slightly spooky

Here's what to do with all those shells collected from the beach! I was snooping around Margate this week and visited the shell grotto,  Margates number one visitor attraction, soon to be eclipsed by the spectacular Turner Contemporary arts center due to open in 2011. The privately owned grotto was discovered under a field in 1835 and it's origin is still a mystery today. Over four and a half million shells encrust the walls of the curving tunnels, said to depict life's path from birth to death in slightly creepy symbols. They mostly looked like flowers to us although we looked hard for the owl, tortoise and squid!
Happy halloween everyone!

happy 19

Another year, I can't believe that my beautiful twins are 19 today! Happy birthday pretty and handsome! It has been a year of ups and downs so I think I deserve a present as well, I am going out to look for a little something from me to me!

love letters

I couldn't decide between these two lovely vintage Olivetti typewriters when I saw them in the charity shop so I bought them both. I love their morris minor colours and the red button and the ding! Anyone here under the age of twenty is fascinated by them. I think they are just amazed by letters coming out of a such a primitive mechanical object.
I couldn't find an exclaimation mark key which shows that the overuse of this particular bit of punctuation must be a very modern thing!!
As it says on the last image, I am going to do my first roddy&ginger giveaway next week so please come back and take part!!! details soon.

Roddy in teal

I have just put a new colourway for the Roddy cushion into my online and etsy shops, a light teal and chocolate with a chocolate linen reverse. It goes rather nicely with City Windows cushion for the urban owl and Pomegranate Tree cushion for his country cousin.

autumn sunshine

A big bowl of quinces and a sunny autumn day made me want to capture all the yellow in the house before winter sets in. There's a lot more, I'll save them to cheer myself up on a rainy day!

handy book

My sister gave me this little Penguin book on my birthday, full of handy advice to make me feel guilty. My allottment is looking very neglected at the moment, I still have giant courgettes and I have not been diligently filling up cold frames with seedlings like this lady. So I am unlikely to get 2' 6"(!) carrots next year. I do have a bumper crop of quinces again so I might make some membrillo, although last year it involved about five hours of stirring so maybe it will be jelly this time.

scandinavian inspiration

I am having trouble keeping up with my amazingly creative sister's craft books, this one came out earlier this year and is a lovely selection of Scandinavian inspired sewing ideas. It's called Scandinavian Needlecraft by Clare Youngs published by Cico Books. All 35 beautiful, original projects are perfect to be stitched in front of a cosy log fire on a gloomy wet day like today. However, I remember Clare making the thick felted wool slippers and mittens under the fig tree in 40º heat of a Spanish summer.
Clare and her family are leaving London today and moving to the Kent coast - so I want to wish them all lots of luck and I am looking forward to some seaside inspired books!