My 2 Totnes cardigans

Remember back in August, I shared a post showing what I bought on my Cornish holiday. This included 2 vintage cardigans from Totnes market.

I've been really enamoured with them and really glad I  bought them- both have already had a lot of use. I have been throwing one on each night when I get home and wearing them over whatever I have been wearing at the weekends.

Since both got worn this weekend, I thought I'd share them.

Outfit 1, worn on Saturday:

The whole outfit, bar my hat is second hand.

The Tam O'Shanter hat is Isle of Skye tartan bought on Kirkwall in the Orkneys in Summer 2016 on my cruise with Mum.

The blue top was Zara (Charity Shop), Indian skirt (CS),  Vegan blue Dr Martens (Insta 2nd hand sale), cardigan (Totnes vintage market stall) and finally the gorgeous black sheepskin (?) gilet/waistcoat (CS)- I'm not sure if the gilet is Toscana sheepskin or it is fake as it is reversible so there's no washing indication but it cost £15 in the charity shop so I'm wondering if it is genuine- it is exquisitely soft and fine and keeps me so warm. I can't tell from the smell- anyone got any ideas how I can tell apart from setting fire to a bit of it to see how it burns???  If it's real, I got an ABSOLUTE bargain- if it's synthetic, I was conned!

Saturday morning I was SO CROSS. I went to bed at around half midnight and was exhausted, having not had as much sleep as I needed this week. What time did I wake up? 5am!!!!! WHY???? I lay awake for hours until I gave up and got up around 7.40am to go downstairs to do the washing up and make tea.   After various bits of tidying and pottering, emptying the compost etc, I went to shower and CBC and I made porridge.   I then carried on with some sorting as well as a bit of reading and then decided to do my Summer/Winter wardrobe changeover. I keep the out of season clothes in 2 enormous (I mean ENORMOUS) suitcases kept in my Spare room wardrobe.  The switchover took a couple of hours and also involved some sorting and culling- managed to cull about 20-25 items- I find this hard- I like the things I own but I also like the new things.  I decided to cull some things that a) I didn't wear so much including a gorgeous Monsoon sequinned circle skirt and clothes which I find I don't enjoy wearing so much e.g. if they are too tight around the armpits, synthetic, make me sweat or I don't like the fabric so much. I have realised in recent years, I am quite hypersensitive to materials and how things fit or feel (Ha, my stepmum could have told me this - she still has nightmares about me and, quote- "That wretched white cardigan!" that I was always trying to get out of!).  However, often, I don't realise what something will feel like or how I will fear, until I've worn it for a day, or a couple of times.

I was still working on this but CBC and I decided to go out and get some lunch. We headed to one of our numerous local garden centres.  This one has a newly expanded restaurant which has been shown as being really popular. We've tried to go before but the queue was epic and the restaurant was full. Luckily, as we were going close to the end of serving, we got a table easily.  I ordered a breaded chicken escalope with garlicky chard and potatoes and CBC a butternut squash risotto.  We ordered hot chocolate and chocolate milkshake respectively. Mine was delicious although the chard wasn't super garlicky and could have been more plentiful (I'm a huge garlic AND chard fan!). CBC's was tasty but smaller than he would liked. Whilst waiting and eating, we played Qwirkle. I bought this game back in July after having bought it for my sister for her birthday and LOVING it.  CBC is always willing to play it which is an absolute bonus as usually, he's not so up for playing so many games with me!  I bought it from Mr Wolf Hexham as it was recommended to me by the WONDERFUL Mrs Wolf who I am very friendly with when I go to visit.  I have subsequently bought it from her repeatedly (SUPPORT SMALL BUSINESSES not BIG BUSINESSES!) via my Mother In Law when she visits or gifts- it comes in a handy little pouch so it fits in a handbag easily- it has been on every holiday with us subsequently and my Taiwanese friend LOVED it and kept asking to play in on holiday which I adored as I will play a game at any time, any place). 

It was quite a tense game and the final score was

197 a piece! YES, we tied for the first time ever!

We had a quick look round the garden centre- I was tempted by some LARGE Jingle Bell garlands- they clanked like cowbells- but at £28, I decided to forgo it- would have loved them for the music room!  The garden centre is stocking Field and Fare freezer products which are unpackaged so you can bring your own container for them.  We bought some fishcakes and Chicken Kiev, frozen fish.

Back home, I sat down at the piano and FINALLY got started on my Christmas song/carol- well, I got the first chorus lyrics and melody written and the accompaniment worked out, just need to work out the verses- CBC was pitying the neighbours as there was a lot of stopping/starting and repeating the same chord over and over again as I tried things out.  To ensure neighbourly relations are peaceful, I left it there and  continued with the wardrobe changeover c;earup and sorting and later, we had some Thai food whilst watching Outer Banks on Netflix.

This morning, I got out of bed at 8.57....church starts at 9.15am.  I was at church by 9.17am having cycled!  

The service was a really beautiful service and Steph who led the sermon gave such a powerful sermon.

