Treasure Found and Stuff

Oh the treasures brought back from the carboot today - so many lovely things. I now have blue hands (from painting) and dirty hands (from scrubbing and cleaning up silver). Amongst the nine ladybirds that I found were these very clean, tidy and obviously perfectly behaved children. I don't think children come in this model anymore, they definately belong to the 1970's.

On Friday, after going to a website design course, I am setting up my stall for the Buddha Market. We all have smaller pitches for this week and so I desperately needed a small shelf unit to put on my card table to make the most of the room I have. For weeks I've searched and in the end thought I would have to be buying something I didn't really want from DIY World. Finally this week, for the grand knocked down price of £3 I found the perfect thing (well after a lick of imaginary paint). When I got back (after clearing up after a dog who had a bit of an accident while I was out) I laid my booty out on the new shelves to see if they would do the job. I think they do and so at last another small problem is solved.

On the top shelf are two great games - Bingo is one of our favourites. We have a plastic spinny ball version from Woolies. We all take in turns being the caller and yell out different rhymes for the numbers picked. I love the design on the teacup, I've never seen honeysuckle on one before. My parents verandah and part of the garage are covered in exactly the same honeysuckle each summer. They have lived in the same bungalow, built in 1922, for 34 years now so that's a lot of years memories of this gorgeous plant. I've never managed to successfully grow it so now I can have my own all year round.

Next shelf down and a perfect pink tin with two small children playing, buttons and a few pairs of coloured needles from a lovely elderly gentleman who called me "my duck". Not from these parts then as I would have been called Gel by a local. Apparently his wife told him to get rid of the lot, not sell just some. I hope he doesn't get in trouble as I only took the ones I wanted. Also found a sherbet pink utility ware plate and the lace fabric top of a cotton camisole.

The Cat's and Kitten's book is for Little Bun. I love the Dean children's books, they transport you back to a gentle way of life that we can only daydream about now. Inside the front cover it says "for our little Susan" which is such a beautiful endearment from her grandparents.

Peter Pan and Wendy was one of the larger books I bought for the buns today. The fairies remind me of Mabel Lucie Atwell's drawings. It all looks very cosy up there indeed.

After all this sorting I thought I'd better get on with painting the first coat on my new display stand. I also threw some paint at last weeks 20p stool. I might oilcloth the top, but I'm not sure yet. For the next few weeks it will have a cloth over it anyway as it will be part of my stall. Not sure if I would have chosen this blue, but it's the first thing I found in the garage and I was in a hurry. Still got tommorow to choose which stock to take for Friday and then label it all up, not forgetting finishing making stuff. Oh dear - why aren't days longer? I'm on my website course until early afternoon on Friday and then rush home, load up the car and off to Southwold to make my stall look loverly. None of this is simple, however. Tommorow little bun has a party in one direction and eldest bun has Brownies in the other at different times. Various solutions and now all sorted. Then Friday's arrangements - ask favours to take them to swimming lesson where Mr Bun will be on hand to sort them out all in time to meet me at home and we can collapse for a few days before the next hurly burly. I don't think the word mummy is enough - I think family PA hits the mark more.

All washed and clean now. Spot the silver sugar and cream set doesn't it look lovely and shiny since you last saw it up above all black and smeary?

Then with sticky blue hands I had just enough time to sort out a few other things before rushing to get the buns. I sat at my slowly overflowing desk trying to decide what to do first.

I printed off the poster I've made to advertise crochet classes I'm going to run. Fingers crossed they're popular as funds in rather than out would be a very good idea at the moment.

Next I finished off setting in the ribbons and pinning up for sewing the small bags I've been working on. That left me half an hour to finish off a brooch I was fiddling about with last night. I have a few ideas for this little bird from the doodles I did in my sketchbook recently. Still need to tweak the colours to make her stand out more and then I'll be happy with her.

After school Alfie Blue made it clear he really needed a good run around. We all gave in and set off. Just outside the village is a quiet lane that cuts through the fields. The sort of lane that a naughty and easily distracted Pug can be trusted on without his lead. In the end he trailed along beside the buns.

So little bun put his lead back on again ...

... and marched him all the way back home.