Petit Filoux

Travels of the body and the mind

2012-01-25T14:34:00.000Z

2012 has already been full of surprises for the Petit Filoux household. Amongst those, promised travels.

I shall tell more about this when the time comes, but until then I am preparing myself for travels of both a physical and spiritual nature. I would say wish me luck, but above anything, it is courage and strength that I need. Heeps of it.

I don't mean to be all cryptic here, but let's just say my road to happiness is full of obstacles. All of which I need to be prepared to face all on my own, with noone else's help but my own determination.

Quick crochet

2012-01-24T08:39:00.000Z

I've been teasing you with this for a few days now, and here's the time for a big reveal! Well a little one really, because this project is rather quite small... but very useful nonetheless!!

Father Christmas was rather generous you see, and he brought me a new fancy phone this year... and fancy phone = new cover, because I'm taking no risks with this baby. So I whipped this up in no time, with a little leftover yarn I had lying around.

Nothing fancy, just a practical phone cover. Does what it says on the tin pretty much. Rows of double crochet, a neat little trim a la Attic24, and bob's your uncle.

I'm rather pleased with this one. It's nice and soft, and very snug. Lovely!

:-)

At the weekend I...

2012-01-23T10:08:00.000Z

Enjoyed some newly purchased art displayed at the top of the stairs...

Together with the display directly opposite...

Marvelled at my new blooms...

And breathed in the incredible scent emanating from these beautiful flowers...

Started thinking about potential crafting projects...

And abandoned others until help is at hand...

Unfortunately, all the coffee in the world didn't seem to help...

Had fun stalking (and feeding) local wildlife from my bedroom window...

And finally put up our kitchen calendar...

All in all, a pretty nice weekend and a lot of new things for this January 2012. A very promising start I reckon :-)

Beginnings and endings

2012-01-20T08:15:00.000Z

Beginnings...

and endings...

Hopefully more to show for both very soon!

Which cake to bake

2012-01-19T08:25:00.000Z

This is the question I asked myself at the weekend. I was going to make a birthday cake for my nan and I couldn't decide which one to make. One from a Christmas present cookbook, one from a foodie calendar, or one I'd seen on a blog? In the end, I made two, the choice was just too hard.

I made an orange and yogurt cake taken from this year's Good Food calendar and the apple sharlotka I'd seen on Thomasina's blog.

Verdict? You'll only be seeing photos of the orange cake because my grandparents kept the leftovers of the apple one (guess they liked it!). And I wasn't clever enough to take a photo of it while I had a chance. Which is a shame, because it looked damn good, so pretty with the icing sugar powdered over the top.

My favourite was the orange one though, so it's a good thing we got to bring the leftovers home with us. It went in a flash, needless to say. So light and fresh, not too orangy or sweet, just the right amount. And you just can't go wrong with mascarpone icing!! (which I slightly altered by the way, didn't have any marmalade to mix in, so just added some orange pulp and a little orange juice - it was delicious!). I'm afraid I can't find a recipe of this online though, so can't give you a link to the recipe... would it be naughty to take a photo of the recipe and post it online? Mmm...

Baby it's cold outside

2012-01-18T08:23:00.000Z

Blimey it's freezing at the moment. No snow, just plenty of frost.

How to beat it? By wearing some of these:

And drinking some of this:

A duvet and thermal clothes would help too, but I'm not sure that would be a good office look.

There's no other word for it

2012-01-14T13:31:00.003Z

Happy.

Nan shawl

2012-01-12T07:47:00.001Z

I did it. I finished it on time, by the self-imposed deadline that was the 22nd of December. This gave me plenty of time to block the shawl and have it all dry and wrapped up before the arrival of the French guests on the 24th. Phew. I can't say it was a greatly enjoyable knit. It was put on hold for a couple of weeks before I messed up a couple of rows and had to take a few back as a result. Most painful.

But looking at the result, I'm ever so proud. It looks as intricate and delicate as I'd hoped for, and most importantly, my nan loved it.

In the end, it will have taken a lot of time, patience and concentration, but it was worth it. Although don't ask me to make a second one, that won't happen in a million years!!

ps: all details on Ravelry!

Hot chocolate

2012-01-11T07:27:00.004Z

The best thing about the weather being utterly dreadful is that we finally have an excuse to have a proper hot drink. A home-made hot chocolate. With real chocolate you know, not the powder stuff [chocolate curtesy of my mum :-)]

It was dreadful the other day, really cold and windy. This drink is exactly what we needed to pick us up. Utter decadence, a real treat. The secret recipe? Haha, the simplest ever! Fill up a mug with milk, tip the milk in a pan, add good quality chocolate (about 40g), heat gently until the chocolate has melted. Add a dash of ground cinnamon and serve up quick.

Drink up thinking the world has been made a better place.

Bulbs

2012-01-10T07:24:00.001Z

Last autumn, I planted my first bulbs. I'm not exactly sure why I didn't mention those before, but I guess I thought they were destined for well, not very much. I thought I'd kill them off before the start of winter. What has happened since has been an epiphany. I planted them in a lovely porcelain dish I'd bought a few years ago in a charity shop, and I carefully placed them at the back of the outhouse for the necessary darkness and cold. Every weekend, I'd check them to see if anything was happening. Lo and behold, they did start growing! I quickly realised they would never be ready for Christmas, but that didn't bother me, we had enough decorations in the house already. These would be lovely in January when the house was a little calmer. And here we are, January 2012. I measured the growths last weekend and they were finally high enough to be brought indoors. They have since been placed on a window sill, away from any heat source. They've already grown half an inch in two days, I'm so very excited!! Can't wait to see what colours the flowers turn out to be, I can't remember what I bought!!

Christmas leftover lunch

2012-01-09T07:59:00.001Z

Amongst the many nibbles I made on Christmas day were little filo pastry tartlets filled with a delicious dollop of pesto covered with a warm mix of mushrooms, garlic and parsley. In the days following Christmas and in my quest to use up leftovers wisely, I treated myself to one of the tastiest and yet most simple lunch I have ever made. I present to you the mushroom and cheese on toast. With a twist.

I topped the lovely mushroom mixture with bits of Stichelton, a wonderfully creamy and pungent unpasteurised blue cheese. The mushrooms had been cooked simply in a little olive oil, and once reduced, I added the garlic and chopped parsley. To reheat the mixture, I added a slice of home-made parsley butter to a small saucepan and reheated the lot. Couldn't have been easier.

I think I might make this in the future, with the sole intent of having it on toast. Honestly, it's that good. If you like mushroom, garlic and cheese that is. Of course.

Last bit of Christmas crafting

2012-01-07T07:34:00.001Z

Yeah yeah I know, Christmas is way behind us and everyone is trying to look forward, get rid of those needles and clean the place out. I was looking through my Christmas pics and realised I'd forgotten to mention this little craft project I gave myself. I thought you might like it, it's so quick and simple, yet sweet and effective! You can always squirrel it away until Christmas 2012...

So, the project? Name tags for the Christmas table! I needed something easy because I was running out of time - that lemon tart and salmon terrine weren't going to cook themselves. I needed the writing to be clear and legible, and I didn't want the whole thing to look twee, so I kept it minimalistic. The result? See for yourselves...

Red card folded in half with extra folds on either side to ensure the cards would stay upright. "Joyeux Noël" written in gold pen on the back of each card. Leaves cut out of dark green and light green foam, attached with a red embroidery cross. Names written adjacent.

I don't know whether I'll ever have the chance to reuse these name tags all together, but I have kept them nonetheless. A little magic of Christmas 2011 kept for remembrance.

Canterbury

2012-01-06T07:11:00.001Z

As I mentionned yesterday, we spent a few days in Canterbury. We had such a lovely time there, even though it was rather unexpected. We had indeed planned to spend more time in Whitstable, but this was not meant to be. Canterbury is a lovely place and we look forward to going back in the summer to enjoy it with a bit of sunshine. Can't say we were very lucky on that side of things! The sky was low and grey, not the best for holiday pics. At least we didn't have as much wind as we are having now, I thought the house might be uprooted last night! Not a pleasant feeling being in bed, lying down, wondering what damage we'll find in the garden. Anyway, back to Canberbury and it's wonderful cathedral. Please enjoy the photos!

You can just about see the off shore wind farms in the distance in the last photo. I find them beautiful, pleasing in more ways than one, not just esthaetically, but as a reminder of our need for more sustainable energy. Kent, I'll be back!

Hello twenty twelve

2012-01-05T09:10:00.000Z

It’s the 5th January 2012. How did this even happen. Christmas came and went in a flash, and so did our new year celebrations. It’s Day 3 of being back at work and I just wish we could go back 10 days. Oh yes it was crazy. Hosting Christmas lunch is not an easy task when you live in a small house, have limited working surfaces, and are a manic perfectionist. The last point especially might keep you up all night (not that it did really, I’m too much of a sleeping ~~monster~~ beauty for that).

Christmas was a resounding success and I’m ever so pleased everyone had a good time. I’m even more pleased my nan could make it and was able to enjoy our new home, our first house. I only wish my granddad was still around to join in the fun. Ah, life…

Since then, we have enjoyed time in the house on our own and it’s been so lovely. Mr PF was back at work last week and I spent my time doing house chores. Boring at times, but oh so necessary. Necessary so that when we both eventually went back to work, we wouldn’t have a mountain of ironing to face or all those niggly little things that needed doing. Sewing was done, a curtain was shortened, a futon cover was placed. I now have a new list of things that need doing in the house, but these are items that can be addressed this year, in 2012. No rush.

New year celebrations were enjoyed in Kent, not far from the coast. We did intend to stay by the sea, but a rather disappointing b&b let us down and we decided to pack our bags and find something better. We’ve had such encounters before, but we’ve grown up since, and we have the courage to pack up and go. It was a blessing in disguise really, because we ended up spending a wonderful couple of days in Canterbury. Huge tasty breakfasts, relaxing walks in town, cultural visits, yummy dinners.

A good start to the year it was. Fun and relaxing. I feel loved and that’s an amazing thing to have. This year is going to be a good one, I can feel it. I’m not one for resolutions, but I do like to have grand ideas to live by (listen to me, I sound like a right prat now). So what do I want in 2012? Lots of good times, happy times. Fun to be had at a couple of concerts lined up already, a trip to a good friend in Switzerland, a possible visit to family over in the States, the London Olympics, the wedding of one of my best friends. I want this year to be full of joy, stress-free, content. I would like to get stuck in the garden, make things grow, and possibly even eat the fruits of my labour.

Finally, a happy new year to all of you. I wish you all the best and all that you hope for. Thank you again for being there and reading Petit Filoux. It’s a place which forces me to stop and think. I love writing and this place does allow me to do so now and again (when I have the time!). It encourages me to record all these little daily things which make our lives rich and beautiful. Being a glass half empty kind of person, this is incredibly important. So here’s to 2012 xx

Christmas 2011

2011-12-29T10:20:00.002Z

I cooked
We laughed
We drank
We ate - a lot

We translated
We opened presents
He drove
We ate again - a whole lot more

Christmas 2011 was a good one, notwithstanding the fact that I only finished the washing up yesterday!

Hope you had a great Christmas too!

At the weekend I...

2011-12-19T10:09:00.000Z

Went to a Christmas party and fit in my dress. Admitedly, there was no space for the padded strapless bra but thanks to my modest frontage, fellow party goers were none the wiser and I was a whole lot more comfortable. I could actually breathe and eat. Bonus.

Watched snowflakes the size of a child's hand fall on the ground. Winter is truly here. Let's just hope the snow remains sporadic and doesn't mess up our Christmas plans. We've suffered enough in the last couple of years!!

Pealed chestnuts in preparation for a Christmas day chestnut puree. French traditions all the way.

Did some shawl knitting. I've given myself tomorrow night as a deadline for blocking. Nan should be arriving on Christmas eve (fingers crossed) and I hope to have the shawl blocked and dried by then so that the surprise isn't ruined.

Wore a new golden glittery top with pride at a famous jazz club in London Town. Totally blended in and felt very festive. The martini cocktail may have helped.

Pealed some more chestnuts.

Did some more knitting.

Made cranberry sauce and plonked it in the freezer. One less thing to do this week. (Ok, so not French all the way. The English have got a few things right and cranberry sauce is one of those!)

Thought about marzipaning my Christmas cake but just didn't get round to it. Was too busy pealing chestnuts and knitting a shawl.

Had a little internal weep over the state of my fingers. Handling boiling hot chestnuts all weekend and pealing approximately 1.5kg takes its toll. That puree better be good!

Thursday thoughts

2011-12-15T10:56:00.000Z

It's Thursday. I'm getting ready for Christmas. I'd love to have tomorrow off but I'm way too busy at work. I'm working as much as I can on the shawl. I was interrupted in my endeavours last night after sweet looking Felix had a bite at my arm. I was crippled for the evening (take my word for it, you don't want to see a photo of the marks those fangs left). Thanks Felix.

I've got a hair dresser appointment tonight. Wish me luck. We have about 20 different salons in my little town, and I must have tried about a third so far. I've yet to find The One. They better not mess up my hair though because I have a Christmas party to attend tomorrow.

I have started organising my Christmas shopping list. Different categories for improved efficiency: veg/ fruit, meat/ fish, cheese, other fresh produce, cupboard stuff. Will definitely need to split it up into a few shopping trips to ensure sanity preservation. Let's just say someone might be earning a few points on their credit card.