My main two takehomes from this were:  We take each day as it comes.  In the Lord's prayer, we ask for our daily bread, not our weekly bread and we must react to God's placement  of us. Trying not to worry about next week doesn't mean the same as not being prepared for what is coming.  Also, revisiting the past and imagining different outcomes or choices can be a form of self-harm - I needed to hear that as I often end up thinking about what I should have/would have/could have done.

Had lovely chats to friends after the service, including my lovely neighbour Morris who is 97.  I took him round some Lily O'Brien chocolates 2 weeks ago as he was unwell and able to attend church and he was so grateful and said he'd never had chocolates like them before.

I came home and got started on the washing up from last night (yes, I am a slattern..) whilst listening to a lovely Radio 3 programme with Rupert Everett and his Desert Island discs  and then decided to do some sorting through the cupboards and try to get rid of some out of date baking ingredients and try and rationalise the chaotic pantry.  It's a bit better.  Chucked a few things to compost and also packed a few things for school as flour can be used for Playdough and 15 year old mung beans and aduki beans can be used to make shakers.  I then made a pot of tea and crumpets.  Next I rehoovered the floor and then washed the kitchen, utility room and hallways (they really, really needed it) as well as getting on my hands and knees scrubbing stains with sodium bicarb and an old toothbrush. I  folded up clean washing and put it away and then hoovered the living room whilst imprisoned by drying floor and polished the piano and repositioned the house plants.   CBC came home from cycling and thankfully, the floors were almost dry and he was careful (usually, he tells me not to be a drama queen when I freak out when he walks in and makes a mess).  I washed the upstairs bathroom floors and then hoovered the dry floors to pick up the extra bits that were revealed by washing and hoovered the bedroom.

I then went into the garden and pulled out the remaining tomato plants and bean plants, weeded the raised bed, pulled out the canes, raked leaves and put them onto the raised bed to mulch (wish I'd gone to collect more oak leaves from the field behind our house as there weren't enough to cover the bed...I will then put compost on top and then maybe put cardboard on top- if CBC doesn't moan - he has Opinions about things like this looking messy (even if the advice came from an expert) -picked the last pepper. I then came in and ate some brie, chutney and crackers and sang some songs and played piccolo and piano with CBC for some carols and then went to practice my piccolo for my orchestra rehearsal tomorrow (poor neighbours).  A bit more tidying and then finally, the house was looking calm and more ordered. I have found it really hard to function as the house has felt and looked so dirty and messy and I feel soothed by having done all this cleaning and sorting, even if I haven't 'rested so much

Ah, what was I wearing? Well, the OTHER Totnes cardigan of course! You read the post title right?

This is the gorgeous Alpaca Stained glass pattern one.  My bassoon-playing friend, who owns alpacas and is an alpaca wool geek, told me that this jumper probably retailed at around £400 so I got an absolute bargain for my £35 shell out.  The white top underneath was charity-shopped.  My burgundy cashmere shawl was from H&M about 14 years ago and is one of my top winter favourites.  I have always said I prefer Summer and its sartorial choices but actually, I ADORE my winter favourites and look forward to wearing them.

My black trousers are from Seasalt, bought from their EBay outlet in the Summer after my cycling accident ripped my favourite black trousers (Ang, I just haven't sent them yet!!! I just need to get everything to the post office!) - they are super comfortable and thick material. Finally, I wore my Leggero Gortex and leather boots. I bought these in October 2020 and have worn them through thick and thin, 4 winters and they are still going strong. I paid £160 which is the most I have ever paid for a pair of boots/shoes/garment but I think the cost per wear is probably in pence now as I have worn them so much. What will I do when they wear out? (which they show no signs of doing)

It's now Sunday evening and I am finally doing school work (oops,should have done before now)  before we will eat Thai left overs, but I am feeling satisfied with my weekend endeavours.

 

I hope all is well with you.

xx

 

TARDIS Tuesday and Christmas and New Year Catch up

 Hi there!

Happy New Year to all of you!

I do hope you have had a great Christmas and New Year.

I've had a nice Christmas and very sad it is almost over!

I've not really caught up since before Christmas.

I mentioned the week of the train strikes last and mentioned coming home with a sore throat and feeling not particularly well on the Saturday.

By Sunday, I felt more unwell, headache, cough and really tired. I had to go and sing carols in the afternoon as it was too last minute for them to find anyone. It was only half an hour but I felt really drained and out of it. I really shouldn't have gone. I'd done Covid tests since Thursday (before I was unwell, as I had had to do one to visit the care home)- all were negative.

By Sunday evening, I really didn't feel well and was starting to cough more.  CBC, who never has a day off, was shocked when I said I didn't think I was going to be able to go into school.  He said that I should see how I was in the morning. I felt really annoyed and a bit upset as I really do not take days of school lightly. I really wanted and needed to go in to teach Jingle Bells as it would be weird to teach in January, but I really didn't feel well and it felt like he was not believing me. I texted my Deputy Head to warn her I wasn't 100%. She said to text her in the morning.

