'orla goodness'...

since returning to the shed i have had matters close to my heart causing me to stray from my 'blogging', forgive my lack of 'ramblings' and so i hope in some small way to make up for my neglect of you...

i am quite sure i was the last person in blogland to realize that dearest orla had done a range for target.

if i had known such an event was happening whilst i was away, you can be sure i would have had my man camping out the night before the 'unveiling'...luckily for me there were a few items left on my return stateside.

i thought it might be nice to share a little of this 'orla goodness' with you.

i have up for grabs a tea towel set and oven mitts in my fabby favorite 'pear' design, two items up for grabs thus doubling your chances of winning ("hurrah" i hear you cry)

all you have to do is answer the question below and i will pop your name down for my 'orla kiely' give away...

i'll keep it open until friday 6th march, when i will return with the results and my little self ready to focus again...

and so to the all important question...it's a no brainer really, super easy peasy....

"what would be your ultimate thrifty find?"

basically think about the very item you have dreamt of finding in the thrift store, perfect price, perfect condition...mine would be a mid century modern daybed, in original nubby textured upholstery, the perfect sludgy vintage shade...dark wood without too many dings and a side table joined at the end, springs still sprung as they should be and best of all 'my man' able to see it's beauty too...ahhh, a girl can dream.

so there we have it, if you fancy a chance at winning some of orla's lovely new range for target then just drop me a line...

she will see you next friday ~ Tif

footnote: if you aren't able to leave your 'best ever thrifty find' comment through blogger then just email me direct at the address in my side bar...and i'll pop you in the 'hat' :)

i have so much to say...

and so little time to say it.

my bags are packed and i might add a wee bit bulgy, i have loved my stay in old blighty and am now looking forward to returning to my little flock tomorrow...

and as for our wee excursion to the big smoke

did we laugh? yes, we did...

did we spend the night in the poshest hotel our little eyes have ever seen? yes, we did...

did we marvel at the automatic lights in the closets? yes we did...

did we sit up in bed till the wee hours, watching a 'chick flick' and crocheting? yes, we did...

did we stuff as many 'miller harris' products from the bathroom into our bags as we could fit? yes we did...

did we take as many pencils from reception as was possible without being seen as too weird? yes, we did...

did we stand in the Orla Kiely shop on Monmouth Street, wanting to lie down and lick the floor? yes, we did...

did we stand in the lovely yarn store Loop and just gawp at the 'splendidness' laid out before us? yes, we did...

did we land in dog poo and pee our pants? no, we didn't...

did we feel fourteen all over again but with a bit more money to our names? yes, we did...

did we add to our vast 'memory' bank of good times together? yes, we did...

do we have pictures to share next week? yes, we do...

she will see you in a few days, stateside and with so many 'tales to tell' ~ Tif

like a little child...

on christmas eve, that's what i'm feeling like today...

i have left the rolling green (and still white in some places) hills behind me and travelled a few hours along the line, past flooded fields to arrive on the doorstep of my friend Debbie.

we have big plans for the next few days, i hit the station platform running...before i knew it, i was dropping 'miss lola' at dance lessons, picking up others from the school gate and being whisked of to m&s where i have at last dealt with my 'underwear' crisis. 

now of course you will remember that my undies were a disgrace, the type that one hopes the outside world will never get a 'look at'...well before i left on my travels i rushed down to Target to buy myself a few new pairs just in case i needed to be seen by any medical staff on my trip. the problem was they didn't have my size and so i bought the next size up, this was a very unwise thing to do...on arrival back at mossy shed, i checked the sizing up against my gigantic, no elastic, graying cotton jobs to find my new ones were actually bigger...my choice for packing, the brand new ones that still retained their original coloring and elastic or my old 'grotty' ones. i went with the new and have discovered as long as i have jeans or tights on i am okay...but i knew it was of utmost importance that i find some others before spring arrives and i float around my back yard in a skirt and wellies only to promptly trip over when my 'undies' fall down (and that won't be pleasant for the neighbors, would it Trish!) 