Finally, pretty photo of the sun setting last weekend, taken from our bedroom window. It hasn't been like that lately though, we've had gale force winds and torrential rain. All nice and dry by the time I had to walk into work though, thankfully.

Phew, countdown D Day - 9

Gratuitous cat photos

2011-12-14T11:34:00.000Z

Felix, the neighbour's cat is not allowed in the house. We don't want to give him bad habits you know? But since the weather's turned really cold, and he carries on wanting cuddling sessions when we come home, on a couple of occasions we decided to let him in.

On our terms though. He gets picked up from the front door and placed on either of our laps. He likes to choose who he sits on actually, and has a preference for Mr PF. I don't blame him (although clearly yes that is me in the photos).

He stays there for around 10min, after which he reaches his quota for cuddles. He lets you know in no uncertain terms when he's ready to go out again (ungrateful sod will go for the hand, sharp teeth and all). But who could resist that cute little face?

Christmas decorations

2011-12-13T15:45:00.000Z

It started with the tree...

And pimping out the stairs...

And embelishing the fireplace....

I am currently in a candle phase: every night, after dinner, I sit down on the sofa and light all the candles (one on either side of the advent calendar, two in the fireplace, two on the coffee table). The warm glow and gentle flicker makes the living room feel all cosy and warm. Couldn't dream of anything better.

Christmas, I'm all ready for you. Only seven more working days to get through...

Christmas welcome

2011-12-12T10:05:00.000Z

The inside of the house is most definitely Christmas ready. Twinkly lights galore, shiny baubles, old fashioned wooden trinklets and a little bit of tinsel for good measure. But I wanted visitors to feel the Christmas love before they even set foot inside. So many beautiful wreaths are on sale at the moment, but few are suitable for the outdoors. We went for a walk around the market on Saturday morning and I was tempted to purchase a bunch of evergreen branches. Mr PF shook me back to life, couldn't I make one of those myself?! We could walk around in the countryside and find our own evergreens right? I thanked him for such insight.

So yesterday I grabbed some garden twine and my trusty secateurs. No need to go for a wonder though, our gardens were able to satisfy all my needs.

Some beautiful holly from the front garden, some fragant pine and rosemary from the back garden.

Welcome to my home :-)

It's only Friday?

2011-12-09T08:45:00.000Z

That's what it feels like this morning. Still one whole day to go. One long day at that, topped off with a Christmas party. "Party" is a very generous word considering the company budget involved... anyway, let's not talk about sore points. Ahem.

This weekend should be really nice though. I haven't exactly got a plan in mind, but it will/ should hopefully include the following:

the purchase of our Christmas tree - the all very important decision of height and fatness, you know what I'm talking about.

guess that means the Christmas decorations will have to come down from the attic - always an exciting moment since I seem to forget what decorations we have from one year to the next. Yes I do have a rubbish memory.

a decision will need to be made regarding my nan's shawl. I've been faced with what feels like insurmountable problems, having to take back more rows than I care to remember. And I still don't have the right number of stitches on my needles. Not only is this totally perplexing, but it leaves me in a difficult situation. If I can't fix this tomorrow, I may have to ditch this project entirely.... Where's my knitting fairy, I need you!!!!!!!!!!!!

wrapping up until I resemble a Michelin man to attend a local football game. My presence and the purchase of two tickets was another one of my great birthday presents to Mr PF. Call me selfless. Although not selfless enough to go stand in the cold on Tuesday night. That was beyond my physical abilities. I have a serious amount of Mediterranean blood running through my veins and it's fair to say I. Do. Not. Cope. Well. With. The. Cold.

Finalising some Christmas presents. We've been very organised this year and once again, have made the most of the internet. How I love ordering things from the comfort of my own home!

Feeding the Christmas cake. I can hear him calling ~~my name~~ for more brandy.

Checking my bulbs and deciding whether now's the time to bring them indoors. Such anticipation has gone into this. It's the first year I've tried out bulbs and seeing them grow has been incredible. I thought I might have killed them off but no no, they're definitely growing! Would be lovely to have them in bloom for Christmas but I'm not sure how to get the timing right...

Drinking lots of hot cups of coffee. My weekend tipple. Even better when served in those adorable cups with some dark chocolate on the side. I might even try to make some mulled apple juice to take to the football. Oh gosh, can't I just go home now and forget about work? I've got so much to do!!!

Rocking chair - it was fate

2011-12-07T13:22:00.000Z

We have a little nook in our bedroom, between the left side of the chimney breast and the window. The perfect spot to relax and enjoy the beautiful view over the front garden and the green in the distance. Until recently, we were missing the essential tool to do just that. A chair. I'd thought about it occasionally, and dreamt of a rocking chair. My mum had a wicker one when I was growing up, but she gave it away. Funny how things go in and out of fashion. Anyway, my dream was brought to the forefront of my thoughts after I saw this inspiring post from my friend in Switzerland. This gave me the kick up the backside I needed. And boy did it send me flying. Right onto the phone to Mr PF, and straight onto ebay for some perusing. It was clearly meant to be, because a beautiful wooden chair was up for sale in a neighbouring town. Perfect, since this is the kind of item that is pick-up only, for obvious reasons! We waited and we waited and I went totally berserk in the last few minutes of the auction. We had agreed in advance on a maximum price we were willing to pay, and successfully defeated an opponent who went in at the minimum price (yes, this got terribly competitive!). So there, in the space of a couple of days, I went from being reminded about this chair which would make our bedroom feel so much more cosy, to finding a perfect one on ebay only around the corner from where we live, to actually winning it and bringing it home. How nicely do things work out sometimes? I think that's what they call fate.

An absolute bargain too, especially if you look at the price of new ones going out there... silly money! This one is in absolute mint condition, and the wood is simply beautiful. No nasty varnish to scrape off. It's going to stay as it is for the moment, but we may decide to paint it in the future. Until then, it needs a cushion. I need to get the sewing machine out.

I like to play pretend though and imagine that I've actually pulled my finger out and made up this tapestry kit I was given last Christmas... Can someone please stop the clock, there just isn't enough time!!!

Secret embroidery

2011-12-06T11:20:00.000Z

When I showed you photos of our little weekend away in the Peak District, I mentionned some secret embroidery. Secret it was because I was a little behind and was hoping to get it finished in time for the big day. Turns out I was one word short (this will make sense shortly!) in the end, but it did remain a secret - my needle and I put every effort into keeping this a surprise. Quite hard when the only time you're not spending together is when you're having a shower or using the toilet. Nice vision for you there, you're welcome.

The idea was to reinforce important concepts in a relationship. The basis for a happy couple. I'm conscious that sounds unbelievably cheesy, but we felt that sometimes, some of these important notions get forgotten about. And what better way to remind ourselves what love is all about than with a cute little embroidery to match the colour scheme in our bedroom. And my idea for a shelf covered in white frames. The first one I blogged about here remember? The heart frame? Oh yes, we've got a pattern going on.

So we have Understanding, with Patience, Love, Care, Kindness and Tolerance all branching off. Various shades of green embroidery floss. Natural linen background. Have I mentionned how much I love embroidery work? My mind is bursting with ideas. In a weird way, I can't wait for the new year to begin and Christmas to be behind us so that I can start on those new projects!!

Home-made advent calendar

2011-12-04T21:04:00.000Z

I always think it is quite interesting to see how people come up with ideas, what thought-process they go through, how things change along the way. A couple of weeks ago I started thinking about making an advent calendar for this year. As much as I enjoyed making last year's one, I'm not keen on all that paper being wasted. Best to make something which could be used year after year. That's when the concept drawing was born:

Interested in seeing the finished article? Drumroll please.....

Here we go! What do you think? Only space for little chocolates and small notes. We've gone for jokes this year... Anyway, back to the calendar. I used a square wooden board for backing, some natural linen for the background, some green yarn for the outline of the Christmas tree, brown felt squares to create a little pocket for each day, some gold beads to create the numbers. Some red embroidery thread was used to fix the squares in place, and a variety of buttons were used to embellish the tree.

It has taken centre stage on the chimney breast from now on, replacing the autumn wreath. Christmas is on its way!!!

Friday tales

2011-12-02T13:58:00.000Z

On Wednesday, I helped French union members find their way back to St Pancras to catch the Eurostar home. Yes, they had come especially for the day to support their fellow public workers. As if there aren’t enough strikes in France, they come here for extra practise.

I watched the Benton dog video (check it out on youtube if you haven't seen yet, it's hilarious) and because I’m a language sponge, I keep saying Jeez all the time as a result (after the owner’s Jesus Christ cries). Someone sort me out, my vocabulary is dwindling as I type.

I’ve messed up a couple of rows on my shawl, which means I’m going to have to take 3 entire rows back. I even went to see the Rowan rep at my local John Lewis at lunch time to see if she had a magical solution and her advice was to just “go one stitch at a time and go slowly”. Not what I wanted to hear. I t makes me want to cry.

Tomorrow we’re going to Cambridge to pick up a new sofa bed. Depending on the size of the package, I may or may not have to get home by train instead of the warm car. Wish us luck.

On the plus side, my advent calendar chocolate is waiting patiently for me at home. Can’t wait.

Birthday celebrations

2011-12-01T09:33:00.000Z

Not mine this time, no no, Mr Petit Filoux's. As you can probably work out, our birthdays aren't too far apart, which is quite nice I reckon. It means that when we want to, we can combine celebrations. But not this year, oh no. T'was way too much of an important birthday for Mr PF for me to even consider combining efforts.

So we trotted off to the Peak District for a long weekend and goodness I just can't wait to go back. Stunning scenery, and I'm conscious we only saw about 0.001% of it all... Nonetheless, here are a few photos, I'm sure you'll want to go there too by the end of this post.

Intertwined with this was a lush rented converted barn, lots of cups of coffee, some special kiddy sugar-filled cereal for the morning, an overly fancy shower with sideway jets and a radio, some secret embroidery (a late birthday present!), a scrumptious chocolate cheesecake and a Sunday-night curry from a curry house in a small town which was so incredibly busy, cars were double and triple parked. Still haven't figured that one out. Anyway, there it was, a wonderful weekend enjoyed by all. A few days away from the mayhem of the house and work.

November, you've been a good month. Can't believe it's the 1st of December already. Where has the year gone?! I've got a million and one things to do now to get ready for the festivities, but I feel a weight has been lifted off my shoulders now my advent calendar is all done. More on this tomorrow!!!

Photos of sunshine

2011-11-30T09:13:00.000Z

Whilst looking at the photos from Norfolk yesterday, I found a folder entitled "Summer". How perfect to remind ourselves of warmer times when it's so frigging cold outside? Perfect I reckon! It's dark when I leave the house in the morning, and it's dark when I leave work, so it's nice to remind myself that it just won't last. Fancy coming along on the late summer ride? How about starting with a glass of elderflower cordial, whilst relaxing on a deck chair in the garden, reading French magazines?

Or enjoying breakfast in the back yard... wow this seems like a million light years away!

Making the most of colourful flowers in the living room...

And late blooms outdoors too...

The last barbecue of the year with homemade burgers...

Water drops after a short shower...

Felix le chat playing in the front garden...

And that late summer sky, so full of heat and blooms and light...

I think I need to start thinking about a holiday in the sun!!

Day trip to the coast

2011-11-29T09:03:00.000Z

Admitedly, I'm a little late on this one. It happened a couple of months ago, but let's face it, September wasn't a great blogging month for me! Only the thing is, I stumbled upon the photos of said day trip this morning, and I felt compelled to look at them. Who doesn't like photos of the sea, good food and happy times? Beautiful produce, blue skys and sun rays? Exactly. So there, please sit back and enjoy these photographs taken on the North Norfolk coast, when the sun was still high in the sky and temperatures were a little higher.

I ♥ North Norfolk

Gold and silver twigs

2011-11-27T20:26:00.000Z

That's effectively what I had in mind last weekend. I ended up stinking the place out, even the next door neighbour came out in the cold to find out what the hell I was doing. Oops. Backtrack a few hours, this is what I started out with:

Some twigs, some gold and silver spray paint, a vase begging to be filled with seasonal ornaments and some newspaper for protection.

Fast forward a few days (for drying, the paint does smell quite a lot), add some shiny baubles and here it is!!!

I'm quite excited at the result of this super quick project. Ok the spray paint didn't come cheap, but there's plenty left in there and now I'm left buzzing with ideas as to what to make with what's left. And it did trigger the buying of the cutest christmas baubles - aren't they adorable? I'm still wondering what to do with the rest of them, there were 100 in all sorts of colours in the packet after all!

Autumn wreath

2011-11-25T19:00:00.000Z

It's not Christmas time yet, it'll still be a couple of weeks before Christmas decorations come down from the attic. Until then, I wanted something to cheer up the house. It's mighty cold out there, and the candles have made their first outing this week. What better way to make the most of the candle-lit chimney breast than by having a lovely autumn wreath placed in prime position?

The inspiration was taken from this lovely website. Practically on the same night I saw it, I went on a hunt for a polystyrene ring and some yarn. I settled on some beautiful yarn which I'd had my eye on for quite some time, although never knew what I could do with it (will tell you the name of it when I find the label!). A few days later, I started wrapping the wool. Two hours it took me. A rather long and boring job, but so satisfying to see it grow before your eyes. A good programme on George Harrison may have helped to keep my brain in focus.

