Nice Things . . . . . . & Definately-NoT-Nice Things

Greetings lovely friends & readers

It has been a challenging week - lets start with the NoT Nice Things.

Our property is 4 acres, rectangular with a large chunk at the end being the depot yard which is tenanted.  The rest is garden which, when I ran my Craft Cottage I used to open to Garden Clubs & Bus Groups. It's only Me that looks after it as The Mr has an entire farm to run, away from our property here.  It's been a challenging year for me health-wise, having been diagnosed with an auto-immune disease earlier this year ... everything around here now takes me 3 (or 4) times longer to accomplish.      All this to say ... I was finally beginning to feel like I was catching up with the garden & it was looking cared for again as spring bursts forth.

Then alas - our toilet blocked, water came up instead of going down.  A Plumber was called, the diagnosis - you need new septic tank fields put in! Oh Dear Me!  The next day 2 diggers & 4 men arrived.

 The large section of deck garden that was filled with assorted flowering spring bulbs, foxgloves just coming up into spikes & sweet little Strawberry Begonias was the first to be dug up.  Out & down the driveway they went . . . . . .

around the corner & across the carport, cobblestones all dug up, lucky I'd moved my car earlier.  

Way down past the pond the digging went - the new rules state it has to be 60 square metres now.  Thankfully The Mr was here when the Boss in charge said he was going to dig out my weeping Cherry Blossom Tree - it stayed!    You seriously would've thought we were installing an olympic sized swimming pool! 

I stopped snapping pics after this lot - I was hiding in the house instead.  Some piles of clay were carted away in a big truck, some got left.  It all got plonked back in again & covered up.  

Later that day when I took Sid home (5 pm) I saw the Vans leaving & thought to myself Oh I can go home, use the Loo & finally do some loads of washing.  

Guess what dear friends ... Toilet still not working !!! I think it was about now I had my first meltdown.  The Mr got on the phone & early next morning a Plumber arrived ... 20 minutes later - Gosh, sorry, toilet pipe was blocked with paper, we've cleared it now - all fixed.  

So all that was for nothing ????  Well you have a nice new septic tank system now (That we didn't need in the first place !!!)  There have been quite a few meltdowns on my part following this debacle I can assure you!

We need to level, roll & regrass but currently it has all turned to mud as we've had so much spring rain.  I had the cutest little curved brick path to my pond lined with lavenders.  Here is my path above left & I think the lavenders might be under the pile of soil above right.  It is rather heartbreaking to this VeRy tired Gardener dear friends.

In the midst of it all I drove to the Dairy & bought myself the above supplies (which I think I consumed in a couple of hours).  Eldest Son assured me it was okay because I could well have driven myself to the Liquor Store for supplies (!!) 😉instead of the Dairy.

Little One & Blackie hid under the house for the entire day & Miss Pip took up residence in my undies drawer & I covered her up with her cuddly rug.   I think if there was room, I would've climbed in with her. 

Nice Things ...

I cried for an entire day & then I told myself to pull my socks up & get on with it!!  I went out & tried to rescue some of the flowers the men had dug out & tossed on the lawn.  I've sifted the bulbs from the soil & will replant them for next spring.  I thought if I could just clean up one corner it all wouldn't look quite so bad so that's what I concentrated on - one little corner.

As some of the decking boards had been lifted I scrubbed everything before shifting things back. I sewed a new curtain from a thrifted curtain for our old dog kennel which I use to hide things under & the top makes a good potting bench.  I scrubbed the oilcloth top & the fresh new curtain looked so pretty.

I repotted the orchid my son gave me last Mother's Day as the roots were coming out the base.  Mums red geranium got a good trim & a fluff up too.

I put a new coconut fibre inner in my thrifted chair planter & popped a punnet of white petunias in it.  I haven't used this for a couple of years so it was good to give it a freshen up.

  I've been washing the outside walls too but I think I might be a bit premature as today the pink blossom petals are blowing everywhere & sticking to all my cleaned walls.

Remember in my last post when I spoke about the wonderful cross-stitches my friend Jane had gifted me?  The one I sent to the Framers was ready so I collected it & hung it on my Sampler wall.  It is the Remember Me one ... all the others are my own handwork.  I LoVe my Sampler wall 💗

My daughter in law has a very sore back & I've been trying to help out.  She mentioned both her wheatbags had holes in them so I made new covers for both & also added a tablespoon of dried lavender to each bag.  She was so grateful & said they smelt heavenly.

Thank you dear friends, for staying through this lengthy post - I hope it wasn't all too negative ... I write this as a record for myself mainly.

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend, it's cold & wet here but that's typical spring weather & in amongst the cold & the wet ... I can still see things growing & coming back to life.

With much love & friendship to you all,

First Week of Spring

Greetings lovely friends & readers

And Welcome to my favourite season of them all ... 💗 Spring

Although it is raining today, the first few days of September have been beautiful weather & I have spent lots of time working outside - although I have spent many hours out there, there is always much to be done still . . . . . . 
 

