From jumpers to cotton dresses...

Hello again!

When I last posted we'd started the last week of May with a return to overcast, chilly and breezy weather. It continued until Friday, making it difficult to know what to wear. This was Thursday's outfit and my feet were freezing in the sandals; bought in a J.D. Williams sale - but they were so comfortable. Trousers by Uniqlo; tee shirt by Whistles; kimono hand made and all were found at Barnardo's.

Once again I forgot my bangle and rings...

But before I tell you about Thursday; I'll backtrack to Wednesday. It rained overnight and I woke up to drizzle, but I wasn't going to let the weather deter me from the group walk. Once again we walked in Cambridgeshire; this time from the village of Steeple Mordern. Don't you just love the place names? Nearby were the parishes of Shingay-cum-Wendy and Abington Pigots. I also drove through a Guilden Mordern on the way, too! It was a very pleasant walk of 6.75 miles walking through a lot of bean fields...

The flowers on the bean plants were very attractive in their white and purple. Cambridgeshire, like Bedfordshire is very flat.

Unlike last Friday's walk we passed only a couple of thatched houses; one was being re-thatched and I forgot to take a photo. The one above had one of the 'thatcher's signature' of a duck and ducklings on the roof.

Almost every village has its own church which come in a range of styles and architectural periods. On the right Steeple Mordern Church; St.Peter and Saint Paul; C13 and on the left St. Catherine's Church at Litlington;  the other village we walked through. 

In the evening I met up with my other best friend; Ann for a meal and a catch up in our usual pub.

Back to Thursday, now, which wasn't as hectic as usual; mostly because it was half-term and both grandsons stayed in their own homes. I went swimming in the morning and after breakfast and getting ready went to Lidl for the weekly food shop. I stopped at Sainsbury's to pick up my new sandals on the way back. Then it was off to get the car serviced. I waited for it at the garage reading my 11th Elly Griffiths book while I waited (only 3 left to read!) and drove it home all clean, shiny and freshly vacuumed. It was just OH (= Other Half; just for Sheila!) and I for dinner.

I had great hopes for the weather on Friday but the day started out overcast, breezy and cool. OH had the day off work and we went out for lunch with my brothers. Some months back on our way to Kettering there was a diversion and we passed a lovely canal side pub in a pretty village. Our plan was to visit the canal side pub but the problem was neither of us could remember the name of the village! One of the many joys of getting older seems to be the inability to retain (some) information. After a bit of research we decided to try 'The Narrowboat' at Weedon; not too far from Northampton. It wasn't the one we spotted on the diversion but it was very pleasant; the sun finally emerged and we had a lovely lunch sitting out in the sun.

Everything pre-loved. Trousers by M&S; as was the jacket; top by Pepperberry and pumps by Vans.

All jewellery pre-loved.

The views from the pub garden were wonderful and I went for a short walk along the tow path.

I was the designated driver so just had a Pimms; the lads took full advantage and drank real ales, shorts and Irish coffees...

Saturday was also sunny. My daughter and I went for a 5 mile walk in the morning along the river. When I got back OH and I did the house cleaning as on Sunday I was going to spend the day with my son. After that was done (what a total pain housework is) I was able to sit down and the read the last of the Dr. Ruth Galloway series by Elly Griffiths. I'd now finished all 14 books but was delighted to see there was a 15th book in the series to be published in August. I'll be pre-ordering that!

All jewellery pre-loved as was the entire outfit; except the Birkenstocks donated by my daughter. Jeans by Next; top by Karen Millen; cardigan/jacket found in a Burton on Trent charity shop. Just look at my poor old wrinkly cleavage; luckily it only looks like that when I lean forward!

Sunday's outfit. Sandals retail Sainsbury's sale. Dress by Dreams via Barnardo's; denim jacket as before. All jewellery pre-loved.

