With all things British!

With all things British..
here was my Home!

I live with Royalty everyday married to a lovely British man ie my husband! We celebrated our 11 years of marriage one week ago and Ive never looked back. Here is my house in the small village of Tarves, Scotland. My house was built some 100 years ago as a girls school and later on when the war came it was converted into a hospital. Some 50 years the house was broken up into 3 dwellings as the British often do. The front end my husband was able to buy but was previously used as the matrons quarters. Unfortunately no old lovely bottles or dishes were ever left behind for me to find! But the dwelling was beautiful and every room upstairs and downstairs had fireplaces. The house was set in the Aberdeenshire countryside. When you drive or take a bus into Aberdeen you are greeted by tons of seagulls. I often joked that they were the mafia of the city. They were everywhere! The shrill crys amongst the old homes and beautiful turreted buildings had an atmosphere all of its own. We are very due to visit the family and hopefully it will be sooner than later this year. 

**The country of Britain greenbelts everything all of the land. When you build you must get permission. So much of every where is not cut up and all of the trees cut down. So this is truly a beautiful place to visit or live in**

I was able to bring home wonderful faeries from Pasttimes that you can find in England and Scotland

This set of Merry making was a going away gift from my sister in law when we came to America

 I brought home china and crystal

A load of linens

And pictures

I wish I could of brought home more! 

Living in Scotland for 4 years with my husband who was born in England and grew up in Wales I learned to make mince and tatties, stovies, skirlie, cock a leekie soup, bubble and squeak, crumpets, cauliflower and cheese, mince and steak pies and much more. I drank ribena drinks and Iron bru soda. A world away that I miss very much. But my children are here in America. So well see what the future brings!

Its a beautiful wedding of Prince William and Kate! Kate no longer a commoner and now The Duchess of Cambridge! I would love to do a study on how they arrive at who gets what title and why. A day to rejoice for the British and their country..

Maybe you saw this? I had to Post this from my e~mail...touching! (updated pics!)

 In a zoo in California , a mother tiger gave birth to a rare set of triplet tiger cubs. Unfortunately, 
due to complications in the pregnancy, the cubs were born prematurely and due to their tiny 
size, they died shortly after birth. 


The mother tiger after recovering from the delivery, suddenly started to decline in health, 
although physically she was fine. The veterinarians felt that the loss of her litter had caused 
the tigress to fall into a depression. The doctors decided that if the tigress could surrogate 
another mother's cubs, perhaps she would improve. 

After checking with many other zoos across the country, the depressing news was that there 
were no tiger cubs of the right age to introduce to the mourning mother. The veterinarians 
decided to try something that had never been tried in a zoo environment. Sometimes a mother 
of one species will take on the care of a different species. The only orphans' that could be 
found quickly, were a litter of weanling pigs. The zoo keepers and vets wrapped the piglets in 
tiger skin and placed the babies around the mother tiger. Would they become cubs, or pork chops?

Now, please tell me one more time.... Why can't the rest of the world get along? 

What Easter means to me and days gone by..

Here we are a long time ago celebrating Easter!

My brother Russell and I here in our Easter finest!

This brings me back to my childhood where at Easter time the crocus' were coming up and the dogwoods bloomed with the azaleas. Mom dressed us in our finest Sunday clothes. Mom and I wore pretty Easter hats and we wore patton leather shoes and our outfits wouldn't be complete without our white gloves (mine to the wrist and Moms to her elbows). That was exciting! The freshness of everything and the growth of death to life even was in the nature around us. 

We would wake up and find our Easter basket full of chocolates behind our bedroom doors. Then my brother and I would go out into the living room and have to find the Easter eggs, which continued for hours. We had such fun.

Then on to church in our finest and home for a wonderful set table of china, tall water glasses and soon to be bowls set with wonderful foods! We picked up Grandparents and what a day we had. I'm thankful today for the parents that gave me gifts of good memories. Years later I carried on my Mothers traditions but had fresh eggs from my chicken house. Later on the adults played cards..what great days!

But to me and much as I love the bunny's 
and chocolate its all about the Lamb 
and not the Bunny!

This is the bunny cake my Mother made every year
(pic taken from the internet)

And this is the fine china set of "Beverly" I have today..and it says made in occupied Japan! My Mother used with the bunny that adorned our table

Wont that be grand day when the lion lies down with the lamb? But according to scripture one fine day this will happen. And what a day this will be! We celebrate Easter in our home by celebrating Jesus death on the cross that we all have a chance at eternal life!


The Easter Parade

What shall I wear for the Easter Parade?

