Category: Uncategorized

  • Ginger Lily

    Ginger Lily

    My name is Lily and I’m a 9 year old lady ginger cat.
    Lily

    I like to keep busy and I have loads of hobbies and interests such as

    Camping
    Lily in hide

    Trekking
    Lily24

    Climbing
    Ginger cat walking across top of curtains

    Listening to music
    Ginger cat listening to the radio

    Water Divining
    Lily playing06 (1)
    I am quite house proud too and like to do laundry
    Lily21
    I always like to read the labels on things when I go shopping
    Lily
    I am quite strict in the house and make sure there is plenty of discipline
    Lily fighting with Rosie
    But I do take time off to party hard
    Lily
    But I’m a PussyCat really
    Lily19

    You leave your laptop open for 5 minutes and suddenly you have a cat blogging away on it! Is nothing sacred?
    Linda xx

  • The Hardy Hellebore

    The Hardy Hellebore

    I went to my favourite public gardens today to have a look at their Hellebore displays. There were massive clumps of them all around in the herbaceous borders. It’s a bit of a rigmarole getting a decent picture of them as their flowers tend to look down at the ground and you have to get on your hands and knees to look up at them! In fact most of the flowers out today were very close to the ground and I spent a lot of time down there with them this morning.

    Hellebore flower

    Spring 201264

    A chorus line of Hellebores

    Spring 201253

     

    Growing in ascending order!

    Spring 201254

    Then I had a bit of a crawl around and found these Snowdrops. All the other plants had straight leaves but these seemed to have a bit of a swirl about them

    Spring 201242

    Vibrant colour with these Crocuses

    Spring 201210

    Standing up (eventually) produced these

    Spring 201224

    Spring 201226

    and the sun filtering through the peeling bark of the Paperbark Maple

    Spring 201247

    When I see scenes like these, for me the countdown to Spring blooms and gorgeous light has started!

    L xx

  • All You Need is Love

    All You Need is Love

    Black Swans

     

     

    Whistling Ducks

     

    Two Swans

     

    Peach faced Lovebirds

     

    Whistling Ducks

     

    Otter Pair

     

    A few magic moments I’ve been privileged to witness over the years!

    Happy Valentine’s Day xx

  • It will soon be that time again!

    It will soon be that time again!

    I am trying to convince myself that it’ll be Spring soon. I am thinking back to last Spring when I worked at a wildlife hospital looking after anything and everything that came through it’s doors.

    I have to say my favourite little creature was the Magpie. Somebody brought in a nest of little birds, they were so tiny and ugly, but they had loads of personality. They would be quiet as you approached their cage but once they saw you they would all chirp and stretch their little necks up to be fed. We fed them little chunks of wet cat food about every 30mins at the beginning. As they gained more strength they would take turns to hop on your hand to be fed. They were very messy little things and it would take ages to clean out their cage, but worthwhile to see them warm and safe.

    Eventually when they were old enough they progressed on to the outside aviary to get flying practice in and stretch their wings. By now they were feeding themselves but when you went into see them they would revert to helpless little bird mode and jump around to be fed as you can see below

    Maggie Big Mouth

    Every single one from that nest fledged and although it was sad to see my ‘babies’ go it was great to see these brave little things become gorgeous independent adults

    Bird Hand 

    We also had more than our fair share of baby hedgehogs to look after. They were wriggly little things and getting a pipette of liquidised food into them was a full time job. More food went over their little faces than actually down their throats! But again, wonderful to see them grow up fit and healthy.

    Baby Hedgehog

    I have the pipettes and towels at the ready now for this year’s intake!

  • Fabric Find

    Fabric Find

    These are the lovely fabrics I bought at the Curtain Factory Outlet in London.

    Fabric

    I had despaired of finding a curtain fabric retailer at reasonable prices. Went there a couple of Sundays ago on a recommendation from a lady over at The Sewing Forum. I didn’t really expect much, but when I got there I found this HUGE warehouse jam packed with fabric. I was like a kid in a sweetshop, which ones do I buy? So much choice. You could have locked me in there for days and I would still have been happy. Classic, vintage, modern – it was all there.

    Eventually decided on the sequinned fabrics and the Scottie Dog and Vintage Rose ones. (I found the Scottie Dog fabric a couple of days later on sale in my local fabric shop for £5 more a metre!)

    Scottie Dog Fabric

    The staff there were all very helpful and carried the heavy bolts to the cutting table for me.