Monday was quite a laid back day. Grandson had stayed overnight on Sunday and stayed over on Monday night too; he had another exam on Tuesday and 2 more on Friday. I went to Barnardo's where we were busy processing donations all morning. I found myself a black and white maxi dress and a pair of wine coloured trousers. In the afternoon I ran some errands at Home Bargains and B&M; hung out the towels wash to dry (it was pretty windy) and then made dinner. Middle grandson's little brother came to stay for a few hours while his mum went to work. He's five and I've forgotten how much children of that age talk and how many questions they ask! My head was reeling by the time he went home...

We started watching this French drama called 'What Pauline Is Not Telling You' on 'Walter Presents' on More4. There's only 4 episodes but it was gripping. My son had recommended watching 'Kin,' an Irish thriller but we were unable to watch it on Prime as it had expired. It looked really good, too.

'What Pauline Is Not Telling You'

I usually take my outfit photos in the spare room but as grandson was staying I had to take them in my bedroom instead on Tuesday morning. You can see what a dull, overcast day it was as the light was so poor. It was also windy and very cool. I ended up wearing leggings underneath the dress for warmth. Apart from the sandals the dress was pre-loved via Barnardo's and the jacket which is about ten years old; has an Italian label and came from Age UK. I remember it only because it's the one and only Age UK we've ever had in Bedford and it closed down many years ago.

All jewellery pre-loved except earrings; found online.

At the food bank I packed away toiletries and hygiene products; made up 8 crates of items to go to 2 distribution centres; then marked up and put away baby food and milk. After that I did the weighing out and paperwork for the food parcels and we managed to finish 5 minutes early. Grandson had a law exam in the afternoon and I went to town to return books to the library; to buy cousin Marian a birthday card; to the Building Society and a few other places. I always seem to have errands to run but at least it gets me walking into, around and back from town...on my way home I popped into QD in the hope of reduced plants. I got lucky; 3 begonias and a tray of fuchsias for 50 pence each. OH planted them up when he got in from work.

I caught up with blog land on my return and made a chicken casserole for OH for dinner. I try to make this sort of thing at least once a week so it lasts for 2 days and saves me from cooking everyday.

I didn't walk with the group on Wednesday as it was a bit too far to travel and the day was overcast, windy and chilly; although set to improve by the afternoon. I decided to walk in the afternoon and do the weekly Aldi shop in the morning. So after a lie-in and leisurely breakfast I did the shopping and also went to Castle Rd shops for a browse. For a change I wasn't looking for Elly Griffiths books but I did find 2 summer dresses in the Children's Society charity shop and a brooch, earrings and a ring in the Daycare Hospice shop. I had wondered whether the Children's Society vintage event was on hence the reason for the visit. It was but I didn't see anything I liked or that fitted me. Last year I found a dress (still to be worn) and a jacket which I absolutely love. Unfortunately, I burnt it  recently with the iron; just a tiny little hole. It's made of rayon and simply melted under the hot iron. I could have cried. Luckily it's not easily visible.

 

Sandals by Doc. Marten's (retail);  Marilyn jeans by M&S; sleeveless sweater by Select; top underneath old by Primarni. All jewellery pre-loved except earrings bought online. I swapped the sandals for walking boots and socks in the afternoon and went for a walk, walking just over 4 miles. I walked to Clapham a village just outside of Bedford town; around in a loop past Clapham church and along Carriage Walk; walking across a field;  then along the footpath that runs behind the food bank, past the allotments; along Brickhill Drive and home. The sun blazed down; I was sweating and regretted wearing a sweater even if it was sleeveless...home to blog land and reading for the rest of the day. Enjoyed watching the GBSB (Sewing Bee) which featured West Africa this week. The fabrics were amazing and the outfits fantastic.

More progress in the garden. The verbascum (bottom left) is in full bloom; the clematis is out (bottom right) and the delphinium has started to bloom...I have a thing for purple flowers and if I had my way would fill the garden with them. Two creeping purple flowering varieties grow wild in the garden; campanula and periwinkle, both grow on the back wall. There are buds on the tiger lilies; a cistus flower has bloomed and the gazanias I bought when I went to see my son in Norfolk were about to bloom...

Beautiful warm, sunny weather on Thursday. I went for a swim and did the weekly Lidl shop. I picked grandson up from school and dropped him off to get his locks re-twisted and from there he was taking himself to basket ball. It was the county trials so my fingers were crossed for him.

