Troc, Broc and Recup'

The rough with the smooth... the smooth with the rough!

2012-01-25T20:06:00.002+01:00

I had a bit of fun playing with juxtapositions last night - I put a rough horn tankard filled with garden cuttings, next to Ben's silver Christening bowl, on a hand-woven, goats' hair mat. Rough and smooth; dull and gleaming; European, American and Asian; 19th, 20th and 21st century: hand-crafted-all.

Don't you love the silver fish tongs (for sugar), and this cheery little Inuit tooth-topped spoon?

A happy chappy. I didn't buy him so I don't feel any guilt about the tooth's former owner.

I only meant to post about the physical juxtapositions of this display but it struck me today that our life is full of juxtapositions too: illness and operations (Son 1's knee again), sweet gestures of affection, exhaustion and concerns, beauty and blessings.I think that in the past I spent too much time 'getting through' the hard times. I didn't notice that, juxtaposed with them, were sweet and beautiful times. Now I think that looking at those beautiful times is what's meant to give us strength to deal with the tricky parts of life.

A little domestic chatter...

2012-01-23T14:55:00.005+01:00

We had a whirl-wind week last week, with Son 1 and me charging to and from Toulouse (apparantly one of Europe's most congested cities), Ben also working hard and Son 2 feeling slightly neglected! A domesticated weekend was called for... Son 1 decided to cook, big time. He made fudge as a thank-you present to the museum staff who'd helped his work experience, and then turned to the Hairy Biker's Cookbook for various feasts: on Saturday night (rather late) we ate Romanian mititei (pronounced 'mitchi') and a fantastic Mexican chocolate pudding - sorry, no photos, we were too busy eating! We even fed Son 2's friend, who was staying over as a favour to his mum, and had eaten before he came... he had space for a choc pud, though!

On Sunday morning I decided to get in the kitchen with Son 1, as he was attempting to produce Romainian Sarmale, which has a two-hour cooking time. Even with me and Ben helping the night before, Son 1 had been a slow chef... but with two of us on the go we produced this really excellent stew. It probably doesn't look special but 4 out of 5 of us (Son 2's friend included) gave it very high marks - a super Sunday lunch! And only slightly late. We don't pay any attention to Son 2's vote, unfortunately, as he's a very conservative eater...

On Sunday afternoon the three boys went off to play with three brothers who live nearby ('their parents were slightly overwhelmed at times', admits Son 1...). I joined Ben in the garden, where he had been chopping wood for a few hours. I held branches while he sliced through them with the chainsaw, and then moved the wood to the shed, where he stacked it beautifully:That should do us for the rest of the winter!Today has provided the blessed relief of staying home alone. I tidied and sorted and cleaned, and took some photos! The (modern) boutis quilt and vintage lace pillows came from a charity shop last week, and the 'wooden' tray below (it's actually modern plastic) was from one of the Troc shops in Toulouse. My visits there were not entirely cultural, as you see!

Today I decided to have one of my periodic battles with my very own 'Sofa that Mocks Me'. (The original 'Couch that Mocks Me' was Lola Nova's and can be seen here and here, but I have one of my own...). I was fairly happy with the technicolour cheeriness (and above all cleanliness) of the result:Whilst giving the rug a good hoover (not that you'd know it from these photos) I thought, as always, of Jane. She told me once that she doesn't like modern oriental rugs, but does like them when they've got old and battered.Old enough for you, Jane? (Spot the super mend by someone before my time.)Battered enough for you, Jane? (I've mended this edge so many times that I'm currently on slobby strike, I'm afraid.)But I really, really, do love my rug, and I think Jane will too!So, the rest of this afternoon holds more time in the kitchen for me. Serge, our neighbour and Ben's partner in gardening swaps, asked if we could take half of a pumpkin (or courge). One of his had grown into the hedge, and the only way to get it out would be to cut down a tree or cut up the pumpkin! Sensibly, he decided on cutting up the pumpkin, having checked that we would take part of its bulk of his hands...I managed to pass the quarter-piece on to another friend today, so now I'm left with half of this mis-shapen monster (do you see where it grew against the tree branches?) and am going downstairs to chop and bake and produce cheese sauce pumpkin bake and roasted pumpkin soup! So, what are your domestic plans this week?

Toulouse - Ancient, Medieval and Modern

2012-01-20T17:42:00.003+01:00

It's been an incredible week - exhausting but full of exciting opportunities, especially for Son 1, who was at the Museum of Antiquities in Toulouse for his first work experience. As I was saying earlier, in a rare fly-by the computer, this has seems to have involved me spending most of the week navigating narrow, medieval city streets by car. Sheesh! But of course I knew I could make the best of this - on days without much work I spent lots of time in the city centre, which I normally avoid. Yesterday morning I dropped off the young man (because that's how he seems this week) and went around and then into the medieval basilica church of St. Sernin. Poor St. Sernin is a home-grown martyr. He was the local church leader in Toulouse at a time when the Roman city felt particularly threatened by invasion, and they tried to appease the traditional gods by insisting the Christian leader sacrifice a bull. St Sernin refused and was tied to the bull for his pains. The bull ran off (its route is immortalised in the street name 'Rue du Taur') and the saint's remains were buried where this church now stands. The church is much more recent than this story - it's mainly what we would call 'Norman' in England, although that's meaningless down here!

On one side of St. Sernin's basilica is the old medieval hospital, which is now the museum. I spent a bit of time looking round it, and was then joined by Son 1 - whenever he didn't have appointments or tasks he was given free time to drift round the museum. He gave me the guided tour that he'd already been given by the staff, and showed me lots of lovely little details that I wouldn't have found on my own - particularly details such as carved snails and lizards on the marble plaques from the imperial villa near Toulouse. It was great to give him the chance to share his knowledge!

The rather functional, modern vehicles in the photo of the museum are explained in this snapshot! Life goes on in Toulouse - behind the medieval buildings and above the Roman mausoleum was a carriage, setting up ready to ride round the city advertising a Blood Drive in the City Square! I hope they got lots of blood - we can't give ours here because we lived in Britian during the Mad Cow years...

Have a lovely weekend, friends! We will be recovering, chopping wood, and hosting the usual round of teenaged boy-related events.

Art in Toulouse

2012-01-18T13:24:00.004+01:00

This week is all about Son 1's work experience - I seem to be contstantly shuttling him into and out of Toulouse - but it's well worth it, given how much he's loving learning about the archaeology of Toulouse at the Antiquities Museum. When not working, I've decided to make the most of having to go into the centre of the city (I usually skirt it for my teaching tasks). Yesterday I wasn't working in the morning so I went to the Fine Art Museum to see an exhibition that had caught my eye when it was first advertised:

It's an exhibition of the small, intimate paintings of individuals, families and rural scenes which became popular shortly before the French Revolution. Instead of showing powerful people or religious stories on huge canvasses, the Dutch fashion for painting real, ordinary people, spread to France and was beautifully interpreted in both pre- and post-Revolutionary France. Rich people paid to be painted and poor people also became subjects for the artists - clothes and skin were depicted in incredible detail, and background details were surprisingly sketchy. The silks and ribbons of the aristocracy and the cottons and muslins of the Revolution and Empire periods were wonderful! The exhibition was all I hoped for and more, and it was a wonderful way to make use of my trips into Toulouse.

Tomorrow... the museum and one of the big churches, followed by lunch with Son 1!

This week...

2012-01-16T15:34:00.004+01:00

Hello everyone - I've been really enjoying the moments I've had to pop over and visit those who are joining in the Thrill of What You Already Have - do look in my sidebar and go to see the posts, if you haven't already! January is turning out to be incredibly busy, which is odd given than my language school has very little work for me...This week is a particularly exciting one - Son 1 is doing his first work experience, and is delighted to have been accepted at Toulouse's Museum of Antiquities. He'll have some guided tours around the museum and the different sites, some interviews with different staff members, a few tasks, and some free time in the museum.

Have a great week yourselves.

Update: He's got a full timetable - the 'childcare' they referred to is merely sitting with the staff as they accession artefacts - he gets to join in and he really likes that! Today he saw some gold coins with the head of Nero and got to measure bells for an exhibition on musical instruments. Fantastic!

The Thrill of What You Alreay Have - January

2012-01-14T12:41:00.005+01:00

Welcome to The Thrill of What You Already Have - a monthly opportunity to take inspiration from a picture and create a display using only what you already own. The theory is that the thrill of shopping isn't the only, or even the best, way to enjoy that wonderful frisson of 'look what I got!' If we can get the same frisson for free, we're meeting budgets, resolutions, restrictions and environmental concerns with a thrill instead of with a groan! Here goes... This month's picture was a wonderfully cool 1930s poster advertising Dunfermline, Scotland's ancient capital. The grey silhouettes, black shadows and pale orangey-pink gothic architecture are actually quite a challenge in the first month of this event, I think.

So here is my own collection of 'stuff', raided from drawers, shelves and boxes around the house. Shadows come free! I was quite pleased, seeing the photos lined up together in the file, that they did blend nicely with my photographs of the original railway advertising poster.

Now on to my gloat over the lovelies I found! The tray is Scottish, which is appropriate. It's from the National Trust for Scotland and presumably depicts a Scottish castle..? Really, I should have looked before I put things on top of it. I wanted to add more Gothic shapes, so that's the wooden lid, more black (those lovely carved, wooden African animals), more orange and more natural textures (the lichen ball and Chinese lanterns) and something French:this sweet autograph book with the little 1920s mademoiselle eating a lovely orangey fruit. Actually, the silk on the bobbin behind her is French too.For height and greyness I was pleased to remember my lavender-scented candle with the grey baroque-type decoration. I put it on a plastic cup on top of the wooden pedestal, and covered the cup with a black silk scarf. Then it was just a bit more of the natural bits and bobs and a pretty Russian painted egg which seemed to have the right colours.

So there we have it: January! I'm going to avoid Mr Linky (I'd have to pay to get that done, which is not in the spirit of the thing) and will make up a blog list of all your posts, if you just let me know here when you've posted! If you want to join in, the 'rules' such as they are can be found in the post below this one. I'm really looking forward to seeing how you interpret the picture with what you already have!

EDIT: Blogger is being really strange about comments at the moment. Even I can't get into the comments box for this post tonight! So please do email me if you would like to join in, and do leave a link to your blog so that I can find you! I'm going to try to reset my comments box now, to see if it helps...

The Thrill of What You Alreay Have - Launch

2012-01-11T10:40:00.001+01:00

Back in October, when we were all running out of money for thrifting, we were discussing the value of rediscovering old treasures, and the pleasure to be found in the things you already own. We suggested that a monthly blogging event for 2012 could be a lot of fun, so here it is:Commenters felt that Carolyn summed up the ideas nicely when she said: "I think this is an excellent idea, esp as it not only encourages us to be content, to be happy, to appreciate and enjoy what we have; but it will also encourage us to look for things we had forgotten, to tidy out those cupboards, to reclaim old forgotten loves."This is the idea - every month I post a photo from my calendar (this year it's iconic Scottish rail tourism posters from the 1920s and '30s) and we use that photo - colour schemes, shapes, images, location, content - ANY aspect of it - to inspire us. We search through our drawers, boxes, attics, stables etc and make up a display of lovely or surprising things, and then share a photo on our blog. If you're like me, having a monthly excuse to rummage, combine, display and then gloat will be a very enjoyable experience. Sharing our pictures will really give us a chance to thrill over our 'stuff' without any need to go out and buy any more of it. And seeing photos of other people's ideas should give us further inspiration of what we can do ourselves.
The one key rule is - work with what you already have. OK, you knew that. I think the only other rule should be DON'T APOLOGISE! You don't have to apologise for missing a month or four, and please don't apologise for having something similar to/different from other people - just do what you like, as and when you can!

So, if you'd like to join in this month, grab the title photo and put it in your sidebar if you can, and then get musing about what this Dunfermline picture sparks in your mind. I'm thinking that I might need to go into the garden and get some twigs (garden stuff is certainly What We Already Have) but I've not got going on greys, oranges, pinks, blacks, gothic arches etc... I need to get thinking! When I've got it all together, I'll make a little display on the wooden chest in front of my calendar, and take a photo or five to share with you. In that post I'll try to get Mr Linky or something similar working, so that you can link your posts to mine.

Have I forgetten anything? Let me know what you think...

DIY Galette des Rois

2012-01-10T10:07:00.000+01:00

Thanks for your thoughts yesterday, and for your ongoing comments on my Coming to France post. Having discharged my maternal duties for now (long wait at doctor's for Son 1's sore foot, and research for vocabulary for Son 2's Spanish homework *a love letter!!!*) I can now take the time to tell you about our homemade Galette des Rois. Firstly, my search for rolls of puff pastry scored a real result - our supermarket's own brand does a special Epiphany pack - fève and crown included! I snapped it up. If you're looking for the history and tradition of this cake, I talked about it here two years ago.

The pack also includes a recipe. I did find an internet recipe and I gave it to you last Friday, but this one is just that much easier, and, given a very, very sore bottom and reduced bendability (40-something women should not ice-skate unless very good at it) I decided that easy was desirable, this weekend!

Relieved to be standing upright, I put the first puff pastry roll and its baking parchment into the case. I pricked the base with a fork, to stop it bubbling up, and then I put the filling ingredients into a bowl - I did put in half ground almonds and half ground hazelnuts, as my internet recipe suggested.

I mixed it up (half-heartedly, as the butter was rather less soft that ideal) and put it into the base.

Then I put the second puff pastry circle on top and turned over/crimped down the edges - all very simple but fun.In the baker's near the ice rink I'd been stiffly studying the patterns cut into the tops of their galettes. My pack suggested these ideas:I felt it was wise to start with something simple, so I went for straight lines

but made the pattern diamond-shaped rather than square. I think it worked well!

Spot the deliberate mistake?I left out the fève! I bet that happens quite often. I found a bit near the edge where I thought I could shove it in without being too obvious, and glazed the cake with egg yolk.

Part way through the baking, the egg yolk was darkening much quicker than I liked, so I hauled it out and gave it a baking paper cover before putting it in for the rest of the time.And here it is! With bought pastry, it really only took about 15 minutes to make. I'm not sure about the cost difference - it probably does cost less to make it yourself, even with the expensive ground hazelnuts, but only just. The key question is: did it taste better? Well, I think it did. I didn't get photos of it cut, as I'd intended, because it disappeared so fast! We ate it, warmed, with ice cream or cream. And guess who found the féve? Me! Here are this year's fèves on our mantelpiece - Ben got the santon (traditional Provençal nativity figure) with the water jar, Son 2 found the flamingo (see map of France on the back showing were you find flamingoes in our country) and I got the little circus elephant. Hmm, very French that, still having circus animals...Tomorrow, I'm going to launch The Thrill of What You Already Have. We discussed this last year and decided that a fun, and free, blog project for the year would be to do a monthly display of rediscovered treasures, or things we already own, seen in a new light. If you're interested in enjoying the good things you already own, instead of going out and buying more, then please do pop in tomorrow and find out what's going on!

