On falling in love........

Every now and then Dear readers,I fall madly,completely and unashamedly in Love.It stops me in my tracks and causes my shaky little heart to do somersaults.And the object of my feverish desires? The written word.A line in a book,a poem discovered on a blog,a song heard on the radio,all have the ability to make me smile or make me cry...or make or break my day to be honest,and yet I hunger for these little gems,always have and I guess I always will.The need for me to find beautiful words is as essential to me as wearing clothing,without them I am naked.On a daily basis I am hunting down little snippets of wisdom to cut out of newspapers and magazines,often carrying them around in my purse all day like a lucky talisman,believing those words have been sent to me by a kindly universe,who surely senses every one of my hearts longings and provides me with such signs? Serendipity.

And so it was at the weekend,whilst browsing at the local flea market,the very first thing I spotted was a vintage Grays pottery saucer with wording around the inside,I bought it for pennies,a saucer sans cup is quite worthless.Except to me,for in the space left by the cup I saw the perfect home for a little lavender and geranium candle,whilst whispering to me with its words of wisdom,a gentle reminder that I am what I am,I do as I do and this life is what it is.......

The script says ;

"When this you see remember me.

And bear me in your mind.

Let all the world say what they will.

Speak only as you find"

Go Now....

Go Now

Like the touch of rain she was
On a man's flesh and hair and eyes
When the joy of walking thus
Has taken him by surprise:

With the love of the storm he burns,
He sings, he laughs, well I know how,
But forgets when he returns
As I shall not forget her 'Go now'.

Those two words shut a door
Between me and the blessed rain
That was never shut before
And will not open again

Edward Thomas

On January.....

Oh January.

Month of new beginnings,allegedly.

The feverish pace of Christmas behind us,not even a sliver of tinsel remaining to remind me of the festive season,all packed away for another year.Dark mornings,candles in the kitchen and coffee.Lots of coffee.

I started well,made a list of things to do,started the big declutter,eating healthily,going for long walks to blow the cobwebs away,but Oh My life,I feel so weary.Flat.Life is very quiet,almost silent.I am not complaining,merely observing.I need to motivate myself.

Or do I?

This week Lucy is off school poorly,so I have been confined to Barracks,I have been working,but not as much as I should have,instead I have slept a little later than usual,snuggled with my child and watched TV,today it rained,I baked scones and we had afternoon tea and watched Blithe spirit,I played around on pinterest,looked through the seed catalogues and planned my summer garden.I cant wait.

Maybe my new beginnings can wait a little longer.

On clearing the clutter,letting go and looking forward....

As anyone in this business will tell you,it is possibly the most thrilling feeling,searching and finding beautiful vintage pieces.Indeed it is quite the loveliest of jobs,not always easy I hasten to add,but one that I love so much it has almost become an addiction.I simply cannot resist the lure of a long loved item nor the sweet scent of nostalgia,it makes my heart beat just a teeny bit faster and often has the ability to completely make my day.Sounds wonderful doesnt it? Well yes.It is,apart from the fact that sooner or later it gets a wee bit out of hand.When I had the shop,the love of my life as you may recall,I had lots of space to indulge my compulsive buying habit,but now of course,although I have a large storage unit,there are times when certain items sneakily find their way into my home.Lots of them.Added to which,it would seem I have a compulsive clothes buying disorder.I know not why! I read somewhere that a cluttered home equals a cluttered mind.Amen to that one Sister!

 Therefore I have started this new year with a cunning plan! I need to get rid.To not allow myself to become personally attached to items I find attractive,if I do not have any use for the said items,they must be sold.This week I have decluttered the kitchen cupboards,from now on they will house only useful items,as utterly delightful as the vintage teapot in the shape of a crinoline Lady is,I have never used it,nor will I to be honest,she needs to move on and so do I.

Today I undertook possibly my hardest task.The wardrobe.Oh sweet baby Jesus what a task that was,when in Gods name did I think I would wear the leopard print skirt or those boots with tassels? The words mutton and lamb even sprung to my own lips! I have been ruthless,if I havent worn it in a year I probably never will,so out they have gone.I feel free.

I do not think I am in any danger of becoming minimalist,however I can feel something shifting,it is more than a clearing out of junk from the house,it is the realization that 'things' cant make me happy,not for long,I am letting go,sorting the wheat from the chaff,so to speak and it feels good.I have a long way to go,wait till I start on the books! wow now thats a bit scary! but Oh how good am I going to feel and how tidy will my life be?

Looking forward......

New beginnings..............

