At the end of the day .....

I've just got back from walking the dogs over the playing fields .... just the sound of the birds singing and the dogs panting as they ran around in circles.  The sky was still blue on one side, as it has been all day here thankfully, with black rain clouds looming on the horizon.  They followed me all the way home and now there is the fresh smell of rain soaked grass wafting in the French doors.

Today has been the first day of our school summer holidays and as a registered childminder the hols become my busiest time and today I had three girls, two aged 5 and one aged 7 plus my 7 year old grand-daughter and 2 year old grandson.  I'd asked everyone to bring wellies and coats because I was convinced it was going to be a wet day but how wrong can you be .... it has been perfect and they have played outside most of the day making dens and playing schools (I know you'd think they would have had enough wouldn't you!).  It can be a long day when the first one arrives at 8.00 a.m. and the last one leaves at 6.00 p.m. but thank you Mr Sunshine and Mr Blue Sky for coming out today.

Lala has a new toy ..... I have coveted one of these for years and up till now had taken advantage of freecycled blenders and mixers ...... so it was about time that I splashed out

First test run was with the blender attachment .... yes more courgette soup!   Thank you all for your suggestions after my last post .... some lovely recipes to try and not a rude one among them :-)

I've got a load of turnips gifted from a workmate of my OH in exchange for my homemade jam .....  turnip soup anyone????

Me and the girlies started the day with a little baking session ..... well a girl has to have something to keep her going doesn't she

Just as I was about to round the chooks up and get the last of the washing in I spied this sneaky creature

Mr Zachary Binks having a nose in the bird shed window ..... my OH has had a bumper year breeding his canaries, budgies and parakeets and the sound of tweeting had obviously attracted his attention.  Fortunately there is wire attached to the inside of the window so he couldn't get any further.

Just wait till your father gets home and I tell him!

Well it's tootsies up time now with a cuppa and a couple of those scones & jam and then I'm going to get hooking again ..... I don't know how big this one will end up yet ..... I'm quite enjoying making the odd hexagon and joining them as I go .... not sure about the white yarn I am using to join them though mmmmmm.

Fingers crossed that the rain has cleared by morning as I am really looking forward to a thrifting weekend at the car booties.

Have a great weekend x

Getting things done ...........

I was just commenting on Monday that I was fed up to the back teeth with greyness and rain and would gladly trade them in for some blue sky and sunshine even if it meant that it got a little colder.  Someone must have been listening to me because yesterday and today have been glorious which has certainly spurred me on.

Our local library service has an online facility to search for and reserve books from all over the borough ... it is so easy and I just request to collect them from the little library that is next door to the school that I pick the children up from.  This is my selection for this week ...

that should keep me going with inspiration and ideas for a while!

Yesterday I popped to my favourite yarn shop for some supplies to finish off a couple of UFOs .... one is a chunky crochet scarf

The other is a ripple blanket which is next on my list and I had told myself I mustn't buy anything else until these were finished but as I stood at the counter waiting to pay my eye was drawn to a display and I was hooked once again.

This springy soft scarf needs just one ball and it is amazing ..... when opened out it looks like a crochet mesh and all you have to do is knit with 00 needles along the top edge ..... sounds easy but we shall see!   This range of yarns comes from Spain and they are lovely quality and very reasonably priced .... a fantastic alternative to the pricier yarns by Debbie Bliss and Rowan.

Mr Postie also visited yesterday with a fabric delivery from Patch Fabric & Haberdashery .... I needed some more of the Tanya Whelan Darla to finish a quilt and treated myself to some more Michael Miller .... the mini gingham checks & red heart fabrics are by Makower and these came from an excellent seller via Ebay.

Here is the finished mini quilt which I have called Spring Greens in anticipation of seeing some green shoots in the garden soon (not shown in true colours I am afraid because I still cannot locate my camera cable and have to use my phone)

and still on a green theme I found this book in the CS today for a princely 20p

and I couldn't leave without another photo of our little lady who has been officially registered today as Millie May

big brother Charlie holding her hand

Weird and wonderful Wednesday ....

What a beautiful start to the day .... brilliant autumn sunshine and some warmth in it too while I walked Molly and Ruby around the park this morning .... I don't know if the colours of autumn are more vivid this year or whether is it just me noticing and appreciating them more as I get older.