I woke around 4am, feeling dreadful and not being able to stop coughing.  It woke up CBC who went to the loo. I  think, after hearing me cough for around 45 minutes, he realised I really wasn't well.

I texted my Deputy Head just before 5am to say I wasn't going to be in. Felt gutted not to be able to teach Jingle Bells. I spent most of the day lying on the leather chair or sofa, trying to force myself to do some work but I just couldn't muster up the energy. I managed to do a bit of timing on the Christmas recordings, editing them on the computer and a few things but that was about all.

I felt worse on Tuesday so I didn't go in for the last day. Again, I was really gutted as I had SO much stuff to clear up ready for the new year- so many things left out, paper work to clear away, instruments to put away, paperwork to tidy away and missing the last day excitement.

By Wednesday, I was feeling a bit improved- not as headachey or unable to do anything at all, but still didn't have energy so I cancelled my plans with my friend Margaret to meet for lunch which was sad.

By the end of the day, after having another day of lying on the sofa, the rest was helping although I was starting to feel I'd pulled a muscle under my arm from all the hard coughing so tried to practice breathing slowly.

Thursday, I felt much better and Mum had invited us for lunch. I'd warned her I probably shouldn't come as had been ill but she told me we still had to come.  We had a lovely lunch of soup and vegan Bolognese and fruit salad. It was lovely to see her and the kittens. We went home and I spent the rest of the day of the sofa.

Friday, feeling improved, though not 100% we rearranged to meet M for lunch. We went to a lovely cafe which was totally empty except for us. I had to pick up a present for my sister from Next and then went home. Our friend Nath came round for dinner. CBC cooked a vegan chilli plus a Potato Dauphinoise. Nath brought some sausages wrapped in bacon that had to be eaten. We had a game of Scrabble. 

Christmas eve, we headed off to Oxfordshire for Christmas. Disastrously, I'd forgotten to cancel the milk so had to send it to my neighbour who gleefully talked about hot chocolates galore!

We met in a pub for lunch.  Everyone else had 3 courses but I stuck to a 1 course mezze as the last time I'd had a stodgy pub lunch at theirs, I'd had awful constipation on Christmas day,so I had lots of veggie things! Christmas eve ended with a cheese fest.

It turned out that there were 3 of us who had the horrid cough and lack of energy and all of us weren't feeling particularly good and ended up coughing a lot- it was like playing Cough Tag most of the time we were there. Ended up going to bed early as I was so exhausted.

Christmas day was lovely. We didn't have loads of presents which was nice. CBC bought me some cute wooden earrings and a Balinese cook book (I bought him a smart shirt, leather belt and bag of mints) and my MiL gave me some books. CBC's sister gave us a lovely little edible stocking. I helped out with Christmas dinner and washing up.  They bought fun crackers with individual chimebars and beaters which everybody had a go at playing and we watched some TV. I ended up going for a walk mid afternoon in an non-waterproof coat and got completely soaked. We also had a walk around 8pm which was much needed.

Boxing Day, we went out for a 5 mile walk and had a tasty buffet. We played Linkee and watched a film. I ended up going for an extra walk. Didn't feel particularly well but the walk was much needed despite wiping us out!

The 27th, CBC's older sister, husband and 2 nephews came over. It was manic and crazy but sweet in some ways!

The 28th, we left around 9am to get J to Oxford train station to catch her train back to Northumberland. This meant we got back to Essex quite swiftly. Spent most of the day on the sofa feeling tired. I have tended to find I feel fine if I am not doing anything but feel unwell when I start doing anything or going outside in the cold.

On the 29th, we had a late start and had to go into London late to meet CBC's friend who was over from Sweden. Didn't really get to spend much time with her and the whole trip felt a bit futile, again, didn't feel great having to traipse around cold London. We ended up having dinner on Marylebone highs street and I was very relieved to get home.

On the 30th, we went to Chelmsford late afternoon for CBC to get his haircut and for him to look to see if there were any suits in the John Lewis sale (there weren't). I ended up buying a fancy 'Darvilles of Windsor' Tea Advent calendar for next year as it was reduced from £33 to £6.75 as it had a date of December 2026 on it. We then went over to our friend Lara's and Tim's for a lovely buffet.

On the 31st, we went over to my Dad's in Kent and stayed till the evening of the 1st. We had a wonderful meal on both days and did an  online Escape Room plus a walk along the river.

Yesterday, I went and spent the morning with my flute quartet. I had a headache so I spent the rest of the day lying down as I felt tired after the flute playing and the headache wasn't helping

I'm back to school on Thursday. Still got a cough, very tired and the pulled muscle is still not better but I honestly feel so much better than I did.

Today's TARDIS Tuesday is a reflection on how I feel- wanting to be comfy.

The outfit featured is worn by Clara Oswald when she's grieving over the death of her boyfriend, Danny Pink in 'Death in Heaven'. It features a pink speckled cardigan from Urban Outfitters, a white top with black stripes and indigo jeans.

I'm wearing the same cardigan but a similar top- the real one has not been IDed. I'm wearing some comfy ASOS jeans from another Clara cosplay.