I then started to think about embellishments. Something simple, not too crowded, that made good use of crafty resources already in my possession, whilst showcasing the beautiful yarn. Some felt and foam leaves were cut, wooden and mother-of-pearl buttons were used, red yarn and ribbon helped it come together. Even a lovely red crochet flower I had won from the lovely Miss Mary was attached. I think it shows it off beautifully. All different bits were attached using some thin metal wire. So from concept drawing...

To the real thing...

What do you reckon?

Fancy coming round for a cup of cocoa?

Green shawl - the beginnings

2011-11-24T16:44:00.000Z

Three times I started it. Clearly I needed to pay more attention. I was distracted. First it was late one evening, then it was early on the train into work. I don't perform well if I'm feeling tired you see...

A good few hours later and this is what I've got... I'm thinking this is going to take me an absolute age to finish, and I'm really going to have to try very very hard to have it done in time for Christmas. There's a challenge if I've ever set myself one. So no reading on the train, commuting time is strictly Knitting Time.

Before I go, I'd like to say a massive thank you to a very helpful blog friend. I was hoping she might be able to help me at a time of need late one evening because she has an iphone. And I was hoping she would be like me if I had an iphone, and that would be to keep an eye on comments coming through on my blog. I'm so grateful to have this knitting blog help at hand. Mooncalf, thank you and your wonderful iphone. How about that for a 24/7 knitting helpline :-)

Making ahead - Christmas is on its way

2011-11-23T20:17:00.000Z

It is indeed the time of year to take a few minutes to relax and think. It’s time to make the Christmas cake. This year, I will be hosting my most exciting Christmas so far. It will be the first one in our new home, my first Christmas in my very own house. Plus, my mum and nan will be coming over from France, and Mr Petit Filoux’s parents will also come and join us. That means I shall be cooking for 6. That’s a lot in my book. Especially when you’re only ever used to cooking for two, maximum three, and some have different expectations or needs. So anything I can make ahead of time is a bonus, because it is my goal to keep the whole affair relaxed and enjoyable.

And to be able to do so, one has to prepare. This is like music to my ears, because I love making lists, making things ahead of time and being or-ga-ni-sed. And what actually requires to be made ahead of time? A Christmas cake. It ticks all my boxes. So as usual, I have followed my flexible recipe. I’m thinking lots of prunes, apricots and figs this year. Lots and lots. With lovely orange and lemon zest, none of that candied peel though (does anyone actually like that stuff?!).

I can’t wait to tuck into this one. Maybe with some homemade ice cream? Yeah, my head is buzzing with ideas and making ice cream means another thing which doesn’t have to be made at the last minute!

Little cinnamon kiss

2011-11-21T22:00:00.000Z

A couple of weeks ago, a fellow Freecycler was giving away some flour. I'm not a right skank, it wasn't just any flour you know! It was Dove's fancy spelt flour, organic and all. I jumped at the chance because I'd always wanted to try it, but could never get myself to pay the money they ask for it in the supermarket. Not knowing where to start, I thought I'd stick to the recipes on the back of the packet. Can't go wrong, right?

Correct! These little cinnamon and honey bites (because they are indeed tiny) are very moorish. But not to the point whereby you might be tempted to down the lot in one go (no, I have no self-control, this has happened in the past), which is good in my book. The best bit is, even when they go a little stale after a few days, they are delicious dipped in a cup of coffee.

Next on the list was a fruit cake recommended by the lady who gave me the flour. She was so kind, she photocopied this recipe for me. It would have been rude not to try it. So off I went, with my imaginary apron on (I really must put those in a more accessible place so I start wearing them), and got cooking.

This cake is really lovely, but not all that either if you see what I mean? I guess it's just a little too christmassy for my liking, in the sense that it's packed full of dried chopped apricots, figs and prunes, and the zest of a lemon and orange, all of which I put in my Christmas cake. So it's not bad at all obviously, just not what I was expecting from a non-christmassy cake. The positive side of it though is that using that special flour hasn't altered the texture in any way and I would definitely use it again. Until then, I might just have to make a few more cinnamon bites.

Map of hearts

2011-11-18T07:34:00.001Z

You know how sometimes you see something and your immediate reaction is, I could make that! Unfortunately, I think this is something quite common in the craft world. If I see something that I like, I'd much rather have a go at making it myself than parting with my hard earned pennies.

A while back, I saw this. It lingered in the back of my head, I thought it was quite a neat little idea, but I . So when it came to Mr Petit Filoux's birthday and I got myself stuck with the idea that I was going to give him as many presents as the number of years he'd spent on this little planet, I needed all the help I could get, or rather ideas. I needed a lot of ideas. So this came creeping out of my brain and became reality. I picked locations close to our hearts, just his, just mine, places we'd been together, places that had a significance in our lives. And this is what I came up with. I'm really pleased with it and I can't wait for the house to be in a state where we can put pictures up.

A collection of places and hearts. Happiness.

Me and my staircase

2011-11-17T07:04:00.001Z

It's practically become a love story. Me and my staircase. My staircase and me (I?). I spent an unholy amount of time bent down over those steps on both Saturday and Sunday, making sure all little corners were covered. One coat of primer, coat no.1 of paint, coat no.2 of paint, coat no.3 of paint... and I won't even go into the sanding work that was done before that... epic it was...

Mr Petit Filoux couldn't help you ask? Well he could and he tried. But the control freak monster peaked its dirty little head out and couldn't face the idea of anyone else touching the allmighty staircase. He just might not do it as well as me, you know? So in the end, he didn't get much of a chance to be fair. I took control, I made my bed and I lied in it. Four coats in total, left side down, up the stairs, right side down. My back was cripple by the end of it, and I swear I couldn't have faced doing a fifth coat, good job it didn't need it. But what can you do when you just can't let go? You keep your mouth shut and you get on with it.

Now all we're waiting for is for the carpet people to come back to fit the stair runner. And that will mark the end of the new flooring saga, the mayhem we've lived in for the last few weeks, the scary emptying of our bank accounts and the restoration of both my sanity and my craft life. Oh how I'm missed you!!

Mum's scarf

2011-11-16T08:57:00.000Z

I did it in about two weeks I reckon. To be fair, that's all I did. Morning and evening on the train, and very occasionally in the evening. Mostly on the train though, my commute never went so fast! Ends are sewed in, and the beauty of this Baktus is that it doesn't need blocking. The last thing I want to be doing in this manky weather is spraying something with water and waiting for it to dry. Because that might just take more time than I can handle.

Since this photo was taken, I've actually wrapped it. I know, totally bonkers right?! I'm pretty sure I've never wrapped a Christmas present in November. Oh well, there's a first for everything isn't there? And it means that as soon as we get our tree next month, there'll be a little present at the bottom cheering it up.

Christmas still feels like ages ago to me, most probably because I haven't been in the shops much, and therefore haven't been brainwashed with carols and garish decorations. But who cares, I'll be focusing on that photo of stripes a little longer. Don't you love stripes?! I think I may be developing an obsession...

87 pence

2011-11-15T10:35:00.001Z

Actually, they were 29p a bunch. How could I resist?!

ps: Thanks for your shoe storage advice, I need to give it some more thought! The door has coloured glass in the top section, so we can't use a standard over the door hanging solution, but it's given me ideas! Thanks everyone!

A cry for (shoe-storage) help

2011-11-12T11:39:00.000Z

I know you readers, you're full of imagination and come up with the most wonderful things. Now, read closely, because I'm counting on this skill of yours to help me out. Big problem in the Petit Filoux household. We don't know what to do with our shoes once we come in through the front door.

Now, I appreciate this may sound a little odd, but work with me here. When we used to live in our old flat, we had a fairly wide entrance and were able to put one of those little wooden shoe shelves in a corner. Not the most beautiful pieces of furniture, but practical. However in the house, the entrance is really small (it's a cottage after all), and in the four months we've been here, we haven't been able to come up with a viable solution. Let me explain it to you. A little sketch might help? I thought so. Here's an aerial view of the entrance:

What we've done so far is pile up the shoes behind the door (see my wonderful additions to the drawing in green), creating little towers until you actually can't get out the front door. Not good. I'm prepared to be disciplined and only have a couple of pairs each out at once (day shoes/ trainers for example), but even that, well that's 8 shoes that need to fit in somehow. I've looked all over the place (shops/ internet) for clever solutions but haven't seen anything that would suit us just yet. As you can see, there's not much space on either side of the front door either, which means once you step out of the porch, you're effectively in the living room. And once I close the curtain which separates the porch from the room, I don't want to be looking at shoes near my sofa.

That's where you come in! Would you please have a look at my sketch and try and help me? If you have any sort of suggestion, particular shops to check out, something to make even, I'm all ears! We need help!!

Furry visitor

2011-11-11T08:26:00.000Z

Right, we're talking furry visitors this time. Not the slimey type. Eurgh no thanks.

No no, this time round, think a much much cuter type of neighbour, all ginger and white, with the softest fur ever. It must be a posh cat if you ask me. Those finer traits, shiny coat and delicate manners gave it away.

Looking all posh and gorgeous...

Getting a back massage by Mr PF... ha, not really. I know the photo looks rather weird (not sure what I prefer, the hands so neatly put together, clearly a lot of concentration going into this, or the look on the cat's face), but I think this was the end of a full head-to-tail petting sesh...

But regardless, my heart belongs to this little cuddle monster. He runs to say hello most evenings when I get back from work and clearly enjoys our cuddling sessions as much as I do. He lets me pick him up like a baby (that he is, only a few months old still) and for that I am eternally grateful. So good-natured, so mental at the same time (I think he sees ghosts in our garden, I've never seen a cat jump out of their skin like that).

I ♥ Felix le chat

Soft and squishy

2011-11-10T07:06:00.003Z

That's how this lovely, lovely yarn from Loop feels. Like I mentionned yesterday, I totally splashed out on the most gorgeous yarn ever. To be fair though, I was quite restrained and only bought one skein. The temptation for more was great, but the bank might not have been too happy. A case of yarn vs. bills. I'm not sure finance people would understand my reasoning.

Anyhow, here it is, a sneak peak. I'm ashamed to say I haven't even started the project I bought it for. It might be time to get myself into gear though, if I don't want to feel the shame of having to give a Christmas present after Christmas.

The idea is to make a nice warm shawl for my French nan, who I don't get to see very often these days unfortunately. I made her one a couple of years ago, and apparently, she's worn that one so much, she could really do with a replacement. This one is guaranteed to be warm too, being a mix of baby alpaca, silk and cashmere (hence the great urge to bury my face in it everytime I see it). Now, let's hope my nan does indeed want a new one and my mum hasn't got the wrong end of the stick... At least it's green, so it'll go with her eyes (is that how all old people reason?!). So here we go, wish me luck, I'm thinking of trying out this pattern.

Happy (b)day

2011-11-09T10:24:00.000Z

It feels like moonlights ago now that we had a real Indian summer. Not so much of a summer, more of a few days of completely bonkers weather. This pretty much coincided with my birthday about a month ago and I can tell you, I have never worn flip flops in and around my birthday. Totally unheard of. Mental.
This unseasonal weather made for some very enjoyable time in the garden, and even more enjoyable birthday celebrations. Mostly spent indoors but still, the nice weather was appreciated when walking outdoors was involved. It seems so strange thinking about it all now, as I'm feeling so cold all of the time and thinking there's either 1/ something wrong with me - is everyone else this cold all of the time?! or 2/ I should really think about getting my winter clothes out, jumpers, gloves, the whole thing - although what am I going to wear when it gets really cold? I have to pace it out... Anyway, back to the happy days in the sunshine hey? A little bit of walking was necessary to go to this wonderful place, a true alibaba's cave...

I may or may not have drooled all over the place and fingered every bit of yarn I could (before any yarn prudes have a heart attack, this was a joke, calm down, I feasted with my eyes)... And I may or may not have totally splashed out... for a good cause though, I hear my nan might be in need of a new shawl...

A quick pit stop was needed and cake was a definite requirement. A bit of culture with that too, one of my favourite (free!) museums in London...

Followed by some more culture. An absolute treat to be able to walk into a bookshop and just pick books off the shelf and decide I quite fancy the sound of this one and that one, even though I've never heard of them before.

And this stop provided some amusement to Mr Petit Filoux when he realised what the name of the shop was. Because I have a very odd way of pronouncing it. Totally wrong I'm fully aware, but more exotic sounding than the correct way. Something along the lines of PerSEphone (accent on that second syllabe), to rhyme with Stephany. Don't ask.

The birthday day finished in true style with a tasting menu at a Michelin starred Indian restaurant. Indian food is one of my favourite foods out there, and life wouldn't be worth living without curry. The food was to die for, and my tastebuds went to heaven and back. No photos of that I'm afraid because I was too excited (and shy) to get the camera out. One photo was attempted. The result? A blurred photo of myself because I practically jumped out of my skin when I realised the flash was on ;-) So all in all, it was a lovely day. I always feel uneasy whenever my birthday comes up, and tend to focus a little too much on the loved ones that are no longer with us and cannot share the day with me. Mr PF tried really hard though and I'm so grateful for all the wonderful things we did, I had a fantastic time and a head full of beautiful memories!

This morning

2011-11-08T11:03:00.000Z

I was ironing his long sleeve pale blue shirt. It goes nicely with the lovely silk tie I bought him for his birthday. Today's a special day and it was my way of helping. A nice clean crisp shirt to start on the right foot. It's rather unlikely any of the interviewers will notice how handsome he looks, but I left feeling quietly confident.

Good luck Mr Petit Filoux!

