why i'm thankful....

for the less squeamish amongst you, here are the latest 'snaps' (oooh poor choice of wording perhaps....) of my shattered elbow

i am still unable to do much but....

i have started to take more control and...

found myself a very good physiotherapist who holds out more hope for my recovery than the surgeons do.....

so...yes it's painful and tedious but i feel lucky to have these options to choose from...

...and a positive mental attitude is everything in life...

so i am practicing 'reframing' - taking negative thoughts and turning them into positives...

...not always easy to find the positives but...

i have had wonderful support from my husband and his parents, and friends have been amazingly supportive both emotionally and practically - both so important....

here is more reframing to keep me in practice.....

have a happy, healthy day and be thankful!

Thought for the day...

...being housebound has given me a new perspective on my husband's life as he leaves each day for his commute into London, especially as he returns each evening to cook, clean and do all the things i would normally have done.

we both like inspirational quotes so i often text or email a little thought to him to let him know i am thinking of him and appreciating his efforts... 

today i collected lots of quotes and folded them into an old preserving jar with the label 'thought for the day'...

as he leaves each morning he can choose a thought...it will be interesting to see if they are relevant to the day ahead...

btw, i photographed the jar against an artwork/pin board i am working on to use in my work room. it's based on one of my favourite books: 'Rebecca'

Good advice to remember...

i haven't posted much lately as i still can't work due to my injuries so i'm surfing a lot (and i mean a lot!). i found this lovely piece on facebook and felt that a lot of it spoke to me at the moment...does it speak to you too?



Written by Regina Brett, 90 years old, of the Plain Dealer, Cleveland , Ohio .

"To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 42 lessons life taught me. It is the most requested column I've ever written.

My odometer rolled over to 90 in August, so here is the column once more:

1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.

2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.

3. Life is too short – enjoy it..

4. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and family will. 

5. Pay off your credit cards every month.

6. You don't have to win every argument. Stay true to yourself.

7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.

8. Save for retirement starting with your first pay check.

9. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.

10. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.

11. It's OK to let your children see you cry.



12. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.

13. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it...

14 Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.

15. Get rid of anything that isn't useful. Clutter weighs you down in many ways.

16. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.

17. It's never too late to be happy. But it’s all up to you and no one else.

18. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.

19. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special.

20. Over prepare, then go with the flow.

21. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.

22. The most important sex organ is the brain.

23. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.

24. Frame every so-called disaster with these words 'In five years, will this matter?'

25. Always choose life.

26. Forgive but don’t forget. 

27. What other people think of you is none of your business. 

28. Time heals almost everything. Give time time.

29. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.

30. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does..

31. Believe in miracles.

32. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.

33. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young.

34. Your children get only one childhood.

35. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.

36. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.

37. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back.

38. Envy is a waste of time. Accept what you already have not what you need.

39. The best is yet to come...

40. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.

41. Yield.

42. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift."

I Love Paris.....

as i am confined to barracks at the moment i have been looking at photos of our last trip to beautiful paris and day dreamimg about our next trip - whenever that might be...

this was the view from our apartment on l'isle st louis overlooking the seine and l'isle de la cite and notre dame - magical...

here is the fabulous four storeys we climbed to the apartment...

memorial to the tiny jewish children deported from a kindergarten by the nazis and sent to the death camps...

only in paris could this look so stylish...

inside notre dame...

charlemagne looking fabulous...

 the jewish quarter...

j'eanne d'arc....

got to include le tour effeil....

the bridge on the seine where lovers leave padlocks bearing messages....

gorgeous french bulldog in the market at st michel....

what i wish i was doing right now, in the place des vosges, one of my favourite quiet places for a coffee break in paris...

hope you've enjoyed my indulgent little trip to paris!

Shabby chic fire screen...

...i started work on this project before my accident and have managed to finish it one-handed so i'm very pleased with myself!

our open fireplace creates a very cold draught when it's not lit so i wanted to create a fire screen to block it and also to pretty it up in the summer time...

i'd been looking at these ornate decorative gates/screens/wall art at tk maxx for a while and one day they were in clearance...well, it'd be rude not to wouldn't it? this one and a smaller one cost £12! i spray painted them in antique white, distressed them and attached this one to a piece of painted ply...

...many thanks have to go to MLH's father, Michael (i guess that makes him MLFIL) who provided the ply, cut it and fashioned the little feet for me - there's still only so much i can do with one arm! i was determined to put all the pieces together myself and here's the finished product...

i think it works really well and complements the room perfectly - check out the fab new addition that MLH gave me for valentine's, easter, birthday, anniversary, christmas etc for at least the next year...this gorgeous armoire was an impulse buy but could have been made for the room and is a real keeper - it's just what i've always wanted and will work in any room in any future house...

another couple of views....

i love it!

Sewing box - before and after...

before I had my accident, this is what I was working on, I've only just been able to transfer the photos and share ... I picked up this 1930s sewing box the other day and, although it's a bit modern for my taste, I know a lot of people like Art Deco and it is an incredibly useful piece of furniture with its deep side pockets, drawer and shelf. So it had 50% of the requirements to be useful and beautiful, only the beauty to add then...

first it needed a really thorough clean and replacement of the hinges which were broken, and some general fixing and tidying...

...then I painted it with an undercoat of duck egg and a top coat of old white, distressed, waxed and added an appropriate Graphics Fairy image. I used the freezer paper method of transfer for the first time and it worked really well. I made sure to slightly wet the surface, tape the paper in place and then burnish really thoroughly until I was happy with the transfer...

here's the result...

the finished, shabby, article...

 and the inside where I replaced some of the fabric with a co-ordinating vintage Laura Ashley fabric....

let me know if you like it?