Friday 30 July 2010

Rest in peace, Ivan...



...with much love from Sharon, Adrian, Sam and Beverly

Thursday 29 July 2010

The Thursday Poem


Young Woman Reading by a Window by Delphin Enjolras


What are Years?

What is our innocence,
what is our guilt? All are
naked, none is safe. And whence
is courage: the unanswered question,
the resolute doubt, -
dumbly calling, deafly listening - that
in misfortune, even death,
encourages others
and in its defeat, stirs

the soul to be strong? He
sees deep and is glad, who
accedes to mortality
and in his imprisonment rises
upon himself as
the sea in a chasm, struggling to be
free and unable to be,
in its surrendering
finds its continuing.

So he who strongly feels,
behaves. The very bird,
grown taller as he sings, steels
his form straight up. Though he is captive,
his mighty singing
says, satisfaction is a lowly
thing, how pure a thing is joy.
This is mortality.
this is eternity.

Marianne Moore
(15th November 1887 - 5th February 1972)

From the book: Poem for the Day One

Wednesday 28 July 2010

Dolly family...

...it just keeps on growing!

I'll be honest and admit that I actually bought Deborah more for the dress than for the doll herself, but I may keep her after all as she is very pretty :-)

Mona is in a very nice condition, and her hair is lovely and thick. She is apparently a Texco Cheerleader!

Would you believe that I decided to get another Dusty doll ~ well, of course you would believe it LOL I thought it would be nice for Serena to have a friend so here is Hilary :-) Hilary has longer, rather nicer hair than Serena but unfortunately she has a decidedly dodgy arm, poor thing!

Hetty is another little hard plastic doll. My collection of these is decidedly growing! Still, at least they don't take up too much room ;-) Her face is so much like that of Grace and Gloria but she is very much smaller.

I'm not usually quite so keen on these later Sindys but little Rowena caught my eye. She has the most wonderful hair, it is so soft! I have to confess to a very soft spot for dolls with silvery-coloured hair :-)

This gorgeous negligee set came with Rowena ~ it is in perfect condition!

Victoria is another Camay doll ~ I really do love these dolls! She is in fabulous condition and her jumpsuit is rather wonderful, too.

Although Wanda has some fading issues, I still think she is rather lovely. Her dress is very nicely made and in great condition.

Beatrice is just so cute, how could I possibly resist?? I love these side-glancing dolls.

Sweet Pamela is another young lady to join the porcelain girls :-)

Petal is a hard plastic doll made by Rosebud. She has lost her hair and has just be left with smears of nasty-looking glue over her head, poor little thing. I think her dolly spa appointment will have to include a new wig!

Nothing whatsoever to do with dolls, I know, but I thought I would show you naughty chicken caught in the act of coming out from under the little bay tree! And yes, there was an egg under there LOL

"Does my bum look big from this angle??" Why of course not, Abigail, it just looks fluffy ;-)

Tuesday 27 July 2010

The 365 Project ~ Day 130


Trixie and Troy have added to their family ~ I have suggested they might like to stick at three children as Troll Corner is becoming a little crowded!

Beverly's off on another new adventure!


The family Beverly is nannying for are moving to Orkney...and Beverly is going with them to continue looking after Niamh! I get the impression that she is experiencing a mixture of excitement and nervousness ~ excitement at the new adventure she's going on, and nervousness at being such a long way from home. I am sure she will soon settle down and start to enjoy her new life :-) We will all miss her, of course, but equally we are all very excited for her as well.

Beverly came home last Friday for a few days and brought Niamh with her for the morning. She is such a cute little tot and soon made herself at home!

Beverly and I just had to get these photos of Sam! It's amazing ~ he was actually interacting with a very small child LOL And this is the fella who reckons that he doesn't like kids ;-)

Niamh found Sam rather interesting ~ each time she spotted him, she giggled and smiled! He told us that she was "cute" LOL

On Sunday I hosted a small family dinner as it's the last time we will all be together now until Christmas ~ weather permitting, of course!

