Guess the Christmas song-knitted edition

 Hi there,

There's a lovely charity shop near me that has a bench outside.  Every so often, the bench gets yarnbombed! 

Last Christmas, it was decorated with a patchwork of knitted scenes which depicted different Christmas carols.

Which ones can you spot?

Christmas jumper politics

Jumper: River Island but given by a friend

Polka dot blouse (underneath): Farah, Nottinghill charity shop.

Trousers: ASOS

Belt: from vintage dress.

Shoes: Red or Dead.

Beads: Tescos

Hat: made by Mum.

As you might be aware, today was 'National Christmas Jumper Day' (or something of that ilk) and so we were encouraged to sport our best minging jumpers for this. Now, for years, Christmas jumper has meant to me, any sort of knitted jumper, perhaps with heinous design or fair-isle, animal jumper, any knitted pullover affair OR any jumper you were bought for Christmas. CBC and I, a couple of years ago, were going to go and search for a 'Christmas jumper' for each other in the local charity shops as a challenge!Of course, you'd have to be blind to miss the genuinely 'Christmassy jumpers' available in every store- in fact, the market is saturated with them (not complaining fyi, just pointing out). I decided not to buy a specifically Christmas jumper because I have lots of novelty jumpers anyway and because I want things I want to wear at different times of the year and genuinely didn't see any I wanted overly. What's your opinion on the definition of Christmas jumper?

Today, I turned up to school in this ensemble and as I entered my meeting, my lovely deputy head (who delights in mocking me, affectionately of course) said "What sort of Christmas jumper is that? Cats?!"

To which I replied in a summary of what I said above.
The morning meeting commenced and my Head gave the notices, saying that it was nice to see everyone in funny jumpers and commented on how 'K managed to make hers more stylish by adding a belt."

The deputy then gave her notices and at the end said, after speaking about, how I was trying to fob them all off with fake reasons for wearing a cat jumper, which isn't a Christmas jumper!

Humph!!! It SOOOOO counts!!!

CBC's school also wore Christmas jumpers and he was remarkably fussy over it until we found this one on ASOS (with 20% discount code) which he was pleased about because it had mallards, deer, foxes, pheasants and a skyline on!

I am a little embarassed to tell the tale of getting this jumper but what the heck, I will share anyway.
We paid for next day delivery in order to ensure it was here for Friday (ordered on Saturday night) and I added my new address to my ASOS account and clicked that for delivery address but the billing address is still my old house.
DPD, the parcel company sent a text saying it would be delivered Monday and gave options of delivering to a neighbour etc (had to be signed for) so I asked my new neighbours who were in, and texted back. Monday night, I came home to a text saying it had been delivered to Number 7 and someone called Ali which I thought strange, as we live at a higher number. I tried number 7 in our close AND on the main street but to no avail. At which point, CbC had the brainwave it might have gone to my old house as I lived at number 6. He was right when I checked on the DPD website (still annoyed at ASOS how that happened). Anyway, so I went on Tuesday to go and look for it at my old house. I walked along the street to look for number 7. After number 5, it was a converted house into 7A, B and C. "Great!" I thought. "Which one?". I rang the bell and banged but no answer. Lights were on upstairs but there was no bell for 7C. No answer from 7A and finally a window opened from what was 7B and a woman spoke in broken English. I asked about Ali but she said 'No'. I hoped she'd understood. I texted a friend to ask her to try the house during the day as perhaps they worked nights. She had no luck. Thursday night, I went over for choir practice and went and tried again. No answer from any of the houses, all in darkness and the one upstairs not answering at all. Somehow, all of a sudden, I was FURIOUS!!! I couldn't understand why they hadn't got in touch with me or where my parcel was or how I was going to get it! (Also contained the black trousers above). My Mum had to put up with a really irritated me, stressing over what CBC was going to do. I went to Tescos to see if I could find one. No luck. Finally, I don't know WHAT it was that made me check but I walked down the street slowly, scrutinizing each house and walked past 7ABC and found a number 7, a little bijou AFTER the big house of flats!!!! Surely 7 would come BEFORE 7ABC. Happily, the family of Ali was in and I got my parcel but I felt SUCH a twit. What point was there in my irritation and annoyance? I just got myself wound up! The moral of this story- don't get stressed about what you can't change OR 'Get a life, it's only a jumper!!!!!!!!'

