painting techniques

There is a wonderful little shop  - Country Mouse, not far from me which supplies beautiful painted furniture, vintage items for the home and it is where I buy my Annie Sloan chalk paint!

I attended a furniture painting workshop there yesterday and learnt such a lot!

I picked up the shelf from a junk shop and the little drawers are part of a table top chest my friend Kate found at a Sue Ryder Sale. 

... and the paint? Who else but Annie Sloan, of course!

Amongst so many opened pots of colour, I was in heaven. 

... there were 5 lovely people painting and it was super getting to know them over the paint brushes. 

I loved this contraption - a paint brush drier - you fasten in the wet clean brush and then spin the handle and the brush whirls round and dries (like lettuce leaf spinners) ... 

distressed Old Violet

Provence with black wax in the grain.

I have pots of paint which I bought including Scalet Empress and big plans to paint, paint and paint!

Bonjour - Ca va?

We have been visiting friends in S.W France.

Darcy and Bingley stayed at home and we missed them, especially when we met other cats.

We missed visiting you all too.

'Bernadou' and some of it's occupants ...

Mr Haven walking out with Misty and Casi

Casi

She has a brother called 'Ino' their names derive from the supermarket 'Cas-ino' in France. They were dumped in the car park when they were kittens, but found by our friends and given their forever home at Bernadou.

Boris

cuddles with Casi

This is a close up of Casi's tail - it is not short from injury, she is believed to have been born like it and still wiggles it effectively!

The weather was beautiful and we had a most happy time.

mystery of the alibaba

We both appreciate fine pots ...

they have so much to offer ...

this is Bingley with his wayward fluff ...

he loves discovering his fluff ...

and goes to great lengths to find it ...

and this provides me with hijacking opportunities

Darcy

I know he is in there!

yep, he just can't hide that fluffy tail

its like a serpent

I am going in too!

birdie hunting the easy way

Bingley

[Note: Mrs H would like it to be known that this here birdie box is due to be fixed to the wall out of reach]

Thursday in the garden ~ going potty

Tis the season for potting up! I have had so much snoopervising to do! 

Darcy

First I had to 'botty' warm the potting up tray.

We chose to plant tomatoes - Black Cherry and Purple Russian sent from a friend in Cornwall. Small black with a really delicious kick.

This is one of my old litter trays!

Mrs H used it cos its the perfect size. The seeds are being started off in the conservatory not the greenhouse because it is warmer.

Another job was checking on the compost

(actually I chewed some - a sign of my dedication).

.. then I sat in some of the garden items as part of the sizing process.

Bingley

My brother did very little to assist

(he snoopervised the neighbours instead).

We love Spring.

knock knock

I fell in love with this beautiful door and its floral display when I saw it in Kingsand, Cornwall recently.

Who lives inside I wonder?

paint reveal

 Mrs H didn't get outside much this weekend because she suffered a crazy spell over Annie Sloan chalk paint and spent hours, literally HOURS, painting the cupboards.

She didn't even take out her clothes, just taped up black bin liners!

(slapdash comes to  mind)

Darcy ~ toe warmer

... nor did she use a ladder, but this meant that I could keep her feet warm while she painted!

it wasn't all plain sailing especially with all the slats

(at one point she even appeared to regret starting, I heard her moaning...)

... to top it all she ran out of paint with only a small bit left to cover and so she had to change all her plans the next day so she could go get more paint!

(poor planning comes to mind)

You can see how she tried to make it spread by rubbing an almost dry brush! It is a good job it isn't her main job around here.

Eventually it was done. She used Old Ochre.

Then she went outside to look at the flowers!

night stalker

Here am I. Little Darcy.

Last night I stayed out late! apparently causing considerable angst to my family and even my brother! But I reckon he loved initially monopolising MY most loved inside spots before he decided he did quite miss me. 

Darcy as Spring evenings beckon

I love the scent and birdie preparations for the most lovely period of Nature and am quite distracted and madly excited at this time. When I came out in the afternoon I just had to dash and do a somersault!

I was on the wall chilling as dinner time came... went.... and....dusk began!

Mrs H tried to tease me inside with my most favourite stick.

But I didn't care. The secrets of dusk are everything. 

Then I went forth ..... and was gone... only to return at 11.00pm (an hour after Mrs H is usually asleep but she loves me SO much she was there in the garden to escort me home when I came back (to finish my tea).

one way to spend a lovely weekend

... When we woke up it wasn't raining! We went out to stalk

 ... in the absence of ready birdies a brother makes a useful enough target.

Darcy

I spent some time sat in the tree as the Great Overseer of all birdies garden-wide

Bingley ~ was a mere baby brother watcher below

Darcy - deputy gardener

.. as Mrs H got gardening underway I kept check on progress

(got to help cos she leaves forks and things in the bags)

Then it did rain.

Mrs H took the most special chalk paint in the world (seriously) ...

... and covered the bright blue bookcase in it (with Country Grey).

On Sunday we stayed at home but Mr and Mrs H went to The Vyne, a National Trust property open extra early, they enjoyed soup and some air. Mrs H says it is such good news that the NT are opening up earlier this year; conservation and work on houses and lands can surely be witnessed and appreciated, ... she says

the wetland Hide (along with willow birds?)

and some real ones (just need binoculars)

and then the most amazing old root - a perfect star on a perfect weekend.