The hidden orchard, a secret paradise

I love orchards and have a dream of owning one...

And now I have found a secret, hidden orchard.
It is a small field that has been planted with a variety of trees. I made my first visit of this year and it is exploding with life, light and colour.

The gate is locked but I'm afraid I sneak in anyway. I walk gently and cause no harm.

Some of the trees are in full blossom, some yet to come into bud

It is wild and overgrown,

I need to wear my wellies as the nettles are already knee high

It was a bright sunny day and I felt almost breathless with excitement as I looked up through the petals to the clear blue sky

Wherever I looked, it was beautiful! There were poplars by the river

White blossoms-

pale pink cherries

Sugar pink cherries with their ballerina-like tutus

And crab apples, a still deeper crimson.

I wandered around, content and absorbed.

The sun shone warmly through the new leaves

The sweet scent of flowers filled the air

Winter seemed a distant dream.

Happy Birthday 'Pretty Nostalgic' Magazine

As soon as I came home yesterday, I rushed to the doormat and there was my copy of  'Pretty Nostalgic' Magazine-

Reading this unique magazine is always a treat but this time I had an extra reason to be excited...

They had asked me to write an article about the quirky joys of secondhand books and it has been published in this issue.

I'm in print!

If you are intrigued, here is the link. My article apart, it's a truly unique and high quality magazine, with unusual articles, beautiful photographs and a great attitude!

http://prettynostalgic.co.uk/inside-issue/buy-issue-7-now/

In my article I talk about the unusual things found within old books and the particularly personal pleasure they can bring.

My favourite is:

"a tiny wood engraving of hens. It fell out of a 15th-century bible and was probably used as a page

marker. It is dated 1610. It’s incredible that this little slip of paper has survived over 400 years. "

I have a habit of saving favourite photographs and cards in my poetry books. It is such a joy to open a well-loved book and out slips a happy memory

Emily and Sam showing an early love for Jaffa cakes

Emily was 4 years old when she gave me this little drawing. On the back it says ' to Mummy becos you love flaws'

I save love notes and tickets, even shopping lists for a special party. The past is brought back so vividly when I discover and read them again.

A beautiful hand-painted card form my artist friend Nicky

I was recently re-reading and old paperback of ' Women in Love' by D.H. Lawrence. It was filled with my marks and scruffy hand-written notes from 1982 when I was studying at university. It may be a bad habit to write in books but I'm so glad I did!

Of course some handwriting in books is perfectly allowable. This is a recipe from a cookery book, written in 1885.

In my article I write-

 

"I love finding hidden things within the pages.  It is as if, for a moment, I am

connected to the person who owned this book before me."

I hope my little mementoes connect me to the person who owns and reads my books after me.

I will finish now with a final wish to all the lovely people who are involved with ' Pretty Nostalgic' magazine. Long may you brighten my days!

Kiss the Book on Facebook!

This is just a quick little post, as I've been setting up a page on facebook. Juggling photographs seems to take forever!
I hope that this link below works and if you are a user of facebook, please come along and have a look.

https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Kiss-the-Book/205051982868914?fref=ts


I plan to post about new stock, taking photographs and describing the exciting things I find.
Have a happy Tuesday everybody!

Artisan Spring Fair

Hooray! Spring is here and with it comes the first of this year's fairs for the Artisans.

This Sunday, April 28th we will all be gathering at the South Newton and Wishford Village Hall

(Just outside Salisbury, Wiltshire on the A36 two miles north of Wilton)

I will have raided my shelves in the love shack-

And hope to make my table tempting!

There are over a dozen stall holders and the fair will run from 11.00am to 4.00pm with FREE ENTRY and a large free car park nearby.
There will be an exciting mix of stalls with fine vintage and ephemera, alongside the handmade and inspirational.
You can find textiles, knit ware, linens, jewellery,paintings, glass and china, photography, home wares and more..

There will be refreshments and delicious homemade cakes available throughout the day.

Oh yes, I ought to mention... I'm bringing along a few books....

To find out more details please follow this link

http://artisanfairs.blogspot.com/

A sad start to the day

Just as Spring is creeping in and all is beginning to bloom, in a quick, cruel moment the other side of Nature is shown to me.
Last night a fox visited our terrace gardens. My neighbours hens have all gone and my three ladies were wiped out too. He took and ate the youngest and then, with that senseless side of fox nature, bit the heads of the other two and left them. Perhaps he plans to come back and eat them later and maybe there is his family to feed but I am left hen-less and feel bereft indeed.
I'm very fond of my chickens and watching their simple, vigorous enjoyment of scratching, eating and dust-bathing in the sun never failed to give pleasure.
So, to mark their passing, I thought I'd post a few photographs, to make me smile as I remember them.

This is Madame Pompadour guarding her chicks and settling down for the night in their tree-

A closeup of our little grey hen at about a week old

The two ladies in the garden last year-

And this winter, in the tree despite the snow-



Marie Antoinette



And finally, as is fitting, the last photo of the most beautiful eggs that they laid

I will have some more hens, but I shall leave it a while, especially as Mr Fox may still be sniffing around.

In Pursuit of Spring

Thaw

Over land speckled with snow half-thawed

The speculating rooks at their nests cawed

And saw from elm-tops, delicate as flower of grass

What we below could not see, Winter pass

This perfect short poem by my favourite poet Edward Thomas, seems to capture that subtle shift from one season to another.

Warm days, with the sun on our shoulders, buds bursting and the trees blossoming are on their way!