Doll Club Day Out

 Doll club had a day out last Friday and we went to a nearby large Buddhist Temple which is open to the public. The Nan Tien Temple has beautiful and peaceful gardens, the weather was perfect and we were able to wander around and enjoy the gardens and have a delicious lunch in the vegetarian restaurant. Above is the main entrance, there is a lift behind all those steps.

 Some of the statues around the grounds.

 This little shrine is along one of the paths through the gardens.

 The main shrine.

 A ceremonial gong.

 A smaller shrine.

The Pagoda. There are also conference rooms and a lodge to stay in for a retreat and meditation rooms.

The Lotus pond but there were no flowers, wrong time of year I think. The fish rushed over, I wonder if they expected to be fed.  

10 Queen's Beasts China and Happy Birthday Ma'am

Raquel in Canada would like to complete her cup and saucer collection of The Ten Queen's Beasts. Made by Queen Anne China probably for the Coronation 1953. Raquel has six sets and needs four more. Pictured above is the Griffin of EdwardIII cup and saucer but she is searching for-
The Black Bull of Clarence
The Red Dragon of Wales
The Lion of England
The White Horse of Hanover

This cup and saucer shows The White Greyhound of Richmond cup on a Yale of Beaufort saucer. I admit I have never heard of this china before, perhaps it never came to Australia but it is now on my 'to look for list'. Racquel is hoping someone has the missing sets to sell but would be happy just to see pics of the missing ones.  Please email me if you know of any.



Today Queen Elizabeth II is 86 years old. This is her real birthday, not an official one and what better day than today to put up my coronation wallpaper. First on the wall above my bed. I don't have many spaces for it as most of my walls slope or the space has already been taken by other royal stuff or windows and doors are too near the ceiling. This wall was meant for this paper.  It was a difficult 2 person job but I am so pleased with the result. you can see a close up of the paper on my previous post.




More wallpaper on this piece of wall behind the front door where the hallstand used to be. I still have lots of paper left so I'm sure I'll find some more space at the top. I have 5 of the heavy cardboard cutouts of William and Kate and I've found spaces for 4 of them



A plate showing  Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret and their birth dates. I bought this very nice baby's plate at an antique fair earlier this year.



Coronation Wallpaper and Updates

My small display table is finished (see previous post) and I am happy with the result. I had glass cut to size then painted the iside and lined it with padded felt and placed some Royal jewellery inside which can now be seen a bit better.

 No winnings at Doll Club on Saturday, Pinkette was a bit dissapointed as she was so proud of the new cat buttons I sewed onto her top. No prize either for my Coronations hair pins but I was asked to give a small talk about them as a lot of interest was shown. As I explained to Pinkette, competition is very fierce at Doll club and there were a lot of very good entries.

 Arrived from eBay today. My Coronation wallpaper frieze/pelmet. There are 2 rolls and they are to be cut into 3 which makes a total of about 400'. They are from 1953 and I think I am very lucky to have such a rare item in my collection. I am going to use some though I won't do the whole house, perhaps the wall behind my bed and a bit in the hall. Will show when finished. As the paper is from 1953 it is not pre pasted so I will have to mess about with glue. 

 Love this cartoon, the caption reads something like 'you are going to be so sick of this next year' as it is crown Coronation paper. Well I wouldn't be if I could find some of that paper. The cartoon is from the Mary Evans Picture Library.

 Time for an update on my Bothy Threads Diamond Jubilee cross stitch. I think it's going well and the back stitch will make it look much better. Janice in America is stitching the same one. How is yours going Janice?

As if I haven't already sentenced myself to stitching for the rest of my life I couldn't  resist adding the Bothy Threads Kings and Queens to my 'to do' list. Starting with William and ending with Elizabeth II I will be a history expert when/if I finish this one.

Easter Market Bargains

                                      

I am having a quiet Easter as Daughter and family headed north to visit in-laws and Son is working . I have plenty to keep me busy and my first bargain at the markets yesterday was this dolls house. Not sure I have space to keep it but I will have fun smartening it up a bit. The top windows will need to be made square so it doesn't look like pigeons might live there. Then paint inside and out, carpets, curtains and wall paper. I don't think I'll divide the rooms, as they are, 1/12 scale furniture will fit perfectly.

Next purchase at a giveaway price , this stool without a seat. Don't laugh, I have plans for this. I could put the seat back, perhaps covered with Royal fabric or a Jubilee tapestry. No, I am going to place a piece of wood base under the corner supports you can see, then have a piece of glass cut to size for the top. A perfect display case for my miniature royal souvenirs. I will order the glass on Tuesday. I have 2 other display tables I have done the same to. when this one is ready I'll show all 3.
Emily can be seen in the backround going down the steps for a nibble of grass as she sometimes likes to.

