Down to London ...

Happy Monday. my lovelies! I got back late last night, from my fun-filled weekend away in London, with my 5 bestest friends, to celebrate Sandra's 21st ... (decide for yourself what part of that sentence veers somewhat from the truth)

We started out bright and early on Friday morning, and as soon as we boarded the first class carriage at Lancaster the celebrations began ... Julie grappling with a bottle of bubbly ...

Michelle on the left and me cheesily grinning on the right ...

Sandra (the birthday girl) and Sharon

Refreshing Buck's Fizz (well it was Eurovision weekend)

and chocolate cake baked by moi ... I'm surprised it was still intact!

After checking into our hotel at Marble Arch, and a quick wash and brush-up, we made our way to the award-winning Athenaeum Hotel, where afternoon tea awaited us ....

Could get used to this!

The birthday girl with her very own cup-cake ...

A walk down the road to The Dorchester, for one or two cocktails ...

This was my creation ... no garish umbrellas and dangling monkeys here!

Hung about a bit to see if the owner of this Bentley appeared ... could it possibly belong to Leo? We then jumped in a black London taxi and went to a Lebanese restaurant for our evening meal, of fish, chicken, falafel, hummus and baklava, which was followed by entertainment, burlesque style ...

Sandra was the star of the show ...

Next morning we breakfasted like kings and made our way across town with a leisurely stroll through the shops ...

Seeing interesting sights on the way .... this is my preferred way of seeing the capital in all its glory ...

We didn't go on The Duck Tours this time, but I have in the past with my family, and can thoroughly recommend it ... a tour of London landmarks in a WW2 amphibious vehicle, then a splashdown on the Thames! Our destination today was the Thames, for a trip to The Tower of London ...

Upon Westminster Bridge ...

Viewing the sights along the way ...

The London Eye ...

Shakespeare's Globe Theatre ...

The iconic Shard ...

HMS Belfast ...

and the impressive Tower Bridge and the first sighting of The Tower of London ...

The hairs on the back of my neck always prickle when I see Traitor's Gate ... Imagine being rowed along this great river, entering this gate at the side of The Tower ...

and embarking on the other side, walking up the steps, knowing the grisly end that awaited ...

After a good few hours of Horrible History, pomp and circumstance, and a dash of bling in the form of The Crown Jewels, we had a little saunter through St Katherine Dock to a nice little bar, where we sought shelter from the cold ...

and ordered some refreshment (for medicinal purposes, you understand) ...

Girls on Tour!

Once suitably refreshed, we boarded the boat again, made our way to The Strand and our evening meal, before crossing the road to our evening's destination ...

I must admit, I wasn't really looking forward to this show, but how wrong I was ... it is my favourite to date! Thrills, spills and great songs ... I won't reveal too much in case you're planning a trip, but it got a standing ovation, and everyone came out buzzing!

We walked back to our hotel taking in the sights and sounds of Chinatown, Soho, Carnaby St ... Liberty's windows looking very springlike ...

A blurry Claridges ...

After a good night's sleep and a fabulous breakfast, once again we set off to cross London, our destination? The amazing, cosmopolitan, bohemian Covent Garden.

The vibrancy of this little corner of the capital never ceases to amaze me!

Cath had moved since last time I was there, but I located her and spent a very pleasant hour ...

Window shopping ...

and a little light refreshment, before heading back for our cases, and then the long journey home.

A lot of laughs on the journey, we were entertained (unknowingly on his part) by a fellow passenger ... my eldest son Oliver joined us on the last leg, as he was returning from visiting his girlfriend ... we arrived home, tired, happy, skint ... the perfect ending to the perfect weekend!

Hope yours was amazing too!

Lots of Love, Claire xxx

Going for a song ...

Happy Monday, my lovelies ... I hope you've all had a wonderful weekend, and for those of you overseas who have celebrated Mother's Day, I hope you've all been well and truly spoilt!

 I always try to use song titles or lyrics from songs in my post title, and while searching for Jumble Sale (without much hope I may add) I found this charming ditty by Jake Thackeray ... you can view it here.  I don't think there was romance in the air at the sale I attended on Saturday, among the bric a brac and Nana's nicknacks, but you never know!

I had a little trip to Ulverston on Friday, to do a spot of thrifting and visit Violet's, and I'm so glad I did, otherwise I'd have missed the sign saying there was a Jumble Sale at a village hall the very next day! My second son, Jacob, called them Jungle Sales when he was small ... so of course, I still do too. Well I arrived fifteen minutes early, in the pouring rain, only to find it had opened early. Like a demented dervish I rushed in, thinking everything would be gone, but what a sight met my eyes! Lots and lots of tables and stalls very well set out and PILED HIGH with treasure! I bought the wooden lamp stand (ripe for a spot of upocycling), vintage shade and a lovely straw hat for 50p for all three ... then I spied the linen stall, devoid of customers ... so no jostling or being poked in the eye with an errant basket or elbow.  Utter bliss ... I had the stall to myself for a few minutes ... the most well spent moments of my life (apart from getting married and giving birth of course!) ...

Underneath the teetering piles of curtains and tablecloths, I struck gold ... numerous coloured doilies and traycloths, scarves and pretty embroidered hankies! I scrabbled through, selecting what I wanted, and was charged the same amount that I would have been asked for one doily at a local charity shop!

This little beauty was still tacked to its tissue paper ... I wonder why it was never released and made use of? The hours of work that must have been spent to create this beautiful piece of work, so intricate, delicate as a spider's web, and the exact colour of a bluebell glade.

I also bought a sweet little basket, some books and a bag ... I spent less than £7 in total! The jumble sale is an annual one, that's why there was so much of everything ... I'm going to have to mark it on my calendar ... definitely one not to miss!

Some of the traycloths had tears and stains on them, so I've been busy upcycling them, using the embroidery hoops I've been collecting.

I need to find some more of these, but as with anything, as soon as the charity shops realise something is popular, the prices are suddenly as much as you would pay in a sewing shop!

I think I'll take these to a fair I'm having a stall at in June ... I already have a commission from a friend!

I really enjoyed doing them, watching Sunday night tv, glass of Baileys, and threads, buttons, lace and ribbon spread out in front of me ... I really know how to live life in the fast lane, you know ...

I've been spending lots of time in my little workroom lately, I absolutely love it, and when everyone leaves for work/school/college in the morning, I head there with my breakfast, and sit at the window planning my day ...

It's that time now, so here I am! Harry and Millie have A Levels and GCSE's today, so a bit subdued ... Good Luck!

 These pictures are a bit misleading ... it looks a lot more lived-in and 'used' now! Please notice Oonagh in the corner, a lovely gift from Gilly ... please check out her blog, Gilly makes beautiful things and provides lots of inspiration ... and is a very lovely lady too!

My workbench ... I now have an old high stool which is great for sitting at the bench, painting and making.
The lace curtain hides a multitude of sins ... all my vintage fair stock finally has a home, and isn't dotted all over the house ... on a fair day it's much easier to pack the car up as it's all in one place...

I've had a great time tittivating this room ... my family think I'm eccentric enough without all this ... but who wants to be the same as everyone else? This is the reason I love blogging so much ... I'm not the only one who gets excited about a pile of smelly doilies!

Think it's time for another pot ...

I'm off on a jolly on Friday ... a real treat ... to London, to celebrate the 'big' birthday of one of my best friends.  There are 6 of us going, staying in Mayfair, going for champagne afternoon tea, seeing a show and sightseeing ... will share with you next week, so until then my lovelies,

Have a wonderful week ...

Love, Claire xxx