One apple festival later…

2011-10-26T08:40:00.000+01:00

And we’ve found out that the apples we’ve been enjoying (very very much thank you!) in apple and cinnamon muffins are indeed eating apples. Instead of piling on the sugar pounds, we could have been enjoying these apples raw, and they do taste rather wonderful I must say. So fresh and crisp, sweet and sharp, a really nice balance. A flagstaff variety apparently. Clearly a modern onesince I’m actually taller than the tree itself.

But regardless, we bought some more at a local apple festival. We got a few kilograms because they're taste is simply out of this world, nothing like supermarket apples. If you have a local apple festival near you, I urge you to go! You might also find a stall that sells apple and frangipane cake… how could I resist?!!

And you might also get to meet some rather interesting characters... An apple festival on a clear and crisp autumn day which involves eating cake and stroking soft wool, you just can't beat it!

Stripe déjà-vu

2011-10-25T08:15:00.000+01:00

She saw it two years ago now. Thought it looked absolutely smashing (and no, those weren’t her exact words, it is my mum after all). She said she would love one exactly the same. Blue and white stripes, so chic, so timeless. And so bloody warm too.

Two years down the line and I thought now was the right time. Let’s hope it was indeed a timeless wish to have the same scarf as me. This will make part of her Christmas present and I hope she likes it. So far, I’ve spent 6.5 hours working on it, pretty much every waking minute spent on the train in the last week or so. Apart from the 1.5hr journey where I fell asleep, bang in the middle of the afternoon. Oops.

I want to finish it as soon as possible because I’m itching to start on something for my nan. And that is bound to take me much, much longer…

Cat adventures

2011-10-24T07:59:00.000+01:00

We left the front door open for a few minutes to give the carpet fitters some time to bring in their tools and materials. That's all he'd been waiting for. Just a few seconds of the front door being left unattended.

A bit of exploration amongst the boxes?

Clearly he couldn't resist the opportunity. Thank goodness he just didn't decide to mark his territory...

Jelly bandwagon

2011-10-22T09:33:00.000+01:00

I've totally jumped on the jelly bandwagon. Don't even think this is a weird welcome back post by the way. It's not. Uhum.

So, back to the jelly. Everyone with a pair of eyes and access to the countryside will have noticed how bountiful the crop of wild berries and fruit have been this autumn (because yes, it truly is autumn now, there's no doubt about that! Long gone are the flip flops worn with pride at the start of the month!). Anyway, I digress. The fruit. Amazing wasn't it? Well I got tempted by all the resourceful blogs out there posting about making use of them.

So off we went on a Sunday morning to collect some crab apples. I like the look of them and I like their name. We don't even have a proper name for them in French, just something along the lines of "wild apples". How rubbish is that hey?! So there, I felt a need to go and get some of my own, and fill a little bag. I didn't want much, I'd never made jelly before after all.

Let's just say this: you will now have to tie my hands back to stop me from making jelly. It's so amazingly easy!! Much less faff in some ways than making jam, because you don't have to peel/ core the fruit (anyone who's made damson jam and taken the time to get rid of all the stones will know what I mean). Just bang it in a pan, add some water, boil for a while, put through a muslin cloth overnight, add sugar and boil (exact recipe was taken from Preserves by H. F-W.).

The flavour is really interesting. Not overly sweet or sharp, but quite different to anything I'd tasted before. I'm a convert. If you haven't got round to it yet, there's still time, those crab apples were begging for a jam-jar-home.

Tongue-tied

2011-10-03T15:49:00.000+01:00

I have a million things to say and at the same time, not much at all. Ideas are buzzing around my head and I don't know where to start. Similarly, I feel I don't have anything that interesting to say either, so yes, dear readers, I'm feeling a little tongue-tied.

Of course, what is interesting to one might be dead boring to another. Yet more photos of pretty flowers or 'in progress' shots of another crafty projects might not be what you're after. At the end of the day, this blog is really about jotting down ideas, keeping a record of what I get up to, while at the same time interacting with the fantastic crowd of people (you!) who sit behind your screen and read little blog of mine.

It all started over two years ago now and I can't believe it's been that long. 17th July 2009 it was. Blimey.

Life was slightly different back then and work perhaps a little more sparse. Less work = more time for blogging, there's no doubt about that. I'm now facing the fact that I'm not only more busy with work, but I now live in a house which is slightly further away from the train station, hence increasing my commute time. And let's face it, living in a house means heaps more things to do. My mum rightly said to me once, there's always something to do in a house. Always something to work on, to fix. I experienced just that yesterday when I spent a large part of the day gardening, or shall I say weeding. Not so glamorous hey?! But very rewarding, no doubt about that.

So, dear readers, I shall stop apologising for my inconsistent posting schedule. Boyfriend tells me that is why I seem to have lost countless readers and get very few comments these days. My answer to that is that this blog is meant to be enjoyable, enjoyable to both myself and my readers. And if I don't feel like posting, well it's just not going to happen. So I'm sorry to those of you of enjoy regularity, consistency and routine. Petit Filoux doesn't feel quite up to it these days.

Blogging has been a real interesting journey for me and has opened my eyes to a million tiny beautiful facets of the world that I live in. Something I reckon non-bloggers should be forced to take a look at what happens over here because they're missing out on so much. Not appreciating what's right in front of their eyes you know? Not understanding why it is that I feel the need to lie flat down on my stomach at the beach to get that perfect photo of pebbles... Not seen that one yet? Yes, I must tell you about our little jaunt to the sea.

So anyway, for someone who felt a little tongue-tied I haven't done too badly have I?! Well done if you're reading this and haven't felt the need to close your eyes with boredom. Continuous drivel or train of thought? Hmmm... You never know, I might be back tomorrow with a maximum of two sentences and five photographs. Someone's lucky day.

Cheap as chips

2011-09-21T14:15:00.000+01:00

We all love a bargain right? Well I'm sure you'll be impressed with this one. A supermarket find. About 5min before closing time. Mr Petit Filoux pointed them out and I just couldn't believe my luck. Not the apples, those are from the garden. No no, look behind.

Aren't they beautiful? So so colourful. This is ~~where~~ when I'll be buying my flowers from now on. They ask silly prices for flowers here at the market, and I refuse to pay high prices for flowers that don't even smell or last very long. At least when you pay 29p to 69p a bunch, there's only smiles all round.

Even more smiles when you get to enjoy said flowers in a bargain jug, found in a tiny little charity shop in Staffordshire last week. I did indeed take 10min out of my working day to peruse around the place and it was oh so worth it. Got a couple more treasures, but will save those for another day! Before I go though, have a look at the other bunch of flowers I got for under a quid. Quite a good flower day I reckon! It's one flowery happy home :-)

Matching frocks

2011-09-20T21:10:00.000+01:00

Do you ever get the feeling that something just Has. To. Match? No, just me? Well, maybe I take it to the extreme sometimes, but when I came home to find a delightful and most useful addition to our bathroom, I knew I had to tweak something. It's not like there's some sort of colour scheme in there to be fair, but there was something that just stood out and I couldn't let it slip. It's a room that gets very much used, and I want it to look as pretty as possible while staying practical.

Enter a crochet hook and some yarn. Add a little time, some measurements, double crochet, some frogging and a little more patience.

What comes out? A cover for my contact lenses liquid bottle. I'm starting to feel more and more that unless packaging is stylish, I have little time for it. And this bottle as it was originally definitely didn't help the bathroom look. There's still much to be done of course, but I reckon this little crochet coat helps quite a bit. (Yeah, I'm thinking calling it a bottle 'coat' sounds pretty cool. And probably makes me sound fairly mental. I can live with that.)

Happiness is where the heart is

2011-09-19T15:01:00.000+01:00

I felt this was especially true during the last week or so, when I was sent away for work and didn't particularly enjoy it. I'd left my heart at home and felt rather miserable so far away from it. Having just moved in my first proper home, I felt a little hard done by to have to stay away for so long, which probably didn't help. But work being work, there wasn't much I could do about it. So after a few tears and several phone calls, I managed to pull through.

This little old lady definitely helped me get through it. There's nothing quite like a truly lovely dog who greets you as you're only just getting out of the car, and within a few seconds goes to find the nearest stick (/twig/ piece of tree trunk, whetever was nearest!) to play. (And yes, I'm a little off cats at the moment after my delightful little shit of a cat-neighbour has decided to start using my lovely gardens as a toilet and using my cute little bench as a scratching post. Not impressed). The goat was equally lovely, although it was more interested in eating my jumper I reckon.

That favourite room?

2011-09-09T08:26:00.000+01:00

Not that I'm trying to convince you or anything. But you tell me this wouldn't be your favourite room too if this was the view you had first thing in the morning?

Yep, thought so!

Have a lovely Friday everyone, the weekend is around the corner!

Who knew?

2011-09-08T09:07:00.000+01:00

It would be so frigging difficult to choose a carpet colour. One that will match our future curtains and wall colours (that haven't been picked yet!). One I'll be happy with. One that doesn't look dirty before it's even been used.

I never knew there were so many shades of beige/cream/ off white. Someone help me.

Well actually I've been trying to help myself by making little colour montages...

Quite inspiring I think! And so much fun to make too... If only there was no budget to stick to!

Apples from the garden

2011-09-07T08:10:00.000+01:00

I mentioned these muffins I made at the weekend in yesterday's post, and to be completely honest, I have to write down the recipe straight away or else I might forget it! The muffins are now all gone... I'm already thinking of making another batch..

The muffins were a bit of an experiment to be fair. Basically, we've got a wonky little apple tree growing in the back garden and the apples looked pretty good and ready to me on Sunday. So I plucked three to see what they were worth. We're pretty sure they're cooking apples, and I didn't feel adventurous enough to bite into one, so I decided to cook with them. "Cook" in the loosest sense of the word. I made muffins for goodness sake.

I used a Nigella Kitchen recipe as a basis and totally adapted it to what I had at hand and the fact that I'm pretty lazy. And don't own a dishwasher, so I did my utmost to only use one bowl. Washing up takes up waaayyyyy too much time in my life right now. Anyway. Here's what I used, and here's what I did.

Ingredients:

2 eggs
100g honey (place your bowl on a scale!)
100g vegetable oil (place your bowl on a scale!)
125g light brown sugar
3 small apples, peeled, cored, chopped
2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp baking powder
140g plain flour
110g wholemeal flour

Method:

Preheat your oven to 160degreesC.
Line a muffin tray with cases. This makes 12 muffins by the way.
Mix the sugar and the wet ingredients in a bowl.
Add the apples.
Mix.
Add all the dry ingredients.
Mix.
Plonk the mixture into your lined tray.
Bake for 20min.
Leave to cool down for 5min in the tray then transfer to a wire rack. Scoff the lot 30min later.

At the weekend I...

2011-09-06T08:35:00.000+01:00

Despaired at the cloudy start to Saturday only to rejoice at the real summer's day that ensued.
Made the most of it by having our very first barbecue in our new house. Very first barbecue of the year too. Oh dear, in September, that says quite a lot doesn't it?!
Enjoyed some lovely wine brought back many moons ago from a holiday in the south of France. Oh memories...!
Made wasp traps... which didn't end up having a purpose as for some unknown reason, the wasps didn't come out that afternoon...
Watched a very poignant movie. Not exactly your Saturday night happy laugh-out-loud movie, but I'm pleased to have seen it. Another reminder of what human nature has done...
Used another spare notebook to make a house inspiration/ decoration ideas notebook. Lovely. Makes me drool, makes me dream people!!!
Had fun with the neighbour's cat. Felix is my new garden buddy. Every time you're out, he comes and finds you. A nice cat that enjoys human company and snail hunting (see below).
Went on another snail hunt. Felt very brave and went on a slug hunt too. During the day, the little buggers rest under bricks we have in the back garden.
Made myself feel quite ill due to the above point. Actually physically unwell. I did find the biggest slug I'd ever seen in my entire life.
Started making plans for Christmas. I know, I know. I wish train/plane/hotel companies allowed us to be a little more spontaneous, but this is the kind of world we live in.
Made some apple and cinnamon muffins. Best ever. I'll try and post the recipe later on this week. If you know what's good for you, you'll try it.
Enjoyed the torrential rain we had on Sunday by lighting all the candles in the living room. It felt magical! Hey, if you can't beat it, you might as might as well make the most of it!

Christmas presents

2011-09-05T08:09:00.000+01:00

Before you run a mile, I'm not talking about Christmas 2011. Oh no. Go back a few months and set your mind back to Christmas 2010. You were given plenty of lovely presents, but unfortunately one was a replica of something you'd been given only a year before - and there's only so many pasta machines one person needs. So you apologise profusely and obtain a voucher instead of the original present. You buy yourself something with that voucher but realise that said item is not in pristine condition and decide to get replacement. You go to the shop, only to find they don't have any more in stock. So you leave with money in your pocket, instead of a voucher. Result! Suddenly a world of possibilities opens up before you and you consider spending your pennies somewhere else. What to choose, oh the dilemna! Suddenly, you think of little things you've been meaning to buy for some time, but couldn't quite justify the expense. But now, you can and it's really a Christmas present so it's allowed right? Oh yeah. I present to you my late 2010 Christmas presents. Chosen by me. It doesn't get any better I reckon! I feel like a kid in a sweet shop. Or an adult who's been to the library and come home with lots of goodies. Only these I get to keep :-)

:-) :-) :-)

Nearly there

2011-09-02T08:08:00.000+01:00

Would you believe it, I've nearly finished my first item of handmade clothing!! I'm talking about this crochet top for those of you with a good enough memory!

