Silent Sunday

“Those who can not hear the music think the dancer is mad”

IaVoM: Honeysuckle, Alchemilla Mollis and Feverfew

In my vase this week is honeysuckle, feverfew and a froth of Lady’s Mantle.

Pop across and Ramble in the Garden with Cathy to see her Vase and those from gardeners across the globe.

This honeysuckle pleases me hugely because I grew it from a cutting. The flower is not as beautiful as some honeysuckles but the scent is magnificent, especially in the evenings.

Look how it has grown! All from a cutting, isn’t nature amazing! I grows through a Clematis Montana, which flowers in the Spring.

Joining Cee’s Flower of the Day.

I have been having A-Good-Clear-Out in the kitchen, thus ticking off a few of my 17 for 2017 Aims/Goals/Challenges.

Goal: Sort out 13 shelves, boxes, cupboards or shelves. I have done 5 this week (that’s 12 altogether!) – Well done me! 😀

A. I have a 3 drawer filing cabinet with files stuffed with papers from goodness knows when  – I’ve been through all three drawers and discarded everything that is no longer needed, either shredding the paper for compost, (P) or rolling it into fire-lighters (P)

B. These shelves

needed painting, and so did the wall behind them.

Do you recognise some vases from previous IAVOM posts?

How was I going to get the shelves off the wall by myself?

(C. see that desk top – I could not have shown you the toppling heap of stuff that was on there – far too embarrassing  – number 3 surface cleared!)

I could have asked a neighbour to help, but I get a kick out of ‘The Power of One’ solutions! So ……

I put chairs piled with stuff to rest the shelf on as I undid the screws – it worked.

A clear wall, with a mist coat painted onto the raw plaster. I’m using some of my Mum’s old paint – Dulux Barley White, it must be ancient but it still seems ok. (P)

I have quite a few things that need sanding so I treated myself to a Detail Sander and sanded the shelves

I do love a gadget. It cost just £30, well worth it!

The sanding was needed to create a surface for the Dulux ‘Quilted Calico’ Eggshell to key in to

And then of course there was D. Under the Table to deal with – a whole tub of used flower pots – luckily I have found a Garden Centre, Groves, about 20 miles away that will recycle them (P) in the  Pot to Product Scheme. 

I used to live near there, so I can combine the trip with meeting up with old friends. (P)

And the last of the 5- E. The top of the filing cabinet which houses the paper shredder and piles of office related detritus (no ‘before’ picture here either!) A broken child’s chair is acting as a shelf (P)

There are several great ideas for using chairs as shelves on Pinterest – here’s one

 

And a vase of flowers – just the thing to celebrate the transformation.

I removed over 40 old redundant business cards from the letter rack. They have gone in the collage cupboard and might be used as collaged tags in journals – oh dear – not thrown away yet then!

Have you noticed a few (P)s  in the text – can you guess what they stand for?

In a Vase: White

Cathy, of Rambling in the Garden, has been inspired by Christina, of My Hesperides Garden  this week and is celebrating blogging friendship with a vase full of beautiful white flowers from her garden – which in turn has inspired my vase.

This little white jug has Tiarella Sky Rocket, a self seeded white lavender, saxifrage and erigeron.

The props are some crocheted daisies ready to adorn a blanket for Miss E. I started this way back in April last year, doing the many squares for the border has halted the process, but it is her birthday coming up and I really want to finish the blanket in time.

Here it is without a border

and here is the border in progress with daisies arranged by Miss E

40 squares and 12 daisies and so many ends to sew in!

I am also creating a pattern for the blanket so that if I ever did want to make one again (?!) I will have the instructions to hand. This will be available as a free pattern for anyone else who would like to give it a go.

White flowers are my favourite and despite the heavy rain this morning I managed to find some in the garden for another vase

In the vase on the left there is feverfew, astrantia, and a perennial white wallflower with a gorgeous scent, especially at dusk.

The vases are sitting amongst the pot plants: a white orchid,

Streptocarpus Rhiannon

and Streptocarpus Myfanwy

Do pop on over to see Cathy’s vase and all the others that come pouring in from all over the world always lifting a Monday with beauty.

Also joining in with Cee’s Flower of the Day.

Happy Monday!

Update: Some photos of the plant which I think is a perennial white wallflower

Am I right?

In a Vase on Monday – Magenta with a dash of Lime

I needed something to block out distracting items in the background – just the thing! a breast cast. This was made when a friend of mine was about to have breast surgery. She gathered a group of her friends together on the eve of the operation for a beautiful informal evening of love, laughter and making breast casts together using Mod Rock. We met later to celebrate the successful surgery and we each painted our breast casts.

I thought the bottle was too prominent so surrounded it with old bottles I gathered from a hedge next to the ancient thatched cottage I lived in 1973 – 81.

Feverfew was added for texture and the acid-lime green of its leaves

a hint of yellow from  ………… ? no idea

a bee’s eye view

(I’ve never noticed the hairy entrance before – oh lawks! there really is something very sexual about flowers – apologies, I’m a Scorpio – I can’t help it, Edwina will understand! See her Whacky Word Wednesday post and entertaining follow up video – word= Concupiscent.   Too much??!!! Surely not!)

Magenta and lime green with a hint of yellow is one of my favourite colour combos at the moment – kinda sets my teeth on edge and delights in equal measure.

Thanks as always to Cathy for hosting this fascinating meme. Pop along over to see many more wonderful flowers arranged ‘In A Vase on Monday’.

Update: the yellow flower is Sisyrinchium striatum  (thank you Christina.) How am I ever going to remember that!