...i'm going where the sun shines brightly......

..hooray i'm off on my hols in the morning...

...well i always like to keep optimistic...

...no guarantees of sunshine...

...but north norfolk is one of my most favourite places....

...we have had some fabulous days in dorset...

...these are pictures of 'beer'...

...a lovely dorset coastal village...

...we have shared some happy times with

visiting friends and family...

...big breakfasts...

...chips on the beach..

...pimms and late nights...

....no doubt there's more of this to come..

...but i'll worry about the diet

 on my return!

..wishing you all happy days..

..wherever you are..

..whatever you are doing...

..back soon!

love squirrel

X

...beach bloggy.......

....last week the squirrel met a 

vintage sheet addict!

...yes ada bea and her lovely family

came to dorset for their hols...

....and stayed just up the road!

we met on the beach after watching

the incredible red arrows

performing for the lyme regis 

lifeboat week...

it was so lovely to meet the real person

behind the blog...

and of course there was much to chat about...

...and lots of things in common....

time flew by as we sipped our coffees

on big pink beanbags overlooking the bay...

....so thank you ada for a lovely link-up

and for being my new beach bloggy buddy!

X

....getting back in the groove...

i don't know about you...

but all the heat just scuppered my crafting spirit....

...i just couldn't sew...

...but today I found my mojo...

....I was back in the groove...

....but as I sat down to some fair isle badger sweaters...

....i couldn't bear the idea of wrapping them up in jumpers....

...so i rummaged in my fabric stash..

....and made vintage dresses instead!

....phew that's better!

...look at this amazing little crafty emporium on the beach!

....the stuff that dreams are made on...

***sigh***

....that's gone on my birthday wish list!

..make the most of the sunshine while it lasts!

X

...WINNER!!!!

thank you to all my lovely followers

who entered my giveaway....

.....i wanted you ALL to win but...

...using the very finest technology

(names in a sewing box selected

by the smallest squirrel

multi-tasking by playing on the ipad with the other hand!)

....the winner is....

congratulations Loo!

....other exciting congratulations of the week

with the arrival of the little prince...

...perfect inspiration to get me to complete some unfinished MLA projects!

X

......talent for textiles.........

last thursday, under the arches of the brownsword hall in poundbury,

the squirrel and lazy daisy enjoyed a fabulous morning

foraging for vintage treasure at the lovely

'talent for textiles' market

a cool breeze created an idyllic setting

which gently wafted through the amazing rails of quilts,

costumes and embroidered fabrics

we felt like we could've been in a French market!

we met the gorgeous alice (serious vintage frock envy)

from the homes and antiques magazine

and generally drooled at all the beautiful stalls..

...and wished we had endless funds to invest....

of course we did manage to tuck a few treats in our baskets

...I have always had a soft spot for a sailor...

....this amazing embroidery was found at

Liz van Hasselts  gorgeous 'washerwomans'stall......

.....where we also found this fabric.....

....but had to resist the shoes....(sob)...

.....and the nun statue which I rather fell in love with....

     ....a truly inspiring market...

.... and definitely one for the diary next time it comes to town!

don't forget to enter my giveaway...

winner to be announced on tuesday!

have a lovely weekend 

X

...summer sunshine squirrel GIVEAWAY!

...if it wasn't so hot

you'd think it was christmas.....

....but i think this lovely weather

has put us bloggers in a jolly mood

for giveaways!!!

...i have been pondering a post

about mabel lucie attwell

for a long time....

...but being a bit of a lifelong fan

i didn't know where to start....

....i have been collecting anything 'mabel'

for years....

....i am so lucky to own this original watercolour....

....and i have some of the china...

....and dolls of course!

....so it seemed appropriate that my giveaway should be something very vanilla squirrel...

..so here is the gift up for grabs....

....a mabel lucie attwell plate...

....with a 'mla' magnet....

...a cath kidston squirrel(not vanilla)

 pin cushion....

....and some toadstool clothes plasters 

by jennie maizels

..to enter please be a follower and tell me what is your favourite thing?

i will pick a winner next tuesday 23rd july..

good luck!

x

.....lesley waters kitchen cafe.......

....you can't get better than

 a 'kwik fit' fitter.....

....except perhaps if you go to the yeovil

branch like we did today....

....because whilst we were waiting

for our air conditioning

to be fixed (hurrah!)....

...we discovered

Lesley Water's Kitchen Cafe

just around the corner!

....oh what a joy....

...upcycled furniture, big retro lampshades,

vintage china, quirky touches....

....i just know you'd love it...

....we just stopped for a coffee

and ordered these delicious 

'LW's sweet treats'

(homemade coffee coconut ice and 

fruit and nut chocolate pieces..yummy!)

....then as if that wasn't enough to 

excite the squirrel...

trapeze artist barbies swinging from

the lampshade...

...and a boutique shop!!!

(pip studio, vintage style tea dresses, jewellery

and more stock on the way....)

...what a fabulous idea and 

the staff were all very welcoming and friendly....

....i couldn't resist this flamingo box

that will be used as a storage for 

my overflow fabric stash!

....do pop in if you happen to be in yeovil..

...you'll probably see me there!

X