Saturday 4 January 2014

A New Year Begins

Hello Lovelies,
2014...that's got a nice ring to it. I like even numbers and the whole "13" thing didn't sit too well...silly I know, but that's how I feel.
The Christmas decorations are now back in the loft and it's nice to enjoy a bit more space in our little home.
These lovely flowers were a present from my Mum on Christmas eve...........


As was this picture she painted especially for me ( it was an amazing coincidence that I got a Christmas card of the same view a couple of days earlier...which I shared at the end of this post). 


I love both versions and this one will be staying on display all year round.

One of the nicest things about starting a new year is being able to start a new calendar/calendars. 

I bought this one from the Lifeboat museum in Cromer back in August  and I've been looking forward to finally being able to use it.........

it features coastal watercolour paintings by a favourite artist of mine, Emma Ball. You can still purchase it HERE

Another lovely calendar I've been enjoying this week  is the delightful Katie Daisy calendar I won in Heathers give-away..........

 This one is now unavailable, but there's lots more of her beautiful work to see HERE

My next calendar is a photographic one. I've been inspired by Louise at Ramblings of a Roachling. Last year she visited twelve places depicted in a calendar of her local area, the beautiful Peak District  National Park ( THIS post is my favourite, but they are all interesting.

Well, I love where I live, but I'm not good at exploring new corners. This seemed like great way to discover a bit more about places that are easy to visit for a few hours without hours spent in the car.

I  love this photo.

I'm really looking forward to twelve days spent visiting somewhere new this year. Some of the places depicted will be great family outings ( I'm imagining warm sunshine and picnics on colourful crochet blankets) , others will suit just Mum  and I .
 I'm not going to try and visit each place on it's depicted month. For a start this Castle isn't open again till April , I'll just try and tick them all off by the end of the year. And , of course I'll take pictures to share with you lovelies. THIS is the calendar I bought.

This year I'm also keeping up with my local walks. Just a mile or so is enough to fill my lungs with fresh air and clear my head. When the sun shines I head out along my favourite footpaths which are looking properly wintry now..........



The highland cattle seem very glad of the additional fodder..........



And sunlight streams through bare tree branches.........




 On dull days , when it's windy and threatening rain I stick to local pavements, it's nice to see a bit of colour occasionally and I think this shows we haven't had much really cold weather yet........


It's chilly but not bitterly cold and I'm enjoying wearing a skirt with thick tights ( especially as my jeans are a bit tight at the moment ) It's not a fashionable ensemble, my comfy shoes probably look a bit odd but I'm not worried........


I'm not into making resolutions but  I'm trying to eat plenty of fruit and vegetables. I was happy to see these British Braeburn apples in the shops.........

Buying British also makes me happy.

Today the day is dark and wet but the first bunch of happy Daffodils are cheering up my kitchen windowsill .........


I usually buy the little pots of tete-a-tete Morrisons sell at this time of year but last year they were a bit disappointing so I went for a small bunch of Daffodils instead and they are wonderful, delicate and a gorgeous mixture of shades......


With flowers in the kitchen and a warm fire in the hearth in feeling happy on this dark winter day......

Ha, just spotted a Christmas card I didn't take down yesterday, can you see it?

This has turned into a rather long post hasn't it. It does seem odd not writing a ♥Happy♥ post but I expect I'll get used to it soon.
I hope the weather is not being too extreme where you are and I hope you have escaped the dreadful floods if you are in the U.K.
Jacquie x

p.s. the card is on top of the painting reflected in the mirror :0)

30 comments:

  1. Oh I do that every year, put everything away then spot a few bits and bobs I had forgotten to pack up. I love getting my new calender and diary out I got a Katie Daisy planner as a gift this year and I was delighted with it. I set aside a whole morning with my diary and calendar and my iphone and got my new diary and calender up to date, it's a bit of a cleansing thing for me I love it. You have made me want daffs now, I am off for a stroll later I must hunt some down, nothing says spring is on the way like daffs. xx

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  2. There is always just one isn't there :-) I have yet to buy a calendar, for the first time I did not receive one at Christmas. I hope you are safe and warm, the weather has been truly awful. Have a great week x

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  3. Nothing like that new year feeling with fresh new calender and diaries to fill, the water colour you're Mum painted is gorgeous, must run in the family.
    Clare xx

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  4. Dearest Jacquie
    This post made me think about Alice's baby book called Peepo by Janet and Alan Ahlberg. Perfectly beautiful in everyday. Your flowers, your walks and the paintings as well as the fire going while it's grey outside xox

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  5. Lovely calendars, but why not make one of your own and make a lot of them and sell. I would love to bye one och two :-)

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  6. I love Emma Ball and Katie Daisy too! I'm so glad you enjoyed my calendar walks and that I've inspired you to do the same - my walks were all places I'd been to before, but it was really nice some days to be 'forced' to go out and walk when I wouldn't have bothered were it not for my calendar walks series! We had some good walks and I took some lovely pictures!

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  7. love your post and all your lovely pictures. The one your mum did for you was especially lovely you obviously both share a talent for artxxHappy New Year love your blogg i visit oftenxx

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  8. By the hearth is the best place to be at the moment - with a hot chocolate, cake and something woolly ( to be honest I'm just trying to avoid the ironing that's built up over the holidays!) Take care x Jane

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  9. I think you should keep up with your happies if you enjoy them and I also loved reading them. This is a great post as there is so much in it.

