Five Frugal Things

I have decided to do a frugal things post this week as I have been reading a few on blogs over the past week, I particularly like Shoestring Cottage as she does a lot of these over there and it gets you thinking how you save each week. There are lots of these types of posts out there and of course you find you have more in common with some more than others depending on your interests and so on.  So here goes mine and just a few things I have found frugal and useful this past week...

• A free origami pattern over at Michelle patterns this is a lovely little butterfly and ideal for using up fabric scraps. Make one in paper first so you know what you are doing then it is just a case of choosing two fabrics to sew together then repeating the process.  It only takes a couple of stitches to keep the whole thing in place once it is folded, it could be used to embellish bags, add to a bouquet or as a brooch.  I also think it would be a lovely little craft activity for a girls party. Here is my first go at this, I'm sure there will be more...

• A trip to the charity shops that resulted in a bargain find of a wool dress, now ok this did involve spending money but at £7.50 it was too good to miss, it looks like new, is incredibly soft, it doesn't need an iron after washing (on cool) and after researching the label Edina Ronay it turns out it is a really good make.  I am not a label fan but it felt such good quality that is what prompted me to look it up. So feeling pretty pleased with this winter dress.

• Another thing I did this week was to print off another recipe to add to my own personal recipe book, I was having a browse on amazon at cook books and I almost bought a used one but then I remembered I only ever like a couple of recipes from each one I own or borrow so what is the point? Something I started doing a little while ago is to print off recipes and put them in a folder, I keep my favourites here now and if they are not a success they don't make it in.  This guarantees that this is one recipe book where I know we like everything in it.  This week it was a sweet potato and kale chilli, very good and one to keep.

  

  The recipes are all from different sites, whatever I spot while browsing and fancy trying.
  

  

  
  

  
  
•  In relation to that the next frugal thing is the three ready meals I have in the freezer from that recipe. I may take one or two to work for lunch or it will be something that is quick to heat up for when I come home from work.  I like to make sure when I am cooking my meat free meals that there is at least one portion left over to take for lunches, as we eat differently here that at least ensures the time and cost are efficiently used.

• I started another course on Future learn this time it is analytics and to be honest it is a little bit dry for me, I will finish it and quickly choose something more fitting.  I thought it was something I should understand a little better, but being a creative type all the data is sort of sending me to sleep!  I know there are those of you out there who are creative and good at that side of things but for me it does not excite.  I have learned a little bit already as you always do whatever you try but the good thing is this a great way to try free study in something you would not normally do.

I'm sure there were other things I could have added this week but these were the things that came to mind, I did a very fast shop actually on Friday and that resulted in a lower than usual bill.  We may find I have forgotten something as the week passes but I'm sure it will be fine.  I must do that as a matter of routine in future get in and out with my list as fast as I can, that way I will be saving time as well as money. I always enjoy reading how everyone else has kept the costs down from day to day so please share in the comments, I also noticed I have a couple of new followers so welcome to you and thanks for reading. 

Dress to T-shirt Refashion

A while ago I got this little dress from the charity shop from the pound rail, I thought it would be ideal for the warmer weather but after trying it on it was not so great.  Only a pound after all so no loss really but the fabric is really fine t-shirt material,  you know the kind that you wouldn't really want a skirt out of for fear of underwear showing through.  Also it has really big arm holes that come down at the sides and go in at the back so it shows bra straps, not great!  However fabric is fabric and I thought it would be an opportunity to practice revamping an item into something different so I decided to make a t-shirt from it.

There was nothing much that could be done with the top of the dress other than make two small sleeves as it had a deep v front and back, therefore not a lot of fabric there.  So I decided to cut the t-shirt shape from the bottom of the skirt. It was a bit of a squeeze as the shape only just fit and the hem had a curve.  Looking at that image now I am going to re-run that bottom band as some white stripe is showing uneven.   This is me in my haste to get it up and on for todays post, it will be corrected.

I have tried it on and it is a good fit but just sits at the waist, so skirts with a proper waistband required to pair it with or trousers that sit at the waist.  There will be no low slung garments worn with this top!  I have used bias binding at the neck also, the original v neck on the dress was very floppy due to this fabric, it holds much better this way.

Here is the item before cutting...

 You can probably tell from the image that the fabric is quite flimsy but it is ideal for trying things out on.   Below is an image of the pieces I cut, I had to do a bottom band just to give it a bit more length.

