One day like this a year would see me right

Hello, and welcome to episode # 3 of this year's Shropshire travelogue. 

It was Thursday the 15th of June, and we had a Date with a capital D. It had been pencilled into our diary for many weeks: a long overdue meet-up with my blogging friends Vix and Claire and their partners, Jon and Gareth.

As we wanted to make sure to have plenty of time to get ready and drive down to our destination, we'd even set our alarm clocks the night before, but I'm sure you won't be surprised if I tell you we were wide awake long before it went off!

Our destination that day was yet another National Trust property, Attingham Park, the Georgian Mansion commissioned in 1782 for Noel Hill, 1st Lord Berwick. 

Although it's only a leisurely drive of about 40 minutes from the cowshed, we took our precautions and left our little valley a full hour before the agreed meet-up time of 10.30. Well, we did have to take traffic, our Satnav's foibles and our tendency to drive past the entrance (which we did back in 2018, see here) into account. We needn't have feared, though, as it all went smoothly and we were in fact the first ones to arrive.

Soon, Vix and Jon rocked up in Patrice, their Lucifer Red Citroën C5, excitedly honking and waving when they saw us waiting in a shady spot near the entrance. Needless to say, lots of hugging ensued. Claire had WhatsApp'd me to say they were running a bit late, and about 10 minutes later she and Gareth trundled up the drive in their funky red Beetle. Just like it was when I first met Vix all those years ago, it was as if Claire and I had known each other for years!

As all of us were National Trust members - even if just temporary ones in our case - we were soon waved through at the ticket office. However, we decided to splurge and pay an extra € 3 per person for an exclusive tour of a two-storey apartment in the East Wing of the Mansion. 

As we had been booked in for the 12 pm tour, that left plenty of time for lots of chatting and having our photo taken by the paparazzi.

Plenty of time, too, for a stroll to the walled gardens ... until we remembered that it is quite a long way from the house and that we would never make it back on time. So, back we hurried, following the lead of Jon and Gareth who seemed to be knowing their way around. With just minutes to spare we arrived at what turned out to be the Mansion's exit. Fortunately, a kindly volunteer took pity on us and swiftly took us to the Picture Gallery where the tour was supposed to start.

Bawled over by the Picture Gallery's splendour, we admired the paintings lining the glossy red walls  - there was even one of the Picture Gallery itself, above, top right - as well as the other treasures on display, until we realized that 12 pm had come and gone and our tour guide was still conspicuous in his absence. 

So, we waited and waited, and waited some more, each of us in our own fashion. The photo on the bottom right in the above collage, in particular, made me smile. In the background, Vix is admiring the magnificent 18th Century organ at the east end of the gallery, while Claire is just about to take this stunning photo of her. To the left of them, Gareth is doing some kind of silly pose. On the plush green seat in the foreground, Jos is trying to get to grips with the info on the tickets, while Jon, the only one who was aware that I was taking a photo, is looking straight at the camera.

John Nash was commissioned in 1805 to add the picture gallery, a project that was flawed from the beginning as it suffered from leaks. Constructed using cast iron and curved glass to give the effect of coving, it throws light into the gallery below.  In 2013 work began on building a new protective roof above the delicate Nash roof, replacing the one installed in the 1970s with a new one which will stop leakage and reduce natural weather wear. 

Nash’s elaborately contrived Grand Staircase sparkles with a sense of Regency theatre, the domed skylight like a giant golden spider’s web hovering above.

I'm shamelessly repeating my own collage, created from photos taking during our 2019 visit here.

Meanwhile, more waiting ensued until our guide finally arrived, apologizing profusely for being late  before taking us up the Grand Staircase and to the private apartment. This was once used by Teresa, 8th Lady Berwick (1890-1972) and more recently by the late Mr Edwin D. Cohen, a retired American stockbroker and collector of all things Georgian, who lived here from 1986 until his death in 2020.

We soon discovered the reason for our guide's tardiness: he was truly passionate and knowledgeable about his subject - and Attingham in general - and we suspect his previous tour simply overran because of it. 

Photography wasn't allowed inside the apartment so if you want to see it for yourself, you'll have to get yourselves over there and book a tour. Suffice to say that it was fascinating to be allowed a look into a wealthy and avid collector's private quarters.

It was well past 1 pm when we left the house and made our way towards the Carriage House café for lunch, still reeling from the experience and blinking in the early afternoon sunlight.

