A Sunday in September

September has been sunny so far! It teased us with a couple of chilly days and then boom, the sun came back! You can feel the autumnal chill in the mornings, dew on the grass, cold smell in the air, and the evenings are getting seriously nippy. There are michealmas daisies in the borders and crunchy leaves on the pavements, but there has also been glorious sunshine, big blowy washing days, genuine warmth of late summer. 

All in all, perfect conditions for a carboot sale and a walk, which is exactly what we did a couple of weekends ago. 

Early on Sunday morning, we hopped in the car and drove down to Hayes Street Farm, which is only about 20 mins drive from Hither Green. We had been to this car boot once before and bought lots of very cheap lovely things, and it didn't disappoint this time either. 

It starts at 6am but we only got there at about 10am (it was a Sunday!) and there were still bargains to be had. In fact, sometimes getting there late can be good, because people start selling off cheap.

I love stalls with boxes of books at leaflets like these - sometimes I wish we didn't have the internet, and if you wanted to learn about the Houses of Parliament, you just read a little pamphlet and that was that!

This was another of our favourite stalls - rows of beautiful old tools, each telling their own story, handles worn smooth, ready for their next owner. 

After a cup of tea and a muffin stop, we got back in the car and headed to Dulwich Woods which we had been meaning to visit for a long time. I was craving countryside!

The woods were very pretty and dapply, and we had a nice wander although there were rather alot of other people who had obviously had the same idea. 

We took a picnic and inadvertently attracted a lot of very interested doggies out on their walks!

We came across this old disused railway bridge deep and I had a good old peer into the darkness (couldn't see much).

The leaves and the trees and the branches were so beautiful - I felt inspired to take lots of pictures!

I liked the woods alot - it felt special to be surrounded by trees and leaves in the heart of Dulwich (!) but I was expecting them to be a bit wilder and it wasn't really possible to get lost in them which was a bit disappointing. There was some sort of loud drumming taking place nearby which sort of shattered the peace!

On one side of the woods there was an amazing view of the City in the distance. 

After a good stretch of the legs, we headed home for scones and a cup of tea in the last of the sunshine.

I had a nice time looking at all of our purchases.

Old drawer £3

Vintage bottles and jars £1.50

Enamel basins £1.50

Books £1

Trowel, secateurs and oilstone £15

1970s West German plant pot £3

 Olive necklace £4



Vintage suitcase £15

We also bought two folding garden/camping chairs pictured here for £5 for the two. This was my best purchase as I'd wanted some for ages and these babies sell for about £35 on ebay! Bruce made sure to give them a good sniffing. 

Cat with a penchant for scones £10.50 (we valued him on webuyanycat) - contact me if you're interested. 

We sat on our new chairs, drank our tea, munched our scones and enjoyed the last rays of sun on our faces. Sunday fun-day x

All the leaves are brown

We are truly in Autumn folks. In fact, we're on the cusp of winter. It sort of sneaked up on me! I don’t know about you, but I really love this time of year. I always say to R that I’m looking forward to getting out my winter coat and snuggling up as it gets colder and colder. And he always tells me that come December I’ll be moaning about the cold and wishing the sun would come out. He’s right of course. But at the moment, I’m still enjoying the novelty of damp and chilly mornings, breath pluming in front of your face, fallen leaves and the utter bliss of pressing your bottom against a hot radiator after a trudge home after dark. Mmmm.

We have been trying to get out more and explore our local area on the weekends (instead of submitting ourselves to more hours of DIY) and so have been taking Sunday morning constitutionals in Mountsfield Park which is just round the corner from our house. 

We were thrilled to observe that work has begun on the community garden and it was great to see so many kiddies pushing barrows around and getting all filthy and muddy and thoroughly enjoying themselves. There is also going to be a new playground and maybe a café too which will be great.

The park is in a lovely position, on a hill overlooking Catford and beyond, and is big enough to feel like you’re properly stretching your legs and getting out into the greenery (something that’s very important to a country bumpkin like me). 

I managed to snap some quite atmospheric pictures on what was a rather gloomy morning. 

The colours of the leaves were so beautiful, and everything had a damp, woody smell to it that I love.

 I also managed to collect some sticks and leaves much to R’s amusement.

I put my autumnal treasures to good use later on, and made an autumn garland (R – “a what?”). I love bringing the outside world in – it makes me feel more grounded in the seasons, and reminds me of how beautiful the wide world is out there, beyond the grimness of commuting and sitting behind a computer all day. 

Basically, having a few leaves and twigs (and shells, and feathers, and wool and stones) around the house puts a smile on my face, and that’s got to be good eh? Plus the kitties seem to get a great deal of pleasure out of chewing and hitting said sticks so we’re all happy.

On the weekend I popped home to see mum and dad and have a bit of a rest, as well as to celebrate my Granny’s birthday. I won’t tell you how old she is because I know she wouldn’t want me to reveal it, but what I will say is that you would never believe it to see her. She’s a little firecracker and I hope I’m as lively and feisty as she is when I’m a granny!

On Sunday mum and I headed off to have a mosey around Baileys, which is pretty much my favourite shop in the whole world. Sadly they don’t allow photos, but you can see some of their beautiful things on their website. I love it in the run up to Xmas there, because they hang branches all over the shop and drape them with glass baubles and ribbons. I came away with lots of decorating ideas.

Before I headed off down the M4 I did a little more nature-collecting, with Dad as a very willing branch and holly carrier. I thought while I was in the countryside I would gather up some vegetation with some wreath making in mind.

Anyway, there is so much to do at the moment, and my notebook is full of lists of things to make in preparation of the big C. I’m already feeling excited (I’ll have burnt myself out by the second week of December, watch this space!). I have several craft projects on the go (yes, my craft mojo has returned with a vengeance!) and I will share some of them soon. Until then, I will keep on taking pleasure in watching the leaves changing colour, hot-water bottles in bed, the smell of leaf mould and log-fires and all the other wonderful autumn stuffs.

P.S Wonderful fireworks on the beach at Lyme Regis!