and so my besty buddy of 29 years has taken me firmly in hand as she always does and made me buy new 'undies'...we knew it was important to find a pair that made me feel 'secure' and 'warm'....having found the perfect style we then had a big discussion about size, she told me that my 'arse' is not as big as i think it is and that is why i have issues when buying underwear and so i went with her better judgement because ever since we have been 11 she has always been the 'wise' one...and you know what? she was spot on, today as i tippity tap my words of great importance to you on her computer, i can tell you i feel, snug, secure, warm and in no way terrified my 'undies' are going to let me down today...

and that would lead me to tell you why today of all days is so important to have 'undies' on that you don't have to think about...today, dear readers i am off to meet a blogging buddy of several years and i am so excited...it turns out my lovely cyber pal lives only a few blocks away from where i am staying. so this morning i will be popping over to the lovely Janet Clare for 'elevenses' and i will be sure to fill you in on how it all goes, when i arrive back state side next week...

and as if that wasn't enough excitement for the week, tomorrow i pack up my wee bags again and this time head into London with Debbie on a 'pilgrim' of sorts...since we have known each other for more years than i care to remember we have had many an outing together,

but less so in our later years, what with 'youngsters' hanging off our aprons strings and many miles between us. 

however, we decided that turning 40 meant we needed to 'celebrate' this milestone with an 'outing' of sorts.

 

(forgive me as i dig into the archives of my brain and reminisce) one of our most memorable outings was as young teenagers we took the bus to the nearest town to do a bit of 'saturday' browsing. having spent all our money on chocolate (there's a surprise) we had no way of getting home other than to walk (interestingly now with the advancement of technology one would just get out a cell phone, but not in those prehistoric times...) and so we proceeded to head home the several miles to my village....(did i mention we were both wearing my mother's trendy stretchy striped jeans at the time). so Debbie proceeds to trip over half way home, on a bumpy bit of paving that the council had failed to fix...she also managed to trip at the exact place where a pile of 'dog crap' happened to be, she ripped a hole in the knee of one 'leg' and landed the other in the 'dog crap'. now i love my friend Debbie more than words can say but i must tell you she can be most 'stern' on occasion, i do not believe she was best pleased with this turn of events and started to become most distressed about the situation...i on the other hand found it one of the funniest sights i have ever seen (and still to this day believe it to be so) and promptly wet myself laughing...so we were a sorry sight walking the final miles, her stinking of 'crap' and me stinking of 'pee'...i do recall hanging my trousers on the radiator to dry and then placing them nicely back in my mother's closet (oh dearest mother, confessions are not always good, so please pretend you didn't read that last bit) and the other pair we disposed of in the garbage...("so that's where my trousers went" i hear my mother cry...) yes mother, after all these years, Debbie and i come clean...

so we head into London tomorrow with high hopes that she will not disgrace herself by tripping and landing in 'dog crap' and i have promised with hand on heart that i will not under any circumstances wet my pants...(which for someone of my age and having had 4 babies will, quite frankly, be nothing short of a small miracle..but you know how we believe in those dear readers)

she will see you on saturday with tales from the big smoke and apologizes if 'too much' info was revealed today ~ Tif 

and so...

i had wished so much today to be bringing you reports from a trip to Bath, but alas the weather has thwarted our plans again...

my dearest youngest brother (but let it be noted he is still older than i, that is the beauty of being the youngest of all, you stay forever the baby) is 'artist in residence' for one day at the fine art gallery in Bath...he has an exhibition there and they thought it rather a grand idea if he sits in the window and 'does his thing' to entice some extra punters in. i do believe it is a rather genius idea unless of course the town in which you are 'sitting in a window' happens to be hidden beneath snow and full of tricky hills and narrow roads...so i must be content with just reading his 'twitterings' over here and hope to have better luck in seeing him in the summer.

so instead i bring you news of my few thrifty finds and my latest 'crafty' creation...i have for your perusal today, the linens i picked up in the antique mall along with a lone doily from the charity shop, all very usual so to speak.

but i also happened upon some knitting needles, the sort of needles made of plastic in lovely vintagey colors that just warm the heart looking at them...i gathered up the best of the lot, four pairs and as we left the place my mother pipes up

"i seem to recall that your grandmother had some just like that..."

