Out and about in East Sussex

Hello again!

Since I last posted I've been to East Sussex; to Milton Keynes to watch my brother's solo gig and I had planned to go to Devon to see Hilary - but see update below. We've had one lot of weekend visitors (brothers) and expect two more sets pf visitors over the next two weekends. And of course our clocks have gone back by one hour so the mornings are a bit brighter but get it gets dark earlier which is horrible .

To backtrack a little to two weekends ago; OH and I visited the final car boot sale of the year in our local area. I did very well. I picked up a nice weekend holdall - eldest grandson borrowed mine to take back to London with him so I'll probably never see it again! I also picked up some earrings and small brooch for 60p (!) a rice cooker for 2.00; a denim waistcoat (below) and best of all brand new walking boots for 4.00. My current Berghaus 99p bargain boots from the Red Cross are becoming a bit detached from one side of the upper. It can probably be glued back but it's good to have two pairs of walking boots so one pair can dry out. A very successful haul.

I walked only twice in this week (must do better, Veronica) once on my own and once with the group. I've sorted out one of walks that I'm leading and I'm still working on the other. The group walk was from Pirton to Great Offley (7 miles) and was wonderful but I didn't take any photos; lots of hills were climbed so photos weren't on my mind...Pirton still has a maypole on its village green.

This is All Saint's Church in Milton Ernest which we will pass on my walk. It dates from the 11th century. 

I've been reading a book about villages in the UK and
 the importance of the church to the village and its inhabitants. As a walker who walks predominantly in the countryside it's always such a comfort to see a church or church spire in the distance because you know then you're never too far away from people  - especially good if you're lost!

This photo was taken en route to East Sussex by one of the grandsons at a service station on the M 20. Everything charity shopped except the navy blue boots and the waistcoat which came from the car boot sale and cost 1.00. The top came from 1.00 rail - it's by M&S and I have the same one in green and yellow. Skirt by Next.

I should have worn a more colourful scarf in my hair. All jewellery charity shopped.

My daughter, two youngest grandsons and I set off on Thursday morning to East Sussex for an over night stay. I wanted to visit Rye first then we stayed in a hotel in Eastbourne, 29 miles away.  There are lots of parts of the UK that I haven't seen and I want to put that right. Rye was lovely; full of quirky buildings. It's where the TV series 'Mapp and Lucia' (from the E.H.Benson books) was filmed. I probably only saw about half of what is there but although the grandsons were very good they get bored very quickly. I even managed to have a brief look in the two charity shops I saw but the prices were silly.

Rye is an English town near the coast in East Sussex. In the centre, cobbled lanes like Mermaid Street are lined with medieval, half-timbered houses. Those cobbles are hard to walk on in thin soled shoes! It is also one of the original Cinque port towns which were a historic series of coastal towns in Kent and Sussex. They were originally formed for military and trade purposes. The sea has now retreated two miles inland from Rye. (Information from Wikipedia).

The Mermaid Inn. No, we didn't go in for a pint!

This boy is very mischievous. He loves to photo bomb!

Such lovely buildings.

From my limited experience of English seaside towns, I think Eastbourne is typical of the larger ones. There's a pier...

Eastbourne Pier

The weather was a bit dodgy in the morning it kept on raining, so we spent time in the arcades losing money - at least the grandsons did! I love to see groynes at the beach especially the wooden ones.

 It brightened up by the afternoon. We spent a little while in the town itself. Lots of charity shops. I looked in a few. I bought a log basket in the Cancer Research shop; it was nice and narrow just what I've been looking for and at 4.99 not too pricey!

Soaking up some afternoon sun. It was bright but pretty chilly. We spent most of the afternoon on the beach and walking along the prom.

I love the roof on this building. It's very Islamic looking and made of beautiful turquoise tiles.

The sea front hotels and part of the promenade or boardwalk.

We returned Friday evening and on Saturday we went to watch my brother Julian's solo gig at 'The Stables' in Milton Keynes here. My other brothers came over for dinner first and after the gig Julian came back to stay; we had lots to catch up on!

Everything charity shopped except the boots which were a Christmas present from OH a few years ago. The leggings are my 79 p bargain from Barnardo's, the top is by TU from a 1.00 rail but I can't remember where I got the tunic or how much it was.

 Julian was on the small stage which seats about 40. There are tables and chairs and it's a quite intimate setting. He played a great range of songs including the story of how he came to be; his tribute to my mum: 'The Ballad of Kathy Flynn'. You can hear it here.There were tears in my eyes by the end of it. I've written previously about how my brother discovered us here and here.