It was another scorcher of a day, with temperatures easily reaching 26°C, and the heat trapped inside the walled garden made it feel even warmer.

The flower borders are looking their best at this time of year, attracting bees and butterflies with their vibrant colour and sweet scent. My favourite, which always makes me whip out my camera, is the lavender lined double border, here enhanced by Claire and Vix in their gorgeous pink and green dresses.

I think we all fell in love with the stunning double flowered Oriental Poppy (below, top right) as it got its photograph taken by all three of us girls!

Originally created in the 1780s, Attingham's team of gardeners have been bringing this important part of the estate back to life and production. After falling into disrepair, and having different uses in the 20th Century, the Georgian kitchen garden is both bountiful and a joy to behold today.

Vix snapped this picture of Jos and me. While Jos's outfit included both his new Clarks shoes and his charity shopped Marks & Sparks hat, I was wearing palazzo trousers and a peasant style blouse, both of which were old retail buys. My sandals - old sales bargain Clarks - were making another appearance.

The heat was getting a bit too much by now, so we made our way towards Attingham's two-acre orchard, where Vix and I reclined in a pair of conveniently placed deckchairs under the apple trees.

When Claire sent me the photo she'd taken of us, I told her I would be using it as my screensaver at work, a reminder of this blissful day filled with friendship and laughter.

We then followed the Mile Walk through the Pleasure Grounds under the cooling canopy of the woodland trees. After crossing a cable-stayed bridge over the River Tern, the woodland path continued until it opened up into grassland at the top of the Deer Park.

The heat was relentless here and with the sun burning down on us, another application of suntan lotion was required. Having left mine in the cowshed, I was happy to be able to make use of Claire's. 

Jos snapped the photo of the almost treeless grassland basking in full sunshine under a canopy of blue sky in which cotton wool clouds were drifting (below, top left). If you look carefully, you can see Claire, Vix and me approaching (you might have to enlarge and zoom in to see us). Chatting non-stop, and stopping to take photos, we were forever lagging behind.

Soon the Mansion came into view, and we slowly made our way towards it, crossing another bridge across the River Tern, where the resident cows were having a refreshing drink. 

This made us realize we were getting thirsty too, so we quickened our step in order to get to the Carriage House café before it closed. Turned out we were there just in the nick of time.

It was getting on to 5 pm and they almost had to turf us out by the time we'd reluctantly said our goodbyes. But not before snapping Claire and Vix enjoying an ice lolly!

And exchanging gifts obviously! 

I squealed in delight when I spotted the denim maxi dress Vix and Jon gave me. One of my holy grails, I hadn't yet been able to find what I was looking for, but apparently Vix thought of me as soon as she set eyes on this one. I can't wait for the weather to cool down sufficiently to give it its maiden outing.

Other gifts included a funky red belt, a vinyl Barbie case and - for Jos - a huge bottle of vintage Max Factor after-shave.

Jos was further spoiled with a Ted Baker shirt, a Paisley lined waistcoat and a pair of clip-on sunglasses. We both got books (mine another Philippa Gregory) and I got a gorgeous green zig-zag patterned vintage St. Michael skirt.

Claire and Gareth's gifts included a set of Claire's postcards, a vintage Cadbury Chocolate mug , now in daily use for my morning and evening tea, two bags of local made candy and a green vintage necklace and chunky ring. There were two cans of alcohol-free Guinness as well, but these were already consumed sitting outside on our little terrace at the cowshed.

Later, Claire also surprised me with a vintage Eastex dress and Carlottta Collection skirt. I've already worn the skirt in the meantime, so you'll be getting a much better look at it very soon.

After this one-in-a-million day, we drove back to the cottage in a daze. We spent the evening enjoying the resident wildlife - there were swallow nests aplenty and the area was simply inundated with rabbits - and watching the sun go down over the Long Mynd. Utter bliss!

Hope to see you soon for a catch-up on daily life and further episodes of the travelogue!

Clouds are coming

Monday the First of June was Whit Monday, which is a bank holiday here in Belgium, making my already long weekend even longer.

Waking up feeling languid, as if hungover from all that fresh air I'd breathed on our nature walk on Sunday, I was clearly not up to doing much at all. This wasn't helped by those dreaded end-of-a-long-weekend blues and exacerbated by the temperatures, which were once again nudging towards the high twenties.