I don't think I've worn this dress on the blog before. It was a late purchase from Barnardo's towards the end of autumn when it became too cold to wear cotton dresses. This one is by White Stuff; jacket as before and sandals are children's from a local shoe shop. All jewellery pre-loved; the earrings are by Wallis and were found on Wednesday's rummage.

The unofficial bus walk on Friday was from Fenstanton to St. Ives; once again in Cambridgeshire. I set off in good time; setting the sat nav but never made it to the destination. The sat nav kept sending me onto A roads and then said 'recalculating'. After this had happened about 5 times I realised I wouldn't make it in time and decided to return home. What a disappointment, and a waste of petrol plus it was a lovely sunny day, too. I vowed when I got home I would buy myself a road atlas; my old one died a wet and bedraggled death. 

I didn't want to not walk on such a lovely day so decided to recce the walk I'd be leading at the end of June for the Ramblers. I set off for Milton Ernest walking towards Clapham, Thurleigh and back to Milton Ernest; 7 miles in all. It's just as well as I recce'd the walk; what changes there were in the few months since I last walked it. Then the fields were bare and the trees were naked; now everything was green and lush and the field crops were high. I thought on several occasions I had taken the wrong path but it was just the changed scenery made everything look different. For example, the May blossom (hawthorn) in the hedges had gone and was replaced with dog roses:

The verges and footpaths were full of wild flowers. Top and bottom left white campion; top right; birds foot trefoil (eggs and bacon or hen and chickens, colloquially) and bottom right; sanfoin.

Looking towards Clapham and Milton Ernest. This was probably the highest point on the walk.

 It was a very warm day and I was pretty tired by the time I got home, but after a rest I went out and bought myself a road atlas in Waterstones. The sat nav won't catch me out again!

My current TBR pile. I ordered 'The House of Dolls' and the Maggie Gee autobiography online. The rest I just selected at random from my book shelves.

We knew Saturday was going to be a very hot day and we decided to visit Saffron Walden in Essex. I knew very little about it other than it was a market town with a lot of medieval buildings; when I checked the mileage it was only 42 miles from Bedford - about the same distance as Oxford is from Bedford. I wore this outfit and sweltered all day:

Everything pre-loved except the black sandals bough online. Skirt by New Look; jacket by Rosie. All jewellery pre-loved except earrings very old pair from Sainsbury's.

We didn't use the sat nav to get to Saffron Walden but looked it up in the road atlas. It took us just over an hour to get there and the same time to return. Saffron Walden is a picturesque, medieval market town in North West Essex; only 15 miles from Cambridge. You can read more about it HERE.

Some of the medieval building and a water fountain in the centre of the market; which received its charter in the 12th century.

So many people enjoying the weather...

This type of detail was quite common on many of the buildings in Saffron Walden, often featuring grapes and hops. It's known as pargetting in Essex and Suffolk.

This was carved on a door.

There were several blue plaques. 

One wrapped up in plastic as the building was being refurbished:

I liked this one as Edward Bawden is a favourite artist of mine and has connections with Bedford.

This poor man was burnt at the stake for being a Protestant.

Jack Cardiff; a cinematographer whose work spanned silent movies to the introduction of technicolour.

We also visited Bridge End (public) gardens. Designed as a group of linked ornamental gardens by Francis Gibson a local Quaker businessman in 1840; who leased the garden to the local council in 1918.

Entrance to the gardens

The Rose Garden.

The Summerhouse.

The Orchard.

The Maze.

Saffron Walden also had an art gallery, a museum and a beautiful church; all of which we'll visit when we come back again. And of course it had charity shops to discover; 10 in all although the Oxfam was closed for refurbishment. I found a gold metallic pair of sandals by Dune; my summer sandal collection is now complete. I also found some earrings and some L'Occitane body lotion. OH did really well!

