Bright & Beautiful

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A few bright and beautiful things to pretty up your home and person. Loving those shoes especially.

The Last Supper

Collard Manson is a wonderful Sheffield retail store which stocks all manner of accessories, jewellery, clothing and shoes. The sort you wont see anywhere else in Sheffield. Their own brand pieces make fantastic gifts too (to yourself, of course!).

I have long been a fan as I love seeing independent creative businesses throwing something new into the mix, and I was especially delighted when I popped in a few days ago and saw they have expanded into the property next door and created a stunning coffee shop. I havent had a drink there, but I plan to very soon - I dont even care if the coffee isnt great, I'd pay just to sit in such a great environment. I pretty much want whoever styled up this place to come and do the same to my house! I can imagine sitting and penning my first novel there, fuelled by cups of their coffee, which if the rest of their set up is anything to go by, will taste delicious. (These are the only pics I could find on the internet and they are a bit small, so I will try and find/take some bigger ones so you can see what I'm talking about - or if you are in Sheffield, why not pop along).

My Boswell

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Dr. Samuel Johnson was a famous English essayist and scholar, and James Boswell was his admirer and companion.

Boswell kept a diary and wrote all about Dr. Johnson.

In Arthur Conan Doyle's books about Sherlock Holmes, Watson is Holmes' companion and to a certin extent, admirer, on many a case and he also writes about Sherlock Holmes' escapades.

In "A Scandal in Bohemia," Watson is at the Baker Street residence and proffers, "I think I had better go, Holmes," and Holmes replies, “Not a bit, Doctor. Stay where you are. I am lost without my Boswell," In comparing him to Boswell, Holmes is giving him a compliment..

I like the name Boswell, it sounds a bit old fashioned to me. I feel a new nickname for my poor beleaguered boyfriend coming on, after all I would be rather lost without him, even if he doesn't write about my escapades hugely admire my crafty dabbling, he does put up with my hairbrained schemes, is always kind and supportive and is my companion through thick and thin (literally: we are on a post new year diet at the moment!!). Anyhow, if he protests at the nickname, I will save it for my imaginary future pet - I like the idea of pets having serious old fashioned names.

Do you have a Boswell?

Fork-poms

Fork pom-poms, what a great idea and it involves less faffing than the cardboard rings or the wrapping of yarn round the fingers method. Eskimimiknits has written a tutorial on her fork-pom method which you can see in full here.

Some things that make me happy

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Brown paper packages wrapped up with string

...These are a few of my favourite things (via the ever-inspiring tinywhitedaisies)

A moment on the lips but a lifetime on the hips

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Last year, I was leading a pretty sedentary existence and enjoying more tasty morsels than one should and as is always the way, the pounds have slowly and slyly been packing themselves on about my person and a look in the mirror recently revealed a rather porcine, tubby and all round unpleasant vision. I've never been this heavy, there are bits of body that weren't there a year ago and I don't want to look like this. So, I have had to bite the bullet and do considerably less biting and chewing of delicious chocolates and pastries and instead put my body to the grindstone and start a rigorous diet and even some exercise.

I used to be quite a sprightly young thing in my youth but those days are long gone. My running technique is more of a waddle and if I came running or waddling past you in the park, you might wonder if some lecherous beast was coming upon you by the dreadful way I puff and pant along. Anyhow, when I saw this poster, I knew it described me perfectly.

I have had my head in the clouds ...

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... for the last couple of weeks, eating drinking and generally being merry and not giving two hoots about work or 'to do' lists, so it was with a nasty jolt that I came right back down to earth today and realised I have got a to do list about a mile long and I can bury my head in the sand no longer! There are so many things to organise this year, my wedding, honeymoon, my website, my pie in the sky ideas for a new business, new workshops, designs for my forthcoming store and hundreds upon hundreds of mundane things like diets, exercise and tax (yuck!).

Before I embark on writing up my 2011 'to do' list (which is I fear is more of a novel than a short story) I will procrastinate further by showing you some things I saw online recently which I liked.

Talking 'bout a Resolution...

What a lovely festive Christmas I have had, albeit a bit of an exhausting one, I've been all over the country visiting family which has been great (these are pics of Seahouses, Northumberland where we went before Christmas to see my family. Its the first time I have seen snow on the beach at Seahouses) but now the New Year is here I got to start ticking off the things on my ever-expanding To Do list and moreover I got to try and stick to my enormous New Year's Resolution list.

Christmas Crackers

Rob Ryan Shopper

Nautical Cushion

Plate

Ahoy necklace

Winnie the Pooh Complete Collection

One of the big pluses of having my own blog is that when it comes to Christmas and family and friends are asking what I would like for Christmas I can just direct them to the Bettyjoy blog, as pretty much everything I show on this blog are things I would love to own. This Christmas my lovely boyfriend pulled out the stops and got me these fab gifts, some of which I had been after for ages and a few were super surprises.

I also got lots of lovely gifts from my family and my boyfriend's family including a bird chirping clock (can't wait to say 'its quarter past Chaffinch' or 'five to Barn Owl'), a gorgeous sewing box and my first power tool! A drill, which I am super excited about as I have a whole heap of projects which were just waiting for a good drillin'!

My favourite present of all this Christmas was something my boyfriend made for me, which i will show to you soon - its too good to keep to myself. Its a book cover for my first as yet unwritten kid's book, which I stupidly wanted to call Salty Sea Mouse Does It Again (I have no idea what the ol' Sea Mouse would get up to and or he was going to do again!!)

Woolfiller

I came across Woolfiller via Karen Barbe's blog. Karen is based in Santiago, Chile and makes some wonderful textile creations, which I blogged about a year or so ago. She is featured on the Decor8 blog today. On her blog was a feature about Woolfiller a blog that shows the use of needle-felting to repair holes in woolie sweaters. Now I've seen the technique on their site, it has inspired me and I keep thinking of all the different ways you could use needle-felting. Maybe I'll have a go after the insanity of the Christmas period has worn off, possibly one to go on my list of New Year's resolutions.