This was quick to make up and I think this is a good way to try things out, if you have something you no longer wear then why not make it into something else, even if it is just for the practise.

Burda Young Jacket and my Staycation

This week has been a relaxing one, we opted not to go away this week despite the fact that we both had the week off work.  This is unusual as we tend to take this week as an opportunity to get away somewhere but a string of rainy holidays helped us to reach the decision to stay home.

It has been great as the weather has been mainly warm and sunny, I have had time in the greenhouse and my husband has got a few jobs done, including clearing out his mother's garden shed. This was a big job and good one to get out of the way, in fact he has  gone off just now to take more items to the tip.  It also brought a few surprises like boxes of nails, screws and hinges that they didn't want but which will of course come in handy for future projects.

We also chose to go out for lunch twice this week, as a nice change and seeing as we have not gone away.  A walk down to the nearest pub with youngest son for lunch one day and an Italian meal on our own on Thursday.  I also managed a catch up with friends which is always good so overall a nice week at home.

My sewing has seen my odd job pile of family repairs disappear and I completed my Burda Young Jacket which is for a Minerva crafts post.  I will show a quick peek and then link to the rest of the post when it appears on there.

This jacket is made from quilting cotton, I wanted to do something different.  I wasn't sure if I had made the right choice when I first cut it out but now I am really happy with the result.  Of course it will only go with a select few items but we all have items like that don't we?

 Unless  of course you build a capsule wardrobe around a few pieces but I can't get my head around that.  I like variety and feel I would be a bit constrained doing that.  It may be something to try for a short period I know Carolyn does this on her blog sometimes.  She picks a selection of her handmade items and wears only those for a fixed number of days.  So perhaps that is the way to do that rather than saying forever and getting bored with your options.

While we were out having one of our lunches a quick peek in the charity shops was had and we came home with a nice summer shirt for my husband for £4 and a dress for me from the £1 rail! Both too good to miss of course.

I love the colour of this dress and it looks like new so I can't understand how it ended up on the reduced rail, I would have thought someone would have snapped it up before now.

There has been  lots of cooking and a few of my veg leaves made it into a curry yesterday, just for me as the rest of the family had fish.

Just a few as it was curry for one, along with a few veg from the freezer and some chickpeas.

I forgot to photograph the end result which also included a very tasty tomato risotto which everyone ate so in light of this I have decided to set myself the challenge to write a post everyday for the rest of this month.  I decided this today as I don't know why but when I do more, I do more if you get my meaning.  So as an exercise in self discipline I am going to do it,  and remember to take more photographs of recipes, walks, and just general stuff.  A friend of mine said I need to get on it as she waits for my posts ha! She may be bored of me by the end of the month.  

Anyway it doesn't mean I will keep this up forever but it may help me establish a better pattern and of course I enjoy looking back on things in this form.  It would be good to know if any kind of posts are preferred over the coming month and of course I always love to read your comments

 

Sewing, Charity Shop Finds and Books

I know, I know I am supposed to be decluttering but seriously there is more going out than coming in at the moment and St Lukes had everything for a pound today so we had to have a look while passing.  So glad we did too because I found a smart little jacket and a monsoon skirt (the skirt is too long for me so I will shorten it) then my husband spotted a shirt he liked.  That was our spending done so we came home, we were only there because we had been to the opticians to make an appointment and passed the shop.

It has just been washed here and I am using the mannequin to hang it on as it dries so it retains a bit of shape then I will lightly iron it, but £1! brilliant I think and looks nice with jeans.

Everything has been has been washed and is ready for an iron, I just thought I would take the pictures before they are put away otherwise it wouldn't happen. The skirt is a better shade than in the picture it is darker in reality.

Really though some of the momentum at the start of the declutter has wavered so I need to get back on that, the idea being that I only bring in things I love and use occasionally (modest purchases)    but something needs to go out when that happens.  If I stick to that rule it should create some order and a habit I can stick to, in the  future adding good habits is something to work towards I think.  Is it just me or do we focus too much on trying to break bad habits rather than trying to acquire good ones?

Recently I mentioned I was reading the Essex Serpent, I really loved it.  There was a good assortment of characters and I really felt you got to know each of them, also the questions raised and the conversations between the Reverend and Cora the naturalist were fascinating.