Made it!

2012-01-09T15:48:00.001+01:00

Thanks for all your comments. I made it and it was yummy and tomorrow, I hope, there'll be time for me to tell you how it went... but mother's duties call right now. See you later!

Celebrate!

2012-01-06T17:03:00.002+01:00

Oh yes, the celebrations haven't finished here in France! In our family we link the Epiphany King Cakes to our own celebrations - the anniversary of our arrival in this country. Thank you for all your comments on my 'heart-felt' post below - I feel very privileged that I have friends in blogging who will read what I have to say and take the time to respond. So, if you've read the post below, you know that our arrival in France was not without incident, and that, although the good things (like these gateaux des rois) started straight away, there were plenty of hard things to deal with for a number of years. As you clearly understood, looking at your comments, I don't regret our move here one little bit, even though it was difficult. And the uncomfortable process of 'breaking' has proved to be rewarded one-hundred times over, so much so that I'm not so scared of difficult times any more. And yes, I can speak French now - we had a meal with two of Ben's colleagues last night and through it I was thinking: "I am chatting in French, I wish my blogging friends could see me!" French is a language of beauty and perfection, and my French is neither beautiful nor perfect, but it does work.So tonight is Twelfth Night ('or what you will') and we'll be taking down our fairly low-key Christmas decorations. Then I'm going to celebrate Epiphany this weekend by baking my very-first galette des rois. I've found a recipe here in English (American cups or metric measurements) if you'd like to join me! And for those of you who read French or are good at code-breaking (I know there are a few readers in both categories!), here is a recipe for our more local couronne des rois, which is a bread-based delight, as pictured at the top of my post. I'll let you know how we get on - please tell me if you have a go too!

Seven Years in France...

2012-01-05T11:52:00.004+01:00

Seven years ago I was reeling. We'd taken a leap in the dark, accepting a contract for Ben which was so informal it was hardly written down, and we'd worked up to the last minute, trying to pack in between jobs. I'd tried to take a few French lessons but had very little success - the boys had more fun with a French woman who'd moved to our town, but I was paralysed by bad memories of school French lessons and could only rely on Ben, who'd spent holidays with French families as a teenager, and had continued with evening classes when the boys were tiny.

Seven years ago we'd spent one night in a French motel, inconveniently located far from our rented home, because I'd booked it over the internet and didn't really know where anything was around Toulouse.

Seven years ago we drove to our rental home, with no furniture and no fire lit. The boys played, Ben did something practical, and I huddled in the corner in a sleeping bag. I'd had a run of illness all autumn and winter, culminating in a recurring virus which kept me low for the whole of Christmas at Ben's parents' home.

Seven years ago I felt lost, helpless and incapable of analysing my own situation. I could only hope to press on.

Seven years ago we had breakfast in the motel and saw a French couronne de roi for the first time! We ate one again last night, to celebrate.

Seven years ago we drove out to the beautiful rental house which was so 'Ben and Flossie' that it infuenced our choice of home when we chose to buy out here.

Seven years ago we were welcomed by kind French motel staff and new neighbours.

Seven years ago the boys started free school, with free transport, before we'd even paid a cent of French tax.

Seven years ago I began to notice the weather, the seasons, the sky, in a way I'd never done before.

Seven years ago I began to break. I needed to break because I was too inflexible. The break took a few years and it hurt. It hurt me and it hurt other people as I tried to hold on to my inflexibility with ever-fiercer certainty.

But finally the break came to a point where I wasn't inflexible any more. I became open. I became, just a bit, softer.

Until I had broken, I couldn't take in more. Until I had broken, I couldn't become whole.

Something much more complete, much more real, is filling the gaps caused by that break.

This is a story you may recognise from your own point of view. From my viewpoint, as a Christian, all those years of singing this song now seem to finally be making sense;

Spirit of the living God,
Fall afresh on me.
Spirit of the living God,
Fall afresh on me.
Break me,
Melt me,
Mould me,
Fill me.
Spirit of the living God,
Fall afresh on me.

2011 - The year in seasonal food

2012-01-02T16:42:00.000+01:00

Happy New Year, friends! Thanks for all your seasonal wishes and your excellent blog posts, which I'm slowly enjoying between unpacking, housework, homework, boy-minding etc (there are the usual five boys here at the moment, although they can mainly mind themselves).

I wanted to do a now-traditional review of the past year, and spent some time pondering the most appropriate set of photos to accompany the post. I finally fixed on seasonal food, one photo for each month - harvesting, cooking and eating being such a good way to mark the seasons, and thrifty and environmentally friendly, too. The photos all came from my blog, so I was limited by what I'd posted about - some months I hardly photographed food at all. But, rest assured, we ate... So, in January 2011, various members of the family went skiing and cooked a hot meal in the snowy Pyrenees. In blogging we enjoyed the excellent Wind in the Willows week, which has created its own follow-up event in the form of a touring book, which I believe will make its way to France at some point in 2012! I also asked the question, "What is Modern Vintage?" and you came up with some good answers. The food photo of the month is this Roasted Pumpkin and "Wild" Mushroom tart. The pumpkins are in the kitchen again, slowly being eaten up - it's a good thing I searched the photos and was reminded of this recipe!

In February I over-did the jam in this Valentine's Day tart. Sticky and sweeeeeeeeet! Other than that, we had a big blogging conversation about the use of handkerchiefs. I love 'em. I sold quite a few of them in my blog shop this year, too.

In March my friend's chickens started laying again and I had to 'help out' by taking some eggs off her hands. It's a hard life... It was also the town floral fair and we surround the outside of the house with 10€ worth of pansies, which lasted well into the summer. In a Vide Grenier I bought some initialled ribbon, which has since travelled as far as Australia in a swap!

April was the first month when I started photographing food out of doors, although we were actually eating the occasional meal outside from February onwards. This is our Easter Simnel Cake, decorated with some of the famous pansies! In the run-up to Easter we had our annual Pause in Lent, I had fun joining in the swap and posts for Thrifty Week, and I posted some prayers for our children which are still quite important for me.

The cherries ripened on our friends' tree in May. In the relevant post I said that we'd eaten cherries with every meal one day - it's great to read back over the posts because one forgets stuff like that. Our own tree is tiny and we're lucky to get one cherry a year off it at the moment. Paience...

June was a really busy, mainly exciting month. I met up with some lovely bloggers in London, which was such a great opportunity to spend time and chat - well worth doing again! I picked blueberries from the local farm, cooked loads and froze more. I will be back there in 2012! The downside of the month was Son 1's operation on his knee - it's good to have great healthcare here in France but even so, an operation is nasty. He's due for a second one (the other knee, a related problem...) at the end of January 2012.

Whilst recuperating, Son 1 celebrated his 14th birthday and spent some time reading his Hairy Bikers' cookbooks. When he was up on his feet again he introduced us to Courgette and Feta Fritters. Possibly the best recipe we discovered this year? And we usually have enough courgettes in the garden to do this. Other than harvesting and eating garden produce, July was a productive time for Brocante shopping for me - I found a closing-down sale! I bought a fair bit of china, including the red-stencilled plates in the photo. They've been in constant use ever since.

By August the garden was producing so well that we were looking for recipes to deal with gluts. This Cherry Tomato Chutney was a good new addition to our repertoire! We had both a Staycation and a Gite holiday (the latter with Ben's parents) in August and it was a very special month.

Ben's birthday towards the end of September prompted the boys to generous acts of cake-baking. Son 2 ALWAYS makes carrot cake and Son 1 decided to revisit Bruce Bogtrotter's Chocolate Cake, from his Roald Dahl Revolting Recipes book. It is NOT revolting. The Vide Greniers of the area were still going strong and I was still hauling in some lovely finds. I had to slow down on the spending, in fact...

Finally, we were back to photographing and cooking food indoors in October, although we were sometimes still eating it outside. The garden peppers and aubergines were great this year, as were the chillis (now well-distributed around our relatives in smoked, dried and jellied form). Happily, given my lack of disposable income, I mooted the idea of 'The Thrill of what you Already Have' and you seemed interested - more to follow on that for a 2012 monthlyblogging project.

In France there is a seasonal wine for November, as well as specific foods. We head to the local supermarket and buy whichever Beaujolais Nouveau they are favouring - you can rely on them to choose a decent one and sell it at a reasonable price. We were not disappointed this year! In blogging, our Pause in Advent began. It's really good to join with blogging friends and see their different 'takes' on the run-up to Christmas, and to also see how themes emerge despite our different approaches.

Finally, in December we threw ourselves into Christmas with just about the right balance of work (mainly on homemade gifts and food) and relaxation ("Christmas Machine, what Christmas Machine?"). We spent time with the majority of our relatives in England and Scotland and offloaded the preserved contents of our garden onto each of them. We were home for the New Year and feasted on cèpes (wild mushrooms) bottled for us by our neighbour this autumn. We are looking forward to another year of thrift in food-shopping, productivity in the garden and sharing excess produce - I think you and we are all getting the hang of this enforced thrift, don't you? It's not actually a hardship, when you see how we've feasted. I hope you're able to feel the same.

And I know I quoted it last year, but surely there is no better verse for the turn of the year than this one:

"This, this is the God we adore!

Our faithful unchangeable Friend.

We'll praise Him for all that is past,

And trust Him for all that's to come!"

Happy New Year from France!

2011-12-31T20:24:00.002+01:00

Here's a French tradition to wish you all a Happy New Year: I know mistletoe is a Christmas tradition in the UK, but some gangly teenagers were dropped off outside our gate this morning and greeted me with charming perception of my foreign origins:

« Bonjour, Madame, nous sommes les Lycéens et on vend le gui, tradition française pour le nouvel an. »

How could I not buy it? It goes with my wintery necklace...
Bonnes fêtes de fin d'année !

Christmas in three countries

2011-12-30T18:21:00.003+01:00

Happy 6th Day of Christmas, friends! I've set myself the challenge of recording our Christmas using three photos from each country - so here goes... We started Christmas week at home in France. Père Noël travels by horse and carriage here! The smoke is from a barbeque (of course).

The lights in our town are the most tasteful for kilometres around... and the church was lit up by wonderful fireworks from a storytelling event in the town centre.

More lights when we arrived in England - my parents in law regularly go to visit a local street which is decorated for charity at Christmas. This year they took me, Ben and the boys - it was incredible!The theme for this part of the holidays was family - we had a great meet-up with the cousins for a visit to Bristol aquarium.We also met up with some friends - I finally got to visit Niki at her shop Nostalgia at No. 1 - she and her lovely shop are all I had imagined and more! Later in the visit I met up with "Josie Crafter" and we had such a good, long chat about the homemade, happy life and our various children. Ben and I also took the boys over to visit his old schoolfriend Bill (no, I'm not making up that name-combo) and we had an enjoyable late night with him and his family.Finally we arrived in Edinburgh, at 8.15am on Christmas Eve. It was fantastic to see my dad doing well, and to decorate the beautiful Christmas tree he'd put up in his hallway.

There was a LOT of food preparation over the next two days. Ben and the boys decorated the Christmas cake I'd made back in October, using the pieces of marzipan wreath the boys had made with Ben's mum. Then Ben prepared most of the Christmas dinner, and later the boys and I worked hard to prepare a buffet for Boxing Day evening, when my sister and her husband arrived.Hard work in the kitchen was a lot of fun, shared out as it was, and we were well-rewarded with a fantastic Christmas meal and truly magical Boxing Day spread! It was a relaxed and happy family Christmas.

The festivities in Edinburgh are never complete without a trip to the Winter Wonderland fair. This year we went with Aunty and Uncle, and shared out the rides between adults and teenagers - Son 1 went up the Scott Monument with his uncle and I later braved the Big Wheel. I feel I've spent too long not doing things, and the Big Wheel was a good Thing to Do!

Thanks for all your Christmas wishes - I'm off to read some of your own Christmas posts now...

Happy Christmas!

2011-12-24T22:22:00.003+01:00

"The people who walk in darkness will see a great light. For those who live in a land of deep darkness, a light will shine."

Isaiah 9 verse 2.

Have a wonderful Christmas, friends!

A Childlike Christmas - Superstars!

2011-12-21T11:01:00.005+01:00

I've had a lovely time sorting through some decorations (handmade by the boys or other crafters, bought Fair Trade or secondhand, or given by my pupils in past years) to illustrate my final question for our Childlike Christmas. I asked my pupils (aged from 5 - 9): 'Who is the most important person at Christmas?'

I was a bit wary about asking a loaded question - I've been Sunday School teacher to some of these children's older siblings, and others are from families where Christmas is a largely secular event, so I wanted to try to ask the question without implying that I'd like to hear any particular answer!I think I probably got to hear what they really thought - see for yourself from their answers!"Father Christmas!"

"Santa!"

"Rudolph...

... otherwise they wouldn't be able to travel!"

"Jesus!""Jesus... ... and NOT ME!"

Very definite words from a very definite little girl, that last one. She's not backwards in coming forwards, but she's not putting herself ahead of the baby in the manger. Well done her.

A Final Pause in Advent 2011

2011-12-18T11:07:00.004+01:00

At the end of October, a friend wrote a little status update on Facebook. She wrote: ‘Dear Christmas. Please go away and come back in about four weeks. Love, everyone'.
It was just a little bon mot from her, but I liked it, mentioned it to the boys, and the rest is history – it’s kind of summed up our thinking about Christmas for November and much of December! I asked her permission to quote her here, as now, we think (and she agrees), that Christmas is very welcome indeed! Here is my own letter to Christmas, now that its time has come. It’s a letter very much from me, and not much in the style of my friend’s earlier witty note, but she’s the one who started me thinking – thanks!
Dear Christmas,

It’s good to finally meet up with you, at just the right time! We’re ready for you now, I think – the weather is almost wintery, and it certainly will be by the time we get to the UK for our hols. We’re more or less ready in terms of presents too, and Christmas cards, music, parties and decorations are getting us in the mood.