"what" says i "plasticky ones in pretty colors" (a little choked, i don't mind adding)

"ummm, yes i think so" she replies in a far off 'thinking' voice.

now my dearest grandmother Jane was a gifted lady, she had a talent for dress making that few could match. she was capable of making pretty much anything she turned her hand to, but sadly i do not recall seeing her knit...

so we scurried home and after a wee while my mother appears with a box and tells me to take a little looky as she thinks they are in there.

i lift the lid and it was like one of those moments in a movie when the treasure box has been dug up and they take the top off...a beam of light flooded out and i swear a lone angel sang (you can ask my mum if you don't believe me, after all she is my witness) and lying at the bottom amongst a few other trinkets of Jane's (my grandmother) was a 'bounty' of plastic knitting needles in a rainbow of colors. it was too much to take in at that moment...for years these lovely needles had stayed hidden under a bed unbeknowst to me...just waiting...knowing that one day they would be held and loved again.

i have now sorted through them all, marvelling at how many needles one lady requires to knit, but then it became clear, many were 'singles' having lost their mate a long time before, thus causing my grandmother to go out and buy new ones, adding to her collection all the time.

i have commandeered a fitting 'container' for them to be admired by all and have high hopes of 'smuggling' the jug, along with the needles out of the 'thatched' nest without my mother noticing.

on my return to mossy shed, grandma's needles and mother's jug will be placed upon the mantelpiece in my studio so that i may gaze upon them at times of 'feeling faraway' and it will warm my heart...

now onto a 'crafty' note ("blimey Tif, you've got a lot to say today")...

the thing i like about where my parents reside is the lovely quirky shops that keep on going, despite good times and bad times they seem to manage to stay alive and i like to think this is because a lot of people in smaller towns and villages really do their best to support local shops and i say "thank goodness for that"...

and so on friday i happened to find myself in one of these little shops, just 5 minutes walk from the 'thatched nest'. it is full of 'twitchy lace curtain' fabric, embroidery thread, doilies, yarn and so much more...

now if you can believe it, i actually travelled without yarn, this wasn't because in my state of 'is she or isn't she going' i forgot to pack any but more to do with staring at my three suitcases that house my yarn stash and still not finding a single ball of yarn that 'spoke to me'...

i had thought this not to be a problem as we had 'jammy packed' plans for all of my trip, no time to sit idle and play with yarn. but of course dear readers, this has not been the case, so i was looking for yarn that 'spoke to me' and amazingly amongst the small selection, up on the highest shelf it 'spoke'...

the largest ball of yarn i have ever seen, 897 yards long in my fabby fav color of the mo...SLUDGY TEAL! what luck...i checked the contents and even better only 25% wool, putting paid to any allergy worries whilst crocheting. the price £6.95...that has to be value for money...if i was super duper mathematically quick i would calculate the cost per yard, but we know that would not be good for my little 'cogs' so we will all just have to agree that it sounds like very good value for money even if it isn't...

