best in show

It's my favourite day of the year - the local dog show! Despite the name, it's open to all sorts of pets and awards range from 'cutest guinea pig' to 'dog the mayor would most like to take home'. I took S's camera with me to snap some pictures of the crowd, and am really pleased with the results (it's my first go with the fancy camera). Sadly, there were no daschunds to be found, unlike last year when there were hoards of them - so much fun!

And it wasn't all household pets...

The Festival of Britain

During our day out in London the other week, we stopped in to see the Festival of Britain exhibition at the Southbank Centre.

Planned as 'a tonic to the nation' after the dark days of the war, the exhibition took place in 1951 and showcased the best new British design.

Although fairly small, the exhibition has a great collection of items from the festival. One of the highlights is a quilt with patches representing each of the hundred years that had passed since the Great Exhibition of 1851.

Centre stage is the 1950s living room, put together by Homes & Antiques magazine. So many classic pieces, that remain just as covetable today. (Pictures from Homes & Antiques magazine.)

And, lo and behold, what did I find in the charity shop the next week. A little souvenir Festival of Britain shot glass. I've never come across anything from the festival before, so it was a shock to find this little thing for 25p.

Linking to Flea Market Finds at Her Library Adventures.

a day out in ... London

Last week, we made a last-minute decision to have a day out in London. With no firm plan, we decided on wandering around, and calling into places as we passed.

We walked along the Southbank, popping into the Tate Modern to see the small Diane Arbus exhibition. Then it was over the Millenium Bridge to find somewhere for lunch. We walked around for ages, only to end up back where we started in Cafe Rouge.

It has a great location, next to St Paul's Cathedral, and you couldn't ask for a better view out the window.

We watched the world go buy from the steps of the cathedral for a while, and weren't the only ones - can you spot the lady in the sombrero and bright poncho in the picture? I have no idea why she was wearing that, but was happily reading her book amongst the tourists!

Walking along Fleet Street, we reached Trafalgar Square, where we dipped into the National Portrait Gallery. It's fairly small, by London standards, so we were able to see all of it in a no time. I particularly enjoyed the early/mid-20th century paintings.

It was then time for a pitstop in the National Gallery cafe. I love this cafe - with the brass fittings and bentwood chairs it feels like being in Paris. And we shared a very romantic cookie.

After a quick dash along Regent Street in the rain, it was time to head home. The day was lots of fun, and something we should do more often.

garage sales and mirrors

What a strange weekend. I don't feel like we achieved much, but it was busy, nonetheless.

On Saturday we dragged ourselves outside and went for a walk around Rutland Water.

Not the entire 20-odd miles, mind you. Just four miles around the Hambleton Peninsula (which I always want to refer to as an island). Followed by lunch at the pub.

Sunday morning was spent at the local car boot sale, followed by a village-wide garage sale a few miles away. There are a couple of these sales in the area each year, and I always look out for them. You come across all sorts of strange finds - things that people wouldn't bother packing up and taking all the way to a car boot sale.

The big purchase was a bike. I was tempted by a couple of vintage bikes, but they weren't in great condition, so I ended up with a newer bike. Now I just need to remember how to use it!

And the thrifty finds for the day:

A little handbag mirror. My mum used to have a plastic version of this - it fold over and creates a stand for itself.

Flashcards! I've wanted some of these for ages. They are from the late-1970s.

And more tins. The collection seems to be getting out of control.

The weekend was rounded off with the fantastic, although extremely long, Canadian Grand Prix.

Linking with Her Library Adventures and Apron Thrift Girl.

picnics and summer houses

With S's parents visiting this weekend, we decided to try a walk we haven't done before. Starting in the chocolate-box village of Exton, in Rutland, we headed off through the fields. After an hour or so we came across this...

Fort Henry is the boat house for Exton Park, and was perfect spot for a picnic. I would love to expore inside, but don't think you can get any closer than this - it certainly made a nice backdrop though.

wet week in wales

I disappeared there for a bit (again)! Oops. Saying 'we were on holiday' seems like a strange excuse, as it was ages ago now!
But, we were on holiday - a week in Pembrokeshire with S's family. It's not somewhere I have been before, but is a beautiful part of the world.

And quite wet.

The pictures below look lovely and sunny, but they are a well-curated collection, chosen to show the best bits!

We stayed in a gorgeous barn conversion, just outside St David's. Below is the view from the house. We couldn't see it when we arrived, because of the rain, but what a view to wake up to on the first morning! I enjoyed many cups of tea, sat at the dining table taking in that sight.



We managed one day at the beach, and I made the most of lying on the sand reading my book (One of a pile of eight books I took with me! I didn't read them all, but wanted to have options, depending on my mood).





We also exlpored some of the little towns in the area, and had a few hikes up to the standing stones.





Overall, we didn't do a huge amount over the week, but that had been my intention - it's not often that you can dedicate a week to doing nothing!

a day out in... norfolk

Actually, a weekend away! We have been talking about going to Norfolk for the day for a while, and last Wednesday made a impulsive decision to go for the weekend. So we booked a b&b. All in the space of ten minutes! How exciting!

Bright and early on Saturday morning, we took ourselves over the border into Norfolk. Our first stop was lovely, lovely Holt. We only had two hours parking, which is no where near enough, even though it is a small town.
We had been before, so I knew exactly where I was heading. We hit the charity shops, and had lunch at the wonderful Byfords (coffee, victoria sponge and a chicken and chorizo pasty).