All jewellery charity shopped.

The Stables is a really nice venue. I've been to quite a few gigs here: The Be Good Tanyas, Keb Mo, Acoustic Alchemy (OH is a jazz fan), Peter White, Steeleye Span (Julian is part of this band) Dennis Baptiste to name just some.

This is a not very good photo of Julian but you can see how small and intimate setting it was.

The Three Musketeers! Yes, that is Johnny Dankworth and yes he is poking my brother in the ear!

Black 1960s style homemade swing or duster coat. Bought at a car boot sale for 2.50. The lady who was selling had also made it and said she was so pleased I was buying it as she could tell I would love it. I do. You can't see it here because this is not a very good photo, but it's made of black patterned brocade; has nice big wide sleeves with a diamond button on each one and the coat is swooshy when you walk...

On Monday I was child minding as one grandson had a teacher training day. He came with me to the hairdressers and then he took these photos.

Everything charity shopped except spotty leggings; Lidl retail. Kimono bought in Donegal in 2017 and the tunic, too. It was a pretty chilly day on Monday. In fact we've been lighting our fire every evening since last Saturday and with the weather we've  been having I think that will continue...

All jewellery charity shopped.
On Tuesday I found out at the food bank we received 8 tonnes of Harvest food donations!  The warehouse was full to the ceiling. Fabulous people of Bedford - thank you.

That's a jigsaw on the hall table picked up for 75 p at the 3:16 charity shop for my friend Ann's husband who suffered a massive stroke a few years ago. He's become a whizz at jigsaws. This one is 1,000 pieces of Waterloo Station in 1848 and 1948. Should keep him out of mischief for a while!

Everything charity shopped except shoes Primarni sale 5.00. East dress; Oxfam 7.00, floral cardigan; Independent charity shop 3.00. Tights, Red Cross 50p.

All jewellery charity shopped. Necklace 1.00 Salvation Army in Rushden.

I walked with my group again on Wednesday. It started out as a cold day but within an hour or so we were taking our jackets off. There was a lot of climbing. We walked 7 miles in Ampthill, mostly through Ampthill Great Park and woods; once the hunting grounds of Henry VIII. Katherine of Aragon lived in Ampthill Castle for a number of years till she lost her head... 

More OOTDs

Something else I wore this past fortnight inspired by an outfit I saw on Pinterest. The scarf was a mistake - too bulky. I should have used a finer one. Everything charity shopped. Black jeans; Donegal, black boots; Barnardo's Great Denham, orange cardigan by Wallis; 2.00 same place. Jean shirt; Cambridge charity shop about three years ago. Scarf charity shopped and earrings from Sainsbury's. 

Ooh! Shiny leggings. I usually wear these under walking trousers in the winter and I think they'd better stay there! I need a pair of black leggings. Something I have on my charity shopping list. Everything charity shopped except the boots; online retail. Can't remember where I got the tunic from.

My trip to see Hilary in Devon was scuppered. Something went wrong with the car and by the time I had paid out for garage bills (big) I couldn't really afford to go to Devon. I was so disappointed and so was Hilary,but I'm planning to go in the New Year instead and it will give me something to look forward to. Bloody cars! they always go when you can least afford them to or when you are most relying on them.

Everything charity except boots online retail. Jeans; M&S, Top; Next. Cardigan charity shopped in a Golder's Green, London charity shop on my birthday two years ago. It's a man's cardigan and has a little logo on the right side.

Jewellery and scarf charity shopped. Earrings from Topshop bought in 2002 . I remember buying them so well; I had given a presentation with a colleague to the Women's Equality Unit in the House of Commons that day and we then went to look at Oxford Street shops.  I treated myself to these earrings. They had them in mustard as well and I've regretted not buying them ever since. Maybe one day I'll come across a pair in a charity shop!

I recce'd my short walk (4.5 miles)  on Friday. It was a bright sunny day but cold. OH asked me if I'd like to go rummaging with him on Saturday as I wasn't going to Devon - of course I said yes! So on Saturday OH and I went for a rummage to St. Neot's. As I'd paid out so much for the car and I don't need anything I set myself a strict budget of 5.00!

The poncho top was 49p in Barnardo's, Ampthill. Everything charity shopped except boots; on line retail. 

It wasn't too cold so the poncho was sufficient. 

Tunic by Anthology; can't remember where I bought it but I did pay 7.00 for it which is quite expensive for me. I thought the label said 'Anthropology' so snapped it up!  Having looked at the price of Anthology clothes on line 7.00 is a pretty fair price and I do love it. Red jeans; Laura Ashley; black shirt underneath; Primarni 1.00 rail.