The annoying thing is, in normal circumstances, I would have finished this about a month ago now. But throw in a house move in the equation, and suddenly things become a tad more difficult. No pins at hand, all packed in a box. No towels to pin garment to to block it, all folded and put away in a bag. And to be fair, even though I might have been able to retrive those items, I didn't think Mr Petit Filoux would have been overly impressed in having a bit of crochet drying amongst the mountain of boxes.

So it's there, patiently waiting to dry. It will be time soon, I promise. I'll make the time soon to finish it up, surely getting it bloked is already a massive step? It's a summer top after all, and I'd be truly gutted if the summer came and went and it didn't see the light of day (and a little warmth? Indian summer anyone?).

So hang in there, it won't be much longer now before I can sew in the ends, stitch it together and crochet the final bits. May not sound like the most exciting bit of crafting, but let me tell you, I can't frigging wait.

Garden notes

2011-09-01T08:35:00.000+01:00

Instructions:

Take an old but much loved notebook you've had since university.

Carefully count the number of pages left and work out how many you can get for each letter. Yes that's right, you're now going to be cutting each page very carefully in order to create "alphabet dividers"! Such fun!

Find those magazine cuttings you've been keeping for a while because you didn't want to throw all those clever tips away. Stick them on the appropriate pages.

Enjoy your lovely new garden notebook and think of all the wonderful things to come in those little outdoor spaces of yours :-)

Finally, think about improving the look of the dividers and the cover too - I was just too excited to show this to you, I just didn't take the time to finish it properly!

Inspiration

2011-08-31T08:48:00.000+01:00

Sometimes all you need is a little push. Or simply a fantastic idea which you can implement without having to buy very much at all. In my case, simply some double sided tape.

Spend some quiet relaxing time going through magazines which were going to end up in the recycling bin and find those magical images which help create these wonderful bits of tape.

The lure of the envelope was too hard for me to resist. I just had to join in you know?

Thank you Ali, and of course Kirsty for such great inspiration. It's just so pleasurable making something with only tape, paper and scissors. Back to basics crafting!

Cadeaux

2011-08-30T08:32:00.000+01:00

First of all, I'd like to thank all of you for your comments on my last post. Whilst I found some to be rather on the defensive, I appreciate all of them and all have been useful. We have not reached a decision as yet, but I'd like to make it quite clear that I wasn't trying to find "excuses" not to get a cat, no one is forcing me to get one (or two), but rather I was trying to write down every thing that could possibly annoy us or make use change our minds. Isn't it best to consider every possibility before bringing it into our home?! Anyway, I do not wish to defend my position against people who clearly have a manichean view of the world with those that love cats and those that don't. Some on us love animals but simply like to make informed choices. Now, onto today's post if you will!

Living somewhere new means people want to share your joy. And make it even bigger than it already is (your joy that is). (And yes, I realise that sounds totally weird and foreign! I'm sure you get it anyway). So anyway, they feel that one way of doing just that is to give us presents. We have been given a few so far and honestly, it's just so much fun to get new things! They don't have to cost much, it's just the novelty you know? So far we got a few goodies from France (more on those some other time)...

The finest washing machine in the land...

Some seating for our garden... I could eat that fabric I love it so much!

And a generous aunt is helping us stay in touch with music in the kitchen.

Finally, we got ourselves a little present too - one that consists of a table and two chairs - surely there are some nice days left out there during which we could sit our little bottoms outside in the garden and soak up those rays? Bought in the sale too, so a completely reasonable purchase, I'm sure you'll agree!

Now, I don't want to sound like I'm gloating, and life has proved to have its ups and downs, but it's feeling pretty damn good right now. So, let's enjoy what's left of August and keep all our fingers crossed that an Indian summer is on its way...

Cat or no cat - that is the question

2011-08-27T08:09:00.000+01:00

Actually the question really should be "cats or no cats". Oh dear, I need some help.

Basically, we have wanted a pet for ages. Living in a flat where pets weren't allowed and with no access to outside space meant is was a complete no-no. But we now live in a house, so what's stopping us? Well, quite a few things actually.

After dog-sitting the neighbour's dog a couple of weeks ago, we realised a pet really would be a lovely addition to our home. We gave it some thought, looked at information on a local rescue centre's website and last week, we even went to visit a couple of cats, two sisters, that matched our "criteria" (sorry, I hate having to use that word in this context). (For the record, we'd both prefer a dog but full time jobs and commuting mean that's just not an option unfortunately).

The cats were gorgeous, that's not the problem. Actually, it might have been easier if they'd been moody little shits, we should have just thought, forget about it, it's just not for us. But they were terribly friendly and looked a lot of fun.

So here is our problem. We're just not sure whether to take the step or not. Pets make great additions to a family, but are we ready for the commitment yet? And there are so many downsides that we just can't shake off....

having to give up some amount of cleanliness in the house. Cats climb everywhere and you just don't know what they've been up to when you're out at work all day
having to deal with cat hair getting everywhere
feeling a little nervous about leaving them on their own in our new house for about 10 hours each day...
having to compromise on the type of carpet we had our eye on because apparently you can't have loop carpet with pets...
the financial commitment is quite large and maybe not the best timing, having just bought a new house and everything. There will be the food, the litter, the vet bills, the cost of jabs and chipping
the extra worry when organising a holiday (and possible expensive bill at the cattery...)
Mr Petit Filoux is most probably allergic to cats. Not a great deal, but maybe enough to make the whole idea have to go away entirely
not knowing where we could fit the litter tray. The house is rather small and there just aren't that many options...
having to clean up after them if they've been ill on carpet/ furnishings
the risk that they might scratch wooden flooring and soft furnishings
the possibility that they'll dig up flowers/ plants in the garden

I love cats but all these things are making us think twice about it. I know this sounds like a list from hell, but they're all things we have to consider and accept if we do indeed decide to adopt some cats.

What's your opinion on the matter? Any tips or suggestions?

What were you doing this morning?

2011-08-26T08:09:00.000+01:00

In the "what we you doing" series, I bet your heart didn't beat as fast as mine did a couple of mornings ago at 6.15am. Let me tell you the story...

Mr Petit Filoux got out of bed first and without his glasses on, couldn't quite see what that dark patch was on the wall. There definitely wasn't a hole from the previous owner hanging a picture there at that height...

Close you eyes, he tells me, I have to turn the light on. (Yes I was lounging in bed.)

Oh. My. Goodness, he says.

I jump out of bed and subsequently jump out of my skin too. There is the biggest spider I have ever seen in my entire life in this country right there, on my bedroom wall, chilling out above the radiator not far from the open window.

Mr Petit Filoux offers to squash it. I say no, it'll only make a mess on the wall. Call me an animal lover. So off I trot down the stairs and grab our biggest pint glass from the kitchen. And as if by magic, my nerves calm down, I trap the spider in the glass and slide a piece of paper so I can carry it outside right at the far end of the garden.

But before that, I insisted Mr Petit Filoux take a photo. For the record. The biggest spider ever in my living memory. Fat body and fat legs. Look, that's a pint glass. And there's a human hand for scale too.

You'll have guessed right, we've slept with the window firmly shut ever since.

At the weekend

2011-08-25T07:31:00.001+01:00

Soulemama does "right now" posts so well, I thought I'd try it myself... although of course I'm a little busy and posting tends to be delayed a little somehow... I'm sure noone will mind though! And it's quite nice doing a little retrospective anyway...

At the weekend I:

* Enjoyed lovely flowers scattered around my home. I can actually say "my home" now which is rather unerving... and terribly exciting!

* Prepared lunch for some garden helpers. The weather was good, new tools were purchased, gloves were worn (through? already?!). We've started the battle of the gardens. And we're enjoying some seasonal cuttings on the mantelpiece - I'm in love!

* Was thinking that my crochet top is long overdue. It just needs blocking and sewing up woman, get your skates on! Did I do anything about it though? Not yet, *sigh*...

* Got a little sad that we've had to say goodbye to our furry friend... and already thinking of a way to fill his ~~shoes~~ paws...

* Painted my toes red. Meant to do it in my favourite shade so far this year, Marron glace by Mavala, but a party meant it just had to match...
* Tried to make the most of the weekend and not let myself have a heart attack after the quote we were given to get the carpet changed... now, where's that lottery ticket gone?!

Transformation no. 2

2011-08-24T08:22:00.000+01:00

It all started as an old table covered in stains...

But after a little sanding...

A coat of primer...

Two coat of lovely paint (I ♥ Farrow and Ball tester pots!) and a coat of varnish, it's looking truly wonderful! Now all that's left to do is paint the spare room/ office in which this will be living in...

Favourite room

2011-08-23T07:40:00.001+01:00

I'm sure everyone must have a favourite room in their house. Somewhere you might like because you feel comfortable in it, somewhere you can relax, somewhere you can read in peace, or somewhere you can sing to the top of your voice without anyone taking notice. My favourite room? The bathroom. Might sound like an odd choice to some, but let me tell you why.

The house on that side is east facing and on bright clear days, the view of the sun rise from the bathroom window is simply incredible. You can feel yourself slowing down, breathing a little deeper, closing your eyes with the sun rays coming through. Any day that starts that way has got to be a good day, no doubt.

And when you have a beautifully smelling rose which has found a new home right there, I'm pretty sure it can't get any better than that.

Transformation no. 1

2011-08-22T08:25:00.000+01:00

It all started as a bunch of flowers given with much love, and even more youthful innocence...

Because they were indeed fake flowers... but regardless, they were admired and enjoyed, and treasured they have been for the last 6 years...

Until some scissors got into my hands and an idea popped into my head...

Much better I reckon, don't you think? That way, they're not stuck in a corner of the living room, but enjoyed each and every single day. It can't be a bad thing to be reminded of young and innocent love, surely!

ps if you like the look of that little blue table in the top photos, keep your eyes peeled for Transformation no. 2 later on in the week!

Dog sitting

2011-08-20T16:27:00.000+01:00

He's only small...

But that doesn't stop him to have a larger than life personality - wait until you walk away, upstairs (where he's not allowed) or throw him a ball in the park ...

Or wait until he gets used to you and the routine sets in... here he is waiting for Mr Petit Filoux to get home from work...

We'll miss him when we have to give him back. No more cuddles on the sofa. No more hairy company under the table when we have dinner.

But then the cleaning will have to start. Oh dear, where to start?

What were you doing last night?

2011-08-19T09:57:00.001+01:00

Sounds like a dodgy horror movie doesn't it? Well after we'd a few hours of torrential rain yesterday evening, I went out in the garden armed with a plastic bag in lieu of a bucket, and another plastic bag in lieu of a glove. Hey, you work with what you've got, right?

No no I didn't go and pick flowers, I'm not that bonkers. Well actually you may decide that's debatable, because I did go on a snail hunt. I feel rather strongly about anything slimy (I blame these little buggers) so I couldn't leave them wondering around the garden knowing the amount of damage they can cause to my beautiful plants.

So I picked. And picked. And picked. And half an hour later, let's just say my bag was rather heavy. First major positive. First implies second? Yep yep. I found a casualty of the torrential downpours, a beautiful pink and most fragrant rose.

ps you'll be glad to know the snails didn't come to any harm and were gracefully dumped at the back of the green on the other side of the road.

And back again

2011-08-11T10:33:00.000+01:00

It's been totally hectic here. I feel like I've been swirled around, bashed against walls, dropped off for a second, and off I am again. Only this is it for a while. Busy work and busy weekends aren't making for a quiet time to look forward to though, so I'm trying to calm down and take it all in while I have a spare second.
The Petit Filoux household spent a few relaxing days in France. Some were more relaxing than others actually, and some were definitely much greyer and wetter than others. But we still tried to make the most of it; I had so much food I felt like a dumpling.
We are getting a new, albeit temporary, member of the family tonight. More on this later. Let's just say it's a he, with four legs, a small appetite and a need for two walks every day. When he's not feeling lazy.
We need to decide on new carpets for the bedrooms. I'm definitely part of the wooden floor boards family, but Mr Petit Filoux is most definitely a carpet man. So we compromise. Wooden floor boards downstairs, carpets upstairs. Now we just need to make our minds up. The selection is ridiculous. Who knew there were so many different types of carpet out there?!
I'm struggling to get back in the blogging routine. Taking photos, downloading them, writing posts, it all takes some time! I know I've said that before, but it's true, living in a new house makes things a little complicated. Things aren't where they should be, the to-do list grows bigger each day... you know the drill, it's just life I guess!
I'm trying to loose some weight. Broken record? Kind of. Only this time I hope to be serious about it. I look back and see a succession of half hearted attempts which all start with good intentions but fall down the drain as soon as I get peckish/ anxious/ stressed/ down right hungry. Like right now. Someone lock me in a room and throw away the key. And feed me healthy food at regular intervals. Please?

The lost month

2011-08-03T08:48:00.001+01:00

I totally missed June with the move etc. I did however carry on taking a few photos so this post will be an eye feast of this month lost to estate agents, solicitors and mortgages. And yes, I did actually mean to post this in June, but I guess life just got in the way! I think you must have noticed that, since I'm rather erratic in my posting these days! So, here goes for June...

Spending a day at the races... don't get me started on the fact that money most definitely doesn't buy class. No I'm clearly not talking about the queen here, but rather about those scantily clad ladies who thought the more was on display the better....

