Spring and Celebrations!

Spring has finally sprung! I cannot tell you how I have longed for warm rays of sunshine to drive away the grey gloom of a winter that's overstayed it's welcome! As soon as Shrove Tuesday arrived, I felt ready to shake off my winter coat, banish woolly socks in favour of sandals, and reach for the nearest floral summer skirt to cheer up my somewhat dull countenance! But, it was a little chilly for that, so the pancakes had to cheer a little louder to lift my mood...Yummm...

Pancake Day...

But, there were a few celebrations to be had, and that always puts the spring back in my step. Now, I am a fickle girl. I love shoes. And dresses. And sparkly things. We had a Golden Anniversary Ball to attend, and so the outfit planning commenced...

The dress and petticoat arrived, and I was smitten! I did however do a little alteration. The dress needed a little something to lift it, so, I removed the lovely satin ribbon tie from the petticoat, and made it into a sash to wear around the dress instead. It seemed a waste hidden under the dress! I added a sparkly vintage brooch for a bit of glamour. Ta-dah!


Ready for the ball!

We had a wonderful time dancing the night away! 

There were a few birthdays to celebrate too. My dearest friend turned forty. I made her this apron...

And with it, a few more treats...

And now? Finally celebrating the arrival of spring!

Here's to warm, hazy, lazy days...

Blessings, Tania ♥

For the love of books...

I'm feeling a little rough around the edges today...nursing a nasty cold. There is only one thing for it...

 Oh yes I do...I believe in well thumbed pages, printer's ink on paper...not gadgets and gizmos, for they fail to lift my romantic soul...

 Don't get me wrong...if reaching for a Kindle means that my child is going to explore and embrace the written word, then that's a good thing. Whether it's a hardback or an iBook, as long as they develop a nose for exploring the freedom that fiction and fantasy can bring, I don't really mind. But for me, nothing beats a proper book...I'm a little old fashioned like that...

But imagine my delight, when my eleven year old's face lit up in the thrift shop...She had discovered a book from her favourite Enid Blyton series...printed in 1951. She insisted on spending all her pocket money on a well-loved book! Well, this little apple doesn't fall far from the tree!

I'm off to bury my nose in a book now...Till we meet again!

Blessings

Tania ♥

Ice cream Protest!

Well hello! Yes, I know...it has been quite some time since I tended my little blog allotment! But, there is a very good reason for my absence. I have only gone and joined the working classes! Yip, I am now a fully fledged office receptionist, and I'm settling into my day job very nicely! The only down side is that there still remains just twenty-four hours in every day, hence the weeds have taken over a little in this corner! But, I have great plans to make time for this very important piece of my heart, and I will become a little more productive once things have fallen into a steady, manageable routine! Needless to say, my creative juices have dried up a little as there just hasn't been much time for creating and crafting! I did manage to join up some squares...

I am planning to make a little memory quilt from these lovely little squares. Once I've joined them up nicely, I will add some embroidery, decorative stitching, embellishments, and a few other surprises...which no doubt will come to me as I work on it...I hope!

I feel a little lost this year, as I normally do something special around Valentine's day, but the time and the inclination just failed to find me this February! Hubby had to work, and the kidlets and I had a quiet night in in front of the box. The UK weather has surpassed it's soggy reputation this winter too, and the general mood at home has been equally damp because of it! So, what does one do in the middle of a windswept, cold, sodden winter? One has an ice cream party of course! That's what we did, by candle light, in protest of the weather!

It cheered us up no end! I think it also has something to do with the fact that I'm longing for summer to burst through the door with warmth and lazy, hazy happy days! But, for now, I'll leave you all with a few tempting ideas to host your very own ice-cream party...even if the summer is still a little way off...

Mason jars

Backyard ice cream party

Pretty paper cups

Print your own pretty labels

It's a wrap!

Wine glasses and silver spoons

Roll on summer!