A Royal Wedding

Decisions, decisions...what fun I have had this morning.  What hat to wear for the Royal Wedding?  A quiet celebration, watching the full coverage and then afternoon tea.

Are you joining in with the celebrations?

See you soon.

Charity Shop Treasure

Gerard celebrated his birthday yesterday, not the celebration that we had planned but a fun day.  We had a picnic brunch overlooking the sea and enjoying the tranquil surroundings.  There was so much to look at, so many different species of birds and not a workable camera in sight.  Sadly the batteries had run out, it didn't detract from our enjoyment.

We had a few jobs to do in and around Stornoway.  Gerard went onto the Sports Centre for the rehabilitation course whilst I had a wander around the charity shops.  It was nice to browse the many books and patterns, a great favourite of mine.  One mans rubbish is another mans treasure so I was delighted when I came across a book for crochet borders.  A quick glance through sparked off all sorts of projects in my mind.

I came across a pattern for socks, a pattern that will probably never get used but I felt it would be a wonderful addition to my collection.

Midges will be prolific here on the Island shortly so this next find made me smile.  A book that may give us some tips on how best to deal with them.

As Bertie and Honey will be visiting next week I thought it prudent to have a rainy day project ready.  These seemed to fit the bill...

...I like to think that they were unused due to the wonderful weather.

I was thrilled to come across this Winter Warmers pattern book, the 9 patterns are a delight.  I have already got the wool together to crochet the shawl.

Have you found any treasure lately?

All in all despite the altered plans, a wonderful celebration.  We enjoyed coffee and cake before returning home for a relaxing evening together.  

See you soon.

Ladybird Invasion

There has been an invasion...we are over run!  Ladybirds have taken over our little cottage and I am loving it.  It is a little fun and brightens up what can be quite a stark garden.  The tyres were found in the outbuilding when we arrived and it was so much easier to make use of them than it was to try to get rid of them.  They match the rocks that I painted to keep the lids of the bins down, a little colour to brighten our day.

They also make great door stops and help to keep the gates secure against the winds.

They have started to multiply and can be seen guarding some of the plant pots.

The tyres have already become a wonderful addition to the garden, a double tyre used to plant up some carrots.  They are settling in well so I am hopeful that we might get a a small crop.

Rhubarb was planted in one but sadly is not doing so well, the rabbits seem to favour that tyre and are constantly chewing the rhubarb.

I painted some wooden spoons black to use as antennae, and use as labels.

Although still  chilly we are beginning to see a little sun which certainly makes us feel a little better.  Jobs once again are starting to get done outside, slow but steady.  The daylight hours are lengthening, giving us some stunning evening skies which we enjoy looking out over the croft.

As always I thank you for your visit to my little space in blogland and for your uplifting comments and finally just because...

See you soon.

Progress is Slow

Despite your efforts sending me over some of your beautiful sunshine, the weather conditions still remain a little grim for the time of year.  We have even had a few minor power cuts, which seems rather unusual for me in May.  There is another storm heading our way so it was hoped to get the grass cut today before it arrived.  Sadly it was not to be,  we couldn't get the mower to start so remains on the list of jobs to do.  On a more positive note we did get manage to get some more of the plants bought potted up.

The wonderful array of colour will enhance our little cottage and brighten these bleak days that we are encountering at the moment.  I have placed them in a walled area so they are sheltered from the harshest of weather, particularly the winds.

Progress has been slow on the tyres, but we are hopeful they should be finished soon.  I will share them with you shortly.

Whilst I had the sewing machine out  for Christmas gifts, I did run up a Lego figures throw for Wilbur.  A very quick and easy make that I know he will appreciate and love.

Just need to wrap it up for the post.  Its nice to spoil our Grandchildren now and again.

Progress is slow in this neck of the woods, our list of jobs gets longer as we are unable and certainly unwilling  to brave the elements.  Tomorrow is another day...

See you soon.

May Bank Holiday

Sadly the Bank Holiday weather enjoyed by most of the UK did not reach our little Island here on the west of Scotland.  It was overcast, rainy at times and cold not even reaching double figures.  Not conducive to the gardening plans that we had.  We did pot on some plants that we bought from the garden centre but that was the limit to the work on the garden.  Tomorrow is another day...

Some more crochet coasters were added to the gift pile and an enjoyable couple of hours were spent looking through pattern books for a shawl.

A start on Christmas was made.  I know it is only May but I like to add something handmade to all my little parcels.  Consequently, 8 tea towels were made and trimmed with vintage style broderie anglaise and Christmas fabric along with 2 table cloths.

It was nice to look back on May days past and remember dancing around the maypole.  Gerard and I laughed at some of the memories we hold dear of our own children enjoying the tangle of ribbons as they skipped around their poles.

I have just glanced up to look out of the window and once again the rain is thrashing down bouncing back up off the road.  Such a good job my new neighbours have a little shelter and lovely woolly coats to keep them warm and dry.

So if you were blessed with warm and dry weather please send a little in this direction, I yearn for a little sun on my back.  As always I thank you for your uplifting comments and emails.

See you soon.