Adrian, Sam and Amanda (my "little" sister!).

Sam, Amanda, Dad and Liz (close family friend).

Mum and Beverly.

Beverly, your's truly and Adrian.

My little girl and me :-)
Beverly is home until Thursday, when she goes back to work. Then, she and the family will be off on the journey to Orkney next week!

Sunday 25 July 2010

Prayer for World Peace


Dove of Peace ~ Giclee print


We pray to the great Spiritual Power in which we live and move and have our being.
We pray that we may at all times keep our minds open to new ideas and shun dogma;
that we may grow in our understanding of the nature of all living beings and our connectedness with the natural world;
that we may become ever more filled with generosity of spirit and true compassion and love for all life;
that we may strive to heal the hurts that we have inflicted on nature and control our greed for material things, knowing that our actions are harming our natural world and the future of our children;
that we may value each and every human being for who he is, for who she is, reaching to the spirit that is within, knowing the power of each individual to change the world.

We pray for social justice, for the alleviation of the crippling poverty that condemns millions of people around the world to lives of misery - hungry, sick, and utterly without hope.
We pray for the children who are starving, who are condemned to homelessness, slave labour, prostitution, and especially for those forced to fight, to kill and torture even members of their own family.
We pray for the victims of violence and war, for those wounded in body and for those wounded in mind.
We pray for the multitudes of refugees, forced from their homes to alien places through war or through the utter destruction of their environment.

We pray for suffering animals everywhere, for an end to the pain caused by scientific experimentation, intensive farming, fur farming, shooting, trapping, training for entertainment, abusive pet owners, and all other forms of exploitation such as overloading and overworking pack animals, bull fighting, badger baiting, dog and cock fighting and so many more.

We pray for an end to cruelty, whether to humans or other animals, for an end to bullying, and torture in all its forms.
We pray that we may learn the peace that comes with forgiving and the strength we gain in loving;
that we may learn to take nothing for granted in this life;
that we may learn to see and understand with our hearts;
that we may learn to rejoice in our being.

We pray for these things with humility;
We pray because of the hope that is within us, and because of a faith in the ultimate triumph of the human spirit;
We pray because of our love for Creation, and because of our trust in God.
We pray, above all, for peace throughout the world.

prayer for world peace ~ dr jane goodall

Thursday 22 July 2010

Would you like to sit down...


Provided you are doll-sized, of course ;-D

It's a strange thing, really, but when I come across something interesting that I'm not actually looking for, then I seem to spot more of the same! I was just having a look through someone's other items for sale on Ebay (I'd been looking at a Sindy they were selling ~ of course LOL) and they also had the sweet multi-coloured wicker chair for sale. Well, I was rather taken with said chair, and it was on at a lovely low price, so I thought I'd put in a bid ;-D

Then ~ naturally enough ~ I spotted the white chair and thought it was jolly nice too!

And then this rocking chair came along, too LOL All the dolls were very excited when they saw me unpack these cute little wicker chairs ~ I can see there might be arguing over who is going to sit on them!

I saw this unusual metal chair and thought it would be just perfect for Ethel~Maud ~ she is thrilled to have a chair of her very own :-)

I forgot to upload this photo the other day. Although I no longer follow a Christian path, I was simply captivated by this beautiful wall plaque of the Virgin Mary and the Christ child. The colours are wonderful and Mary's face is mesmerising; her love for her child just shines through. And that, I guess, is what most attracted me to this piece: the love of a mother for her child :-)
Wow, aren't I a lucky girl ~ I received another pretty pink pressie! One of my Flickr friends, Jenny (JennyTheArtist), made this fab apron specially for me in exchange for a couple of dolls which I needed a loving new home for :-) It's so sweet and I just love the dolly fabric ~ it was the perfect choice :-)

Old Spice ~ The Man Your Man Could Smell Like...

