MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!

So I'm in Marks and Spencer's at 7am this morning

collecting my turkey.

I'd forgotten to bring the coin for my trolley.

I'm standing in the queue to pay

and realise I'm cradling the turkey in my arms

and swaying as though rocking a baby off to sleep.

Old habits die hard!

MERRY CHRISTMAS, EVERYONE

(I have to say, I'm quite pleased with my dining room mantle this year)

(Fireplace - £20 - car boot sale. Mirror - £15 - Cancer Research)

Christmas blessings,

Andi xx

Christmas in London

On Thursday I had to take daughter up to London for the school carol concert which is held each year in London at St. Martin's in the Field:

There has been a place of worship on this site since pagan times. The present church being built in 1722.

It was named after St. Martin who is said to have taken pity on a near-naked beggar, cut his own cloak in two and given half to the beggar. Christ appeared to Martin in a dream that night as the beggar and thanked him for his kindness. Martin converted to Christianity the next day.

Today St. Martin's is known, amongst other things, for its Christmas Appeal, raising money (some £500,000) for the homeless.

The church stands on one of the corners of Trafalgar Square so, as parents were not allowed inside the church for the carol service, I took a walk around the Square:

The well-known 'empty plinth' at the moment has a giant ship-in-a-bottle standing on it:






I also popped into the National Portrait Gallery where I saw, in particular, fantastic portraits of Judi Dench and Fiona Shaw (best known for her portrayal of Aunt Petunia in the Harry Potter films).

An enjoyable day.

Christmas
Blessings,

Andi xx

Frankly My Dear...

I DO give a damn that I can't remember which blog owns this photo:

I know I made a note at the time which blog I'd seen it on. Do you think I can find that note? I've spent the best part of this morning looking through all your blogs trying to trace the post, without luck.

If this is your pic, I make my apologies for using it without your permission and hope very much that you don't mind. And PLEASE let me know who you are so I can give a link back to your post.

Anyway, I was really taken with the sign but I believe the price was something like £130.

*YIKES!*

Ever since I've been on the lookout for Lexicon games in the charity shops so that I could try and make my own.

I had one game already. I found another at a car boot for 50p. That should do it, I thought.

Guess what?

Two vital letters were missing from the car boot purchase. I needed another.

After weeks of searching, one mysteriously turned up in my dresser drawer. I strongly suspect my mum snuck it there, but she denies it was her.

Anyway, at long last I was able to go ahead with the project and completed it this weekend:

Buying a frame that was six foot wide was going to cost some, so I bought a piece of MDF and asked the nice man in B&Q to cut it length ways for me. The frame is painted onto the MDF with acrylic paint and the background with leftover Farrow and Ball New White.

Cost: £8.55

I'm very pleased.

Blessings,

Andi xx