What do I hope for you this year, Christmas? I hope for safe travels and happy arrivals. I hope for good connections within our families – time spent among the different generations which builds up strong bonds of affection and understanding. I hope that the understanding we have of each other will lead to times of peace, avoiding the sort of pressure which can build up from unrealistic expectations of a dream Christmas. I hope for the creation of memories that will glow in each one of us after we’ve returned to our separate worlds of work, school and home.

What do I pray for this year, Christmas? I pray for our families. I pray for our friends and neighbours – several are facing Christmas at a time of sudden mourning or frightening illness - and I place them in God’s loving hands. I pray for our world, which is moving towards Christmas at a time of uncertainty, fear, ongoing poverty and war. I pray that I will remember, in the midst of the winter revelry, that the true centre of my Christmas, the true centre of my life, is the baby who was born into uncertainty, fear, poverty and war; the baby who is my Certainty, my Hope, my Wealth and my Peace.I pray I will remember that. I pray I will remember.

Clay - Part 2

2011-12-16T11:20:00.002+01:00

At the beginning of December I set you the (rather obvious) challenge: what was Son 2 making out of the clay which had been dug out of some nearby earthworks? Of course most of you guessed right - here is the fired result!

A little earthernware snowman - isn't he cute? Son 2 is planning to add some stick arms and give him as a Christmas present.

He now has a big brother too. Don't you love the way the clay (fired in our wood fire) comes out looking like brick or tile? Of course it is brick clay - we have an old tileworks just down the road.Son 2 was back out there at the weekend, making some secret Christmas presents. Ben popped out to show him how to roll clay - Ben did pottery classes at school.

The results of this session are drying out in our spare room. Once they're fired I'll try to take a few photos, although I'd better not show them until after Christmas Day!

ça y est!*

2011-12-15T14:20:00.010+01:00

Phew! Finished the embroidery for my Christmas presents... Now it's time to clear the table for sorting and wrapping...

*That's it!

A Childlike Christmas - Christmas Every Day?

2011-12-14T10:07:00.006+01:00

I was inspired by the immortal words of Wizzard's Christmas hit ;) to ask my child-interviewees what they thought it would be like if it was Christmas every day. Here are some of their responses:"Presents every day?!!!"

"I would have presents every day and I would like it very much."

"I would sit in the morning, have a rest, and then have a good dinner and be ready for the presents."
"You would get too many presents. You wouldn't know which toy to play with and the house wouldn't be big enough for all the stuff."

"Then Christmas would be boring! It would be all boring and you'd get presents every day and you wouldn't have room to store them. And Santa wouldn't have any time!"

"It wouldn't be like a surprise any more..."

I do like listening to children. For more Childlike Christmas posts, of all sorts, do go and see Pom Pom's list of everyone taking part!

A Pause in Advent 3 - Just a Pause

2011-12-11T11:07:00.000+01:00

On Thursday I took time out for a walk (a rare activity over the last few weeks) and I was in a position to simply Pause.Life isn't crazy-busy - we're celebrating Christmas away from home and in a fairly non-materialistic sort of way, and you know I have the food prepared already!

But work for both me and Ben is thriving, which is good, the boys and the dog have been taking it in turns to be ill, which is par for the course in December, and all in all, pausing doesn't seem as natural as it did in the summer, or in September for that matter.

So I forced myself out on a walk and was rewarded with a Pause.

I headed down the track to the lake, noticing how the trees had become more bare since my last outing there.

Suddenly there was an increase in bird calls, and small shapes flitted from tree to tree. I had walked into a group of long-tailed tits, communicating with constant little peeps which began to sound like a series of water droplets falling from the branches all around me.

I stood still and let them dart around above my head. There was a jay nearby, calling occasionally, and perhaps they were agitated by the threatening presence. It's possible that they were just communicating between themselves though, as they certainly didn't try to move on. Great tits and marsh tits joined in, and towards the end I watched a treecreeper living up to its name as it scaled an ivy-covered trunk. There have been times when my mind has been incredibly active when watching birds or looking at plants. What is this? Why can't I remember its name? What is it doing? Where has it gone now?

But over the last few years I've discovered that, while my mind seeks information, my soul craves a Pause. I need to be out in the open, living in nature rather than analysing it. And it was good to discover that it is possible to get out and Pause, even in Advent.

Somerset - 20th December - Any chance of a meet-up?

2011-12-08T21:53:00.002+01:00

Well, friends, I've had a bit of a think and done a bit of planning, and the result is that I'm going to have a free day in Somerset on Tuesday December 20th.The boys and I will be at Ben's parents' farm, and my generous parents in law have told me that I can have their car and they will take the boys and I can escape (weather permitting) for a day! So where am I going? Nostalgia calls - specifically Niki's Nostalgia at Number 1, in Shepton Mallet. Niki is an incredibly popular blogger, crafter and shop-owner, yet she is also one of the kind bloggers who first started replying to my comments, and commenting on my own posts, when I started blogging nearly 3 years ago. I will check with her nearer the time that she'll be in the shop that day, but all being well in terms of weather she'll be open and I intend to visit!

What else will I get up to that day? Well, it depends if any of you other bloggers would like to meet up. I realise that it's very close to Christmas and might not work out for people, but I just thought I'd leave it open and see if anyone in the area will be free. Let me know!

Advent Round-up

2011-12-08T13:17:00.002+01:00

Hi, I'm just popping in to say that the Pause in Advent is spreading itself deliciously across the week, and that I'm still getting my blog list just right! Therefore, there are some lovely blogs or bloggers taking part whom you might just have missed if you were looking at my list earlier. Please do go and visit:
Jude at Simplicity is the New Black
Sheila at Homemaking Heaven
Mommy en France at Two Little Cabbages & Cie Happy Advent!

A Childlike Christmas - Food

2011-12-07T15:54:00.003+01:00

I've been playing with cake tins and cookie cutters in the run-up to Christmas...They seem to be provide a good set of illustrations for my second Childlike Christmas Question: "What is your favourite Christmas food?"

Here are the answers given by some of the children I teach:

"Cake.""Chocolate cake." "Cake. What kind? The kind with raisins... I don't think she knows how to... um..."

"Cake with raisins and icing. Mmm."

"Pigs in Blankets!"

"Lasagne as my main course. I also like gravy and turkey. And chocolate cake."

"You know that Christmas pudding when you put alcohol onto it and you set fire to it? Mmm. I love that."

So do I, readers!

Don't forget to visit the other Childlike Christmas bloggers! You'll find the full list of us over at Pom Pom's Ponderings.

Light in the darkness!

2011-12-06T15:27:00.003+01:00

There's nothing like a mid-winter fire festival, even if you move it forward to Bonfire Night or, in our case...

to the early December for Son 2's birthday celebrations!

Food and planning supplied by me.Fire supplied by Ben.

A Pause in Advent 2 - Counting Down!

2011-12-04T09:23:00.002+01:00

The countdown began last Sunday... I was inspired by a photo in last year's Period Living.

My moss is muddier than theirs!
Two of the pots come from the May Day Lily of the Valley which we buy each year in France - a nice seasonal link which I'm really appreciating.

Granny (Ben's mum) made the tree calendar for the boys years ago.

Son 2 decided to spend some of his 13th birthday money in advance - on a Lego Star Wars Advent Calendar! 'Aren't you a bit old for Lego?' asked his piano teacher this week. 'My DAD still likes Lego!' replied Son 2 (spot-on, kid!) 'Oh well, then,' admitted the teacher. The French aren't as playful as the English-speaking nations, on the whole...

Although not actually playing with Lego, Ben was working in Denmark last week. He phoned me from a Christmas Market to get the go-ahead to buy a Danish Advent Candle.

When he brought it home we realised it was too big to fit any of our candlesticks, so he polished up and drilled a hole in an artistically gnarled bit of firewood. We like the result!

Son 1 is in charge of the most important count-down, this year...

Although I love the notion of a timeless winter festival, for me the key reason for this celebration, the One we are all waiting for, is the baby whose little wooden likeness is going to appear on the tray on December 24th. I can't get over the wonder.

Clay

2011-12-02T21:51:00.002+01:00

The garage not far from us is excavating a huge hole (for more petrol tanks, presumably). The stratigraphy was great - Son 1 and I spotted the 50cm of soil followed by 50cm of river-pebbles which are the bane of his daddy's gardening life! When Son 2 got there, his eye was caught by something different - he ended up bringing home samples of soil which had rolled outside the safety-fence, and soaking them to find out the clay-content of each one.

The clay from 2 - 5 metres down is apparantly the best.

Can you guess what it is, yet?

A Childlike Christmas - Beginnings

2011-12-01T13:10:00.003+01:00

What did I like doing when I was a child? I liked asking people questions and writing down the answers. So in the spirit of Pom Pom's Childlike Christmas, I have been asking questions, and here are some of the answers!I asked the children I work with (aged from 5 to 9 - the teenagers and adults I teach were not invited!) a few questions about Christmas, and today I've decided to tell you about the answers to the question: 'How do you know when Christmas has started?'

I thought it was a bit of a leading question - we adults complain a lot about Christmas starting earlier every year, and the pressure on children in the shops and through advertising. The replies to my question surprised me! Here are some of them:"I know Christmas is starting when it gets very cold."
"I know Christmas is beginning when it's December and we get the chocolate calendar."
"Christmas starts when it gets all cold, it starts snowing sometimes and it's usually December when it happens."
"I know Christmas starts on the 24th because... the next day there's Christmas!" And just to prove that children are less confused about this than adults, I leave the last word to an eight-and-a-half year old:

"You don't know when Christmas starts? Go to the beginning of December. Count on 25 days. Then it's Christmas!"

A Childlike Christmas

2011-11-30T18:17:00.001+01:00

Dear friends, I have planned, I have prepared, but it's clear to me that my Childlike Christmas post won't be ready before tomorrow (see list of events in my post below...) Please tune in tomorrow and I'll have a little something for you on the subject of childlike anticipation. Thanks so much to Pom Pom for organising us all in this.

A trip into the past at the Christmas Market

2011-11-29T16:03:00.002+01:00

This week is turning into one of 'those' weeks - ill son, impossible to find doctor's appointments, incontinent dog and broken washing machine... but I am going to talk about something LOVELY instead! I loaded these photos up at the weekend, after we'd been to the English Christmas Market run by the Toulouse Women's International Group (photo from the local newspaper). The market is always good, thanks to the huge selection of English-language books donated by the wider ex-pat community, so as always, I bought some entertaining mystery novels:In addition, this year I found a few children's books - Son 1 is a big fan of William and I'll probably read the other two before putting them on my teaching bookshelves.

Then there was a selection of what you might consider 'informative or improving' books:and two bought only for their iconic Penguin covers:"Surely that completes your '10€ a bag', Floss?" you might ask, but no!

Photos and text from London in 1956.

A free bookmark of the period hidden inside...And evocative photos of the people and the fashions.In 1956 my grandma was just a few years older than I am now, and wore clothes and hats a lot like the ones below.

So just when I thought my 10€ bag really was full, these came out of a box, one by one:Some Latin translations (he was pretty good, 31/40) and notes were tucked in the books.This one is far more exciting for the graffiti than for the lessons!

I wonder if anything came of the infatuation with Leslie? Great '60s lettering there...

And that was 10€s' worth of books, to be read, kept, given away or returned to the stall next year!

Over on the White Elephant stall, red stickers meant 1€ each, and I thought these mugs would replace a few chipped ones in our blue and white kitchen.

Blue sticker = 2€ - a good price for these little Japanese quails on their box. I need to do some research about the mark on the base:

I thought that was probably it from the White Elephant, until I rounded a corner and found, tucked behind some cardboxes, THIS:

A year's worth (2004) for 10€! Happy reading for me...

And then tucked IN the same cardboard box, vintage French china.

3 for 1€.

I pointed out that they should get the china out of the box and onto the front of the stall - I do hope that a few other vintage shoppers came by...In addition, I bought the wintery candle set, complete with display plate and glass whatsits, for 1€. It's very sweet, but it won't be able to stay where I put it on the piano, as it rattles when Son 2 plays! He must be rather heavy-handed...So that sweet little trip into vintage France and London, via grammar schools and pilgrimages, cost me 30€ (all for charity) and a lot of rummaging.And inside the little Westminster Abbey bookmark, the best thought of the day. After the fair, we went for lunch with good friends who live nearby. Thanks, friends nearby and far away - you are better even than a haul of vintage books and china and a year's set of Country Living!

A First Pause in Advent 2011

2011-11-27T07:58:00.005+01:00

It's Advent! The countdown to Christmas has begun.I'm really looking forward to reading the posts of all those who are taking part in the Pause - we're taking a weekly break from the flurry of preparations to rest for a while and share something -anything - about what Christmas is really about for us. You'll find the list of those taking part in the sidebar to your left. Feel free to join in - mention it in your comment here! We could be talking about traditions, family, food, beliefs, ponderings, children... whatever. My first contribution for you is certainly about traditions, food and family! I decided to bake all my Christmas goodies while I was in Edinburgh with my dad at the end of October. We're going to spend Christmas with him, arriving early on Christmas Eve, so preparing while I was there made a lot more sense than transporting food on the aeroplane or having a last-minute panic when I arrive! Cooking in my mum's kitchen, using my grandma's 150-year old recipe and equipment (she was the baker in our family - she taught me) was quite an experience. And as I have a terrible memory and don't keep a hold on these experiences in any meaningful way, I wrote a poem as a 'snapshot' of what was going on in the kitchen that afternoon.

Cooking in the kitchen of my ancestresses

The third-biggest bowl is too small to stir the overflowing contents:
Nothing for it but to plunge in the hands!
Still-warm mashed potato cushions my questing fingers,
Chill-damp grated carrot a shocking contrast.
Clouds of nutmeg and cinnamon rise from the disturbed mass:
Preparing for Christmas in the kitchen of my ancestresses.

A recipe in my grandmother’s hand-
Remember Grandma, with her white curls full of flour?
Battered bronze scales of Grandma’s force a return to pounds and ounces
For my finally metric soul.
Breadcrumbs whizz in my mother’s food processor –
Remember when the first blade was accidentally thrown out with the rubbish?
One angry mother -
Though she saw the funny side later.

A hunt for a satisfactory pudding bowl.
Eighties Tupperware won’t do.
In the back of the corner cupboard, a metal bowl dated 1975...

Cooking in the kitchen of my ancestresses,
Preparing Christmas for those who remain.