Not an exciting outfit, not really 'blog-worthy' so only here for the sake of doing a TARDIS Tuesday after not doing it for 2 weeks. Didn't really feel up to it!

Hope all is well with you.

xx

Owl and Skirt

 Thank you for those of you that kindly commented on my last two posts- I know they weren't the greatest posts ever (one full of lengthly book reviews and the other, me feeling annoyed the rantings on social media).  I don't think, despite my long walk, I was feeling my best. My sinuses and tonsils felt really sore and swollen last night and I ended up not sleeping well and feeling dreadful when I woke up so I ended up not going to school as my throat felt awful- the usual 'apple in the throat' feeling I get when my tonsils are enflamed.  Having an additional 4 hours sleep has helped and I am feeling much improved.

Wanting to post something cheerful, I thought I'd share my outfit from Saturday.  It was comfy and a bit different so I wanted to share it.

It features my March purchase (I did mention I would only be buying one thing a month, less if I could) and is a second hand skirt originally from East but made by Indian company Fabindia.  Vix, has been looking stunning in her beautiful Indian blockprint items and I bought a maxi skirt last year but it didn't quite work for me as it was wrap-around.  This one has an elasticated waistband.

I wore it with an old sparkly navy top and a cardigan I bought from Mistral in Wallingford a long time ago and my blue boots.

Something about the outfit suggested  a night sky to me so I decided to don my Starry night necklace (Kimchi and Coconut) and gold star earrings (Esoteric London)

The Battlesbridge antiques centre wired headscarf was the final thing to complete the artistic look. CBC liked it- he said it was very me but also very Ellie S. (Ellie is in her 70's,  dear flute playing friend and someone who I aspire to be like- she is an artist in later life too).

It was fitting, therefore, to be able to pose with our Oliver Hurst owl (you will remember it was one of our lockdown 1, 'support an artist' works which featured in the Bloggers' art gallery) which CBC finally bought a frame for, had a lot of trouble getting it together and then hung it in our entrance hall between the toilet and the kitchen.

I'll be back in school tomorrow and I hope to be back on form- unfortunately, I think the return to school was a bit of a shock to the system and the constant use of my projected voice, the long days, the early starts and the lack of sleep is often a trigger for me to get tonsil issues so I will try to make sure I get to bed nice and early....even if I can't sleep!

Hope all is ok with you.

xx

Style Imitating Art - Portrait of Dido Belle and Lady Elizabeth Murray, circa 1779

It seems a while since I have remembered to submit an outfit picture for the Style Imitating Art Challenge! Luckily, Jen, who is the host this week, reminded me on Instagram so I quickly put something together!

Portrait of Dido Belle and Lady Elizabeth Murray, circa 1779

This week's inspiration is the picture which inspired the film Belle.  The exact painter is unknown although it once was attributed to Johann Zofanny.  It is
In the words of Jen, our host,

This was the portrait that inspired the 2013 film, Belle, about the real-life, mixed-race young lady, Dido Belle, who was born into slavery in the British West Indies and ended up a heiress in London, England. The painting was commissioned by Lord Mansfield (William Murray), and depicts both of his great-nieces, Lady Elizabeth Murray and Dido Belle. The two ladies were second cousins.

It is such a vibrant painting and I like the poses- it does look like the cousins are up to do good and about to dash off and do something mischievous to each other once the sitting has finished. The girls are very pretty and vivacious and I would love to know more!

When I was thinking about what to wear,I immediately thought of two light, pretty cardigans I am about to say goodbye to. I really like them but realistically, I never really wear them and I really do need to clear some space in my clothing storage spaces because I do have too much! Both of them are highly decorative but I decided on the white on in the end though perhaps the pink would have been better.

 Apart from some plain black trousers, the detail is all in the top half.  The cardigan has little pearls which mimic the jewellery of the girls, the applique flowers in pink and yellow shades are a nod to the headdress worn by Lady Elizabeth whilst the lace applique is a nod to the lace on her dress. Incidentally, I chose the white cardigan because I thought there was more white in the painting with both Belle's dress and Elizabeth's detailing.  The top I chose underneath has a sort of lacy pattern which was a further nod to the lace detailing.
I chose to stand in the spare room as its new Dix Blue paint shade was a nice nod to the sky

 I chose to wear my wedding earrings which I thought mimicked the earring which seems so prominent in Belle's ears and thought I'd do a sneaky pose with a book also!

Anyway, that is that. What do you think?

I wonder how the other participants will interpret this? I am looking forward to seeing their versions!

Head over to Jen's blog Librarian for Lifestyle on Wednesday to see the participants.

AND it is not to late to join in yourself as long as you get your picture to Jen by Tuesday night. I'd be so happy if I managed to recruit some participants! Send your pic to librarianforlifestyle@gmail.com 

Hope you are well!

x

Tick tock, it's mustard o'clock!

Howdy! Thanks for your kind comments yesterday. I am glad that the Spring is bringing joy and hope to you too!  I will be writing a little more at some point soon!

