Cath Kidston, Eat Your Heart Out!

Poor Canadians. Living in the second largest country in the world with a major metropolis like Toronto, and yet, we are Cath deprived. As a result, our only option is to fake it. Here is my little cosy blatantly ripped off from the Cath one.
But don't you think mine has a bit more personality? And did you notice the knitted egg cosies? They are crocheted. Well, must go. I have a craving for steaming hot porridge with brown sugar and cream, so off I go. With a cup of tea and my newest cosy.

PS. If one more family member asks me if this is a hat and can they have it, I will burst.

I Need More Time

Don't you just love Blogger? You are never quite sure where your uploaded photos will end up. Big, small, here, there, it's like a game, actually. Anyhow, here are a couple of goodies I have found recently. A beautiful green tole tray, a brass french horn lamp and about 3 yards of the most softest green velvet.



I also thought I would give you a shot of my oversize poinsetta my father brought me today. It is so large the only spot it will fit and look decent is in the corner of my diningroom. I tried it on the table but it takes up over half of it.


And here is the tree. Decorated, with presents. I still need more time. I can't understand how all these other ladies do it. They are sending orders out, baking, decorating... I'm lucky if I can still serve a hot meal for dinner.

By the way, did I mention we got over 25cm of snow on Sunday? I am so hoping it will stay for the big day. Makes things awfully cosy feeling here.

Nigella for Dinner

Last night we feasted on Nigella. One Pan Sage and Onion Chicken and Sausage. My whole family really loves this dish and it is terribly simple to make but tastes like you slaved for hours in the kitchen. It is a wonderful dish to serve to company at this time of year. The aroma is quite heavenly. Grace at Rose Cottage had a little discussion about her a few weeks back and I commented on how Nigella has "an erotic earthiness while remaining totally unthreatening". Don't you agree?
And while my chicken was roasting so aromatically in the oven I was trying to repair this lovely quilt that has needed some tender loving care for so long. I have already done some patches with a vintage sheet that has come out fairly well. I just have some questions I am not sure about since I do NOT sew or quilt. How do you do corners? Do you nip some of the excess material or fold it in? If you do fold it in, it tends to get a wee bit bulky when sewing it up.

I am using this lovely fabric now from an old Gap kids dress. I took it all apart yesterday and ironed it into a neat little pile. It is a tiny gingham, a pink solid and a tiny rosebud pattern. The dress was so adorable I really hated taking it apart but the fabric is so perfect.


I also took a huge leap forward and got some decorating done. I know these pictures are horrible and I am hoping to get a new camera but there is a wee snag there as well. The cameras here are all 80.00 to 100.00 more expensive than in the U.S. The same model of the Canon Powershot I was checking out here, online is $249.00 on the Dell website. The same one on the U.S. website? $129.00. And they have the nerve to use the same photo and description. None of the american retailers will ship to Canada. Bah-humbug!

And my vintage balls. Believe me, they are much prettier in real life than what this ugly photo shows.

Browsing Old Victoria Magazines While I'm Supposed to be Cleaning and Decorating

How do you women do it? I have the tree up and that's about it. While looking through old Victoria magazines I came across our queen of all good things, Cath Kidston. These pictures were featured in an article back in January of 2000. The header was "Cozy Time ~ Snug Places to Dream". Apparently, that's all I do, dream. I don't organize, decorate or clean. Just dream.

I also have some contractors here fixing up little things and hoping to get my kitchen cupboards painted BEFORE the big day. What are my chances do you think? I know, not likely. But I can dream can't I?

Shrunken Head

What's with all the shrunken headers on Blogspot blogs??? I don't know what the problem is but there appears to be a glich with many of the blogs I visit like Dear Little Red House and Buttercup and Roses.

If anyone knows what's going on or how to fix this, it would be appreciated. Now my header is just a short silly looking thing. The odd thing is, on my daughter's laptop it still looks normal.

Not good for the tekkie challenged like me...