We then had a nose around an amazing 'antiques emporium', where I fell in love with a bicycle, of all things. Is it weird to buy a bike from an antiques shop? It was an old Triumph, that had been painted a pale jade green. Oh, so beautiful.
But common sense won, and I didn't get it.

It was then on to Cromer, where we wandered past rusty, yet beautiful, old tractors, sat by the beach huts, and ate the first 99's of the year. It was back to Byfords in the evening for dinner. S had a salad and I had, um, pie and mash.









The next day we worked our way along the coast, from near Blakeney (where I saw my first ever starfish - admitedly dead, but you have to take what you can get!).



On to Wells, where we went to Big Blue Sky and drooled over the lovely handmade items, and in to a crazy shop, housed in the old railway station that sold books and pottery. There was no owner to be seen, just a bell and a sign that said 'ring loudly for assistance'. Ooh, and a whole shelf of King Penguin books.



We had no luck finding somewhere to eat, and (after exhausting all possible options) ended up in MacDonalds in King's Lynn! But it was a fun ending to a fab weekend.

a break from bargains

We interupt the bargains of the bank holiday weekend, as I fear it was getting a bit over the top!

My parents came up to visit last weekend, which is always fun. I never thought I would end up living so far away from them (it's about a two or three hour drive), although I am dealing with it better than I expected.

On Saturday we wandered round town, drank coffee, didn't eat cakes as they had sold out, and went for a walk in the evening. I was supposed to cook dinner, but changed my mind at the last minute, and we picked up takeway on the way home (which made everyone far happier).

Sunday morning we went to the car boot sale, which was a bit rubbish. I think I used up all my luck the weekend before!

We then went to Belton House for the day. It is one of my favourite National Trust properties. There are some beautiful formal gardens, and lots of big open spaces as well.

We got there just as it was opening, so had a chance to wander round the outside of the building taking pictures before it was covered in visitors. Somehow I have managed to end up with lots of pictures of details, rather than overall pictures of the place, but you get the idea.

The statue below was the inspiration for the book 'The Moondial' and where they filmed the children's tv series (back in the late 80s / early 90s). I vaguely remember it, but Mum got very excited by this!

We also went into the house, rather than just the grounds, which was beautiful. There were two vast libraries (my favourite rooms) and a gorgeous Chinese-style bedroom. They have recently started opening up the basement rooms, so we explored the butler's pantry and the wine cellar, as well as the stunning kitchen.

Overall, a lovely weekend.

a day out in... norwich

What a fantastic bank holiday weekend. I really needed that extra day, and made the most of the weekend. As always, I am so sad it is over, and really didn't want to go back to work. Does anyone?!

We hit three car boot sales and quite a few charity shops this weekend. And they were some of the best ever! I got some amazing stuff - things I have been looking for for a while, and some others that are a bit strange (but I love them)! I haven't got round to taking pictures yet, as there are so many to take! But I will do soon, promise.

On Saturday we went to Norwich. It's about two hours away from where we live, so was a bit of a trek. But it was worth it. What a fantastic place! There are beautiful buildings, lots of museums, fantastic shops and lovely walks. And it was a gorgeous drive across Norfolk to get there. We only scratched the surface, and will have to arrange another trip back soon.

We started off with a walk along by the river, and round the back of the cathedral.

Past this enormous building, covered in ivy and wisteria. It houses the Print Museum. It is only open one afternoon a week, so we weren't able to go in, but I had a peek through the window at the lovely printers trays and blocks.

Then we hit the shops. There is a great mixture of high street stores and independent shops, and some lots of lovely cafes and restaurants.

But my favourite shop was this one: The Treasure Chest Centre.



It was essentially my dream shop. Full of everything you could possibly think of.

Can you see the rocking horse outside? Just behind it in the window is a rocking reindeer!

I only took one picture inside, which doesn't do it justice. There were tables of jewelry, piles of old ice skates, telephones, buttons, clothes, crockery, books, and so on, and so on. And there was a warehouse out the back full of furniture. It was beautifully displayed too. It wasn't themed at all, not by colour or subject, but it was cohesive, rather than just piles of stuff everywhere. Um, not that it appears so in this picture!



It was all a bit too much for me! Everything I had been keeping an eye of for in the charity shops was there, unfortunately at ten times the price (although it wasn't overly-expensive, just that I like a bargain). Rather than my dream place to shop in, it is my dream shop to own. Can you imagine it being your job to find all this?

What else did I do? I made some cookies, which are fast becoming one of my favourite recipies. We also did some jobs that have been hanging round for ages. S fitted his old CD player in my car, so I can now listen to my own choice of music. I am sure there will still be plenty of Radio 2, but its good to know the CDs are there when they are needed. One of the best things I did was tidy the airing cupboard! Very dull for everyone else, but I feel so much better now!

Back soon with pictures of the treasures!

easter weekend

Easter weekend was spent with family in Hampshire.

S and I grabbed a few hours on our own to go for a walk. St Cross is one of my favourite parts of Winchester. The meadows and abbey are so beautiful, and I have a lot of happy memories of sunny days spent there as a child.

We decided to have a picnic on my favourite bench. It turned out to be a picnic (and a walk) in the rain. We were having a lovely time, eating our cheese sandwiches, and watching the cows and horses.

Then someone got a bit inquisitive.

And a bit more...



So we slowly moved out of his way.

But he wasn't giving up, and followed us round the corner.

We made our way back into town, past the Winchester College buildings - this part of town is hidden away from the main streets, and feels very old fashioned.





At the Cathedral, they have a regular book stall, tucked away under cover. For some reason, I have never had a look at it before, but it was fantastic. I didn't buy anything, but spent a pleasant 10 minutes browsing.