Where To Start?

 Hi Dear Folk,

I seem to have succumbed, morphed over to Instagram.  I'm not going to berate myself I'm too old for that.      2021, where to start?  What to say?  A word that comes to my mind is "Endurance", we've just got to keep on keeping on.

2020 was a year of change.  Mr. B. lost his one and only job contract, then when COVID hit lost his little part time job, we both opted to get our Social Security, now being income less, and we had that option.  Thank goodness for options, when so many fellow Americans do not.  Our son moved out in the Autumn and thus we did an internal decorating and switching of bedrooms.  We're happy for him and for us, because so many children are moving back in and not out in this time of pandemic.  He went in with some friends and found a house.  The Boy is picky, had to have a basement for his sound system, a garage for his Miata.  I said did he leave anything for the other two boys?  He has the smallest bedroom, well so he should.  

I do like to have a project in mind, just the thinking about it, I find can give joy.  We got an awful lot done around the house last year, both outside and inside;  which I've posted over the months on Instagram.  My next project is the one hundred year old bathroom, which still has the original bath, open on two sides and not so bad, the original tile work.  Actually for its age it could look worse.  It has that old white brick tile and black edging, so black and white.  I'm going to keep that colour scheme.  

Needs new plumbing for the bath and shower, new tile, I'm going with white brick tiles again, but I'm thinking of black grout, not set on that.  Refinish the bath, I cannot imagine trying to get it out, you'd probably need a crane. An oval shower rail to enclose you completely, and keep the water off the tile.  It is in need of a new floor and tile, maybe black and white, similar to what's there now and a new toilet, one that really works.  Keep the carrara marble sink top, but I do not like the base, so want the builder to come up with some kind of stand, and have open plumbing underneath.

Over the sink will be a nice large mirror, right down to the sink, because for the past twenty years, I have only been able to see from my eyes upwards in the original medicine cabinet mirror.  Obviously a six foot man put it in, as it's just the right height for my husband.  To replace the under sink storage, we just found an Eastlake hanging wall cupboard and shelves on FBM, so that will go up over the toilet.

I do love wallpaper, so I'm thinking a black and white forest scene with animals, I'll know it when I see it, and of course that may change.  Well that's my next project, we'll see if it comes to fruition.  2021 here I come, one hundred year old bathroom.

I do have a project that should be finished by next week, which involves the basement.  I view my basement as the many headed hydra that keeps rearing up and has to be slain.  Why?  However many times I sort and get rid of things, there is still more.

I want just a nice open flat service to be able to do projects on, spread out and have room.  I have two old desks down there, so I'm going to use those, to define the space and behind them I'm thinking of hanging fabric murals so I have something to look at, rather than a basement full of basement things.  I need to do some wall and floor painting.  I've almost finished the crochet red rug, which I've decided to use in the basement.  My that took some yarn, a good project for left overs, but I think I'm up to fourteen hanks, and I wouldn't consider the rug huge, fortunately I had all that old yarn, that belonged to my friend's mum, had to be from the seventies.

I got to sit down at my new vanity the other evening, in my new bedroom, feeling like the lady of the manor.  I was getting ready for a Zoom Meeting where I was giving a five minute discourse, so felt I had to try my best.  I bought my lighted German design vanity mirror on FBM, where a lady said she was getting rid of hers, because it showed up every wrinkle, I know the feeling.  

Of course a hope is that at some point we can travel, but I'm not counting on it.  I could see possibly taking the trip we had planned for this year, which was a cottage all on it's own up in Maine.  As to a trip to family in England, if at all it would be the end of the year, and there're so many factors that weigh in on that.

I count my blessings, and you know I sometimes don't like using that word or phrase, I wish there was another one in the English language, because if you're doing better than someone else it kind of denotes that they weren't blessed and you were, and I don't think that at all.  

2020 the lost year, the lost generation, who knows, time will tell.  Moving onwards.

Take care, 

Christine

Three Joys Before 8:00 AM

Hi Dear Folk,

An emergency flash flood warning just came across my cell phone, yes we are back to grey skies, rain and thunder.  However I was able to dash out in my nightie, dig a hole, in the spitting rain and plant some miniature iris that my friend gave me yesterday and I had left in the car.