A sweet smelling vase of spring bulbs picked before the rains came. 

It was back in May, in *this post* that I planted this pot of Peony Tulips - I'd never grown this variety before but these were gifted & I absolutely adore them with their frilly heads.

In early August my dear friend Jane posted me a belated birthday gift - a set of 3 gorgeous cross-stitches, not Jane's work but some she'd purchased.  I took one in to the Framers & then decided to make this "Dear Friend" one into a long plump cushion for my bed as I felt the colours would go well.  I backed it with a cotton linen fabric, made an inner & stuffed it really tightly.

This took me less than an hours work & I am so delighted with the finished article.  I just LoVe it sitting on my bed.

I've put a lighter weight quilt on the end of my bed now it's warmer & the colours all blend together perfectly (I think).

I'm still deciding what to do with cross-stitch No 3 so I'll keep you posted.

We had our craft get-together last Monday at Joyce's but unfortunately I was unable to attend - I'd still completed my catfood tin challenge from * this post *. 

I took 3 of the remaining catfood tins & painted them with cream chalk paint, then I poured soy candle wax into them & fragranced it with orange/clove oils.  I had this lovely festive serviette so I decided to decoupage some of it onto my tins using mod podge.

I thought they turned out so pretty ... then I decided to make a swing tag using the same serviette offcuts.  

This (thrifted) tray has been in my stash for years a very long time.  I painted it with 2 coats Forrest Green Chalk paint  - Yes I was going for a Christmas theme here.  🎄

As the candle tins sat too low in the tray I glued 3 circles of firm quilt wadding to the underside of each one - this just propped them up nicely to the right height.

The addition of some greenery & berry pips & I thought it turned out rather well. 

 Only one other lady had done her challenge so we are going to show them next month - I shall try & get some photos as it's always interesting seeing what the others come up with.

I have no idea of the name of this houseplant, it has a variegated leaf & pink stems, but I love it.  It was very potbound so I found this old pot of Mums under my house & chalk painted it Vintage White.  I added a leftover transfer & waxed it well.

From the one plant I was able to divide it up into 4 houseplants - some I will gift.  Should you know the name of this plant, please do leave me a comment below as I'd love to know it.   

It is very tricky to get good photos of Little One as he is rarely still.  Last night I clicked this of him on the dining-room couch, the fire is going beside him.   He is improving but still will scratch & bite - more playful than attacking.  He likes his eyes & side of the face gently patted & will be very still when I do this.  This is for all those of you that ask for more photos of him. (Shhh don't tell the other two)

Thank you as always dear friends, for your welcome visits here today,

Wishing you all a wonderful rest-of-the-week, remember to be kind to yourselves & to each other,

With much love & friendship to you all,

 

As August Draws to a Close

 Greetings lovely friends & readers

Here we are on the final day of August & Spring is right around the corner ...............

Last Friday Alec had his school Grandparents Day which they combined with a Book Character Dress-Up Day.      Alec went as a Wizard from Lord of the Rings, & I went as a Granny  😉

Over the weekend I was asked to help with Sid's costume for his school Wearable Arts Competition.  The theme was "rural" & Sid chose to go as a Compost Heap (!!!)  Yes you did read that right!

  I made a simple hessian tunic & we dried orange & lemon slices in my dehydrator then his Mum glued on all the rest of the foraged items, including making him the hat which took 3 prototypes to get right.  Personally I thought he made rather an adorable little compost heap.  (& he was the only one in the entire school!!!)

Last week I had to go to the Variety Store for tissue paper so I purchased another 2 white plastic Urns - small & large sizes, as I decided I wanted a set of 3 & I showed the medium size in my last post.  Once again I gave them 2 coats Resene Black Test pot paint first.

I find they dry much better by the fire this weather.  

Now Miss Pippi takes her watching-paint-dry-duties very seriously, but I noticed she fell asleep on this particular occasion.  These are the rust products I used above right.

It absolutely fascinates me watching the rusting process take place.  I spritzed these 2 with more water than last time & I noticed they took on a darker, more mottled effect.  

I had some violas left over in a punnet so these got planted in the larger size & I planted some perennial Polyanthus in the smaller size pot  (from out of my garden).  

I'm really happy with this display on my deck table & it's giving me all the spring vibes  💛

This morning I got up early, hunted out Mum's old recipe book & made her Fruity Chocolate Cereal Bars - 

a VeRy old recipe in the book, so old it's almost ineligible to read. (I'll write it out at the bottom in case anyone should want it - makes a good big quantity in my meat dish)

Today is exactly One Year since my dear Mum passed away.  In fact as I sit here typing this ... this very time last year I was driving frantically down to be with her as the Resthome had rung me urgently.  

There is a sweet young lady in my local village of Kihikihi who has a roadside stall outside her house selling flowers.  I had ordered a bunch of pink flowers for Mum - look how beautiful they are - $20 for the bunch.  I'll enjoy these then dry them to take to Mum's ashes plot.