Enjoying an unexpected bunch of roses (they weren't really for me, we just forgot to bring them to my nan when we went to visit her! Oops)...

Indulging in my annual pea podding exercise...

The rest of the month must have disappeared in the sea of carboard boxes that became my life for a few weeks, because I can't actually remember taking any more photos...!

Music in the park

2011-08-02T10:54:00.000+01:00

I'm well aware we are now in August and it's absolutely baking. But let's not forget what July was like hey? Anyone notice the weather?! At times it felt like autumn. Not a good feeling when summer should really be in full swing.

The Killers at Hyde Park

So even though a couple of concert were eagerly planned and booked - surely an outdoor event in July will be alright? - we enjoyed a good few hours in the rain. On two occasions. The first time, we weren't very well prepared and got home soaked through and through and shivering to the bone. The second time we actually checked the weather forecast and donned our wellies. And carried a couple of umbrellas too. We just didn't want to look out of place.

Elton John at Hatfield House

It's funny how easily one forgets how utterly rubbish the weather was only a few weeks ago when the sun is now firmly in place and warming our hearts and skins? (I know, rather poetic don't you think?! I'm making the most of it, you know it won't last!)

Eyes wide open

2011-07-31T20:17:00.000+01:00

I'm taking it all in. Trying to make the most of the nice weather. Enjoying where I am at this stage of my life.

Thinking of what can be done to the house, getting a little inspiration from those freebies (thanks again Freecycle!)

Enjoying flowers in and out...

And making the most of the "out" yet again, taking advantage of the warm warm sun to clean and dry winter woolies...

Getting ready to sample some home-grown, albeit not by me, fruits of my garden...

It's frigging amazing I'll tell you that for nothing. If you can feel pride and happiness in this post, I think you're on the right track. Just keep going.

Lovely weekend

2011-07-25T19:53:00.000+01:00

We had an absolutely superb weekend here in the South East of England. The sun shone its heart out and the temperatures were for once in line with the calendar. It was such a pleasure to have a little walk around the gardens, looking out for newly flowered blooms. Oh the joy of seeing little bees covered in our pollen!

We made the most of the weather and started making a dent in our mountain of dirty laundry. The move and the near wintery temperatures meant it was nearly as tall as me. But then of course the downside of clean clothes is that our ironing pile is the size of a small Greek island. Actually that reminds me, I must set up an "ironing station". Maybe seeing it all ready will encourage us to embrace the iron (not literally of course)? You never know.

We also had some family visit, which was a good incentive to give the place a good clean and tidy. The house now feels more and more like a home and it is just so exciting. Plans are being made for small touches of (cosmetic) renovation, and I feel so giddy about it, I can't wait to get stuck in! Just putting up a new towel rail has given us the DIY bug!

Family visiting obviously meant food had to be prepared, and I'm sorry to say I didn't even get a photo of the table covered in all my tasty offerings. One hungry cousin was rather too eager to get stuck in. I didn't think mentioning the blog would be a great move. So there, we had marinated olives, 'oeufs mayo', tuna and sweetcorn sandwiches, cherry tomatoes with basil leaves and mozzarella on little skewers (my favourites!), hummus and veg sticks.

For pudding, some little chocolate biscuits, an apple tart (both from the supermarket, I haven't quite got to grips with my new kitchen yet!) and of course my trusty old chocolate and peanut butter brownie for pudding. That I can make with my eyes closed.

I wish I could say there was some left, but you know how it goes...!

The slug chronicles

2011-07-21T15:32:00.000+01:00

Well I did it. I stayed up and waited for them. I got myself in a box unpacking frenzy, tv flickering in the corner, torch firmly in one hand. I couldn’t risk disturbing their naturally dark night-time environment by turning the light on. No way was this going to get messed up. So I kept my fingers crossed that they would turn up as per usual, and made a deal with Boyfriend that perhaps we should take turns to stay up, in case they decided to make an appearance at 4 in the morning. But no, they were quite well behaved actually, they only went and turned up at half past midnight!

I couldn’t believe it. I shone my torch on the front mat out of habit, not expecting to see anything, but there they were, two little wriggly things. Totally innocent looking actually, much smaller than the ones I’d 1/ seen on the internet (horror stories galore!) and 2/ caught drowning in our beer traps.

We waited around, let them have a good dig around the mat – that is what they seemed to be coming in for! Hooray, finally an answer!!! We couldn’t for the life of us figure out why it was they kept coming back. The answer to that is that they seemed to find ample food in between the hair of the mat. They kept burying their little heads in there. I could practically hear them smacking their antennas in delight.

So after cooing over them – aren’t they small, aren’t they not scary at all!! – we decided it was time for action. One of them seemed to make a move for the sides of the mat – an exit perhaps? Yep, totally. So before it vanished down the side boards, I used a couple of bamboo sticks to pick it up and drop it in the beer. As the next one moved a little bit later and headed for the same direction, beer came to the rescue once again. They may have provided us with answers, but we weren’t going to let them get away with it.

Our next move? Go to bed. After that? Well, we removed their source of food (yummy old dirty foot mat!) and spent a few pennies in a large DIY store to get some supplies. We used some sealant around the entire area of the front porch where there were clearly gaps between the flooring and the walls and waited for a miracle.

A miracle which has indeed happened since. No more slugs in the front of the house!!! Go us!! We were so pleased, and rather relieved too. No they’re not supernatural monsters who come and slurp on our floors during the night for no reason. They’re looking for food and they come in through tiny cracks. Fill the cracks and they’re gone!

We still plan on getting air brick covers (any suppliers anyone? We’ve found some on the internet but they’re rather pricey…). Getting them covered seemed to stop the problem in the kitchen at the back for a while. They have occasionally come back since, but that could be due to the tape coming off the walls slightly, or them finding another entry point – not hard in a kitchen where there are a lot of gaps for services.

So there, the fight isn’t over yet but we’ve done pretty well so far. We haven’t won the war yet, but we’ve totally won a major battle.

For any of you out there who have a similar problem, I cannot recommend enough staying up to see where they’re coming from/ where they try and leave from. That was the best thing we ever did and helped us solve the problem quickly enough. Ok it means you might have a late night, but it’s oh-so-worth it.

My first

2011-07-19T07:44:00.001+01:00

Very own door...

Little rotten bench...

Glass cabinet...

Lavender buds...

Apples...

Yes, I love it all!

Uninvited visitors

2011-07-18T07:45:00.002+01:00

We have some uninvited visitors. Unfortunately not the type that can be satisfied with a bowl of pasta and a bottle of wine. Or crisps. Or whatever, you get the idea.

No, we have uninvited visitors who come into our house for god knows what reason. And only at night. Sounds suspicious yet?

Hmmm it's rather disgusting actually. We get slugs coming in every night (the little buggers are nocturnal) and have a wonder around the living room. They used to come in the kitchen too but we seem to have sorted that one out. Because we have indeed turned into demoniacal Slug Busters. Like Ghost Busters only slightly more creepy in my mind.

The reason why we've sorted out the kitchen is because we're currently trying every solution under the sun to get rid of them (unlike our neighbours who seem content on hoovering/ mopping every morning...). Slug pellets? Salt? Beer? We've tried it all. And I can tell you that finding a slug that has drowned in beer first thing in the morning is a rather weird feeling. Combined excitement of having killed one with the fact that they, yet again, have made their way inside.

During the course of last week we decided to find out where exactly they were coming from. We can't just carry on putting salt outside, it's not practical, and I think it's turning us into slightly demented and obsessed Slug Busters. So we taped plastic sheets over all our air bricks. We thought they might be coming in from there. Now before anyone calls Building Control on us, we know you're not meant to cover air bricks, this is just a temporary solution to work out if indeed that's how they're coming in. We'll eventually buy some mesh covers instead.

But still, one (or more?) is coming in the living room. Always in the same area. The night we put up covers on the air bricks it got really angry and left us an extra amount of goo on the carpet (are you grateful yet that I have chosen not to include any photos in this post?). I think it's upset. But we don't care. Only we're getting quite angry that we can't figure out how they're getting in.

Cue the final solution. Stay up all night in the dark with a torch and wait. Wait for the little buggers to come out. Then we'll fill whatever hole they're coming through and hope (for the sake of our sanity) that they never return ever again. Please.

Come back later this week for the next instalment of Slug Busters...

And she's back

2011-07-17T14:58:00.000+01:00

Hello everyone!

Sorry I’ve been away for so long, it’s just been a few crazy weeks. Between the packing (and mental last minute packing), the cleaning (first of the house, then of the flat before handing back the keys), moving (until 10.30pm…), blogging just didn’t come into the equation! Not having the internet at home for a while and no up and running computer didn’t help either.

But I’m now I’m back and ready to give you glimpses into my new home! I love love love, love it! It’s absolutely incredible to feel that you own a place. And being able to spend two hours in the garden weeding is an exceptional feeling. Before I would have spent every evening making dinner, eating dinner, watching tv, making the next day’s lunches (with help from Mr Petit Filoux of course). Now, I can spend time outside, taking in the fresh air, making the most of the nice weather. And even when it’s windy and overcast, it just makes you feel healthy. A little bit of physical works does wonders for the mind and soul. And I can’t even say I’ve missed that living in a flat. I’ve never lived in my own house, so this is all new to me. I hope to learn as I go along, and will be eagerly picking up gardening tips from your blogs.

Come with me on this adventure, I can tell it’s going to be a heart-stopping roller coaster!

Time

2011-06-22T14:27:00.000+01:00

There’s no time to do crafty stuff. And show it off.

Actually, that’s a lie.

There’s plenty of time to show things off, just no time to actually make them, like I said. Little time at the house, lots of time at work. Time that I’d love to be spending at home, sorting through stuff, putting things in boxes, labelling said boxes.

Unfortunately, the very reason why I’m in a position to buy a house (working and therefore getting a salary) is most definitely getting in the way at the moment. I want to be at home, getting things done, crossing things off my list. Which means that I’m neither here nor there.

I’m struggling to find words to put down on this little blog, so I’m sorry for the silence around here these days. I just don’t know what to write about. Possibly because I’m already in a mental packing state. When I start unpacking, I may have more to write about, but who knows.

So there, I’m still alive. But I just wanted to let you know that I’m not sure when I’ll be blogging regularly again. It could be tomorrow, it could be next week. We’ll just have to wait and see won’t we? Until then, I’ll resume my list making and blog lurking (yeah sorry about that, been keeping up to date with all of you and have had a distinct lack of energy when it’s come to comment writing).

So there you go. Don’t be angry, don’t be sad, just wish me luck and I’ll see you on the other side!

Last bit of Normandie

2011-06-17T08:18:00.000+01:00

Totally totally late. I know. But I still wanted to post about this. Because amidst the chaos that is work/ packing the flat away/ my mum being over for a few days, I had to cheer myself up and think of holidays again. Oh how nice it was back then! It seems like ages ago now, which is quite worrying. This year has just flown by and even though I know where it went (Cambodia, looking for a house, Normandy), it seems a little scary that we’re pretty much half way through 2011 already.

Anyway, today’s post wasn’t meant to get everyone down, to worry about how time is going by so quickly and we’re all getting old and it’s bloody scary. No, I wanted to remind myself of lovely days gone by, wonderful days enjoyed by the seaside in France. Everyone loves pretty photos right? Follow me then. We started in Honfleur, not far from where we were dropped off by the ferry…

Walked along the lovely beaches of Deauville which looked like they should be somewhere in the Caribbean…

Enjoyed some beautifully sunny days along the coast of the Presqu’ile du Cotentin…

And some not so sunny days at the Mont St Michel where the views where simply magnificent…

And the abbey was equally charming…

The trip was rather educational too and we visited several World War II memorials, cemeteries and museums, some new, some we’d been to before…

It was very emotional at times, as you can imagine, but I do think that visiting these places on a regular basis, reminding ourselves about what has happened in our countries, does a lot of good to our way of thinking and view of the world. There’s nothing quite like it to make you feel terribly grateful for what you have. And work to ensure that atrocities like that never happen again.

Here's to holidays that make you think, relax, and be happy.

The war is on

2011-06-16T08:49:00.000+01:00

The air con war. Anyone working in an office will know what I’m talking about? It’s getting slightly warmer out there, and some people’s first reaction is to turn on the air con rather than open windows.

Wrong. Move.

It’s 8am and I get to the office. A couple of guys who come in before me are always really hot (hot flushes?) and turn it on straight away. Lazy bastards, can’t be bothered to open the windows. Instead of sitting down and giving themselves a bit of time to cool down, they just reach for the easy (and most definitely not environmentally friendly) option.

So this morning, I got in, turned off all the air con units and opened practically every single window in the office. Not being funny, but I won’t have the air con on when it’s actually cooler outside. What’s wrong with some people?

Not only does it use up a lot of energy, it dries the air out (and my contact lenses), and spreads germs around. The air con units we have are also about a million years old and positioned in such a way that they blow on certain people’s desks and not others. Alright when you’re getting fresh air, not so good when your paperwork and hair is being blown around.

So there. The fight’s on. Emails have been sent around to encourage people to open windows first, and turn on the air con if it really gets too hot, to no avail. Some people still can’t help themselves and turn it on without asking other people if they’re happy with it, and without getting people to close windows, which is down right stupid and selfish. So I’m taking the matters in my own hands and opening windows left right and centre. Bring it on.

