It's not goodbye, it's just until we meet again

We have a tentative date for moving.  Well, more than tentative, but not yet set in stone.  I won't cheer just yet, this house buying lark is a law unto itself.  

We are surrounded by boxes and half packed things at present, and some of my charity shopped treasures are finding their way back to the local charity shops, to start another journey with a new owner (it's a charity shop circle of life!).

I will be going offline very shortly and hopefully normal service will be resumed in a few weeks.  I do have access to a roving modem and my very old netbook but will not be blogging in the interim.  For those of you who blog, I may pop up in your comments if I have time, so you will know I am still around!

Until we meet again!

  

New boots and visiting Bonzo

Despite being a professional guitarist, him indoors' favourite musician of all time was the late, great, drummer John Bonham and he pays an annual visit to his grave.  Ironically, for someone who was so loud in his lifetime, he is interred in one of the quietest places you could find, and one of the most beautiful.  

 The tiny village is cluttered with an architecturally diverse collection of large and expensive houses, the Bonham family farm is nearby.  The church is teeny, and completely silent inside.  A visitor book notes travellers from Manitoba in Canada, California USA and Melbourne in Australia, all in the past week.  Whenever we go, we are the only ones there, it feels so private.

Bonzo's grave is generally piled with items reverently left by fans, it appears to be tidied regularly.  Drumsticks, some with messages attached, are piled behind, coins from all over the world are left on the headstone, and other gifts to the front.

I find the last line on the headstone particularly poignant and upsetting

As usual we leave nothing but footprints and take nothing but photographs.  We bid our goodbyes to Bonzo and will visit again next year, when we will be living just a couple of villages away, hopefully.

Not sure how him indoors always manages to take photos of me with my eyes shut but hey ho!

Wearing: New to me Fatface boots, ebay £42 (RRP somewhere over £120)

Per Una jumper  £3.99,

 BlackYak hat 50p,

 Next denim skirt £1 and

 Pink leather Coccinelle bag £1 all charity shopped

M&S knitted tights 3 for £1 from Oxfam but a gift from a friend

Every Lerose has its thorn - more wardrobe rummage finds

Still clearing things out whilst the house sale continues, I re-discovered this vintage dress purchased earlier in the year, still with charity shop tags (and dry cleaning tags) on.

My Lerose buy was just £4.49. 

You can't see from photos but it is gold lurex and black.  

I do love it, it fits beautifully, but I actually think it's a little long!  I'm not sure of the depth of solid black crimplene along the hemline, compared to that around the neck.  They just don't balance to me.  It is generous in length so I may have a look at the hem. There wasn't a belt with it so I've improvised but I think a plain narrow black belt would go better.

I tried it on with boots and heels (leather and from ebay), I prefer the heels myself but I'm pretty sure a decent pair of boots would cut it, mine are fake suede and horrid!  I found a butter soft leather jacket I bought in a charity shop for £15 (George at ASDA of all things!), my new to me Viyella scarf, a vintage belt (origins unknown!) and beautiful gold colour vintage bark effect Carronade cocktail watch (ebay, part of a job lot for just £18).

    See what I mean about the boots?

Those shoes were worn a lot for work.  I was thrilled with them as they are high but really comfy, and with an unusual popper fastening.  I can drive in them too, always a bonus, and a necessity for me as I don't like swapping footwear.  I also feel quite comfy in this outfit, probably because there is more black for me to hide in!

Now I did say last time that I would make an effort with my hair and make-up didn't I?

Yeah, I lied!!  

Linking up, for the first time, with Patti's Visible Monday!  Woohoo!

What? This old thing? - Wardrobe rummage finds

The house sale continues to trundle along at a sedentary pace, so I'm making use of the time to sort through every item in the house and have a good old declutter.  That includes the wardrobes.  Him indoors has already made some jumper donations to charity, I've acquired quite a stash of fabric (still masquerading as items of clothing!) and we have new dusters courtesy of some old t shirts.

Today I turned my attention to the spare wardrobe in the back bedroom, the place where I hide my second hand treasures (and him indoors has a suit, yes, a three piece suit!).  I did have a bit of a declutter about a year ago and sold some vintage dresses I had acquired donkey's years ago, and was rather attached to.  They didn't suit me and I could not envisage ever wearing them, so onto ebay they went.

I have always had regular wardrobe clearouts, and when you buy second hand that's easy to do with a clear conscience I find.  Thankfully, some pieces just get left behind in the sortout. 

Today I found this fabulous black and white swirly pattern velvet coat, one of a few fur hats I have and used to wear, these gorgeous soft as butter leather Clarks lace up boots with Louis style heel, an old sleeveless dress I wear as a pinafore (with lace top underneath which cannot be seen), and a black with silver thread scarf which was a gift ages ago and I do actually wear occasionally.  Oh, and those tights were straight out of the packet but are a couple of years old, I have a tights habit!

When I had put it all on I felt rather mutton, as in mutton dressed as lamb.  Yet not too long ago I would happily wear similar items to go to work in and not give it a second glance.  I don't like this lack of confidence, and wonder if it is to do with approaching 50?  I was more than happy to hit 40 head on and relished in my confidence and attitude.  I follow older bloggers who could wear the same things and look stunning.  I just feel overdressed. Maybe I've been slobbing around in jeans for too long.  Maybe this is the kick up the backside I need to start dressing up for the day?  Make-up wouldn't hurt either!  I do have some so there's no excuses.

So, do I need to bother dressing up more often or am I mutton dressed as lamb?

Outfit

Velvet coat - Birmingham Rag Market £20 many years ago

Dress - Tesco sale £7 years ago

Boots - ebay £15

Tights - Boots the Chemist sale (probably less than a pound)

Black fur hat - Next sale, less than a fiver

Sparkle scarf - gift 

As I'm wearing a hat I'll take the opportunity to link up with the incredibly stylish Judith of Style Crone for her latest Hat Attack!

Wonderful Witley at Halloween

It's a Friday and it's Halloween, what to do?

Visit a burnt out 19th century John Nash (designer of Buckingham Palace) designed haunted palace, that's what!

Poor Witley Court is a mere ghost of its former self.  Burnt out in 1937 and stripped of all its metalwork (the stunning ironwork gates now reside in the USA at Lake Havasu City in Arizona), it stands forlorn in beautiful Worcestershire countryside. 

 I'm afraid this post is rather photo heavy, Witley is huge and very sprawling, and despite being in ruins there is probably more to see than a lot of places we have visited
The beautiful Perseus and Andromeda fountain is now fully restored and fires on the hour.  Each display lasts 15 minutes and the main fountain is 120 feet, the second highest in England behind Stanway House 

 There is still so much detail left in the stonework

 This wing is allegedly haunted

 Another fountain, as if one is not enough!

 The back of the house, and the largest Portico on a country house in England

 The dormant fountain

The orangery on the left, larger than most executive houses, connected to the main house by a glorious sweep of stone facade

 Close up of the portico

One half of the orangery, complete with ancient grape vines                                                       

View of the fountain from the orangery

 Intricate plasterwork still survives in what would have been the grand staircase

 I'm wearing Moto jeans £1, Timberland boots ebay £12 (including postage), leather bag £1, silk scarf probably 50p or a pound, all second hand and my free jacket from earlier in the year.

Finally, Autumn arrives in England and the leaves are all changing colour

Well, we didn't see any ghosts thank goodness, but Witley is capable of sending shivers down the spine even in broad daylight!