Can you see the new log basket I bought in Eastbourne?

All jewellery charity shopped. Picked up beads in the week for 99p in the Sally Army. It's next to Lidl's; that's my excuse anyway!

It was a good rummage in St. Neot's.  How did I fare on my 5.00 maximum spend? I bought a ball of pink wool (50 p); two necklaces (99 p and 1.50 p) some earrings (50 p); a pair of palazzo pants from the 49 p rail and Gap shirt for one of the grandsons for 1.00. Total spend 4.99. Naturally as I had a strict budget I saw a beautifully draped maxi dress, but it was 5.49.  I rarely see these type of dresses in my size in charity shops, so I was a bit gutted; then OH kindly bought it for me. What a star he is! It's not a bright colour at all, a sort of browny shade, mushroom? Taupe? Fawn? But I can spice it up with a colourful jacket and accessories.

Sunburst on L - Starburst on R

My crocheting has been going well. I planned to make 12 x 12 rows  of squares for this blanket and so far have crocheted one row of 12 green squares. Then I realised that instead of crocheting the 'Starburst Flower' squares I was actually crocheting 'Sunburst Flower' squares.  I'd got my Sun and Star flowers mixed up! What's the difference? The Sunburst pattern uses 4 rows of treble clusters whereas the Starburst pattern uses 1 row of 'puff' stitch and 1 row of 'cluster' stitch as well as 2 rows of treble clusters. So, my dilemma is - do I keep my row of green squares in the Sunburst pattern and do the rest in Sunburst squares or do I abandon what I've done and do 12 rows of Starburst squares? Then there's the fact I've used up most of my green wool stash (which was the intention) and don't have enough left to make another 12 in Starburst...after some thought I've decided to keep the 12 green Sunburst squares and use one in each of the the 12 rows. After all they look pretty similar don't they?

Christmas and welcome 2020!

Happy New Year to you and let's hope 2020 is a good year for us all!

The tunic challenge continues; but I warn you there is a lot of black and white...

Day 15 - Tunic Challenge

Leggings by M&S; Christmas present from my daughter last year; boots; Primarni retail. Lace tunic and heart shirt both from my Barnardo's.

I wore this to volunteer on the Monday before Christmas. There had been another 1.00 sale at the weekend and the rails were looking very empty in places so my job was to restock them as fast as I could...

All jewellery charity shopped.

Day 16 - Tunic Challenge

All jewellery charity shopped.

The last of the unfortunately, unrecyclable wrapping paper waiting to go up into the loft. Next year, I'm reverting to brown paper and ribbon and may try Vix's block print idea - see HERE

I seem to have no feet in the above photo! Leggings; retail sale ages ago. Tunic by Capri and cardigan both charity shopped but can't remember where. It was an asymmetric tunic with an interesting raised pattern that reminded me of the pattern that gets left when you've removed ivy off a wall. It's a very tenacious plant is ivy, and holds on to the surface very tightly. I say 'was' with regard to the tunic, as after taking the photos, I managed to splash bleach all along the front. It was relegated to cleaning cloths...I seem to have lots of blue tunics, so I won't miss it.

Day 17 - Tunic Challenge

This was my Christmas Day 1.00 outfit! Trousers by M&S and tunic top by Wallis; both 50p from my Barnardo's 50p sale. I think this top could pass as a tunic, don't you? In fact, I've finally worked out what constitutes a tunic. It's a top that's too short to be a dress but a bit too long to be a top. In that case I have more dresses than I thought...

I wore these lovely charity shopped 80s late 90s style shoes with my Christmas Day outfit; but after about an hour I took them off and put my slippers on. I'm just not used to walking in heels...

Earrings and necklaces; previous gifts from my lovely OH.

This was Christmas Day in our house - there were 10 of us...

Everything on my table is charity shopped. The glasses, the table cloth the table mats, napkin rings and the jugs and trays. The dinner plates were also charity shopped and the dessert dishes; but not the cutlery or crackers. Both bought in sales.  The candle was a gift from my brother Julian; but it's sitting in a small Christmas wreath that I charity shopped. The white tablecloth, which is folded down to fit this borrowed table, was a present from Mauritius from my Mauritian next door neighbour. The Christmas table mats in the foreground were sent to me by my Aunty Mary (Marian's mum) in the late 1970s from the States. I had a matching table runner but over the years it got lost so I only have the four tablemats left...