I stashed the Halloween resources back in the loft when I got home and had a quick look at the Christmas bits and pieces up there .... then remembered I had been quite organised last year and had Freecycled quite a lot of stuff that gets brought down from the loft each year but never used.  I'm quite pleased really because that means I can spend some money on Saturday at the Spirit of Christmas Fair at Olympia.

The fireplace has been cleaned and dressed for the winter .... and despite what Miss Allsopp thinks she has not just invented upcycling, re-using and thrifting .... the Victorian cast iron insert was acquired from a junk shop around 15 years ago for the princely sum of twenty quid.  It was covered in a coat of cream paint and after an application of stripper and some good old fashioned elbow grease she came up a treat.  The reclaimed Pine surround was in a sale and I think we paid around £75 for it, the Victorian style blue & white tiles were £1 each and the slate tiles on the hearth were from Wickes for around a tenner.

The brass candlesticks and my mantel clock are from a general auction sale, the glass lustre from the charity shop and my lovely stained glass wotnot was in a mixed box of junk from the auction too.  It is original Victorian in Art Nouveau style and I think it must have been two small window panes in a former life which have been joined together in a triangular shape ..... with a tealight behind it on a dark winter night it looks really effective. So again Miss A stained glass is not something new for you to twitter on about.  Sorry to sound so cynical but are you getting my drift?  She may well be a lovely lady but I somewhat doubt that she has ever had to thrift in her very privileged life and I do take exception to being instructed on the benefits of thrifting and make do and mend and I refuse to worship at her altar.

Right off my soapbox now ..... where was I??? .... oh yes the decorations hanging from the mantel are stock for the Christmas Fair that I am selling at in a couple of weeks.  My crochet icicle garland and some tartan bunting with little jingly bells.

A little bit more thrifting in the charity shop yesterday ....

Vintage glass bottle and cheese dome which is extremely heavy

Delightful Beatrix Potter postcards

It's our 31st wedding anniversary today and Mr Lala has surprised me with these young ladies ...

this was them arriving as it got dark this evening so I will take some better photos tomorrow (weather permitting .... the forecast has just been on and it looks like rain)

Five Rhode Island Reds who in no particular order will be known as Matilda, Sophie, Trunchbowl, Honey and Veruca ..... Ellie is besotted with Roald Dahl stories at the moment so this will please her no end!

He knows that I have really missed my girls since Mr Fox got them back in the Spring and one of them kindly laid an egg in the transit box for me on the way here so I think we are going to get on famously.

Mum sent me some lovely flowers too

All in all a weird and wonderful day which I am going to finish perfectly with a glass of red and my crochet hook to finish this ....

The yarn is by Katia .... a Spanish company and it is sold in that favourite little yarn shop of mine in Baldock .... it is a cotton/acrylic mix and is so soft and so reasonably priced too at £2.90 a ball

Have a good evening all xx

Red Hot Hooker

After having the boiler serviced yesterday I succumbed and turned the heating thermostat up a tincy wincy bit this morning.  I hate going into a cold bathroom first thing in the morning and love warm soft towels to wrap myself in after a shower.  Shhhh don't tell the OH !

It was dark soon after half seven this evening and I've found myself curling up in the chair with a blankie, bag of yarn and my crochet hooks most evenings this week (plus the odd bar of Bourneville's finest).  Tonight I have Little Miss Chatterbox by my side (AKA Ellie) who is on sleepover with her brother who is asleep thankfully.

So what have I been doing with my hooks???

A ripple throw and hexagon patch cushion cover - both were languishing in a bag waiting to be finished and Little Miss C has claimed the throw already.

Another round cushion cover in a slightly different pattern to the usual and a knitted cable cushion cover

and this is the start of another cushion cover in a crochet bobble pattern

and some hand warmers which should come in useful over the coming months .... I think they are a terrific idea and perfect for bargain hunting because I won't have to keep taking my gloves on and off to inspect goods and find my purse.

Which brings me nicely on to today's bargain ........