The Waiting House

2011-11-22T20:10:00.003+01:00

The house is strangely empty at the moment...Areas that I love to decorate are sitting bare. I've decided to wait until Advent - leaving them clear for a few days until the Advent decorations go up. I read the suggestion of leaving an empty shelf in the Happiness Project and in Simple Abundance, and my natural response ('yeah, right') has finally worked its way around to accepting that it might be a good idea, just for a few days.

But some areas got the Floss-makeover before I came around to this idea! I reluctantly banished blue from our mustard shelves, and was rewarded with some lovely autumn/winter shades. The shepherd plate was a gift from a friend who spent a year in Germany. The sheep pottery is from a Devonshire friend - they knew my pastoral tastes!

Ben's 1970s/'80s Christmas mugs have come out. I like them interspersed with green vintage bottles.

Goodbye blue plates - welcome back reds and pinks! I never thought of putting the English florals with the French stencils before, but they work...

The little chocolate bowls have found a new home.

My mum bought us a Portmerion breakfast set (secondhand, naturally) when we were getting married. We've been fond of Portmerion ever since, but it's not always easy to display it without it either taking over or getting lost. So this little combo, with a few candles in the egg cups and all placed alongside French china and a warming winter tipple, pleases me.

Here's the overall view - lots of lights on otherwise the plants die in a traditional French house. I keep the houseplants outside all summer but there seems no choice but to turn on the low energy bulbs in the winter. We lost so many plants in our first few years...

So I've shown you the one busy area, but the rest of the living area is positively bleak as it waits for Advent. I'm going to be taking a total blogging break until Sunday - Christmas present crafting has fallen horribly behind, and I'm jolly well going to finish my PILs' presents before I come back for the first Pause in Advent. If you still want to join in this blog event, details are in the sidebar. The only rule to remember is: there are no rules. No apologies - post what you like, when you can. See you on Sunday!

A sunny Sunday afternoon in late November...

2011-11-21T21:29:00.003+01:00

... Ben and I ate an appropriate 'ploughman's' lunch outside, next to the holes he was digging for our silver birches. I went back to the Vide Grenier, by bike this time, and, sadly, the kind ladies had not been able to find the other kitchen canisters in mum's garage. But they gave me the lids anyway!

After these photos were taken I went into the utility room for a grand clearout - A Thrifty Mrs' 30 Day Declutter was well-served by the sorting of jams and chutneys, the filling of a Charity Shop bag and the removal of a surprising hoard of broken things, stored surely more in hope than in any realistic expectation of further use.Son 1 helped Ben plant the trees in their holes and declared himself delighted that we'd chosen silver birches. He loves them for their strange, crumbly catkins, apparantly! Personally, we love the bark and the movement of the foliage, and are looking forward to eating under them next summer, and seeing the shimmering light and shadow of their leaves coming into our bedroom window on summer mornings.

Vide Grenier- to be continued...

2011-11-19T15:20:00.004+01:00

The incredible sunny November weather continues. Ben and I sloped off to pick up some concert tickets this morning (more on that later) and then drove on to the tree nursery, where Ben had ordered three silver birch trees. Here he is, driving off with two of them. The third? Sill in the ground. Monsieur le Digger Driver doesn't work weekends so his little mistake can't be rectified yet. But digging three holes and planting two trees is going to keep Ben plenty busy, so we can wait for the third!Ben dropped me off in a neighbouring town, which is holding its pre-Christmas Vide Grenier and craft fair in the unseasonal warmth. It's a real biggie, with brocante stalls, Other Peoples' Tat, food stalls and an assortment of weird cheap things vendors think we might want before Christmas. These severed heads are advertising Hairigami. I dunno...

But spot the cute doggie in his hand-knitted vest? I was reminded of Happy Loves Rosie's little chap. This little toutou didn't think he needed a knitted vest at 17°C:His owners took it off him when they saw how uncomfortable he was.

I wandered around, dispirited by the prices on the brocante stalls (although in fact they're worth looking at just for ideas and sheer pleasure), and keeping an eye out for 'mum and dad selling off granny's junk' stalls.

So here are the finds, winkled out of 'Other Peoples' Tat' - you've got to be patient and in the right mood! The green choolate bowl on the left for 20c.

A bunch of vintage-kitch Christmas cake decorations - I was attracted by the way they are different to British ones, especially in the prevalence of saws. 'For the buche du noël!' confirmed the stall-holder. I had to have me one.

The stall-holders of that stall were the kind of people who make Vide Greniers even better. Sometimes I feel a bit stupid for being second-language French, but these two retired couples (selling granny's stuff?..) were great fun! The men had worked for Airbus, the huge employer of most Toulousains, and knew England (if not English) in terms of the Farnborough Airshow. They have a trip to London booked for next weekend: 'For the Christmas Market. Is London famous for its Christmas market?' (Um, no, that's Germany...) But I think they'll enjoy themselves. I found 25p in their box of odds and ends, and gave it to them for spending money! They asked what it would buy and I was stumped.

And here is the To Be Continued part. Another cheerful pair of retirees was selling maman's stuff, and had somehow managed to bring part, but not all, of the set above. After muttered searches through all their boxes, they concluded that they had left the largest canister and probably one lid in maman's garage. They will be back at the Vide Grenier tommorow - I am to come and find them: 'We'll wear the same clothes, so we'll look the same - and smell worse - so you can recognise us!' they assured me. 'If we don't find the missing pieces, we'll give you a refund!'

A suivre...

Beaujolais nouveau

2011-11-18T16:15:00.001+01:00

What a superb tradition!

A Rosy Glow

2011-11-17T13:11:00.002+01:00

There seems to have been a rosy glow over the last seven days - late autumn sun allowing a lingering stroll around last Friday's tree fair, the chance for me and Ben to go out for a meal together (perhaps the first one in over a year, we think) and lots of games with the boys, gardening and, in my case, enjoyable teaching.One of the best pieces of news is that Son 1 will be allowed to take his laptop computer into school from next Monday. His teachers were wonderful - the Head invited them to give their opinions, and one after another they spoke about what a good student Son 1 is (pride, pride!) and how this relatively small problem with handwriting shouldn't be allowed to turn into a big barrier for his education. Once again, it shows how a few dedicated teachers are more important than any number of official documents! Wonderful people. A rosy glow over the week...
I rather like the way the jumble of stuff on our shelves outside the front door reflects the way the seasons here are merging. We have birds' nests collected when hedge-trimming after last spring, and bulbs the boys planted in church youth group, waiting hopefully for next spring! We have squashes from the garden representing the autumn harvest, and (real) ivy and (fake) berries welcoming the coming winter. The big lotus seedheads remind us of our family visits to summer gardens over the last few years and the metal basket reminds me of the good friend who gave it to me. Family, friends; spring, summer, autumn, winter; harvest and sowing. A providential placement of bits and bobs!

A Wintery Find

2011-11-15T18:48:00.002+01:00

At the springtime Troc Broc Solde I found this wonderful piece of jewellery: I promptly put it away because it felt all wrong for the season, but suddenly, it feels All Right!

I wonder if any of our jewellery makers out there could tell me anything about what metal it's made from, or even if the little stone is stone or glass? I'm not coming up with much from my traditional Google 'research'.

It's really quite big - about 20cm across. I wore it to the Tree Market on Friday and it felt very appropriate.

I've photographed it on the other side of my Welsh tapestry blanket, because I realised I never showed you the famous inverse pattern for which these blankets are admired. I've discovered this particular pattern is known as Caernafon, which is the town where my grandpa was born! I really am pleased to be getting to know more about it.

There are lots of bloggers signed up for our annual Pause in Advent. It would be great if you wanted to get involved - please click on the logo in my sidebar to leave your comment!

Join us for a Pause in Advent 2011

2011-11-13T15:53:00.004+01:00

For the last two years it's been fantastic to join with bloggers around the world in taking a weekly break from the pressure and whirl of Christmas preparation. We've called the event A Pause in Advent, and the aim is to take some time out from the build-up and to share what is really important to us as Christmas approaches.This is what I wrote the first year, and I think it still fits now:

"We are getting together to share thoughts, traditions, ideas, crafts and experiences relating to Advent and the preparation for Christmas. Some of us follow very old traditions or have very established beliefs, whilst many of us are combining the old with the new, learning and growing as we go along…"

It would be lovely if you'd like to join us in posting on Sundays or Mondays in Advent. Anything goes, and you don't need to apologise if you miss a week (or more). Have a look through my previous Advent posts (they should be listed in the linky do-dah below) if you want to learn more, and leave a comment here if you'd like to join in this year!

PS Forgot to say - please do take this photo and use it in your own blog sidebar or your posts with a link!

PPS A few random-ish previous Advent posts to give you some ideas:
mine
Lyn's
Vicki's!

November

2011-11-12T15:19:00.003+01:00

It's still incredibly warm and sunny here, on the whole. This holiday weekend has been a fantastic one so far. Ben and I went to a nearby town for their tree festival - it's the season to buy bare-rooted trees. To our amazement we found a Bramley tree! I really hope we manage to keep it alive and get it fruiting, as you can't buy British cooking apples in France. I'm keeping things pretty simple with the calendar displays at the moment, but I was inspired by the rosy November page on Nicki's calendar! Life feels rosy in the November sunshine.

Yes, the berries are fake. I can make an exception for berries, for some reason.

Can you spot next year's calendar behind this one? I've decided to go for something a bit different, which I hope will be a really good inspiration for our Thrill of the Old monthly posts. It's vintage and it's Scottish... tune in next year!In other news, Son 1 is pictured here pouring over a book of Mazes, hand-drawn by a fantastic young man from Australia! His mum has sent me and my Cullercoats friend Rob a copy of this incredible book - I need to tell you more about it, but for now, I'm just showing this as a Thank You!

Son 2 is spending time in the sunshine (and in the dark evenings too, actually) out on the window ledge....He's set up his snail farm again!They love a good 'rainfall' and so does he!

"Sapristi!"

2011-11-11T14:51:00.000+01:00

Don't you know that word? I'll translate it for you: apparantly, it means "Great Snakes!"

And "Mille million de mille sabords" translates as "Billions of blue blistering barnacles"!

Or that's what my bilingual Tintin scholars tell me. They really enjoyed the film.

The Welsh Connection

2011-11-09T20:28:00.003+01:00

To my stunned surprise, I own something which is On Trend.It's a memory from my childhood which made its way over to France in a rather weighty suitcase...It has one hole (moths cannot be blamed - think little fingers, I fear, although from which generation I know not...)

And BBC Homes and Antiques tells me it's a 'Covetable Antique'! Oh la la!

It's a Welsh tapestry blanket. They are still made (I got rather excited when I saw Jane C's post about a new Melin Tregwynt blanket in just the same colours).

But of the old Welsh blankets, these 'tapestry' designs (they're actually woven, rather than stitched, so it's a misnomer) seem to be the most desirable.What a super picture. If you want something like the one below I found a more affordable version here - now sold but there are lots of interesting ebay links.

This is the label on mine.Derw woollen mills closed in 1981 but I always presumed this one came from the 1960s. Now I look at the pictures and read the article it seems that it might be a bit earlier - maybe even from someone following Welsh tradition in giving a blanket to my grandparents when they got married in the 1930s.

For now it's in full 'gloating' position on our balcony. And, looking at the prices, I'm keeping it away from little fingers from now on!

Blankets do seem to be a feature of my posts right now! As Lakota cleverly noticed, the blanket I snuggled up in yesterday was made by our talented (but not price-wise) French charity shop lady. And our Selfsewn friend commented on the wonderful, wonderful patchwork (even though it's quite the opposite of 'fussy') - it's the one from Reunion which I bought this May. It's great fun to have such observant comments - thanks for keeping in touch, friends.

Elmer bed

2011-11-08T21:01:00.003+01:00

We have an Elmer bed at the moment!

Even on a grey day, with no particular tidying-up,

it's awfully cosy!

A Frenchman's Lunch...

2011-11-04T14:26:00.003+01:00

Obviously, the French have the right and proper attitude towards lunch - that it consists of three courses and that it takes two hours. Think this is a stereotype? Well, working people do manage to get back to the office in under two hours, but they do all eat properly. They find the idea of eating a sandwich in front of your computer so bizarre that it doesn't really seem believable to them. And of course they're right - taking a proper break is better for health and productivity (and keeps crumbs out of the keyboard...) But there have clearly always been jobs where a picnic lunch is all that's going to happen. In the early 20th century, those lunches were carried in these diddy little enamel pails. The one on the left is my first buy - it's battered and doesn't seal any more, and I got it for a euro with some square mosaic tiles which had been stored in it - garage fodder, clearly.

But the new one, which I found today at the troc shop, is in full working order. Apart from two chips on the rim, everything is brand-shiny new. I wonder where it's been lurking all these years? It's going to hold batteries for recycling in our kitchen now (quick green note: we do use rechargable batteries, but the odd non-rechargable one does seem to intrude now and again).

Do you want to see how much the (overpriced, it's-old-so-we'll-sting-you-for-it) troc shop charged me for this shiny beauty?

Worth drinking to!

Foodie note: I know what the working French man has in his lunch box because when our pavement was being laid I stood behind the 'jeune' (the apprentice) who'd been sent to get the team's lunch at Intermarché. He bought baguettes, cheese, saucisson, apples and red wine. So there you go.

Ingredients of Cocooning

2011-11-03T15:24:00.005+01:00

For cheerful cocooning (see previous post), you may need: Good children's boks, old and new.

Family (added chocolate optional).

Time to enjoy the autumn leaves outdoors,

and indoors.Space to enjoy the autumn flowers outdoors,and indoors!You may wish to add the following:Great charity shopping in the Saint Columba's Hospice shop, resulting in a complete outfit

which made a waiter (of my own age) briefly speechless - the kind of thing you may take for granted at 20 but which is truly delightful at 42.

Outfit badly photographed here in the good company of Ben's great, great great Aunt Selina and a cheerful Amish couple embroidered by my mother in the '70s.

Friendly gourds to carve.

More flowers out of doors - good for the spirit!

Roasting red chillis - good for the senses! Hopefully also good in chilli con carne if the experiment works.

And as a final touch, leave the fork-decorations on your shortbread to a younger member of the family... cheerfulness guaranteed!

Cocooning

2011-10-27T19:34:00.003+02:00

Hi friends, I'm back from my blogging break in theory but not particularly in practice, as you'll note from the lack of posts. I'm enjoying an occasional browse through some of your blogs but am doing what the French love to call 'cocooning', I suppose. It's a year since my mother's death and just hanging around with the family, teaching a little and pottering about the house and local area seem right at the moment. I will be back in time to plan some Advent fun, though!