Already battling with stickiness inducing humidity quite early in the morning, I opted for breezy, lightweight fabrics in a distinctly non-vintage skirt and blouse combo. OK, I could have gone sleeveless, but that would have meant defuzzing my underarms, which would have been too much exertion for my lethargic state of mind.

The bright orange floral skirt is an old and much loved retail buy, while the thin cotton blouse was a charity shop find, originally from H&M. I think it picked up the blues in the skirt perfectly.

I defined my waist by adding a favourite tan belt, and accessorized with an orange beaded necklace and a very fragile vintage brooch, a flea market find back in August 2018.

Oh, and I just remembered I painted my toenails that day, choosing an aqua shade, so that I could at least wear sandals without having the fashion police at my heels.

Accompanied by Phoebe, who soon had enough and settled on her cushion on our garden bench, I did my daily round of the garden, checking the progress of plants and flowers and doing some light deadheading along the way. 

The Petunias I planted in one of our hanging baskets are blooming exuberantly, almost covering the basket itself. Aren't they a sight to behold?

On our previous garden centre visit, I'd succumbed to a pot of Nepeta or catmint, supposedly as a treat for Phoebe. However, after initially going mad, rubbing her head in it and chewing off a couple of leaves, she seems to be mostly ignoring it, so that I could safely plant it out in the garden.

We'd also bought a well developed Echinacea, which I'd planted in a big terracotta pot, putting some two-tone orange Tagetes and velvety purple and cream Petunias in front.  I used the pot as a stopgap between the new border and our garden bench, where the poor and sandy soil has prevented me from planting anything permanent just yet.

I was a novice gardener when we first moved to Dove Cottage, my only experience gained from our plant covered balcony high up at our twelfth floor apartment and - subconsciously - from the gardens of my childhood, in particular my paternal grandparents' enchanting little plot.

But my love affair with gardens and plants was instant and irrevocable and, even if it lay dormant for a couple of years, it's certainly back with a vengeance. And however jaded my soul is, it will be soothed by stepping out into the garden and visiting my garden friends. Currently going strong are, clockwise from top left, Gaillardia 'Wild Fire', Delphinium 'Dark Blue and White Bee', Helenium 'The Bishop' and Geum 'Lady Stratheden'.

That night, we were regaled by yet another glorious sunset, which was made even more spectacular by the murder of crows which is roosting on one particular rooftop, intermittently making short group flights, and creating a rather raucous cacophony.

My working week consisted of two consecutive days on Tuesday and Wednesday. But while Tuesday was very busy, taking me well over two hours to just go through my emails, Wednesday was quite tame and quiet in comparison.

It did start with a visit to the hairdresser, as I'd finally been able to make an appointment for a colour and cut. They even opened the salon half an hour earlier, especially for me!

Having to wear a mask - I obviously used a disposable one and not one of the nice cotton ones made by my lovely stepdaughter - was a bit weird, as was having my hair done by an alien-looking creature wearing a mask as well as a face shield. It was nice chatting to Michel, though, and he did an amazing job as always. We also marvelled at the fact that I've been visiting the salon for 25 years!

After I'd caught up with work, I felt inspired enough to don my mask and venture outside again. I popped into the post office next door to send off a surprise card to someone I won't mention as they might be reading this, and then walked to the nearest Think Twice shop. This felt even weirder than going to the hairdresser, but I wanted to continue giving them my support. 

There's a one way system and only a limited number of people are able to shop for a maximum of 30 minutes, but there were hardly any customers. I was in there for under 15 minutes, tentatively going through the racks of clothing without feeling the need to buy.

Before leaving the shop, however, I spotted this moss green vintage handbag, which is just the right size to serve as a workaday bag. Resistance was futile!

On Thursday, the sunny Summer weather which had been with us for weeks suddenly came to an end. It was cloudy and dull and quite a bit cooler, but although rain had been forecasted, precipitation was limited to some scattered drops.

The distinct lack of sunshine, however, meant that I was forced to provide my own, which I did by wearing this symphony of green, yellow and orange on white.

I accessorized the dress, a true vintage one from Think Twice, with an ochre belt and beads, and added an orange and green mottled brooch.  My ochre long line cardigan, to which I'd clipped an orange flower corsage, completed that day's outfit.

While Jos was doing the weekly food shop, I exchanged the tired looking vinyl tablecloth covering the kitchen table with a cheery wipeable one featuring lemons on a bright pink and white zig zag pattern, which I'd got when I went to buy the towels the previous week.