What AM I doing with my face!??!?!?  I thought I'd share the outfit photos that prompted me seeing those daffodil shoots yesterday- you can see them to my right, almost off screen!

 Despite owning maaaaaaaaany clothes, there are ones I come back to again and again which makes me ponder the fact that I should just stick with those ones.  A mustard cardie and my Cath Kidston clock skirt are frequent callers in my wardrobe choices and a navy top with mustard of course!

 I ended up picking up these Conker-coloured boots in Whitby as I wear my turquoise Doc Martens almost constantly in the Winter and I wanted a slightly more versatile colour.  In addition, I was searching for sea glass and an unexpected wave completely soaked my feet so it was great to have something to change into!  They are from a brand called Roamers and they were a fraction of the price but leather and English-made.  And they came from the Men's section...

Here's the broochage and er- necklaceage from the outfit- birds and plants..

I'd like to say I am glad to be back at school and indeed, it was a successful day, but oh the gloom of post-half-term! It will go away soon, esp when I write all 500 reports...

Hope all is joyous with you.

xxx

Dinogirl

 Evenin' all!
Hope that your day was enjoyable, happy and fun.
Mine was... ok!

I thought I'd share this dress which I ordered back in October and tell you a bit about it.

I first saw @VintageStyleMe on Instagram back in August.   They handmake dresses to order.   I thought this was a nice idea and had seen this dinosaur print on their dresses.  However, I was going through my, "Noooo, I have too many dresses, must not buy, must not buy!" phases (I wish these won the war most of the time).   Then I read an article on the lady who runs Vintage Style Me's blog where she talked about the difficulty of running an independent clothes business where she has to compete against fast fashion and how she cannot compete with a clothes chain who can sell dresses for £5 or similar.  She wrote about how sometimes, just one sale in a week can save her and allow her to pay her bills etc and selling one dress can be a lifeline.  I can't find the article on the blog, it doesn't seem to be working right now, or I'd link to it.  It was written so eloquently and honestly and stuck in my mind. I kept hearing those words over and over again in my head. More often than not, I buy my clothes second hand or occasionally from brands such as Miss Patina,  Cath Kidston, Palava Folk though I do frequent Primark and Topshop and Asos.

 Still, it remained in my mind for a while every time I saw an Instagram post and I kept looking at the website.  Finally in October, they had a promotion of 40% off any dress which in my mind tells me that I should have bought it full price, since that would support the principle that was running in my mind.  However, I am a sucker for a bargain so I ordered. I went for their 'Design your own dress' option which is a bit more expensive than the 'ready designed' ones. Usually £59. I chose the dinosaur dress and went for a more fitted Skater dress, rather than their ubiquitous smock style which doesn't suit my shape. I am a total collar addict when it comes to my clothes (in case you hadn't noticed) so I opted for a cute collar and cuffs and a slightly longer length.

Bear in mind, it DOES take a while for this option to be made and arrive.  It was posted on around the 21st December when I was in South Africa and it hadn't arrived when I got back from there. I contacted them and said they'd posted it but obviously it had been lost in the post.  They said would make another one which made me feel terrible. My original intent of supporting an independent business had somewhat backfired.

They were really quick and it arrived a week later and here it is.   It is made out of a sort of Barkcloth material- quite textured.  However, wearing it here on that Saturday, somehow I have managed to rip it partially down the back seam.  It seems to have frayed there after my doing that. I did hear a rip noise when I was pulling down my sleeves (you know when 3/4length sleeves get stuck by your elbows and you're putting on a cardigan).  I hope to do something about it.

Nonetheless, despite the comedy of errors, it is a nice dress and very different and I am very glad to have ordered it.

I added dinosaur collar clips in case you didn't realise!

Do you buy independent?

xxx

Mustard and olive vibes

Hello there,

I am sorry about 3 days of outfits and brooches in a row, but really I have more important things to write-about nobler causes and also my  Cruise writeups to finish and they take me so long so I habitually put them off. Terrible really.

I thought I'd share an outfit from Saturday when we were going for more house-viewings (We put in an offer for one- was rejected) and then headed up to London (the night of the hideous grid-lock) 

I do think this is a typically autumnal look. It reminds me somewhat of the lovely Donna at Polka Dot Pink who frequently pairs mustard with a navy pattern, often being polka dots!

This week so far, aside from Monday's awful day (all was fine until after school meeting) has been quite a positive one. I've been pleased with the lessons I've taught, including the three most notoriously difficult classes.  Pre this term, I DREADED teaching Tudor Dance to one class but on the whole, they have totally got on board with it and really enjoyed it. I applied for a music scholarship for one of my pupils last year and discovered she got it which is fabulous, my choir rehearsal was deficient in about 15 pupils who are away on Residential but the 13 I had made a brilliant sound so that was positive. CBC made me dinner tonight ('tis a rare occurrence nowadays which is a shame as he is a great cook), we had a String Quintet recital today which is always a delight, I managed to get all the Nativity scripts printed, annotated and highlighted for staff and pupils and meticulously broken down parts on a big grid so feeling rather smug and organised.   So lots of good things after a gloomy start to the week.

