Sewing a tribute to Vivaldi ...

Hi everyone,

It has been a difficult week taking leave of our free range house rabbit Vivaldi who lived so close to us & who was always around - demanding food or attention or just enjoying our space.

I am so used to her company that she has left a huge gap in our lives.

After finding some of her fur on her comb, I decided to sew a tribute to our bunnies because sewing heals the soul, especially hand sewing which is something you concentrate on while doing it. Being a lion head rabbit, the fur was the softest of golden soft colour ....

I have an Ikea carrier box with essentials that I keep downstairs & this came out. I usually spend lots of time planning but this time it just came from the (broken) heart ... 

The two bunny shapes had been a purchase some time back from the lovely Viv of Hensteeth but I did not get to use them. Luckily I knew exactly where they were & just knew they would feature ...

I like the idea of a tribute in a tin that can be kept safe, a sort of personal item. Luckily I had a good size tin too & all the bits I needed ...

A pretty coloured flower pattern made a perfect rainbow bridge that bunnies cross over when they leave us - I beaded it to make it special ...

The two bunny shapes - the dark one for our Fred who we lost 2 years ago,  and the lighter one for Vivaldi 

The little stuffed bunnies taking shape 

The rainbow bridge with it beads & bunny outlines ...

and the completed tin as a keepsake of two very special house rabbits ...

A plant brought over for her spot by our neighbour who always bunny sat for us ... 

This from the summer in the garden with me ...

and this past week when Vivaldi was being her cute self in the kitchen ...

Binky free Vivaldi & Fred - you were very special bunnies who are missed ....

 Dee ~♥~

So long our special little Vivaldi ....

Hi all,

My regular visitors will be well acquainted with the antics of our house bunny Vivaldi or Aldi for short.  She is a regular feature on my instagram & flickr with a big fan club.

She was our first bunny and the story of Vivaldi & Fred was often featured on my blog too

bunnies-are-not-just-for-aster

and how we took leave of our Fred 3 years ago so-long-our-little-fred

Vivaldi has had a charmed life as a very much loved house rabbit - having the run of the double, integrated garage & the downstairs of the house when we were home. She came & went as she pleased - a free range house bunny who kicked up her heels, tossed things about & did laps around the living room then came for snuggles at night on my lap on a soft fleece.

Sit still Mamma ...

Always loving being in the garden ...

In a run sometimes at night so I could find her ....

Helping herself to fresh carrot tops this past week ...

Her favourite place was the carpet by the fridge where she positioned herself for greens, carrots, beans & bananas.

I came back today from a visit down south & her fabulous surrogate bunny Mum - my lovely neighbour who has 2 of her own bunnies - had been in & out to her.

She had messaged me to say Aldi had been a little quieter than normal so she had been in to her only a few minutes before I got home. I came home to find she had peacefully passed a few minutes previously.

She has now joined Fred in the garden. Vivaldi was a very special house rabbit who had a charmed, spoilt life with us the last 10 years from a tiny bunny.

Her sweet personality & mannerisms will be sorely missed, so different from the bunnies who live in too small hutches with little interaction.

This was her relaxing in my bedroom on Sunday morning x

Binky free our little Vivaldi - you were much loved & will be sorely missed.

Dee ~♥~

Some mirrors need updating ...

Hi everyone,

Our weather has turned wet & at times wintery & after a really busy week's tutoring, I got in on Thursday afternoon & just needed to calm out.

As I popped my bags down, I passed the gold mirror in our inner hall way & I knew that was going to be my calming out project. It has been on my to-do list for ages & it just moved to the top of the list!

I keep this large roll of corrugated cardboard handy in the garage with the Annie Sloan Chalk Paints because it is a great size on the table in the conservatory.

I like to mask off the mirror to make it easier when painting & waxing ... How dated the gold looks!

First coast of Annie Sloan Old White & it looks so much better & I could paint & enjoy the garden at the same time - that is my calming mode ...

Two coats of Old White were needed to cover the gold paint, then left to dry & still time to wax it.

I clear waxed it all, then added some dark wax to the details to give it some interest, then buffed it.

Time to hang it back in the inner hallway, opposite the stairs. I always do a full length check from the bottom stair before leaving the house ...

Much better - it compliments the Natural Calico walls & looks more modern, a job well done!

Sometimes, 1 job leads to another & as I headed upstairs, I realised the two mirrors on the landing outside all the bedrooms needed to be done too ...

These two mirrors face each other & they are brilliant at giving an all round view of the daily outfit. However, the one was gold & the other was in need of a fresh coat of paint too.

So on a cold Shropshire morning, they came down to be prepared for painting.

It is nice to watch the odd snowflake drift past & the birds hungrily feeding in the garden ... 

All done,  they just need to be clear waxed then they will go back upstairs where they will blend in rather than scream out ...

Do you have a to do list that doesn't seem to get any shorter? However, it is satisfying to make simple changes that makes our space more pleasing to the eye & that we like living with.

What is on your to-do list? Does it involve paint? Thanks for stopping by & taking the time to comment,
Dee ~♥~

Love is what you do ...

Hi everyone

How soon things come around.  The shops are already full of hearts, roses & all the things associated with Valentine's Day.

I have shared my thoughts on this before

a-funny-little-thing-called-love

true-love-is-not-just-one-day

i-heart-valentine

what-is-love

roses-on-valentines-day

We don't celebrate love on just one day - the love in your relationships & life should be there all the time - in words & deeds.

I changed the conservatory sideboard for something pretty with just touches of love from favourite things at home - things that remind me of lovely, happy times that we have around us all the time. I use this favourite Rosenthal candle holder regularly - the battery IKEA candles are perfectly safe on the sideboard too ...

I have not had my beautiful cranberry / ruby glasswares out for a while - I have a few items that I have collected from various sources, including markets & charity shops, & I love the colour.  These green plates are too pretty & I think the reds need something to balance them ...

These two old cranberry custard cups were a birthday gift from Ms M last year - so lovely! The pretty little frame & cardboard hearts on the doors are from a favourite local shop - no 45

I love games cubes for lettering & these appear often (along with the glass candle sticks). The HOME blocks remind me that my home is the space where love thrives ...

Hints of beautiful cranberry / ruby glass & some favourite plates that I mix up as I don't have enough of either set.  For those who always ask about the backstamps - the red ones are

and the creamy white ones are

Both sets have the same ribbed shape which complement each other perfectly - they remind me that sometimes unlike things actually go together quite well ...

This is when I used it previously, mixed up with the matching white plates for a supper for friends - love is enjoying special people ... 

 Don't you love this traditional pattern?  Things that are all different but which come together in a pleasing way - like our families & friends. I digress ...  The sideboard is almost done ...

Favourite items with just hints of hearts

I'm sure you are not surprised that some battery lights are there too? Love in the dark ...

Our inglenook fireplace gets two strands of favourite hearts & some bright faux flowers ...

Love is what you say & do, every day of the year.  People won't always remember the grand gestures on one day, they will remember the words, deeds & how you made them feel.  This seen in No 45

Have a good week & thanks for stopping by, have a blessed time however you celebrate it,
Dee ~♥~