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Saturday 14 September 2013

Sweet Jane and Tiny Violet

Hello lovelies!
It's such a nice time of the year here just now.
Everything is still new....
and fresh & sparkling.

It's funny the ways of doing things that we get used to, isn't it.
For instance, a vase needs to be, well, vase shape don't you think? But when I spotted the Spode vase below in "The Dog Shop" it suddenly dawned on me, that the flatter waterlily shape would be perfect for displaying camelias, like this pretty Sprite.
 I am becoming very fond of orchids.
 And funnily enough, I never tire of pink!
 I was so glad to have caught these few moments of glorious splendour a few evenings ago.
That's what life is all about really, isn't it
......moments.
 I will always be best friends with hearts-ease.
Gazing at this cheery, cheeky wee face, it seems quite awful to eat think about eating it! But they are most edible & look so pretty sprinkled through spring salads.
 Violets are edible & medicinal too. My little double parma violets have the most divine scent. I heard the other day that they can be put in to sugar to make highly scented sweet violet deliciousness. The same can be done with lilac & elderflowers.
I started with the violets. I decided to whizz my organic raw sugar in my little retro grinder & then tossed the violets through the sugar. The mixture is now brewing/imbueing in my amber glass jar & every time I lift the lid to poke at it all & see how it's getting along, I am overwhelmed by the most heavenly scent.
 Lucy had a little outing on Tuesday. She was required down at the testing place, to be put through her paces to see if she was still up to scratch. The simplest way to prepare her for such an event, seemed to be... plop all the extras off the counters in to our vintage washing baskets...simple.
 Then off she went...down the road with Rob.
I had to stay at home & hose down on all the paving!
We're going to "do" the bit on the right next.
A policeman stopped the pair on their return journey but it was a random stop: license check. The nice policeman was more interested in Lucy than anything else.
 Someone asked to buy a metre & a half of this Cath Kidston wallpaper on Trade Me last week & it got me to thinking that I could use my other off-cuts for the bottom of dressing table draws & the such-like.
 Meantime, I finished the little dolly crocheted blanket & made a wee candlewick cover to go with it from a salvaged bedspread.
 Of course, there's not much point to the bedding without someone to cover up.
I found Jane on Trade Me a few weeks ago & took a shine to her, so when little Nina popped in for a visit I showed her the dolly's picture & asked her what she thought. She pondered for quite a wee while before declaring that "I would really like to have that dolly"....
so we bought her.
 There's not much use in having a dolly & some blankets unless you have a bed for the dolly to sleep in & what should I find out at The Mart, but a pretty little pink vintage dolls cot.
 And now every one is very happy & content.
 Good old-fashioned advice for making happy healthy babies is lots of sunshine & fresh air...right!
 Jane is blissfully content amidst the spring Festival blooms.
There was a time when you were advised to place your baby to sleep outside under a tree during the day but you must not, on any account, cuddle/coddle that child.
We'll have none of that nonsense here, thank you very much!
 And then, all of a sudden I recalled that I had a little friend for Jane. A tiny Violet.
 Nina hasn't seen them yet. I am hoping that I'll have time to make some sheets & a pillow before she gets to visit again.
 I came across this wonderful little afternoon tea cloth at the market recently. It had a small hole in the cloth part so I decided to do a Threadbare Cottage fix & layer the centre with doilies.
 No matter how well I pinned them they seemed to wriggle around as I sewed them but never mind, now we can use & enjoy the glorious handwork.
I also finally made this old tapestry in to a new cushion.

And found some of these fabulous new vintage Ball jars down in Waipawa...on the way to see the daffodils. It just so happened that the red gingham tops fitted perfectly.
The new Cath Kidston Kew stripe is looking great in Lucy. I have even sewed on the buttons & finished the button holes on the back for once.
I wish you could sniff this viburnum it is sooo lovely. I have positioned it right beside the path so that we can smell it every day while it's wafting.
A cute little daffodil planted from a mixed bag.
So wonderful of you to come by.
Thank you, as always, for popping in to visit.
I hope that you have a wonderful week filled with lots & lots of memorable, sweet moments.

MUCH
♥♥♥♥♥

13 comments:

  1. Hello Catherine,

    Lucy is looking so lovely inside. The dolls and their rugs look right at home in the bed. The detail on the bigger dolls face especially the lips and teeth is amazing.
    Spring is such a great time to spend out in the garden.

    Happy Sunday.
    Bev.