Instead of putting back the peeling placemats which were well past their sell-by date, I made some new ones, using transparent plastic L-folders and vintage wallpaper.

After lunch, we made a trip to the DIY store, as I've got plans to breathe new life into the vintage 1960s cane chair which lives under our awning. The chair was part of the furniture Jos and his late ex-wife started married life with back in 1968.

We bought the necessary paints (it's going to have a minty green top coat) and brushes but I'm currently awaiting better weather conditions to start the project.

Meanwhile, Jos was able to harvest some of our rhubarb and make a tiny single portion of stewed rhubarb, which he loves but I don't. 

Phoebe really is an all-weather girl, although she does draw the line to heavy rain, when she takes refuge in her box under the awning, often stubbornly refusing to come inside even when it's pelting down.

And still, regardless of the weather, flowers come and go in a dizzying parade of colours and shapes.

I do hope that the one and only flower bud in our oriental Poppy will keep from flowering until the predicted rains have come and gone. It would be such a shame if its life were curtailed and we - and the resident bees - were denied its intoxicating beauty.

I'm leaving you for now, with a view of the new border which is looking lusher by the minute. As you can see, the Nasturtiums I sowed around the obelisk are producing huge leaves, but there's no sign of any flowers as yet. I'm living in hope that some rain will do the trick.

I'll be back with more garden news and adventures in a couple of days. Meanwhile, as always, do stay safe, my friends!

A stitch in time

The dust has settled and life at the office has gone back to normal. Nevertheless, my blog is still a week or two behind real life so that, while the calendar tells me it's January 23, I've still got to tell you about what I've been up to in the week and weekend before last.

Not that I've been up to very much at all, mind you. At this particularly uneventful time of year, the days and weeks seem to hurtle by even faster than usual, in hindsight making it almost impossible to distinguish one from the other.

But there have been a couple of bright sparks throughout, even if they were mainly provided by what I've been wearing.

A promise is a promise, so I'll start with that burnt orange velvety skirt last seen wearing by Angelica. Finally, that week, it was my turn!

There's something quintessentially 1970s about orange and brown, which people are forever associating with that decade. In later times, the colour combination was jokingly referred to in a what-were-they-thinking kind of way, but fashion designers back then definitely must have known what they were doing, as I for one think orange and brown is a great and timeless look!

So, in honour of the decade in which I did most of my growing up, I plucked this brown floral vintage blouse from my wardrobe and introduced it to the skirt which, rather than being vintage, is from a modern-day brand called American Outfitters. Never heard of them? I can't blame you, as in spite of its name, it's a Belgian label founded in the late 1990s.

I'm sure you must have recognized the teal King Louie cardigan, the woven belt and the beads, as they're all regulars on the blog, all of them charity shop or flea market finds. The brooch was a flea market find as well, bought from the famous Brooch Lady in February 2017. 

The week had been a particularly grey and wet one, the days dark and dreary, making my eyelids droop by mid-afternoon and filling my head with cotton wool.

On Fridays my office closes early, so that there was still a smidgen of daylight about when I was on my way home. The sun had finally managed to chase away the eternal rainclouds, only to start setting soon afterwards, back-lighting the clouds with the last of her orange glow.

The latest Think Twice sales had been in full swing that week but pickings had been rather slim until at the end of the week I stumbled upon this exquisite white raffia handbag. I keep telling myself I should stop buying more handbags, but there was no way I could resist taking this beauty home for only € 4.

I paid the same price for a green speckled polyester dress, which unfortunately had lost some of its buttons. No big deal, as I didn't like them much anyway, so I scoured my stash of vintage buttons, hitting upon these perfect, and far nicer, replacements.

I already wore the dress to work last week, but as things were a bit hectic no outfit photos were made, which I'll have to remedy by wearing it again soon.

While I had my sewing basket out on Saturday morning, I decided to strike the iron while it was hot and finally tackle the partially detached side zip of a dress I bought in the Think Twice sales several months ago. 

Upon closely examining the dress, I noticed several split seams had been repaired by its previous owner using what looked like black darning yarn. To make matters worse, some of these so-called repairs had been done on the outside of the dress, so that there was nothing for it but to remove them all and re-do them using the appropriate sewing thread.

I may be far from a natural at sewing but even with my limited skills I managed to do better. Some people!

