Poppy Patchwork


My little bit of this big World

Friday 1 October 2021

That time of the year.

I have changed my kitchen display, I love this old jug, but it has a crack and leaks water, so this is the next best thing, none of the contents are new, most are 2-3 years old, and a true reflection of the season. This will stay until December, when I add Christmas glitter, I love this display so much, autumn is not my favourite time of year, but I do love the colours at this time of year.  
Hubby has been working in the garden, he is closing down the decking, our wooden table and chairs are now covered, the bench and chairs are over 30 years old. The canopy is also packed away, it does flap on windy days, much better to keep it in the dry in the garage. 
This is our winter view, hubby picked up all the leaves yesterday, it no longer looks like this after a stormy night.
 I have been lucky to have Molly a few times on her own, Will is at school everyday now, George goes to nursey for 1 day, soon to be 2 days, so I don't normally have just Molly. This is taken on our spare bed, I pop an old towel on top of my ripple blanket, she was catching her fingers in the yarn. Here she is meeting Tiger who lives on the bed, and has been loved by all our grandsons, and Molly as well, she was talking to him for ages. 

The weather has changed, it's cold most days, I have started wearing my vest each day and socks, the rain has been heavy and stormy, there is a northern cold wind, so sandals are now packed away. Autumn has arrived, the garden still has loads of colour, most will stay until the first frost arrive, we do love to sit inside and watch the birds in the garden, hubby is filling feeders more often. We are spending more time at home and inside, I don't mind the cold but hate to be cold and wet, most of what we need can be got in our village.

Our local haberdashery shop has new owners, it also sell carpets, rugs and curtains, so it has always been a nice shop, but the haberdashery side was run down, the new lady is very passionate about all craft, and has already changed the layout to add more space, the yarns have doubled in size, and she has better quality cotton fabrics, she is selling off loads of things to allow more space. There are now loads of lovely gift items as well. 
Our florist has expanded their gift section, they started small last year and now has given over more space, they will often allow you to choose a pot for them to fill with a floral display. Neither shop have bargain prices, but the do offer a different range of items. 
If you want cheaper prices we have our local bargain shop, which sells great priced yarn, toys and gifts as well as every sized plastic container you might need. We do also have a few charity shops, including Sue Ryder, who sell loads of yarn, I love the charity shops for different containers for my plants. 
2 card shops, one cheap chain and another lovely independent who also sells gifts. 
We do have an old fashioned family owned hardware shop, hubby loves it in there, if you can't find what you want, just ask, they will know where to look, they will often open packs if you only need 1 or 2 items, not as cheap as the big chains, but often they will save you money, it's always our 1st port of call. 
We now have a veg shop and butchers, we use the veg shop but not the butchers, his meat is expensive and often very fatty, we do use another butcher in a village close by. 
Tesco took over part of the old Co-op shop, soon there will be a Costa's and Dominoes Pizza, neither of which we will use, but they should bring in the younger shoppers, which can only help the survival of our village. 
With barbers and hairdresser, and independent model/dolls-house shop, we have a good balance of everything you could want, and only 5 minutes walk from our home, this winter we are planning to stay local and use our lovely shops. 

PS 1st October already !!



11 comments:

  1. It's good having a range of independent shops local to you. Our high street is much the same, Costa and Dominos, along with Subway, moved in a short time ago but we've also got independent coffee shops and takeaways too. A few trendy wine bars have opened recently so it attracts the younger generation in on an evening. We're lucky to have independent butchers, greengrocers and bakers, and even a zero waste refill shop. It's sad to see local high streets declining but I think that's down to councils who are greedy and want high rents as well as charging for parking. That just encourages people to use supermarkets and out of town shopping parks where they're able to park for free. Your garden looks lovely and tidy, though I think picking up leaves will be a daily task now, especially if the winds we've got today continue, it's blowing a gale here.

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    1. Our fruit and veg shop is a zero waste place as well. We have loads of independent cafes as well. Our Magnolia tree drops it's huge leaves late November/ December.

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  2. Your garden looks lovely and Molly looks so cute playing with Tiger. I like Autumn but it has been so wet and windy this week, it's been miserable. However the sun is shining now so I'll be going to the beach as dog restrictions are lifted on 1st October each year.

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  3. What a beautiful granddaughter you have. Our garden furniture is being put into the shed this weekend, can't see us sitting out again this year. We also try to support local businesses whenever we can, especially coffee shops.

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  4. Our local shops were brilliant. When we moved here in the 60's there was practically every type of shop you could want including two wool shops but now it's mostly cafe's and newsagents with a couple of veg shops. So sad and inconvenient as we have to go to the large shopping are to get most things now or order online.
    Briony
    x

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  5. I do like the photograph of Molly with the tiger :)

    Your village sounds very nice and a good range of shops.

    Happy October Wishes.

    All the best Jan

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  6. Your village sounds like a village ought to be (in my opinion!), providing all the basics you might need.
    Molly is a little sweetie :)

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  7. What a lovely collection of positivity - you know I have garden envy and yours looks terrific as we go into Autumn, and your range of local shops sounds brilliant too.

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  8. What a pretty garden. I like all the pots and. It’s and pieces, i hope you keep the black chairs and tables out for the odd al fresco coffee weather permitting,

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    1. Yes we hope to use them when possible, we love to drink our coffee outside when we can.

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  9. Lovely and well maintained garden. You definitely have a good start on getting ready for the winter.

    Molly looks like her and Tiger are having a wonderful conversation.

    God bless.

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