Well.........

..........that didn't last long, thank goodness.  Thanks to the kindness of friends and family and a total melt down when I dropped the apple pie face down on the floor the bored feeling disappeared.  I am not promising to suddenly blog every day and I am still collecting spam comments but here's what is exciting me at the moment.

First a little trip to the Big Brocante at the Hop Farm, we had been to one in the winter so were surprised by the size of this one.  I didn't resist temptation.

If you want tape, I'm your girl. I have already found a couple of uses for it.  It was a real bargain, not something that happens to me often.  I loved the scrap of fabric, book cover if ever I saw it and the books and cards were delightful, I will have to do a more detailed share at sometime.

The next thing to lift me was a video by Nik the Booksmith, I love this woman, the journals she make are wonderful but in this one she is trying eco printing of PAPER. 
https://youtu.be/DyXnnnh0SuU
 Well how could I resist.  I found a lot of other videos and taking bits from each I gave it a try.  These are my garden gatherings.

as pr usual I was too impatient to photograph the process properly but it sort of went like this

and then like this

and then about eight hours later (I couldn't wait 24)

Yeah!!! Happiness.  I put a couple of onion skins in the water so I think that is what made the yellow edges. I also put a couple of spoonfuls of alum in the water. I boiled for about twenty minutes and then let is all cool down.
Here's a few favourites, the blue flower on this one was a brown ganzia....didn't expect that.

 Streaks on this one caused by next piece of paper which was tracing paper and shrivelled in the heat.

On Friday I went to my textile group and we had a fun workshop with Diane, a very talented lady, who showed how to make little animal brooches. This is my fiesta cat.

Right I am off to find a large roasting tin (mine will on do A5 paper) and then I will be   trotting round, with my little ziplock bag, to see my son who has some beautiful deep red roses.

Tidy? Moi?.......

.... no matter how many times I tidy my desk(not often) it always ends up looking like this, I work in a space that is approximately A4.

 

 

However last weekend the rest of the house was tidy because my lovely sister-in-law came to stay. She came down from the north of England leaving sunshine behind and didn't see it again until she was on her way home.  So much for the sunny south. However it didn't rain and we were able to get out and about.  One of our trips was to the Antique and Vintage market in Faversham. Lots of temptations..

Brenda bought   me the smallest thimble I have ever seen, under half an inch in diameter.  We tried to imagine the tiny mite who had used it to stitch. We found a lovely charity shop ( just like the ones before Mary Portas) and I collected this lovely bundle. 

Particularly pleased with the stamp album which still has stamps. The book with Chinese writing and the Classical Review in the picture came from another place.

Had a real senior moment when Brenda came down, when to meet the train at Euston at 11.29am and had to wait until 2.15pm. I had mixed up the times of her leaving and arrival trains.  Made good use of it though and had a lovely wander through a bit of London I hadn't visited before. Found this beautiful terrace

it had this park in front of the terrace, an energetic lunchtime game of tennis going on.

Not far away from here I found an amazing second hand book shop, that's where the other treasures were found. I was just wandering so hope I can find it again. Wandered into this

with this at the end of it.

I love London.

On Monday night we had a real treat.  42nd Street at the the Theatre Royal in Drury Lane.  Lovely to see a show with such a large cast.  My goodness those dancers work hard, exhausted just watching.  Brilliant.

One of the reasons my desk is particularly I have been working on two books, one of them a special secret.
Pleased with this one though.

Lovely wrapping paper from John Lewis.
Some pages, don't know how to make those "flip though"videos so just a lot of photoas.

Last one is Turkish Map fold I have just mastered. Yes it's a junk journal, the funny thing about it is, I keep making journals but the nearest I get to journaling is this blog and we know how regular that is.
Addicted I have already started next  "journal".

Can't resist..........

......on Saturday we went to the Maltings in Farnham, Surrey. We have been before for their textile event but this time it was Antiques and Collectibles. 

The Maltings, an old brewery is an absolute maze of  corridors and stairs which lead to room of various size.  At one point you climb some very suspicious looking stairs up onto the stage and beyond.  Which give it all a feeling of a treasure hunt.  Which it was. My first find was this box.

Who could resist but this is what was inside.

Apparently belonged to an old gentleman who used to make large model railway engines.  The used sets have odd ones missing but the unused set is a completee alphabet, about 2" square.
We then found these, again irresistible.

When I fist came to I used to work for the Star newspaper in Bouverie Street. I am so glad I don't live in a time when you have to takes a cod's head and boil it. Some of the invalid recipes would have you up and about in no time...in fear of been fed more of it. I could have done with this as Math was never my strong point.

My last purchase, it is huge,

I think you would need a very strong coffee table but it is full of wonderful images of fashion from bear skins to mini skirts,

I was gifted these tiny little pewter owlon their new perch.

Add to this a delicious lunch with friends, a good day.

Ardingly.......

The first visit this year, and I really hope not the last, to Ardingly Antiques and Collectors Fair.  It was a glorious pre-spring day. The kind of day that, when the children were little, we would have a "picnic"lunch on the back doorstep.(Too cold to sit out but enough warmth in the sun to enjoy it).

 It was made extra exciting this time when we spotted them filming an episode of Bargain Hunt, if you watch this you will recognise Charles Henson and Charlie Ross. We decided we would be perfect for the show!

These are my finds.

The leather case hold knitting needles. Good weather, nice people, good day.

Lastly, the bulb for this was a Christmas present to DH.