Sunday 28 August 2011

My Mum

My lovely mum died last Tuesday  Here are some pictures of her.



She joined the Wrens at age 17 and was a Plotter and a Bomb Range Marker during the last war.

This is the last photo I have of her which was taken in March.

She was born in 1926 and died on her wedding anniversary aged 85.  She was a remarkable woman and I shall miss her so terribly.

Saturday 13 August 2011

...and Marmalade

Flushed with enthusiasm from my jam making I made several jars of marmalade the next day too.  I was really pleased to find this Tala Jam Making Set in Sainsbury's yesterday and at half price of only £10.  It has a thermometer, funnel, jelly bag, covers, and labels etc etc.



Yesterday was our 33rd wedding anniversary and we spent the day at Charleston House, home of the Bloomsbury Group.   In 1916 the artists Vanessa Bell and Duncan Grant moved to Sussex with their unconventional household. Over the following half century Charleston became the country meeting place for the group of artists, writers and intellectuals known as Bloomsbury. Clive Bell, David Garnett and Maynard Keynes lived at Charleston for considerable periods; Virginia and Leonard Woolf, E.M. Forster, Lytton Strachey and Roger Fry were frequent visitors.  It is a fascinating home; members of the group painted the house and furniture in a totally unconventional way and they lived a totally Bohemian lifestyle declaring themselves pacifists and therefore opting out of taking part in the Great War.


Later in the afternoon we went to Lewes but unfortunately I only found the antique shops as they were closing.  I quickly managed to buy a few things though which will be going on the website this week.  I love the old bicycle basket but I don't have a bike!  The old shop counter bell appealed to me too; I wonder what kind of shop it was used in.


Tuesday 9 August 2011

Strawberry Jam

After a very stressful time last week I have been spending this week chilling out gardening and yesterday I made strawberry jam.

It's only my second attempt and I am looking forward to trying making some chutneys in the Autumn.