Pavement Freecycle

2011-10-17T18:12:00.003+02:00

A few years ago I was explaining the concept of Freecycle to my father, and he said (rather smugly), 'So it's a bit like the pavement outside my gate, is it?'. He'd recently had an enjoyable time sorting through his cellar and had found a few metal buckets and a vintage counting machine, which had disappeared to (presumably) grateful new owners shortly after being left outside his gate.At the time, I didn't know another pavement like it! We have our Ramassage des Encombrants, when the council gives a date for the collection of bulky rubbish, and I knew I wasn't the only one to scout through the 'rubbish' outside of gates to pick up the interesting stuff, but that was only four times a year... Now, and I think it must be to do with the changing economic times, pavement freecycle has come to our own little French town.

I think it all started about eight months ago, the night before the Ramassage. I was out walking the dog with Son 1, and we spotted a most exciting selection of bookcases (modern, slightly battered, but useful) outside one house. While I was wondering to myself if I could dash home for the estate car and fit a bookcase in the boot, the problem was taken out of my hands. A large white van drove up and a couple of men put the biggest bookcase inside it.That night the white vans were active, and we found our own encombrants (a very rusty bike frame and a few things even we didn't have any more use for) had disappeared. We guessed that the van drivers were gipsies, and hoped that they could recycle/reuse the stuff properly, rather than dumping some of it outside of the proper council sorting tips.

The next Ramassage was very different. One house round the corner from us set up a whole table of little knicknacks, as if it was a Vide Grenier stall, and people from all round came and helped themselves. I had a good look but didn't take anything - I've regretted the blue china tankards since! I think I saw some travelling people selling some of the metal plates at a Vide Grenier that weekend. I liked the way that the householders had set everything out so beautifully for us all.

And now, a house out in the other direction has an almost weekly deposit of something interesting, and lots of us stop for a browse. Ben picked up a lovely big piece of tempered glass to make a cold frame the other day, and he brought me three hand-painted saucers from outside the same gate yesterday! The heap of stuff is kept very tidy and there's no sense that it's a public nuisance - it seems a rather neighbourly and entertaining way of keeping stuff in use, instead of binning it.

Are you seeing any increase in this kind of thing? And would you take something from a 'heap of stuff' if you liked it?

A quick PS - I'm off for a week's blogging break now! I won't be visiting your blog or mine until next Tuesday. Have a lovely week, friends!

February - October

2011-10-16T16:25:00.003+02:00

I've just checked in my gratitude journal - we had our first outdoor Sunday lunch of 2011 on February 6th. We had another one today, with the table out in full sun on the lawn - in summer we hide in the shade, but of course it's back to sunshine now!

We don't think we've ever had a year where more than eight of the months were fit for eating full meals outdoors. It's really something to be grateful for...

Think big!

2011-10-14T21:18:00.003+02:00

This is a photo from last month - the current flowers in the pitcher on the piano are even taller!I've been a terrible one for picking a few flowers and making a tiny posy. Buying one little whatever because I couldn't afford the big one, or more than one. But in church last month I noticed that someone had picked a whole cosmos plant and stuck it into the flower arrangement, very effectively.

It worked.

I tried it and it's been working at home ever since.

I wonder why I never THOUGHT BIG before?

Shadow Writing

2011-10-13T11:15:00.004+02:00

Ladies and (possibly) gentleman, I have done it again. I have written a poem that I'd quite like to share. This is somewhat nerve-wracking and I am begining to think it would be interesting to take part in a poetry workshop, as I can see plenty of room for improvement in my poems, but can't find the way forward myself. Have any of you done anything like that?

Shadow Writing

Here in the early morning sun,
Writing in prayer journals and morning pages,
My shadow follows my pencil, meeting the paper just where my pencil leaves its mark.
Who is leaving the mark,
My shadow or me?
Who is directing, and who is following,
My shadow, or me?

Is my shadow the anxious, thoughtless, must-get-on, must-cope, mustn’t-think-about-it self
Who tumbled through this life in the sunshine,
Spreading little streaks of darkness
Where before there had been light?

If it is, I want to be the writer,
Conscious and aware of all the good,
Soaking in the light and beauty of this day,
This place,
These people,
This life.

I want to be the leader, and my shadow the follower.

I want to turn to the sun and leave my shadow to follow behind.

My life is with the sun, not in the shadow.

"They can sing, they can dance...

2011-10-11T17:19:00.006+02:00

... after all, Miss, this is France!" Yes, indeedy, the silver items I was cleaning in yesterday's post were, in fact two silver(ish) candelabra, which got me singing along with Lumiere here:

The smell of eggs confused a few of you - you don't actually use eggs to clean the silver, but the reaction causes a sulferous smell - that's how you can tell it's working, actually! If you don't know how I cleaned up these candlesticks, here's a post I did when I first discovered the technique.

Last week I cleaned up our silver napkin rings, and this week it was the turn of my mother's candlesticks - I put them all together in this photo so you could see Son 1's new napkin ring, which belonged to my dad. He had it engraved with all the ships he was on (Royal Navy) up until around the time I was born. When Son 1 started taking an interest, my dad got the napkin ring updated and gave it to him - now it's back in daily use, and even kept fairly clean! (Thanks to bicarb of soda...)

Here's an unstaged shot of the table area - scary heaps of school-type plastic pockets sticking out of the bookshelf.
The 'true crown of King Dagobert' has been unrolled (it's actually some vintage shelf edging) and I threaded it with a bit of vintage ribbon to fit in with the red theme around the table. PS That England flag has been taken down now. Nuf said.

And in line with the 'thrill of what I already have' I was delighted to find the hurricane candle that Ben made years back in the UK. He used a mould which allows you to set things into a hollow candle-shape. Here he used shells we'd collected with our teeny-tiny boys on a Brittany beach.

You put a candle inside it and everything glows in a beautifully candle-lit way, without actually destroying your hard work.

The shells I put around it on the wooden stand were from our most recent beach holiday in the Basque Country. I think everyone in the family is pretty chuffed with this combination of warm light for autumn with summery shells for remembrance of holidays old and new. It's been a real talking point with the boys. Clever dad!

The thrill of what you already have, Part 2

2011-10-10T10:18:00.003+02:00

It's been great reading your comments on my post about loving what you already own, instead of buying more. Thanks so much for making my own thoughts clearer, and confirming that this is something that's on other people's minds, too.I was delighted but not too surprised to read this very relevant passage in Simple Abundance on Saturday night:

"Don't feel you have to deny or ignore your feelings when you want something beautiful but can't afford it. The desire offers clues to satisfy this holy hunger. Explore why you behold something as beautiful; use your impressions to jump-start your imagination."
So, for the new year I'll organise some kind of no-obligations monthly 'jump-start for our imaginations'! For now, can you see what I've been doing to perk up something I already own? Clue: the kitchen now smells faintly of rotten eggs.

The autumn has arrived...

2011-10-08T21:05:00.001+02:00

... we've reached the point where roasted garden veg seems like a warming treatinstead of a waste of garden-fresh veg!

We have failed the Cricket Test...

2011-10-07T15:15:00.001+02:00

The scarf comes down tonight."Allez Angleterre!" as we heard Son 2 shouting the other Saturday...

(Cricket Test: 'The cricket test or Tebbit test was a controversial phrase coined in April 1990 by the Conservative politician Norman Tebbit in referring to the 'loyalty' or 'lack of loyalty' of immigrants and their children from certain parts of Asia and the Caribbean to the England cricket team. Tebbit suggested that those immigrants who root for their native countries rather than Great Britain in sports might not be sufficiently loyal to their new country.' From Wiki.)

The thrill of what you already have

2011-10-06T11:02:00.003+02:00

Serenata made a good point when she mentioned the other day that blogging had encouraged her to go out and shop more, for things she didn't really need. In many ways, any of you who are reading this post are probably part of the thrifty living side of blogging - there is a 'must have...' type of blogging, but surely we're not part of that?Well, mainly, we're not. The thrill of getting new suff is still there for us, though - even if it is second hand, hand made and vintage stuff. And we kind of encourage each other in this, although not in a bad way, I think.Forming a collection is lovely, and is probably some kind of ancestral memory thingy, from our nuts-and berries-gathering-ancestresses, as Emma pointed out a while ago, on Silverpebble.

But there is a time to gather and a time to gloat over what you've already gathered, to paraphrase a good book.

When I stop buying and start rearranging what I already have, I find that even more exciting than the shopping (I think...)

This little pause from shopping to gloat (the pause is of necessity, by the way) reminds me that the pleasure of what we already have can be forgotten. I wondered if I could organise a no-obligations blogging event next year, where once a month people can appreciate what they already have, on a given theme.

It would be a bit like my monthly calendar arrangements - just to give the inspiration needed to look at what you already own, and to delight in it by arranging it in a new way.

Feel free to leave a comment even if you're not interested in getting involved, but if you are interested, let me know.

Here's a gloat over what I already have, as displayed above:

Vibrant George VI pincushion - from my mother's collection

Faded plastic birds pincushion - bought by Son 2 on a 2€ Challenge

Felt strawberry pincushion - possibly made by my sister? in the 1980s

French and British vintage fabric boxes - bought by me over the last 3 years. I probably need to slow down now... Priced between 50c and 10 pounds - average price 2€

Red basket of 'stuff to go downstairs' - Vide Grenier

Red embroideries - Vide Grenier

Leather fire fan (Afghan?) - from a Charity Shop in the 1980s

Four vintage tins on the theme of French regional dances - Vide Grenier

Framed picture of a waterfall - from my mother's collection

On a different road

2011-10-04T14:28:00.003+02:00

I took a drive today, without my camera! Grr. I was going to assess a pupil and I have to tell you I was really excited to learn where he lived, because of the road there! I'm not even sure that photographs would capture it for you anyway, so I've taken the liberty (and possibly leave of my senses) to write you a poem about it instead:

On a different road

On a different road, today,
The High Road, the Top Road, she called it.

The memory of an earlier journey:
A landscape that dropped away from the car towards a jewel-bright reservoir and then reared up again into tumbling hills.
Gates.
A chateau.
Houses, old and new, perched high on the ridge on my right, to drink in the view.

I wanted to take that road again.

Anticipation, knowing the view is coming,
as I drive along the High Road, the Top Road.
Something has already changed – here the trees are thicker, the colours older and richer.

The view is coming.

Past the hedge and the landscape drops. The reservoir is an azure-green patch in the hills.
The fields are hazy with grey-blue stalks of straw, remains of the harvest.
The sky is another stroke of grey-blue.
If an artist painted it, she’d have to dilute inks until they were homeopathic drops in the water.
If an artist painted it I wouldn’t believe her – ‘too wish-washy,’ I’d say.
But I’d be wrong.
Here, on a different road, everything is hazy,
Everything is watered, everything is intense.

Back on my own road, the colours return to their normal strength.
The soil is a strong red-brown, the sky is cerulean blue.
But I turn and, there, on the horizon, just a streak of hazy grey-blue.

Buttons for October

2011-10-03T14:49:00.003+02:00

I'm so happy to have found exactly what I wanted to display a few of my buttons... and just in time for October, when Niki's calendar features a most enviable button tin:

This box was my own personal 1€ buy at the school Vide Grenier yesterday. I'm limiting myself to 1€ at each VG or troc shop visit now, due to low funds. Any other spending has to be on presents or things actually needed by the family. And it's possible that a clock-maker's sandalwood box doesn't fall into the need category.

But it was certainly on my list of wants!

You'll see Niki and I both have some colourful mid-century buttons -I've had fun buying a few of those this year!

I also decided to put in some of my favourite hand painted/hand stitched flower buttons.And maybe just a few mother of pearl...There have been some fantastic blog posts on button boxes over the last few years. I'm struggling to find them all for you now, so if if any reader has done a button box post, it would be lovely if you could put a link to it here among the comments, please. And if you haven't done one yet, do you have a button box you could share? I'm always ready to see more...

In love with...

2011-09-30T14:34:00.003+02:00

... my shady spot next to the Cosmos, the Black-Eyed Susans and (Lululiz's) Morning Glories... ... this year's charity shop blanket - a volunteer knits a few every year, and I pick up another one for the collection each autumn!..

... the bag I customised this weekend. CK? What CK?..

... and a certain birthday-man who turned 44 on Wednesday.

The boys made him a cake each!

Dead T-Shirt Make Do and Mend

2011-09-23T18:05:00.003+02:00

Here's a boy (number 2 in our family) in a boy's fleece. When I bought it this afternoon, though (1€50 special offer on fleeces at Veti Relais, the charity shop)...

it was a girl's fleece. Eew!

Double eew!

Thanks to a tiny T-shirt that Son 2 outgrew years ago, but which he'd begged me to keep because one day I might do something with it, he now has a fleece with his favourite glow-in-the-dark Puerto Rican frog on it again!

I'm quite pleased with the results of an hour's blanket-stitching. His response when he saw his frog ride again? "Cool!"

PS - DS allowed as it's Friday night, in case you were wondering about my relaxation of the 'no video games on week nights' rule!

PPS I'm going to take my week's break now. I won't be looking at your blog or mine until next Friday, now. Have a lovely week, friends.

Linen old, linen new...

2011-09-21T15:23:00.006+02:00

You know me, I do like a nice bit of linen. Living in France has educated me fantastically about how linen is actually produced - it is a long and incredibly labour-intensive process, and the Basque people of the area we visited have a really passionate relationship with the flax plant and its processing into fine fabric. A father would plant a flax field for his new baby daughter, and would tend it until she and her mother could begin to turn to flax fibres into a trouseau for her marriage. We learnt all this here.But who are this fine couple, embroidered onto linen about seventy years ago?
Here they are in all their finery - poor King George V, who by that time seems to have been in pretty bad health, but still managed to have plenty of Silver Jubilee celebrations. There are great photos of King George and Queen Mary here, with some great social history from one family to go with it.
Linen is all about social history for me, as I've implied. Look at the back of the embroidery - the grey detail shows how a loyal housewife stitched the raised features of the faces and crowns.And how about a bit of political history? The detail in the opposite corner shows the English rose, the Scottish thistle, the Welsh daffodil and the Irish shamrock - George V was king throughout the one of the most dramatic phases of Irish history: war, Home Rule, the Anglo-Irish Treaty etc. The south of Ireland finally became a Republic two years after this embroidery was completed. All that history in the work of an accomplished housewife!
Like some other bloggers, I was privileged to be given two tea towels from All Tea Towels this summer. Ireland has a part to play in this half of the story too, as it's another centre for linen production in Europe. All Tea Towels is based in Northern Ireland and posts free to all parts of the UK. I'm just going to talk about the linen tea towel I chose here - linen is such an absorbent fabric that it has made the best drying cloths and towels for millennia!
You can see that the design on this tea towel is an absolute winner for me - blue, linen and gold, in a vintage advert for gardening. What really impressed me along with the teatowel was the Linen Care Guide provided. I've had plenty of vintage linen in my time, and have worked out how to care for it through a combination of trial and error and good reading (such as a fantastic article in BBC Homes and Antiques that I can't currently find!).
So now, here's how to care for new 100% linen tea towels, thanks to Al of All Tea Towels:

"Your new linen tea towel contains natural starch in the fibres. Firstly, you need to steep your linen tea towl in a bowl of mild detergent, and rub it gently against itself with your hands. Leave to steep for a couple of hours which will remove most of the starch and will help improve the linen fibres' absorbency. Rinse thoroughly to prevent soap/detergent residue brown spots appearing. Repeated usage and washing will further increase the linen absorbancy. There will be a noticeable increase in absorbency and softness after 4 or 5 washes, so stick with it."

