SUNDAY RAMBLING

Now if you read /visit this blog you will know that I do go rambling all the time onto things non Sasha doll related.

I was wondering if I should keep these ramblings elsewhere, on a mini blog kept in my links at the side or just carry on as I do? answers on a post card please... no just joking , but I would be interested as to whether I have wandered too far from the dolls.

But today you'll get my ramblings.... It's Spring! spring has Sprung! Yes I know you all know this but for me there is a trigger that tells me springs arrived despite the obvious. It's that fact that my mind turns to cleaning everywhere and noticing that certain things are now looking sad and past their sell by date!
All those things I've seen but ignored are now being taken note of and starting to set off that itch to do something about them.

It started yesterday, when the dogs crates were moved and the floor cleaned, the 'new' old fashioned sofa moved from it's place in the kitchen doorway to where the dogs crates had been and the crates moved over to where the sofa had been.

Casper is now old enough not to need his crate , so we are going to leave them open of a night and see how it goes. If all's well, we'll remove one and leave one for when one's out on his walk and the other's waiting. But hopefully by May when Rufus is a year old they can both be taken away.

The magazines feed on our spring cleaning/decorating/renewing energy by dazzling our eyes with photos of gorgeous rooms,wallpaper, fabric etc.

photos like this from Morris and Co makes us start to dream..

or Laura Ashley

Even Tubby Tubs that fit in the tiniest of spaces appear to beguile us ! ( I did try to convince Paul we needed a Tubby tub in our bathroom when we moved it but i'd need a step ladder to not only climb in but also climb out! But I still love how deep and small they are..

and lets not forget Emma Bridgewater is trying to tempt me to add more to my collection.

These are just the tip of the iceberg that comes to brighten us and make us dream and make plans of things to do  !

This is the time of year that Paul wishes he was in the forces, as he'd be shipped overseas and would get a rest from me and my plans! A house is a little like the Forth bridge in Scotland, once you finish painting it , it's time to start again!

When we moved here 14 years ago this month, the main bedroom was painted ORANGE !!! yes ORANGE..admittedly a soft orange but still ORANGE so naturally within a week or so of waking up to those walls , I'd stripped the wallpaper and painted the walls , yes ME ! not Paul, in Mocha , the first room I'd ever painted completely myself... shows you how much I had to get rid of that ORANGE!

This was supposed to be a temporary arrangement, until we got round to putting up a gorgeous wallpaper I'd then bought , which is very traditional with a cream background and a aqua/mint green floral pattern. Yes fourteen years later it's all still waiting in it's wrapping!
So now we have decided that the bedroom must be completed and a new carpet laid before we can finish the hall, stairs and landing as we don't want a carpet fitter dragging a carpet up the newly decorated stairway!.

But now I'm seeing that the kitchen also need replacing! Well in truth I haven't just noticed that , I've known it needs doing for a couple of years but this year it's rapping it's fist on my head insisting I look into doing something! But kitchens are a big ticket item, one that needs lots of thinking about, do we change style completely.. go ultra modern ? go traditional? use wood? painted? change the layout? change our range cooker for an integrated oven ? so that sort of decision  will have to wait until much later in the year plus the bedroom and hallway will be much less work... she says..however I do feel the need to buy paint for the kitchen and paint the walls to keep it quiet until I have time to listen!

So that's where I'm at, making decisions about what needs doing and in what sort of order, what needs keeping and what can go, just before lunch I decided that two trays I've had for years but are never used can go off to the charity shop !

On the doll front

 I bought this American girl set which will come in handy with all the posers and adventurers in this village clan.

I also received this lovely outfit by Petrana, that I ordered before the H&G event in February but had to wait because Petrana was busy making things for the event.
Now I need to have a big redressing session with my Sasha's and Gregor's to get them into spring clothing.



Now I write this blog post over the course of the weekend, starting either on Saturday evening or Sunday morning, then saving what I've written , then returning over the weekend or day until I'm ready to post. Today I went out after writing about the kitchen , to B&Q , a DIY store to get some tongue and grove boarding with Paul, to replace the ones he removed from the stairs , when he was repairing them.

I decided I would look for some paint for the kitchen walls, so mentioned this to Paul, which got us to speaking about the kitchen and how if we replaced the doors on the bottom units and repainted them it would freshen them up.

We then got onto how I have wanted the bottom cupboards painted a darker blue for a few years , which led to us discussing painting walls in a yellow , which then went to the top cupboards, at present cream, being painted yellow and the walls white!

So we came home with a massive tin of white paint for the walls and ceiling etc and Fingal's Cave for the bottom cupboard units! I'd like to say this will result in a beautifully painted kitchen in a couple of weekends BUT there is talk of removing the cooker hood and tiles behind the cooker and making good which leads to other things plus the doors need cutting and replacing.... ... It looks like that bedroom wallpaper could reach the grand old age of fifteen before it sees the light of day!

Enjoy the week ahead, I'll be redressing some dolls so will share some photos in the week.



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