    Sequin Fabric

    The icing on the cupcake is that there is a Waitrose next door with a big free car park. So parking isn’t a problem and you can spend the money you save on a nice bottle of wine or probably a couple of weeks’ groceries!!

    I love finding places like this, it just makes crafting spends a bit more reasonable and at the same time giving you a bigger and better choice and that elusive and excellent customer service. I should point out I’m not related to anyone there and they didn’t pay me to write this either with money or fabric!!

    And this is Jasmine asleep but not asleep!

    Jasmine snooze

    L xx

  • Nostalgia for Old Black and White Films

    Nostalgia for Old Black and White Films

    If anyone had said to me that I would actually go to the cinema in 2012 to watch a silent film, thoroughly enjoy it and leave in a warm happy fuzzy frame of mind I would have said they were bonkers and look for the gin bottle they were obviously hiding about their person. By now you’ve probably guessed the film I’m talking about is The Artist.  It was cleverly done, funny and had a cute dog who most definitely deserves an Animal Oscar. I reckon little Uggie was probably the hardest worker on set!

    uggie

    But getting back to black and white films, I love them! They’re fantastic to watch on cold wet winter afternoons or when you’re a bit under the weather and tucked up under a warm duvet on the sofa.

    I’ll watch anything with Margaret Rutherford, she was one of the funniest comic actresses of her time and to me she will always be THE Miss Marple, no other actress has come close in my opinion.

    margaret-rutherford2

    Spookily, she also starred in one of my absolutely favourite old British films Passport to Pimlico.

    Passport to Pimlico2

    When anyone mentions Ealing Comedies this is the film that comes to mind. I think it was one of their very best productions. Nothing beats the British sense of humour!

    And last but not least the incomparable Alec Guinness in Kind Hearts and Coronets

    kind-hearts-and-coronets-original

    and the school I always wished I could go to ……St Trinians

     

    StTrinians_460x276

     

    L xx

  • Cool Bear

    Cool Bear

     

    For a couple of hours I did break my addiction to crocheting motifs and I crocheted a little polar bear instead. This is a pic of Parky at home in the Arctic

    Polar Bear2

    I have to admit it was fun putting him together; when you’ve got bodies, heads and limbs lying all over the coffee table it’s sometimes hard to imagine that a little person is going to be born from all of that. I’ve never crocheted a toy before and all thanks to the lovely lady at Yellow Pink and Sparkly for the pattern.

    I’m off to have a look at Freeform Crochet now!

    L xx

  • Teeny Tiny Space

    Teeny Tiny Space

    I could spend hours on YouTube watching all the funny cat videos. I came across this one this morning. I’m constantly amazed how kitties can squeeze themselves into impossibly small spaces and be able to turn around in them.

    Of course my ultimate fav. Youtube cat video is the amazing Cravendale Cats with Thumbs. I like the one in the woolly hat and the one reading The Art of Military Strategy. I think that’s the same book as Daisy, my naughty Tortie has been reading. Or perhaps she wrote it –

    Chapter One – How to Make Your Significant Owner Cry

    1. Pee on her computer

    2. Practise projectile vomiting, preferably in her knicker drawer.

    Yes she seems to be able to out manouevre me in every one of my attempts to make her behave. This is her on the phone to one of her pals.

    Daisy and phone04

    Asserting who’s top cat in the household

    Daisy fighting with Lily

    And in her latest role as a Bond Villain

    Close up of the eyes of a tortie or brindle cat

    But I love her anyway xxxxxxx

  • I have developed a weird addiction to ……….

    I have developed a weird addiction to ……….

    …..crocheting motifs!  I’ve
    recently taken up the crochet hook again and have been crocheting
    motifs as a form of refresher course. The lovely thing about crochet is
    that it can be such a portable craft. I just pop a ball of yarn, hook
    and a couple of A4 sheets of patterns into a spare makeup bag and put it
    in my bag and voila I’ve got something to do while having a coffee out,
    taking a rest on a country walk or waiting in a long queue at the post
    office. Actually I’ve never done the last one, but I do have the
    equipment should I feel the urge. I am trying to wean myself off the
    motif kick and a little crocheted polar bear is gradually beginning to
    see the light of day. Will post  a pic when he is fully formed. In the
    meantime a mug shot of my motifs!
     Forgot to say I like beads as well!

    Slainte xx