    I cant believe you have so many calendars.....I'd be as confused as hell and never in the right place, which actually happens normally but it would be worse I'm sure:-) I've been following Louise's blog too and love her calendar posts but didn't think about doing it myself so I might have a look for a local one and use it as a basis for some outings. There is a lovely farm shop on the way to Helensburgh which has a lovely herd of highland cattle and I just adore them tho' we call them McGowan's Toffee Coo's after the big caramel sweets when I was young. Their colours are just glorious especially when the sun hits them.

    Your stray card made me laugh and recall one of the folk who came to the house when my Dad died some years ago very solicitously asking why we had tinsel round the picture frames in the living room. This was in August and we'd not only forgotten to take down these Christmas stragglers but were totally blind to them! I think the person who asked thought it might be some kind of religious custom instead of a Christmas clearance fail!
    http://gonebeading.blogspot.co.uk/

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  10. your pictures are wonderful. what a talented mother you have-i love the painting she made for you! i'm looking forward to checking out some of your crochet tutorials. the hexagons are great and i've been wanting to make a crochet pillow so maybe i'll try those! i also wanted to thank you for putting my blog in your blog list. i've had so many more views than ever before! very exciting! wishing you a happy new year! jen

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  11. It's going to feel strange to me not writing a Happy post on Monday too, after doing that for a year. I think your skirt is really cute!

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  12. Lovely colourful post as usual. Great idea to visit the places in a calender. I look forward to your visits through the year. xx

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  13. Happy New Year dear Jacquie! Xxxx

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  14. what beautiful flowers - both those from your mum and those lovely daffs and hyacinths!

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  15. great pictures, love the painting, is it somewhere local to you? Love the apple on your hearth, my gran makes xmas apples from material and they small cinnemany (s?)

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  16. I love January, starting new calendars, diaries, notebooks and all the space left behind after Christmas is cleared away. Best wishes for 2014 and looking forward to a new year following your blog. Claire x

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  17. We packed away our christmas decorations today and walked past a remaining item at least half a dozen times after I thought I had got it all! There is always one. Your Mum's painting is beautiful and I can quite see why you want to keep it out all year round. She is a talented lady - she must get it from you!! Lovely to see your little walk, I do like the views of the path alongside the fence that you often seem to take us down. I will miss your happy posts, but I am sure that there will be lots of happy things going on that you will still share with us. Looking foward to your calender trips as and when they happen. xx

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  18. That made for a lovely read at 3.05 in the morning. Been a while since i've been up at this silly time too. Happy New Year :)

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  19. Lovely photos, I am so looking forward to having flowers in my new house, I will be about 5 mins from the city market so hope I might make friends with the flower-stall man! Hoping to get back to regular walks/running again this year - last year was a bit disastrous on the fitness front and you are so right, definitely clears the head. The calendar visits is a really good idea - did you pick the calendar with places you fancied visiting in mind tho?! (PS I rather like the pretty skirt/comfy shoes ensemble - nothing wrong with that :-) )

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  20. Great pictures. I hope 2014 s a wonderfully creative year for you! Happy New Year!

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  21. That's a fab idea to encourage you to visit new places, best of luck!

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  22. Happy 2014! There is always one thing that gets forgotten! I just put my decs in the loft then found a stray piece of tinsel. Love that skirt. Its nice to get out of the jeans at times, tho my legs always feel a bit draughty without them.

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  23. A wonderful post Jacquie, your Mum's drawing is stunning. Thank you so much for your brilliant tutorials.
    luv
    irene
    xxxx

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  24. Just catching up on blogs. Happy New Year
    Julie xxxx

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  25. I follow Louise's blog and its a fabulous idea getting a local calendar. As to the Christmas decorations we have a little box at the bottom of the stairs to collect the stragglers, usually they are all collected by the end of January.

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  26. Hello Lovely Jacquie catching sight of your Christmas card made me smile as it is a well known fact in our family that I always forget at least one decoration or card somewhere. Most of mine are now deposited on the floor waiting to be bagged up and put in the loft - a job I hate with every inch of my life! I loved looking at your fabulous pictures Jacquie and I can see where you get your wonderful artistic talents from - your lovely Mum, what a wonderful picture she did for you. Loved this post Jacquie but then always look forward to reading your blog as it is always full of interesting news and fab photos. Keep warm Jacquie, big hugs
    Dorothy
    :-)xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

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  27. Snap! Another Katie Daisy fan ... we have the same gorgeous calender! Happy New Year Jacquie x

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  28. I love Emma Ball's work I didn't know she had produced so many lovely things. Your Mum's picture is lovely too. Thank you for your kind words, glad your Mum enjoys it too.
    Sarah x

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  29. I am completely in love with your Katie Daisy calendar - so sad to have missed out on it! I will have to set myself a reminder for next year. And I love the Emma Ball one too - I love her drawings and have several small tins, biscuit tins and cake tins and cards too! I've just got the one calendar for this year - a Christmas present from my sister filled with pictures of my niece. but I might try and pick up another in the sale - I rather like your idea of having more than one!
    Jones x

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