 Doll club next week and Section1 is a Doll with Brown Eyes. This is the only doll I have with brown eyes, bought from the trade table some months ago and then forgot why I bought her. At the market yesterday I bought this pretty yellow outfit for her. Now she looks like a bee with wings and a tail. Sect.2 Bear Ready for Bed. I just happened to have these pink pyjamas and Pinkette has offered to wear them to doll club. I will try to smarten the pyjamas up a bit with new buttons and a bit of lace somewhere.

Sect.3 A Hair Ornament. I have these Coronation hair pins Gina in Melbourne at http://patrasplace.blogspot.com.au/ sent me last year, the middle pin has a crown, perfect for Sect.3

No this is not an electric jug collection. I love these old ceramic jugs and refuse to use the new plastic type but it is now almost impossible to buy any spares or new elements. I bought the jug with the flowers on at yesterday's market, very cheap as no one else seems to want them, that one is Made in China so I won't keep it but I did raid it for spare parts. All the others are Made in Australia and most date from the 1950's. Now I can use the one next to it with the orange lid to boil water for my cup of tea. The blue one at the back without a lid is now used as a vase. The total for my purchases was less than $15 doing them up might be a bit more but we won't talk about that. Happy Easter to All.

Jubilee Samplers and Much More

 The Silver Jubilee Banner I thought had been lost in the post forever has arrived. It had been returned to sender and posted on to me again. I had been saving a spot on the wall for it, made friends with the ladder long enough to place the banner in its forever home at the top of a wall where it looks perfect.

 My Tempest Jubilee tapestry is finished and framed. It fits into a standard 11" x 14" frame or it could be made into a cushion but I like mine framed. The hallstand has been taken away and my extra wall space is filling up quickly.

 My Twilleys Diamond Jubilee Tapestry has arrived. It's very pretty but will have to wait its turn in a queue of Jubilee stitching. I bought the kit from http://www.sewandso.co.uk/ great service and they take paypal too.

This pretty Jubilee tray was sent to me by Sue in London as a thank you after I sent her a Jubilee chart. A much appreciated addition to my collection Sue. Thank You.

Ever start to have one of those very nice days when everything falls apart suddenly. Well today was that day. Chatting on the phone and admiring my treasures when I saw IT. HUGE! and look at those eyes. Chaos followed. Spider saw me and went behind cabinet. Cabinet cannot be moved because it is large and full of royal china. I don't like sprays and poisons but scruples flew out the window. I sprayed and a very angry spider came out and started running around the room. I tossed furniture around trying to keep up with it then lost it for a while.

 Det. Insp. Charlotte was helping and promised to frisk the Queen Mother. Any excuse to get at that hat, right Charlotte? Check her handbag too don't forget. Well the battle raged, no more details but I won. To recover my sanity I spent 10 minutes breathing into a paper bag then 2 hours watching mindless TV and eating cheesecake before I was able to replace furniture and pick up my stitching. I know I've posted about these poor harmless spiders before but I can't sleep knowing there is one in the house. I try not to think about the ones I haven't seen yet.

 Emily slept through all the screaming and crashing, after all she's seen it happen before and no doubt will again. You really are very fit Emily being able to hold your back leg in front of your face while you sleep. Wish I could do that. It would be very useful next time I get a splinter in my foot while walking on the verandah boards in bare feet.

Diamond Jubilee Cross Stitch Kits and Doll Club

Latest Diamond Jubilee kit to arrive is this design from Bothy Threads. I think it will be easier and more fun to stitch than it looks. The charts are easty to follow with a seperate chart for the backs stitch. Beads and sequins are included to give a bit more sparkle. I bought my kit on the net from http://www.artsanddesigns.com/ their service and prices are first class and they take paypal.

Also from Artsanddesigns is this John Clayton kit of the Queen. I've made a start on this one but am very tempted to put it aside and do the Bothy Threads first. Twilleys have also just released a very pretty Jubilee design, I think I must have that one too. Picture bottom right.  I want to screeeeeeeaaaaaaaam, am i the only one having trouble with blogger's new format??? Words and pictures all over the place**^*^^##**              Next is Tempest Tapestry which would be finished but I am waiting for blue wool. Is there no blue wool #8684 in this country. I feel I am living in the colony of 200 years ago when all the blue wool was taken for British Army uniforms.      I don't dare start a new paragraph as my whole blog might vanish.  Picture on left is my 3rd prize certificate from Doll Club last Saturday. The section was'a set of coasters' and I entered my Silver Jubilee set I bought from a garage sale years ago. I also won Easter chocs. in the raffle but ate them before I remembered to take a photo. Yes I did share.                     I am about to press publish,    as they say in the classics.......Publish and be damned......here goes.