So three things:
a) Define 'Christmas jumper' for me.
b) Do you have one?
c) Did you wear one at all today?
d) Do you have an embarassing tale of Mistaken Identity or Mistaken address?
e) How are you today my lovelies?

Spots are stripes, right?

Hello there! Inspiration Monday involves Hilary Duff.   Like a previous IM Monday with the Twobirds, I cited Ever After  as one of my favourite movies.  I am a sucker for any Cinderella story so I quite like the film, A Cinderella Story with Miss Duff in.  It's not the greatest movie ever, but it's one I'll keep in my DVD collection!

I loved the cute polka dot jumper but I didn't really have a similar sort of sweater and most of my polka dot clothing (there's lots!) is summerwear! So I figured that stripes would be a fine alternative- they're like the ying and yang of patterns right?  Even Cadbury's united them in a chocolate bar!

I do like the way that IM Monday gets me to look at my wardrobe in a differetn way - I was considering donating this sweater to sister/friends as its length and shape is not very flattering to my shape but I located it for today- should it stay or should it go? Teamed with (oh why oh why are they so creased??????? They weren't like that this morning!) Dotty Perks red trouser and don't-look-at-them-too-closely, they are so scruffy/scuffed ankle boots.  The necklace and bracelet were a birthday present from a colleague, earrings made for me by Mum's friend and the belt is from Primark.  It's nice to be bright!  I love wearing red as it is so bright!

You've got to love Role-play right?  There's a method of teaching called 'The mantle of the expert'- where you get the children to act in role as experts, e.g. journalists, archeaologists etc and then they work on a week-long project with a big outcome.  Today, we had the best staff meeting inset where we got to try this out , in preparation for our world book week work.  It all began with a large black hole in the middle of the room cordoned off with hazard tape and cones.  We then had to speculate on what it was, where it had come from, what we'd do about it etc!!! It was sooooooooooo much fun!  We had to make plans of action for what to do about it, what we knew.  Some evidence flew out of the black hole- a large diamond!!! We heard  growling when someone called down the hole!  We then had to act out how we got into the hole and what we found!!! My head has incriminating photos of us in action (SENCO crawling under the bog, Maths coordinator RIP as she is ripped apart by monster, and our group, intrepid explorers who nobly return with more crystals which turned out to be....*
Sooooo much fun!  I love insets where you try practical ideas out that you will do with your class!! I bet there'll be some great writing from the children!!!!

I had such a fun weekend!  Playing gamelan up in London, hen lunch, an evening out in an Essex town.  All great fun!!!! What have you been up to?

Linking up to Visible Monday with Patti and Inspiration Monday with Megan and Nora.

And thank you to the lovely Cynthia for being my new loveliest follower! I hope to link up with her link-up soon!



*  Eggs containing something with teeth and claws....OOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHH!!!!

That itchy jumper: Memories of childhood!!!!

As a child, I was really sensitive to certain materials or LABELS in clothes uhrgh, certain clothes in the 80's had SUCH itchy labels!!!!  I spent much of my childhood, wriggling because of an itchy label in a pair of knickers or a skirt/trousers with a high waistband (or worse, a t-shirt!).  I bought a gorgeous skirt from L'orsay in Saltzburg as a teen which was great bar the most unelievably itchy/scratchy label I have ever had the misfortune to own!

I was always particularly sensitive to certain wools or materials.  When we went over to my Dad's, he and my Stepmum had clothes for us over there to wear, that we'd change into.  These included, for both my sister and I- a white cardigan.  I don't know what on earth it was made out of but I detested it!! I'd refuse to wear it, or wear it protestingly!   Recently, I was talking to my stepmum about it and I didn't realise it had had such an effect on them.  We somehow got onto the subject of itchy clothing and she referred to it as "that wretched cardigan!" that I absolutely refused to wear in rather heated tones! My sister, as good as gold, always wore hers uncomplainingly.  What a fiend I was!

To this day, I still find certain materials itchy.  The hilarious thing is- my stepmum and Dad bought me the above jumper for my birthday last year and whilst it is a pretty colour, by heck, is it itchy!!! I attempted to counteract the itchy by wearing a long-sleeved cotton top underneath and a scarf!   I dearen't tell them it's so itchy for fear of causing memories of that white cardigan to erupt!
I am debuting this snow-leopard patterned beret which I found in the sales! I'm not a big fan of animal print, but I quite liked this one.  Worn with my turquoise cordhuroy Toms and a Primark belt and top plus thrifted trousers!