I spotted this on the flea market last week but the seller had a £20 price tag on it and being the skinflint that I am I wasn't prepared to spend that much especially as I had already purchased the toy tea set.  So I sighed and walked on.  You can imagine my excitement this morning when I saw it was still there and this time the price tag said £12 .... I offered a tenner and the rest is history!  The enamel top is in very good condition and it stands on a heavy metal folding stand ..... I think the whole of Hertfordshire must have heard me clattering Jack's buggy over the cobbles with this on the top.

Now I have a dilemma .... do I take it to the Vintage Fair or do I keep it???  The jury is still out on that one.

Bank Holiday Monday Tranquility

After a busy week and even busier weekend, today all small people were banned from Lala Towers.  Today was strictly 'me' day.  Sad thing that I am I was in bed just after 9 last night and woke refreshed to start my day at 7 o'clock.

True to my word I have managed to finish four cushion covers today ... two to match the quilt on my last post and two more from blocks from the 'no strings' challenge.  They are all envelope back with polkadot or gingham check backing.

It's so rewarding to finish projects .... I am a terror for starting things and then getting a little (oh alright a lot) bored and moving onto something else without finishing.  My sewing desk is testament to this with little piles of different colour co-ordinated string, some finished string blocks, patchwork squares and offcuts from vintage table covers patiently waiting to be used.

Last night I also finished a crochet cushion cover in soft pastel cotton .... the front is four squares and the backing is in the same colours but in traditional granny square style.  I'm also using up odds and ends of cotton yarn to make crochet coat hanger covers with little crochet/knitted flowers.

I hope you have all had a lovely long weekend whatever you've been up to x

Anyone for tea and bargains

When I am unable to disappear upstairs to my little sewing sanctuary I always have a  bag of knitting or crochet tucked down by the side of the chair.   Over the past couple of weeks I have been knitting this bobble tea cozy and finally finished it last night.  For my next project I am going to crochet a ripple snuggle blankie in similar shades to this with some pinks thrown in.

After a busy couple of weeks at Lala Towers things have calmed down a little and I am slowly catching up .... the move to Nottingham of number one son has been delayed and he is now off on Monday and I am so frustrated that because it is half term and I will have a house full of small people I won't be able to start my blitz.

I'm planning to make some more strings for Loft Creations 'No Strings' challenge this weekend ... my little pile is growing and it will soon be time to start putting them together to actually make something with them.

I have been a good girl and have followed my 'something in something out' rule.  I took a couple of bags to the charity shop this week and what did I spy on my way out ...

Not one but two pairs of Laura Ashley cornflower & lily of the valley curtains .... one I will keep for my landing window and one I will sell in order to raise the funds to buy some pretty lightshades for the hall and landing.

Later on the same day I went into the smaller CS oppposite the school where I do pick-ups and was thrilled to see these in the odds and sods box

There are twenty four of them altogether .... lovely vintage children's hankies .... all unused and some have still have a little sticker on them saying Irish Cotton.  There are a few with faded colours but most are still quite vibrant.

It's been ages since I've picked up such lovelies and I can't wait now till Easter and the car booties.

Have a good weekend everyone x

How to amuse yourself on a wet Sunday in November .....

A little voice woke me this morning just before 8.00 am with the words "wake up Nanny it's a sunny day" .... we had the grands staying over last night and Charlie ended up snuggled in with me ..... I just love his chubby arms wrapped around my neck just like his dad used to before he grew into a man mountain.  It was sunny at that point but an hour later the grey clouds rolled in and down came the rain ...... nothing like what is happening in other parts of the country at the moment and my hearts go out to the people in Cumbria who have lost everything.

A stay at home day it was to be then, split between the kitchen preparing a roast dinner for the tribal gathering this afternoon with a little crochet in between.

I love watching the River Cottage TV series and often try out HFW recipes .... his Yorkshire Pudding recipe is the best and today I tried his Pear & Almond Cake from the current series ... the results here have now been demolished!

We are fortunate to have our own chickens and I strongly recommend that fresh free range eggs should be used ..... you can really taste the difference

The crochet Beanie and Trapper style hats are coming off the production line like nobody's business!!!  I have listed some for sale in the Aunty Wainwright's Blogshop

Now it's that time of day when everyone has gone home and I can settle down in the chair with a glass of wine, my yarn and crochet hook.  Have a lovely evening whatever you are doing.