Planning and packing

2011-06-14T08:20:00.000+01:00

Planning has well and truly started. Packing? In full swing my dears

We are indeed planning on moving in our new home in about 3 weeks' time!! The Petit Filoux household is unbelievably excited at the prospect, but there are a million and one things to do before the move. Oh and the move itself also needs to be planned.

Wish us luck, there are cardboard boxes to be found, a van to be rented, utility companies to sort out, a ton of people to be informed of the change of address... I keep making lists about everything that needs to be done. Won't be long until I start making lists of lists. Not even joking.

Waitrose is our top friend at the moment. No health and safety nonsense there, they can give us enough boxes to pack away our whole life. So helpful, it's bordering on ridiculous.

I am feeling my age though. I handled a few heavy boxes on Sunday night and managed to hurt my back somehow. Anyway, it still hurts. I can feel my youth slipping away.

Right, best get back to work, aka this annoying thing that gets in the way from crafting and packing. Honestly, what a cheek.

New old project

2011-06-13T07:39:00.000+01:00

You know when something doesn't quite work out? You plan for it, look forward to it, get everything sorted out and prepared, but somehow, life gets in the way and it just doesn't happen. No movement, no progress. About 10 months ago, I posted about this project I had in mind. I'd bought the yarn in a hurry so that I could take it on holiday. Hours were to be spent on trains, I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to get some crochet done.

But life had other plans for me. Hot weather and busy holiday-ness meant crochet was at the back of my mind, or more specifically, at the bottom of my suitcase for the following weeks. Then came autumn and winter, and it just seemed daft to work on a summer project. So I put it away and that was that.

More recently, I made a list of various projects I wanted to complete in the near future, and that project crept up again. I'd bought the yarn after all, I couldn't and wouldn't let it go to waste. I finished my tapestry project, the round cushion, even made a cushion insert using the sewing machine, did some birdie cards. I had to face up to it, it was time to start on the project. Nowhere to turn. I couldn't avoid it any longer.

So what did I do? Totally embraced it. I'm showing it to you now, and the back is actually already finished! It's grown quite quickly really, this has taken me just 10 days to do. Now, before I loose my crochet mojo, I plan on finishing this presto. Wish me luck, it's my first garment after all.

My two worries? That it'll look rubbish on me and that I might be running a little low on yarn... Fingers crossed hey?

On my doorstep

2011-06-10T08:38:00.000+01:00

I'm slightly ashamed. And equally joyous. Last weekend, we visited a historic home (English Heritage type of property) literally on our doorstep. It couldn't have taken more than 10min to drive there. We knew it was there, but had never made the effort to pay it a visit. The glorious sunshine was had last Saturday (and an event which meant we got 10% off tickets) were a perfect opportunity for a visit, which we embraced in the greatest way possible.

An elaborate picnic was prepared by yours truly (preparation actually started on Friday night - quiche always tastes better a day old), and enjoyed in the sun on our Betwys-y-Coed blanket - oh holiday souvenirs!

Nibbles of filo pastry filled with either blue cheese and pickle or sweet red onion and feta, tomato and red pepper quiche, mixed summer salad...

After this filling lunch, we ambled our way through the gardens, the maze, the rose patch, the vegetable patch...

Before heading towards the house. Unfortunately cameras aren't allowed inside, but to be honest, the best of it was outdoors. I feel so privileged to live near such a great beauty. And even though the entry price is such that you wouldn't go every weekend, I'll definitely try and take my mum there if we have time when she's around and the sun is out. If you're ever down this part of the country, I wholeheartedly recommend it.

Summer in a glass

2011-06-08T08:19:00.000+01:00

It's that time of year again. Not many browning flowers down our end, actually a lot more buds in the waiting.

Last saturday afternoon was a perfect time to collect flower heads, going from one bush to the next. The weather was amazing and the elderflower trees heavy with fragrant bounty.

30 flower heads later and 2 1/2 litres of golden liquid ready to be consumed. Now I just need to make sure it doesn't get demolished in the next few days, it really is very good!

Alfa and cushion love

2011-06-06T21:35:00.000+01:00

The Beast has been renamed.

She is no longer a beast but rather a dear dear friend. She was made in Spain, so I reckon her brand name Alfa suits her well enough.

She is no longer a beast because I was shown how to use her, and I’m no longer intimidated by her rustic look and old-fashioned eccentricities. She is beautiful and has already been very good to me.

She’s made me feel comfortable, comfortable enough to make my first project. I started with the most simple thing and made a round cushion insert. All I needed to do was to cut two pieces of fabric and sew along the edges using the running stitch, stuff it and sew it shut. It didn’t matter that it didn’t look perfect because it would be hidden inside the cushion. I know, rather elemental, but so pleasing to start with something so very satisfying and stress-free.

So here is the front side of the crochet cushion (started way back here)…

And the back…

And now all plumped up on the matching Arc-en-ciel blanket!!

So so lovely, so colourful! It makes me terribly happy thinking that this is all so pretty and happy and I made it all and it’s just frigging brilliant!!! I stuffed the cushion with some leftover washable toy stuffing I had lying around, but also with some yarn cut offs that I’d kept in a little bag… I knew they’d come in handy one day!

Knowing that there’s a little bit of each and every single knitted and crochet project that I’ve ever worked on in this little cushion of mine, well it just makes me squeal with delight.

I only have one uncertainty. See the back there with the wooden button opening/ closing? I was wondering whether I should leave it as it is, as a cute detail kind of thing, or whether I should make more of a feature of it... what's the opinion out there?

Hello birdies

2011-06-01T20:45:00.000+01:00

Mooncalf recently posted about a new magazine, Handmade Living, in which an article was written about her. Last month was pretty tight, so I couldn't justify buying anything like that, so I went out and found a free copy on the internet. A little naughty I guess, but what can you do! Anyway, I 'flicked' through it and something caught my eye: a card with little button birds. Sounds weird like that but I loved it and knew I'd have to make it straight away. So as soon as I got home I got these wooden buttons out (bought ages ago and never used...), some felt and a black pen.

How sweet is that? That wasn't enough for me though, I had to get those little cute birds out of my system. Cue the love bird card.

How amazingly cute is that?! I made it for Boyfriend's sister's wedding anniversary, and now I'm just wondering who else I can make this for... I'll definitely be making some more before I send it off so I don't forget how I did it! So easy, so different, I just love it!

Cookies and brownies

2011-05-31T19:43:00.000+01:00

Several of you picked up on how appetising the cookies and brownies looked in a post a couple of weeks ago. Well today I’m feeling generous and I’m going to direct you to the recipes for those beauties. They were so good I made a second batch of both within a day of the first one. I’m not even joking. My running has slowed down dramatically since then. It may or may not be related.

Both recipes are super easy, and it’s all basically about mixing ingredients together, no special potions or anything. And actually, I suggest making both on the same day because as your cookie dough chills in the fridge, you’ve got just the right amount of time to make the brownie. If that’s not a match made in heaven then I don’t know what is.

I’ll let you decide whether it’s worth it.

(Answer: it totally is.)

Recipe for the chocolate shortbread: find it here. The only thing I'd say about this recipe is that the cookies benefit from a brief stay in the fridge before you gobble them down. Even better the next day actually if you can lay your hands off them for that long.

Recipe for the peanut butter and chocolate brownie: find it here. Nothing to change here, it's perfect!

Thready hearts

2011-05-30T21:24:00.000+01:00

I’ve finished it I’ve finished it!!!!!!!!!! The feeling of getting this done was so satisfying I can’t tell you! I love each and every heart, and it fills me with joy to look at it, think back to where it came from, and think of tapestry moments in France. I have my favourites of course (hearts that is), the strawberry one, the union jack one, and the criss cross one in the top left. So so pretty!!

Although of course, it’s nowhere near finished at the same time… The tapestry bit is well and truly over, but now starts the slightly more daunting prospect of making it up as a cushion. As far as I understand the process (please correct me if I’m wrong), I need to stretch the tapestry (similar method to blocking), and then, somehow, make up the back and then insert a cushion padding….

Although you see, I may have bigger plans than that… some embroidery on the back may keep me busy for the next few weeks!!

Fleurs

2011-05-27T09:32:00.001+01:00

Our little France holiday seems like such a long time ago now... I was looking at the photos I've still got left to show you and I stopped on the flower folder. Everyone loves a good flower post right? They're so pretty, colourful, cheerful...

I couldn't quite decide which ones to put up, which ones were my favourites... so you got all of them practically! Please click on the mosaics below and enjoy them as much as I am.

Roses, peonies, tulips... the list is endless and my knowledge of flower names very limited!

Have a lovely weekend! xx

Green cotton

2011-05-26T08:48:00.000+01:00

Last weekend I bought this thread.

All nice and green and 100% cotton.

Wanna know why?

The joy of Freecycle my friends.

I was wondering what I might call her and the The Beast seems rather appropriate. She scares me and she’s old. Like really old. I bet she’s at least twice my age.

I feel totally intimidated and haven’t actually done anything with her yet. It might help if I plugged her in but I’m a little bit worried I might break her. I look at her and think of all the possibilities. These are very exciting times I tell you!

Lately I have been...

2011-05-20T07:42:00.000+01:00

Watering…

Reading…

Kneading…

Eating…

And eating some more...!

Mohair

2011-05-19T08:20:00.000+01:00

It’s all about the wool right? Damn bloody right it is!!! When I saw there was a mohair farm not far from the first place we were staying at, I thought this would be a great thing to do on a rainy day…

Only of course we were lucky with the weather and no rain came our way until the very last day, but we managed a little stop on our way to the campsite.

We were given a tour of the farm, starting with the goats through to different rooms where all the different processes involved in getting the yarn from the goat to the shop were explained (my favourite has got to be the one below, the shearing stage – was a delicate pose they have to assume!).

I had to do some instant translation for Boyfriend which certainly proved interesting but it worked out alright. Boyfriend became the designated photographer and I reckon he didn’t do a bad job. Those goats were playing up to him, they were so curious!!

Anyway, the yarn produced is, as expected, unbelievably soft and beautiful. I think the lady was rather disappointed that I only bought a couple of balls, but my budget didn’t stretch to the 7-8 she was recommending to knit a jumper (not that I’d want to knit myself a jumper in mohair thanks very much!). She was unbelievable though, quite a character really. She takes care of the goats (oh and 3000 hens too), does the tours, manages the shop, and even does made-to-measure knitted garments. I was suitably impressed!

So here’s my holiday yarn souvenir. Not sure what I’ll be doing with it just yet, apart from rubbing it against my face once in a while…

Places to stay

2011-05-13T21:01:00.001+01:00

Right, now that Blogger’s sorted itself out, let’s carry on with our France posts shall we?! Although it would be nice to get yesterday's ~~post~~ comments back... Anyway!

Over our holiday, which was basically some sort of road trip, we stayed in three different places. This allowed us to explore each area we wanted to see to the full, while not having to drive tons every day. Notwithstanding, we did manage to clock up the mileage, but let’s not think about that, what with the current price of petrol… Anyway, we started in a charming chambre d’hote, not far from Bayeux, which was basically a working farm. We didn’t get to see any of the farm animals but there were a couple of friendly Labradors that sure made up for it. A holiday in a nice place with animals is always a bonus (flashback to last year…). The room was simple and the building were rustic, but it was truly lovely, a real relaxing place to stay.

We then moved on further west. We’d always thought that if we could fit in a bit of camping, it would not only bring the cost down, but it would also be good fun. Since the tent hadn’t seen the light of day since last November, we thought it would be a brilliant opportunity to brush the dust off and get our thermal clothes out. Yeah, camping in April is still cold my friends! Thermals were definitely needed, and it came to a point where we both wished we had full thermal body suits on, but we survived.

Only just though… the first night, something scratched the side of the tent and repeatedly tried to jump on one of my legs that was touching the side of the tent. My heart probably stopped beating for a good few minutes I can tell you that!. The next day though, we worked out that no, we hadn’t been attacked by a bear/ wolf/ peacock, but probably just this cheeky little kitten. My rucksack was the best toy ever I’ll have you know, and the car, well that was another world to explore… We were really tempted to take him (or her?) home, it was just so cute and playful, even Boyfriend was smitten!

(No we’re not gypos by the way, we do have suitcases, but shoes tend to go in plastic bags in the boot around any proper bags!)

We spent the last couple of nights in a place even further west, with a view (long distance!) over the Mont St Michel. It was right between Granville, where I’d been with my mum last winter and had been dying to take Boyfriend to ever since, and the Mont St Mich which we most definitely wanted to visit. That chambre d’hote was something else. Perfect after a couple days of camping, such a treat really. Most especially for me, as they had lovely magazines everywhere, including old Marie Claire Idees that I proceeded to devour and photograph! But that’s another post to itself!!

The house had recently been renovated and it looked gorgeous. Maybe not to everyone’s taste (old wonky door knobs that felt like they were going to stay in your hand every time you opened a door type thing), certainly down the shabby chic route I guess, but it was lovely. Magazine lovely if you know what I mean. I kept finding little quirks and corners that I wanted to photograph. So much inspiration, ah if only we could afford that kind of space!!

