the world turns

It's been a big few weeks here at Asparagus Towers. My eldest stepson left the nest, so we have a couple of months to strip the room out and redecorate, before his little brother finishes uni and takes up residence there. Big brother got the big room when we moved, because he was just about to graduate and wanted to come home for a bit. Now the wheel has turned and he's flown off to Southern Europe, so it seems right that little bro should be given the same options.

This has prompted something of a cleaning frenzy on my part - sorting through clothes, washing woolies, scrubbing and waxing floors like something out of Downton Abbey. I'm not normally prone to feverish levels of housework - I like to maintain basic food hygiene standards in the kitchen, but other than that I favour what I would regard as a normal level of sluttishness on the domestic front. But somehow this feels like the right time to refresh things.

So with a nod to Martha Stewart, I would like to show you a couple of shots of the hall floor!?!

As you can see from the panel on the left, normal mopping has always left it looking pretty grubby.

Four months of buliders in the house had only made matters worse. 

The panel on the right has been scrubbed with a paste of bio laundry detergent...

The dirt just floats right on out! 

(Should have flipped this pic so the clean/dirty sides were the same way round -

 that's what Martha would have done!)

I think it was the plumber at the old house who gave me this tip.

Other reasons to be cheerful this week include:

New christmas slippers - finally chose these after a couple of false starts.

 Now I can go out to the compost bin and wood shed to get logs,

(my old ones did not have an outdoor sole).

 I may have to take up yodelling though.

The new study is taking shape - oh, and what's that on the door?

My name! 

I'm claiming this space mostly for me, to write and think, and have books and craft stuff.

 Mr A-P did tentatively suggest that the kitchen and laundry could be mine, 

but we soon agreed they were for all of us!

I finished the hedge I was laying at work…

It's about 30m long and I'm really pleased with how it turned out.

All the hazel catkins that were way up in the air, are now down where you can see them

- dancing in the sunlight on a January morning.

christmas memories

Being born in New Zealand means that my childhood Christmas memories are all summery. So looking at everybody's recent posts from Down Under has made me feel quite nostalgic at this time of year. I was inspired by the work of genius that was Mel's Aussie Christmas pavlova (as featured on her blog Bungalow Bliss), to get out my beautiful vintage tablecloth to share with you. It was a gift from Mr Asparagus Pea a couple of years ago. I had admired it in a vintage shop, but when I went back intending to buy, it was gone. That Christmas I found it wrapped up for me under the tree - clever boy!

It has native flora and fauna…

..as well as depictions of farming, fishing and industry.

I'm not sure how old it is, but I would guess late 60's/early 70's. 

My parents emigrated from London to NZ in 1962 (I think?!?).

If I ever decide to have an Australia Day party it would make a good centrepiece.

Just need to find a Kiwi one now to go with it...

what we wore - new years day

Christmas in the Asparagus Pea household this year was a bit of a curate's egg*. 

We'll gloss over the sucky bits and give thanks to those who did their best to help keep the festive plates spinning while we sailed through choppy waters.

So the tree was out the door by Monday and new brooms have been sweeping.

Mr Asparagus Pea had a (long overdue) audit of his clothing hoard, and a significant pile has been earmarked for charity.

As a reward we went and bought him a lovely new outfit in the sales - it's easy for men huh? 

I got a new hat.

Mr A-P:

Jacket: Barbour

Shirt: Paul Smith

Trousers: Fred Perry

Shoes and Glasses: Model's own

Me:

Hat: Fred Perry

Coat: Two Danes

Cardigan: Kiwi Arts (vintage)

Scarf: Birthday gift from eldest stepson

Happy New Year everyone...

 ..hope your new brooms are sweeping too

xxx

*good in parts

chuck out the tinsel and head for the hedgerows

This weekend I ran a couple of Christmas wreath making workshops.  It’s a very popular activity and we could have filled the sessions several times over. I buy in a couple of bundles of craft willow and cut some hazel from the hedgerows. To decorate the wreaths I gather a few baskets of greenery, coloured stems, herbs and seedheads from around the gardens at the museum. 

Here’s one I made earlier.

Everybody gets to make and take home two wreaths, one of which they decorate.

The speedy workers also get to make stars out of the apple prunings from the orchard.

The sessions always start in a great twitter of nervous excitement and self doubt - proclamations are made of impending failure and lack of talent. But with a few simple techniques and a bit of support, calm concentration descends. Okay - so not everybody’s work would necessarily make it to the front cover of ‘Homes and Gardens’, but I have never done this session without everybody being delighted with what they’ve made. They leave with a spring in their step and an armful of Christmassy loveliness.

It confirms that thing we all know; that reconnecting people with their craft skills and giving them space to play and create is very powerful. It doesn't matter what you make/bake/build - it's the doing that's good for the soul.