Two Chairs

A couple of weeks ago I bought a pair of spindle backed chairs from eBay. I'd been looking for one chair for months, to sit at my dressing table, but single chairs don't come up for sale very often. Eventually I found a pair, and not far away in Winchester. Solidly built and sturdy, they were a bargain at £15 each, but pretty bashed around the edges as you can see below.

But the poor state of the veneer and horrible orange colour meant they were perfect for sanding and painting.

I remain unconvinced by chalk paint, and so did this the old fashioned way; sanding the wood then giving the chairs two coats of undercoat and two of eggshell, with a light sand between coats.

I think the white paint transforms this chair and enhances the lovely shape of the spindles. It will stay here in the hall for now, against that colourful Marimekko wallpaper.

The second chair got a coat of paint too.

I had always intended this one to be dark grey or black and in the end used Empirical Grey interior metal and wood paint by Valspar, mainly because we had an almost full tin of it in the garage left over from when we painted the radiator in our dining room a year ago.

This chair sits in the living room for now but eventually this one will go in our bedroom, in front of my dressing table. I think it will look good on the soon-to-be-white floorboards.

I didn't intend for 2017 to be the year I painted all our furniture, but I'm really enjoying it. Two beds and two chairs later, I'm working my way around the bedrooms in our house. My next project will be a chest of drawers and my dressing table. I know I only painted it two years ago but it's in a terrible state - the off-white colour has faded badly and I've never known paint chip like it. I can't wait to sand it back and do it again properly.

Balance

Hello friends. How was your weekend? Ours was packed full and in danger of being totally lost to chores and commitments, you know how it is. My Friday night mood (tired and grumpy with a dash of resentful) carried over until Sunday afternoon when I thought bugger it, bugger the ironing pile, the homework, the gardening, the emails, all the things I need to do - we're going to the beach. And we did, and it was the best decision of my whole weekend.

It wasn't all bad; Saturday morning's 5k bike ride/run was fun, if swelteringly hot, but I spent most of Saturday afternoon in the car ferrying small children around while sulking to myself. Honestly, I'm just too much fun. Sunday morning was lost in M&S (returning a swimsuit) and B&Q (buying plant pots) and in between all that I sanded and painted a chair. John was working all weekend. Weekends when he works can go one of two ways - brilliant fun, when the kids and I do what we want, or really hard work. 

So the children and I packed the lightest of beach bags - just swimmers, towels, bottles of water, a mat to sit on - and jumped in the car. I'd barely put the bags down on the sand before Angus was running into the sea and I had to have words with him about not going into the water without me. It's a sheltered beach with little surf, but still. It was beautiful down there and the water was warm and clear. Later on my parents and sister and her family joined us for a while and we all swam and splashed around, it was so lovely. Of course now I'm all out of kilter with my week, and will also be working full time I suspect, but it was so worth it. 

Other highlights: 

:: The sweetpeas  - it's true, the more you cut them the more they grow!

:: A happy hour spent repotting all my pilea babies, which grow almost as fast as my children.

:: Cherry clafoutis for dessert after dinner on Sunday evening. Light and sweet and summery.

:: Realising that this shelf is the best place ever to display the large amount of shells and pebbles we seem to collect every time we visit our beach.

:: And finally, finally, the best thing ever...

Cookery Calendar Challenge

Well, cutting up vintage embroidered tablecloths is proving to be a little more divisive and controversial than I thought. Who'd have guessed? I'm still going to do it, although I may keep one of the cloths made by women of my family intact, and leave it folded in a drawer where it will never be used because it's too nice, and perhaps once every twenty years or so someone will look at it then refold it and put it away.

It's been a long old week here. Work is very busy, school is the same, and we are all tired and looking forward to the end of term in a fortnight. The weather has been glorious again, warm and sunny, although the garden would benefit from a little rain. I spent a frustrating hour in Marks and Spencers earlier in the week trying to find some new swimwear for our holiday. I just want a bikini or swimsuit that is really nice and well designed, makes me look amazing, supports my boobs (tricky given my cup size is the same as my initial) and doesn't cost the earth. I mean, I'm not asking a lot. Many have suggested Bravissimo swimwear so I may have to try that. But it's shopping at it's worst, swimwear and bras. I loathe it. I'd much rather be doing, well, anything. In other news I have started running again and I'm enjoying it a lot more than I thought I would. More than bra shopping.

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My chosen book for June's Cookery Calendar Challenge (hosted by Penny at The Homemade Heart) was Kitchenella by Rose Prince. Isn't the title lovely? And the fabric cover? And the colour? I bought this a few years ago on the recommendation of a friend and those factors did sweeten the purchase somewhat.

This is a reader's cookery book, one to take to bed and read propped up on pillows with a cup of tea. It's premise is based around the line of women who have shopped and cooked and served food to their families throughout the generations - both in Prince's family and mine and probably yours too- and what they can teach us. It moves away from the slightly showy, chef-y male style of cooking and is all about practicality, economy and flavour. It's about the kitchen as a place - in the home and heart - as much as it is about cooking food. Full of memories and observations about cooking and family life, it has few photos and is more of a conversation between author and reader. Method and quantities given often rely on a certain amount of knowledge from the reader, but never in a way that is intimidating, more friendly. It is, frankly, just a wonderful book.

I dithered around for ages planning what to make and decided eventually on Special Fried Rice and pasta in a tomato and anchovy sauce. With each passing month in this cookery book challenge, I think that what I am really looking for is more recipes to call upon for rushed, weeknight dinners. I have no problem deciding what to cook at the weekend, but trying to think of something easy, relatively economical, tasty, healthy-ish and which everyone likes on a Tuesday night when I am tired is always the challenge. We do plan our meals, yes, and shop for them accordingly, but sometimes I can't even be bothered to think about the planning, never mind the cooking.

