Sharing a love of Dolls House Miniatures - and making time for other creative crafts and the garden.

Monday, January 15, 2018

A New Year.....thinking of what comes next.

I don't know about you, but I don't do New Year Resolutions....far too depressing when they're broken almost immediately.  I have a kind of  'might do' list and a 'really should do' list....I'll just see how that goes then....

I would like to wish each and everyone of you a very Happy 2018 and hope all your 'might do' and 'should do' lists come to pass.


 Our Strelitzia (Bird of Paradise) burst into flower in time for the New Year and I'm really thrilled that there are five more buds coming along. Believe it or not it is around thirty years old, grown from a seed by my lovely Mum - until the autumn it was one of a pair, but our conservatory isn't made of elastic so that has gone to a new home.  I hope they have five buds too.


Looking around I'm reminded how many of my plants, or their offspring came from her and friends. Nice!


Top of my list after Christmas is MARMALADE.  This is an ancient family ritual originally vested in my Mum and before her, no doubt, her Mum. Now of course it is my turn and Granny's Marmalade needs to be made in sufficient quantity to supply family and special friends (and us) with a few jars 'in case'. Off and on it lasts about a week, the house smells lovely and I have an annual meltdown about having enough jars ......and I pop a few Seville oranges in the freezer in case we run out later in the year.

 So now I'm revisiting my 'might do' miniature list and looking at a 1/12th basic whitewood dresser I've had for ages and thinking it would make a nice old dark 'vintage' piece to display some of my vintage/antique odds and bits. Like all collectors I have lots of treasures squirrelled away and not a lot of room to display them.  Then again when I see Elisabeth Causeret's stand I just can't resist...Still thinking - I'll let you know.

Thanks for looking
Robin



5 comments:

elizabeth s said...

Your Extreme Green thumb is what I could only wish for. I have TRIED to overwinter a favorite annual geranium inside my house close to a window and the poor 'THING" is just barely hanging on.
Seeing how your Thriving Bird of Paradise was started from a seed- is Incredible to me.
Whatever you're doing is obviously RIGHT Robin.

The grandmommy said...

Happy New Year and hope you have enough sun in your life to keep your flowers and you growing beautifully!

Robin said...

Thank you Grandmommy I hope you and Elizabeth and all our other lovely blog friends enjoy a happy and peaceful 2018.

Don't be fooled Elizabeth....I only show you the good bits!! I too have the odd ailing plant quietly lurking in the background and hoping for better things. Lol
Rx

Ilona said...

Hi Robin, my best wishes for 2018, I hope it will be a good year for you and yours!!
Your Strelitzia looks awesome, you say it's grown from a seed and that's 30 years old...?? Oh my, that magic, you really have a green thumb!!
Room?? Yes, that's another issue when you're in making miniatures, I've noticed it myself in my small workroom: you never can't have enough room and therefore more stuff ;).
I loved reading about your tradition of making marmalade, I think it's a fantastic family tradition. It's a lot of work but so nice to do together, and it strenghtens the family bond, isn't it?
I hope the storm wasn't so bad at your place, as it was here in my region. Here it caused alot of damage.
Warm hug, Ilona

jenann said...

Happy New Year, Robin!

I don't do New Year resolutions either. I'm a butterfly brain, meaning that what seemed so important on the last day of December might be totally inconsequential by January 31st. But I do keep a little note book of the many things I'd like to do and add to it. Then some time between Christmas and the end of the month, I tick off what I did manage and feel virtuous if I've manage a third of them. So far, it reads, get out of hospital and stay out - first 50% achieved!

Now, why is it that something as small as miniatures need so much room? This should be the time when the land is so soggy that I concentrate on little things, but there never seems to be enough space to spread out. British houses - especially early 17th century labourers' cottages that decide to fall apart - tend not to have a work room. Most remiss of the peasants who threw this one together not to think a few centuries ahead to my needs, don't you think?

Hope 2018 is kind to you and all you love.
Jenni xxx