Not sure whether...

to carry on with this blogging malarkey...

or just go back to dairy farming!?!

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A Happy and Healthy New Year!

Help comes in the most mysterious ways...

There was I...

sitting on the Saturday sofa munching yet more Cheesy Wotsits, washed down with grape juice, happily reading the Saturday papers...

when a vision from above (Hubs) came down and said

"Have you seen the garden, wouldn't it be good to photograph?"

So here we are...

yet more.....

No, no, NO! Not CW's but cheesy photo's of snow filled garden...

Sorry!

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Special early delivery from Santa...

A superb stocking from my very favouritist teacher

Debs of pretty goods blog fame.

(what a snivvler!)

Made from vintage linen and French fabric... the old sock's fine... however...

I'm more interested in the contents!

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Atmospheric (that means out of focus - Santa I neeed a camera that corrects my many and various shortcomings in the world of photography) photo's of my low key Christmas decorations

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Any suggestions as to what I can put in this little alcove?

These super shelves were made for me by my very talented friend Adrian...

(if you have use for an extremely talented joiner and live in Kent let me know, I will pass his details on to you).

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This is the view from my eyrie window this afternoon, just as the light was fading.

Keep warm and have a cosy weekend...

I'm off to have a glass of grape juice...

Flute of champagne in hand...

the waiter said "One moment Madam, let me get the canapes"

Canapes I thought, I don't usually get canapes here!

With that the door opened and in walked my son with a tray of...

Yes, you've guessed it...

Cheesy Wotsits.

I did say I would let you in on my other secret...

Cheesy Wotsits.

The addiction is so advanced I fantasise about winning the lottery...

no million pound house for me, no gas-guzzling motor, no round the world trip...

just a room stuffed from floorboard to ceiling with Wotsits...

not unlike those ball filled play rooms you see in the Swedish four letter word stores.

Two guilty secrets...

I have a pash for Christmas crackers and worse than that...

Cheesy Wotsits!

Being a disciple of Mrs T (NO! NOT THAT ONE!) Mrs Thifty of whose blog I'm a 'sort-of' avid follower. I am HUGELY ashamed to admit that this Christmas cracker obsession is gaining an unhealthy hold on me. One year I did go cold turkey and make my own. Saving loo roll innards, shopping for tasteful gifts for the recipients, thinking up crappy jokes, making Admiral hats out of the business section (no funnies here please!),enrobing the crackers in old FT colour supplement pages. An up-market cracker if ever there was one!

Trouble was I knew what was in them, I knew who got what, I knew they were made, mindful of the planet. But hey ho, the smugness of being holier than thou didn't work its magic on me. I felt cheated and by me of all people.

This year folks I've admitted I have problem - that's the hardest.

I've found some half price crackers, pored over the pictures of the contents on the back of the box and alright they are pretty ghastly, but buying at a knockdown price I feel I have taken a very real step towards being able to say "I'm a reformed crackerholic!"

I'm afraid I'm just not strong enough to share the details of my other obsession with you today

maybe tomorrow...

Views from my winter window...

I'm becoming a bit of a recluse. I love my home.

All I really want to do is to batten down the hatches and just 'be'.

Today wasn't going to be a 'be' day. Appointments at the dentist and the vets were in the diary, so off I went not before taking these pictures from my blog spot.

Driving through the Kent countryside I almost felt pleased I'd been winkled out. The spectacular hoare frosted trees made my bit of ancient hedge look a bit ordinaire.

I still can't believe I've actually started taking pictures. I blame it on this blogging lark and jolly pleased I am too. Same with writing the blog, who would have thought LL would be bothered to keep a diary. And to be honest I've reached the point I don't care if people read it, cos I'm doing it for me.

I have mentioned before that I'm a self-centred lump and there you have it!

I wasn't even worried when I tried on a luscious velvet Christmas "All in the best possible taste" dress AND in order to get it over my shoulders I had to gently dislocate them one at a time. I gave up as the bosoms hove into view and with the best will in the world there was NO WAY the dress would have accommodated these 'little' beauties.

My senses were definitely awakened...

here at the Christmas fair on Sunday 28th November.

Apart from it being a perishing cold day, without exception every stand was a testament to folks' creative skills. None of your bought in old tat.

