Heart... be still

Smitonius:

Well, we are rapidly becoming a 'look what I bought' blog, rather than 'look what I did'! Not quite a bargain, but bid for some spare bits and bobs package of broken jewellery on Ebay. There is nothing more satisfying than sitting down to rummage through finds.

And, I did find some lovely things: butterfly pendants; vintage beads in citrine yellow; the odd polished stone.... and quite a few hearts.

Just in time for Valentine! So, who will be your Valentine this year? (shhhht: I shall send two cards, one to my other half, and the second to my nephew...)

Well , you can't refuse a bargain .

Sonata:

A Collector's Fair cannot be missed. In amongst the numerous things I neither need nor want are a lot of things I certainly don't need but must have.


A stall full of vintage sewing odds and ends revealed a hideous basket full of old buttons. Leaving the basket for someone who collects fraying wicker trimmed with blue plastic, I carried off a whole bag of buttons for €2. Not that I collect them, or anything else for that matter, but I can't resist a bargain.
All Sunday was spent sorting, arranging and admiring my finds. My current favourite is the black whirlygig one, 2"across,

but I love the grey ones too

....and the oblong ones ....I could go on but won't.

Other finds were 6 rather foxed, but charming, handpainted postcards from 1922 for 40 cents each and a Belgian floor tile catalogue, circa 1930, fascinating to a quilter.

Oh, by the way, I've reduced the price of my Round The World quilt in our Etsy shop. Have a look.

How do you feel about skating a marathon ?

Sonata :

It's cold . But not cold enough , apparently . The rest of Holland is "enjoying " temperatures of under minus 10 , and in some places minus 18 , while we northeners are basking in a mild minus 2 or 3 . The spokesperson for the Friesian Iceskating association has said , "It's not a real winter yet ".This suits me fine , I must say but the thousands of skaters who are desperate to take part in The Elfstedentocht are on tenterhooks .

They're all ready to rush to Leeuwarden and skate through eleven towns in this corner of Friesland in a day ..... over 200 kilometers in all . Frostbite , heart attacks , even the possibility of the end of your nose dropping off ( maybe apocryphal ) are no deterrent to the real afficionado .....you meet several older men here who've competed in three Elfstedentochts and are ready for the fourth ! The last winter that was cold enough for the ice to carry the 16,000 entrants , 25 soup stalls and endless First Aid posts , spectators and television crews was in 1997 .

I hope they get the chance again this year ...... but I'm looking forward to a Collector's Fair tomorrow and a weekend by the fire !

It's cold outside....

SMITONIUS:

Spent New Year's eve in Devon, in a cottage upon a hill. Higher up the hill, after a long and cold walk, we found a winter wonderland.

Dozens of small birds took off in flight as we approached. It was fortunate I had completed my warm winter hat! Silk and mohair with an added button in blue and gold.

Remember the buttons I got for my birthday? Yesterday, I rummaged through a button box in a bric a brac shop in Islington (Past Caring, it is called and can be found on Essex Road), and I found a little stash of vintage glass beads that just begged to be teamed up with one of the buttons. So, here is a dash of spring colour to brighten the snowy/slushy gloom outside.

New Year Resolution .....

Sonata;

Here we have a record 5 unfinished quilts ....and that's ignoring the carefully put aside collections of fabric that I think would make a lovely ZigZag Bricks quilt ( 3 ) , Round the World ( 2 ) or NinePatch quilt . So , today , I decided to get at least one finished this week . To that end I started to tidy up the 4 button boxes in my possession . I'm awfully good at displacement activity !

Actually , the larger blue and white doll quilt ( in the background ....the squares are 2"across ) is very nearly ready and the Hitty-sized Grandmother's Garden is too . But now I've got them all out , I'm in love with them all again and can't choose between them ! So I think this year's resolution must be to finish off these little quilts as soon as possible .....oh yes , and to put all the buttons back .

Meanwhile , I hope you all have a happy and successful New Year !!