On my way over to dig the hole a tiny animal scuttled in front of me, I thought it was a mouse, but was just able to see that is was a toad, joys of joys I have a toad in my garden.  In all these years of having a pond I have never seen any frogs or toads.  It makes my heart happy.

Dashed for the scissors and was able to cut a bunch of peonies before the downpour started and have arranged them in my Shannon cut glass vase.  Didn't I say as soon as the peonies come out the rain downpours.

They are glorious and the fragrance wafts around.  Just right on a dull gloomy day.  My veg and seeds will be happy for all this rain.

Yesterday was a lovely sunny day although getting rather hot and humid, up to 92 F.  I was out in the morning on my volunteer work, home for lunch, and then over to my friends to have my hair cut and hi lighted.

Janice has been a hair dresser all her life and she has been my friend about just as long as she has been a hair dresser.  So when I asked for hi lights on hair that is very white on my crown, but darker else where she thought it would not blend in.  In fact we had a little tussle over this.  I insisted and she acquiesced.  Obviously when your friends the customer is not always right, but this time the customer was, in fact it turned out so nice, contrary to her expectations, that she called her husband down to have a look.  I also had my hair cut shorter and layered, but still long enough to put up.  Hair success.  I love the tone effect of colour in my hair.

For some reason I was so tired last night that I was in bed by 8:00 pm, so forgot that the miniature blue iris from Janice's garden, were still in the car.  I didn't want to not get them planted hence the crazy dashing around the garden this morning with a spade and the digging of a hole, before the storm came, didn't even water them, because I figured they would be watered soon enough and they are now getting a good soaking.

My climbing hydrangea is in it's full glory.  For several years I had it growing along the fence under the oak tree, but it never thrived and when I put the pergola up I decided to dig it up and plant it on the outside corner of the pergola and after that it never looked back, it thrives and tells me how happy it is there, by it's prolific growth and flowers.  It's a good position, because when I sit on my Simla patio, it gives me privacy from the road out front and passers by.

How is your Sunday?

Christine

Baby Boomers Baggy Trousers

Hi Dear Folk,

I have been home ill the whole weekend, my head hurts so much that my teeth ache.  Rob had a terrible head cold a couple of days after he came back from Chicago, so probably caught it off him.

We had some more snow, not too much, but I'm at hearth and home.

The Baby Boomer generation was born between 1946 to 1964 and is now aging out between 50 to 68.  I fall right in the middle there.  I could write about the fashion industry and how they haven’t a clue how to engage this generation.  They seem to have this idea that people past fifty don’t wear clothes, or if they do they are the perfect size; some are, but most in that age group are not and we admit to that.  I could go on about how this is an ignored market, BBs have a lot of buying power but nothing to buy. 

At the Thrift and while routing through my favourite book section, on crafts, I ran across this book, No Time to Sew.  The major reason I bought it at $1.60 is that they had lovely baggy trousers to make and I have long looked for a pattern.   I always liked some of the trousers that Laura Thyme wears in Rosemary and Thyme.

Later in the evening I’m sitting down with a cup of tea, and looking at the pictures on how to make the baggy trousers when I realize, where are the patterns that they are referring to, not in the book and no instructions on how to make your own. So after some internet research I realize that the patterns to the book were sold as a separate item, but thanks to the wonder of eBay and Etsy I found a complete envelope of patterns on eBay, much cheaper than on Etsy. 

Now is my quest to at least make the baggy trousers, I would love to say I’ll make the whole coordinated wardrobe, but I know my time constraints working full time, will probably not allow me to.

So for the baggy trousers it said to use drapey fabric, at first I thought it said use drapery fabric, and then realized my mistake.  So now I am looking for a drapey fabric.  Do I go with a neutral color which is a base for a mix and match coordinated wardrobe, or do I go all flamboyant?  What I see and what’s on sale will tell and maybe just my mood that day.

I do like the basics that are put together in this book, to make up a complete coordinated wardrobe.

Christy