It may not be for everyone but if you like historical fiction and books that focus on ideas and relationships between people this may be for you.  I will not go into it too much as I feel some stories are best left to unfold as they go.

Last week I read The Silent Companions, this was another good read but at the start I felt it was a bit silly.  It was just one of those you  just have to get into, maybe not on the same level as The Essex Serpent but entertaining, more the type of book to read curled up by a lamp while it's raining and just going dark.  A really interesting cover too, I know you can't judge a book and all that but I do enjoy good cover art. All of the books mentioned here are from the library so I have to admire them then return them.

Slightly spooky but not the kind of thing to give you nightmares, I really have no interest in reading anything that is going to unsettle you to the point of keeping you awake, do we really need that? With all the horror that goes on in the world and I want books that entertain, educate or lift my spirits, not scare me half to death!

At the moment I am reading The Ice by Laline Paul, it has an environmental edge too it, only just started this one so we will see how it goes.  There was another book picked up and discarded this week among my selection from the library, it was a crime thriller but I just knew after forty pages I didn't like the style of writing and reading for pleasure is not meant to be an endurance test so I put it down.  I will not say who it was by here as it may be someone's favourite author.

Yesterday I got a red top cut out and ready to sew, it is on the sewing table as I write this but I am undecided whether to leave it plain or add detail at the neck and maybe a pocket.

Writing this post is my thinking time (procrastination time?) I don't know but sometimes I feel if I add too much faff to a garment it spoils the look but then if I leave it too plain it will be just like any off the shelf top you could buy.  If you are like me you probably like your handmade items to look a bit different.

On a different theme we had some new visitors to the garden last week.

These fieldfare arrived on the front garden of my neighbour, stripped a bush of berries then flew around the back. Here they are perched on a hawthorn before disappearing again,  I had to get a book and look them up, my husband and I were in the window with a camera each trying to get a photo.  Sorry this was the best we could manage, but here below is an image from the internet of one close up.

So that's a bit of my week hope you are having a good one.

There are a few weird formatting issues going on above, sorry about that but no matter what I did I couldn't get it to line up properly on a few paragraphs!

Charity Shop Finds

What a scorcher it has been today! We have only just walked the dogs as it has been too hot all day but really it is still baking out there now, I am not complaining it has felt like being on holiday today. I was outside drinking tea and reading at six this morning, washing out, exercise done and house all vacuumed before nine.  It makes me wonder why I can't be more productive every morning, I will try and keep it up.

We didn't go that far today but had a lovely time, we called in the charity shop to drop some items off and I saw this lovely dress, it's a size twelve so will need taking in a bit and also maxi length so I will cut a lot off the bottom but the fabric is gorgeous.

Just a quick photo on the chair before it went in the machine, but you get the idea.

I  also spotted a shoe rack for a couple of pounds which is amazing because I was just staring at the jumble of shoes in my wardrobe yesterday and thinking I need a shoe rack, and I came across one just like that.  Now to organise them, some are boots and trainers but it will be easier to keep tidy with them stacked.

We popped in the library to return a book and got these two from the new books shelf...

Hot Milk has been started already as I sat outside in the sun grabbing a bit of vitamin D, it is off to a good start.  Lunch was also outside but in the shade, you have to make the most of these sunny days. There was also quite a bit of weeding and a couple of plants bought for the pots which have been empty for ages, we need to get a couple more cheap and cheerful ones tomorrow. It is one of those things, I like to see the garden looking nice but when you buy the plants and they seem to have a short life it makes me grumpy.  Hopefully the few we buy will give a bit of colour for a good while. 

Charity Shop Finds

At the weekend we had a walk around town, by that I mean the city centre.  It is not something we do very often as I am not one for wandering around shops but we were going for a bit of lunch so I had a look in a few charity shops. (Those shops I like.)

I am always on the lookout for inexpensive fabric and these days I tend to look at the duvet sets as I have a few good purchases in the past, I made the napkins for Christmas day from a pillow slip and pyjama bottoms from a duvet set previously.  I always look but I don't always find anything, I don't want anything too worn and of course it has to be a pattern I like. So when I saw this red duvet cover for just £3.25 it was perfect, I love the colour and the pattern.

The beauty of this is you get so much fabric for such a good price.

Here it is on the line after being washed on a hot temperature, I always do this as things are often sat around in bags in the back room in a charity shop and I like to wash all purchases on hot.   My usual wash is on a normal temperature that's better for the environment.