My stall, not the most professional looking I admit - I'm still a crafting babe, prone to strops. These artistical folk are soo temperamental I always find!

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Ben of www.the-aviary.co.uk

I'm struggling for words to best describe his wonderful works of mini art.

This is a fabulous brooch I bought made from an old watch, odds and ends. I also chose a superb badge with two swallows swooping over a white watch face. Super cards and an odd assortment of interesting bits were there to buy. I watched enviously from two stalls down as people stopped to admire his wares. All I really wanted to do was to tell them to buzz off, cos I wanted EVERYTHING!

He in my book, was the star of the fair.

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This is his logo thingy - pay him a visit - you won't be disappointed.

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The fair was a huge success, all the team were super efficient, friendly and helpful. This was their first Christmas fair and looking at their forthcoming programme there is lots more excitement planned.

Pay them a visit if you live in the area, play them a visit even if you don't.

Lying in the bath on a freezing fog fugged

Sunday night...

glass of Chilean rose balancing on the bath side, book curling in the steam...

"buildings the colour of coconut ice" jumped out at me from the page,

transporting me back to the days of making coconut ice in an old (clean) tin of a Fray Bentos steak and kidney pie with Auntie 'Margarine'. Does anyone remember those pies, do they still make them?

This was the Fifties, how cutting edge convenience was that!

I'm between a rock and a hard place...

because I love books...

however...

I'm too thick to be bright

and

I'm too bright to be thick...

Geddit?

My studio is a testament to my love of books, I'm even having more book shelves built in my 'cosy', cavernous oak room to accommodate the overflow - Kindle eat your heart out.

Every paper/periodical I open, if there's a photo of someone in front of a bookshelf I crane my neck trying to see what's on their shelves.

I plough through the 'Christmas books - FT critics select their favourite fiction of the year' knowing full well only a tiny selection will be within my limited quota of IQ. Alright I know I should be looking at the The Sun's critics choice... problem there is, I'm too blooming brainy not to be hugely irritated by the lightness of the recommended tomes.

Where do I go from there I ask myself?

Puss in biker boots...

Is it me, or does everyone associate biker boots with the sort of hoi polloi that gives old ladies a kicking?

Always a trend-setter me... this old lady has decided to play them at their own game and don a pair of twinkle toed bovvers. You just would'nt believe the things I've bought on ebay; these for instance and much loved they are too.

Alright, alright I know at my age I should be clad in Crimplene, saggy stockings and slippers with bobbles and buttons. The spectre of the BIG pink knickers hovers in the wings waiting, waiting, weighting on my mind (see an earlier blog).

Out in the snow yesterday and today striding, stamping, snowboarding on winged bikers. How smug was I? I didn't once feel the need to kick a pimpled youth in the air.

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On a more sedate note this is a Clothkits doll I've made for my granddaughter Hope

(see I can do granny things)

When my son asked me what I wanted to be called ie Granny, Nanny blah, blah, blah. I thought CRIKEY! I'M FAR TOO YOUNG TO BE GRANDMAMA! And anyway, who wants those ageing titles pinned on one, I ask you? I thought for a nano-second and decided I would be called Poppy. And there you have it! Puss-Poppy in biker boots.

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Working away in my studio on Tuesday a neighbour called to ask me to make a shamrock badge for her son. He's playing a leprechaun in the school play. On the strength of this I fully expect Julian Fellowes to call any day soon to ask for my help with the costumes for the next series of Downton Abbey.

Snow in Kent - 2 December 2010

The greenhouse with Jack Frost windows

The blanket of snow hides the chaos

Growing up in the fifties in a house without central heating, some mornings my bedroom windows looked like this!

Minus 5!

The art of winter

Cosy cottage - home

Artistical icicles

Lettice's Winter

walk

Village people in 'our' field!

It's not really ours - it's called the village field.

Whatever you do ...

please, please, PLEASE...

don't forget to feed the birds, or at the very least, put clean water out for them.

I love the snow... however my enjoyment is tempered by the thought of the birds not being able to get the food they require to get through the interminably long winter nights.

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I can't believe I haven't blogged for two whole weeks...

lots to tell...

tomorrow I promise.....