I loved reading that - it tied in so well with everything I'd been learning about the Basque love for linen. It's a passionate fibre, one that repays a bit of effort in a way that cotton (of which I'm very fond too) really can't. I followed the advice and it was easy, and I also enjoyed getting to know the linen and how it was changing as I worked with it. In fact, it's still yet to have its full quota of washes, so I'll post later to tell you about the increase in absorbency and softness after it's had its full prep!

You can see Al's collection of linen teatowels here.

We're going to Toulouse... (to the rhythm of 'We're going on a bear hunt'...)

2011-09-20T09:59:00.004+02:00

OK, I'll lead, you follow...

Are you ready? Don't forget the sound effects and the actions!

We're going to Toulouse. (We're going to Tou-lo-ouse.) We're starting off in church. (We're starting off in chu-urch.)

The boys are eating with Youth Club. (The boys are eating with Youth Club.)

And Ben is helping with youth games. (And Ben is helping with youth games.)

So I'm free! (So I'm free!)

Quick! (Quick!)

Into the car... (Into the car...)

Find the list of Vide Greniers... (Find the list of Vide Greniers...)

Find the map... (Find the map...)

Only got half the map! (Only got half the map!)

Argh! (Argh!)

There's a sign! (There's a sign!)

Follow the sign. (Follow the sign.)

Past the hospital, nee naw nee naw. (Past the hospital, nee naw, nee naw.)

Past the disco, boom-cha-boom-cha. (Past the disco, boom-cha-boom-cha.)

Past the flyover, vroom, vroom. (Past the flyover, vroom, vroom.)

There it is! (There it is!)

It's raining! Pitta-patta, pitta-patta. (It's raining! Pitta patta, pittat-patta.)

Buy a plant stand from some students. (Buy a plant stand from some students.)

To the car! (To the car!)

To the next VG! (To the next VG!)

Along the canal, splash-splash. (Along the canal, splash-splash.)

Round the Grande Ronde, vroom vroom. (Round the Grande Ronde, vroom vroom.)

There's a sign! (There's a sign!)

There's a parking space! (There's a parking space!)

No parking charges on Sundays. (No parking charges on Sun- days.)

Buy a bucket. (Buy a bucket.)

Buy a box. (Buy a box.)

Buy some platters. (Buy some platters.)

Time to pick them up! (Time to pick them up!)

To the car! (To the car!)

Round the Grande Ronde, vroom vroom. (Round the Grande Ronde, vroom vroom.)

Along the canal, splash, splash. (Along the canal, splash splash.)

Back to church, alleluia! (Back to church, alleluia!)
There's the Youth Club, scream, scream. (There's the Youth Club, scream, scream.)

Time to go home... (Time to go home...)

Getting there..?

2011-09-19T15:11:00.003+02:00

Last Thursday I was writing about Son 1's dyspraxia and our attempts to get his computer into the classroom - he has a neuropediatrician's report saying that a computer would be a good thing, but that's only the beginning of the challenge. Before we all get too knee-jerky, it's worth bearing in mind that the Anglo-American philosophy of education that most of us hold to is only one way of looking at things - the French have a perfectly rational but rather different philosophy of education (and the Japanese yet another, for example...)So Ben and I went to the meeting with the Directrice of the school, his form teacher, the school nurse and the school doctor. The outcome of this meeting is that everyone now recognises that he has a genuine and long-term difficulty, and that allowances will be made wherever possible to give him a longer time to write, allow him to make photocopies of other pupils' notes if he didn't finish his own, or to email teachers to ask for details that he missed in class. The actual appearance of his computer in class is still in doubt. We will have to have further meetings and take this to the Disability Agency. It appears that his science, maths and technology teachers think it's a great idea - all problems solved in one simple action. We're with them there! But his language and humanities teachers (and possibly the bureaucrats) hold with fervent devotion to the beauty and value of the hand-written word, and suffer for him, thinking of how he will be deprived if we don't allow him to develop his handwriting skills further. See - they're not cruel or crazy, they're just thinking differently. We'll see if the Brits and the technocrats can come out on top in this one, though... Thank you for your comments and prayers.

An elemental post - Water

2011-09-16T16:10:00.003+02:00

When I posted about air the other day I realised that I'd probaly be able to work my way through the elements using holiday photos - holidays are quite elemental things, really.This post is also related to my resolution to enjoy life to the full. One of the things I first found myself really enjoying this year, for maybe the first time, was taking the boys to the swimming pool. I decided not to get stressed, not to get worried, not to get bored, and just enjoy it. Guess what - it was really enjoyable!

So I had an inkling that it might actually be possible to enjoy sea-bathing too, and I tried it out with rather more confidence than I have on previous holidays (the sea wasn't grey, except on the evening I took these photos). And - guess what? - it was fantastic! I wonder how up-tight I've been all these years, not to enjoy such a full-on elemental experience? (Ben need not reply. I know the answer, really...)

Since I was driving the Car Without Airconditioning today (33° inside and out), I leapt into our little pool as soon as I came home. Once again, relax and enjoy the moment...

Note to self: This principle probably works throughout life, not just with regard to water...

Rentrée Labours

2011-09-15T11:20:00.003+02:00

This morning I've planned my university lessons for the term (what is the English for 'je suis responsable de la qualité', anyone?) and done my French homework for this afternoon's lesson (who would have known that medlars, crosnes and cardoons would have popped up in my comprehension exercise? Thank goodness for the internet...) And after all that I feel qualified for a little blogging...

although with schoolwork still firmly in mind.

I've told you lots about my Rentrée, but I haven't said much about the boys!

In some ways, that's because things are going smoothly, and in other ways, it's because blogging publically about little things that get on your nerves about a foreign system or about any particular school is surely a very, very bad idea? Anyone and everyone can read my blog and I want to keep my relationships with local schools and French friends positive - c'est logique!

But here is a little of our news. Son 2 is the (not-so?) proud owner of the books and files above. Having had a very good year last year (held back a year at our request, making lots of friends and working well) he's now gone up into cinquieme (5°). The work seems fine, his attitude is good and the nuisance of being in a class which he seems to think is full of (rédoublant) louts is balanced by having some of his best friends from last year back with him. He's a bit stunned that Ben and I have banned computer and video games on school days but is coming to terms with this tragic loss...

Son 1 is loving, loving, loving his final year in collège so far. He's taken up Greek which he has adored from afar for years (thanks to internet language sites and Percy Jackson books) and is working really hard to complete all his homework on time - a bit (a lot) of a transformation from the boy who stropped about his homework and then rushed it off in record time. I guess we've seen that transformation slowly coming but of huge help this year have been a) advice from a friend in the year above, b) maturity and c) this:

Warts and all photo of Son 1's desk and his new computer. French schooling is basically all handwritten, but Son 1's dyspraxia means that an expert has recommended typing as the way forward for him. His teachers are happy for him to type his homework - they have been for years. But coming up on Monday is the meeting which will decide if he is allowed to take that teeny, tiny litle white laptop into school to type up his lessons in class (it's all about copying from the board here in France). Opinion is divided amongst the staff, with the opinion of the directrice (principal) and the school doctor probably being the most important, and, of course, the hardest to acertain in advance. We'd be grateful for your prayers, if you're the praying kind...

Thank you, friends.

"She felt that love was stronger still..."

2011-09-14T11:34:00.000+02:00

This is Frances E Willard.This is my grandma!I think my grandma may have been the one who bought this Frances E Willard commemorative scarf, because they had something in common:
The poem above says it all - they were both involved in the Women's Temperance Movement.
Frances E Willard was the ' most famous member and second president' of the Women's Christian Temperance Movement. Read about her on their website here - they are still at work!
As you can see from the beautifully-drawn map and illustrations on the scarf, Frances E Willard was involved in all sorts of social projects to improve the life of ordinary Americans in the late 1800s, and was commemorated in hospitals, children's homes, libraties etc all over the States.I enjoy a glass of wine (hey, I live in France!). But when you realise that society was falling apart in the UK and the USA due to alcohol, abused to drown the misery of poverty (thus making poverty even worse, of course!), I think that the Temperance Movement was a powerful force for change, which encouraged women to work together for the good of society. My Grandma Signed the Pledge when she was young, in Wales, and never drank. My mum didn't drink either... so that's kind of died out in our generation, but it doesn't stop me from recognising the work of women social campaigners like Frances E Willard.
j
It also doesn't stop me from selling the 'scarf' (or piece of cotton, or whatever I should call it) on ebay for our family travel fund, set up by me and my sister in memory of our mum. I think that if the right bidders find it (how do I make sure they do?), this piece could be of interest to them...

Resolutions, an answer, and a winner!

2011-09-13T14:09:00.011+02:00

Thanks for all your entries to my Pick and Mix Book Giveaway - I've really enjoyed reading your comments, your thoughts about the books, and the resolutions that you've mentioned. Some have gone so far as to do their own resolutions post! Thanks for all your interest and involvement. I thought I'd give you a bit of a run-down on my resolutions so far - I like the fact that posting resolutions here means that I am accountable! Otherwise, I really do forget...

So, my first visit to the Library in a good long while has resulted in some good books:

I have three books in French - on Bastide towns (these are medieval planned checker-board towns and we live in one), on the pastel (or woad) trade in the area and one on birds of the region. There's also a rather lightweight book in English with pretty pictures of Toulouse and its heritage, but sometimes I just want the luxury of reading in English...

The news is becoming more accessible now that we have free digital TV. There are several French 24/7 news channels and Ben and I are both determined to watch a cycle of news per day. It makes a real difference instead of having to sit down too early (8pm) or too late (up to 11pm) for the terrestrial news channels. And I think it's really good to watch the French news, instead of just reading the BBC news website as I've done up until now. I feel more connected to France and the French when I follow the news from the national perspective. Possibly, if I listen to enough 'standard' French, I might even get rid of a bit of my local accent? Or possibly not...Here is just a peek at my two scrapbooks. I cannot tell you how much pleasure I am getting out of putting them together. They're just cuttings albums, the kind I used to keep when I was a child... and I think that might be part of the fun. A full post to follow...

And yes, you were right, it was the enamel coffee jug that was perjoratively labelled 'old'! It's true I wouldn't put coffee in it, but think of filling it with woodland treasures, as Betty the Wood Fairy suggested... It certainly has a future, as well as a past.

It cost me 1€, same as nearly everything else in Sunday's haul. The whole lot cost me 10€, and got me some good aerobic exercise into the bargain! (Steep hill up to the village.) The exercise resolution is coming on OK, BTW, but you really don't want photos... And enjoying life is indeed a habit to be learnt - I can see I'm making some progress there - you know I do such great things, and it's only a case of switching off the worry button in order to enjoy them fully...

... anyway, on to the winner! I'm just off to close down the giveaway and will come back with news of the winning comment...

Done!

The winner is Nikki, which is great as she is a self-professed bibliophile! I'm going to read more of her book blog, and have already enjoyed her wonderful photo-diary of walks and visits in her part of Northern Ireland. I do like the way that running giveaways gives you a chance to meet new bloggers! Nikki (who I guess found out about me through Serenata, as they have a fellow enthusiasm for Shasha dolls) has chosen Flea Market Style and How Green are my Wellies? as her two prizes. Congratulations Nikki - would you email me with your address, please?

"C'est vieux..."

2011-09-12T10:44:00.004+02:00

I cycled off to a Vide Grenier yesterday and, once again, heard those popular words in my title, which of course translate as: "It's old..."

What got me thinking was how these words mean different things to different sellers.Far too often, I hear them being used to excuse a silly inflated price:

I'm charging you lots because... "It's old!"

There was a time a chap about my age tried this on me with a charming mirror with the date 1964 on the back.

I sincerely wanted to point out that anything that was only a few years older than him or me was hardly worth a price-hike.

But I didn't.

And I did buy that mirror, after a bit of bargaining.

But on this occasion, the phrase: "It's old..."

Clearly meant: "So that's why I'm charging so little for it. Why on earth would you want it?"

Hurray!

I'm in the mood for a guessing game. Which object (excluding the bread, above) do you think was the condemned 'old' item in question?

No prizes, but if you want prizes, don't forget to enter my giveaway (button in the sidebar) which closes tomorrow!

An elemental post - Air

2011-09-09T21:36:00.006+02:00

This week I had to cycle up to town to pick up some books for the new school year and a battery for Son 1's watch. It's good to visit the local traders for this kind of thing... but they turned out to re-open at 3pm, not at 2pm, as I'd stupidly assumed. (Don't knock them - they do stay open until 7 or 7.30, so they are working for a usefully long time.) Anyway, I cycled round the backstreets of the bastide a bit and then went to find the restored windmill. After a while sitting in its shade, I decided to lie down in its shade instead, and spent a profitable 15 minutes staring up into the air. This reminded me that I had some great sky photos taken on holiday last week - how wonderful it is when there's time to gaze upwards!This one was spotted by Ben's dad after lunch, as we sat on the patio of the gîte. It's a halo around the sun - pretty amazing!This is another view of it - a circular rainbow in the sky! How many of these things do you think we miss, because we're not looking?
These thingies are something special too. Son 1 was given a Cloud Collector's Handbook by Ben's parents this birthday. He's read it carefully so was able to identify these little wave-shaped cloud formations as something special. They are not very good examples of Kelvin-Helmhotz waves, and although they're not as good as this one, we wouldn't even have noticed them if he hadn't been reading his book.
j
Personally, I favour a combination of idle and informed sky-gazing. I don't want to know about everything but I do enjoy a bit of knowledge. You've probably guessed...
j
Thanks so much to all of you who've entered my giveaway, below. If you're not already in, please do have a look at the books on offer and choose two! The giveaway closes on Tuesday. Have a great weekend, friends.