Then in another shop I spotted this dress...

Now this is a size 14 and I am an 8 but that's not a problem it can be easily taken in.  The fabric is lovely for the summer and will be ideal for work, I may need to take it up a little as well as it is a bit long. It was £6, the items were from 'Mind' and 'Cancer Research'.

I think I would quite like to make a dress with the red duvet fabric, although there will still probably be lots left for other projects, the duvet is 142cm wide by 200cm so if you factor in both sides that is 4 metres of fabric. It will probably be popping up in cushion covers, make up bags and patchwork for quite some time.

Some people don't like to buy used items but I really don't see problem as long as you wash things thoroughly as you don't know how they were stored but then when people buy new they don't know how things have been  stored either.  Many items come from factories over seas or in the UK where fabric may have been stacked in  a warehouse, they don't know what may have crawled on these fabric stacks and yet still they wear items unwashed because they are new.  This in my mind makes all argument for not buying used invalid, you decide on the cleanliness of your items when they come into your possession.

Today I will be repairing the sleeves on a shirt and resizing it for my son, I will take a few pictures and share tomorrow.

Charity Shop Bargains and Resizing a T-shirt

While we were away on holiday I had a look in  a couple of charity shops mainly to see if there was anything I could use for the fabric.  Fabric is now so expensive, I try to use recycled when I can but it is nice to buy exactly what you want sometimes.  I often find I don't buy it though when it can be well over ten pound per metre, thanks Sewing Bee!  When I first started sewing in my teens I would go the market and come back with something fabulous for a few pounds every week thrilled that I could recreate whatever I had seen in the catalogue for next to nothing. (Catalogue, or club book we used to call it)

I rarely have such finds in an actual fabric shop these days ( with the exception of the fabric I found in John Lewis at Christmas, I still have some left!) but I do sometimes find items I can use in charity shops the only trouble is you have to work around what you have.  I can't just decide on  a style first because when you deconstruct clothes you often have weird shaped bits left.

Anyhow I didn't find any wow fabric on garments but I did find two lovely T-shirts for a pound each, and what is even better about this is that I was looking at a T-shirt in a shop a few days before exactly the same as one them in style (different colour) in River island and it was nine pounds.  Now nine pounds isn't bad I know but it was either a washed out pink or black, pale pink doesn't suit me and I have enough black.  The charity shop one is purple, perfect!   The other T-shirt is way too big but that's not a problem.

I like this style because when you wear jeans that are low you have that extra bit of cover at the back for when you have to bend down, I always feel like I'm pulling those low jeans up! This one is size 8 so perfect as it is.

This top is a size 14 so needs some work.  I had been looking at cotton jersey in grey but like I said the price is just silly so this was a lucky find.

It didn't take very long to make it fit, I just pulled one of my tops from the wardrobe (this is sometimes quicker than trying on and pinning) and then I placed it on top of the grey T-shirt. Then I just cut around my own top allowing a small seam allowance, when I had done that I also cut around the armholes to take a little out there otherwise it would be too big on the shoulders as well. If you are only resizing by just one or possibly two sizes you may not need to do this step but as I was going down three sizes it was needed.

As you can see sides and arm holes need adjusting.

Here I just trimmed about a cm from the shoulder and around the sleeve, I didn't bother unpicking I just cut but if you are resizing only a small amount it's better to unpick.

I pinned the sleeve back in place and stitched it in place then folded the garment over, pinned all down the side then stitched all the way down starting from the sleeve.

Much better

Charity Shop Finds and Cruelty Free Hair Care

I have had quite an absence here again with the main reason  being I haven't really had any new makes to share. There have been a few new recipes tried out but in the teatime rush they have been whipped up and consumed before any snaps have been taken and before you know it,  it's a new day!

So now the summer is here I hope to be a bit more organised and not leave so long between posts. On the topic of being organised I began to declutter yesterday, I have taken two large bags full of clothes to the charity shop and there is still more to follow.  I bought the two items I am about to share with you a few weeks ago but even then I had in the back of my mind that quite a few things needed to go.

I don't like waste so I always try to get a lot of wear out of my items or modify them but there does come a time when some things are no longer looking their best or you just shove them to the back of the wardrobe all the time.  When this happens as it did to me, a big sort out is in order.

