Tuesday, 23 July 2013

Playing Hooky...

..and not the crochet kind (if only...).
Mr B and myself took this week off work to decorate our bedroom, however if you're in the UK you'll know it has been very hot. Our bedroom is south facing with a wall of windows so it would be foolish to decorate in there at the moment, really...it would.
Therefore, we have been forced to do other things! We have visited Chichester, and visited The Eternal Maker where in the name of politeness I was forced to buy these
(not the cherries - delicious, grown in Sussex & bought at the farm shop on the way home, some may have already been eaten)
 Mr B (who you may remember) works in Chichester wanted to show me a couple of shops he's recently discovered and thought I'd enjoy visiting. So we had a mooch in here
and here
then treated ourselves to an ice cream and then made our way to Fishbourne for an exciting purchase that I'll blog about soon!
I hope you are all having a wonderful week!

Friday, 19 July 2013

A Friday Smile and a Birthday

Just a quickie post today to join in with Annie's Friday Smiles and to wish Eldest Boy a Happy 19th Birthday. The two link very well because my 'smile' this week is that after 18 years and 364 days (ie yesterday!) my eldest has done his own laundry and pegged it on the line - what a shocking mother he has for letting him get away with it for soooo long!
This seemed the most appropriate card for a 19 year old lad (or mine, anyway!).
Happy Birthday - love you lots XX
 
Have a fab weekend everyone!

Monday, 15 July 2013

Feeling Hot, Hot, Hot...

Hello All,
How was your weekend?
Here in the UK it was reported to be the hottest weekend of the year so far, I don't do well in the heat and spent the weekend inside in my north facing craft room and kitchen trying to keep cool!
Hearing that it was going to be a scorcher of a weekend I decided to decorate my craft room as I knew I wouldn't want to be out in the heat for long.
The first project was my large white cupboard, very useful for storage but very uninspiring to look at.
I've been collecting wallpaper samples for a couple of years now, originally I was going to paste them onto the wardrobe in our bedroom, but then we inherited different furniture. Instead I thought they'd look colourful on these doors. I made the decision to do random placement, which is really hard for me to do as I am a bit obsessed with symmetry to put it mildly! It took a lot longer than I anticipated but I eventually finished it Sunday morning. There are a couple of bits I'm not mad about but I'm sure I'll get used to it!
 
The frame will eventually be painted with Cooking Apple Green paint.  I also painted one wall with Green Ground. I've decided to do one wall at a time in here. 
I wasn't sure about going with a darker colour as we had white before and it is a dark room, but so far I'm really pleased with it. The small door will be (hopefully) papered with left over wallpaper from our bedroom and the radiator cover will be painted in my favourite green for woodwork, Calke Green.
We (I) also decided that as we'd had to empty the kitchen for work to be done on the ceiling we'd paint the walls in there too! For this room I chose Soft Sunlight paint and I am going to wallpaper one wall in pale yellow polka dot. The roman blinds need replacing due to water damage from the leak but I've yet to find a fabric I like. This does now mean we have three rooms 'in progress' so I really need to get moving, especially as in a weeks time Mr. B and myself have the week off to decorate our bedroom!
Have a great week!


Wednesday, 10 July 2013

Stuff

Recently, I have been feeling overwhelmed by the amount of things we have in the Bramble household. Inheriting my mother-in-laws furniture and other bits hasn't helped but I have to say we were pretty packed before.
I've never considered myself a hoarder but in the last few years I have acquired lots of 'stuff' and put more and more things on display, and not hidden away in cupboards as I used to do.
I mentioned previously that we are having work done in the house and today I had to clear as much as possible from the kitchen.
Looking at it cleared I realised how cluttered it had become!
And, I also realise how much I like it less cluttered. Of course, I live in a little house with Mr B and the boys so it's not practical, or possible, to keep it this clear.
Every weekend recently I have been sorting more and more bits to give to charity or dump and it feels really good!
My challenge here is to not put as much 'stuff' back in the kitchen after the work is completed!! (I also need to give it a MASSIVE clean - how does it get that dirty? I THINK I keep things clean...)
Sadly, I only managed three days of a clear craft room - this is how it is now!
Any tips on keeping things under control would be very welcome.
Have a lovely day!
 

Tuesday, 9 July 2013

Catching up...

No crafting has come out of my craft room recently, but we have managed to relocate the two wardrobes, other assorted furniture and bits and bobs inherited from Mr. B's parents.
We are currently having work done in the house, repairs mainly (the joys of an older property!) and then it will be on to decorating the kitchen and our bedroom so it may be a while before I can get in a good crafting session!
And then, of course, there is the lure of the garden in summer! Inspired by Bobbie Lynn who writes one of my favourite blogs, I had to buy these two roses
 
Rosa Mundi, an old cottage garden rose
and
Peter Pan, a patio rose.
I'm not sure where I am going to put them in my rather full garden!
Do you have a favourite plant?