It was 29 degrees on Saturday and the same temperature was predicted for Sunday. In fact it went up to 30 degrees on Saturday. It was another scorcher on Sunday. I needed to stay cool and a cotton dress was just the ticket for a really hot day. This one by Next was pre-loved and probably came from Barnardo's. I wore my new to me Dune sandals and went for a swim. It was so easy to just slip off the dress in the changing rooms...On my way back I saw a sign saying the 'Black Tom' street jumble was due to start at 11 am and I thought it was worth a look. (Black Tom is the local name of the area I live in; named after an 18th century highwayman). After having breakfast and getting ready, I set off for the jumble finding a couple of plants; a winter dress and a lightweight cardigan which I can take on walks if I need something light. All the proceeds from the street jumble go to charities so it's all for a good cause. It was smaller than the Harpur Ward street jumble (another area very close to me); just concentrated in 3 or 4 streets which was just as well as I was knackered after walking around in the heat for 45 minutes.

All jewellery pre-loved. I wore these earrings to the swimming pool and forgot to take them off in the water. Luckily they stayed in place. There weren't many people swimming on Sunday morning which made for a nicely uncrowded swim.

The hot and humid weather continued on Monday reaching 27 degrees according to the car thermostat. I wore cotton again. This cotton jumpsuit was lovely and cool. I bought it in Barnado's earlier this year when the dresses were all half price. Children's sandals; bought at a local shoe shop. All jewellery pre-loved. 

I lost one of these earrings ages ago and when I was pottering about in the garden on Sunday afternoon dead heading various plants I discovered it in my tub of fritillary plants. The squirrel had been trying to dig the bulbs up - again - and that was when I spotted the earring; gleaming dully in the top of the pot! The metal was a little rusty but I cleaned it off with oil; it was fortuitous that I'd hung on to the remaining earring...

Probably not the most flattering item in my wardrobe but it was cool.

There were an awful lot of donations on Monday. Everyone seemed to be having a clear out. I bought nothing. I'd bought quite a lot the previous week and decided it would be a charity shop no spend week this week.

 

I came back a little earlier than usual from Barnardo's as the boiler was being serviced in the afternoon. I also arranged for my phone upgrade; managing to reduce the monthly payment by £9.00. The new phone should arrive on Wednesday and should have a superior camera to my current phone. I shall hang onto the current phone in case I need it; my track record with mobile phones is not good as you know. Two stolen in the last few years... 

I hung out some washing and then set to catching up with blog land. The back door was open and the smell of stocks and the allysum from the garden drifted in. The pansies were growing in profusion in the front window boxes where I could see them from my seat in the living room. There was a brief burst of thunder and the sun disappeared; it also cooled down considerably, but all in all it was a lovely day. I heard the swifts screaming overhead earlier. I was getting a bit worried as it seemed a while since I last heard them. Meanwhile, the birds in the garden continue to devour anything that gets puts out for them in double quick time and there's an abundance of young, raucous starlings.

Yet another glorious day on Tuesday. 29 degrees again.

Cotton dress to the rescue. Pre-loved dress by Joules bought in half-price dress sale at Barnardo's. Sandals by Sainsburys. Denim jacket as before and all jewellery pre-loved. The dress has a sea-green stripe which I tried to echo  in my earrings, ring and bangle.

Finished early at the food bank. One of our volunteers who is in their late 80s hadn't been in for a few weeks; today I learned he had had a stroke and was in hospital. I do hope he makes a good recovery; get well soon Ivor. 

I had an appointment at my doctor's surgery to get my BP checked and have a general health check. My BP perfect I'm very glad to say. From there I ran a couple of errands and then home to write and publish my blog and catch up with others. I started the Maggie Gee autobiography before cooking dinner.  Middle grandson is staying over as he has his final exam on Wednesday. Youngest grandson is 13 on Sunday and we're off out for a birthday meal in Northampton on Saturday night to celebrate. Those 13 years have flown by!

On Friday I get the chance to do the walk I missed last Friday because the sat nav had a hissy fit. Apparently not many people were able to make it so it's being repeated this Friday. Yay! I have my trusty new road atlas to hand and will find the meeting point without the sat nav. I won't be beaten by a bloody machine! 

Until the next time...