We had a great day; ate plenty, drank lots and played games. We did Secret Santa which cut down on the buying and the cost. Despite this my daughter still bought me 3 books from my wishlist; OH bought me 1 book, some slippers, some lovely soaps and an Ancestry DNA kit; of which more later...my Secret Santa gift was cash from my brother Mark and will be spent in the charity shops. My friend Ann bought me a lovely silver cuff  and I got perfume and chocolates from other family member. My youngest grandson bought me a beautiful big ball of wool in different shades of blue and green. He chose the present himself!

And on Christmas Day I made this surprising discovery in the garden - how odd. I think it may have been woken up by the mild weather...

Boxing Day at Marian's

On Boxing Day; or St. Stephen's Day/Mummer's Day as it's called in Ireland; we went to London and to Cousin Marian's. We had a lovely evening. OH made a curry out of the left over turkey and I took my rice cooker with us and cooked it there.  Julian met us there. We drank fab cocktails made from sloe gin, prosecco and elderflower cordial; they were delicious and each one had a blackberry in it. I drank quite a few it must be said, but OH was the designated driver so that was all good! I don't know what the cocktails were called as my cousin's daughter, who found the recipe on the internet, couldn't remember the name either!

Day 18 - Tunic Challenge

On Friday, as we were given a very generous gift voucher by OH's daughters we decided to combine a rummage in Rushden with a trip to Rushden Lakes; which is a newish shopping centre and has the store we wanted. I wore a brown leather charity shopped jacket; 9 euros in a Co. Dublin charity shop; charity shopped jeans, scarf and gloves.

All jewellery charity shopped except earrings; Sainsbury's. They used to do such good jewellery but the last year or so I haven't been impressed at all and haven't bought any from there.

Tunic by Desigual: charity shopped somewhere and boots; online retail.

We weren't able to find anything in the store as it had a very small home section; we could have gone to another branch in Milton Keynes, but I cannot abide shopping in Milton Keynes, so thought I'd look online instead. To me Milton Keynes shopping centre is like one of the 9 circles of hell in Dante's 'Inferno'. The Rushden rummage yielded 2 brooches and 2 pairs of earrings plus a maxi dress. I was looking out for 'His Dark Materials' book trilogy by Philip Pullman; having recently watched and enjoyed the TV series; but I didn't find any.

Day 19 - Tunic Challenge

All jewellery charity shopped.

I've spent an entire week without any walking or swimming. The swimming pool has reverted to holiday hours so they only do lane swimming at silly o clock in the morning; and I just haven't fancied a walk in this weather. I need to get back into a regime next week...

Can't remember where I got the trousers by F&F from or the striped tunic; top by Oasis. All charity shopped; boots included.

Day 20 - Tunic Challenge

Everything charity shopped except boots; a present.

All jewellery charity shopped.

I wore this to volunteer on Monday. There was a new volunteer in who does our stuff for ebay; I'd not met him before. We were inundated with donations and I spent all morning restocking the rather depleted rails. Found some bits for OH as men's clothing was reduced to 50p....

The period between Christmas and New Year is one that I enjoy. It's usually quite a lazy time - no work/volunteering,  less traffic on the roads, daily lie-ins, out of the usual routine etc. I am glad, though, when things go back to normal! OH really enjoys these lazy days, too. He had to return to work on Thursday, so we thought we'd venture to Cambridge for a really good rummage on New Year's Eve Day. I still had Christmas money left to spend after all...

Day 21 - Tunic Challenge

All jewellery charity shopped except the silver cuff - Christmas present from my friend Ann. I did some food shopping on Monday and visited the Castle Road charity shops on my way back. I bought this necklace there for 1.00; a brooch for 1.00 and a lovely summer dress for 4.99. It's been put away in my summer drawer...

Back to Tuesday's rummage in Cambridge. Everything is charity shopped except the boots which are from Primarni. The leggings by M&S were from  my Barnardo's; the lace top by Next from a 1.00 rail and the tunic with lace roses on the front was, I think, charity shopped in Donegal town.

Before we left for Cambridge I went back to my GP where I had my BP checked again having been taking the medication for almost a month. My BP was as the nurse stated 'perfect'!  I still have to continue with the medication, unfortunately. We caught the Park and Ride bus once we got to Cambridge; I was able to use my bus pass once again. I got lucky and found all three volumes of 'His Dark Materials' trilogy - I was delighted.  I also bought a H&M sleeveless yellow top for 3.00;  for summer wear mostly; but I could top it with a cardigan or jacket and wear it now. We started our rummage in Burleigh Street which has 10 charity shops - 3 were closed. We then walked to Mill Road which has 7 - 3 were shut; and on the way back to catch the Park and Ride bus on Regent Street found another 2. I bought a couple more books and that was it. I still have another five pounds left to spend!