I'm burning a homemade candle today & playing Mum's favorite songs - she is never far from my thoughts.  

A dear friend sent me this verse this morning & I thought it was so lovely  💗

The rain we were forecast is now pouring down & the furry ones are all tucked up inside ... Yes Little One is sleeping on the ironing board!  😑

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend dear friends - thank you as always, for your welcome visits here today,

Sending much love & friendship to you all,

Fruity Chocolate Cereal Bars:

3 cups crushed cereal  (muesli, cornflakes, weet-bix)

1/2 cup rolled oats

1 1/2 cups dried fruit (raisins, sultanas, apricots,cranberries)

1/2 cup coconut thread

1 cup chocolate chips, buttons or pieces

1/2 cup toasted cashew nuts or almonds

100 gm butter

150 ml honey, golden or maple syrup

Line a slice tin with baking paper (I use my meat dish)

Combine all dry ingredients in large bowl.

Melt together butter & honey or syrup, simmer for about 5 minutes stirring constantly.

Combine dry ingredients with syrup & press into the baking dish, place in fridge for a couple of hours.

Once cold cut into portion size bars.  Keeps for a very long time (not in my house!!)  😉

Rusting Things ................................

Greetings lovely friends & readers

At the beginning of last week we ran completely out of firewood & our house was Oh So Cold!  I was able to borrow some from youngest son but still not able to light the fire until the end of each day, when usually I have it going all day long (& most of the night). Finally we got another load delivered on Friday & I lit it right away - the two furry ones were so pleased & took up residence in front of it for the entire day.

 Yes they are both wearing "their winter coats - plus a couple of others (!!)" but we won't mention Pippi's size as it's rude to discuss a ladies weight issue as we all know 😉

Those that know me well know I love an old rusty treasure.  I spend hours scouring the Jeanne d'arc living magazines that my friend Sally lends me & when I visit the French Shop I always drool over the rusty Urns & Figurines that are wayyy out of my budget & even if they were reduced by 70%, they'd still be way out of my budget!  I've wanted to have a go at rusting things for quite some time & winning the Resene voucher * here *, inspired me to try my hand at this Product Resene FX Faux Rust Effect

I'd purchased this white plastic urn from the Variety Store sometime ago & the wooden candlestick was a 50 cent thrifted item. It was covered in old wax but I was able to remove this by tipping boiling water over & scrubbing it.  

The lady in Resene told me I could Not use the product on plastic but upon talking to the Rep, he told me it's the products that react with each other, not the surface they are applied to.  This made me think that I could paint the plastic first to seal it & give the rust FX something to adhere to, then apply the products.  The lady then told me I couldn't apply paint to plastic surfaces ... Just watch me I thought to myself 😉

I've learned so much about painting items over the years, mainly through my own mistakes & felt confident tackling this but also realising that if it didn't work out, I hadn't ruined an expensive item.

First up I painted both items with some plain black Resene testpot that I already had - 2 coats to give a good seal.  I let this dry well.

As it was a wintery day I dried the items well by the fire between coats

With the Rust FX products you apply the basecoat first, wait 4 hours then apply a 2nd basecoat (this is dark grey in colour). When the 2nd basecoat is still tacky you apply the first coat of the Activator - this is all brushed on, not sprayed. As soon as the first coat of Activator is touch dry, apply a 2nd coat. It began to rust after the second coat & I became quite excited.  Repetitive water misting afterwards will help develop the rust effect - this is what I am doing in the right photo.

I've had this Urn inside but if I put it outdoors I am sure the moisture in the air would rust it further as this is what I've noticed with the candlestick, which has taken on a really deep rusty tinge sitting out on my deck table. 

I'd hoped to plant the urn with some miniature tete-a-tete daffodils but there are none available as yet - too early.  So I planted some miniature violas in it instead.

These look a bit bedraggled as I only planted them this morning but I'm hoping they settle nicely into the urn. 

Encouraged by my "success" I dragged this figurine out of the far reaches of my garden & scrubbed it well.  This is concrete & came from Mums years ago.

Also this other heavier weight plastic urn above left.   I gave them both 2 coats plain white acrylic paint, drying well by the fire.

I repeated the same steps as above following the instructions to the letter.

I was thrilled with how they both turned out - I think I could lightly sand the concrete figurine to give even more effect & age to it.

Here is how I have styled them both on my lounge mantle piece.

The small cherub bottom right, is also out of my garden but she was already rusty - she's a rain gauge (was).

Here is a recap of the before's & after's.  I realise the rusty effect is certainly not to everyone's liking & to be honest The Mr just shook his head when I showed him.  But I love it & already have some tin buckets & other items lined up to try the treatment on.

Thank you so much dear friends, for staying through this lengthy post,

Wishing you all a wonderful week ahead, remember to be kind to yourselves & to each other,

Sending much love & friendship to you all,