The Thursday Poem


Young Woman Reading by a Window by Delphin Enjolras


Fairy Song

The moonlight fades from flower and rose
And the stars dim one by one;
The tale is told, the song is sung,
And the Fairy feast is done.
The night-wind rocks the sleeping flowers,
And sings to them, soft and low.
The early birds erelong will wake:
'T is time for the Elves to go.

O'er the sleeping earth we silently pass,
Unseen by mortal eye,
And send sweet dreams, as we lightly float
Through the quiet moonlit sky;--
For the stars' soft eyes alone may see,
And the flowers alone may know,
The feasts we hold, the tales we tell;
So't is time for the Elves to go.

From bird, and blossom, and bee,
We learn the lessons they teach;
And seek, by kindly deeds, to win
A loving friend in each.
And though unseen on earth we dwell,
Sweet voices whisper low,
And gentle hearts most joyously greet
The Elves where'er they go.

When next we meet in the Fairy dell,
May the silver moon's soft light
Shine then on faces gay as now,
And Elfin hearts as light.
Now spread each wing, for the eastern sky
With sunlight soon shall glow. The morning star shall light us home:
Farewell! for the Elves must go.

Louisa May Alcott
(29th November 1832 – 6th March 6 1888)

Monday 19 July 2010

365 ~ Day 129


Trixie and Troy pose for their first family photograph.

So now I know what the giggling and trying-to-look-innocent was all about: Trixie and Troy have adopted two little Trolls!! They tell me that there are lots of orphaned little Trolls looking for a new family so they got on the computer one night and the rest, as they say, is history! The little girl is called Tuesday and the little boy is Tuppence. I wondered if they were brother and sister but apparently they aren't related to each other. I suppose I should have guessed that when I saw that Tuppence has green eyes :-)

I was SO relieved to find that Trixie and Troy weren't up to any mischief and actually I feel rather proud of them for adopting these two little orphaned Trolls. They told me that they wanted to share Troll Corner with other, less fortunate, Trolls :-) How lovely is that!

Latest additions to the dolly family

This will be a post to make my Dad roll his eyes and mutter to himself something along the lines of "not more dolls" LOL

Oonagh is in a lovely condition and has very pretty facial colouring. I'm supposing that the kilt and sporran are her original clothes although the sporran won't actually fit over her kilt. Whether she was meant as a toy or simply as a souvenir doll, I have no idea. I'm not too sure whether her cute knitted shoes were made for her as they as a bit on the small side! She doesn't have any makers marks, just Made in England on the back of her head and her back.

Colette is such a sweet little doll and she, too, is in nice condition :-) She has a lovely warm coat ready for winter ~ but I do rather think she will need some shoes or boots to go with it!

Colette's dress is very pretty and really suits her. All-in-all, I am very pleased with this little lady :-)

I am going through a Sindy phase at the moment LOL I bought Laura from one of my Flickr friends ~ she is lovely. Her suit is very 60s and terribly smart!

Laura came with these sets of clothes :-)


To continue with my Sindy kick, this is my latest girl ~ Letitia :-)

This dressing-gown and dress came with Letitia. They are both in a lovely clean condition but I have just realised that I photographed the dressing-gown back-to-front! I was thinking that as the dress is such a simple style, I could perhaps have a go at making a pattern from it then all my poor naked girls could at least have one dress each LOL

I find it so hard to resist these cheapy old dolls! I don't know what it is but I find them very appealing. So Glenda has now joined the dolly family LOL

Susie is a Camay clone and I bought her with Laura. I really do love these clones, just as much as the "real" Sindys :-)

Marie is another sweet little doll, made from hard plastic. She has something embossed on her back which is quite hard to decipher but I think it says France. Unfortunately, as you can no doubt tell, it's not only Sindys that I'm currently on a kick with LOL

Henrietta is a cute little doll, made in France. I'm not sure what she is made of to be honest. It feels like a hard plastic but has a slight roughness to it. One of my Flickr friends thinks it may be an early form of plastic, pre celluloid and lucite. The holes in Henrietta's chest are where I believe she may have originally had her clothes pinned to her.
When I spotted Rita I immediately thought that Lavinia, the pretty little peg-doll which Sandi sent to me, might like a friend ~ so here she is :-)

Whip It Turtle!

