Some mail, some sunshine & a birthday

A wet rainy afternoon "Hello" to you my friends,

Hope you are all keeping well out there & managing to stay warm.
  This past week bought a couple of days of welcome sunshine & a chance to get outside & do a few jobs.  The start of the week bought some surprise mail - my friend Elaine & I had  ordered some primitive decorating magazines from the United States - isnt it just sooo exciting when overseas mail arrives!!?? :-)  the thought that it has travelled all that way from another far-away country . . .

 These magazines are sooo mouthwatering & I do really love looking at other peoples homes decorated in different styles.
Anyway - one of the pictures in the gardening section - (sorry I have forgotten to photograph it for you)  inspired me to go outdoors & rescue an old rusty tricycle from the back corner of the garden & add to it one bucket that a certain person had run over accidently in his ute . . . 

you can see the big dent at the bottom of the bucket - adds character :-)

Weed the tray of the trike, wash well & line with black polythene . . .   go to Mitre 10 Garden Centre & buy a selection of pansies & a punnet of violas  . . .    add one most unhelpful, unwilling & able  dog to the proceedure  . . . 

And viola . . . a little bit of bright cheeriness to the dreary winter landscape  . . .

Imagine how lovely it will look when the violas grow & spill over the bucket sides

The mail-lady also bought another surprise in the post - just the recipe for these cold wintry nights by the fire . . . 

These mags are always packed full of lots of good reading material.

The rains came after a couple of days of sunshine & we were forced back indoors.  I hauled out the rest of my enamel ware collection, washed it all (it was sooo dusty) & displayed it on my pot rack.

And I hung up my new (old) picaninny plate - this little face smiling at you first thing in the mornings always brightens my day . . . 

 I also finished hemming a little curtain frill for above my french doors & under the wooden shelf that my son made for me . . .  

On the weekend I had a birthday - I turned 52 :-) - we just had a very small celebration - its hard to get inspired to do great things when its the middle of winter so we had pizzas for tea with the family - which was lovely with the fire roaring.
I did get some lovely gifts from friends & one of my absolute favourites was this amazing string holder from my good friend Sandy - I have never seen one before & I ABSOLUTELY LOVE it . . . 

It has the most lovely little pair of wire scissors on a hook on the side

It is a heavy solid piece & I will treasure it - thankyou Sandy :-)

Some other lovely bits & pieces I was spoilt with  . . . 

this beautiful woven teatowel from my friend Elaine

Lets hope 52 is a good year ! ! !

I hope wherever you are in the world you are happy & safe & warm & cosy (if its winter in your climate ) - take care out there friends, wishing you a week filled with wonderful things - this little verse was written in a card from my friend Carolyn & I loved it 

     "a friend is the person who - in a mechanical emergency always asks you (very gently)
       whether you've switched the thing on . . . ? "

 Loving thoughts to you all -  always,
Julie X x x x   :-)