Postcard from Wales

July 20th 2009

Dear All,

Just a quick postcard from a very beautiful part of Wales. We are staying just outside New Quay in Cardigan Bay. It is a pretty little village clinging to the cliff with a harbour still used by fishing boats but mainly used these days by holiday makers.

I will be back next weekend to catch up proper and bore you silly with ALL my photos!

Love

Lyn and Hubby

xxxxx

Off on holiday-again!

We are off on holidays again. We are going down to West Wales to my brothers caravan just outside New Quay. The above photo is of me aged 8 at a camp site many years ago in New Quay, and we have been going most summers since. My brother is going to sell the van soon, so this may be the last year we go so I am a bit sad.
We are back next Saturday then off to the Tatton Park RHS show on Sunday, then down to Shropshire for a week so no blogging for a while. If I can I will pop on next weekend and leave a post card.
Have a good two weeks everybody and see you all when we get back.

Bob.

Today I am thinking about my little boy Bob. He died almost a year ago and we all still miss him.

He was a very timid old gentleman but very cuddly with me and hubby. In the weeks after he died I wrote down lots of things we remembered about him. About the things he did, what he liked and disliked. He hated loud noises and the sound of tin foil being unwrapped from the tube!

He was 16 years old when he died, he fell asleep in the sunshine after a short illness. It was peaceful and as he did not like going to the vet was the best way for him to go.

Bob

13th September 1992-23rd July 2008

Settle, North Yorkshire

Today we went to Settle in North Yorkshire. It is a lovely historic market town about an hour and a half drive from us.

Way back in the March issue of Country Living there was an article about Kate Lynch and her Exhibition 'Sheep, from lamb to loom' and I noted that it was showing at The Folly in Settle (closes 4th August then it moves to Frome, Somerset 22nd August- 3rd October at the Black Swan Arts, then to the Guildhall Heritage and Arts Centre, Dulverton, Exmoor from 5th-17th October)

Kate travelled the West Country with her sketchbook, following seven sheep farming families in Somerset through the seasons. There is also a narrative made by Alister Goolden of the sounds and voices of the journey. It is a wonderful exhibition and the charcoal drawings and oil paintings are beautiful and atmospheric. Please go and see it if you can. (I emailed Kate and she kindly let me mention her here). Go onto her link above and see lots more lovely artwork.

'Barbara in her woolshop, Fiddlesticks' by Kate Lynch

'Henry counts his ewes off the saltings, Bridgewater Bay' by Kate Lynch

The Folly (top left picture in mosaic above) was built in the 1670's as a gentleman's residence, it was reputed to of acquired its unfortunate name when it was left empty and then used for a range of purposes. It has many huge mullion windows and is now renovated and Grade 1 listed. It now houses The Museum of Craven Life and also has temporary exhibitions.

It is a lovely town to walk around. There is a market of local produce, ironmongers, grocers, florists, a cobblers and 'The Naked Man cafe' where we had a filling lunch (including a jam slice!)

mosaic mad!

I have discovered how to make mosaic pictures thanks to Vanessa at 'Do you mind if I knit' She told us how easy it is if you pop over to Big Huge Labs and download your pics-so I did!

The one above is a mosaic of Lucy over the past year. She's such a spoilt little girl!


Then these are some of the flowers in our garden at the moment.

Brill isn't it? I love it-OK, many of you already do mosaics but think back to the first time you created one and that's how I am feeling today!!! Sad I know, I should get a life!

Anyway today we popped over to Holmfirth to visit the Arts Week on its last day. The quality is fabulous!!! It did make me want to come home and get creative, so I made some corsages and photo mosaics.



Holmfirth is where they film Last Of the Summer Wine. The Civic Hall is a large community space and in one of the charity shop windows I found this lovely outfit. The Designer Julie Taylor makes Vintage style clothes using other clothes and from scratch. They are lovely to look at and this photo does not do it justice I am afraid. She has some things on http://www.moaningminnie.etsy.com/

We are going to be out and about tomorrow too so I will do another post tomorrow. Meanwhile here is something else you can play with on Big Huge Labs.


I always wanted to be on the front cover of a magazine!

My prize, my tag, my idea and my garden.

Dahlia 'Art Deco'

My dahlias are starting to pop. I have lots of dahlias but I did lose some over the winter. This one is a new one that accidentally ended up in my basket at the garden centre last weekend!

I am such a happy girl today- look what was waiting for me when I got home tonight after being stuck in lots and lots of traffic-

My prize from Jane at Jane and the happy crow. I love them all I really do and can't stop smiling-I have been spoilt. This leads me onto my idea. I have decided to do a giveaway of my own. Now it won't be for a while as we will be away on holiday in a couple of weeks-more about that soon- and also I need a little reason for doing one. So I will do a give away on my 100th Post, this I think is my 80th and I will try and post a little more often than I have been so it will soon come around. I will need to also get my act together and make something for it but I plan to do more crafting in my summer holiday. So watch this space!

Right, it has taken me a while but I was tagged all the way from Italy by the lovely Micheala and have to name '6 Unimportant things I love' so here goes-

1.My drawers full of table linen

2.Tea parties

3. My pink Roberts radio

4. Cath Kidston bags made from recycled plastic bottles

5. Trevano TLC cream (kept on my bedside table)

and in honour of Micheala who tagged me-

6. White Wizard cleaner!

So now I will tag someone-

Diane at Heart shaped you've been tagged!!!

peonies, planes and happy hooking.

This is my beautiful peony I brought from my old garden four years ago and this is the first summer it has flowered since I dug it up in Autumn 2004. She is beautiful and frilly and pink and fluffy!

Today we were up early and drove down to Lincolnshire to the RAF Waddington Air Show. It was hot!!

We got down to Lincoln in one and a half hours and then spent the next hour stuck in traffic hardly moving-good job I took my crochet.

This is my ripple pattern, not sure what I am going to do with it yet I am just happily hooking away!

We arrived and parked by 12 noon and had a wonderful afternoon watching the air displays and looking at the aircraft on the ground. I even found a small craft tent and bought a small lavender drawer scenter in a pretty fabric and tied with a ribbon.

I took loads of photographs and videos (some just of the sky!) but my favourite were the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight when a Lancaster (the big one) a hurricane and a spitfire flew in formation on a fly past. They each then did a little air display and then landed. Hubby was excited to see on the itinerary the only flying Vulcan still in existence but although it was there it was grounded because of some safety checks. He was sooooooo disappointed, poor thing.

We did see a Typhoon which was very loud and fast and the Red Arrows were fantastic. I got a little sun burnt despite piling on the suncream so need to take a cool shower and put on my Jim jams and slippers. Night Night.

I have not forgotten my tag from Micheala but things have been a bit hectic around here and I promise to post it during next week.