A very Happy New year to all of my lovely blogging friends and readers!

May 2012 be the best ever year for us all,filled with Good health,good friendships,sunny days,plenty of laughter and may our hearts be filled with Love.

Gena xx

The post festive Limbo.....

So! How was it for you? I am of course talking about Christmas.That one day of the year that we all rev ourselves up into a complete frenzied state over.Every year.

 I imagine for most of us it was a pleasant enough day,lovely for those with young children,there is nothing more enchanting than hearing those squeals of excitement on Christmas morning,letting all and sundry know that " HE HAS BEEN!!!!" For some of us the day may have been tinged with sadness,missing loved ones whom we have lost.But generally we make the most of it,stiff upper lip and all that and we soldier through the day  wearing a party frock and a pinny.

And then....Boxing day,hurrah more food and drink,the tree is beginning to wilt and Oh My God people are becoming mildly irritated,teeny little frissons of  disagreement are starting to surface,over who OWNS the REMOTE CONTROL!!! Gods sake!and then a whole week of not doing that much, I am turning to drink mid afternoon because my mantra for the season has become " It must be six o clock somewhere" and whilst sipping a glass of bubbly,I reflect on the weeks,nay months I spent,shopping, organizing and frankly resenting.I didnt use to feel like this,did I ? and then my thoughts turn to my body.My poor God forsaken body.I have been shoveling food and drink down my neck like we are approaching Armageddon (actually thats another worry) and suddenly I feel the urge to go jogging and eat salads,Right now!! because I am panicking,but of course I dont,because I will do so immediately in the New year! wont I? 

I am not sleeping properly,I do not like being out of routine,I am struggling to concentrate and therefore find it difficult to immerse myself in any of the books I have stacked up by my bedside.I am thinking about next year and what it will bring,I want somebody to tell me it will be great.It might be.It will be.I want it to be here now,I have done Christmas,bring it on.

It is this state of Limbo I have found myself in you see,Whilst I am loving having my family around me,there is a part of me that just cant relax,my mind races sometimes,my feet are in the starting blocks for next year,I want to run and yet I know we should be thankful for each waking day,I am truly,I continue to count my blessings.And yet...I seem to be suffering from some kind of post festive blues.This will pass,I know it will,but until it does....A chocolate anyone?

Oh Christmas tree!........

So....its two weeks before Christmas,as regular followers will be aware,for me personally Tis the season to be totally disorganized and this year...with bells on.You would think,having given up the day job (see prev posts) I would have more time on my hands,therefore presents should be bought,wrapped and stacked neatly around the tree.The tree.Oh Holy Mary Mother of God.

Daughter and I bought the tree on Friday afternoon,it was standing proud outside of the local greengrocers,gleefully we handed over our cash and then stood staring in abject fear as we realized how utterly enormous it actually was and how small our car appeared in comparison! After struggling home with it,exhausted we attempted to hide it in the dining room until we could muster the energy to wrestle it into the stand.Fast forward to Saturday,tree too big for stand,Irate husband wielding a blunt hacksaw,me lugging a bucket of soil into the sitting room.Deep Joy.

But I digress,By now, Cards should be written in flowing gold script and tossed in a   gingham lined basket,ready to be posted on a cold and frosty morning.Homemade mince pies ala Nigella, cooling in the mad pink kitchen.Nay.Nay,Nay and thrice Nay.I am a complete slut in the festivities department,Hence,at this point,panic is starting to set in.

The trouble is...I truly dislike shopping,I know,I know..I am a woman its supposed to be my reason for living,but its not.I find it tedious in the extreme.Big stores are soul less places to me,I derive no joy whatsoever from shopping malls or their ilk,all very impersonal to me,I prefer to give small thoughtful gifts any day,handmade wherever possible, or a carefully chosen book perhaps,I love to incorporate old with new,a pair of beautiful vintage champagne glasses filled with handmade chocolates and a mini bottle of bubbly,or perhaps a 'cosy afternoon basket' one of my favourite gift giving ideas,pack a small basket with a lovely old movie(Mrs Miniver for fellow vintage girls buy for pennies on Amazon) good quality hot chocolate and a vintage china cup,homemade shortbread(or bought depending how sluttish you are this year)a pair of fluffy socks,and Bobs your Uncle! who wouldn't love it? beats a M&S voucher any day.

However,I will get there,it will all come together,probably on Christmas Eve,when I will be telling anyone who will listen that next year it will be different,I will be better organised,infact,I will buy my cards in the sales and write them out in January! Ha! Watch out for flying pigs folks!