Exciting News

Well lovely blogging chums there we have it. The Mr and I are hoping to be on the move. We're staying in the same county, Derbyshire, but really hoping to find the perfect spot near a town called Belper. It has a huge community with an amazing amount of arts events on throughout the year and is a beautifully old historic place. We want a smaller garden and a slightly smaller house, but one that the Mr can actually stand up in. We viewed a picture perfect house last Saturday but the Mr's head was pressed against the ceiling beams. I'm busily selling off and donating items I don't want us to move with, so the coffers are being increased slowly. In other news it is Dahlia time again, the garden beds are full of them.

Happy Lammas to you all. This sweet image from one of my favourite illustrators Wendy Andrew at Painting Dreams.

Mick's 80th

Sadly I wasn't invited. But of course I had to take a squiz at what the 'A' listers were wearing on the night. It fascinates me that the super confident? seem to have dressed down, some folk dressed to the nines, in fact very pleasingly it seems you can't really wear the wrong thing anymore. You can express yourself. This pic of Mick taken by Mark Seliger shows him wearing something almost identical to the pink satin jacket and loon trousers I saw him wearing when he walked past me in the Kings Road way back in the 60s. I went to school near there and just happened to see him bouncing along one day. He was smiling from ear to ear as everyone realised who he was.

Wentworth Woodhouse Visit

I went on a jolly day out on Thursday with some old work chums, to a very grand stately home just over an hours drive from me. Wentworth Woodhouse is not in the best of condition, but it was quite lovely in its way. The owners are on the cusp of beginning an ambitious restoration project, to protect the house but also to give it a new more modern life. It will be interesting to see what happens. We had a leisurely stroll around the house and the gardens and also got to see a temporary Grayson Perry exhibition, which is on till early September. 'The Vanity of Small differences'. We stumbled upon a visitor playing he's pipes in the garden, it felt very magical. I made a small film of his music but bloomin Blogger won't allow me to upload it. We heard the mellifluous tones arising from a small glade and then we found him, with his little white hat and many musical pipes. We had a long chat with him and learnt much of musical things.

There Isn't Always A Tomorrow My Friends

Happy Days

Just a few pics of our wonderful stay at Middlethorpe Hall. We did have such a special time. Talking and talking you know how it is. My chum who was with me is a fantastic tarot reader and so our evening there was quite magical. We swam , drank bloody marys and enjoyed our time together. I really love the country house look of this 17th century hall. So much so that early doors this morning, whilst the Mr was out on a gruelling bike ride, I popped down to the local boot fair and found an old hand painted lamp base that would have not looked out of place in our suite at Middlethorpe. I'm super pleased with it.

Queen Genepil The Last Queen of Mongolia

This caught my eye this week. And provoked some investigation. A very sad story of a young girl selected to be a Queen to a man she could not refuse, the last Mongol Khan. Because of this her life was cut short, 1905-1938. Executed as part of the systematic purge of Mongolian culture by a Stalin regime. Her beautiful attire inspired the costume designers of Star Wars to create the costumes for 'Queen Amidala'. Extraordinary.

A Little Luxury On A Budget

Hello my lovely blogging chums. I thought I would share an exciting upcoming trip I'm making with a girlfriend. She has been a bit low recently what with one thing and another, so I have conspired to whisk her away for an overnight stay at one of The National Trust hotel properties, of which there are three in the UK. Who knew? Now this hotel is very close to York, which means it's easy to reach by public transport. Great, because neither of us want a long drive, so we are letting the train take the strain. We plan to leave our bags at York station when we arrive mid morning and then spend the rest of the morning and early afternoon exploring the museums, galleries and shops before having a good lunch at Cote Brasserie. I always try to book Cotes when I'm travelling because the food is always good, the restaurants themselves are usually beautifully decorated and the price is very reasonable. So a full lunch will mean we can have something lighter in the evening, so we don't have to pay for an expensive dinner at the hotel. The hotel manager Lionel was tremendously helpful when I told him my plan and he suggested I book a garden suite which has two rooms, a small lounge, small kitchen area and a little private garden. Absolutely perfect. The hotel does have a spa, but we are taking our own 'spa' products, but we will avail ourselves of their swimming pool. We are also planning a summer evening stroll around the gorgeous gardens, we have twenty acres to choose from. I'm thinking we may pick up a couple of treats from Bettys to have with a cup of tea before our swim. And there is always the possibility of a cheeky cocktail before supper, just to get the full experience of the hotel interiors. I'll let you know how we get on. Can I also welcome a new follower to my little blog. I look forward to reading your comments, always gratefully received.