Quite a few of the items came from the charity shop to begin with or were handmade, there was a time when I couldn't let handmade stuff go but I had to get over this or have no hanging room.

Here are the two dresses I picked up for £4 a piece...

I like this as I have another floral one and they do not require an iron.

Now this one will need tweaking as you can see how it hangs on my mannequin, the sides need taking in, shoulders taking up and some adjustment under arm but then it will be fabulous.

So really when I keep finding super items like these I don't have much of a need to make anything just resize. This is something I have been doing for a few people recently and in particular with maxi dresses I don't where all the giants are that these things are supposed to fit!

Moving on, I have been doing a lot of research this week on trying to find a hair colour that has not been tested on animals.  You would think that would be fairly straight forward but it appears that unless you want to dye your hair violet, electric blue or green there is not a lot to go on as all articles direct you to these sorts of items.  That is great if that is what you are after but I just wanted a blonde shade.  I did find some good reports about Naturtint (available from Holland and Barrett) but then I read as many bad reviews and that put me off.

Well after seeing a comment that Boots do a lot of cruelty free as do Superdrug I had an aha moment as I already use the naturals make up from Boots and I knew that was ok and the body lotion from superdrug.  So I went off in person to see what I could find.

Here is what I came back with...

I will let you know how I get on with the colour, it is £3 pound cheaper than my usual as well and it may not lift as well and I will do a patch skin test first.  I also found Daniel Field are cruelty free and have really good reviews but you cannot lighten only add colour with those, worth remembering or one to try when I have more grey. The superdrug shampoo I bought is half price at the moment also.

It was a whirlwind visit to Meadowhall to get these items as I can't spend too long in there, back now so I really should do some more sorting. Now I saw a little video by Marie Kondo who said if I don't feel joy when I hold an item it has to go!  Well I don't know about that, because some days we would be throwing the whole contents of our wardrobe out wouldn't we?  I have not read her book has anyone else? I would love to hear your thoughts on it.   I am certainly trying to make more of a conscious effort to control the contents of the house, items just seem to breed don't they?

Holidays and Charity Shop Finds

It's been a while I know but I have been so busy!  No new makes to share as there is nothing I am really inspired to put the time into at the moment with other things going on.
We had a week  away at Whitby for half term but that was cut short due to the horrendous weather, when we left Sheffield I swear the sun was shining and, despite the forecast I had hopes it would not be a total washout.  I was wrong, as we got closer the sky got blacker and it didn't really stop raining until Thursday evening when we came back.  The worst of it was the wind which was so icy I pretty much lived in a hoody with a coat over the top.

Now as we live in England of course we are used to this kind of thing on holiday, the problem is as we have three dogs we can't even go off and do indoor types of things because we can't take the dogs in and for some ridiculous reason you are not allowed to leave your dogs in your own caravan.  I don't understand this as on a cool day with a window ajar they would just settle down and go to sleep!

So all we could do was walk around in the cold and wet or sit in the caravan. We did manage to travel over and see my sister in law at Bridlington which was good and she allows dogs!

Here is the scene from Whitby Abbey which is beautiful but it really was cold.

Before we left we also had a bit of a drama with the caravan and the motor mover battery went flat, it rolled on our drive and scraped underneath.  My husband now needs to repair this, after looking around for a 'new to us' caravan we have decided we will make the repairs then sell it but not replace.

After eight years of caravan holidays it is a little sad but with my boys being older now they do not really want to be cramped if we are confined due to bad weather. We are restricted as to how often we can use it as I follow term times but my husband has to book his holidays way in advance and we are still met with restrictions as to which ones will take three dogs so enough!

After doing a bit of research we have found some delightful cottages in England that accept three dogs and while we still will not leave them unattended, at least I won't have to pop on a coat and waterproof shoes to go for a visit to the toilet/shower block.  There also won't be the ongoing costs of insuring and maintaining a caravan that is not used so often.

Now don't get me wrong I still think caravan holidays are incredibly cost effective for families, our first was only £900 we did it up ourselves and had lots of cheap, fun holidays in it.  My children were younger then and I have to say camp sites have become more expensive especially if you take pets.  One that I looked at wanted an additional £7 per night per dog! Why for goodness sake? They stay in the caravan with us or are on a lead as we leave the site. Plain ridiculous, so for a weeks holiday that is an extra £147 (for our three dogs) on top of pitch, awning and extra  people (your pitch cost only covers you for two adults) all that so your dogs can sleep in your property while it is parked in a field.

