Merry Christmas everyone!

Have a good one!

Winter soltice

Today is that special, the shortest day. After this we know the nights, very slowly, begin to pull out again. What a glorious day it's been.
Blue sky.....

....washing on the line....

...and with the mild weather we have geraniums.....

......and these sweet little pansies...

.....there's plenty of berries......

.... there are little violets....

....petunias, yes, I kid you not...

....the best of all are these....

....the name of this rose is Tequila Sunrise. According to Mr Titchmarsh says we should cut them off. No way.....

....I want to enjoy them for just a little longer. After all, it could be snowing before long!

Oooops!

I've been trying to sort out my blog background as it was messed up. Not sorted it yet, so, I'm back to a simple one, for now. Hopefully I can get it to how I want it again, when I've finished my other jobs for the day. Normal service will be resumed.... as they used to say! In the meantime.....

......this is my " test card"!!!!

Time for the real ones!

After making so many of these.....

.....it was time to make some of these.....

....I've only made two dozen for now. There's already one missing!
The house now smells of Christmas. It may be something to do with the brandy in the mincemeat!

The wonder of autumn

For the last few weeks, some days the weather has been glorious. Much different to how it was this time last year! We have been out and about (when time has permitted) and so I thought I'd share some of the pictures I've taken along the way.
A visit to Calke Abbey.....

beautiful borders, still in bloom....

...fabulous fungi....

....it always facinates me, this one especially....

..this was a "by chance" find!
...wonderful wildlife....

...the young....

...and the old....

....Matlock and surrounding area....

.....

...Caudwells Mill...

....a stop off for this....

.....wildlife...

.....Bradfordale...

.....

.....and where we live....

it's wonderful having all this on our doorstep...

...I don't know how much longer this mild weather will last, but let's enjoy it whilst it's here!

A weekend treat.

Last Saturday we drove up to York. This was a trip we'd planned a while ago. The weather was lovely, so hopefully we were in for a good weekend.
We stayed just outside York and once we were settled into the hotel we caught the bus into the city centre. It's so easy doing it this way because the public transport is so good.
It was busy, as always, but nevertheless as someone who doesn't like shopping that much, there is so much to see and do, there's no time to get fed up.
There's always a crowd at the Minster, but it never stops me wanting to take pictures.....

....there's even some blus sky!
It's these which facinate me......

.....magnificently standing there for all to see, ( if you look upwards, of course!) then I turned my lens on to this beauty....

....there he sits, so powerful, and such a wonderful colour. I do love the expression on his face....

.....I then turned my camera to the other side of the road....

....another wonderful building, there are so many, with so much history...

......on every visit, there's always something else to see.
The Shambles is always a hotspot.....

....with so many shops, there's something for everyone....

.....there's always plenty of street entertainment too...

....this young man was very talented, juggling knives whilst on an 8' unicycle. Not for the fainthearted!
The riverboats were full of passengers....

.....something which we haven't yet done, but it is on our list of things to do.
The last trip we had here was early February and since that last visit there are more new shops, all with different gifts and treasures instead of the same boring mass produced items. The continental market was up and running and so to was the real market. I call it that because there hasn't been a real and decent market in Derby for 40 years, and I doubt whether there ever will be again! Sad but true.
We also spent time in the railway museum and the Yorkshire museum. These are an absolute must if you are visiting.
We also had a day in Whitby. It was very windy.....

....very busy, but so beautiful...

....

......

....We did, of course have fish and chips whilst we were there, who wouldn't? But there were other temptations too...

....you either love them or hate them. Me, I love them!....

I also couldn't resist this for someone in the family.....

There's a Bram Stoker festival this coming weekend at Whitby, now that would be something to see.
We have had three lovely days away and it certainly recharged our batteries. Now we're back home and I have get back to everyday things.
I have some orders to fulfill and other projects to do. You can read all about what I'm doing on my handmade blog
and not forgetting the housework too!

i read...

I've always loved reading and I'll always find some time ( from somewhere) to read. Even if it's just for a very short while.
As you can see, this particular bookshelf is quite full.....

....this one is in a bedroom. My interests are varied and you'll find quite a selection of titles on these shelves.....

...some are very old, and these have been passed to me from family, and I treasure them.....

...some are quite new and informative, some are inspiring and must be read time and time again.....

....some are so informative, packed with patterns, ideas, inspiration, for gardens, sewing, knitting, paper, decorating, and much more....

..........

...some are just for fun, ( the Beano annual of course!)
At the moment I am revisiting one of the great writers.......

....I hadn't read any HG Wells for a long time, about 30 years to be precise. So when I was given this collection I just had to put aside my intended reading list and begin with this.
There is so much lost when these classics are turned into movies, but then again I suppose wouls say that there is much to gain, with the special effects that are used. But there is nothing more special than your own imagination, is there?
The other books I have lined up for this winter are these...

......as you can see, I do like books written in this era.....

....and I also have some classics to revisit....

....These books along with a few others are the ones I favour, at the moment.
Last year our daughter bought her husband a Kindle for Christmas. I thought it was amazing, but could not imagine me ever wanting one as I love having the paper book in my hands and literally turning the pages, and where would I even want to use it?
My other love is music, I listen often. I don't have a favourite genre, just anything which sounds good, from classical, pop, jazz, folk, to (some) heavy metal. ior my birthday earlier this year, I had an Ipod touch. The first thing I thought was, would I use it, ( or be able to, as I'm not very technical) or would it just sit there until Mick used it?
Well the answer to those questions are yes, I do use it, a lot. For my music, for plays which I have downloaded to listen to, whilst knitting, sewing or whatever. But the main thing is, is that I have ibooks on it too. I never thought I would ever use the application for this, as I always take a book with me whenever we go away, but now, (as long as I remember my ipod) I shall have a book with me....

......Our son and daughter laugh at me and tell me I've joined the 21st century at last. But I'm not a gadget person, I don't have a wii or playstation, or whatever others there are. I don't have a dishwasher or tumble drier, ( never have, never will, can't see the need,for me) and I don't have a posh mobile, just one that makes calls, texts, and takes pictures, that's all I want.
But, now I have this little piece of gadgetry and I love it.
So the next time we are away, I shall be prepared as I have now added some books to my library. Wonders will never cease, as my son always says!!!!