CBC has made me consent to going to watch Spamalot with his school tomorrow which I'm a little grumpy about as teenagers make me feel awkward but hopefully the show will be good. Apparently, his non-music colleagues keep wondering why I never come to anything (er- I play in the music concerts!!!!!!) so I'm being dragged along.  Hopefully should be fine...

Outfit:

Dress: Louche at Joy (was FREE with a purchase)

Mustard Cardigan: White Stuff (Christmas gift from J and WOMOTM)

Leggings: Primark.

Teal Boots: The Doc Marten store.

Beret:  Nottinghill

Necklace: Tatty Devine

Dorothy Brooch: Goodnight Boutique on Etsy

Right, I'm off to read some Terry Pratchett and NOT eat any more Fudge!

xx

Lindybop Lindyhop lobster

Good Evening, Villagers!

Hope all is well with you.

I generally dislike Wednesdays (mostly due to just ONE class grrrr) but this was one was quite fun.  After an awkward start with a class (one horrid child) they managed to pull it together and perform well as did the other year 4 class. In Singing assembly, because it is Shakespeare week, I taught the kids to sing Henry VIII's Pastime with good company, which we accompanied with our timpani playing a drone ostinato that set it off remarkably well. Survived the horrid class and had a good one (except WHY will they always try to cheat in Music Vocabulary Bingo. There's always ONE!) and then after school I did a Tudor Dance one-off session for years 3-6. Had about 24 children which was a nice number. Most of them had done in it year 4 when I taught them but there were about 7 year 3's as well. It worked really well. We learnt Branle des Lavandieres and a simple, but effective, dance to Pastime with Good company.    It made for a jolly end to the school day. 

CBC and I went swing dancing almost two weeks ago and it gave me a chance to wear my Christmas present from CBC- a Lindy Bop dress. I love it when someone buys me a dress! Yay!

I got the idea to do red accessories from Louise at Polka Dots and Freckle Spots who wore a similar dress with red. Charity-shopped red Monsoon cardie, George dalamation spot shoes and Erstwilder brooch plus a hair flower.  We tried to take pictures out a the Kursaal where the dance was. It was the 7th Anniversary of JiveSwing teaching in Southend so it was really nice to go along and celebrate that.   All the photos or nearly all were rubbish at the Kursal apart from this one

...which was still dark and grainy!

So you get some photos from my entrance corridor to my home with its speckled wallpaper, doormat and vanity case!

Hope all is well with you.
xxx

1 more get-up...

Be seeing you...

Hi there,
Just a quick check in amidst packing. Don't ask.
SO. MUCH. STUFF.

 I do love a secret cosplay and I decided to do one yesterday for parents evening as the items of clothing were to hand.

Patrick McGoohan from the cult TV show, The Prisoner was my inspiration. If you look at the Google images link I put there, you will see what I am wearing is very much based on his look!

It was a super cosy outfit for being at school all day and evening but it looked relatively smartish. I quite like the androgynous look sometimes.

And here is my Number 6 badge but....

I AM NOT A NUMBER, I AM A FREE MAN!


And this is the last time I shall sign off from blogger in this house.

Be seeing you....


P.S. If you liked the Prisoner, please let me know. The only person yesterday that recognised what I was trying to do was the random bike engineer who was doing bike advice at school during parents evening! I felt a bit too geeky!
P.P.S.  If you've never heard of it

Blanket cover

 It's been a long time since I wore TARDIS blue overtly.Voila, TARDIS blue in profusion!  I wasn't going to make the mistake I made last Sunday with church being freezing so I pulled out the big guns with this vintage blanket skirt. I wasn't cold. Result.

 And I find it hard to find things to wear these Irregular Choice, Poetic Licence shoes with so a minute bit of yellow was my cue!

 I really enjoyed church this morning.  We had a visitor from the cathedral who talked on going from being a disciple to an apostle.   I think one of my favourite books of the Bible is 2 Timothy which he read from.  It was the source of the first Christian song I wrote and even now, I read it and think of how encouraging its message it is.  Paul was encouraging a young Timothy in his walk with faith in Christ.  Encouragement is something really important to give each other.
Being an apostle is taking that step from following to sharing your message of faith.

It's so easy not to take the time to encourage, whether as a Christian or not.  You doubt your own self and abilities and it can be easy to forget to encourage other people in whatever.  Telling someone they are doing something well, that they can do it, telling them of the good things that have happened to you, and encouraging them in new paths. Telling someone you are praying for them, offering help and time.  A church friend has been a great source of encouragement for me this month in his family's selflessness in offering CBC and I a place to rent.