Sunday 18 July 2010

Prayer for World Peace


Dove of Peace ~ Giclee print


We pray to the great Spiritual Power in which we live and move and have our being.
We pray that we may at all times keep our minds open to new ideas and shun dogma;
that we may grow in our understanding of the nature of all living beings and our connectedness with the natural world;
that we may become ever more filled with generosity of spirit and true compassion and love for all life;
that we may strive to heal the hurts that we have inflicted on nature and control our greed for material things, knowing that our actions are harming our natural world and the future of our children;
that we may value each and every human being for who he is, for who she is, reaching to the spirit that is within, knowing the power of each individual to change the world.

We pray for social justice, for the alleviation of the crippling poverty that condemns millions of people around the world to lives of misery - hungry, sick, and utterly without hope.
We pray for the children who are starving, who are condemned to homelessness, slave labour, prostitution, and especially for those forced to fight, to kill and torture even members of their own family.
We pray for the victims of violence and war, for those wounded in body and for those wounded in mind.
We pray for the multitudes of refugees, forced from their homes to alien places through war or through the utter destruction of their environment.

We pray for suffering animals everywhere, for an end to the pain caused by scientific experimentation, intensive farming, fur farming, shooting, trapping, training for entertainment, abusive pet owners, and all other forms of exploitation such as overloading and overworking pack animals, bull fighting, badger baiting, dog and cock fighting and so many more.
We pray for an end to cruelty, whether to humans or other animals, for an end to bullying, and torture in all its forms.
We pray that we may learn the peace that comes with forgiving and the strength we gain in loving;
that we may learn to take nothing for granted in this life;
that we may learn to see and understand with our hearts;
that we may learn to rejoice in our being.

We pray for these things with humility;
We pray because of the hope that is within us, and because of a faith in the ultimate triumph of the human spirit;
We pray because of our love for Creation, and because of our trust in God.
We pray, above all, for peace throughout the world.

prayer for world peace ~ dr jane goodall

Friday 16 July 2010

Flowers for Friday


Thursday 15 July 2010

Some (fairly!) recent treasures


Jolly Molly is ready for the sun! She is wearing a straw hat which belonged to my Great Aunt Mary. It's a little bit too small for my head (don't know if it's my big brain or thick hair ROFL) but fits JM nicely. She is ready to face the sunniest of days now :-)

Mum gave me this recently ~ it used to belong to my Aunt Mary. I really like this dish, it is very pretty. It says Wedgewood on the bottom, along with OF Etruria & Barlaston Groups ~ no idea what that all means! My Dad thinks this probably belonged to his Grandmother.

Mum gave me this, too, which also belonged to Aunt Mary. I love this dish, as well; it has Mason's stamped on the base. My Dad thinks this probably belonged to his Grandmother, like the previous dish.

I love books like this! It's in very good condition and full of wonderful pictures.





I just happened upon these Barbie booklets on Ebay ~ they are great fun!

I really like this little display shelf :-) I think I will end up painting it and perhaps add different papers to the backs of the cubby holes.

I may leave this little display shelf in this dark lacquered finish or I may paint over it with something paler ~ I can't quite make up my mind at the moment!

I have a bit of a soft spot for little deer ornaments and couldn't resist this one. He may not be the prettiest deer in my herd but I love him to pieces :-)
A touch of shabby chic! I was going to put this sweet little metal heart in the garden but decided to hang it from one of the shelf brackets in the living room instead.
I was looking at something else on Ebay and this pretty figurine was amongst the seller's listed items. To tell the truth, I can't even remember what brought me to the seller's list in the first place LOL Anyhoo, I was captivated by this little lady and the rest ~ as they say ~ is history!

As Amber settles herself down for a little post-lunchtime snooze, it seems that in her mind any time is nap time LOL