C'est la Rentrée - Resolutions and a Giveaway - 2011

2011-09-06T10:12:00.002+02:00

SORRY - GIVEAWAY NOW CLOSED!

Hello blogging friends old and new, C'est la Rentrée! This means Back to School, but also so much more, here in France. Those who've been following my blog know about, and have even picked up the idea of, Rentrée Resolutions. The idea here in France is that a fresh start, a great new idea or a brave challenge, are things best started in September when the school year begins. It works for me and this will be the third year in a row that I've linked resolution-making to a giveaway. This year, I'm giving away copies of books that have been influential to me: But you have to make a choice! I'm offering two books, possibly new, possibly good-condition secondhand - that's very much in-keeping with my own thrifty ways, and I hope you'll see the environmental/cost advantages of getting the prizes secondhand too. The first set to chose from are all fairly frivolous, because where would we be without fun in our lives? I think resolutions should have fun in them too - I'll tell you mine later.

So, from the first set, you can choose from the following three books: Emily Chalmers and Ali Hanan write great books and work with a great photographer! This book was bought for me by my mum shortly after she came home from hospital a few years ago, and shortly before I started my blog for her. It's been influential to my style, but even more, has opened my eyes to possibilities... The style is not to everyone's liking, but it gives ideas...

This second book is a must if you ever go vintage shopping in France. It would also be good for someone who just wants to dream about the possibility, as the photos and descriptions are as lovely as the information is useful!

This third book is by a fellow blogger! I love 'murder lite' and I love Sharon's blog (she's The Queen of Fifty Cents - a must-read thrifting blog) and her book is also super - really good, friendly characters, dogs, antiques and an entertaining mystery. This one I would buy for you new, because the author is a blog-friend!

Now we come on to the second set. These are a bit less frivolous, but there's a light touch to all of them, too - easy to read and easy to take onboard the ideas.

If you haven't heard me mention this one, have you ever read my blog before? It was recommended to me by another fellow-blogger who had found it influential, and in my case it has been a blessing to read through the last few years - hard times have been easier to cope with, and easier to understand, whilst great times were better-enjoyed because of what I was reading and learning!

Of course another blogger put me in the direction of this one! I've given it to friends and family since - it's very unassuming and fun, and manages to look at green-living on a month-by-month basis without making it all seem like hard work.

And finally another blogger's book! The Happiness Project blog is a real biggie, not like mine or Sharon's, but reading the book and the blog you do get to feel you know, like and can learn from Gretchen Ruben. Like Anna Shepard's book it's divided into months and gives the writer's own thoughts and experiences as she attempts to appreciate her already-good life all the more. As that's pretty much the goal of my blog, I have found this book really helpful in clarifying how we either make the best of things or can, quite accidentally, get bogged down into letting a lot of the good stuff slip by us...

So now, for the rules. Leave a comment to enter, telling me which of the 'frivolous' books and which of the 'worthy' books you would like. If it just so happens that you already own all of these books, you could always just say, 'Surprise me!' and if you win I'll send you something else! But ideally, choose two and tell me what they are. Tell me why, if you like! If you'd like to copy the giveaway button at the top of the page and link to me from your blog that would be most appreciated, but I'm not doing the complicated 'two or three entries' thing. Anything for a quiet life! The same for becoming a follower - if you don't follow already, it would be lovely for you to join if you're intending to come back, but your entry doesn't require it.

And finally, what are my Rentrée Resolutions for this year?

Enjoy life to the full (I have a tendancy to plan ahead/worry ahead, instead of living in the moment). Actual examples of how I can do this (Ms Ruben says we need concrete resolutions!) are to spend time with the boys where all I do is have fun with them, instead of wondering what I'm going to cook for lunch later, and also to listen fully to Ben when he's talking to me, instead of planning either my own response or (a theme emerging here) lunch. And just to stop thinking that something bad is going to happen! Where does that weird little black cloud of dread come from, to spoil the happiest occasions? As you can see, I've already thought this one through. It's really an on-going resolution...

Watch the cable news once a day, as all my previous resolutions about keeping up with the news have proved flawed. Maybe this year we'll get it right!

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Keep on going with my scrap books (magazine cuttings, not scrapbooking as such), but also don't feel bad when I don't keep up with the scrap books!

Keep going to the library! And maybe a bit more often...

Do a short session of toning exercises at least three times a week - I'm working more and have less time for the long bike rides I used to do regularly.

So that's it! If you'd like to tell me a resolution of your own, as part of your entry, I will very much appreciate reading it. But all you really have to do is leave a comment with your choice of two great books! Very best of luck to all of you. I'll close the giveaway and announce the winner in a week's time - Tuesday 13th September.

I'm now deleting any 'non-entry' comments just to make sure I enter the correct number of entries into the 'hat'...

By the sea...

2011-09-05T19:30:00.006+02:00

One thing I miss so much about living in a bigger country, a country which is not an island, is the sea.
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It has genuinely been over a year since we last saw the sea, and that has taken its toll in an odd, un-definable sort of way. So when Son 2 announced: 'I want to swim in the sea every day of this holiday!', I decided to support him in this challenge. We were staying with Ben's parents last week, in a gîte only a few kilometers away from the Atlantic coast, in the Pays Basque.

The people of the Pays Basque of France are linked by language, culture and blood to the Spanish Basques known for their terrorist connections (actually - they have declared a permanent ceasefire, did you know?), but although the French Basques are strongly independent they welcome tourists so that people can learn about their unique heritage. They speak a languge that pre-dates any other European one, which mainly seems to consist of the letters X and Z, if road signs are anything to go by. They build (yes, they still build them) big white houses with red paintwork - originally the wood was coloured with oxblood.They make cider, catch fish, grow and weave linen, play pelota and sing passionate songs for tourists and locals alike.So, what did we do?

We went up a steep mountain (La Rhune) by train, and came down it on foot...

We hunted for, and found, fossils on a sloping cliff we'd discovered when staying nearby a few years ago.Ben's parents took the boys to the aquarium in Biarritz and Ben and I took the opportunity to walk around the town and see the sights...I took the dog for a walk to the local village, and found a beautiful church (possible Basque first and Christian second, I felt...)

And past the traditional Basque gravestones of the churchyard, I spotted the Cidrerie du Fronton, where Ben's mum booked us in for a quite stunningly traditional, delicious and enjoyable meal at communal tables (du cidre à volonté !) on our last evening.

And yes, Son 2 did swim in the sea every day - sometimes with his dad and his granny, often with me, and, on our last day, with everyone in the family together in the surf! A wonderful holiday.

Tomorrow, the boys go back to school - yes, it's the rentrée! In honour of this yearly event, I will be holding my now-yearly Rentrée giveaway. Do pop back over the next few days for resolutions and the chance to win some goodies. And thanks so much for your comments and kind thoughts while I've been away. It was wonderful to be there, but now it's great to be back.

Homes for finds

2011-08-23T17:31:00.007+02:00

Following my triumphant return from Sunday's Vide Grenier, I pottered about the house (dodging heat-grumpy family members, I have to be honest), putting my finds on display. After a good wash, the plates ended up on my now-full rack of stencilled French china. It's all in use and I guess I'm just going to rotate the pieces that go display in the rack! I put the holly bowl, which LissyLou likes best, with the two other 'French-style' bowls I bought at the brocante earlier this summer. If I get any more I'll put the holly one away until Christmas!

The sweet little hand painted cup ended up to the left of my favourite stencilled soup bowl.

Spot the broken plate behind a row of mis-matched jugs? I haven't done a 'themed by use' shelf before, but I think the jugs work OK. Son 1 gave me the blobby-glazed one on the right for my birthday this year. Ben and the boys scored big-time at a Vide Grenier when I was away on my London/Edinburgh trip!

And finally, THE frame. I bunged it here for now. Sometimes I go past it and think: 'Boy, I'm good".

Sometimes I go past it and think, "Good grief, that's pretentious".Time will tell. I can and will move it around!

The other, earlier, find that I'm really pleased with, is this blue and white tablecloth from an Edinburgh charity shop, bought stained and holed, in June.The French sun got rid of the worst of the stains, and I mended the worst holes. When I ironed it I hung it over the balcony, by coincidence on top of a red tablecloth. It was so pretty, and so in-keeping with my long-running red, white and blue obsession, that I decided to replicate the idea for our summer kitchen. (Some French people have a real summer kitchen - we just have a camping table with the toaster and coffee maker on the patio.) A clear plastic chopping-film does a good job of keeping most of the coffee stains off whatever cloth I have under the coffee maker.And finally, from the patio roof beams, hangs a string of Ben's chillis. If you're interested in his chilli jam recipe, by the way, it's basically the same as his darling Nigella's. He modifies it according to what's in the garden and the cupboard.Life is getting busy again - boys' friends staying, lessons, and then Ben's parents arriving on Thursday! So although this isn't an official blogging break, I don't see myself doing too many posts before the Rentrée, which will, of course, see my now traditional C'est la Rentrée Giveaway! You heard it here second... (I told Becca yesterday).

Thank you for all your comments, faithful friends, and new friends too! I really enjoyed reading what caught your eye from among my finds. Now, when I look at each item, I think of what you said about it...

The Well-Centred Shopper

2011-08-22T17:23:00.007+02:00

I had a joyful visit to the local Flea Market/Vide Grenier after church yesterday - the heat hadn't really built up by that point and everyone was enjoying being a bit cooler than the day before, I think. Vendors were terribly jolly, and I gave them something to be jovial about, wandering around, as I was, with a bag like this: "Madame est bien cadrée!" the men told me, following me around. Just in case I thought it was Madame they were after, the women also followed me, with the more honest words: "Madame a acheté un joli cadre..." leaving it clear that they were interested in buying my pretty picture-frame off me.

No chance!

Anyway, I don't think they'd spotted what I noticed: this isn't an ancient frame but is made of some kind of extruded foam. Which has broken. No big deal, and in fact it made it easier for me to carry around (although I still got a crick in my neck - it was on the first stall I passed).So, what else ended up in the Liberty for Red Nose Day bag?

A pretty mirror, made in a most intriguing style - I already have one like this (there's a sort of perspex over the painting, so it's not old, but they're not very new, either). The stamp on the back of this one solves its origins - it's from Belgian Africa. As that no longer exists, one can guess a date too... I think we're talking 1950s/early 60s.The genuine crown of King Dagobert, or so I was promised with a wink...Of course it's actually old shelf trimming...

Aluminium cups for camping and picnics. I think they're great. Don't know if the rest of the family will drink from them, though...

I've found some interesting links by typing SFM Aluminium into Google, but I haven't worked out the whole business of aluminium production and use in France yet. Seems there's quite a lot of use for the stuff!Yummy sponge-ware bowl.To me it looks really British, and very Christmassy. But it's clearly French (houx means holly in French) and I'm not sure it has the same festive significance over here. It won't grow around us, sadly.

Just before you get too jealous, take a peak at the inside:One young woman was selling off some of great-aunty's kitchenware. Hurray! She had a box-full for 3€, but seemed quite content when I picked out the few I wanted,

charging me 20c per plate and leaving the 3€ label on what remained in the box!I also asked for the bits of the plate that hadn't survived the journey...Well, this was grubby, but I didn't think 30c was too high a price to pay for this little 1930s wonder...

Great handle and hand painted decoration.

Wendz will know why I bought this! For a clue, see her comment on my Modern Vintage Challenge post.And finally, I got down to the bottom of the bag and could remove my lovely frame.

See, its admirers hadn't even seen the best of it, as I'd shoved it into the bag upside down. Bien cadrée (well-centred/well-framed) indeed!

I've had a wonderful time pottering about the house in the heatwave, seeking homes for my finds. I'll post about where they've ended up, soon!

Button Swaps and Bloggers' Meets

2011-08-21T16:58:00.004+02:00

Elizabethd organised a sweet and simple Buttons and Bows Swap last month - such a lot of fun for such little cost and effort! We simply trawled through our button boxes and similar stashes and sent an appropriate selection to our swap partner. My partner was Christine from Time Out Stitching, all the way on the other side of the world. This is what she sent me! Here's what I sent her - look how we beautifully colour-coded our gifts, lol! You can read more about what I sent her on her post about the swap.

So, shall we take more of a peek at the Australian wonders that have winged their way to France?

Such a sweet ribbon rosette. I shall put it on one of my white blouses, I think - I really want to show this one off!

A beautiful tatted circle, now forming the backdrop for a few of my favourite buttons from the package:

So simple but sweet...

Sewing-themed charm and fabric - I can really see this making a great pincushion... or a sewing bag... or the cover for my sewing box... lots of ideas, there!

Hand-dyed embroidery threads and two lovely doileys

And finally...

Thanks so much, Christine, for this lovely package of goodness!

For my second Bloggers' meet-up this summer (I am doing well), I noticed that Elizabeth Rimmer, the poet who writes such thought-provoking and authentic pieces for some of our Advent and Lent Pauses, was going to be at the Edinburgh Poetry Festival while we were visiting my dad last week. She mentioned that she'd be at the Couryard Reading one day, so I told her I'd try to happen along and hear her read there, and I made it (through the pouring rain). I enjoyed all the contributions, by published and unpublished posts (Scottish, English and Portugese) and particularly liked Elizabeth's poem about the Eclipse. You can read Elizabeth's festival write-up here.

It's horribly hot here ("Forte chaleur, penser à vos proches...") and we're quite busy with lovely holiday stuff - the boys' friends are constantly spending nights with us and they're alternating time between the swimming pool (yay!) and the computer (yawn), and Ben and I are finding indoor things to do (chilli jam in his case, wonderful man) and saving hot stuff, like gardening and ironing, for the early mornings. Boy, does it make a change from Edinburgh! Next post: I visited a Vide Grenier...

On-tro-po-lo-jee...