Speaking of memories of childhood, I am going to try and post my first linkie thing soon, so get your thinking caps on for writing and linking up a post about your childhood on the subject of 'Clothing I loved or loathed'

Magic Penny

Over at the Two-birds today, it has been Inspiration Monday- not heard of this one called Dianna Agron



Here's my none-too-similar rendition but here it has served as a stimulus for the outfit!
In my defence, I do have a sweater dress on with some stripes, a Khaki-ish coloured coat and black boots! (Funny leg position due to discovering a hole in my leggings!!!!! You can see it with my thermal white leggings underneath shining through!!! Hello Granny!)
I just felt the outfit was a little bland and a bit of a vibrant colour scheme on a Monday does no end of perking me up!  Linking up to Patti's Visible Monday with my symphony in turquoise!



Yesterday, I TIDIED my old bedroom (now my spare).  For anyone who knows me or the room (so that's Mum, Clo, CBC) here, this is a serious undertaking.  It is by no means finished (e.g. book shelves and dressing table are a mess), but it is oh so much better!!! I felt better for doing it even though it took aaaaaaaaaages!!!  I'd started off the day with a dreadful headache so finally getting up at 3ish (!), I still could not bring myself to stare at a computer screen so tidying stuff seemed a good use of my time! I found lots of things I had forgotten I still had, I put together a bag of things to cull and put some stuff away! Floor and bed are visible!

It was all rather mushy, slushy horrid grey snow round here today- a shame- I did live in hope of something beautiful!

A lot of times in singing assembly, people like to put on all singing and dancing new songs for the children to learn, it's all about new and to be fair, there are some amazing new songs, many of which I like using!
However, with the KS1 children (including all of reception classes now, so 4-7 years), for this half-term, I have been using an old, long-published book called Alleluia, which has all sorts of really nice songs in it which the children just adore.  We're singing them a cappella, so no relying on technology, which is refreshing! One in particular, Magic Penny is a firm favourite:
Love is something if you give it away, give it away, give it away.
Love is something if you give it away, you end up having more.
Love is like a magic penny, hold it tight and you wont have any
Lend it, spend it and you'll have so many, they'll roll all over the floor.
So let's go dancing till the break of day
And it there's a piper, we can pay
For love is like a magic penny,
You'll end up having more.

What nice lyrics!
It just proves, that you don't always have to reinvent the wheel, there's usually a perfectly lovely wheel waiting to be found!

Blanket

I am more of a summer person, but I do enjoy the luxurious fabrics of the winter- wool, cashmere, sheepskin, furry stuff! Nothing like being nestled in something thick and fluffy!

I wore this outfit to church on a previous Sunday and I did feel snug (and wore my hat throughout.  Because, you know, it's nice to wear a fancy hat).

This blanket skirt, as I affectionately call it, was a £5 find from Spitalfields market, a couple of years ago.  This old, scruffy looking man rocks up there with a huge messy pile of clothes, in which you can find some vintage items (what vintage this skirt is, I don't know, if indeed it has one) if you dare rummage! I did dare, and was pleased with it!



The scarf was a recent charity-shop find, found after the Doctor's appointment, it's so soft!
The cardie was a lucky Tescos cashmere find- last Christmas, they announced that all cashmere was £25 for a limited time and I snaffled this cardie (and a jumper for CBC).

Details:  Coat: Principles Petite, Scarf- Sue Ryder, Hat- Christmas present, Peter pan collar top- Matalan,
Cashmere cardie- Tescos, Boots- M&S, Belt- Primark, Skirt, Spitalfields market 2nd hand.

We went swimming this Saturday morning, for the second week running.  This is brilliant as CBC is not an advocate for swimming and usually I can't drag him to go with me.  However, he is atuned to what his friends do so when his flatmate and neighbour decided to go, he said, why didn't we go along? 
We had a nice time and felt very virtuous!!  Later, we managed to arrange provisionally booking our wedding reception venue and arranging a taste-test with a caterer. I do so hope CBC likes it as this caterer is much cheaper than another one we've got a quote for.  Me, I like most things.
Now, I am sifting through recordings of my children at school, ensuring they are all named accurately! Fun eh?   I really really hope we can address another resolution/wedding prep wish tomorow by going to a Lindy-hop class which I have been hoping we'll go to for a couple of weeks but CBC has mounds of work to do so it may just be me on my own.   I am also going to go lindy-hopping for my birthday celebration in March! It's great fun and I so want to learn it properly!!