The room was lovely too, and it was arranged in a really nice way. Talking of quirks, one thing I thought was really neat was using a wooden ladder to hold towels. So clever! Making the most of whatever space available or what?! Boyfriend wasn’t took keen on a detail in the attached children’s room though (suitcase room for us!) – what do you think of that clown? Neither of us are keen on them, find them rather creepy you know, but Boyfriend thought that picture would actually be quite scary for a small child…

Anyway, all in all, it made for great settings to visit those parts of Normandy. Ah to be by the seaside again…

Nourriture

2011-05-12T11:48:00.000+01:00

I hereby declare the season of France holiday pics open!! Now, I’m sure some of you will find this a little dull, but this is pure indulgence time for me, so you might as well enjoy it too! It’s a time to look back on this holiday, enjoy the hundreds of photos I took, have fun sorting them out in categories and simply admire all the beautiful things we were lucky to see and do. It’s taking me quite some time to do all this, so today I’ll start with the easy ones: FOOD. Everyone’s favourite right? Well, I must say, going to the land of cheese and cream when you’ve got a slight lactose intolerance thing going on wasn’t ideal. I had to stay away from lots of food I would have loved to gorge myself on, and even when I thought I’d ordered dairy-free food in restaurants, cream always managed to sneak in one way or another. At least with espressos, I was on the safe side. No danger of milk touching these babies…

And these (cheaper at the counter!)…

And these…

And… no that’s it! Espressos are the coffee of the gods, even though I do like them with a substantial amount of sugar added. Anyway, they were delicious and powered us through the holiday when we managed to remember to have one in time (and not at 5pm in the afternoon, ahem). Carrying on with the drink theme, there was also a bit of yogurt drinking by Boyfriend – why don’t we get as many flavours in this country?! And yes, I got weird looks for getting my camera out in a supermarket, I’m not French people were quite ready for my snappy happy attitude…!

Talking about flavours we don’t have in this country, and I feel really hard done by here, anyone heard of speculoos ice cream? OH. MY. GOD. This ice cream has come straight down from heaven I tell you, and I’m ever so annoyed at the British population for not embracing it fully a few years back when it was introduced as a limited edition. Yes, I may have done a little bit of research here. And no, I haven’t sent Haagen Dazs an email. Yet.

But our food experience wasn’t all hunky dory. I’ve come to realise, with a few years behind me of being able to observe them from a distance rather than being in the middle of it, that the French have a serious attitude problem. Not all of them of course, but quite a few. We found a lot were fairly confused by the whole me speaking French and sounding French, but then speaking to Boyfriend in English and well, not sounding French. A couple of times, because of it, I guess they thought we were just a bunch of silly tourists who could be done over. Little did they know. I most definitely follow the French way of thinking when it comes to food standards in restaurants: if it’s not good enough (and you happen to be paying a fair price for it), then I will not hesitate to send it back. On one occasion, I’d deliberately ordered something which was cream-free. The waiter then proceeded to give me the moodiest face in the world when I said that wasn’t what I’d ordered – the recipe had been updated did I not know – well no, not if the menu isn’t updated with it… I explained I was allergic to cream, but I doubt they’ve heard of that kind of condition over there (they can be so backward sometimes, there were places where I seriously struggled to order anything without meat/ pork) and it obviously didn’t sway them one way or the other because I never even got an apology. Honestly!!! Have you experienced this kind of attitude whilst on holiday in France? I seem to notice it more and more and it irritates me to the highest point.

Of course, France is still the nation of food and there was a point to us going over by ferry: to be able to load the car and bring back lots of goodies. We didn’t hold back actually. Shame we didn’t though, because the bank card took a serious battering. Cuts and bruises and all. Would you be surprised if I told you all the biscuits are gone. They didn’t stand a chance in our home!

Sweet pot

2011-05-10T08:00:00.004+01:00

I mentioned our sweet pot last week when I gloated about Rachel’s very generous giveaway. This little sweet red pot was gifted to us by my mother and I love it, with its adorable chicken lid handle. She would probably keel over if she knew how we were using it though... I guess she anticipated we might use it for dips perhaps, and it has indeed been used for homemade salsa in the past. But that doesn’t happen very often and I thought of it to house our much loved French caramels, brought back from Isigny-sur-Mer caramel factory, the greatest caramels in the land I tell ye.

And since the caramels are fast disappearing, Rachel’s little chocolate eggs are finding themselves quite at home there. Who are we to argue? I’m only wondering what I’m going to replace them with once they’ve disappeared to the land of tummies… Any recipes out there you can think of for sweets or really tiny little nibbles?

The joy of receiving

2011-05-09T11:36:00.000+01:00

Yes giving presents is great. But receiving stuff is equally enjoyable don’t you think? I’m not talking presents here, but it was indeed something free that I got. (Read on if you’re wondering why I’m showing you a load of blue bottles. No, I haven’t gone mad.)

Ever heard of Freecycle? It’s an amazing network of people, local to you wherever you are, who list things they no longer want and are happy to giveaway. A way of saving landfill space if you will! Some people might wonder if those people have ever heard of Ebay, but some things are just too bulky or simply not worth anything anymore even though they are in perfect working order. If I didn’t have a little bit of self-restraint, we’d have a dishwasher and a fridge freezer in the living room by now, waiting to move into our new house. But since we don’t actually have the house yet, I thought it might just be a bit premature…

Anyway, on Saturday morning, one lovely lady was giving away some empty Neal’s Yard bottles, she thought someone might have a use for them. I jumped on this. I knew those bottles could come in handy, and the Neal’s Yard glass blue is really gorgeous (and I'd already missed out on a massive jar of buttons and felt gutted - you have to quick with this).

Someone obviously loves having baths with bubble baths. I'm not judging here.

The bottles got washed, labels were removed and flowers were picked. Oh yes, I totally channelled my inner Concha (this woman is such an inspiration) and created the most lovely (if I do say so myself) arrangement. Ephemeral I know, but so pleasing to the eye. Such a nice way to bring in a little spring freshness into our home.

Next on the Freecycle wagon? A coffee machine that makes cappuccinos, espressos and filter coffees. We were actually thinking of buying one of those, so when we saw it turn up on the email list, we couldn’t resist. I’ll show it to you when we actually make our first cup of coffee with it. (We’re totally missing espressos from our trip to France where they down those little cups like shots of cocaine). But first, I’ll follow my mother’s rather cool reply to my over-excitement: make sure you clean it first darling. Yes mother.

Holiday hobby

2011-05-06T08:02:00.000+01:00

I’m ashamed to say I’m struggling with the book I’m reading at the moment. I don’t feel gripped by it. This may have something to do with the fact that it came all the way to France with us, enjoyed a ferry ride in the boot of the car, and well, ahem… stayed there until we were back in England? Yes, I know, shameful. Does anyone else get that though? We always take books with us away, with great intentions of getting through them in no time, and then BANG, nothing. Nada.

I did however occupy the little spare time I had with some crafting. One of the best travel crafting projects ever. Some tapestry work, a present from Boyfriend at Christmas. This was one of the best presents ever because he thought about it all by himself and got it totally spot on. A cute little project to make into something cool like a cushion perhaps. Anyway, we’re not there yet! But I’m working my way through it and did some good progress in France which I’m very pleased about! It’s arranged in a square, made up of 9 smaller squares, each with a heart in its centre. So far, I’ve managed to complete three squares and I’m over the moon! Here are some peaks for you to enjoy, I just can’t wait to get it all done! Only the thing is, I can picture it being used in a particular room of the new house-to-be (fingers crossed), so it better all work out!

May and Christmas - oh yeah

2011-05-05T10:02:00.000+01:00

Celebrating May

In France, people celebrate the start of May by giving each other pots of lily-of-the-valley. This wonderfully scented plant is simply gorgeous, and there would honestly have to be something wrong with you for you not to like it. It’s beautiful, pretty, delicate and so cheerful. We saw it everywhere during the last week in France, at every florist and in every supermarket. It was my intention to bring some back. But I somehow forgot, things got in the way and I got distracted. I so regret it now because I can’t really find it in bloom anywhere. We went to a couple of garden centres at the weekend and found some (past its best…) to plant. Now, we still don’t have a garden, and might not to do so for quite some time yet, but I just couldn’t resist it. The member on staff at one of those garden centres did a good job at convincing me to buy one. Apparently I can keep it in its pot for as long as necessary, and when I have a garden, I can plant it and it’ll propagate itself. And by next spring, I should have five or six sprigs coming up. I just couldn’t say no!

So there. I’ve got to try and keep this thing alive until I’ve got somewhere shady to plant it. Wish me luck, I’m not sure how green my fingers are…

*************************************************************

Christmas come early

Last night, I received a delightful package I’d been waiting for since Sunday. When we came back from France, there was a note for me from the postman… I was hoping it was what I thought it was, and it was! Now, enough of the mystery! It was the giveaway I’d won from Rachel at Contented Be!! Now, I knew I’d won this wonderfully cute pink tea rug, but when I opened the parcel, there were three wrapped goodies!! I got so excited, I can tell you there were a few shrieks of excitement!

The opening of the presents (because it really did feel like Christmas!) went along with bouts of “OH MY GOSH THIS IS BRILLIANT!” and “AAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!! I LOVE THIS!!!!”. You get the idea. So Simone, thank you so very much! I promise to find your sweet little rug a good place to live (the flat is rather messy since we’ve come back from France, ahem). It is really beautiful and I admire your sewing skills!! The little chocolates are waiting for their turn in the sweet pot (oh yes, I’ll have to post about that!) and the yarn, well, my brain is already in overdrive as to what I could make with it.

This reminded me all too well one of the reasons why I love blogging. I feel part of a community of kind people and it’s frigging brilliant. Sometimes it’s rather hard to find people with similar interests in real life, and sometimes I still feel shy about my hobbies, but online, I feel proud and enthusiastic about it all. So thank you! And yes, I really should do another giveaway soon myself, it’s overdue and I want to spread some love too!!!!!!!!

Easter treat

2011-05-04T07:36:00.001+01:00

Yeah I know, Easter was ages ago now, but I wrote this post before going away on holiday and never got round to uploading the photos, so it stayed unpublished. Until today. Because I haven't started looking at my holiday pics yet and I figured everyone loves chocolate. Even if it's a bit delayed and we're in May already.

Everybody knows Easter's all about chocolate. As for Christmas, Easter for me was never about religion. It was all about getting chocolate eggs/chicken/ bunnies. People don't tend to buy their Easter treats from the supermarkets in France, you can usually get some pretty amazing stuff from bakeries and chocolatiers. And year after year, the fridge was full of chocolate. Oh how I remember those egg hunts in my grandparents' flat, and the magnificent treats they would get me...

These days are long gone, but Easter should still be a sweet season. Last year, Boyfriend sent me off to Dubai with the most gorgeous dark chocolate egg. Even though temperatures were upwards of 30 degrees, that egg meant a lot.

This year, it was my turn to surprise him. I didn't have anything substantial, as I don't want my lactose intolerance malarkey flaring up, but that doesn't mean he couldn't have anything. And since I forgot to get him something last year, the guilt pushed me into action...

I wanted something original, something unique, but not something that was going to cost me the earth either. I find eggs that you can buy in supermarket usually quite disappointing, not only does the chocolate not taste of real chocolate (well that's my opinion!), but the eggs are usually empty. I can't think of a biggest let down. So there, I made him my very own treat this year. With things that he likes. I here present to you the Easter white chocolate bar!!!! Alright alright, it doesn't sound very exciting, but wait till you see the finished article.

I started by chopping some fudge bars and got some seasonally coloured m&ms. Next I melted some white chocolate and some milk chocolate in separate bowls.

I then put a double thickness of baking parchment down and thickly spread the white chocolate on top.

Then I put blobs of milk chocolate on top and used a toothpick to make little twirls. That was great, great fun I tell you.

I then added the fudge bits and m&ms and pushed them slightly in. Left it all to cool down for a couple of hours, then it spent the night in the fridge to harden.

In the morning, I wrapped it all up and put it in a gift bag I had lying around. How lovely is that?! Totally cheap (well at least you can choose the appropriate quality of chocolate to suit your taste), and you can use whatever topping you fancy!

The best bit? All the leftover topping that wouldn't fit on the bar. I didn't want to overload it you see. So I munched it all. Yum :-)

11 days

2011-05-03T10:23:00.000+01:00

11 days of holidays. All over now and looked back upon with great joy.

Like many others in the UK, the Petit Filoux household took 3 days off work and got 11 days off on the trot. We made the most of it and spent the last 8 days in Normandy, hence the erratic or rather non-existant posting.

We had a great time, from the debarquement beaches, to a goat farm, via a short camping trip and lots and lots of food. And espressos. And French magazines. And a rather eventful ferry trip home. I've got some real eye candy and funny stories for you. Stay tuned readers!

We enjoyed this last bank holiday and made the most of it. Eating out, walking in the sun, admiring Morris men and gardens in bloom. So no posting yesterday I'm afraid, and no gym either for that matter! We started the day in style though, having a lush breakfast at a local pub/ restaurant which was doing a special 1/2 price offer. So good in fact we might have gone two days on the trot. Don't tell my mother, she'll start getting worried about my waistline again.

So there, back to work, back to our little routine. Must go through my photos though before I can give you a snapshot of our lovely holiday back in France.

(loved this guy, he totally made me crack up, getting all the kids to stroke his 'real' horse!)

Quirk

2011-04-24T08:11:00.001+01:00

Some things are just quirky aren't they? Or maybe just weird? Well not so long ago, a little shop I walk past in a small alleyway in London has undergone a transformation. Quite a strange one. See for yourself:

Can you see? There are books piled up in there from floor to ceiling. Since I saw a couple of guys sorting out this funny arrangement a few weeks ago, I've never seen the place open. How strange is that? I think they must have an experiment going on, with a tiny camera monitoring just how many people stop and stare, and how many come back to take a photo...