My annual read this year was 81 books. I have a pile of books on my table that are TBRs (to be reads); they include my Christmas gift books, three library books I picked up on Tuesday morning, plus the Philip Pullman trilogy. I'm also awaiting three books yet to be delivered. That's my January and February reading sorted then!

On Thursday I was at the food bank in the morning. Oh my goodness the donations have come  in thick and fast and we are stacked to the roof. We have a chocolate mountain! People came in a constant stream this morning bringing donations with them.

Tunic Challenge - Day 22 (only 13 left to go!)

All jewellery charity shopped.

Tunic bought in Ireland in 2014; trousers by Laura Ashley charity shopped somewhere. Black kimono; present from daughter a few years ago and boots online retail. That's a Christmas tree musical box (charity shopped) on the floor; it had fallen out of the bag of Christmas stuff that had gone back up to the loft...

In the afternoon I went out for 6.6 mile walk through the Bedford streets. I just have to show you
 this house which is near to my grandson's school:

They do it for charity every year but I do wonder how much their electricity bill is!
It felt good to be getting back into my usual routine; I've missed walking and swimming.

I went for a rummage on Friday afternoon and did all the town charity shops - all 12 of them! I was looking for a black top to wear to a funeral next week and found 2; one in Keech for 1.50 by Frank Saul and one in the Mercy in Action shop by Mint Velvet for 2.00. I also purchased a new tunic (I've got rid of 3 since I started the challenge) for 3.50 in the Cancer Research shop, a spotted skirt in Mercy in Action for 2.00 and a greenish blue top by Toast for 5.00 in Oxfam. The handle on the bag I was using gave way while I was out; I've stitched it several times and it was just about holding on with two safety pins...I found a nice replacement in the 3:16 charity shop for 3.50. This was Friday's outfit:

Tunic Challenge - Day 23

This denim tunic by Free People was bought in the 3:16 charity shop back in September for 5.00. It had a lace at the front but I took it out. The plaid trousers were also charity shopped but can't remember where. Boots; online retail.

I had a sort out of my clothes when I got home and put 8 items in the charity shop bag. 5 items in bought today and 8 out...

All jewellery charity shopped.

I recce'd my walk on Saturday and caught the bus back. It was  6.7 miles and wasn't as muddy as I feared. The weather was bright and dry. I stopped for a quick drink at Felmersham bridge and the water level was almost back to normal - not like the last time I took photos of our river - the River Great Ouse.

Tunic Challenge - Day 24

All jewellery charity shopped.

I took these photos when it was dark outside so the light quality is not very good. Tunic by Store 21 bought on Friday's rummage; black charity shopped jeans. Boots; online retail.

I went walking on Sunday and walked nearly 9 miles. I saw what I thought was an amazing sight; 2 green parakeets in trees near youngest grandson's school! Now, I have seen parakeets in Hyde Park, Kensington Gardens and Kew Gardens all in London; and I know they've spread out from London into Kent and possibly Surrey; but I didn't realise they had come this far north of London. I contacted the RSPB and left a message. I tried in vain to get a decent photo...I was so excited by the sighting it made my day!

Back to Barnardo's on Monday. Busy, busy, busy. We've stopped donations for a few days as we had nowhere left to put them!  I wore a warm dress by M&S; charity shopped somewhere. My new to me plaid jacket charity shopped recently in Olney; I think. Floral tights and scarf also charity shopped.

Boots; online retail.

All jewellery charity shopped.

Tunic Challenge - Days 25 - 35

I am heartily sick of the tunic challenge and need to finish it. Here are 11 more tunics I've worn in the recent past on the blog - all charity shopped of course.

I started out with 39 tunics. Got rid of 3; relegated 2 to jumpers; bought one new to me (see above). By my calculations that is 35; yet I still have one final tunic to wear! At least 4 of the above tunics are ones I'd wear in the summer rather than the winter but it's still a lot of tunics whatever way you look at it! Note to self; DO NOT BUY ANY MORE TUNICS.

My next challenge is maxi skirts and dresses. I'm enjoying these challenges because it's making me wear almost everything I own. I shall do a skirt and top challenge after that; by which time it will be Easter and I'll be off to Ireland!

See you on the other side...