I know I am starting to rant so I will stop. Of course it was good to get away and be together it just felt like the end of an era for now at least.  I think if you are retired and you can take off for a trip when the forecast is good then that is just great.

So in addition to the holiday I have been working on a short course on Future learn, introduction to Italian.  It runs for 6 weeks and I am on week 4,   I am really enjoying it and had there been an internet connection at the site I could have got a bit done there, but there wasn't.

We had a walk to the local charity shops today, a glance on the rails didn't reveal anything suitable to wear or use for fabric but I did get a number of good books, a couple for my son and the rest for me.

The Hundred year old man who climbed out of a window,  I have to say I have had before from the library and I didn't get far with, but everyone has told me it is really good so for 79p I thought I would maybe give it another go.

The bottom three look a bit different so I thought I would try them, I do find I want to read something of a different genre sometimes but don't know where to start.

I read this last week...

This was really good, if you enjoyed 'Outliers' or 'Blink' and have an interest in motivation and what drives people this is worth a look.

Banana Loaf (GF Vegan), Charity Shop Fabric and Books

I'm sure there are many things I have missed out on posting about these last couple of weeks.  I keep finding myself thinking oh I forgot to take a picture of that and so on.  The reason I feel this is happening is not that there isn't anything going on, but rather I have been trying to fit too much in.  Then on the occasions that I do have time planned to post and catch up something unexpected happens like a visitor unannounced.

So for the last few weeks I have been writing down  what I intend to get done as I find for me this works, if it has to be crossed off then I will do it.  I printed off some free weekly planner sheets and wrote down things I would be disappointed if I did not do.  This has worked but time being what it is, I was overly optimistic as to how much you can fit in at the end of a working day therefore there hasn't been much time left.

So as well as trying new recipes I had wrote down guitar every day, Spanish, Dutch, dog walk (which can be 45-60 minutes) reading (fiction &non fiction) and TV usually after 9.30.  Well when you consider we don't usually finish our meal until about 6.45 that is a lot to cram in. Reading I fit in anywhere and bit before bed, any sewing is often done at the end of the week.

I have decided to give myself a break, I will still make the lists but maybe alternate the days for some things. I also have beginners Italian starting next Monday with Future Learn so I need space for that!

Anyway here is a little catch up, after the cheese cake went down well last week I made a GF vegan banana chocolate loaf from the book  Vegan and Gluten-Free Baking, that I shared a few weeks ago.  This one is fabulous again!  If you have not got this book you have to try and get a copy everything just comes out wonderful.  I have only one, dark, evening photo as it came out of the oven so here it is...

It was just so tasty and a good size, we were all taking it to school and work until Wednesday and I was coming home and having a bit more as it is so good when there is food for me to have with a cuppa.
I have taken a picture of the recipe, I only used two bananas in mine and it was enough.

Yesterday I had all sorts planned for my day then my mum turned up just before lunch and stayed all afternoon so that changed things a bit.  I was going to visit at that end of the day and we had agreed on that but she decided to change her mind. I had only just got back form the shops so she nearly had a wasted trip!  Anyway we had a walk down to the charity shop and she got a Regata fleece which she was very pleased with and I spotted this lovely single duvet set for the fabric.  If I had a guest room or girls it would definitely be going on a bed but I don't, so fabric it is.

You can't see the colours clearly in this picture but it is really nice, a sort of duck egg shade.  I had wanted something for backing for when I start a quilt so I think the stripy part will be that, the front however could be anything, a skirt, pyjama bottoms, I'm not sure I will have to ponder it a bit.  My husband said 'you are not using it for clothing though are you?  Well I don't see why not it would just be a hard repeat match up with the pattern being on a large scale.  I might also add the duvet cover with a pillow slip was £3! Such a good buy.

I picked up a couple more books from the library, one that I ordered on crochet and the other is one I just spotted on Indian cooking.

I have already planned to make the curried aubergine slices to have with lunch tomorrow form the Prashad at Home book and Ruby and Custard's Crochet has been flicked through lots already (I picked them up yesterday). Both are full of lots of inspiration and I took a few pictures from the crochet book.

I know it's not the time of year but I will be making this at some point.

Again not the time of year but this dove is so cute.

