Friday (!) I'm in LOVE...with being British

Do you remember a couple of posts ago I mentioned that I was late for EVERYTHING...? Well, I had planned this post out for yesterday but managed to get caught up on my latest craft project and simply forgot to log on and upload it...oops!

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Congratulations to William and Kate on the birth of their baby boy George on Monday! Over the last year there have been so many moments to make us feel proud to be British – The Olympics, the Royal Wedding, the Queen’s Jubilee and now a new heir to the throne. I’m not going to lie – I love the Royal family. It probably started way back watching all those Disney films and dreaming that one day I would marry my own prince!

As a young girl there was nothing more romantic than watching the beautiful Jasmine being chased by Aladdin, or - my personal favourite – Ariel sacrificing her voice to be with the man she loved!

In celebration of this very British week I have collected some of my favourite British finds...

 

Union Jack Make Up Bag by Lilac Coast

 

Jan Constantine Love Britannia Cushion

 

Embroidered Union Jack Artwork by The House of Jam andWeasel

 

Cath Kidston London Cedar Mug

I was so excited to find out whether they would stick with tradition or go for something slightly different, but I think George is a great name!

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Oh, and that craft project I mentioned at the beginning of this post...sorry to mention the ‘C’ word so soon – but it was the very first of my many Christmas projects! Eek! I shall keep you updated!

Until next time,

K x

A Highland discovery

Last week the other half and I decided that we were going to make an effort to revisit lots of places from our childhood that we hadn’t been to in a while. Sometimes you forget all the amazing places which are on your own doorstep! Our first visit was to Stewart’s Park in Middlesbrough, which has had a bit of a facelift recently, and was the perfect place for a stroll on a sunny summer afternoon!

After a wander around the gardens and the museum we relaxed on the grass in the sunshine before feeding the ducks on the small lake in the park.

I think these floor tiles are so beautiful...

A totem pole which celebrates the British explorer James Cook discovering lands around Canada and Hawaii. Captain Cook was born on the site where the museum sits now.

A nod to the nautical connection of the park.

After a very relaxed afternoon (and the obligatory ice-cream!) we were making our way to the car when we made a discovery of our own - some huge Highland cows (and an ugly goat) who were happy to let us get up close and be fed with leaves and flowers!

 

You only get a sense of how massive a Highland cow really is when it’s standing right in front of you, with only a small wooden fence stopping it! They look so cuddly and soft but I would not fancy having one of these thundering towards me in a grumpy mood! 

 

We spent ages watching a young boy learning to ride his bike for the first time and both wanted to cheer for him when he finally made it away from his mum’s steadying hands (only to fall off seconds later!). It made me think of all the little milestones which we reach throughout our lives which we take for granted.

I passed my driving test in December and I had a feeling SUCH elation and pride in myself.  I know in a few years it will have lost the novelty and I won’t remember the relief of never having to stand in a windy bus shelter, passing cars spraying puddles over my feet, checking my watch and wondering where the last three buses had ended up!

Have you passed any milestones of your own recently?

Until next time,

K x

For the love of Saltburn

Sorry for the slightly delayed post this week – so much sunshine is not productive to blogging!

A couple of months ago you might remember this blog post about a trip I made to the seaside at Saltburn, and a wander around the farmers market which is held there. The other half and I love a stroll around a good farmers market – the smell of a hog roast or a sizzling Aberdeen Angus burger with all the tiny tasters of cheese, pickles and chocolate can’t be beaten! The other half especially loves to see all the cuts and quality of meat which he doesn’t see at the supermarket, whilst I am more taken by the handcrafted items – soap, crocheted items and cakes!

Usually when I am lucky enough to score a weekend day off work it means a frantic, action packed couple of days as we try to make the most of the time together. This weekend was a much more restful affair – a lazy lie-in and full English breakfast followed by a trip to the seaside on Saturday. True to form the other half expressed mock surprise that we had ended up in Saltburn whilst the Farmers Market was on...no doubt he had been planning our trip and clearing the freezer in preparation for a couple of days! What he didn’t know is that I had seen an advert for a vintage fair on the journey towards the sea – so I was doing some planning in my head as well!

After a walk around the food, pottery and homegrown produce stalls (and a quick paddle in the sea) we stopped for a venison burger with caramelised onions before I put my plan into action! The plan involved one of us sitting outside the nearby pub in the glorious sunshine, and one of us going inside the vintage fair for a quick look around and perhaps a cupcake. Of course, with much fluttering of the eyelashes, I got my way!

The venue was beautifully decorated with pastel coloured bunting which was fluttering in the summery breeze, and an array of stalls inside.

I have always loved vintage suitcases!

Pastel glass pretties.

Saltburn is famous in the area for the yarn-bombing which appears for special events – the seagull and donkeys were my favourite new creations!

After a long walk along the beach the day ended with us watching the sunset from the pier with fish and chips and mushy peas – bliss!

Hope you had a lovely sunny weekend!

Until next time,

K x

 

(Yep that’s right – knitted fish and chips!) 

Paint the town red

What a wonderful weekend – and what glorious weather we have finally started to get! How very British too – talking about the weather. I have had a very retro themed few days – I went strawberry picking on Friday with my friend and her little boy, and visited the Saltburn Vintage Fair and Farmers market on Saturday (more about that tomorrow!).

WARNING – This is a picture heavy post because NOTHING looks better than a big, red, juicy strawberry!

 There can’t be many things more idyllic in life than a ‘Pick your own’ afternoon in the summer! My friend’s toddler is a keen strawberry eater and more went into his tummy and down his t-shirt than went in the punnet I think! It was so lovely seeing his face light up when he realised that he could pick AND eat up all of the little strawberries which were covering the field! After we had filled and weighed our baskets we munched some of our pickings whilst sitting in the sunshine and had a good natter.