You here encourage me.  I think the encouragement that we as bloggers can give each other is very important.  Shamu, a regular commenter on this blog, has show through his poetry on his blog, that he has a constant struggle with acceptance and friendship in life (I hope you don't mind me saying that) and frequently shows gratitude for the encouragement he receives. Reciprocally, he is very, very good at encouraging people through comments, kindness and appreciation, even if his tights excitement is a little bit on the edge! :)  Lovely Laura, at Daisychain dream has struggled with eating disorders over the years, and I know as blog friends, the fact she trusts us to tell us of the struggles is an encouragement to us and we should encourage her in her journey.  Ally is finding her path presenting as a female and our encouragement of her in this is so important to building confidence. I've mentioned before, that Ally is a hugely important force of encouragement and good in the blogging world.  I could go on, but I suspect I will lose you. Every one I have come across in blogging needs encouragement. Encouragement to continue, encouragement for energy, for time and for struggles they have encountered. It is a privilege to be able to make a little contribution towards those struggles with a word here or there.

I've met a lovely new blogger this week, Ellie at This Country Girl's journal (I was her first commenter!) please go and say hi and comment on her blog to encourage her in her first month of blogging!

I hope all is well with you. Is there anything you need encouragement for? Or is there anything I can pray for? Just let me know!

xxx

Off to link up with lovely Patti who is the original encourager of beautiful bloggers everywhere with her link Visible Monday. I'm also glad it is Hat Attack with beautiful Judith because I am wearing my favourite Cloche that CBC gave me for Christmas 2 years ago!

Tartan with a bow on top

I feel that tonight's outfit is very Clara Oswin- well the tartan dress and colour thing- not so much anything else!! I am in the process of making a lovely vegetarian spaghetti bolognese which smells delicious- as well as soya mince, added a whole aubergine, red pepper, loads of tomatoes as well as a pasta sauce, stock cube, red wine, bay leaf, onion and lots of garlic.  We're having it with giant pasta!

One hour later, dinner was tasty but I misjudged the amount of pasta- far too much but not enough to go with the left over bolognese for tomorrow's dinner!

I don't have a huge amount to say today.  Thanks for all your supportive comments.  I do have somewhere to live but I don't want to talk about it until I am actually moved in just in case!  Sufficed to say, if it works out, it is an answer to prayer for more than one party, hopefully!

xxx

Linking to Visible Monday with Patti and co!

Advent Day 10- Family Christmases and Being a thanksgiving table

I thought I'd link two ideas together in today's blog post.

This photo is terribly grainy. It comes from my old Nokia phone before it died 2 years ago- I had saved it to my computer. It shows my Godmother and her Mother.  

So many of my most precious and happiest Christmas memories and traditions involve my Godmother's house.  We and 4 other families would always get together a few times over the Christmas holiday- perhaps we'd go over on Christmas eve, New Year's Eve, Christmas day eve, Boxing Day eve- one of those.  We'd go over, eat food, chat and play board games.  My Godmother is hilarious and I always loved the get together with them and their children,all girls -we ranged over an age gap of 5 years, I was the youngest.

I attribute my love of party and board games to these groups of friends-- we used to play Party Edition Pictionary (you play on two large Dry-wipe boards), HumBug, and other games and it would be utterly raucous, innocent fun. My Godmother's laugh is so loud. Her mother (lady in the ears), who sadly died this year, was also hilarious.

One of the families moved to Ireland, one moved away a few years later and all the 'children' were married and moved away and because My Mum, sister and I stopped spending Christmas together, possibly when CBC and I got together, we stopped going over there for the Christmas days, probably about 4 years ago, particularly if I went to Northumberland with CBC but my heart still yearns for those wonderful years of innocence, games, laughs.  And Party edition Pictionary 

Onto the other non-Christmas bit.

I haven't shared a Style imitating Art outfit on here for a while. Somehow, I didn't get around to it and a few of them were a little bit boring so I didn't go there, but today's one, I was rather inspired over.

Freedom from Want, by Norman Rockwell 
Oil on canvas, 1943 

I love this painting as it is all about sentimentality. I am definitely a sentimental person, definitely to thE chagrin of my husband sometimes!  "No, you must not chuck that mug because it means..."

The curtains immediately suggested this Per Una skirt to me. I am rather sentimental about this skirt.  When I used to work at the Academy, I used to wear this skirt quite often.  There was this incredibly sweet, rather shy and awkward professor who sometimes used to talk to me.  One day, he saw me coming down the stairs in this skirt and I was glancing back in delight at it trailing on the ground. He told me later that I looked like a Princess in it. He said it in this really shy and sweet way and later dropped me off a cup of tea and a cake to my office, "Because I looked so pretty in it!"
On various other occasions, he would always smile when I wore this skirt and another Similar Per Una one so forever, this skirt will be associated with him and his sweetness.

The white lace cardigan is my last charity-shop purchase- I have been rather dissatified with my current white cardigan- too big but weirdly fitted and just not right, so I was glad to find this one for £2.50 a few weeks ago- it represents the net curtains.
The celery brooch (made by me) was a nod to those leeks sitting proudly in the middle of the table and if you look closely, you will see the tiny blue and white milk jug round my neck- a nod to the fine tableware.


You can head over to Jess at Animated Cardigan to see how everyone else interpreted it.

