Buttons, Bobs and Pardon Me

Oh dearie me, I nearly lost these treasures. Have you ever done that..upcycled something, quite sure at the time that you love it and very certain that you'll never want to get rid of it, and that you would never forget to take the buttons off it again, if ever you did part with it & then...forgot?
Lucky escape. My darling little "friends" almost went off down the road to the Sallies on a jacket.

I adore buttons & collect them up where ever I go. I am sure that no-one will be sad, to one day inherit boxes & boxes of beautiful buttons from "Katie"!!

I don't know about my costume jewelry living on here but I got so sick of trying to untangle my necklaces just so that I could wear the one thing...so here they are for now.

I just couldn't leave these little vintage shoes behind when I called into Connections this week. I don't think that they'd be very comfy to wear..they're as stiff as a board but so cute!

This is the best winter that I can remember in forever. I have had no trouble getting all my gardening done right through the season. The soil is workable & even though we have had frosts & chilly nights we have had so many fine, glorious, mild winter days. We really do live in Paradise..this perky chap is flouncing about at the front door.

We've been having lots of roast veges & salads. I pop my pan of vegetables in the oven with some stock or water & just add a decent drizzle of olive oil towards the end. These yams are so beautiful. How wonderful that they are there each week at our marvelous Farmer's Market.

They seem very friendly with the earth gems.

Kevin at the market grows these purple caulis & Romanesco broccoli... fabulous in winter. I love colourful food!

What a masterpiece!

The new Trelise Cooper eco shopping bags are nice & cheap & cheerful for winter Farmer's Marketing.

I found some gorgeous raw cashews on my travels this week, popped them into a slow oven for an hour or so..so much cheaper, no added salt & the most delicious snack.

Such a cute find at the Restore shop. A corn broom. It's been just the thing to have in my potting shed.

While I was in there (the potting shed that is) I noticed this little suitcase..past it's best, but makes a sweet little home for some indoor plants & looking quite good.

I cannot believe Mabel's rose (well that's what I called her for years) as I grew her from a cutting from a dear, dear, elderly gardener Mabel McKay, who was very kind to me when I was starting out in my garden here some 20 years ago. Then one happy day, years later, a dapper Frenchman exclaimed "Ah!! Herbert Stevens Pink!! when spying her loveliness over at Port'O'Call where she adorned a table set for tea & the mystery of her true name was solved. Look at her..mid winter & hasn't stopped flowering once!

Finally the violets are in full bloom & divine. Did you know that these lovelies "drink' from their blossoms? I have taken to giving them a quick rinse & then plunging them into a glass of water before trimming & arranging them. The resultant water can then be drunk..beautifully scented & delicious. Violets are, after all, edible & will last much longer in the vase if treated in this way.

There is something so enchanting & universally appealing about narcisii don't you think?  I have grown these double lovelies in a pot this year. I love their soft colours & gentle scent.

And the scent of the early blossom in the middle of town.

I walked out the back door of the library on Thursday as the sun was going down & making the world magical.

This is our Fynn. He is 7 & wearing his new $4 op shop waistcoat. Fynn & I have been emailing as his dad Matt, has gone off to England (some people!!) He is keeping us updated via his travel blog.. pop in here if you fancy following "woozle & me & our english oe" for the month.

Matthew writes an endless abundance, as many of you know & is still a student & a wonderful dad. It was just the right thing & the right time for him to accompany his grandmother to the UK to visit family for a month. I found this on Pinterest the other day. It is perfect for Matt & might appeal to you too.

Now, some of you may be familiar with the new Mollie Makes magazine that is being raved about all over the place (haven't actually seen one myself), however, there has been a great deal of industrious crafting going on inspired by this magazine (dottie angel is one of the clever contributors). I am aware that there has been a quite a lot of gifting happening too, as a steady stream of apple cosies & watermelon cosies, (in one particular instance!) have come off the production line!! In the honour of all things knitted & crocheted & crafted I offer you a serenade "Pardon Me (but I didn't knit that for you)" via the lovely Jess & Jo of "Fruit Bowl Craft Jam"...local acclaim.

If you fancy a bit of Ras el Hanout (great name!!) Lovely tasty, easy recipe do pop in here to the kitchen blog.

Lovely to see you. Don't forget to watch "Pardon Me" will you!

You can annoy everyone all week by singing it : )

MUCH

 ♥♥♥♥♥