Flutterby Patch

White linen for Christmas

On my desk this Wednesday is newly washed white linen waiting to be ironed.

Vintage table cloths and napkins, tray cloths, mats and table runners all handed down to me by my parents and grandparents. I love them all but keeping them snowy white isn't always easy as 'vintage stains' have left their mark over the years. Boiling, bleaching and any number of hot washes with biological detergents have had little effect on a handful of items with stubborn stains. But then I discovered Oxy-plus.

My blogging chum Jan recommended it to me a couple of weeks ago and I couldn't wait to try it. I found a tub in my local hardware store, parted with my £1.50 and returned home thinking I'd probably just wasted my hard earned cash. The instructions on the label tell you it can be used on food and wine stains, grass stains, mould, mildew, tar in fact virtually anything. Colours won't fade, nasty odours will be removed and it can be used for washing by hand or by machine. In the end I decided it all sounded a bit too good to be true so I half filled a bucket with very hot water, added a scoop of Oxy-plus and put a badly stained tray cloth in to soak. I was sure it wouldn't work as nothing else ever had.

How wrong I was. After 40 minutes the stains had completely vanished, the cloth was brilliant white and sweet smelling and all it needed was a good rinse. Since then I have washed other items using Oxy-plus in the washing machine and had similarly good results. So thank you Jan for recommending this magical powder. Do be sure to visit Jan at Redwood House as she's a very creative and talented lady; I always look forward to reading her posts.

So now I have snowy white cloths for my Christmas table. I wish I could say this was actually a picture of my table but sadly it isn't.

It can be found in this book. Its one of my all time favourites and I will be returning to it again nearer to Christmas.

Meanwhile I think I'll settle down with some of my other Christmas publications and look for inspiration for this year's festivities, keeping a watchful eye for ideas that recommend the use of snowy white cloths!

Major upheaval, good result.

A chance remark to my husband has resulted in many weeks of dust, noise and general chaos. This little stone birdbath outside our study window attracts all kinds of birds and its fun to watch them splashing and bathing, especially in warm weather (I wish). Last April, in a mad enthusiastic moment, I said to my husband "Wouldn't it be lovely to have a new French window in the study that would give us a better view of the garden".

When it comes to the possibility of DIY I can rely on my splendid spouse to make an immediate beeline for his toolbox and begin exploring all kinds of possibilities, especially if the idea requires demolition work and a new window certainly would. Along with the old window, large parts of the outside wall would need removing. The walls are solid stone and 2ft thick so the job would require plenty of stamina and staying power.

And so the idea began to take shape and a new oak French window was made by our clever local joiner. Cupboards, fireplace, radiator, wall sockets (and keyholes) were all sealed behind a protective layer of plastic and in August work started. Over the weeks dust has managed to find its way into every available orifice and now several weeks down the line it has invaded the entire house.
     


But thankfully we are on the home straight and the original oak floor, until now hidden by carpet. is being polished.

The walls have been painted and the new window frame has been varnished.

And after all the upheaval and expense I'm happy to say we love the result and do get a much better view of the garden. The birdbath, as you can see, sits centre stage. So now I'm looking forward to being able to sit down with a nice cup of tea and good book and watch the playful birds enjoying the birdbath as I first imagined all those months ago. I will invite you back when its finally finished.

Friday fish

I wonder how many of you eat fish on Fridays? It was a traditional thing to do when I was a child, both at home and at school. My mother used to say people ate fish on Fridays because the fishing boats brought their catches into ports on Thursdays and so it was at its freshest. They probably did this because fish was a Friday dish. In fact the custom dates back centuries and is based on Christian beliefs. (These are explained on the internet so I won't go into detail).

I have always enjoyed fish, so when my son and daughter came along I encouraged them to eat it but sadly with little success. No amount of pleading, bribing or indeed threatening made any difference. Neither did tempting them with small pieces of fish in breadcrumbs generously covered with their favourite tomato ketchup and generous servings of golden chips. Watching them trying to swallow tiny morsels between groans and large gulps of orange juice was painful. Was it, I wondered, because they could visualise the slippery creatures in the water? It wasn't as if they had seen fish being caught or indeed caught their own fish like this happy pair.

After much trying I reluctantly resorted to giving the children chicken whilst my husband and I ate our Friday fish. Admittedly, from time to time I would try again to tempt them but always failed.

We always ate our meals as a family around the table (still do) but when the children's favourite TV programme, 'Thunderbirds', was shown at 6 pm on Fridays our mealtime arrangements had to change. Eating before the programme would have been too early and eating after it too late for the children. So reluctantly I said they could have their evening meal on a tray whilst watching the programme, on one condition....they cleaned their plates. And this they did, every week without fail. I soon realised that they were so engrossed with the story that they didn't really know what they were eating, and so I hatched my plan. The following week I waited for the Thunderbirds programme to start and once the children were totally absorbed in it I passed them their meal on a tray. And so it was that they both ate a full portion of fish (thinking it was chicken) every week and were never any the wiser until I admitted my deception to the them years later. Now, as adults, I'm happy to say they both enjoy fish and eat it regularly.

So all I can say is, "Thank you Thunderbirds and 'International Rescue' for saving my children from what might have been a life without fish".