When I got home I realised I still had enough strawberries to keep a small army going, so decided the best way to use them up was to make a jam. Unfortunately the idea scared the living heck out of me since I have NO IDEA where to even begin to make jam! So I decided upon the safer option of a strawberry flan. AND I cheated. I bought a pre-made flan case (don’t judge).

 This is the beautiful creation minus the jelly glaze which went over the top. This has got to be one of the nicest looking (and easiest!) deserts which you can make...it even got a nod of approval from the other half with a suggestion to add some alcohol to the flan base to make it taste more like a trifle next time. I live with a big trifle fan here!

Saturday morning was also spent under a sea of fruit as our little strawberry pot in the garden decided to get in on the action and ripen up some nice strawberries just in time to sprinkle over our cereal! 

Hope your weekend was as heavenly and tranquil as mine, whatever you got up to!

Until next time,

K x

Friday I'm in LOVE...with retro sweet treats

Anybody who knows me would tell you that I can SLEEP. If sleeping was an Olympic sport then I would be Jessica Ennis (minus the toned body and plus a bed head!). After the Robbie gig the other weekend we managed to get stuck in the Manchester tram system for hours, and as we hadnt been able to find a decently priced hotel for the night ended up finally back at the car at silly o'clock for the trek home.
Knowing that as hard as I would try to keep awake I would probably drift into dreamland it was decided that coffee was definitely required! Whilst we were in the queue in Costa I saw these AMAZING retro biscuits - custard creams and bourbons have always been favourites. After much pestering I was allowed one and I wasn't disappointed (just don't concentrate on the price tag for too long!).

 

A little more recently I was perusing my Cross Stitcher Magazine collection looking for inspiration for my next project when I came across hand stitched Tunnocks tea cakes... 

 

(http://crossstitcher.themakingspot.com/blog/exclusive-cross-stitch-tunnocks-teacake-bag-by-gillian-kyle)

I even stumbled across these AMAZING cushions on Etsy...

 

 

 

(http://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/75431505/tunnocks-caramel-wafer-screen-printed?ref=shop_home_active)

This retro biscuit revival has put me in the mood for baking sweet treats myself...whilst I haven't been able to find a recipe for HUGE chocolate digestives or custard creams I did knock up these classic fruit scones. In this hot weather they are pretty darn good with a dollop of clotted cream and some fruity jam!

 Hope you have a fabulously sunny weekend wherever you are,

 

Until next time,

K x

One swallow doesn't make a summer

I haven’t posted any crafty creations lately, but lots have been going on behind the scenes. Last week I started this rockabilly swallow design from the June issue of Cross Stitcher magazine.

Cross stitch has been part of my life (sometimes in secret!) for well, most of my life! I am absolutely so thrilled that it seems to be making its way out from the stigma which has stifled many crafty things in the past years. Like knitting and crochet, cross stitch seems to be having a bit of a revival at the moment - and handmade items in general seem to be more popular than ever. There is nothing I like better than homemade; whether that is jam or a jumper!

 

I began cross stitching when I was about eight. My mum is an avid knitter, and my granny a brilliant embroiderer and stitcher in her youth. I wore alot of handmade clothes as a child, something which I am in awe of as I get older – I wouldn’t even know where to begin to handmake an item of clothing! Programmes on TV like the Great British Sewing Bee have really inspired me to embrace other crafty pursuits – I will keep you posted on my progress!

I have been subscribing to Cross Stitcher magazine for the past two years and I think it is a really inspiring reference for modern day cross stitching - with a nod to the vintage heyday of course! One of the things I love about the magazine is that the patterns are to make things you actually want to DISPLAY in your house – rather than to simply complete for the satisfaction, then hide away in a drawer!

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not a brave enough person to admit to my colleagues that whilst they are out downing tequila and stumbling home at 3am I am sitting at home cross stitching and watching Question Time in my pajamas! But not much beats that feeling of satisfaction when you have finished a project and you can sit back and just sigh with contentment!

Have you got any crafty secrets?!

Until next time,

K x

New month, new treasures

I LOVE reading other people’s blogs – I am not ashamed to admit that I get a warm fuzzy feeling inside when I discover a ‘new favourite’ blog (it happens at least once a week!). I am currently following around sixty blogs – mainly with a thrifty / vintage / crafty / homewares theme, and I get so much inspiration from them all. I have a folder on my computer simply called ‘craft’, and it’s overflowing with lovely little projects which I really do need to start...I just don’t have any time left over from all the time spent reading OTHER PEOPLE’S blogs!

After spending all afternoon on my laptop stalking getting inspiration, I was feeling in the mood to head to the charity shops. My sister came over for the day and we headed off to the nearest town with our meagre amount of pennies (end of the month blues!). 

The first spot I had was this cute patchwork style double duvet cover in some of my favourite colours – pastel minty green and pretty pale pink. I adore all of the different patterns – stripes, spots and florals. Sadly my boyfriend is just adamant that he won’t succumb to a pink palace, so I knew I couldn’t persuade him to actually use it in our bedroom...BUT...I have big plans for the material. Expect to see it in a blog post coming your way soon!

At last, something floral that’s easy to sneak in! Just 49p for this bargain book.

 

Up next I picked up this cutesy vintage goose jar in powdery blue for just 99p!

 

Finally a little cameo brooch to add to my collection – I popped it onto this wicker heart just to take a picture but I really like it! I think it will stay there for now.

Have you had any vintage finds this week?

I would love to find a new favourite blog – why not leave me a link to yours?

Until next time,

K x