2011-08-18T15:45:00.001+02:00

I didn't know I pronounced it the French way (as above) until I hear myself whispering the name in awe when I saw it on wooden hoardings in George Street this April. I came very close to getting inside it this June, but it opened the day after my flying visit to my dad ended. So it wasn't until this Tuesday that I entered its hallowed gates: Anthropologie, Edinburgh.Of course, as a blogger, the shop has been on my radar for a very long time. I'm aware of it as a shop that has a great eye for displaying the quirky, the found, the handmade, the recup'...So I was very keen to see it with my own eyes! When I got in out of the rain, it took a while for my eyes to actually see. I was a bit overwhelmed, and it took some time for me to settle down. Spotting two of my favourite books:
was a help.
The shop assistant I asked was very happy for me to take photos (I guess if you're going to stun people with your displays you do want people to study and share them) and, with my camera in hand, I began to focus enough to take things in.
Secretly, I'm waiting for the day that mis-matched chairs aren't the In Thing. Much as I like them, it is clear that they're only a trend, and style writers don't seem to realise that... But yes, I love that little table-setting!
Super hand-painted plates.
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And then on, past the work of a local artist, down the stairs...
This is very much to my liking. The plates have been cleverly covered with real canvasses. I won't be doing it, but the overall effect, and the clever idea, are great.
I have a real aversion to the chinaware (on the left, below) that slopes and slants and doesn't follow the rules, however. I felt my mother tutting along with me at that moment...
But I can see myself doing something with old books, old cutlery and string.
Minus the candles - I'd be constantly wanting to pick the dripped wax off.
Watch this space...
Always looking for ideas with mirrors - this is very successful, I think!
And chairs too - when I taught the Infant Class in a tiny Cumbrian school I got very used to chairs like this, although very few of the wooden ones were left. Theywere mostly grey-blue plastic, if I remember rightly...
So I found Anthropologie inspirational, nostalgic, fascinating and, fortunately for my budget, totally un-tempting on this occasion. But I will be back!

Boxes and buttons...

2011-08-17T16:44:00.001+02:00

Back home from our week in Edinburgh;our cases are yet to be unpacked but I have found time to put the latest fabric box, plus some buttons I picked up, onto the stack!
j
Next post: Anthropologie - The Visit

Shining through...

2011-08-16T12:38:00.002+02:00

It's mainly rained, here in Edinburgh. But something I heard someone say on the news yesterday clicked with me, and I thought of how our boys (imperfect though they are, as all humans must be) have brough shine to our lives this week.

Son 2 snapped this Sumatran tiger at the zoo yesterday, and the photo at the top is of my Dad with the boys at Dynamic Earth. Ben says: 'It's rather dull here at home, without you all'. So I am thinking about the contrast between shiny and dull, and realising that the hard work of bringing up children can make you forget that they're actually pretty shiny parts of our lives, most of the time!

I also bought a Provencal cloth box, and a National Trust for Scotland tray, in charity shops, as you do...

An August Break

2011-08-10T15:00:00.004+02:00

I'm not sure this is a full blogging break - I expect I'll be popping in and reading some of your posts, and maybe even posting some of my own, but the boys and I are flying off to Edinburgh for a week with my dad!Ben, the dog, the cat and the vegetable garden remain at home. Lots for him to look after... Over in Edinburgh, our goals are basically spending time with Grandpa and visiting the newly re-opened National Museum of Scotland. However, Anthropologie has opened in George Street, opposite Cath Kidston...

A Modern Vintage Challenge...

2011-08-09T10:01:00.006+02:00

Here's a photo of our spare room looking pretty OK. It gets scruffier at times, believe me! The look is cheap IKEA plus old favourites - a faintly vintage look with the aim of pleasing everyone - guests, Ben (more '70s cottage modern than me) and my pupils - many children and younger teenagers work in here with me for their lessons. My baby blanket is on the bed, on top of a thrifted crochet throw, a modern machine-boutis cover and our very favourite but now ancient duvet cover (circa 1993, I think).

Beautiful American hand-crafted lampshades, given to us as a wedding present,

sit with a few interesting bits and bobs on either side of the bed we made when we got back from our honeymoon.An oil painting by a friend (another wedding present) and a photo of Talkin Tarn, given by church friends when we left Brampton, Cumbria, sit above shelves of children's books, used for both teaching and nostalgia. Other books that guests might enjoy tuck in where there's space.

My grandma's oil painting of Brixham, presented by the Soroptimists when she left the town after years of service, is above the bed. It preserves the Brixham of the 1970s that I hold in my memory - I stood at the top of those stairs holding a collecting tin with my grandma so many times - the Royal National Lifeboat Institution, The Royal Society for the Protection of Animals, The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, ('Try to look like a rescued child, my dear - they might give us more...'). I also counted the steps up with increasing exhaustion when returning from trips around the town. You can see why I hankered after this painting so much...So, in this mild yet memorable mish-mash, the old desk I picked up for 30€ really didn't stand out too badly. OK, it was a bit wobbly, and when the handle fell off I replaced it with cord, which confused some of my pupils, and anyone with longer legs might find them slightly stuck under the drawer, but it worked OK...

Until last week, when a lovely 12-year old girl I teach (we'll call her Student X, she'll enjoy that) phoned me up and asked me if I wanted her old desk. The conversation went like this:

Student X: 'Floss, we've done up my bedroom and I've got a lovely new red desk from IKEA, and I was wondering if you'd like the old white one - I expect you remember it?'

Floss: 'Student X, are you telling me that your old desk is nicer than the one in my spare room?'

Student : 'Well, I don't want to be rude, but... yes.'

Floss: 'OK, I'll come and pick it up on Monday. Thanks very much!'

Thus, a sleek, white, modern desk is now nestling into a corner of our spare room. It is bigger, stronger, and better for teaching.

See how it goes with the vintage mirror Ben and I picked up decades ago in Cumbria...
Not.

This is my first real test of the excellent principles set out in Emily Chalmer's latest book, Modern Vintage Style. She looks at how an eclectic home filled with things you have, plus things you like, plus things you collect, can be the best of all worlds, and not a meaningless mish-mash. I knew when I read/sighed/dreamed over this lovely book that I wanted to interpret this style in my own way. This desk is my first opportunity. Thanks, Student X and Emily Chalmers!

Now, friends, any ideas?

The Tick-List

2011-08-08T10:07:00.009+02:00

Just as we were starting our staycation, we asked the boys to take one of my teaching whiteboards and write a list of things they'd like to do.

While Ben and I were still drinking our breakfast coffee, this list (inconveniently written in yellow) appeared, suspended over the table. It's rather hard to read, so here is a list of what the boys wrote, with their ticks and explanations as necessary. INTRODUCE DAD TO SPORE, tick! (Spore is their favourite computer game at the moment.)

African Safari, tick

DAD 2 SPORE, tick!

cité de l'éspace

DAD 2 SPORE, tick!

Tour round Toulouse, tick!

DAD 2 SPORE, tick

GO ON A BIKE RIDE, tick!DAD 2 SPORE, tick

Go to the river, tick

DAD 2 SPORE, tick

PING-Pong tournament, tick

DAD 2 SPORE, tick

Swimming together

DAD 2 SPORE, tick

GO TO MUSEUM, tick

DAD 2 SPORE, tick

Watch a film together, tick (we bought the DVD of The Voyage of the Dawn Treader)

DAD 2 SPORE, tick

GO TO THE CINEMA

DAD 2 SPORE, tick

PLAY KUBB

DAD 2 SPORE, tick

PLAY CREATIONARY

DAD 2 SPORE, tick

play BANG, tick

You can see that we managed most things, either on our own, with Son 2's friend, or with our best friends from university, who arrived on Wednesday with their sons and left yesterday morning, by train, for Barcelona. Other, unplanned and unplannable things, were equally lovely, like old friends from Harrogate spotting us in the road as they drove back to their campsite, or the double rainbow which arrived on Saturday evening after a torrential thunder downpour...

So how did the scarves go???

2011-08-05T16:04:00.005+02:00

Some of you asked for news of how our Festival of Britian scarves sold - I'm happy to tell you that the first one I mentioned sold for 16 pounds, and the second one is currently at 15 pounds 99 (I can't get a pounds symbol on my French keyboard here!). Also currently for sale is our last Festival item - personally I love this little leather box, and quite want to take it home with me... but I'd rather see it sell! My sister and I have decided that these items, collected by my mum over the years, will be sold to go into a fund to help our families visit each other. These first sales won't make much of a dent in our travel expenses, but it's a lovely start and I think that my mum would have found it a wonderful result for her little speculative buys over the years.
j
In other news, we're having a lovely time with our visiting friends - visits to the Natural History Museum in Toulouse and lots of garden salads and a little bit of ice cream seem to be the order of the day...

Staycation in the south of France

2011-08-02T08:55:00.003+02:00

We started our staycation yesterday - it's a whole lot easier than going away on holiday, I have to say! We had a family trip to our local Safari Park planned, and we ended up taking Son 2's friend along too (spot the French head next to the British head watching the macaw!)
Son 2 and Friend had a great time doing the holiday quiz around the animal park. Do you want to try your French out on two of the clues they photographed? The one above is factual. The one below is a rebus!
When we got home the boys threw themselves in the pool (yes, Son 1 can walk, swim and run again after his op - hurray!) and Ben carried on fitting the shutters we've made. I used up the cherry tomato glut making Onion and Cherry Tomato Chutney. Smells great...
Today the weather is less sunny, and we're planning a local bike ride and some boardgames. What about you?

Pilgrimage II

2011-07-30T10:22:00.000+02:00

Last week I posted about a little pilgrim stop I made, quite by accident, on the way to a brocante sale. One of the comments on that post was by a lady I'd never met before, and who turns out to have a very special blog called 'My scallop -shell of quiet'.
This is the quotation which inspires her blog title:

GIVE me my scallop-shell of quiet,

My staff of faith to walk upon,

My scrip of joy, immortal diet,

My bottle of salvation,

My gown of glory, hope's true gage;

And thus I'll take my pilgrimage.

It's by Sir Walter Raleigh - I'd forgotten he was a poet too.
So the image of the scallop-shell is still inspiring people today. I find that very pleasing. If you remember, I mentioned that the pilgrims on the way to Santiago de Compostela used to carry their scallop shells both as a symbol and also as a way of asking for food and drink along the way - they could ask anyone, rich or poor, for enough sustenance to fill their scallop shell. Is it greedy to immediately think of seeking-out one of those really big scallops?
I found this picture of a medieval pilgrim on the blog of someone who has recently cycled to Compostela! The labelled parts (OK, in Spanish, but I'm giving it a go...) give me an idea of what Sir Walter Raleigh was talking about.
j
The scallop shell we know - and Sir WR thought of it as 'quiet'. Just a tiny bit of quiet in each day?
j
The staff of faith - 'to walk upon' - I though of 'to lean' upon, but no, he says it's to walk upon. That's a more active image of faith.
j
The scrip of joy - I know this one! (Thanks to Ellis Peters and Brother Cadfael). I've just checked and confirmed that it's a small leather bag for carrying food and money. But we'll carry joy in ours! If you really want one, you can buy one here. Joy not included.
j
A bottle - al vino, says the picture above! Salvation, says Sir WR. So that's a link to the blood of Christ, our salvation and also to our communion wine.
j
A gown - which must have been both practical protection from the elements and also a symbol of the pilgrimage. And that's glory, and our hope. Wrapped in glory...
j
What a lot to learn from a detour, a shell, an Elizabethan adventurer and blogging!

21 years ago...

2011-07-29T19:39:00.002+02:00

About 21 years ago, I was in Oxford - probably it was when I was trawling the vintage stalls in the markets, looking (successfully) for a going away outfit. I spotted the Ben's Cookies stall in the covered market (it was the first ever one - you can read about it here) and just had to buy Ben a tin of cookies, even though as as student about to graduate and then get married, I was pretty broke.

Spot the difference! This year, for my anniversary present, Ben bought me a second tin, filled with eight most wonderful chocolate cookies. We ate them over the last two days, and the tin will become another favourite, and may even last as long as the previous one, still going strong...I made him an anniversary card, using brass and nickel buttons, as I discovered that a 21st wedding anniversary is, technically, a brass and nickel one.

I like anniversaries. I like the opportunity to think back and really count my blessings...

Festival London, 1951/2011

2011-07-27T11:49:00.007+02:00

It seems a long time since our bloggers' meet-up in London, but I've got great memories of the day, and I never really told you all about it when I got home, as things were so crazy at the end of term! Now is a good day to talk about this, though:As a very enthusiastic new subscriber to BBC Homes and Antiques (it's really good - have you tried it recently?), I knew all about the 60th Anniversary celebrations of the Festival of Britain, held in the original location at the Southbank Centre. H & A Mag had prepared the 1951 room, which was pretty good, except they'd reckoned without Ang, who spotted that they were playing 1960s music! Apart from that it was accurate - see her review here!The Southbank Centre was full of people being taught how to Lindyhop (what?), and as we had a little while to wait for Ang (it's a long story...) we sat and watched the dancers,
becoming progressively more accomplished and lively!
The Festival of Britian was a symbol of two things - the 100th anniversary of the Great Exhibition, and the rejuvination of Britain and British design after the Second World War.
Women from London who'd had no previous sewing experience were invited to join together for training and produced this commemorative quilt out of still-rationed fabric. I picked out two key dates which particularly spoke to me, as a teacher:
and as a woman!
I was intrigued by all the Festival memorabilia, as I'd found a fantastic leather box bearing the Festival logo in the piano stool at my father's house. Either my grandma or my mum must have 'picked it up', either at the Festival itself (I don't know if my grandma went, she may have done) or later. It had a plastic liner showing that it held something small and rather spherical. So, not either of these:
And not these either, although I thought it was worth getting a photo!
These are the things my mum and dad would have been given, if they'd ever gone there...
Here are souvenirs for men - really snazzy!
And here is the other thing I was really interested in: Festival Headscarves.
I snapped a photo of the explanition for why these were so popular - it's well worth clicking on the picture to enlarge it if you're interested in fashion history.
I was researching these in particular because my mum also left us two Festival of Britian scarves in her collection.
Neither look much like these examples, which shows how many, and how diverse, the headscarves were.
My mum used to pick up things like these ('unconsidered trifles' at the time) because she realised they contained design and social history, and had potential investment value. She did sell a lot over the years - horrible Victorian things she'd snapped up in the 1960s became charming Victorian pieces in the 1980s!
My sister was intrigued when I pointed out (thanks to BBC Homes and Antiques) that NOW was the time to realise the (probably small) investment value of the three Festival of Britain pieces we'd found. We decided to collaborate together to sell them on ebay - she's a registered seller, and, as you know, I can write Vintage blurb.
With this weekend seeing the Vintage at the Southbank Festival (it WOULD be lovely to be there...), my sister has posted the first of our vintage scarves on ebay. It will be most interesting to see how the bidding goes - it feels like we're continuing something for our mother here...