Now I don't have any little princesses but if I did I would be making these tiaras.

There are so many lovely ideas in this book it may have to go on my list of ones I love, so will buy at a later date when I see it at a good price. Have a lovely weekend.

Writing Bureau Makeover

Yesterday I managed to finish painting my second piece of furniture which is a writing bureau.  I didn't go in the shop with the intention of buying this but when I saw it I just loved it, I did need something for the corner of my dining room with storage and this was perfect.

I chose a pale grey for this which is called light rain, it is very light and I was expecting a darker shade based on the sample piece in the shop.  The next shade up in this paint was too dark though and I didn't want it looking drab.

So as you can see a very pale colour, my walls are a soft white but the bureau is not very different from them.

I had thought about painting the inside but decided against that as I intend this will get a lot of use I think the finish that is already on will probably be more durable.  I gave it a good clean and added a bit of paper but not on all of the desk as it has a leather inset which you can't quite see in the photo.

While the colour is not quite what I imagined I am happy with it, it was quite battered before I sanded and painted it so now it does look like new on the outside at least.  I intend to keep a lot of my craft stuff in here as it has nice deep drawers and there is a bag of crochet hooks and wool on the floor beside it in the picture that will be going in the bottom drawer!

Here is the before picture, it was a lovely colour wood but in such a state it couldn't have been left as it was.

There were notches in the top that had to be filled and chips and dints everywhere.

I was going to spray the handles silver, but as the colour is so pale I am leaving them black as they stand out well on the new colour.  I am happy that this is another piece of furniture that has been saved and we didn't go and buy new.  My only worry is that as more people do this the second hand shops are starting to put up the prices which may mean that some people think what is the point when you can buy new cheaper.   In a lot of cases yes you can but it is mass produced, often poor quality and the furniture which is already out there is being discarded.   I hope the trend to upcycle continues, it is sad to think of all those items that are going to waste.

The two pieces of furniture I painted over the last two days both came from St Lukes Hospice Shop I also got the lamp which is on top of the bureau, so the purchases also contributed to charity.

Charity Shop Bargains

It has been a lovely Easter break being at home and as we didn't get away this holiday we went for lunch yesterday at a lovely café called Made by Jonty and if you are ever in Sheffield I recommend it. We have been about three times now I think and each time I have had something different and it has all been gorgeous.  They always cater for vegetarian and GF and all the cakes are GF (yes, all of them!) Here is the link for anyone close enough to want to try it Made by Jonty. The presentation of the food is also excellent you would think you were in a posh restaurant (not that I go in those).

While we were out we had a little look in the charity shops and mostly I browse but every once in a while I spot something and today I saw just what I wanted,  a set of four coasters as my puppy keeps grabbing them off the table and running off with them, by the time I get them back they are chewed at the edges.  He is getting a bit better and occasionally 'drop' is understood but for now new ones were needed.   I didn't want to pay a lot for them as they still get snatched but I also didn't want to buy boring ones.  These are just great as they are 'William Morris' designs and they were brand new but only £1.50.

I love them and they have inspired me to learn a bit more about the designer.  I read a bit a few years ago when one of my sons was doing art based on his work at school, but having also read about his translating, business, print work and social activism I thought it would be good to learn a bit more so I have ordered a book about him from the library.  I will update a bit more on that when it arrives in the meantime I have been looking at gorgeous  images of his work online.

Also pictured above is the book I also got which was on my to do list, it is brand new I don't think it has been read as there is not one crease and only £1. I like to get my books from the library mostly but I do buy occasional gems to keep or if the price is right like this one.

  Speaking of the library I have been there today and I got a few good titles to keep me busy for the next few weeks.  Two of them I have had before but one is a craft book that I loved and I am keen to look through again to choose something else to make and that is the Mollie Makes feathered friends one. The other is about following your dreams and last time I only skimmed it, was busy and tried to renew but it had a hold on so I took it back.  The good thing about the library though is that you can always take them out again so I did.

After I got back from the library I gave my chest of drawers another coat of primer, now that is something I'm working on at the moment doing up some old furniture I bought from the charity shop a few weeks ago, I will share when it is complete. 

Then we went on a long walk with the dogs which also involved the vets for booster injections for two of them and ongoing meds for one of them, a very expensive walk that was!  Tomorrow the car is in for its MOT. So just as well we didn't go on holiday I think.