(here's a picture with my little 'paw' in, so you can see for your own eyes the size and then say "ooh er, i won't have believed it unless i'd seen it with me own eyes"). i had wanted to do a classic ebay pic where there is a 'quarter' lying next to it, but alas i have none with me, so the 'paw' it was...

even then it doesn't do my big magnificent 'ball of yarn' justice. i am now having to carry an extra large bag around with me so i can bring my 'new' friend out and about knowing that at any given chance i can whip him out and progress with my 'new blanket'...

she's hoping the snows go soon as tuesday she 'up sticks' and moves on ~ Tif

on solid ground...

me, my undies, my skirt, my woolies, my volumized hair (that's another story for another day) and my 'nerves' have made it to the safety of my folk's little thatched nest on the delightful south coast of devon...

i know the snow lays 'deep and crisp and even' all around but i have yet to actually see it with my own eyes.

this is not because i am so jet lagged that my little eyelids have not opened, but rather to do with the fact that where i am situated for the next few days it would appear to be a 'law unto it's own' and so we have 'no snow'...

most of the country has disappeared under some seriously big dumps of snow and let me just fill in a few of you dear readers who are 'stateside'...we are talking the biggest amount of snow our little island has witnessed in over 20 years, and i do believe there is more to come...so that considered, my travels to family and charity shops maybe somewhat curtailed.

but do not despair, i was born the daughter of some serious 'collectors' and thus the need to 'scavenge and hunt' for a bargain has been running through my little veins from a wee 'babe in arms'...having alighted from my airplane less than 48 hours ago, my lovely mother and i have already seen the inside of 6 charity shops and 1 antique mall. i don't think that's bad considering the circumstances of a country in 'snow' peril...

the contents of our 'scavenge' i will reveal, but for now i leave you with the only 'snow' i could find in the yard...

did you like the connection...snow...snowdrops...i was thinking that's quite good for my slow foggy brain ("actually that's rubbish Tif...we expect better of you tomorrow")

she's been told and she will deliver ~ Tif

my bags are packed and i'm ready to go...

it would appear that i have a small window of opportunity to make it across the pond before the snows come again...i am taking that opportunity and will leave within the next hour or so.

i have my 'lucky' large undies on and my 'woolies' are packed.

i find it ironic that after weeks of miserable weather and having seen enough snow to last me the year, i leave what has to be the most beautiful gloriously sunny warm day and head towards snow and cold...but of course it's worth it :)

so toes and fingers crossed she will see you in a day or two, in snowy old england ~ Tif

still here...

it would appear that i will not be flying the nest today.

the snow that has engulfed dear blighty has caused my flight to be cancelled.

i have hung up my 'hangar' sized undies until tomorrow and my skirt ("a skirt, Tif...are you mad enough to travel in a skirt?"). i thought it would make a change to the usual baggy trousers...i can't do jeans and anything remotely 'static like' turns me into a big electrical current.

i feel now i have turned 40 i need to become a 'traveller' with style.

the sort you look at in airport lounges who look so effortlessly, casually, elegantly, grownupperedly, perfect in their 'get up'.

so i have a flowery skirt, winter boots and long cardi all ready.

i am also going to be most grown up and travel with my own blanket ("actually isn't that what 'wee tots' do?") yes, that is quite true dear readers but i'm not taking a 'barney' blankie, no, no, i am taking a sophisticated knitted number, to give me just the right 'crafty' boho look...also allowing me to avoid 'massive static cling' syndrome that seems to come with airplane blankets...(can you tell i have time on my hands with the flight being cancelled...i am now twitting on about blankets for crying out loud)

anyway i have high hopes that i will not accidentally leave my skirt tucked into my gigantic 'knick knacks' when leaving the airplane loo...i did this once when aged 17 walking down a main street in Cambridge. in those days i had smaller undies and a 'perter' backside, now a days it would be the biggest social horror to commit on fellow passengers, especially if one happened to be close to a lovely chap like Colin Firth or someone of similar loveliness...

so the shed has been cleaned to within an inch of it's life, all laundry completed with not much help from Mrs W. Machine, furry friends cuddled, notes written and i am now sitting around twiddling my thumbs and waiting...

in the meantime my delightful family will find out this afternoon that 'mum' is still here and even more concerning for them...i will be here to cook...

fingers crossed she will take off tomorrow ~ Tif