Here is the dress in question, which admittedly I only wore for these photos. I'd planned to wear it for work in the week ahead but I totally forgot, so it is still patiently waiting its turn.

The starburst brooch and the snakeskin belt were both flea market finds, while the ring came from a market stall in Bruges. 

Now this is what I really wore that Saturday for another rummage at the charity shops.

I love pleated skirts and dresses, and have several of them inhabiting my wardrobe. Among them, this vintage frock with a print of tiny squares in blue, pink, red, lilac and turquoise and a row of squarish red buttons at the bodice.

I added a wide red woven belt and turquoise beads and pinned a red posy brooch to my turquoise cardigan. Again, most of my outfit is vintage or second hand, except for the tights and the ankle boots. The latter is an old but favourite pair, which has been to the cobbler's a couple of times during its lifetime.

Here, and in the above collage, you can see how wide the dress's skirt actually is. Perfect for twirling or doing a little jig, but not so perfect for that day's weather. There was a fierce and chilly wind blowing so that I had to keep clutching my skirt while on our way to our garage and in-between shops. And why, oh why, did I have to wear this gorgeous but inadequately thin fur collared jacket?

I could tell you all about the fluffy pink scarf I was wearing or the pink and white knitted beret, but I'm sure you wouldn't have been listening, having your eyes fixed firmly on my handbag!

Isn't it fabulous? OK, I have been very, very bad, as I bought it new in the sales at Mango. Also, two handbags in one week, in spite of my self-imposed handbag ban! 

Enough said, let's go charity shopping instead.

Back in the 1970s, brown and orange didn't just rule the catwalks. It was omnipresent and I'm sure that every self-respecting home had its fair share of these colours in its furnishings and homewares.

We snapped up this plastic bread basket from the German Emsa brand in our local charity shop for € 1,50 that day. Made to resemble wood and decorated with a rim of orange and yellow flowers, we already have several items from the same range, including a spice rack, a coffee filter holder and an egg-timer. 

Oh, and we've got egg cups and a jam pot as well! The big brown flower decorated melamine tray isn't Emsa, but vintage St. Michaels, found at a retro event back in October 2017.

We went to another shop a bit further afield that day as well. Rummaging their well-stocked clothing department, I initially thought I'd hit the jackpot upon spotting a whole colour range of apparently deadstock berets. Unfortunately they were all the same size and too big for me, although I am now regretting leaving them behind as they were only € 1 each.

As it is, I only bought this red knitted hat - also deadstock, with a still pristine C&A label - as well as a long and super soft multi coloured scarf.

My final find of the day was this rather gorgeous cardigan in a navy honeycomb pattern on pink by Belgian brand Lucy Has A Secret. As it would have originally retailed at a silly price (at a guess, I'd say upwards of € 80), surely € 4 was a bit of a bargain. 

So, that's it for now. I'll be continuing with my catch-up in my next post. 

In the meantime, have a fabulous weekend, my friends!

Linking to Nancy's Fancy Friday linkup this week. Do go and check out this lovely girl!

The city sun sets over me

When eventually it stopped raining, I breathed a huge sigh of relief. As we were in the run-up to Winter, this could of course only mean one thing: we were in for a - minor - cold snap. But that's OK, I can live with that as long as blue skies and a bit of sunshine are part of the bargain.

The downside was that all this happened during the week before last, when I was cooped up in the office. Oh well, at least I got to enjoy some spectacular sunsets from my perch on the 5th floor.

I took these photos with my phone and they were not enhanced in any way. The sky really was this amazing fiery mix of tangerines and pinks, with a pinch of darkest indigo thrown in.

The city does look rather lovely, doesn't she? Well, she does, as long as you keep your eyes focused on the skyscape and don't let them wander down to street level, where hordes of frenzied shoppers are hunting for presents beneath the merrily twinkling Christmas lights.

Not for me, no thank you! Working in the city centre at this time of year really is the Nightmare before Christmas!

There, rant over! 

One day, when the weather was really exceptional, I even braved the crowds and walked.

I was almost swept up in a tide of shoppers when I took these photographs of Electra. Standing on top of a building which houses a well-known department store, she seemed to be casting a spell on us, mere mortals. She was being wooed by Anthony Van Dyck, who was making eyes at her from his plinth below. Clearly not impressed, she promptly turned him to stone!

Grey clouds reigned again on Friday. As public transport was seriously disrupted by a general strike, I was obliged to take the day off. Not that I minded very much!