Tempest Tapestry, Riverdrift Update and More

The Riverdrift House cross stitch is finished and I managed to fit in a couple of corgis from the second chart. Love the corgis, should be more of them. Square frames are hard to find so for now I have placed it on an artist board.
The Tempest Tapestry is looking good. This one has silver highlights and the right silver thread is on the way to me via ebay. The silver is included in the kit but I have only the chart. Very easy to stitch and can be a cushion or framed. I think I'll frame mine.

Op. shopping again, I bought this very pretty sheeting. Wide enough for a queen size bed I have lost count of how many metres I have. I kept going back to the shop and they had more and more of this brand new fabric at a giveaway price. Now I have enough to make sheets, doona covers, some curtains and even a nightie for me so I can be lost in plain sight and Chatlotte and Emily won't be able to find me in bed.

Stop plotting against me girls!! no, you can't stop me op shopping, I'm going again tomorrow.

I'm sure there'll be enough of the fabric left to make you something pretty to wear. I know you run when you see me coming toward you with a tape meassure in my hand, but perhaps you'd like a little apron to wear at meal times??

Half price day at the op shop and I bought this pretty pink doll chair.

All the bears wanted to sit in the chair but Emily rightly chose a Diamond Jubilee bear. Good thinking Emily, the other bears can have a turn next year.

Never one to resist a bargain, I found this Tower of London Beefeater on ebay. I already had 2 cows from Cow Parade, a china Golden Jubilee cow and a Bovingham Palace cow. The Beefeater is from Cow Parade too and a lot cheaper than the china ones.

Yesterday I had a break from cats, bears, sewing and ebay and had one of my favourite days out, lunch and a matinee with friends.The actors didn't go quite the Full Monty, but enough to give us a lot of laughs.

I wore a blue sparkly top straight from the op shop with my op shop brooch.

I saw the Queen on TV this week shopping in Fortnum and Mason's and wearing an almost identical brooch. We both have good taste. I wonder where she buys her clothes? or which op shop they are donated to????? I think we are almost the same size!!!

Wall Space Urgently Needed

The Diamond Jubilee is here, I am stitching as fast as I can and now I am going to need more wall space to display my treasures. That air con. is taking up space-this summer hasn't been very hot!! but no I'd better keep it. Charlotte and Emily sometimes need it on.

Do I really need double doors leading into the Diana room? No, I have a builder coming to give me a quote to build a wall so there will only be 1 door into that room.

I think I have a new space for all flags and posters.

Son D is taking this hall stand but if he changes his mind I might cut the top off to release the space behind it. I have a bit of a reputation for turning bits of furniture into something else.

Look at all this wasted space. Flags and posters can go here. I will need a tall ladder and someone on standby to dial 000 when I fall off.

The door that Charlotte is walking through was a window a few years ago and now I have 5 doors to the outside. So you can see I do like to change things a bit but I would never have a wall knocked down. I am looking around to see if there is space to build a wall.

Any suggestions welcome.

GeorgeVI Embroidered Sampler and Doll Club Win

This rare GeorgeVI embroidery came as a gift for me. From Margaret K, it came in Charlotte and Emily's birthday parcel, the note inside read 'was going to throw this out but then thought you might be interested'. Expertly embroidered and look at that beautiful crown crocheted edge.
I think it is a tray cloth but I have framed it to keep it safe for many more years to come.
Thank you Margaret, I am very interested.
I always put thin padding behind my framed embroideries to stop the stitching being flattened too much.

A similar design in tapestry wool on canvas, I think the design might have appeared on many different items.

A bit the same, this one is machine woven with the addition of warships and helicopters as war in Europe must already have been a possibility. I might have shown this one before but I think it's worth another showing. It came from the U.K in the original frame but no glass.

Another one, this time embroidered on linen and has E.R in the centre. This was done for EdwardVIII who then abdicated. How annoying for all those needlewomen who had just finished their ER samplers, then had to do it all again with GR.

Doll club day yesterday and one section to enter was 'A bear wearing a hat'. I bought the Queen Mother a new flower and feathers for her hat and of course she won first prize certificate. Well done QM and now I must hide that hat from Charlotte as we know she won't leave it alone.

This sweet little guardsman figurine was given to me by a Doll Club member for my collection. She only knows it is very old but has no markings on the base. It has the look of Mabel Lucie Atwell's work and was possibly made about the time of the 1937 coronation.

Does anyone know more about it??