered in good time.

Stroud is a busy market town in Gloucestershire, on the edge of the Cotswolds, reflected in the architecture.

I arrived with plenty of time to spare for a cup of tea and a snack - I like to live it up a little...

After a browse around the shops I made my way to the hall where the fair was taking place.

And as usual once I got inside I completely forgot about taking any photos. You wouldn't have been able to see much anyway, we shoppers were packed in like sardines! Not surprising as there were a good many bargains to be had. I could have bought loads but was sensible and came back with a respectable selection. These days I'm mainly on the lookout for small-scale prints and trims for Lillipegs.

Some fabrics...

And some trims...

A lovely hand-stitched patchwork something or other, for cutting up.

And this sweet vintage Coty powder box

I would recommend this fair to bargain seekers, but only if you are prepared to be bustled and jostled - not for the faint-hearted!

FOR SALE: (Reserved) Sorting through my fabric stash I came across this CK-esque pop flowers fabric which I know I won't do anything with, so I'm offering it for sale if anyone thinks they could make good use.

There are three colourways, the backgrounds being cream, blue or white. The flowers measure about 2" across. It is a furnishing cotton, almost like cotton duck. The blue and the cream pieces measure 20" x 54" and the white piece 10" by 38". The design is called Flopsy by Presigious designs, it's a nice quality fabric.

The price is £8 for the three pieces plus £2 postage in the UK (£3.50 Europe and £5.50 rest of world). Please email me if you would like to purchase.

Thank you to everyone who has purchased from my shop recently. I will be opening a fabric section in my shop soon, in the meantime I have put a few vintage items in the Fleamarket.

Once again I find myself lagging behind in answering comments, but thank you to everyone who has left a comment on my last few posts.

Enjoy the weekend, TTFN - Lucy x