Those Autumn leaves

I was struck by how I was wearing the shades of Autumn leaf decay today- the three stages-
Yellow- when the leaves are bright yellow, the dark brown stage where they have started to die and then that pale biscuity stage where all the moisture has left the leaf and they are brittle, parched and ready to crack.  Sounds delightful eh!?  Hopefully, combining all three makes for a more pleasing sartorial conclusion.

 I have often made no bones about the fact that I emphatically do not like Autumn.  I often feel like the Bah-humbug fairy when everyone else (except Sophie, who I think is more on my wavelength, even though she show the beauty of it through her photos) is extolling the virtues of the season. I was thinking, as I read yet another post delighting in the Autumn, that perhaps I need to lighten up and appreciate it - to see the good, like I do in most other things.  It's not that I DON'T see the beauty in Autumn, it's just I feel the gloom of the darkening days and mourn deeply for the loss of summer, that time I love so much, thus I consciously shut my eyes to the positives.

And then, today at church,  as the children were completing some beautiful Autumn collages around us as the service progressed, Margaret, the vicar, played this beautiful video and said how lucky we were to see the beauty of Autumn.

  

And perhaps, within me, I knew that I must change my attitude to the Autumn.  When you look and emphasize the bad, you come to see that only. Do the opposite, trying to see the good and perhaps you can believe and take joy in that instead.

So, on the day, I came to try and accept that, the sun shone and I wore Autumn shades.

And delighted in my Poetic License (sister-brand of Irregular Choice) shoes which I wore for the first time and made me feel a bit like Mary Poppins.

The silhouette of this outfit is rather more grown-up than I am used to- I don't wear trousers all too happily though today, these Karen Millen mini-dogtooth 'Plus fours' (I called them Culottes, CBC looked askance on them and asked why I was dressing like a gentleman of the 1910's) suited the shoes. Sorry Julia, they needed an iron and I didn't!  Yes, I did match everything in the outfit to the shoes. The shoes came first,everything else followed!

And this afternoon, I headed back to church for the Confirmation service where I was playing flute  in the band with a combination of people. The church was packed and I was struck with that wonderful sense of a deep love of a community, unity, of a people combined, that I only get when I am at church. It's different from that of just being with family.  I felt happy, at peace, understood. I felt the joy and exhilaration  of those being confirmed.  I felt at home. Something I find very hard to put this feeling I experience into words, but it is, in a sense, a feeling of being lifted, being light and breathing with delight, almost that sort of sigh of contentment you get at times.  I wish I could explain it and I wish that you experience this kind of joy too!

I hope that you all have a lovely week and enjoy some fun, joy and rest too.  

Sending many best wishes,

Kezzie xx

Linking to:

Creative Mondays with Claire Justine 

AND 

Visible Monday with Patti

SIA: Be kind to books

http://librarianforlifestyle.com/2015/10/06/sia-round-up-book-club/
I haven't shared a Style imitating art outfit for a long time so I thought it was time to remedy that!
The poster above was a Banned Books poster and it had particularly striking colours.

I wore this skirt and top to represent the majority back plus this Monsoon Charity-shopped cardigan for the blue.  Of course the orange was minimal so I wore my orange felt leaf brooch and used my orange watering can handbag.  The photo was taken at the park where we went for a walk and an ice-cream last Sunday!

I'm also linking with Spygirl Anne Bray with her 52 pick me up link with the theme of sunset
http://spygirl-amb.blogspot.co.uk/ my bag and leaf, combined with the blue of a muted sky and silhouette black

If you want to take part in Style Imitating Art at All with Jess, this week's inspiration is:

Leopard I by Megan Carn, acylic on Canvas 2015.
Send your inspired outfit to Jess at animatedcardigan@gmail.com

Since this was a book-themed Style imitating art, I thought I'd do an accompanying book review:

The Amazing Maurice and his Educated Rodents by Terry Pratchett

I'd been recommended this book for a long time. The book begins as Maurice, the rats and a rather stupid looking pipe-playing boy called Keith are off for a final heist to pull the Pied Piper routine on an unsuspecting town.
Maurice is a cat and he and the rats suddenly began to be able to talk, think and philosophise after eating a pile of rubbish that obviously had something magic in it.  Maurice is essentially a bit of a crook, a very convincing street-wise one.  The rats have varying personalities such as Peaches to has a cough to rival Dolores Umbridge, Dangerous Beans, the prophet and Hampork, the leader who doesn't like this talking milarkey and wishes rats could just be rats again.

Unfortunately, the aforementioned town, Badblintz appears already to have a rat problem. A rather sinister one and it's up to Maurice and co to try and sort matters.

This book is full of Pratchett's hilarious thoughts upon the world from eccentric characters, genius description, quirky characters and a surprising amount of mystery and tension- just WHAT is going on in Bad Blintz keeps you reading and guessing up to the last minute, with a horrible dark concept as the denouement!!! Plus, Death makes an appearance and I always love it when Death turns up!

I recommend it (and of course, found it in a charity shop!).


Hope all is well with you!

xxx