MY CHRISTMAS DECOR..KIND OF UPSTAIRS & DOWNSTAIRS!!

Hello again ladies..

OKAY...suddenly realised Christmas was just ONE week away...i kept kind of thinking it was a few weeks away at least!! completely LOST track of time..

SOO the "old girl" had to get her little..(well maybe BIG BUTT into gear)!!

So i am kind of like the old tv show "upstairs/downstairs")...younger bloggers will NOT know what i am talking about..

ANYWAY...upstairs is my white/french chic type kitchen area ...I HAVE SHABBY PINK type decor featured for xmas....

Downstairs is the MALE DOMAIN!!! (yukky poos)...is the PROVERBIAL table tennis table..drum kit..brick walls......OKAY...this is the TESTOSTERONE centre.

where i have all my CHRISTMAS pressies wrapped under a little tree..

AND some chocolates..shortbread...mints...napkins...

AND this rooms opens OUT to the BBQ area...given this another little xmas makeover...(per 3rd/4th/5th photos..soo hard with water restrictions to make anything look good..BUT tied xmas decs around .... decorated the table a bit??_

soo think it looks OKAY???........ little lanterns to light for xmas eve...

I am quite happy with the wrapping scenario AS i have NOT been really TOO motivated..i think the photos show what my theme is??

mixed red/white..brown paper...PLAIN thick STRING!!

gave SOOTY his christmas bath yesterday...and a GOOD GOOD brush..

(in amongst the biting teeth...what are you doing to me ?? look!! he kind of says??)...

get over it SOOTY!!!

He has come up a treat...put his collar on with XMAS ribbon tied around..

(funny bit of an aside...sooty is 11 yo in feb...was going quite grey in colour...BUT he has suddenly come back with his original BLACK hair??? all over his back area...head is still greyish?? what tha?? not quite sure why..any answers are welcome)..

is it the TUNA??? which i feed him ? & which he loves...

anyway...I am having about 14 people over for Christmas EVE...getting ready for that..

MAY do a post on my XMAS tables?? whatever...

have a great chrismas...

xx andrea

JUST LOVE MY STASH OF VINTAGE LINEN & LACE...

Hi ladies..

Probably my last post...well maybe?? before Christmas...who knows??

SOO if soo..MERRY CHRISTMAS & great NEW YEAR to everyone..

OKAY..this post is about my TOTAL OBSESSION with VINTAGE LINEN & LACE..

I have collected vintage tablecloths for many a year..with my gorgeous "nanna" embroidering them for as long as I can remember...(she died aged 86 yo some 22 yrs ago)...BUT i can still remember her sitting in her rocker...knitting...sewing..

I was always at NANNAS house....watching her cook/sew..& WHINGE about everyone!!! and when she had a headache..she always tied an old STOCKING around her head?? not sure how that worked...??

I used to curl her hair...tease it up...style it..and give a little spray to hold...

the good old days...!!

anyway...I guess this love of STUFF stemmed from my nanna...& of course my MUM has sooooooooo much STUUUUUFFF ... of everything...

soo i have been busy putting together heaps of my VINTAGE linen/doilies/runners etc to sell on ebay...

I have also bought a lot on ebay & oztion...so have amassed quite a collection.

& OF course had to dye some gorgeous edgings PINK...

hanging on line to dry..

PLUS an awesome lot of little crochet flowers etc...also dyed pink...

with the water restrictions in Melbourne...my garden is ... well!!!

THERE IS NONE really....

BUT look at my little patch of hydrangeas....how lovely are they?? with NO WATER...they just keep blooming each year...

I am soo very proud of these guys...(OR GIRLS)...

I cut some today to place in a little glass jar in the kitchen as I had a little "tea party" for my mum & dad's OLDEST FRIENDS...they are both 88 yo..!!

so with my mum & dad...& them...& me...OKAY...aggregate age was...

401 YEARS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

okay....off to watch Kylies Christmas show on foxtel...LOVE her shows...!

xx andrea

AWESOME WEEKEND VINTAGE FINDS..VERY HAPPY!!

Hi ladies....

I have had a WONDERFUL weekend finding BITS & BOBS.

PLUS having BYRON home for 24 HOURS!!!!

Anyway...will keep it brief...whilst down "the street" on friday...I saw a cupboard just LEFT outside the back of shops..?? MMMM when going to my car after shopping at 2.30 pm..thought it was a beauty...

When hubby came home for us to go out to dinner at 6.30 pm..made him drive past..just to see if it was still sitting there unwanted...AND YES!! it WAS...

AND as hubby just happens to have the car to fit it into...YES!! so it is now mine to makeover!!

And yesterday ventured to one of my favourite FLEA/JUNK market HAUNTS & found LOTS of lovely goodies...from POODLE STUFF!! to soo much linen & lace..

vintage suitcases....plastic 50's dolls heads...dollies...gorgeous BARKCLOTH material...GREAT tin for $5.00!!..gorgeous ROSES TAPESTRY.....