A dress that's the colour of marmalade

With a border embroidered

in light blue cornflowers

Like the edge of the meadow

after spring showers

And a matching hat round

as a top you can spin

And an elastic to hold it under my chin

And brand new shoes

whiter than newly poured cream

With heart shaped buckles that gleam;

And Ill carry a small purse

0f butterfly blue

With a penny for me and a penny for you

To buy us both glasses of cold lemonade

When we walk, hand in hand

in the Easter Parade

William Jay Smith

Happy Easter!
ox

Where do the days go? Its Bead table Wed and I thought it was Tuesday

Lampwork beads  my Little Pink fingers made on Bead table Wednesday..

Where do the days go? How could Tuesday of slipped by from under my glance?

Well Bead Table Wednesday it is and here is what Ive done and am aiming for Lampwork beads that I can live with and love. Ive made a series of beads to match this focal (above pic) I bought from Birgitta Lejonklou. I have to say I'm quite enamoured with the results and I can now string something together using my Own beads that I made. Super happy about this now!

Who doesn't love love love Shabby chic beads? Well Ive been doing a study trying to make some glass Lampwork ones to look like ceramic ones. Not bad I say! I see a nipple kind of on one of the dot ones that wasn't melted in like it should of been. Practice practice. Michelangelo started some where too I say smiling here. 

My Son moved and we did alot of work moving him in. You should see this place Good golly it looks like Shangrala! (someone said the other day.."what does that mean" I must be getting Old!) That is the word for paradise. I think I need to move to his apt. Its like hes living in a resort wow its a beautiful place!

And he did it all by his self almost! We helped him a bit and bought him this set too.

Wow I'm happy for him...but do miss him.

At least hes nearby around the corner and a few blocks away..

This is what he looks out this beautiful Palm lol gee nice..

A present from us! My husbands forked out a fortune on my kids so I'm esp proud that my eldest did all of this on his own almost.

Have a great Wednesday!


May the Lord bless you!

Bead table Wednesday!

It's Bead Table Wednesday once again and here are my new beads from Janet the beginning Lampworker! Lots of dots..I think I will be doing dots forever! But I will work on other things too. Dot placement in the beginnings are tricky. Even dots, all the same dots, even placement even tho you thought you placed them right, gads but Im determined to get there! I can really appreciate Lampworkers who do beautiful things because they have worked long and hard. Its alot of work and learning curve!

Heres my work table and my Sons furniture in the back. My Son is moving out on Sunday. He was such a sunny spot in the house! I will miss him alot, but he will be right around the corner. Man I love my kids..

My new glass I won from my Lampworking guild on Sunday at the Auction (you can read about it here). Im so thrilled!

This is a great book and a  great help with Lampworking..

What is your bead or craft table like today?

Thank you for stopping by!

Im really not a bad Blogger tho I seem like one..

Im really not a bad blogger..
life just seems to get in the way!
(and how to root Roses)

My husband (Isn't he handsome) and I went to the Annual Houston Society of Glass Beadmakers Auction yesterday and what a great day it was. The auction had many tables full of so many Lampwork related items, jewellery, frit, bead release, tools, books and of course wonderful rods of glass! We had two hours to put our silent bids down. The last 15 minutes were exciting where you could up your bids in an effort to win. It was such a great day and our Lampwork Society was able to raise $3106.00! A great day and Auction! To the Company's who donated I want to thank and to the individuals who worked hard at organizing everything. What a great day. I had only 15 rods of glass to my name and my wonderful husband bought me all of this glass, loads of frit with the won bids! What beautiful glass! I also want to thank the lovely and very talented Diane Woodall who really helped my husband and I pick the right glass and to stay away from others. 

***

Ok here are some wonky Lampwork beads below I made and YES they are wonky. But I do make round beads now. But I'm showing that even beginner beads that I made when I started can be incorporated into a necklace I made. Bubbles you say? Bubbles are not my goal no but they have added variety into this piece as well as an uneven encased bead. "In the beginning" we all started and the unevenness can be made into a beautiful piece I believe! I'm a work in progress and I will never be a snob (insert smile here).

***

Why I haven't blogged lately:

Besides the Auction Ive been really running doing things that I feel like a bad blogger. Some new people are following me ..thank you! Even tho this would be considered a jewellery blog theres so much to do in life and these things make for fine dining. 

So Ive been rooting roses. My Grandma Cammie Jean rooted roses many years ago, so I went to find out how to do this. So after much research I took the plunge and they are doing well after four days!

How to root roses from your bushes or wild ones:

** take a 6 inch cutting from new growth. Woody growth will not due. Take off all the leaves except the last two on top; one on each side.

** wet you bottom inch of the cutting and dip into a rooting hormone. But I know my Grandmother did not have that the many years ago. So its not imperative. But for extra measure I did.

** keep moist but not soaked.

** wait for more frown and grow in small pots. Transfer later.

So I'm looking forward to good results and I hope that I do.

Here is my yard now..the grass all dappled and beautiful!

I hope your day is great and thank you for stopping by!

Be thankful today..it is the key to happiness!