The Special Fried Rice doesn't look much but it was good. You cook some rice, and fry chicken with pork and prawns. You can use up leftovers or cook from scratch with this, it's very easy. You add a little stock (I also added Chinese Five Spice just because I love it) to the meat then tip it into a bowl and wipe out the pan. Then you lightly scramble the eggs before adding back in the cooked rice and meat, throwing in peas, bamboo shoots spring onions and mixing it all together until it's piping hot. The one thing this dish lacked was the flavours I associate with Asian cooking. Where was the ginger, chilli and garlic? But actually this worked so well because everyone did their own thing. Bella enjoyed hers plain, as it was, while Angus drowned his in soy sauce, his new favourite thing. John and I added soy sauce, Sriracha hot chilli sauce and edamame beans. Everyone was happy and everyone liked it. It was all cooked within under half an hour and was an economical dish. Big ticks all round.

The next dish is called Aunts' pasta with sweet cooked tomato and anchovy. First you need to make a vat of sweet cooked tomato sauce, which involves mixing tinned and fresh tomatoes together with olive oil, water, basil, garlic and a little sugar, then simmering for an hour or so, before pureeing with a stick blender and storing in portions. The kind of cooking that is, frankly, zero effort, but leaves you feeling a bit smug and domestic goddess-y afterwards. 

To make the pasta dish, you cook some tubular pasta (we had rigatoni), while frying some garlic, capers and olives in a little oil. Then you pour a portion of the tomato sauce into this pan, adding seasoning and the anchovies, and heat it all through. Then stir the sauce through the cooked pasta adding cheese and chopped parsley.

I loved it, John thought is was merely ok. I love things with a strong salty flavour, so the anchovies and capers are just my sort of thing, but I don't think John would jump at the chance of eating it again. We still have loads of the tomato sauce left but it will get used up in all sorts of meals.

My choice for July is Forever Summer by Nigella Lawson. I don't think I've ever cooked anything out of this book, despite having owned it for at least a decade, and that's odd as some of her other books (How to Eat, Domestic Goddess, Nigella Express and Nigella Christmas) are some of my most frequently used books. I'm looking forward to trying some new recipes, and hopefully the weather will stay suitably summery too. 

Village Fetes and Vintage Tablecloths

Yesterday we went to the local village summer show near where my parents live. It was a bit of an institution during our childhood and I still love to go. It's like a summer fete but with entertainment, along the lines of "Scruffs" dog competition, with rosettes for things like "fastest sit" and "best dog fancy dress". Brilliant stuff. We ate ice creams and wandered around, bumping into people I'd not seen for years. I bought five plants (foxgloves and antirrhinums) from the plant stall for a fiver but sadly the local produce stall was almost empty by the time I'd got there, otherwise I'd have snapped up some rhubarb, The tea tent was doing a roaring trade and the cream teas looked excellent, but I was still eating my Mr Whippy at that point. Honestly, it was just a lovely afternoon, even the weather was nice. 

I also spotted the most beautiful hand embroidered tablecloth on one of the bric-a-brac stalls, and bought it for £1. Yes, £1! It's a little stained in places, and too small for our dining table, but I couldn't just leave it there. I've got an idea in my head for re-purposing it so I've just treated some of the stains and given it a wash.

It's hard to photograph, but this gives you an idea of the pattern and colours. 

I was instantly drawn to the simplicity of the flower motif and the lovely colours.

Each corner is worked in a slightly different colourway.

And the quality of the stitching is just incredible. The back of the work is so neat. You can see the back below, on the left and the front on the right. It's hard to see the difference between the two.

When I showed this to my mum, she dug out two tablecloths she'd had in a cupboard for some time which are never used, and offered them to me. The first, below, was started by my Great-Grandmother and finished by my Grandma.

Isn't it lovely? I'm not sure what the flowers are supposed to be but they feel like they should be from an English country garden.

And again, the back of the work is just flawless.

The second was made by Auntie Win (short for Winifred), who I believe was my Great-Grandmother's sister, making her my Great, Great Aunt, I think? 

The purples and lilacs would never be my first choice in colours, but with the white background and green it's a beautiful combination.

Added to the scraps of embroidered linen I already have at home, below, I have a little collection going on now.

I've had a few ideas simmering away in the back of my mind for a while now around patchwork quilts, but haven't actually started anything yet. But yesterday's bargain has started a plan: I am going to turn my stash of vintage embroidered tablecloths into a patchwork quilt. Yes, I'm going to cut them up. That might horrify some people, but I don't see the point of having something beautiful tucked away in a cupboard because it's too impractical for everyday use, when it could be turned into something that could be enjoyed and looked at every day. I was inspired by this beautiful curtain and for a moment did consider making a pair for our bedroom, but practicality won and I'll keep the pair we have which help to keep the room lovely and dark and cool. The quilt pieces will be square and quite large, to capture as much of the pattern as possible and it will be white, light and summery. Very pretty, very soft - not really the sort of thing I usually go for at all - but hopefully not too granny-chic. Not that there's anything wrong with granny-chic, but I have to remember that John also lives in this house and that perhaps he isn't quite as wild about vintage embroidery as I am. So if you have any ideas, suggestions or advice I'd love to hear them, thank you.

I hope you're all enjoying your weekends? Thank you so much for your recent comments on my bag and the sweet peas. I know you are all so busy and I really do appreciate you taking the time to leave a comment and say hello. The sweet peas are still going strong. I might pick a bunch now to put on the table for dinner later as my parents are coming over for a barbecue. We're having marinated herby chicken breasts, potato wedges, halloumi, stuffed peppers and lots of salad, with Eton mess for dessert. My mum is bringing prosecco. It's all good.