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    1. Hello Bev, thank you so much for your lovely comments. Yes, Nina & I were quite taken with Jane's ruby red lips! Although I have just noticed that we only have one lot of eyelashes...still she's been around a fear old while.
      Spring is a wonderful time to spend in the garden..so much to be done & so much fragrance everywhere. Hope you are having a good week. Much love Catherine x0x0x

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  2. Hello sweet friend! The pinks are wonderful. Do you wear a lot of pink? I do like anything pink, too.
    Lucy is getting so dressed up! I'm glad she passed her inspection. When will you tool down the road again?
    It's always nice to stop by here. Everything inspires!

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  3. Lucy is looking stunning. I love all the pretty patterns and colour.

    Nina is a lucky wee thing. That wee doll setup is pretty.

    Growing up we had candlewick bedspreads. I loved them. I must keep my eye out in the shops for one.

    xoxo
    Alisa

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    1. Hello Alisa, hope you are feeling better again soon..guess you have had a quite a bit going on lately..& really not that long since your op. You are amazing!!
      I am so delighted to have such a sweet wee niece & that we like the same things...pretty, pastel etc. (some girls don't!)
      What colour were your candlewicks? Some were quite vile & some very cool. I was glad that the pink one had some holes in it so I didn't have to feel guilty for cutting it up!
      Much love Catherine x0x0x

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  4. Hello Catherine .. so much loveliness in this post, your pictures are so beautiful. Glad you got Lucy her wof & also the area cleaned up. Even though they are saying this was a mild winter, there is still lots of green moss areas around.
    Oh but your crochet cover & your candlewick cover are just so gorgeous ... as is Jane & the little cot you found at the Mart ... perfect colour too or did you have to paint it?? Jane & her friend Violet look most at home in their new bed.
    Funnily enough I used to put my eldest sons pram out in the garden for him to sleep in & when he woke up the trees rustling would soothe him & he never cried :-)(only during the day I should add!!!)
    Your ball jars & tapestry cushion are lovely & so is your afternoon tea cloth. I think it looks just fine with your embellishments, we are so critical of our own work. Hope you have a lovely week ahead dear friend, Hugs, Julie x0x0

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    1. Hello Julie, golly I was just thinking today while I was out gardening what a wonderful gift it is to have these happy dialogues with new dear friends...being able to share the day to day things that we love & that we're creating. Stuff that generally no one else really sees. Thank you so much for all your correspondence. Pom Pom was just saying what a gift a smile can be..well this is like a HUGE smile & makes all the difference in the world!
      I was so thrilled, actually that the wee cot was already painted the pretty pink.
      Silly...I didn't think that you'd leave him out all night! How come youngest didn't get to go in the garden? It was a staunch Plunket thing back in the day..good old fresh air & sunshine but then so was 4 hourly feeding & farex.
      I am really enjoying the little tea cloth...thanks. It's quite nice in a small space & not too precious for WHEN we spill tea on it.
      As to the moss...more than we've ever had. It's taken a huge amount of work to clean things up...a bit.
      HUgs & much love Catherine x0x0x

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  5. your not-a vase-vase is stunning! and what a heavenly place to sleep. i do sleep my boy fin outside, sadly it's not in amongst the flowers as i try to put him where the neighbours clanging and banging wont wake him. but he can hear bird sing and bees hum and i bet he has lovelier dreams as a result x

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    1. Hi Max...yes there's just something about the lines of things that so very much pleases the eye & the senses, like your new piece of pottery : ) I suppose they may have called my Spode item a posy bowl?
      That is a very good idea really about the sleeping outside...while you can. Must free up the inside for a good length of time too. It was always quite stressy tip toeing round the house hoping not to wake a sleeping baby...especially one of mine, as they didn't sleep much as it was!
      Much love Catherine x0x0x

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  6. No more, please no more! So much loveliness all in one place is just not good for my health – but my heart revels in it. Thank you so much for sharing so many beautiful things. xxx

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    1. Dear Barbara..you are so kind in your exhuberant commenting!
      Thank you! And for your visits.
      I am still thinking about the perfect pink that those wee granddaughters of yours were wearing...rose bud perfection!

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  7. what lovely photos you've put up :-)
    i love that ball canning jar and am thrilled some can be found in NZ. i shall be on the look out when i get back!.

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    1. Hello thanks for popping in. I hope you can find some ball jars when you return. They have also been available on Trade Me for a pretty reasonable price. Much love Catherine x0x0x

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So lovely of you to leave a comment. Thank you!! So sorry if you've tried to leave one & it hasn't worked. You are welcome to email me at catherine@sunshinevintage.nz instead, if you'd like to, much love Catherine♥

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