It must have been no later than 2.30 pm and daylight was fading already. However, we made the most of what was remaining by going for a long overdue walk in the park.

Wearing my fake fur coat, which I'd unearthed from its out of season hiding place that morning, I was well prepared for the cold.

Beneath my coat, I wore a crazily patterned, reddish brown handmade vintage dress, its tie secured by a tapestry brooch.The brooch was found at a flea market many months ago. As its fastening was broken, it had been patiently waiting its turn with the other waifs and strays in brooch hospital, for Dr. Jos to mend it.

The sleeveless Welsh wool jacket I've added on top was a present from my lovely friend Vix.

I didn't want my legs to be turned into icy pillars, so I wore a pair of nude tights underneath my burnt orange opaques. My green booties from Middelburg were cozy and comfortable.

I'd quickly grabbed this scarf in my haste to leave the house, but it wasn't nearly warm enough. Same goes for the green knitted hat with its chunky pompom. It does look deceptively warm, but it's a rather loose knit, plus it kept escaping from my ears, leaving them exposed to the icy elements.

The mustard leather gloves did do the trick, even though I had to keep removing them in order to make photographs. Should have worn my fingerless gloves!

In the fading light, the trees are blackish-green silhouettes.

I wonder, are they sleeping, their roots buried deeply in the cold, cold ground? And if they do, are they dreaming of Spring? 

Some of the ponds were covered with a flimsy layer of opalescent frost, while others were flat as squeaky clean mirrors, silently reflecting a motley crew of skeleton trees.

In Flanders parks the poppies blow ...

The bare branches of this lonely little tree were hung with bright red laminated poppies, clearly the result of a primary school project, their messages proclaiming that "war has to stop and peace must come". 

Saturday was another dry, yet bitterly cold day. I briefly braved the cold to show you what I was wearing that morning. This is yet another one of my dresses with a self-tie but, although I like the colour and print, I'm on the fence about it, as I just can't seem to style it right.

It's mainly the unwieldy tie which is the culprit! In a bid to make it behave, I added a floral scarf clip. I also wore moss green opaques, a lilac cardigan and a purple beret.

I only wore the dress in the morning, changing into jeans and a polo neck after lunch. Yes, you've read that right and no, I don't have pictures! 

The reason I was wearing such an uncharacteristic outfit is that for the last month or so, we have been dedicating part of our weekends to clearing my parental home.

We'd made a start two years ago, just after my Dad passed away, but stopped when my brother temporarily moved into the house. This temporary situation turned into two years, but now that he's moved out, we can finally finish what we started.

Oh, the stuff my parents kept!  They hardly threw anything away. Consequently, we filled bin bag after bin bag of rubbish, while many carloads of stuff have gone to the charity shops and the recycling centre.

It was unavoidable that some things ended up at Dove Cottage too, ranging from practical items to those of sentimental value.

My Dad's nearly new food processor and retro style portable radio both found a home in Dove Cottage's kitchen. 

Bags of household linen, some of it yellowed with age, were given the charity, but I just couldn't bear to part with the tablecloths on the top right and bottom left. 

The framed document above, dating from 1930, was presented to my paternal granddad after he finished his military service. I'm sure we will find a bit of wall to hang it up!

Sorting out my Mum's sewing box and the vintage tin, both full of sewing materials, provided hours of fun on a rainy afternoon. 

I suspect that the 1950s fruit bowl and Space Age thermometer were both given to my parents as wedding presents. As long as I can remember, they lived side by side on top of our living room sideboard.

Both were covered with a layer of dust by now, but were given a good clean and a new lease of life at Dove Cottage, where they are getting the love these heirlooms deserve.

Last but not least! While clearing out the attic, we stumbled upon a rickety wardrobe, its contents a big question mark as its key had been lost.

When Jos finally managed to open it, there it was, my Mum's coat!

Not only had I forgotten all about it, I never even suspected that it was still around. Clearly it was waiting for me. I mean, look at that colour! And what's more, it's a perfect fit!

My Mum must have had it custom made back in the 1960s and now that I set eyes on it again, I actually remember her wearing it. 

I did choke up a bit when I first tried it on, and there might have been a few tiny tears ...

I simply had to wear it to the flea market on Sunday. But that'll be for a next post!

Meanwhile, I'm joining the other girls at Nancy's Fancy Friday. I'm also joining Patti and the gang as usual at Patti's Visible Monday!