PLUS lots of LOVELY VINTAGE SHABBY CHIC CARDS...I LOVE OLD CARDS..especially with roses etc on them...& FOUND one with the OLD 21st CARD still attached.. how gorgeous is this one???

I have just dyed LOTS of this gorgeous linen PINK...hanging on the line to dry...

SOO i have to say I have actually HAD a quite productive weekend...

as WELL as having eldest SON home for a little bit!!

sorry photos are OUT of sequence AGAIN...but I dare NOT try to change as I will probably LOSE them all!!

xx andrea

TECHNOLOGY..GADGETS..A TOTAL LOVE/HATE RELATIONSHIP!!!!!

Hi ladies....hope you are all having a great productive week!!

Well, I dont know about you but I think I kind of have a real LOVE/HATE relationship with MODERN technology!!

I am 52 yo...and as a little girl, everything was quite basic...no computers..no microwaves..no fancy tvs with everything just black & white with just 4 channels closing down at midnight!!...no dvds..no videos even!!...OLD big RECORD players playing the OLD vinyls..??

NO mobile phones...no faxes......(younger readers are probably thinking what a NEANDERTHOL I AM!!!)....

BUT somehow...we all seemed to survive & communicate & still enjoy our lives.

Dont get me wrong...I LOVE my computer..my big flat screen tv..etc etc...BUT BUT ..

when things go wrong...or you dont know how to change the channel as you have soo many gadgets you have to deal with?? the pleasure kind of dissipates..

My problems started the other night when i went to MICROWAVE SOMETHING.

OKAY...IT BLEW UP...(must say after 22 yrs of service this microwave has done US proud)..

BUT then that caused my TV to blow up..& my home alarm system...(all hooked onto the same circuit i guess)..

SOO HOME ALONE...went to OUR store room..as I knew i would have to reset the safety switch..

soo tried again with the microwave...BLEW UP again...

OKAY...rang byron (my son) in qld (as you do..)...he talked me through pressing a hundred thousand buttons on 5 x different channel changers...didnt work..

rang foxtel...press this button for this problem...press another for something else..

NO person to talk to...ALL AUTOMATED!!! said to ring back in 30 minutes!!!

didnt work!!

OKAY rang Byron again...he said go to the BIG REMOTE..press a certain button and see if that works...VOILA....

FOXTEL was back on track...thank goodness for that...

so I have purchased a NEW microwave today....

BUT in between the internet has gone PSYCHO with my provider...down for 24 hrs the other day...

IN & out today...getting VERY GRUMPY...

BUT OF course you ring the provider...& transferred to a call centre off shore with limited ENGLISH???

I LOVE MY MODERN LIFE......BUT i sometimes still just think how nice it was being SIMPLISTIC ??? back when i was a little girl....

YES...I know i dont REALLY mean it...BUT it was a very very NICE time in life...

lovely ladies similar to my age will/may empathise with me...i think??

the problems us OLDER WOMEN FACE???!!

xx andrea

HAVING A LITTLE PLAY AROUND RE XMAS DECS..& LISTING OF COURSE!!

Hi again ladies...

I did purchase some lovely Christmas decorations yesterday..

I bought TWO of the TIN hearts..have added my red/white gingham ribbon & tied to the front balcony door...?? the other one will go on my FRONT entrance doors...

Bought these hearts from another YUMMY little NEW shop JUST opened in williamstown..very french chic...gorgeous...(another shop I will have to blog about)...!!

I DO NOT like the proverbial Green Wreath type arrangement....I actually much prefer the Scandinavian look?? much more simple...clean..just NICE..if you get my drift..which i think that TiN heart kind of represents..well to me anyway...,

I am not going to put up a BIG tree this year as I find it a bit too cumbersome & not totally necessary with both boys adults...and ONE not even being able to be home for christmas... AGAIN!!

last yr he was studying in Japan...before that in England....!!

I would JUST LOVE him to be able to come home...so if you read this...CAN YOU

SURPRISE ME!!!! ?????? (dont answer that...as then it wouldnt be a surprise!!)...

SOO i decorate the PROVERBIAL bane of my life in our middle room...THE TABLE TENNIS TABLE...(but to be honest I quite like it there as i can PLONK all my shopping on it...put my ebay stuff i have to list & PLONK that on it!!

AND everything else when going from ONE end of the house to the other!! soo poor Christian NEVER gets to play table tennis with his mates as it is ALWAYS FULL of MY STUFF!! ha ha!!)...

anyway....have kind of started decorating THIS table for Christmas..Little tree...with some lovely FAUX gingerbread decs...

paper napkins..& some gift tags etc...sugar candy thingeys!! just a start...Just looking at it?? not sure if i even want these colours??

DECISIONS...DECISIONS!!

plus listing stuff on ebay per usual....AND of course those photos have appeared ahead of my decs...!! CAN NEVER get the order right.even when i try to cut & drag and stuff N that!!

have a great week!!

xx andrea